Chapter 694 - 45: Awakening

Because there were plenty of open positions for this recruitment, not only were all the Fighters present hired, but the two technicians from Wei Chang’an’s team were brought on as well.

A team that operated independently truly needed such support staff to handle things like driving, maintenance, transportation, and, when necessary, sending telegrams.

Although the team lacked a Resonator, Chen Chuan had already set aside a spot for Wubei, intending to assign him to this unit when the time came.

Everyone was looking over the terms of employment when someone on Wei Chang’an’s team suddenly cried out in surprise.

"We’re actually getting paid for this?"

He hadn’t bothered to read the fine print on the form, simply filling out the agreement as soon as he saw it. This stemmed from his implicit trust in Chen Chuan, and it was only now that the details were sinking in.

Wei Chang’an raised his glass and said solemnly, "Junior Chen, we’d like to propose a toast." At his words, everyone else raised their glasses.

Chen Chuan raised his glass to return the toast, and they each took a sip. Even though the glasses didn’t contain alcohol, everyone felt a sense of exhilaration. From this moment on, they had finally established a foothold in Central City.

Cai Si said, "Junior Chen, I’ve just read the terms. They’re incredibly generous; you wouldn’t find conditions like these anywhere else. Just tell us what you need us to do."

Wei Chang’an couldn’t help but nod, and all his team members looked toward Chen Chuan.

Feng Xiaochi and Luo Kaiyuan also grew serious. Now that they had this official status, it was time to get to work. At that moment, all eyes were on Chen Chuan, awaiting his instructions.

It all felt perfectly natural. Back in Yangzhi City, Chen Chuan had led them on several missions, and they had long grown accustomed to him as their leader. The feeling now wasn’t much different from how it had been back in Yangzhi.

Chen Chuan tapped the Lower Realm Token again, sending them some information.

"Here’s the file. It contains targets within the Processing Bureau that require focused investigation. From now on, our primary focus will be on these two companies."

"The Processing Bureau is also looking into them, but the manpower they’ve provided is limited. Plus, I’ve just stepped into this role. I can get my new subordinates to do things by the book, but when it comes to in-depth investigations, I can’t count on them to be very efficient."

Wei Chang’an’s spirits lifted. It was good to have work to do. His biggest fear was being given money and positions without being asked to do anything in return. He wouldn’t have the nerve to accept such a handout.

As a team leader himself, he understood Chen Chuan’s words perfectly. When a superior assigns a task, what you need most from your subordinates are execution and initiative. Without those, many things simply won’t go smoothly. Even if you succeed, the result will fall far short of expectations and will cost extra time and energy.

Chen Chuan had just become a supervisor, so there was no established trust between him and his subordinates. That meant the crucial tasks would fall to people he *could* trust—people like them.

He said seriously, "Junior Chen, we can’t make any promises, but we’ll definitely do our best."

Cai Si looked at the file, thought for a moment, and said, "Junior Chen, now that we’re here, we realize Central City isn’t Yangzhi. Many Employers are incredibly strong. Second Limit Fighters are a dime a dozen, and they’re all experienced veterans. We’re confident we can handle ordinary missions, but..."

He said cautiously, "If our target is a major corporation, I think it’s highly likely we’ll encounter Third Limit Fighters. That’s beyond our current capabilities. It’s not that I’m afraid, but I worry we won’t be able to complete the mission you’ve given us."

Chen Chuan replied, "I’ve already thought about that. I have a few subordinates who are all Third Limit Fighters, and they’re all people I trust. I’ll be transferring them back in a while. For now, you can all join their squads."

’Third Limit Fighters?’

Everyone was stunned. As far as they knew, Chen Chuan himself was a Third Limit Fighter. How could he already have Third Limit Fighters working under him? And from the sound of it, they were his trusted confidants.

They couldn’t even begin to imagine how he had managed it, and a sense of deep admiration filled their hearts.

Chen Chuan added, "Even though you’ve accepted the employment, you’ll still need to undergo some training. This will include learning the regulations and rules for missions, the various laws of Central City, and so on."

Everyone nodded. That was to be expected.

"Also, there’s one more thing I need to tell you all," Chen Chuan paused. "I’ve now obtained a teaching certificate from Wuyi Academy."

For a moment, everyone was stunned. Then, one by one, their eyes went wide.

Wei Chang’an asked tentatively, "Junior Chen, are you talking about... Central City Wuyi?"

Chen Chuan smiled and nodded.

"Junior Chen, that’s truly incredible!"

Wei Chang’an exclaimed with sincere admiration.

He hadn’t even managed to get into Central City Wuyi as a student, yet Chen Chuan was already a teacher there. He sighed, "That’s truly unexpected..."

