Chapter 139.1 – Fire Seed (8)
◎ Niu Hulu Qingyan ◎
Perhaps at the explicit request of Ye Zimei, the commissioner arranged by the awakeners department was exceptionally considerate, exuding enthusiastic attitudes. Not only did they swiftly handle the household registration transfer procedures, but they also drove them to buy terminals. Aside from the two “ordinary people,” all four A-level members of V587 switched to District B terminals. After finishing, they proceeded to update the awakeners information and select a property. From the locals’ perspective, they provided suggestions:
“Avoid the ground floor; poor lighting. Also, steer clear of the top floor; too many flying terminals causing a lot of noise.”
“I like this one!” Xu Xing took a liking to a set in the blue community. The holographic was extravagant, boasting a 360-degree immersive jellyfish-shaped lamp, algae floorboards that change shape with mood, an immersive orca-themed bedroom with sound effects as the highlight, all full of gimmicks.
The commissioner shook their head repeatedly, “Many awakeners in this community have become emo due to living in a deep-sea environment for long periods. It would be better for you to choose a garden-style small villa with better sunlight exposure, where you can bask in the sun regularly, and even connect between two households.”
Though no one explicitly stated it, the attentive commissioner noticed the harmonious interaction within the V587 team; undoubtedly, they preferred to live closer to each other.
Amidst the commotion, Song Ke found herself idle and took out her terminal for a glance.
Then… she watched helplessly as V587’s ranking dropped once again.
Today was supposed to be a designated rest day for the Alliance, but were these people not resting or sleeping at all?
No, she had to get involved too!
The concerned team captain promptly opened the commission system. Xu Xing ran over for her to choose a house, and she waved her hand in a perfunctory manner, saying, “You choose what you want to buy.”
The list scrolled rapidly, new tasks appearing only to be overlapped right away. Coupled with various restrictions like rank, distance, and application conditions, Song Ke became increasingly engrossed, and completely absorbed in selecting tasks.
“‘C-level Commission: Clear the rampant mutated Turban snails along the Silver Bay (District C44). Point Reward: 80000.'”
This one seemed promising. Song Ke eagerly clicked on it, only to be greeted with a prompt stating, “This task has expired.”
Before she could lament, a batch of new tasks appeared on the interface:
“‘B-level Commission (Urgent): Medium-sized zombie tide has emerged in the coffee tree plantation area of Mandelin (District C43). Please clear within 4 hours.'”
Below, in small red scrolling text, the tone was urgent: “All coffee enthusiasts, please save Mandelin! This area is the primary producer of Mandheling coffee. Once invaded by the zombie tide beyond the deadline, it will affect the Alliance’s coffee production!”
Song Ke took a small breath, realizing the seriousness of the situation. Even though she didn’t drink coffee, she had a sense of justice!
She swiftly tapped on the virtual panel with her fingers. Perhaps due to an abundance of coffee enthusiasts, Song Ke’s fingertips tingled, and the prompt that popped up stated, “The maximum number of accepted tasks has been reached.”
Song Ke: “?” How could it be at its limit? She hadn’t even started her duty as a coffee defender!
Feeling disheartened, Song Ke swiped the panel twice more. Surprisingly, she managed to fish out a task worth 200,000 points, and guess what? No one had taken it!
With quick reflexes, she crazily tapped away regardless. But the result…
“Apologies, your team doesn’t meet the acceptance criteria.”
What was this now? What didn’t meet the criteria? Song Ke scrutinized it: “‘B-level Commission: Reconstruction of an open-air hot spring bath in Tokushima (District B15), requires abilities in engineering. The higher the level, the better!”
Song Ke: “…” She still chose not to give up today!
Song Ke immersed herself in her work again, frantically trying to snatch up commissions. Hey! She couldn’t snatch even one!
She was so engrossed in snatching that she didn’t even notice her teammates had moved ahead. Zhuang Qingyan, stopping in his wheelchair, didn’t catch her attention either.
“Thud!” Her toe hit the wheelchair, causing her to lean and lose balance, falling forward like a swallow returning to its nest, straight into someone’s arms.
Zhuang Qingyan leaned his wheelchair back slightly, opening his arms to catch her firmly.
As Song Ke lifted her head, she found herself face-to-face with his perfectly curved jawline.
Today, he was dressed in a light-colored suit, the open collar revealing a clear view of his collarbones. A straight and slender nose, a faint smile tugging at his thin lips, and with those gold-rimmed glasses held by two delicate chains, he looked like the epitome of a handsome and sophisticated superstar from a street billboard.
