Love, Gun, Cupid

“My girlfriend is, after all, a member of a different race,” Lin Jiade said. “So I’m very curious about the ecosystem of different races in the Empire.”

"Generally speaking, the Empire's attitude towards races like the Red Dragons, which are rare but can quickly recover their population if allowed to reproduce, and whose individual combat strength is overwhelmingly superior to that of humans, is quite ambivalent. The result is what happened to you last month."

As for those alien races that exist in considerable numbers but lack strong individual combat capabilities, the Empire's attitude towards them is primarily one of control, containment, and utilization—a consensus shared by all factions within the Empire.

Mu Mian glanced at the three mercenaries: "A small number of elite alien races can climb to mid-level bureaucratic positions in the Empire, while some alien races work at the grassroots level of the Empire's system, such as the werewolf policewoman we saw at the police station last time."

Those who were somewhat capable but unwilling to live ordinary lives in the reservation made a living in human society by taking on outsourced jobs and engaging in independent adventures... In other words, they came to be mercenaries.

The empire uses points to bind the alien mercenaries, forcing them to work hard to complete missions and earn points, which they can then exchange for what they want from the Magic Registrar's system page.

For example, Yuki, if given the chance, would definitely want to upgrade to a high-precision sniper rifle and its accompanying equipment. However, these items add up to a high number of points, and she needs to reach the rank of Advanced Magic Researcher before she can exchange for them;

The Arcturus clan lives in the Kita Village Reserve on the Seventh Continent. Previously, the clan mainly relied on agriculture and animal husbandry, lacking bargaining power and resulting in low profits. However, this generation is determined to develop supporting industries, namely the ability to preserve and process agricultural products.

This requires money, technology, and equipment. Money can be obtained through loans, but technology and equipment require the Tauren to contribute to the Empire in exchange for points.

Lin Jiade suddenly realized why the three mercenaries were so happy to capture the wanted criminal (suspected); it turned out they all had urgent reasons to need points.

Miss Kapok's first adventure in the Mirror Realm was mainly focused on exploring the map. Lin Jiade wandered around, occasionally encountering traces of wanderers and extremely rare remains. In order to seize secrets and reduce competitors, they did not hesitate to kill their fellow wanderers, even engaging in some heinous acts that challenged the bottom line of morality.

This is the scene Lin Jiade saw from a nearby camp of wanderers. The camp had gathered dozens of people belonging to at least seven different teams, one of whom, a defeated and captured team, was being executed to entertain the other victorious teams.

“Save your breath,” Yuki glanced at the ongoing crime in the distance. “These idiots who torture and kill survivors won’t survive to the end. They don’t know how to allocate their energy properly and are wasting their energy on meaningless things.”

“We are not champions of justice,” Arcturus agreed. “The bullying of the weak is certainly unpleasant, but that’s the true nature of supernatural powers. It’s just that the Empire uses its order to make it look legitimate.”

"So, nobody with supernatural powers wants to be controlled by the Empire, but anyone with a brain knows that everyone needs order to control the scale and occasion of violence. Abusing supernatural powers will only bring misfortune to everyone," said Starfish.

"How many teams are there around here?" Mu Mian asked.

Using the sword orchid's vision, Lin Jiade scanned the area several times before replying, "Five branches, and their energy levels are all higher than our counterparts... no less than ours."

“We are the representatives of District 18, and it looks like there are teams from neighboring districts entering as well,” said Kapok.

"Are there other areas?"

"In theory, only teams from Districts 18 and 19 are qualified to enter, but now is a critical time, so teams from other districts are also coming to get a share under the guise of support."

Lin Jiade was not interested in inter-regional competition; instead, he asked, "What do we do next?"

"wait."

This wait lasted for four hours (Imperial time). Kapok and the other teams sent by the Empire waited until the time to return to the Mirror Realm was approaching, which was the most relaxing time for the wanderers in the camp.

Almost simultaneously, six teams belonging to the Empire launched their attack, piling the perpetrators' corpses on top of the former victims in just a few minutes.

Amidst the bloodshed and cheers of looting, the leaders of the six teams gathered. Of course, they were nominally just like the other wanderers, "civilians" who had come to search for the secrets of the Empire.

With so many capable and extraordinary individuals present, Lin Jiade had long ago retrieved the sword orchid into his celestial weapon, fearing that someone might notice. In an atmosphere of mutual supervision to ensure a fair distribution of spoils, he dared not keep the soul fragments he found.

The captains' meeting continued until just minutes before the Mirror Realm was about to close for the birds. When Mu Mian returned, she saw the three mercenaries in her team guarding their assigned spoils, while Lin Jiade sat on a rock gazing into the distance.

