The Commission

Luo Ruzhuo did not take Anna's concerns to heart.

Deep Purification was still a long way off for her. There was no point in worrying about the future now.

With her questions resolved, Luo Ruzhuo took the imperial green badge from inside her clothes. It was a deep emerald green throughout, its color shimmering in the light. At first glance, it bore some resemblance to the crystal cores in zombies' brains in her previous life.

The energy of some mysterious substance flowed slowly through both, inviting closer investigation.

She studied it intently for a moment, and the mental power in her mind seemed to whisper of a desire.

Luo Ruzhuo could not resist pressing it against her forehead.

The moment its cool, smooth surface touched her skin, a stream of pure energy flowed from the point of contact into her mental power. Like a trickle joining the sea, it moved naturally and smoothly, without the slightest obstruction.

Luo Ruzhuo gently closed her eyes, feeling the gentle power spread through her mental sea, gradually replenishing the mental ability she had exhausted fighting the zombie horde before her rebirth.

As she examined her mental sea, she discovered a speck of orange-yellow light nestled deep at the root of her mental domain. Like a tiny heart, it pulsed steadily. Its movements were slight, but tenacious.

Is this my Mental Entity? For no apparent reason, Luo Ruzhuo felt a rush of affection for it.

Compared with how it had looked on the instrument before, though, it seemed a little bigger. The tiny, translucent speck had become a round, orange-yellow ball of light, giving off a soft glow.

As though sensing Luo Ruzhuo watching it, the naked sea butterfly swayed gently. A feeling of unreserved trust, like a child's adoring attachment, reached Luo Ruzhuo's mind.

Thanks to the gift from its main body, it felt it had grown a little bigger!

It's so tiny. Remembering that its adult form was only as big as a fingernail, Luo Ruzhuo could not help smiling.

She had forgotten that a guide's sensory awareness was connected to her Mental Entity. Such blatant, open mockery naturally did not escape the naked sea butterfly's notice.

A wave of indignation came from the little speck of light. No matter how Luo Ruzhuo prodded it with her mental power, it refused to move.

Luo Ruzhuo was at a loss. All right, just like me, it has quite a temper.

Her time off passed in a flash. Luo Ruzhuo spent the next two days in peace, until a special commission was placed before her.

The newly arrived S-rank guide from the Northern Dipper District had likewise been unable to clear the dragon's contamination. Like the male guide who had acted on his own and been injured before her, she could not even break through the sentinel's mental barrier.

So far, the only thing that had truly worked was Luo Ruzhuo's Guide Element. But Guide Element could only be produced once a month, and after injections every few days, the supply had long since run out.

Besides, injections were no long-term solution. The longer they waited, the slimmer Xianzhu's chances of returning to normal became.

Through the Black Tower, Lin Sheng and the entire Firmament Squad formally requested that Luo Ruzhuo take responsibility for Captain Xianzhu's long-term purification.

"Long-term purification" here did not mean forming a bond with a fixed sentinel. Rather, it meant assigning her to purify a severely contaminated patient over a period of time, much like a private attending physician. Such commissions were private arrangements. If Luo Ruzhuo agreed, she would have to accompany the Firmament Squad and their captain to the Central District, and all her other scheduled purification sessions during that time would have to be postponed.

Luo Ruzhuo rubbed her fingers together and asked the Black Tower whether this counted as an official assignment or private work.

She had her own calculations. Two S-rank guides had failed to handle such a dangerous assignment, and now they wanted her to take over. If something happened and the Black Tower's guarantee was not there to shield her, wouldn't there be every downside and no benefit?

This time, Fang Yingbai answered readily.

SS-rank sentinels were an important resource for the Federation. What was more, Captain Xianzhu's Mental Entity was currently the only fantasy species in the interstellar realm. Both the Black Tower and the Sentinel Association were closely monitoring his recovery.

The Black Tower encouraged her to purify Xianzhu. The message Fang Yingbai passed on was clear: if the purification succeeded, it would be recorded in her service assessment booklet, in addition to the enormous commission fee offered by the Firmament Squad. It could shorten her term of service by approximately six months.

