Chapter 169: Chapter 153 Accident
“Junior Brother, have you already manifested your Yuan Force?”
Liu Yi looked at Tao Yu’s rhythmically smooth practice, his eyes filled with surprise.
Too fast!
This effortless, natural feel, at least lv5!
“Brother, as you know, I’ve been quite lucky and caught the attention of some big shot in the Floating City.”
Tao Yu continued to practice without pausing, smiling as he spoke to Liu Yi.
He emphasized his connection with the influential figure again.
Even if news traveled slowly in the Outer City, as long as he took any opportunity to mention it, the information would eventually spread, at least within a small circle.
There was no need to spell it out, the other party would imagine that his progress was due to the recognition from a person of high status.
“That’s because you have the abilities and talents to be recognized. Otherwise, why would they not recognize someone else? Impressive indeed.”
As Tao Yu finished his round of practice, he was ready to pause and chat with Liu Yi, seeking some advice.
“Brother, you’ve seen and known much. I’d like to ask about the requirements for settling down in the Inner City if one wishes to do so.”
Indeed, his home was both dilapidated and ancient, and the mosaic-laden landscape and smells of the Outer City were somewhat overwhelming. He wasn’t planning to move in immediately, but it was always good to learn more about it.
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Liu Yi, the senior brother, was eligible to enter the Inner City but hadn’t done so; therefore, he certainly knew about such matters.
Upon hearing Tao Yu’s question, a smile appeared on Liu Yi’s face.
“Come, let’s talk over some tea.”
He then led Tao Yu towards his own little hut.
Liu Yi was more than happy to share this information with Tao Yu!
In some respects, Tao Yu had become a potential competitor to him.
A Grade A talent, appreciated by high-ranking people, and making quick progress—if he were to open a martial arts school in the Outer City, the similarity would be too great.
Even without opening a martial arts school, as long as Tao Yu kept mingling in the Outer City, he would inevitably carve out a niche for himself with his strength and ambition.
The same-sized cake for everyone else at his level would be reduced, leading to fiercer competition.
Desiring to move to the Inner City was a good thing!
“Junior Brother is primarily focused on the Abyss, unlike someone lazy like me.”
Liu Yi began by complimenting Tao Yu, whose main source of income was from his martial arts school, which is why he could not possibly move to the Inner City.
However, his status was clear, and he was well informed about certain channels.
“Entering the Inner City is both simple and difficult. Essentially, it boils down to two issues.”
As he spoke, Liu Yi also raised his fingers.
“One, the qualifications and identity for the Inner City, for example, you, Junior Brother, as a partner—if you reach the status of a mid-level partner, you can gain eligibility for the Inner City, and being a mid-level partner in the Inner City is a reasonably respectable status. You could already bring your family in with you.”
Liu Yi seemed to know about Tao Yu’s family situation, which made Tao Yu nod in agreement.
“Secondly, the cost of living in the Inner City naturally comes into play. You can’t just build houses there willy-nilly. You either rent or buy. As for the price, well, the cheapest single rooms cost at least a thousand a month. Some Outsiders who have obtained temporary work permits opt for shared bunks, which are somewhat cheaper…”
Hearing Liu Yi’s words, Tao Yu had a clearer picture in mind.
In fact, he had some understanding before, because his sister, who had already married and left home, worked as a garbage cleaner in the Inner City, getting up early to queue for entry and returning before night to rest.
His brother-in-law seemed to be a plumbing repairman in the Inner City and occasionally stayed overnight. Both of them had standard work permits for the Inner City.
Work permits also seemed to be graded. For example, his sister couldn’t stay overnight and had to enter in the morning and leave in the evening, while her husband could rent temporary bunks. However, unless necessary, they would not opt to stay overnight in the Inner City, as the cost was too high.
Income-wise, they earned a bit more than their parents—probably between five or six hundred Yuan Force a month together.
But because there were only five days each month to explore the Abyss, there were rarely any subsidies for living essentials.
