Free Web NovelChapter 23: Chapter 23: The Captain’s Favoritism
High Tower, bottom floor, eastern section.
The clerk responsible for recording the entries and exits of the Legion was a bit confused.
He distinctly remembered that Squad 1 of Investigation Corps Team 7 had left the tower from the white stele four hours ago, so why had they returned through the blue stele?
Lin Wurou and Shang Xiaoyi were the first to return.
They quickly realized that Bai Wu was right; from the second building onwards, they had already entered the blue zone.
Even by the standards of Investigation Corps Team 7, Group 1, returning after persisting for four hours in the blue zone was not shameful.
Lin Wurou’s annoyance was not because they had left the tower too early, but because he was upset that he returned earlier than the newcomers.
The blindness that afflicted Xiaoyi and the depression that gripped Wurou were dispelled the moment they returned to the High Tower.
However, they couldn’t immediately engage in combat because their bodies couldn’t withstand two stele transports within twelve hours.
In short, once you leave the area outside the tower, you have to wait another half a day before you can re-enter, and the method of repeatedly exiting and re-entering to reset the status has a significant time cost.
But Lin Wurou and Shang Xiaoyi didn’t have to wait long, as Wu Jiu and Bai Wu also returned to the High Tower soon after.
"Hey, isn’t that Lin Meimei who doesn’t lag behind? The senior certainly didn’t lag, after all, they left the arena early. I get it now, it must have been a tactical retreat," Bai Wu remarked sarcastically. He clearly remembered that previously outside the tower, Lin Wurou had mocked him several times. freewebnovel.cσ๓
He had already figured out his character — often derogatory towards others, but not afraid of being mocked himself.
Lin Wurou just pouted and snorted coldly, predictably not refuting. Shang Xiaoyi pretended to admire the scenery instead.
For the members of the Investigation Corps, Innate Force is not the ultimate criterion for assessing combat power; the average survival time outside the tower is a significant indicator.
Among the entire Investigation Corps, the number of rookies who could last more than four hours on their first mission could be counted on one hand.
"Alright, moving on, Bai Wu, you have no assignments for the coming week. Follow me to the Investigation Corps in a bit, take care of some business, and then you’ll be free to do as you wish," Wu Jiu said as he started walking towards the second layer entrance.
"Why won’t I have any assignments?" Bai Wu asked, puzzled.
"Today’s operation was just an entry test which you passed. There are some procedures to handle before you officially join the Investigation Corps. Only then will you receive your next mission."
Bai Wu nodded.
It was just as well; there were plenty of things to do inside the tower. The High Tower was a living area, and his most urgent task now... was finding a way to make money.
...
...
Night fell.
There was no concept of day and night in the High Tower, but the nine hundred-meter-high ceiling still simulated day and night.
Although it had been seven hundred years into a new civilization, people still followed the routine of working at sunrise and resting at sunset.
Wu Jiu was in his office, writing in the investigation log.
Unlike other leaders of Investigation Corps squads, his logs were extremely detailed.
Thus, his shelf was filled with files he had written.
The world outside the tower was exceedingly dangerous and where they would be transported in three days, no one knew.
However, humanity had indeed experienced this before; despite a long time elapsing, they were transported back to the same location.
Random transport meant there was a probability of returning to previously explored areas.
Wu Jiu recorded in detail every reason for leaving the tower so that one day in the future, if they were transported to an area they had visited before, they wouldn’t retake old paths. freewebnøvel.coɱ
More importantly, by carefully recording the investigation process, he could summarize many experiences, which would increase his subordinates’ survival rates.
That was what Wu Jiu valued most.
After closing his pen, he leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes, massaging his temples.
On the desk lay five performance assessment charts in the form of hexagonal data sheets.
The six attributes were survival capability, Evil Fallen combat capability, analytical ability, adaptability, mental state, and potential.
Lin Wurou, Shang Xiaoyi, and Wang Shi all excelled extraordinarily in Evil Fallen combat capability.
But their analytical abilities were slightly weaker. Especially Wang Shi, who had excellent survival capabilities and decent adaptability, but almost no analytical skills.
These three all had notable combat capabilities and similar potential, but they clearly couldn’t last long without Yin Shuang.
However, recalling this expedition outside the tower, Wu Jiu realized Yin Shuang had barely spoken.
Because a certain newcomer had taken over all of Yin Shuang’s tasks.
Bai Wu’s assessment chart was peculiar.
His adaptability, analytical ability, mental state, and potential were all maxed out, but his combat and survival capabilities were almost non-existent.
This was the first time Wu Jiu had given such an evaluation to a newcomer. He thought back on the teams he had followed and the soldiers he had led, confident he had never encountered someone like Bai Wu.
Newcomers would eventually become veterans, and their strength would accumulate from multiple expeditions outside the tower. However, mental aspects were much harder to enhance.
Bai Wu’s mental state was too stable, which was why his Innate Force had already reached Grade 1 Level 9 on just his second expedition outside.
The improvement of Innate Force mainly depended on the time spent surviving outside the tower, but another contributing factor was emotional fluctuation.
The more stable a person’s mental state, the quicker their Innate Force improved. A zero on the emotional monitoring bracelet throughout meant that if Bai Wu could maintain such a state, he might cultivate another Grade 8 expert within a few years.
Thinking back to the gambling event Bai Wu had recently evaded, Wu Jiu intuitively felt that this was not the end.
Thus, he did two things.
First, Wu Jiu destroyed Bai Wu’s combat analysis report and rewrote a new one, which looked much more ordinary than первод.
Second, he made a phone call.
"Hello, Ghost Grinding Firm," a crisp female voice came through the phone.
"It’s me, Gu Qingyu."
"Yo, the famous Nine Lord!"
"Scram."
"Wuwuwu, when you need someone, you call them dear, and when you don’t, you tell them to scram."
Wu Jiu didn’t waste words with women. He also never called any woman "dear."
The Ghost Grinding Firm was a place he had previously worked at. As the saying goes, "money makes the mare go," this firm’s motto was: I can do anything for money.
"I have a long-term commission for you; help me protect someone."
"You fell in love?" The voice on the other end of the phone suddenly rose eight degrees.
"I will send you his details shortly. He’s one of my team members and also, his detection ability is strong, so your people better be clever."
"It’s odd, why not let the people from the Investigation Corps handle the protection?" the girl wondered.
"Because the Investigation Corps isn’t suitable for this matter," Wu Jiu didn’t elaborate further.
The woman on the phone knew Wu Jiu’s disposition and said:
"Let’s talk compensation."
"For every outing, I will bring an item back for you."
"Deal!" The woman didn’t hesitate at all.
Everyone wanted to find someone from the Investigation Corps to bring goods out of the tower, and many from the Investigation Corps made their living this way.
Some top experts had already been booked to bring countless items. As för Wu Jiu, a top-tier ace, even several nobles had contacted him privately.
But Wu Jiu had refused them all.
Thus, the woman on the phone was curious about who Wu Jiu was protecting this time to warrant such an exception.
(More to follow)
