Corpse Collector

Old Gun Tavern was a Hunter's Tavern.

The entire three-story building was packed with treasure hunters seeking pleasure.

Heavy metal music blasted into their ears like artillery fire. Scantily clad women twisted their sexy bodies onstage, and the air was thick with hormones. Restless men and women were everywhere; even the dim lighting seemed like a catalyst for desire, illuminating faces that made no attempt to hide their lust.

Ji Xun squeezed through the crowd and reached the bar.

He glanced at the price list and called to the bartender, "A pitcher of beer."

A pitcher of beer cost eighty.

It was the cheapest item on the menu.

He sat on a barstool and took a sip of the frothy beer. It tasted slightly bitter, but at least it was strong.

Ji Xun drank while observing everything in the tavern. His ears automatically filtered out the deafening music, catching the conversations at every table and separating them into intelligence and idle chatter.

The hunters no longer talked only about cave explorations and adventures.

There were more women and dirty jokes.

And some other things as well.

What Ji Xun particularly cared about was new intelligence concerning Sinless City.

Those were the messages filling his ears.

"Sinless City's gotten a lot of new faces lately."

"How could it not? The Federal Council issued an expansion order. Several thousand people come down from all the major cities every day. The elevators are practically smoking."

"Heh, no wonder it's gotten so lively after I was gone for just a month."

"The situation doesn't look good. Those big shots in the Federal Council have their eyes on the Old Continent's relics. They want to forcibly bring it under their control. If those greedy noble lords get control of Gold Digging Dock, forget anything else—they'll take seventy percent in taxes from every traveler. Hunters like us won't have it easy."

"Fuck their taxes! I've already been exiled, and they still want me to pay taxes? If those noble dogs dare stick their paws in here, I'll chop them off!"

"Does the Cao Family really think that just because they've got the title of Governor, they're the lords of Sinless City? Heh. They want to set up a security office in the lower city? Fucking wishful thinking!"

"Yeah. Isn't it enough for them to play noble lords in the upper city? They have to reach down here too. Those enforcement officers who came to the lower city a few days ago—weren't their corpses dumped in a stinking ditch? I'm telling you, that governor will die violently sooner or later."

"Hahaha, exactly! Fuck the nobles!"

"..."

What the hunters discussed most was the current state of Sinless City.

The conflict between the nobility and the commoners already carried the unmistakable scent of gunpowder in their words.

Ji Xun listened with great interest.

Sinless City was crueler and more fascinating than he had imagined.

After listening for a while, the fragmented pieces of information in his mind finally came together, confirming his earlier guess.

This was a subterranean world.

There was no sky, no sun, and no moon.

Humans lived in the underground caverns like ants.

Yet the thick rock strata contained extraordinarily abundant resources and Ancient Relics.

Mining, treasure hunting, and exploring unknown caves.

This was a world where everyone was a treasure hunter!

And the reason this place was called the "City of Sin" was that it had originally been a place of exile for the kingdom.

That Abyssal Rift had once been what people in this world believed to be the "end of the world."

Like a dumping ground, the Federation exiled vicious criminals to the end of the world, leaving them to reclaim the wilderness and fend for themselves.

Thus, for many years, the city had been packed with all manner of criminals, mercenaries, war criminals, gangsters, bandits, murderers, thieves, and schemers.

There was no one in this city innocent in the eyes of the law. It was a true city of crime.

Only then did Ji Xun understand why every hunter he had seen carried such a fierce air. They were all exiled criminals.

But that changed a few years ago.

While exploring beyond the rift, some adventurers accidentally discovered an iron chain embedded in a wall—the runic chain now connecting to Gold Digging Dock.

Only then did they learn that the Abyssal Rift was not the end of the world.

The adventurers followed that iron chain to the other side of the world.

They discovered another continent.

Later, they learned that it was the Old Continent from ancient records, the land from before the Great Cataclysm!

A lost history buried for thousands of years had thus lifted its mysterious veil.

The Old Continent was shrouded in Black Mist, crawling with monsters, and killing intent lurked everywhere.

But at the same time, it held countless ruined cities, ancient treasures, and rich mineral deposits!

Demon Cross was merely one relic among them.

With that earth-shattering discovery, Sinless City entered a period of explosive growth that could no longer be stopped.

Later, countless treasures were unearthed—enough to make even those noble lords green with envy.

Then one day, the news suddenly spread.

Almost overnight, Sinless City, once a forgotten corner of crime, became a scorching-hot destination for treasure hunters.

Half a year ago, the Federal Council issued an expansion order and established the Governor's Mansion of Sinless City, intending to claim this treasure trove for the Federation.

For a time, enormous numbers of outsiders flooded into Sinless City.

