Chapter 30 – Bloody Ferrara (2)
◎Did you bring money?◎
With tasks at hand, Wu Juemin gave a simple explanation and prepared to take Azure Phoenix’s people away.
He left casually, but the logistics team members had tears in their eyes, reluctant to part. Wu Juemin had rescued them from a perilous situation and led them in a retreat, guiding them all the way to the peaceful District C. They couldn’t greedily ask for more; it was clearly not his obligation. Even if Wu Juemin had left them today, it could be said that he had fulfilled his duty to the utmost.
After parting ways with Azure Phoenix’s people, Song Ke and Zhuang Qingyan didn’t travel with the remaining group; they chose to act separately.
Ferrara was an open and inclusive city. Capsule sleeping pods for wandering travelers could be found everywhere on the streets. Not only were they free to use, but they were also easy to access—just a facial scan away. As it wasn’t early anymore, Song Ke and Zhuang Qingyan each booked a room and went to sleep.
The next morning, after a quick tidying up, the two of them headed straight to the Awakener Base.
Ferrara’s Special Affairs Agency (Awakener Base) was located in a concealed alley on the west side of the square. Its architectural style was consistent with the city’s flamboyant and colorful aesthetics. The only difference was that its sign seemed a bit aged.
Upon entering, the first thing that caught the eye was a spacious mezzanine. A few individuals were scattered around, and the winding staircase led up to the elevated central desk. A glasses-wearing female staff member was busy there.
As Song Ke approached, she faintly heard a melodious tune. Looking down, she was left speechless.
On the desk was a small transparent screen, and the holographic projection on it was familiar. Wasn’t that Ilya from before? But now Ilya was dressed in elegant clothing, obviously from an early performance video. The girl on the desk was staring at it with rapt attention, wearing an enamored smile.
Song Ke: “Hello, I’d like to, to register as an awakener.”
The girl swiftly pressed down on the screen, her expression turning formal. She pushed a booklet over: “Start by filling out the form. Complete every item on the first three pages, the rest is optional. Then go to the first room on the left for a photograph, turn right to the second room for genetic testing, and proceed to the second floor for an on-site awakener evaluation. Once you’ve completed everything, come back to me. Oh, and remember to bring all the receipts.”
The instructions came in a rapid succession, and the pace was quite fast. Song Ke was getting dizzy, half-remembering and half-forgetting. Fortunately, she had Zhuang Qingyan with her, who had a good memory, or else it would have been a mess.
Following the staff’s guidance, Song Ke obediently filled out the form, then hurriedly went to take a photograph. She became nervous as soon as she had to take a picture. Her posture was unnaturally stiff, her lips pressed together, radiating a pitiful look. Luckily, there was no photographer in the room, only a mechanical arm controlling the camera. The emotionless electronic synthesized voice kept prompting with errors: “Ding—please tilt your head to the right.”
“Ding—Detected that the person’s expression is too stiff. Please relax and tilt your head to the right.”
“Ding—Unable to detect the photographer. Please return to the center of the frame.”
Song Ke turned her head to the side, then accidentally tilted it too much and fell out of the chair.
Zhuang Qingyan couldn’t help but laugh beside her. “Song Ke, just take a proper photo. Why are you bullying the machine?”
Song Ke glared at him angrily, shook her hand, took a deep breath, and managed to force a fake smile.
The final photo turned out to be quite odd, and Zhuang Qingyan laughed for a full two minutes.
After taking the photo, she went to the second room for blood drawing and genetic testing. Ferrara had specialized awakener assessment equipment, much better than the inferior one Wu Juemin had. It could not only test ability levels but was also said to calculate the upper limit of potential that could be unlocked in the future using artificial intelligence.
The testing room was also fully automated. Blood was drawn first, then she lay down in a box of unknown purpose, getting scanned from top to bottom.
Next was the awakener verification room on the second floor. Its main purpose was on-site verification to establish local records for easy reference later.
Song Ke finally encountered people again. Inside the room were three verification officers, two men and one woman, all sitting in a row. After the person in front of her came out, it wasn’t long before they called out, “Next!”
Song Ke pushed the door open and entered. She was in a closed isolation room with glass only in front, and the speaker on the wall lit up with a green light. The voice of a verification officer came through, “Please demonstrate your ability. Don’t worry, we have top-notch security measures, so please release your ability to the fullest extent to facilitate our judgment.”
Song Ke’s hand touched the edge of the table. Two seconds later, the table disappeared, and she was holding a long spear in her hand, standing obediently in place.
The verification officers were a bit taken aback. “That’s it?”
Song Ke nodded.
If it was just a display of her ability, this was enough.
“It’s a bit… crude, isn’t it? Doesn’t feel particularly special.”
“Well, can you change the shape of objects? This could be considered… support ability? Maybe you could help the engineering department with waste material cleanup?”
“I have quite a lot of furniture at home that I don’t use. Was just wondering who could tidy it up.”
“If you put it that way, this ability is pretty useful, huh?”
“A practical garbage collector, hahaha!”
“To be honest, if she’s an E-level, I might consider hiring an awakener to help me with daily trash disposal. Doesn’t sound bad, does it?”