Kapok thought what had happened here had broken his defenses. He climbed onto the rock and looked at the same scenery as Lin Jiade, saying, "This is how the wild frontier between civilizations is. Ugly things can happen anytime, anywhere, and you are powerless to change anything."

"I……"

“However, if you can’t stand it, don’t use what I’ve said to convince yourself to ignore the facts. Lin Jiade, you should stay angry; at least for now, anger is a force that will benefit you.”

Lin Jiade was not as righteous as Mu Mian had imagined; when he joined the fight, he was filled with the joy of defeating the villains.

His greater anxiety was about the future of Gladiolus: with so many soul fragments concentrated in the hands of the Empire, how could he ensure the reunification of Gladiolus's soul while protecting himself?

Could he trust Kapok? Could he tell her about this? Lin Jiade was torn. He decided to keep it a secret for now, but carrying the secret alone was agonizing.

At six o'clock in the morning, the darkness of the Mirror Realm had not yet ended. The birds that came here emitted white light. In the mirror-like ripples, Lin Jiade closed his eyes. When he opened them again, he and the other teams had returned to the martial arts classroom.

"So what are we now?" Lin Jiade asked.

“Let’s deal with what we brought back first,” Kapok replied.

These "things" included the spoils of war distributed to five wanted criminals (suspected). Lin Jiade curiously examined the weapons, armor, and potions to be confiscated, noticing that they all featured a heavily modified and haphazard style; he couldn't even find two crossbow bolts that were exactly the same.

Chapter 44 Detection Spell - Modified

Yuki explained, "People who travel outside the empire's borders have difficulty obtaining equipment and spare parts, and have long been in a state of using whatever they have. As a result, they have come up with many ways to improve their weapons, to the point that their weapons seem very... bizarre to us."

Starfish nodded: "Our weapons, armor and supplies are all in line with Imperial standards. We can't use any of these confiscated spoils... Arcturus, don't touch that sword. There's a curse sealed inside."

The minotaur priest quickly dodged away. Her boyfriend liked to collect swords, and Arcturus saw the strange longsword with a gear-shaped hilt among the spoils and wanted to take it back to her boyfriend.

Since they were useless and posed a danger, these spoils of war met the same fate as the five wanted criminals: they were handed over to the logistics team led by the "pay-to-win sow" for processing.

"And then?" Lin Jiade asked.

"Go back and rest. We'll meet at the martial arts classroom at 7 p.m. tonight."

Is it really that casual? I thought they would implement closed management.

Lin Jiade wanted to ask, but his first expedition to the Mirror Realm had taken a heavy toll. He had barely managed to stay afloat in the unfamiliar environment, and now that he was back in comfort, he felt dizzy and disoriented.

"Ha~"

He yawned, looking just like a teenager who had just spent an all-nighter at an internet cafe. When he got home, many lights were on in the neighborhood, and the breakfast shops were busiest at that time of day.

He bought two meat buns, which he ate all by the time he got home. After a quick wash, he went to bed and woke up that afternoon.

The sudden disruption to his sleep schedule left him feeling dizzy and disoriented. When he woke up, he turned on his phone, which was placed beside his bed, and discovered that the points had already been credited to his account.

"The logistics team is really efficient."

He stretched, opened the door, and vaguely saw a life-size doll shaped like Jasmine... no, it was Jasmine, dressed in a Lolita-style dress, dozing off on the sofa.

Lin Jiade held his breath. He wanted to carry Jasmine back to bed, but before he could touch her, she woke up, rubbed her eyes, and asked, "Did things go smoothly?"

"There are pros and cons. Lady Jianlan acquired more memory fragments, but many more ended up in the hands of Senior Mumian. I don't know if I can persuade Senior to give us the fragments."

By the way, why are you wearing that outfit?

"Hehuan does all sorts of unnecessary things. She insisted that I wear this outfit to surprise her. Does it look good?"

Lin Jiade nodded, and Jasmine muttered softly, "It's a hassle to wear, but if you like it..."

"No need. I like your attempts to please me, but you don't have to follow through on every gesture. That would be a waste of time. Jasmine, I might be quite busy lately and won't be able to spend time with you."

Jasmine took Lin Jiade's hand and placed it on her cheek. She tilted her head slightly, and the soft touch of her cheek spread in Lin Jiade's palm. At the same time, she widened her eyes, her gaze clear and endearing.

"Well."

Jasmine's sudden cute act was like a soccer ball flying into the goal that Lin Jiade was guarding, leaving him completely dumbfounded.

"This...this is too cute," he stammered. "No, from now on you can only do this for me. You're not allowed to show it to anyone else. This is mine!"

