Chapter 8: Saying Hello

"Here you go."

With that, a steaming hot drink was thrown into the police car.

"Thanks, but is this red tea? I wanted coffee."

Feeling the warmth of the red tea drink, Lu Ping'an complained a bit.

It's not that he was truly dissatisfied with the free drink; it was already nice to have a hot drink from a vending machine at this time.

However, he was supposed to be sleeping soundly under a warm blanket but had to stay in the police car on the street, which made him a bit unhappy.

Xia Qin smiled and didn't say much as it was her whim to have him patrol with her.

"Hang in there, it'll be dawn soon, and I'll treat you to breakfast."

"Don't tempt me with breakfast, I'm not a kid."

"Yes, yes, a sixteen-year-old who's not a kid. Do you want your sister to help you get a kid's meal at KGC later?"

Lu Ping'an felt helpless. Although becoming younger was a good thing, Xia Qin seemed to treat him like a precocious brat, which was quite depressing.

"How do you feel after your first day on patrol duty?"

"It's quite subtle, seems boring, and I can't help much. I can only watch from behind."

"Actually, 90% of our nights are like this. Our job is not to defeat some Magic King but to take precautions and defuse those unexploded bombs..."

Lu Ping'an rolled his eyes and didn't say much. He had already seen through everything and didn't feel like explaining anything.

Did she want to recruit him or give him a political lesson? He didn't even know if he would still be around in half a year, so what was the point?

And now, the reason he was willing to waste precious all-night gaming time following Xia Qin on patrol was her promise.

"Alright, alright, little brother Lu Ping'an, you asked me to write a recommendation letter and get an internship bonus. You need to at least intern for a few nights to understand the workflow of a grassroots Secret Keeper. Otherwise, if you say you've interned with a Secret Keeper and an examiner just asks you a question about the details, you'll be done for."

The main reason was that becoming a "First-order Secret Keeper" and having "internship experience" were both bonus points for the Special College Entrance Examination.

"By the way, you gave me three thousand in one night. Does being a professional Secret Keeper pay well?"

"Not really, as you know, there are only three people on our team, and the money is for hiring some temporary helpers... Alright, I know you don't want to hear this. Professional Secret Keepers do make a lot, the average salary is more than ten times that of ordinary people."

This was the main reason why Lu Ping'an had to comply, as he was very short of money, extremely short.

"760 thousand? Please, just kill me."

Thinking of the bill he just received, Lu Ping'an could only comply.

He had found the biggest similarity between the two worlds, the extremely high medical costs.

"Stop joking, your life isn't worth that much."

Even though he had promised his parents back home on the phone last night that he could solve all the family debts himself.

But in a short period of time, he wouldn't be able to handle it.

"Didn't you say you could help me get rid of high-interest loans and stuff with the help of your department?"

One of the benefits of being a high-threat target under the supervision of the relevant department is that people will help you avoid overly troublesome encounters.

For a super "unexploded bomb", it would be truly tragic if it was driven to lose control by petty things like being bullied, oppressed, or high-interest loans without being tempted by evil gods or having the ability to lose control on their own.

"Our logistics and accounting departments are professional. You also asked to keep your parents' house, so 760 thousand is the result after squeezing out all those miscellaneous things. If it weren't for the 3 million plus... Now we've helped you turn it into something like a 'mortgage' type, paying over 6 thousand per month for 20 years, which is already the best solution. If you get a license, you can work hard and pay it off in just three or four years."

It is now 1998, and over a million is not a small amount, which could even buy a house in the city.

Lu Ping'an helplessly sighed. Others who went through ordeals and awakened to cheat codes would walk the path of grandiosity.

Upon arrival, he had a huge debt on his back, which was really unfortunate.

However, Lu Ping'an knew that this was the best solution.

It was as if the "official" party had stepped in to clear his messy debts worth millions and then only required him to repay the legal, minimum part.

The downside was that he now owed money to the "official" party, and there was no way he wouldn't repay it.

"Can it become a 40-year loan? 60 years would be even better."

But 6 thousand per month was still too much. The average salary in Ancient City was less than two thousand; the regular job would never be able to pay off the debt.

"...Don't be too demanding, do you think you're buying a house? This is already the best solution I've helped you get."

Xia Qin was both annoyed and amused. Did he really think it was easy for the Bureau of Anomaly Management to step in and force the debt to be cleared? It was real money that he owed, and others also had gold and silver.

It took her two and a half days to run around this matter, went to several departments, beat up a few bastards, and still owed people favors.

"Tsk, you have no imagination. You haven't seen a real super mortgage where a family has to repay for 200 years..."

Speaking of things no one could understand, Lu Ping'an took note of this favor.

Having experienced two lives, he knew that rules were dead and people were alive. Xia Qin could have just done her job and left him to deal with this mess.

"Once at the Ancient City University of Secret Arts, you will be a Quasi-Secret Keeper, and you will have subsidies and resettlement allowances. The first two years should be enough for you to repay your loan. If you want to pay off your debt as soon as possible, you can take a professional qualification test in your freshman year, then you can take on commissions. It's just a bit hard."

Talking about her "arrangement" for him, she closed the car door, Xia Qin turned on the police car's radio, and headed for the next mission point.

She intended to get Lu Ping'an on the right track as soon as possible, but with the recent shortage of personnel and a heavy workload, overtime became the norm.

So she decided to take him out to make up some ground, more importantly, so as to observe him closely.

No matter how much experience or books one have, it's not as good as actual combat; regardless of how beautiful the words, being a comrade once is a better testament.

