Chapter 90: Work Has Come

Yu Sheng thought it over carefully and decided that it really wasn't a good idea to take those towels, washbasins, and drink bottles from home to the Special Services Bureau for appraisal—never mind whether the Bureau would be willing to do it, the sheer volume of junk flooding the "curio collectibles market" would probably disrupt the order of the market itself. It was a small niche to begin with; if he casually cleared out a bit of stuff from his house, he might impact the entire year's trading volume...

But his restless and flexible mind didn't cool down completely because of that rationality. Instead, he slipped into even more serious contemplation.

Ai Lin tilted her head to look at Yu Sheng, suspicion filling the little puppet's face. "You're not still planning to peddle that junk, are you?"

"Little Red said I have to at least sell stuff that looks mysterious and has 'atmosphere,'" Yu Sheng waved his hand. "Because a lot of collectors are ordinary people who are well-informed and know a bit about the supernatural realm. They buy this stuff mainly out of an interest in the occult and as a way to brag to each other..."

Ai Lin sighed. "You know, sometimes I just can't understand human beings. So many of them have no real ability but still love to court death—why can't they just stay as ordinary people who can't see the alien realms and entities? At least they'd live a stable life. But no, they have to be interested in things from the 'other side,' thinking that learning a couple of safety measures will be enough. Never mind whether those safety measures they fumble together actually work—some of the stuff brought out of alien realms might even be dangerous."

"Well, even the Special Services Bureau doesn't prohibit it," Yu Sheng shrugged. "Things that pass their appraisal and can enter the market circulation are basically harmless. The really sinister stuff is locked up in the Bureau's containment warehouses—that's what the Border Communications encyclopedia says."

As soon as he finished speaking, his phone buzzed again. Little Red had sent a new message.

"If you want to earn some 'extra cash,' I've got a job. Would you be willing to help?"

Yu Sheng was taken aback for a moment, then immediately replied, "What job?"

"A commission from the Curio Association. I turned it down at first because it's a bit risky and the payoff is uncertain, and most importantly, I'm short-handed. But if you can help—bring that fox who can really fight—the job would be a perfect fit. You can get familiar with how a real spirit world detective 'works,' and you'll get half the commission. And most importantly: if you run into something you can't beat, you can just grab me and run."

After a while, a new message appeared on the screen: "Specifically, you need to retrieve an item from a 'museum.' If you can bring it out successfully, the job is done. If you're interested, I'll send you the info on the 'museum' and the specific payment."

Yu Sheng instinctively exchanged a glance with Ai Lin (the fox beside him was still busy gnawing on a chicken leg and had no idea what was going on), and both saw a hint of eagerness in each other's eyes.

Work has come!

Of course, what Yu Sheng had in mind wasn't just the words "commission" and "payment." More importantly, there was also this: an opportunity to come into contact with more alien realms, learn more about things related to the "supernatural realm," and accumulate more knowledge!

For him, that knowledge was worth more than any payment—because who knew whether some piece of information about an alien realm might help him find the door back home!

"Send it over!" he replied quickly.

Little Red didn't waste any words. She forwarded a long string of information directly, followed by a number for the payment.

Yu Sheng was stunned for a moment when he saw that number.

"That much?"

"We split it fifty-fifty," Little Red explained. "Entering an alien realm is very dangerous. The pay for this line of work naturally has to be high. But correspondingly, our costs aren't low either—not to mention equipment wear and tear during operations, just the sanity blockers, nebulizers, and inducers we need to replenish each time aren't cheap. We have to pay for those out of our own pockets. After deducting them from the earnings, what actually ends up in our hands isn't that much."

Yu Sheng stared blankly at the string of messages Little Red had sent, and after a long pause, he finally asked, "What exactly are these 'sanity blockers,' 'nebulizers,' and 'inducers' you mentioned?"

After he sent that message, Little Red suddenly went silent.

Yu Sheng waited a long time before he finally saw a reply pop up on the screen. It began with a string of exclamation marks.

"!!!!! You found another bug! I'm so jealous of you!!"

Yu Sheng thought for a moment, then looked down at Ai Lin. "What does she mean?"

"I don't know," Ai Lin scratched her head. "Maybe she's envious of your peace of mind?"

"I don't think so..."

Yu Sheng muttered, and then saw another new message on the screen: "I just contacted the client from the Curio Association. They agreed to assign this job to us, but the time is tight—it can't be later than midnight tomorrow. If you have time, it's best to set out tonight."

