"Um... Lu Ding, right?"
The man called out.
Lu Ding turned around. He had noticed these two earlier, but with a monster in front of him, he had to kill it. Their attitude toward the monster and what had just happened, however, had caught his attention.
"I'm Lu Ding. Who are you?"
Zhou Jie wore a smile, his manner friendly. "We're trainee investigators from Bureau 749. I'm Zhou Jie, and she's Long Shanshan."
"We came today to ask you about what happened at the construction site earlier. This isn't a good place to talk. Could we go somewhere else?"
Bureau 749!!!
That name rang like thunder in Lu Ding's ears.
In both his previous life and this one, it had been shrouded in mystery.
And with truth and falsehood mixed together, there had been no way to verify anything.
He had never expected people from Bureau 749 to come knocking today.
Lu Ding nodded. "Let's talk at my place."
He turned around, about to collect his spoils, only to find that the wangxiang's corpse, which had been lying on the ground, had vanished!
"Huh!!?"
Long Shanshan explained, "That was a Wood Wang, a spirit of wood and stone. After death, it dissolves into the soil."
So that was how it worked. Lu Ding hadn't known that.
He thought it was a pity. If he could have preserved it, it might have been useful.
Seeing the regret on his face,
both Zhou Jie's and Long Shanshan's eyebrows twitched. They had read Lu Ding's file on their way here.
Aside from his excellent grades, he was currently an entirely ordinary person, at most a little mature for his age.
But given Lu Ding's background, that maturity was perfectly normal.
His behavior now, however, was nothing like what an ordinary person should display.
Never mind how he had faced the yet-to-emerge South Mountain Stubborn Stone with a hammer drill, drilling until he was covered in blood without showing the slightest fear, looking excited instead-now he had brutally killed a Wood Wang and looked disappointed that he couldn't collect its corpse.
And you're telling me someone who acted like this was just an ordinary person!!!?
They followed Lu Ding home.
Looking at the stubborn stone fragments laid out in the living room, the two let out another long breath.
After some thought, Zhou Jie decided to speak. "Lu Ding, you can't just leave the South Mountain Stubborn Stone lying around."
"Huh? Why?"
"Because it's an essence of heaven and earth. It shares an origin with things like taisui, though they're different kinds. It has a very strong attraction for all sorts of spirits, demons, and monsters. That Wood Wang was probably drawn here by it."
Lu Ding's eyes lit up.
There was a benefit like that, too!
Then he'd have to take this thing out for a stroll!
Right now, Lu Ding wanted nothing more than for more monsters to come looking for him!
Seeing that something was off about his expression, Long Shanshan guessed something and hurriedly spoke up. "Don't do anything reckless. Attracting a Wood Wang is a small matter, but if you draw in something terrifying, forget fighting it-you won't even be able to escape."
Hearing that, Lu Ding gave up on the idea.
Although he wanted to kill monsters for more rewards, he would be in serious trouble if he attracted something he couldn't afford to provoke.
He put away the South Mountain Stubborn Stone fragments.
The three sat down.
Zhou Jie pressed the recorder on his chest and said, "Then I'll begin."
"Lu Ding, we'd like to ask whether you opened your apertures while killing the South Mountain Stubborn Stone."
"Opened my apertures?"
Lu Ding didn't quite understand.
Zhou Jie patiently explained, "People like us are called qi refiners. It's like the immortal cultivators in novels. To become an immortal cultivator, you need spiritual roots. In the real world, there's no such thing as spiritual roots. It's all about talent."
"With this sort of thing, either you have it or you don't. Ordinary people with cultivation talent generally look no different from anyone else. Their talent only manifests when they encounter an external stimulus or undergo a baptism, as you did."
"There's no need to explain stimulation. Let's focus on baptism. Baptism is also called Spirit Kindling and Aperture Opening. You use heavenly materials and earthly treasures to awaken your talent, turning it from latent to manifest. During this process, there's a certain chance of absorbing and awakening the magical talent of whatever was used for Spirit Kindling and Aperture Opening."
"The South Mountain Stubborn Stone's blood, and even the stone itself, are heavenly materials and earthly treasures. So that slashing ability of yours very likely came from absorbing the South Mountain Stubborn Stone's talent. You also have a talent of your own. I don't know whether you've noticed it yet."
Lu Ding pondered.
This was good. It saved him the trouble of explaining.
As for a talent of his own, that could lay the groundwork for his future rewards.
He shook his head and asked the question on his mind. "Then is it possible to absorb and awaken more talents like that later?"
"No. You only have a chance to absorb and integrate that talent into your instincts during your first Spirit Kindling and Aperture Opening. Of course, you can acquire all sorts of spells and divine abilities through study afterward. They just won't be as natural to wield as your own arm."
Lu Ding understood, and he had learned something new.
He followed Zhou Jie's lead. "Then I suppose I've opened my apertures."
Just as we thought!
Zhou Jie and Long Shanshan thought in unison.
The South Mountain Stubborn Stone was a rare treasure. Using it for Spirit Kindling and Aperture Opening and becoming a qi refiner was perfectly normal. Though reasonable, it had still been unexpected.
Absorbing the talent of the object used to open his apertures was plausible.
But the odds were simply far too low.
And once someone succeeded, they would possess two talents.
That put them a huge step ahead of others. It was truly enviable.
Not to mention that Lu Ding had such terrifying combat power as soon as he opened his apertures.
Comparing yourself to others really could anger you to death.
Zhou Jie and Long Shanshan also credited Lu Ding's current terrifying strength to the South Mountain Stubborn Stone.
They had originally thought this was just a minor incident in their patrol area. Who could have known a South Mountain Stubborn Stone would be involved? Had they known it was here, official investigators would probably have come instead.
After the questioning ended,
Zhou Jie brought up the main event.
"Here's the situation, Lu Ding. Bureau 749 has two sets of management standards for people like you who have opened their apertures. The first is to join Bureau 749 and start as a trainee investigator. Once you complete ten missions or contain ten monsters, you can become an official investigator."
"Official investigators get seven insurance plans and three funds, plus a monthly salary of fifty thousand yuan. Mission pay is calculated separately. Trainee investigators also get thirty thousand yuan a month, with separate pay for missions. You have to take at least one mission each month."
"In addition, joining Bureau 749 gives you access to cultivation resources and cultivation methods you can redeem, as well as teachers to guide your cultivation. It's like joining a sect in a novel. Beyond that, you'll have many privileges when operating in society, including but not limited to carrying firearms, unconditional cooperation from local departments, and the highest temporary command authority in the area."
"The other option is not to join Bureau 749. But you must guarantee that you won't endanger society and report to your local Bureau 749 office once a month. You're also forbidden from leaving the country."
Anyone who wasn't an idiot would know which of these two options to choose.
Joining Bureau 749 came with so many benefits. Why wouldn't he join? Besides, Lu Ding felt quite a sense of belonging toward Great Han. After all, he had only been able to live reasonably well until now, with a home to live in and schooling, thanks to Great Han's various subsidies and assistance.
Getting an iron rice bowl seemed pretty good, too.
And he could cultivate as well. That interested Lu Ding most.
"You mentioned cultivation just now. How does that work?"