Not only were criminals and refugees exiled here in droves to reclaim the land, but nobles, the Official Legion, smugglers, opportunistic merchants, and countless treasure hunters arrived as well.

New faces poured in almost every day.

"So that was it."

After piecing together the origins of Sinless City in his mind, Ji Xun finally understood why the Cao Family at the Governor's Mansion was so unwelcome.

The Cao Family was indeed powerful. Its main branch even included one of the Federation's Grand Councilors.

But after being parachuted into Sinless City with no foundation here, aside from their own guards and several Mercenary Groups bought with money, the governor could command no one.

Sinless City was filled with exiled criminals who were already deeply hostile toward the Federation. No one gave a damn about any "expansion order."

After so many years as a lawless land, Sinless City had developed its own operating order.

At the very least, hunters did not have to pay taxes on treasures they had risked their lives to obtain.

Now those noble lords had their eyes on the Old Continent, this juicy piece of meat, and wanted to turn Sinless City into kingdom territory to continue exploiting it. Naturally, that would not work.

The conflict between the two sides only grew fiercer.

As Ji Xun listened, he unknowingly drank more than half his beer.

More and more people entered the tavern, and the atmosphere reached its peak. The pounding music hammered at their eardrums, while the scent of Hallucinogenic Potion drifting from bursts of white mist stimulated everyone's hormones.

Ji Xun sat alone at the bar, and someone had noticed him long ago.

Suddenly, a soft, delicate body bumped into him.

Ji Xun turned his head and saw a charming bunny girl. She was fairly pretty, with a graceful, curvaceous figure.

She cooed, "Oh my, sorry. Handsome, are you alone?"

Ji Xun merely raised an eyebrow.

Seeing this, the woman did not mind pressing her body against his arm at all. She asked alluringly, "My name's Sally. Can I have a drink with you?"

Ji Xun naturally knew this was not some lucky romantic encounter.

It was a paid service.

Or perhaps someone had noticed him drinking alone.

When he said nothing, the woman seemed to read his mind and immediately called to the bartender, "One Matador."

Ji Xun said nothing either.

He had no intention of standing out.

He had checked the price list earlier. The drink was 399, not too expensive.

So he gallantly took out four banknotes.

After all, aside from professional Information Brokers, tavern girls like these also knew plenty about Sinless City.

Oh, no.

These girls who frequently came into contact with all kinds of hunters were most likely informants for Information Brokers to begin with.

Ji Xun had heard before coming here that everything in Sinless City had a price, including intelligence.

Knowing the rules would save him a lot of trouble.

Watching him pay, the woman smiled sweetly with narrowed eyes and clung to him even more intimately. "Handsome, did you just get back from the wilderness?"

"Mm."

Ji Xun knew the smell of the carriage had seeped into him. There was no point denying it.

The two drank and chatted casually.

Ji Xun vaguely probed for information he wanted, while the woman treated it as idle conversation and answered whatever he asked.

Just like that, nearly half an hour passed, and the atmosphere remained harmonious.

Seeing that the drinks were almost finished, Ji Xun figured asking anyone was the same. Wanting to make his 399 worth it, he directly asked the question he most urgently wanted answered. "By the way, Miss Sally. I want to switch to a different Breathing Technique. Do you have any recommendations?"

Seeing how utterly unromantic he was, the woman pouted charmingly. "Handsome, don't you want to talk about something else?"

As she spoke, she pressed even closer against him, her suggestive intent already obvious.

But in Ji Xun's eyes—

That's it?

It was far inferior to the Fallen Witch's seduction.

Ji Xun's performance gave no outsider the slightest indication that he was a newcomer to Sinless City. He looked exactly like a seasoned hunter who frequented taverns.

He reached out and gave a slight test, out of respect.

Mm, soft and smooth. The feel was not bad.

But his body was still in a "weakened state."

It was sage mode. He had no time to entertain her.

More importantly, his need for a Breathing Technique was already urgent.

A negative status called "Slight Loss of Control of Curse Power" had appeared on his Attribute Panel.

It felt like getting the wind knocked out of him. That curse power kept surging chaotically through his body.

He had heard the hunters in the carriage mention before that this was a sign of uncontrolled mutation.

Ji Xun knew the reason perfectly well.

The little curse power he had was all absorbed from corpses, and he had no idea how to control it himself.

And he remembered another saying hunters often repeated: Breathing Techniques were the most effective way to prevent mutation.

After asking so many questions, the woman already understood that the man before her had come purely to gather information.

He was lecherous but not impatient—or perhaps he simply had no interest in her looks?

Still, she had professional ethics.

If a customer paid, she had to provide something of equal value.

