Chapter 170: Chapter 154: Suppression
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Hesitating for a moment, Tao Yu still decided to go take a look at the Inner City.
He was already preparing to set out for the Development Zone to explore new worlds, and there were some things that needed to be sorted out.
If it were just his own affairs, Tao Yu actually had no urgent need for the status of an intermediate partner; going with the flow would have been fine.
But the issue involved Uncle Tiger, and it was a mess he had created, so it was time to deal with the trouble first, even if it was a bit troublesome.
Tao Yu then pulled out a copy of his ‘Junior Partner’ certificate.
Being a Junior Partner not only provided various conveniences but also served as a temporary pass to enter the Inner City, and could even allow for short-term lodging at some inns.
Moreover, compared to a temporary work pass, the junior partner status offered more conveniences, such as being allowed to carry weapons and the like.
“It’s getting dark; I’ll go tomorrow,” he said.
Tao Yu looked up at the sky.
“Later, I’ll check how many points are needed for an intermediate partner. Although I haven’t completed many tasks, the quality has always been high, right? It’s a pity that someone died last time, and a few tasks were not counted…”
Tao Yu had entered some information in his wristwatch, including plenty about partners.
He just hadn’t realized before how many high-difficulty tasks he had completed, so he hadn’t paid much attention to it…
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“Total points, the number of tasks meeting the difficulty level, and the assessment application—it’s no wonder that intermediate partners have a certain social status in the Inner City,” he mused as he lay in bed looking over the relevant content.
The total score speaks for itself; whether it’s through completing high-difficulty tasks or stacking up low-difficulty ones, once you reach the number required, that’s enough.
Then, the application for an intermediate partner status must include the completion of at least one task with a difficulty coefficient that meets the threshold for intermediate partner tasks.
Tao Yu estimated the difficulty coefficient, which he figured was about the same level as the task of venturing deep into the Alien nest to kill the Alien Queen.
It was possible for multiple people to complete it, but credit would be given to only one person.
“Even if the latter tasks weren’t properly submitted, the earlier ‘Chosen One’ and base location selection tasks should already meet the standard, and thanks to the company I’m listed as operating, the total points are almost there…”
Tao Yu checked some related information on his watch.
Despite not being overly demanding in terms of personal strength, the ‘Chosen One’ and base location selection were definitely considered standard-achieving tasks.
Afterward, because of the company establishment, the points from the transported goods would be distributed to him according to his registered shares in the company.
Once he arrived at the new Development Zone with his terminal, those points would synchronize regularly with the real world, providing Tao Yu with a stable source of income without the need for any action on his part.
Whether it was material transportation or the ‘Chosen One’ and base intelligence, both provided incomes exceeding one hundred thousand Yuan Force.
In the beginning, when Joseph and Wino, as moderately well-off families from the Inner City, had a start-up capital of about ten thousand; hence, it was normal that in such a short time, he had nearly reached the required points.
“After all, the Development Zone does have its unique benefits, not only providing more Yuan Force, but also allotting more points for tasks. It’s still a bit short, though. This time, when I go to the Inner City, I’ll take on some tasks to make up the difference and then start the certification assessment…”
Tao Yu made an estimate as he looked over the situation.
Originally, if the income from Monster World were all counted as task achievements, he would have enough points for intermediate partner status!
But, unfortunately, that was not the case. Luckily, Tao Yu didn’t mind; he knew that the wealthy young lady did it for his sake, to avoid unnecessary troubles.
According to his senior fellow disciple Liu Yi, reaching the status of an intermediate partner meant one could support their family living in the Inner City. Though not enough to establish a familial power, one could still be considered part of an ordinary family in the Inner City.
Talking about the intermediate partner in itself, it was already a quite prestigious status.
Tao Yu guessed that this might be comparable to, in his previous life, a small business owner with some standing in a fifth-tier city or the head of a certain department.
“Back when the Wild Wolf Gang were making wild guesses, that ‘Lone Gunman’ and ‘Wilderness Hunter’ were just intermediate partners, albeit ones with some fame among them, while ‘Lethal Bullet’ was a Grade A partner,” he recalled.
At first, when he heard them shouting names, Tao Yu was quite curious, and later on, he managed to understand a bit through indirect means.
Upon reaching intermediate status, partners also got to officially choose their ‘code name,’ a symbol of setting a firm foothold in the Inner City.
If he managed to get it done, it should indeed help with Uncle Tiger’s current troubles…
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“Going into the Inner City?”
The next morning, bright and early, while still on leave at home, Tao Long was patching a leaky roof when he heard Tao Yu’s call.
“Wait a moment, Little Seven. Help bring something to Fourth Sibling. She just gave birth and needs to replenish some nutrition,” he said.
Saying so, Tao Long deftly jumped down from the roof and went into the kitchen to whip something up.
“She’s given birth again? That’s the fourth one, right?”
Tao Yu was stunned; his fourth sister had been married for several years already. Going by this rate, it was practically one child less than every two years, in quick succession. He seemed to only hear news about his fourth sister when she was either pregnant or had just given birth.