Zhuang Qingyan lowered his head, his sensual Adam’s apple moving slightly with his breath. He pinched Song Ke’s cheeks, gently shaking them left and right, causing her head to follow suit.
“Shqueezing cheeks makes drool…” Song Ke mumbled incoherently.
Zhuang Qingyan lightly chuckled, a deep resonance coming from his throat. As Song Ke rested her fingertips against him, she felt a slight numbness in her heart.
Her ears felt like they were on fire. She extended two fingers, pressing a few inches below Zhuang Qingyan’s chest and then pushing against his thigh, swiftly standing up.
Zhuang Qingyan’s expression subtly changed: “Song Ke, if you keep poking around like this, it might cause trouble.”
Song Ke defended herself: “I didn’t… poke around.” It was just using a support to stand up, so stingy.
She glanced at Zhuang Qingyan’s legs in discontent. What was so precious about those thighs? Couldn’t even touch them.
Zhuang Qingyan somewhat uneasily placed his right hand on his knee, changing the subject, “What are you so focused on?”
As soon as he asked, Song Ke felt indignant and started complaining, “I can’t grab any commissions!”
Zhuang Qingyan reached out, “Let me have a look.”
They were used to sharing a terminal, so Song Ke handed it over without a second thought. But coincidentally, the commissioner in front turned around and saw this scene, eyes almost popping out.
In District B, terminals were extremely private, as significant as undergarments. They were devices projecting real-time thoughts from your mind. How could one casually show it to others?
The stunned commissioner’s gaze landed on Zhuang Qingyan’s face that was blessed by heaven. Gradually, disbelief turned into enlightenment. This pretty boy… with such a gentle, breath-taking smile, indeed had the qualities to live off someone else. No wonder he’s in a wheelchair and still charms an S-level…
The commissioner sighed, turned away, and accidentally caught sight of Lu Xiaoyu. Their mind went blank. What, one’s not enough, there are two? Even the chair is saved, sit down and fight the landlord directly? This new S-level seemed to have… some unique quirks?
Unaware of the commissioner’s complex thought process, Song Ke was solely concerned about V587’s ranking, “Can you snatch them?”
Zhuang Qingyan swiped his fingertips a few times, “At this speed, it seems like they’re using an automatic commission snatching plug-in.”
“Commission snatching… plug-ins?” Song Ke’s voice trembled. Was it necessary to go this far? No wonder her fingers were numb from not grabbing a single task.
“What plug-in? What are you all talking about?” Lin Youyou curiously leaned in.
Song Ke explained their situation, and everyone seemed eager to join in.
“This intense? Then we have to participate too!”
“This is the very first commission after coming to the Northern Base. It has to be completed splendidly to make a strong start.”
Su Cha was more direct: “It’s still early, let’s handle the commission and then go back.”
Zhuang Qingyan tossed the terminal to Lu Xiaoyu, hinting at something as he said, “The captain is about to take on a commission, can you handle it?”
‘My god!’ The commissioner, whose worldview shattered, bit their finger, their expression becoming even more indescribable: ‘Sharing a terminal between three people? Isn’t that too intense?’
This was just a piece of cake for Lu Xiaoyu. He had never lost in snatching classes at Liuboni. With swift finger movements, Lu Xiaoyu entered a long string of code. The freshly made ‘Commission Random Interception Cheat’ operated in the vast sea of data. A few minutes later, the terminal made a ‘ding’ sound, displaying a prompt: [Mission accepted successfully. Please complete it within the specified time limit.]
“What did you snatch?” Others crowded around, preparing to welcome V587’s first commission at the Northern Base.
[B-level Commission (exclusive to District B10): Fishing Master. The Base’s Marine Biology Research Institute is preparing to add new display specimens. Please go to Silver Bay (District C44) within 24 hours to capture the mutated species listed. The better the quality and the more intact, the higher the points earned.] [Reminder: This task is not suitable for all those with ichthyophobia.]
Song Ke was puzzled. Huh? What ichthyophobia…?
But time was running out, there was no time to explain. She quickly called out to her teammates: “Let’s go, do the commission.”
Fortunately, all the necessary procedures had been completed. The expressionless commissioner stared at V587’s hurriedly departing figure and silently opened the gossip channel: Crooked Anecdotes of Awakeners
[I want to anonymously expose an S-level Sea King who keeps two pretty boys around and frequently shares a terminal when there’s nothing else to do…]