Jasmine was both helpless and proud. She said, "It was taught by Hehuan. I thought she was coming up with some kind of crazy idea, but it turned out to be surprisingly good."

Jasmine healed Lin Jiade's weary soul, and he suddenly remembered something, freeing Lady Jianlan from the revolver.

“I’m sorry, Ms. Jianlan, I was too tired at the time and didn’t consider how you felt being locked in that dark room,” he said.

"It's nothing. I'm just going to sort out and absorb those three memory fragments."

"Did you find anything?"

Jianlan replied, "I didn't think of my family, I didn't think of myself. What I did remember was a memory of camping in the wild, a memory of following someone on a mission, and a memory of preparing meals at home."

"So, I'm fortunate enough to taste the dishes from the lady's newly unlocked memories?"

“I would be happy to do it for you, but unfortunately, there is something more important to do right now.”

Gladiolus floated to Lin Jiade's desk and, drawn by energy, left delicate notes on the paper. A brand-new version of the detection spell and the recipe for concocting potions were being written.

Lin Jiade and Jasmine looked over curiously. The potion ingredients needed for the young man's lame magic were mainly food ingredients, but in the recipe rewritten by Jianlan, herbs such as aconite, aristolochic acid, arsenic, bitter almond, jute, ginkgo, and mercury were added, and in considerable quantities.

Is this meant to improve my detection spells, or to take me away with one combo?

Lin Jiade tried to escape, pretending not to see, but Jasmine grabbed his wrist, making him see the end.

“Jasmine, this recipe is making me depressed,” he said.

Jasmine pulled Lin Jiadra back to her side: "I'm not human, the Depression Shield won't work on me."

Gladiolus was so engrossed in writing the recipe that she didn't notice the couple behind her until she finished. She handed the recipe to Lin Jiade, who immediately placed an order online.

“Ms. Jianlan…” Lin Jiade hesitated before speaking.

"what happened?"

With Jasmine by his side, Lin Jiade was afraid of saying the wrong thing and getting another "Ouch!" in return. He and Jianlan had plenty of time to talk alone.

"It's nothing, you've worked hard," he said.

"You're the one who's been working hard. It's 3 PM now, and you still have four hours until your meeting time. Would you like something to eat?"

"Make something light, I don't have much of an appetite right now."

That's the truth. He was physically exhausted, his sleep schedule was messed up, and he was scared by the improved formula. He kept imagining the old man taking medicine, so it would be a miracle if he had any appetite.

Lin Jiade watched Jianlan cooking in the kitchen. After absorbing the soul fragment, Jianlan, wearing an apron, became even more charming. However, the modified version of the Detection Spell made Lin Dalang feel like he had encountered Pan Jianlan.

"Good afternoon, Lin Jiade. This is the first time I've seen you sleep so soundly. You didn't even react when I kissed you," Du Juan said.

Lin Jiade touched his cheek: "You kissed me?"

"Just kidding. Based on your performance, I might actually keep my kiss, and even..."

Du Juan touched the corner of her mouth with her finger, then slid it down. As her finger touched her chest, Lin Jiade swallowed hard, turned his head, and said, "I have a question. I'm involved in an operation that involves the Empire's secrets. Why am I allowed to go home instead of staying in one place until the mission is over?"

“Those three mercenaries in Kapok’s group need to do that. Kapok’s identity can be exempted, and I will guarantee your confidentiality, which is why you are so free.”

Du Juan pinched Lin Jiade's cheek: "People have done so much for you, how are you going to repay me?"

Chapter 45 Principles (Bonus Chapter)

“Uh, thank you, I will repay you with practical actions,” Lin Jiade said.

"The kind of reward you get for secretly glancing at my chest?"

Before Lin Jiade could answer, Du Juan noticed the piece of paper he was holding in his left hand and said, "Oh, are spells being improved so quickly?"

She leaned out from Lin Jiade's right side, the silk scarf at her neckline lightly brushing against his arm, bringing a tingling, empty, and longing sensation. Lin Jiade longed to measure Du Juan's size with his hand, but he restrained himself.

Du Juan snatched the paper from Lin Jiade's hand, glanced at it, and handed it back to him, saying, "It's pretty reliable. Even I couldn't write a better plan than this."

"Are you sure? I don't recognize the other medicinal herbs, but arsenic and mercury are poisonous. It doesn't seem plausible at all!"

Du Juan looked at her with an expression of disbelief and said, "You don't understand. The core idea of ​​this formula is to put yourself in a do-or-die situation and then survive."

The specific method involves deceiving your senses, making you feel as if you are teetering on the brink of life and death, but without actually dying. This allows you to transcend your limitations and gain the ability to see the radiance of the soul.