Street District - Upper Area
In an area with well-planned streets, straight roads, and various signposts lies the [Temporary Residential Area].
Every gentleman who arrives in Zion is granted one year of free accommodation. (If enrolled in the Alfarostik Academy, the free accommodation period is extended during the boarding period.)
After the first year, monthly rent is required.
Initially, the rent is very affordable. If the resident completes one task per month, the rent remains unchanged. However, if a task is missed in any given month, the rent increases by 30%, with no upper limit.
Due to a recent dormitory altercation, Jin is currently living alone.
He pulls out a long, rectangular key and inserts it into the lock.
Click!
The door, located in the most secluded corner on the top floor, swings open, and a strange stench imdiately wafts out.
The source of the sll isn’t just from neglecting hygiene—it’s more like soone had died inside. And not just recently, but days ago.
"I’ve been out lately, almost a week since I last ca back. The sll’s a bit strong, but don’t mind it," Jin said casually.
"Mm."
Upon detecting the foul odor, Yi Chen instinctively lined his nasal passages with a plant-based filter.
The apartnt is a one-bedroom, one-living room, one-bathroom unit, and the “interior design” seems to reflect Jin’s personality to so extent.
The walls, ceiling, and even the floors of the living room are painted with plain white paint.
A mattress that should belong in the bedroom is carelessly tossed into a corner of the living room. There are no bedsheets, blankets, or pillows on it. Aside from this mattress, the entire living room is barren.
Judging by the faint humanoid imprint on the mattress, Jin likely sleeps here regularly.
"Jin, doesn’t the place where you train have accommodations?" Yi Chen asked.
"It does, but the space is small and shared with a bunch of boring people. I don’t enjoy that. Of course, you’re an exception.
Why don’t you leave that rundown school of yours and move in with ?"
Yi Chen quickly surveyed the bleak environnt before him. "I still have a lot to do at the academy. Plus, there’s a specialized ntor for physical training. For now, I’ll stay where I am."
"Such a pity~ Co on, let
show you my workshop."
Following Jin’s direction, Yi Chen’s eyes landed on the bedroom door, which was tightly shut. The foul odor seed to be seeping through the gap beneath the door.
The wooden door had been replaced with a high-security tal one. Jin retrieved another key and unlocked it, revealing a scene that made one feel uneasy.
The bedroom, originally ant for rest, had been converted into a special refining room.
The source of the stench was a large black cauldron that had been boiling its contents for an entire week. The substances inside had already turned into a thick at paste.
Additionally, there was a peculiar piece of machinery resembling a hybrid of a at grinder and a compressor. Powered by electricity, it appeared capable of turning imitation at into "compressed at cubes."
A large workbench stood nearby, equipped with asuring rulers, though its exact purpose remained unclear.
"Been boiling for a week? The consistency looks just about right," Jin remarked.
With practiced ease, he attached a suction tube to the cauldron, extracting the at paste for filtration and centrifugation. he discarded the remaining waste and carefully collected the purified liquid into samples, which he then stored inside his outfit and backpack as elegantly crafted at-based injection syringes.
"Isn’t this sothing only you could use?" Yi Chen asked.
"Of course. Aside from a few secret potions, I’m not interested in the potions available on the market. These homade at syringes allow
to kill efficiently, earn more money, buy more at, and make more syringes."
"Is your profession related to at?"
When Yi Chen posed this question, Jin instantly closed the gap between them with a swift step, pinning him against the bedroom door.
"So, you’re curious after all~ Want to see my profession emblem? I think I ntioned before—it’s hidden sowhere deep. If you show
yours, I’ll show you mine. How about it?"
This ti, Yi Chen didn’t outright refuse. Instead, he pointed to the back of his head.
"My emblem is here, inside. Profession: [Student]."
"A emblem engraved in the brain? Wow, I’d love to open it up and take a look... My emblem is here," Jin said, gesturing—
The golden-masked figure slightly lifted their seven-colored mask, revealing a sharp, fair chin and soft, pale pink lips.
Their lips parted,
and an abnormally long, curled tongue extended outward... When the curled tongue fully unfurled, a sigil was revealed, branded deep at the hidden base of the tongue.
The sigil was a diagram of a human body in perfect proportion, detailed to the point that even the muscles and blood vessels could withstand scrutiny.
The tongue retracted.
The mask was adjusted back in place.
"Did you see it? My profession is called [Human Weapon Artisan], perfectly aligned with my pathogenic characteristics.
As far as I know, I’m the only one with this profession in the organization right now. According to my instructor, there was soone decades ago, but they were executed by the organization for committing a heinous cri."
"Human Weapon Artisan."
Yi Chen silently repeated this peculiar term in his mind, sensing the inherent aggression and danger it conveyed.
"The last mission consud quite a lot of my syringes and flesh fragnts, and I still didn’t manage to collect a 'patient body' that t my expectations. I’ve yet to create a long-term weapon I’m satisfied with—it’s incredibly frustrating.
Oh, by the way!
William, I saw you walking around the lower streets earlier. Were you heading to the Gentlen’s Hall to pick up a mission?
I happen to have so free ti right now. Why don’t we team up and pick out a particularly unique mission?"
"A unique mission?"
"Exactly—the kind that obviously seems off and could very well lead to death. If we’re lucky, we might encounter so unexpected pathogenic phenona. That would be quite interesting, wouldn’t it?"
Under normal circumstances, Yi Chen would have declined.
But today, for so reason—
perhaps due to the excitent from new weaponry,
perhaps because of the relentless coaxing from the Little Grape inside him,
or perhaps due to a certain instinct within him gradually surfacing—
he said, "Let’s first take a look and see if there are any suitable missions."
"Wait a mont. Since I don’t yet have a long-term weapon, I need to prepare as many temporary weapons as possible."
With that, Jin began processing the synthetic flesh he had just purchased.
He grouped them into sets of ten, fed them into a at grinder, compressed them, and shaped them into cube-sized "compressed at chunks," which he then stored in a specially designed tal box.
When needed, a press of the tal box’s button would eject a chunk directly.
"Alright, let’s go."
Jin adjusted his flamboyant suit.
It was entirely different from the initial attire he had worn upon entering the city, which had been haphazardly splattered with various paints.
The suit, custom-made by Mr. Ivan, featured a multi-colored pattern. Although equally ostentatious, its seemingly chaotic design exuded a subtle sense of cohesion.
Moreover, it appeared that Jin’s suit had undergone nurous "upgrades," now containing a notably high amount of skin materials.
As they walked through the streets, Yi Chen quickly noticed that their path seed slightly off.
"Aren’t we going to the Gentlen’s Hall?"
"What’s the point of that? Those babysitter-level newbie missions are too boring.
Let
take you to a better place. At our location, they occasionally offer so unique missions. Let’s try our luck."
"Alright."
Yi Chen didn’t refuse. He understood what Jin ant by "our location."
He was genuinely curious about the unit Jin belonged to and eager to see the secret facility dedicated to cultivating "Black Letter" candidates—
a greenhouse for executioners.
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