Sally thought that since he was a hunter, he surely practiced a Breathing Technique.

So she assumed that Ji Xun probably wanted to replace it with a better one and muttered, "Oh~ Ordinary Breathing Techniques sold on the market can only be cultivated to the ninth stage of curse power at most, and they're inefficient too. You really should switch to a better one."

As she spoke, she continued, "But Black Iron Quality Breathing Techniques aren't easy to find. You might occasionally see one at auctions held by the United Chamber of Commerce."

While speaking, she also watched Ji Xun's expression and added, "Then there are the major Hunter Groups and mercenary groups. Like Battle Axe, Hydra, Golden Harp, and Stormwind. If you're willing to join a permanent group, handsome, you might have a chance to receive a Black Iron Breathing Method after entering an elite squad."

"..."

Ji Xun remained calm throughout and still said nothing.

Inwardly, he silently memorized all of that information.

He had heard hunters mention before that joining a Hunter Group or Mercenary Group required signing contracts, along with participating in group reclamation missions.

It was essentially a contract of servitude.

While gaining resources, one would also be obligated to carry out tasks assigned by the group's management.

Ji Xun had no plans to join any Hunter Group for now, so he immediately dismissed that route.

Reading people's expressions was part of the woman's professional skill. Seeing Ji Xun's calm expression, she assumed he looked down on Black Iron Quality and required something better.

Her bright eyes turned, and she changed course. "Silver Quality Breathing Techniques are much rarer. I know the Hunter's Guild has a few, and the major gangs do too, but—"

She did not finish, seemingly assuming the customer before her knew what she had left unsaid.

Those were paths that ordinary people would never dare covet.

"..."

Ji Xun listened quietly.

So Breathing Techniques came in so many different qualities?

Seeing that he still said nothing, the woman continued, "There's also the Governor's Mansion's 'Enforcement Officer Training Camp.' Their public recruitment notice says they provide Breathing Techniques for free, along with the complete Hearts 6—Enforcement Officer Professional Sequence and subsequent advancement paths. After all, the Cao Family are High Nobles. They certainly don't lack Breathing Techniques or Profession Cards."

But as she said that, she also gave him a reminder. "Still, handsome, you should know that Sinless City isn't very friendly toward enforcement officers. Even with such generous conditions, hardly anyone goes. You—"

Ji Xun spoke at the right moment. "I'm not interested in being an enforcement officer."

How could he still fail to see the conflict between the upper-city nobles and lower-city hunters?

If he dared say in the lower city of Sinless City that he wanted to become an enforcement officer, his corpse would probably be dumped into some unknown gutter by tomorrow.

The woman racked her brains before continuing, "Then there's the Physician Association. They recruit medical apprentices, but their Breathing Techniques lean toward healing, so few hunters choose that route. Finally, there's the Black Market, but I imagine you've been to places like that before. Without a familiar connection, it's easy to get taken advantage of, so you can only try your luck. There are also fighting tournaments at casinos, where Profession Cards and Breathing Techniques are sometimes offered as prizes. But I'd suggest that, when you have time, you visit the Hunter's Guild market on Glow Street in South City first. There are often unexpected surprises there."

Ji Xun was not looking to replace a Breathing Technique. He simply had never learned one.

So his requirements were not that high.

Given his current situation, he thought it would be fine to find any Breathing Technique to make do for now.

After hearing the woman out, Ji Xun had a rough idea of what to do. He planned to visit the hunter market first.

Having said all that, the woman saw that the customer before her had not given much response. Thinking she had talked too much, she put on the appearance of being unable to hold her liquor and cooed, "Oh~ Sorry, handsome. The alcohol's gone to my head. I think I said a lot of nonsense."

Ji Xun smiled. "No. It was quite good."

To others, this might have been common knowledge.

But it was very useful to Ji Xun.

At the very least, the information had been worth the price of the drink.

Seeing that the woman had finished her drink, she prepared to call the bartender for another.

Seeing this, Ji Xun immediately got to his feet.

He did not have much money on him, and he had no intention of spending it all here.

Mechanical apprentices in the city factories earned less than 3,000 a month. A few drinks had already cost him several days' wages; it was not cheap.

Besides, he could not gather information in one place. Otherwise, it would be easy for others to learn his background.

Ji Xun rose and naturally wrapped an arm around the woman's slender waist. "Thank you, Miss Sally. I'm a little tired tonight, so I'll stop drinking here."

There were hundreds of nightclubs on Downing Street. He planned to look around somewhere else.

The woman froze when she saw him getting up to leave. "Huh?"

Wasn't he going to do anything else?

Before she could figure it out, Ji Xun had already left his seat and squeezed into the crowd.