The two male verification officers exchanged a glance and found themselves quite humorous as they burst into laughter.
These people weren’t as formidable as Zhuang Qingyan, who could immediately determine her ability type with just a glance.
Song Ke absentmindedly conjured a spear, and the long spear emitted a faint blue light as it traced through the air.
The corner of the female evaluator’s eyes seemed to catch something. She lifted her head and carefully examined the spiritual weapon.
“This thing in your hand seems to be an ancient civilization cold weapon, right? Does it have any offensive capabilities, or is it only suitable as a craft?”
Holding the spear with one hand, Song Ke didn’t bother to use any techniques. She simply thrust it straight ahead.
“Stab—”
A deeply-seated crack appeared on the so-called wall with top-notch security, and a powerful shockwave surged over the wall, overturning the evaluation forms the officers had on the table. The next moment, the entire glass window shattered with a loud boom, and fragments rained down.
Oops, used too much force.
Song Ke felt a bit guilty.
The three verification officers: “…”
What damn handicraft, what cursed suppport ability. She was obviously a living star of disaster! They had actually thought about having her clean up garbage; were they eager for their lives to be shorter?
“Cough…,” the male evaluator sitting in the middle awkwardly coughed twice. “That’s enough. It’s confirmed to be a strong offensive ability. The specific level will have to wait for the results of the genetic test.”
“Oh.” Song Ke shook off her spear, took two steps forward, and tried to step over the broken glass to retrieve her registration form.
“Don’t come out!!”
“The door, the door is at the back!”
The two male evaluators yelled in panic, rapidly retreating their chairs while hurriedly jotting down a few notes on Song Ke’s form. Treating it like a hot potato, they handed it over to a mechanical arm, which returned it to the isolation room: “Submit, submit it, leave it to the central desk.”
When Song Ke went back, the girl on the desk was once again engrossed in playing around on her device, sneakily watching Ilya’s treasured old footage. Song Ke placed the form on the table and gave it a glance before continuing in a formulaic tone, “The results of the genetic test will be out within three working days. You can come to pick up your awakener certificate then. For now, please make the payment. It’s a total of 10,000 Alliance coins.”
“Huh?” Song Ke dumbly inquired, “10,000, what?”
“10,000 Alliance coins, your registration fee,” the girl said somewhat impatiently.
Song Ke was dumbfounded: Oh my goodness! How come no one told her that registering as an awakener also required money?
The girl probably hadn’t encountered someone as clueless as her, and she became a little flustered herself. “Of course it costs money. The machines for ability testing, the algorithm fees for AI, and the daily maintenance—all require expenses. We’re not a charity!”
Song Ke: … What should she do if she doesn’t have money?
She turned to Zhuang Qingyan with a perplexed look, her eyes seeming to ask: Did you bring money?
For the first time, Zhuang Qingyan couldn’t answer Song Ke’s question.
—He didn’t have money either.
But that’s not his fault. First, given his upbringing, having lived for almost thirty years, he had never needed to worry about money. Secondly, among the people he knew, there was no one as poor as Song Ke.
The two paupers were in a similar situation, both lost in thought.
The girl, perhaps feeling sorry for her, offered an idea: “Well, since you’re an awakener, you can take on missions as a contractor. Just join any team and do some miscellaneous tasks. When you have money, come back and register.”
“Mis, missions?”
“Yes, go out and turn left at the second intersection, walk straight for 100 meters, and you’ll find the Special Affairs Commission Center.”
…
Ferrara, Special Affairs Commission Center.
This was a more impressive building, and it was evident that the people coming and going possessed strong auras, the majority being awakeners.
A bald man with an arm as thick as Song Ke’s waist sat atop a sculpture at the entrance, his legs spread wide, arms crossed over his chest. The black bean-like eyes sized up Song Ke and Zhuang Qingyan as they passed by, radiating disdain and scorn. “Little brat and cripple, you really dare enter anywhere. You treat this place like a nursery?”
The bald man was muscular, probably a muscular-type awakener.
He spoke loudly, intentionally for them to hear.
Zhuang Qingyan’s smile turned icy, his gaze shifting to the bald man with chilling precision.
Song Ke felt a shiver down her spine. Whenever Zhuang Qingyan displayed this kind of supervillain smile, someone was bound to suffer.
However, before they could make any move, several thick vines suddenly descended from above. “Smack, smack, smack—” they slapped the bald man’s face several times, and then one of the vines bound him and flung him away, headfirst, into a fountain.
A woman with red hair dashed out from the hall, her anger evident.
“You bastard, how dare you put your filthy ass on my idol’s head!!!”
The tough guy had lost two front teeth due to the surprise attack, his mouth was full of blood, and he viciously charged toward the woman. Their abilities clashed, their supernatural powers erupting. They ended up fighting fiercely in the square in front of the commission hall.
Others weren’t even surprised by the scene. Some even specifically came out to watch and clap their hands.
“What happened to that baldy? Did he provoke that crazy woman, Chihori?”
“Don’t you know Crazy Chihori yet? Isn’t there just one thing that can make her mad?”
“What happened?”