“Yes, her own work points aren’t high, so she has to have more children. Luckily, her physique is still quite robust,” Tao Long replied.
Even though she had married off, Tao Long and Hong Xia were still very concerned about her.
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But their jobs required them to spend most of their time in the Abyss, and when they did come back, they could only rest and repair briefly before hurrying off again, almost completely missing the couple who primarily worked in this world.
Tao Long brought out the stuff, mainly two smoked hind legs of some unidentified animals, along with a basket of eggs.
“Let the fourth child replenish herself more, don’t skimp on eating. Ah, I reckon she’ll have to go back to work in a couple of days.”
Hong Xia carried out the basket of eggs.
Hearing Hong Xia’s words, Tao Yu opened his mouth too but ultimately said nothing.
It seemed like this was just the norm for the Outer City.
Back home, when they were younger, the older sibling would take care of the younger ones, with the babies being tied to their mother’s chest and taken to the factory. During the breastfeeding period, the mother’s job would be slightly accommodated to allow her to work in this world, but that was all.
Even now, the eighth child was in a state of benign neglect.
Even if it weren’t for Tao Yu’s own Grade A Chosen One ability, which directly eliminated the concern of being cannon fodder, they would probably have to consider having a ninth child.
Although he always knew the world was fucked up, hearing about his sister’s situation suddenly made Tao Yu feel helpless.
But now that he had somewhat found his footing, he thought he might as well lend a hand…
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His sister lived at her in-laws’, which was on the way to the Inner City.
Since they had to line up to enter the city every morning and come back at night, they tried to choose a place to live as close to the Inner City as possible.
Walking on the muddy streets of the Outer City, Tao Yu carried two smoked hind legs and a basket of eggs, attracting quite a few glances.
This was considered a big spender in the Outer City.
The Rainforest World might be abundant with meat, but besides the difficulty and unpredictability of hunting, just transporting it back and forth was a hassle, let alone the fact that most people’s areas were not suited for such hunting environments.
However, Tao Yu had developed a more masculine presence, and as he walked with a fierce determination, no one was foolish enough to do anything rash for the sake of the meat.
Trudging along the way, Tao Yu arrived at what he remembered to be his sister’s in-laws’ place, which didn’t seem to have changed much—a small house pieced together from scrap, surrounded by a makeshift fence.
There was a hen that could lay eggs clucking away in a metal chicken cage.
A woman who looked about Tao Yu’s mother’s age was cleaning up some chicken droppings, constantly hurrying someone inside the house.
“Hurry up, dear, or we’ll be late.”
The voice from inside the house was chaotic, as if there were many people, along with the sound of a child’s crying.
But soon enough, a gray-haired, dark-skinned old man came out with a gun in hand.
From his attire, he appeared to be a city fortress guard, which was quite a decent job.
Upon coming out, he took a glance at Tao Yu, who had just arrived at the doorstep.
Even though they had met, the encounters were rare, and considering the changes in Tao Yu after his cultivation, the old man did not recognize him at first.
“Uncle Gu, Auntie Gu, I’m the seventh child of the Tao family, Tao Yu. My sister has just given birth, and I brought some things over.”
Tao Yu lifted the goods in his hand a bit higher.
The old couple was startled by this.
“Oh, this really isn’t necessary, it’s too precious.”
“Yes, we’ll accept the eggs. You’re Tao Yu, right? I remember you were so little the last time I saw you. You’ve grown up, grown up. I recall that you have a Grade A combat talent, don’t you?”
Uncle Gu immediately recalled Tao Yu, mainly because Tao Yu’s Grade A combat talent wasn’t particularly hidden; as relatives, they definitely knew.
Each family has almost non-stop work to do though, plus Tao Yu himself was frequently coming and going to the Abyss, so there wasn’t much interaction. It was possible that after Tao Yu entered the Abyss, a visit to congratulate each other was all that took place.
“Yes, I’m in the Development Zone. With a good talent, money comes faster. Just take these, let my sister eat well.”
Having said that, Uncle Gu and Auntie Gu didn’t protest further.
But Uncle Gu was in a hurry to get to work, so he apologized and left in a rush.
Auntie Gu also had work, though it was not as urgent, so she stayed a little longer to chat.
Tao Yu could see that there were only the old couple left at home; their two sons and two daughters-in-law, including his sister, seemed to be at work.
The remaining ones were all children, the eldest of whom seemed to be their eldest son’s, around eleven or twelve years old, tasked with looking after a bunch of younger ones.
From the chat with Auntie Gu, Tao Yu learned that his sister had indeed taken her newly born baby, strapped to her chest, to work at the Inner City.
“She has to line up to get into the city early in the morning. Ah, she should have been able to rest for another day, but her co-worker had a premature delivery, so she had to fill in.”
Hearing this, Tao Yu’s lips twitched, but he couldn’t find any words to say.
Thinking about Joseph and the others receiving $100,000 as start-up capital, the Suns benefitting from full support to develop their own Development Zone, and then thinking about the Outer City and those Heretic God Followers, Tao Yu’s emotions were complex.
What a fucked up world…