Even if a meal was provided at work, the other expenses weren’t small, and as a result, it was hard to save any money.
“Moreover, settling in the Inner City comes with some additional monthly costs like garbage disposal; that’s 110 per person per month. If your residence includes utilities like gas, water, and electricity, those are also a cost. Sometimes there are local taxes in different districts of the Inner City, like the singles tax…”
Liu Yi smiled at Tao Yu,
“What do you think, Junior Brother? Do you have any thoughts about starting a family? I could introduce you to a couple of people. It’s okay if you don’t want to settle down, young man. It’s okay to have a bit of fun and relieve some stress.”
These aggressive words made Tao Yu feel like he was back in his previous life, under the pressure to marry.
However, the difference here was that everyone he was introduced to didn’t mind if Tao Yu was just ‘having a bit of fun’. The disparity was quite significant…
“By the way, I’ve heard some news recently, related to your uncle. I don’t know if he’s told you.”
At that moment, Liu Yi seemed to recall something and looked at Tao Yu.
“Ah? Uncle Hu? What’s the matter?”
Tao Yu had two blood uncles, but each family visited the Abyss at different times, so he hadn’t seen them in a long while. It must be about Uncle Hu.
“It seems you haven’t heard yet. Recently, there’s been a hitch with his position as the Vice-Captain of the security team in South City. Someone found a connection in the Inner City and wants to replace him. You know, he’s still just acting in the role, not formally appointed, so anything is possible.”
Liu Yi was a standard boss in the Outsider area, even more informed about the Inner City folks’ news than they were in the Outsider area.
Normally he couldn’t be bothered with such matters, just staying informed in advance. But he thought of the time when a big shot from the Floating City literally dropped from the sky.
Merely making an appearance made things a lot more convenient for his gym’s settlement. So, it was also a kind of heads-up for Tao Yu.
If there were any channels to try, then go for it. If not, just take it as hearsay…
…
“Tch, this does have something to do with me…”
As Tao Yu left the gym, he mulled over this information.
To talk about connections in the Inner City, Uncle Hu had his own, as clearly shown by his Mechanical Arm. Moreover, he obviously maintained contact with his backers, so following the destruction of the Li family, he conveniently took over their position.
That was the power his network brought him.
Normally, it would be a foregone conclusion for the word ‘acting’ to be removed from his title.
But trouble started brewing when the Wild Wolf Gang and Skull Gang had a fierce ‘showdown,’ culminating in the annihilation of the Wild Wolf Gang. It was rumored that the fate of an Inner City young master was uncertain.
Even though Uncle Hu solved the case quickly and uprooted the Skull Gang, with Old Skull admitting guilt and already executed publicly,
it still provided an excuse for Uncle Hu’s rivals.
The position of Vice-Captain in charge of the South City security team offered both lucrative benefits and real power.
The security team members were at least Grade D+ in combat talent, and they rarely trained for coordination. Unreservedly, a fully equipped security team squad could attempt to hunt down Gym Leader Liu Yi.
When Tao Yu caused chaos in the military base fragment of the Monster World, he already felt that if individual strength was insufficient, the advantage of numbers would be significantly weakened.
Thus, the value of a group of well-trained elites was extremely high.
If back then the soldiers in that military base had been at the average level of the security team, Tao Yu would have found it quite troublesome.
Because such value existed, it seemed quite natural for someone to look for an excuse to cause trouble.
“Tch~, I stirred this up, so I should at least help clean up the mess.”
Tao Yu’s eyes grew cold for a moment, but then he pinched his own face.
“If someone dies at a time like this, wouldn’t all the blame fall on Uncle Hu’s head? It’s better to look for other solutions…”
Looking down at his watch, it seemed the two from the Suns family hadn’t returned yet, and Panda and the others were getting ready to move the machine tools to the new world.
“Ultimately, it’s still because my strength isn’t strong enough! If I were strong enough, if my status were high enough, why would I need to worry about these problems? They wouldn’t even occur in the first place. Maybe I should try to get certified as a mid-level partner first?”