“See that statue? Looks familiar? It’s one of Ferrara’s top ten rising stars, virtual idol Luo Qinghe. Word has it he’s got a lot of female fans. Crazy Chihori is his super loyal fan. The rich women’s fan club sponsored this. They specially commissioned a famous master to make a life-sized statue of him.”
“Why is that bald guy like this? Acting like he can just sit on it. It’s about the same as pulling shit on Crazy Chihori’s head. She’ll definitely rip him apart.”
“…The entertainment circle is truly terrifying.”
As Crazy Chihori and the bald man continued to fight, the commotion grew louder, leaves flying and dust swirling. Even the fountain’s stone wall had been broken in several places. In no time, a man in uniform came out from the hall. A quick glance, veins popping on his forehead, he angrily started frantically pressing buttons on his computer.
“Maintenance fee totaling 124,000 Alliance coins. Should I deduct it directly through your terminals or deduct it from both of your mission scores?”
“Why should I pay? She attacked me!” The bald head was not only beaten but also had to pay, his whole body was in a mess, and his eyes were as big as copper bells.
…
The commotion at the entrance came to an end, and Song Ke finally managed to squeeze into the lobby.
Truly befitting the Commission Center of District C, the interior was brimming with technology. As soon as she entered, she saw an enormous floating screen divided into three sections—left, center, and right—scrolling through various commission requests. Above the screen, holographic projections occasionally flashed with colorful announcements like, “Congratulations to Team ‘Three Grandsons and a Grandpa’ for completing B-grade commission xxxx!”
Song Ke: “…”
Three grandsons and a grandpa? What kind of random names were these?
Around the lobby, there were over a hundred self-service terminals. By swiping their awakener identification cards, people could search for, accept, or submit missions. Furthermore, the commissions posted here weren’t limited to awakeners. If ordinary people had the strength and courage, they could also join teams with awakeners for missions.
Song Ke looked up for a moment. The displayed missions were incredibly diverse. For example, the simplest E-grade mission was to help buy groceries and deliver them to a nearby resident in District D, but the reward was quite meager—300 Alliance coins.
D and C-grade missions were a bit more challenging, involving tasks like finding missing relatives, hiring bodyguards to escort someone to a certain location, or completing specific awakener-related tasks, such as “Need an earth-type awakener skilled in engineering to help rebuild a collapsed house” and so on.
Looking further up, she saw a B-grade mission: clearing out zombies in the municipal hall of Luli Port (District D150). This one suited her well and came with a reward of a whopping 2,000 Alliance coins. With five such missions, she could easily cover the registration fee!
Feeling motivated, Song Ke cracked her knuckles. She was determined to take on this mission.
First, she needed to assemble a team.
However, a problem arose. The people in the lobby were in a hurry, each focused on their own matters, and nobody stopped to talk. How was she supposed to form a team? She couldn’t just shout out, “I want to form a team!”—she had a stutter, so she couldn’t even manage it.
Zhuang Qingyan came up with an idea: she could write down her strengths on a signboard and try to attract compatible teammates.
Staring at the blank paper for a while, Song Ke wrote three words in the most straightforward and simple language: “I’m very strong.”
Zhuang Qingyan: “…” Alright, if it makes you happy.
Unfortunately, this tactic didn’t yield much result. Most awakeners ignored it entirely, not even giving her a glance. Occasionally, a person with nothing better to do would pass by, read the three words, and burst out laughing. Song Ke was quite annoyed. If she were more eloquent, she would probably confront them and ask, “Why are you laughing? I really am strong. Don’t believe it? Let’s spar.”
She had been squatting there for nearly an afternoon, and her corner remained completely ignored.
Song Ke also began to see the pattern. Most of the awakeners coming and going here already had established teams with fixed benefit-sharing arrangements. They were cautious about admitting newcomers and leaned more towards physically strong males. Not only did she appear thin and frail, but she was also accompanied by a wheelchair-bound companion—a combination that, at first glance, indeed lacked competitiveness.
Song Ke wasn’t willing to accept defeat. If no one wanted her, she would form her own team herself!
She tore apart the “I’m very strong” sign and strode confidently to the manned counter, ready to submit her team formation application. However, she received a devastating blow: in order to create a team on her own, she needed at least two awakeners.
Now Song Ke was trapped in a vicious cycle: to register as an awakener, she needed money; to earn money, she needed a job; to get a job, she needed a team; to form a team, she needed at least two awakeners… It formed a perfect Möbius loop, endlessly repeating with no way out.
After running around all day accomplishing nothing, Song Ke sat on the ground with a dejected expression, wondering if she was destined to be a nobody forever.
Zhuang Qingyan had accompanied her through the whole ordeal, and now he consoled her with a helpless smile, “Don’t be so disheartened, it’s just forming a team.”
Song Ke’s voice was full of grievances, “No one wants to, to be on my team.”
“How can that be? Isn’t there a ready-made candidate?”
Song Ke’s eyes lit up as she quickly looked up, “Who?”
Zhuang Qingyan gave a cryptic smile, “This person does not have much brains, quite fiery in temper, but could be reluctantly used to make up the numbers.”