Luo Ruzhuo lowered her eyes and repeated that last part silently to herself.

Six months.

She raised her hand and opened the contacts list on her optical computer.

Despite having added so many contacts, this was Luo Ruzhuo's first time using an interstellar-era video call on her optical computer.

It was almost as real as having Lin Sheng standing in front of her. Luo Ruzhuo could even see the dark circles that had reappeared beneath his eyes and the fine lines at their corners.

"I accept the Firmament Squad's commission," she said without beating around the bush. "But I need sufficient guarantees to ensure my safety."

Captain Xianzhu had put an S-rank guide in the hospital. Although the prospect of shortening her service by six months tempted Luo Ruzhuo, she was not foolish enough to overlook how dangerous he currently was to guides.

"Miss Luo, please rest assured." Lin Sheng had long since planned the arrangements for inviting Luo Ruzhuo over to perform the purification with the squad members. He had been working overtime on it recently. "We know the captain's current condition is dangerous, so at the very beginning, we won't let you come into direct contact with him."

"At this stage, Captain Xianzhu will remain in the cage at all times. We'll only allow air exchange, just enough to ensure the captain can sense your Guide Element. The entire process will be completely safe." After saying this, Lin Sheng sent the cage's detailed information to Lin Sheng.

The extra little screen showed the same glass cage Luo Ruzhuo had first seen holding Xianzhu.

"Actually, it isn't glass. It's made from D56 Steel, a material recently discovered in a contaminated zone. It's exceptionally flexible, has excellent shape recovery, and can block contamination. The cage is filled with a large dose of anesthetic and an energy-absorbing protective shield, ensuring that none of Captain Xianzhu's attacks can reach the outside."

The cage in the projection was larger and roomier than the one Luo Ruzhuo had seen. Evidently, the previous one had only been a portable model for temporary transport.

Luo Ruzhuo leaned forward slightly, her gaze settling on the projection.

The enormous steel cage itself had been built on an undeveloped, primitive planet at the edge of the Central District. The projection slowly rotated, revealing a vast expanse of lush primeval forest. Vegetation covered a startling amount of the landscape, and as far as the eye could see, there were shades of green. A volcano stood not far away, its summit covered in white snow.

It was one of the Firmament Squad's bases and would serve as the site of the long-term purification.

She stared at the projection. Since the apocalypse, she could no longer remember how long it had been since she had seen green mountains and clear waters.

Treating it as a vacation didn't seem so bad either.

Seeing her remain silent, Lin Sheng assumed she still had reservations and quietly raised the commission fee by another notch.

Luo Ruzhuo had just come back to her senses when the string of zeros left her dizzy.

That settles it. Once I'm back from this job, I'll have more than enough to buy that starry-sky dress.

Luo Ruzhuo hurriedly sat up straight, a hint of cheer entering her voice without her even noticing. "All right."

After receiving her affirmative answer, the two sides discussed a few more details: the trip was provisionally set at three months, payments would be made according to the stages of purification, and she could go out after each day's purification work was finished, among other things.

Luo Ruzhuo went through each point and confirmed everything was in order. She was just about to sign her name on the contract sent over by fax-

Lin Sheng suddenly smiled in the video. "There's no rush to sign the contract. Guide Luo, you can think it over some more and give us your answer tomorrow. I won't disturb you now."

With that, the video call was ended unilaterally from her side, and the optical computer screen went dark.

Luo Ruzhuo: *?*

What's going on?

Immediately afterward, the message notification sounded.

Luo Ruzhuo picked up her optical computer and glanced at it, unable to keep from frowning.

Lin Sheng: The commission just now was what the squad and the Black Tower asked me to convey to you. What I'm about to say is from me personally. (Recalled)

Lin Sheng: Although I also very much hope the captain can recover... I still hope you'll give this more thought. (Recalled)

Lin Sheng: If you have even the slightest hesitation, please be sure to refuse. (Recalled)

As soon as his messages showed as read on her end, he quickly recalled them. The chat screen returned to the previous video call record, as though nothing had happened.