Yu Sheng thought it over. He didn't have anything to do at home anyway, and Hu Li had eaten so much that she needed to go out and burn off some energy, so he quickly replied, "Alright, tonight it is."

"I'll send you the address. Get here as soon as you can."

Putting away his phone, Yu Sheng let out a soft breath and then glanced at the fox girl, who had just finished chewing up the chicken bones and swallowing them, and was now seriously licking her fingers.

He reached out and patted her tail. "Hu Li, change clothes. We're going out."

Hu Li looked confused. "Huh? Benefactor, what for?"

"'The agency' has a job," Yu Sheng said with a grin, looking eager. "Come on an adventure with me."

"Okay!"

A moment later, Yu Sheng walked out of the house, with Hu Li following closely behind him, holding the now lifeless-eyed Ai Lin.

The two of them (plus one) stood in the open space in front of 66 Wutong Road, facing the night breeze, looking out at the urban area shrouded in darkness.

After a while, Ai Lin suddenly blurted out, "How are we getting there?"

"I can take you?" Hu Li looked at Yu Sheng, her eyes sparkling in the night. Even though she had been a bit confused before leaving, she now seemed excited. "Benefactor, just point me in the direction~"

A flash of an image went through Yu Sheng's mind, and he shook his head repeatedly. "No way. A rocket-propelled fox doing subsonic flight across the city in the middle of the night—I can't imagine what the news in Shadow City would say the next day. Let's just call a car."

Ai Lin stirred. "...A full-fledged supernatural organization going on its first mission, and the three of us are cramming into a ride-hailing car?"

"We're still in the startup phase..." Yu Sheng also felt a bit awkward. "We'll get a car later, once we have money. But come to think of it, it's not that cramped with the three of us. You don't take up any space."

Ai Lin cursed him out in the most colorful language.

Yu Sheng was now very skilled at treating Ai Lin's blathering as background noise. He directly filtered out the puppet's nagging, led Hu Li to the street corner, and pulled out his phone to call a car.

—He didn't call one right at the doorstep because he was worried something like the "locksmith incident" might happen again.

Hu Li watched Yu Sheng's movements curiously. After a long moment, she pointed at his phone and remarked, "Benefactor's magical artifact seems very convenient. It can do anything."

"Don't you have something similar back home?" Yu Sheng asked curiously. He felt that with such a high level of civilization in Hu Li's homeland, they couldn't possibly lack a personal information device like this.

"We do," Hu Li nodded, but then added, "But kids aren't allowed to play with them—it's believed to interfere with cultivation. Mother is generous and lets me use it for half an hour each day, but most functions are still locked..."

Yu Sheng: "..."

A cyber-cultivation fox also has to deal with an underage addiction prevention system?!

"I'll reset my old phone and give it to you when we get back," Yu Sheng said casually, feeling a bit emotional. "It probably won't be as advanced as the 'magical artifact' you used as a kid, but it should be enough to keep you entertained. Also, you can use it to learn about this world."

Hu Li's eyes immediately lit up. "Thank you, Benefactor!"

"Hey! Only for her?" Ai Lin was instantly displeased. "I want one too..."

Yu Sheng glanced at her. "With your size, can you even handle a phone? Just answering a call would be a struggle—can your mouth and ear reach the microphone and earpiece at the same time?"

"Why not? I can even use your laptop!" Ai Lin said with conviction. "I use both hands to hold it!"

She shouldn't have brought that up. The moment she did, Yu Sheng's forehead bulged with veins. "You dare to mention using my computer? I haven't forgotten about that account incident!"

Ai Lin's tone immediately softened. "You already hung me on the drying rack for half an hour—can't we call it even? And it was only banned for twelve hours..."

Yu Sheng opened his mouth to say something more, but a beam of light coming from the intersection interrupted him.

The car he had called had arrived.

He and Hu Li both looked toward the source of the sound.

A rattling little car came into view.

Ai Lin: "Isn't this car... a bit too shabby? It looks like it's about to fall apart."

Yu Sheng watched the car go over a speed bump, every thud making him fear the bumper would drop off. He pulled out his phone to confirm the license plate, and indeed it was the car he had called. His expression also stiffened. "It's a bit old, but I wouldn't say it's about to be scrapped."

As he spoke, the little car, which looked like it had been through seven owners, screeched to a halt in front of him.

Honestly, at the moment it stopped, Yu Sheng seriously wondered whether it had braked normally or broken down...

Then he saw the driver's window roll down, and a familiar face appeared.

Xu Jiali's face.

"Oh, it's you?"

The two-meter-tall man slouched in the driver's seat looked genuinely surprised.

(End of chapter)