The reason was straightforward; there was always a practical test in the Ancient City University's assessment.

Although Lu Ping'an's current level would be unlikely to pass... seeing how far he could go in just over twenty days, how much further he could improve, and how much of a sharp change a mortal can make was the answer Xia Qin was truly looking forward to.

She knew that Lu Ping'an was pretending to be good and hiding things, and he knew that she knew too.

Both unfamiliar sides were still in a period of adjustment, and maintaining a certain distance was a form of friendliness.

"Little one, you're still too young. If I don't push you, how can I see what you're really hiding?"

So, Mrs. Xia, who was driving, laughed triumphantly.

But after the night has passed, Lu Ping'an's understanding of the so-called Secret Keeper career has become clearer.

The Special Service Team under the Anomaly Management Bureau isn't like the superheroes he had imagined before, but more like an upgraded version of a SWAT team.

The abnormal incidents in this world are a bit too numerous, and, coupled with ordinary security incidents, it's unrealistic for these special services teams to patrol everywhere like beat cops.

In most cases, ordinary police officers still carry out official duties while carrying special pollution detection equipment.

But if they encounter troubles they can't handle, according to the official statement, "Pollution incidents of tier 2 or above" would happen.

At that time, they could contact the special service team on duty and invite professionals to handle and suppress the situation.

However, due to the incident more than ten days ago, there was a severe shortage of personnel among the seven special service teams in the Zion District.

With fewer personnel, the radio would ring at intervals throughout the night.

Not all pollution incidents escalated to the level of Secret Realms. According to Xia Qin, events involving Secret Realms were at least level 4 pollution events, and one might not encounter one for months.

And Secret Realm cases that involve Quasi-Gods directly start as top-level pollution incidents. She had only experienced it once.

Her more regular daily tasks involve dealing with some first-tier "single polluter subjects" and second-tier "individual polluters" to prevent the escalation of pollution incidents.

To put it bluntly, throughout one night she took over three polluted items from the police, disbanded a gang involving Abnormal Ability Users, dealt with two Abnormal Ability robbery cases, and incidentally helped the police handle several seemingly "ordinary" security incidents.

No matter the era, people who have just awakened supernatural powers usually have a bloated self-esteem, and iron-fist suppression needs to be effective and timely.

"Beating people from the north to the south of the city, she truly is a fierce woman with all her talents in combat, taking on more than a dozen gunmen, knife-wielders, and dismantling a gang building..."

Lu Ping'an also knew where the fighting and shooting experience gained from his ability feedback had come from. She had beaten dozens of unfortunate guys that night.

And the craziest part was that she said tonight was relatively relaxing.

"Damn, this world seems a bit unpeaceful..."

Along the way, Lu Ping'an also saw the combat style of a real professional.

A person with two fists, a pistol, and a pair of long legs, swept everything."

The Abnormal Ability User who fought against her used all kinds of chaotic abilities, but all were directly broken with a simple strike to the leg.

Rapid movement, instant decision-making, and then a close-range hit or shot, all problems solved.

"From beginning to end, she didn't use spells (supernatural powers)…...but she's supposed to be good at using a sword, right? That's clearly her main Path."

This was what puzzled Lu Ping'an the most. Xia Qin had two weapons, a customized deep red pistol and a cabbage-colored sword-cane.

As far as Lu Ping'an knew, Xia Qin had walked the paths of a Swordsman and a Fighter, and only her Swordsman Path had reached the second-tier level. She never drew her sword from start to finish!

No, considering there had been no swordsmanship in those days' feedback experiences, she might not have drawn her sword at all this week.

At this moment, Lu Ping'an realized that the supernatural world might not be as simple as he had imagined.

Secret Keepers of the same tier seemed to have vast differences. At least the suspected second-tier wild Ability User that he had seen was instantly defeated in front of Xia Qin, the official second-tier one.

Seeing such a fierce Captain Xia, Lu Ping'an also knew why she confidently spent money on him asking for help as a "subsidy."

Suddenly, Xia Qin frowned and picked up the communicator.

"Patrol car 116, patrol car 117, patrol car 200, please respond if you hear this. You haven't made regular contact in three hours."

But there was nothing but static on the other end of the communicator.

An accident has occurred.

Xia Qin immediately turned on the police siren and activated the positioning device.

As soon as they arrived at the scene, Lu Ping'an gasped.

It was already 6:30 in the morning, and the morning light was raining down, but it made people shudder.

The windows of the three police cars were opened, and inside was nothing but a large splash of red.

That red had covered the ground of the intersection.

And their owners had been put together, forming a "traffic signal" in the center of the road.

Xia Qin's face turned pale as she stared intently at the blood graffiti on the ground.

Below the "traffic signal", a bloody graffiti figure and a faceless figure with a "?" mask on were spreading their arms as if saying something.

"...Sophist."

That low whisper was full of anger, as her steady arm clutched the sword cane, making cracking sounds.

It was the first time Lu Ping'an saw Xia Qin get so angry, but at that moment, an unexpected voice sounded in his ear.

"Lu Ping'an, we need to talk."

That big cat?

At this point, Lu Ping'an realized that the "Flesh Statue" put together before him seemed familiar.

That wasn't a casually assembled "sculpture"; it had roots, branches, and "component" made leaves.

He had seen this in the deadly Secret Realm, only that it was made up of the corpses of the Secret Keepers and was more high-end.

"...Tree of Life? Mother Goddess?"

So, was it Chris's trouble that had come to them?

"Lu Ping'an, don't you want to know which Path is best for you? I can tell you."