The woman was left standing alone at the bar, utterly confused.

Just then, a man who looked like a pimp approached and asked, "Sally, what was the deal with that unfamiliar face just now?"

The woman spread her hands. "Just a hunter who came back from exploring the caves. He was asking about Breathing Techniques. Not worth paying attention to."

The pimp raised his brows. "Oh?"

"Ah, I thought I could get a little more out of him tonight, but he only had two drinks."

The woman complained with some boredom, swirling her empty glass in her hand. Then the corners of her eyes curved as she smiled and added, "Still, he was pretty handsome~"

The pimp gave her a helpless glance and said, "Be more alert. Something big might happen in the city these next few days. Also, Demon Cross sent instructions today—information has been very valuable lately."

The woman rolled her eyes. "I know."

Sinless City was enormous. There was no need to familiarize himself with it all in a single day.

Ji Xun left the Old Gun Tavern. He wanted to sit in another tavern, learn a little more information, and then visit the market district.

The huge mechanical pendulum clock atop the distant bell tower swung incessantly, pointing to twelve.

It should have been midnight.

Though Downing Street was brightly lit, chaos and disorder lurked beneath its prosperity. Sewage flowed through the pothole-ridden streets. Rats boldly rummaged for food in alleyway trash bins. Ragged beggars could be seen everywhere along the roadside, along with punk gang members casting hostile looks.

The jarring contrast between wealth and poverty was everywhere.

As Ji Xun walked down the street, something suddenly caught the corner of his eye. Is that guy keeping watch?

He had originally been looking to see whether anyone nearby was seeking trouble with him, but he noticed something else instead.

A green-haired young man crouched at the entrance to an alley between two buildings, his gaze fixed on the Bull Tavern across the street.

Several more figures were hidden in the shadows behind him.

A very clumsy surveillance method.

At the very least, it was far inferior to those from Demon Cross who had tracked him.

Seeing that they were not after him, Ji Xun had no intention of getting involved.

He slowed his pace, unwilling to invite trouble.

Not long after he stopped, the butterfly door of the Bull Tavern was pushed open, and several burly men in blue Gold Digging Dock work uniforms emerged.

At the same time, the green-haired young man in the alley spotted them. He waved nervously, and the few people hiding in the darkness suddenly drew their weapons.

An assassination?

Only then did Ji Xun understand what was happening, and he quickly found cover.

In an instant, the guns in the green-haired men's hands erupted with rat-a-tat-tat muzzle flashes.

The burly men were caught in the ambush and hurriedly took cover. Then they too drew their sidearms and returned fire.

The two sides immediately began trading fire in the street.

For a time, rapid gunfire crackled through the street like firecrackers.

Yet before the gunfire had lasted long, a third force joined in.

More than a dozen Steam Motorcycles sped over. A group of obvious gang members dismounted, pulled out all kinds of weapons, and sprayed bullets wildly at the green-haired group in the alley.

The entire firefight ended in less than two minutes.

The green-haired group of inept assassins was wiped out, while the other side also suffered several casualties.

The motorcycle gang that arrived later checked the bodies and took away their equipment and whatever they had been carrying.

They left behind a street full of corpses.

He had stumbled into a shootout for no apparent reason, and it ended just as inexplicably.

Ji Xun's eyelids twitched as he watched, and he could not help laughing bitterly. Are the people of Sinless City really this down-to-earth?

Fighting and killing in the ruins was one thing, but he had not expected people to start a gun battle right in the city.

Most absurdly, aside from being startled, the pedestrians on the street did not seem to find it strange at all.

As if an improvised entertainment show had just played out, no one cared.

In the blink of an eye, the major taverns were packed again, with everyone eating and drinking as usual.

The corpses still lay in pools of blood.

Ji Xun fell into thought.

Wanting to see what happened next, he remained where he was.

Before long, a black steam truck hurried over from the side of the street.

Four people in black uniforms and gas masks climbed out of the truck carrying body bags.

Ji Xun watched them work over the corpses for a moment, then efficiently collect the bodies, place them into the bags, and load them onto the truck.

The black truck drove away again.

Ji Xun watched it go, but something else caught his attention.

He saw an advertisement on the side of the black truck: "Golden Oak Security Company recruiting corpse collectors. ￥3,500/week. Address: 117 East City Street."

Corpse collectors earn that much?

Ji Xun was surprised at first glance.

The pay rivaled that of most hunters who went out into the ruins.

But something else mattered more to him.

Corpses?

Demon Feast needed corpses with Extraordinary Traits. He had been worrying about where to find so many to devour.

The moment he saw that advertisement, Ji Xun had already decided on his livelihood for a long time to come.