Chen Chuan smiled. "Here’s what I was thinking. You are all my classmates, old friends, and partners from past missions. If your strength increases, you’ll be able to help me more effectively. I’d like to spend some time giving you all some brief training. I wonder if you’d be willing to accept?"

"Of course we are!"

Feng Xiaochi was the first to raise his hand. ’Are you kidding me? Setting aside Chen’s strength, he’s a teacher at Central City Wuyi! Of course we have to seize an opportunity like this!’

He had talked a lot with Weidong before. Weidong, a student at Wuyi, had said that if you wanted a teacher’s guidance without paying, you could only attend the public lectures. For any kind of personalized instruction, you had to pay up.

’Chen Chuan training them was the same as being taught by a Wuyi teacher, wasn’t it? You’d have to be a fool to refuse!’

Wei Chang’an also smiled and said, "We couldn’t ask for anything better!"

Although he was Chen Chuan’s senior, Chen Chuan’s skill had long surpassed his by an unknown margin. Fighters respected skill, not seniority. Since Chen Chuan’s level was higher, he was naturally qualified to be their teacher.

Wu Han drained his glass in one gulp, slammed it down with a THUD, and asked eagerly, "Junior Chen, when do we start?"

Chen Chuan said, "Today is a rest day, and I happen to be free. After we eat, we’ll find a place, and I’ll draw up a training plan for each of you."

"Alright!"

Chen Chuan then notified the hotel, letting the staff waiting outside the dining room know they could begin serving the meal.

The atmosphere during the meal was lively. Everyone had finally emerged from the hardships and uncertainty they’d faced since arriving in Central City, and now they could see a brighter future ahead. Their hearts were filled with excitement and anticipation.

After the meal, they left the restaurant and drove to a training hall in the Wuding District.

Wuding District, home to Wuyi Academy, was filled with training grounds. Normally, it was almost impossible to find a vacant one. However, the recent tournament had been postponed and was now approaching the finals, so most people were away watching the matches, freeing up many of the facilities.

After entering the training hall, Chen Chuan had everyone warm up. Then, he had them come up one by one to spar a few rounds with him.

As they sparred, he used his mental and Domain perception to identify the most suitable path forward for each of his old friends and classmates.

As they fought, he couldn’t help but nod. ’They’re all from Wuyi, after all.’ Their fundamentals were incredibly solid, and most of them possessed considerable potential. Compared to people like Fan Cheng and Kong Yao, the only thing they lacked was a wealth of cultivation resources. With sufficient resources, they could improve their strength by leaps and bounds from where they were now.

Of course, this was because Wei Chang’an, Feng Xiaochi, Luo Kaiyuan, Wu Han, and the others were all elites of their respective classes. They had been standout figures among their peers; what they lacked was opportunity, not talent.

Next, he gave each of them a tailor-made Breathing Technique and Strength Posture based on their individual characteristics. These would better support the growth of their Mutated Organizations, making their Emitting Force more fluid and powerful even with simple stance training.

Over the course of the afternoon, every single one of them could clearly feel they had made significant progress. It was a feeling they hadn’t experienced since their first days at Wuyi Academy, right when they had just begun their training.

This left them all in high spirits. If Chen Chuan hadn’t set a time limit beforehand, they would have gladly trained all day without stopping.

Chen Chuan said, "Cultivation Drugs are crucial for training. Some drugs for the Second Limit are relatively easy to acquire. I will distribute some to you all later."

The Bureau, of course, wouldn’t provide these. If he used his operational budget to buy them, there would be nothing left for their upcoming activities.

Fortunately, Teacher Wu had left him a considerable supply of drugs, on top of what he’d acquired as spoils of war. He no longer had any need for these drugs himself, so it was the perfect time to distribute them.

Furthermore, to prevent anyone with too much pride from refusing, he made it clear to them beforehand that this was a personal contribution. He framed it as a loan that they could repay whenever they were more financially stable in the future.

He spent the afternoon there, and once everything was settled, he bid farewell to the group and headed back to Wuyi Academy.

By the time he got back to the underground parking garage of his building, he had received a message from the Defense Department. The report he submitted had been approved. Yuan Qiuyuan, Qin Qingque, and Su Wei would be transferred back to Central City after completing their current mission.

He nodded to himself. ’With this, my team is starting to take shape.’ Once everyone finished their training, he could begin the more in-depth investigations.

Lost in thought, he rode the elevator all the way up to his apartment on the seventy-ninth floor. He was about to go take a shower when, after only two steps, he sensed something was wrong. He turned and walked toward the spiral staircase.

When he reached the second-floor Training Ground, his eyes fell upon the Snow Monarch Blade resting on its stand. The blade was humming and vibrating, and wisps of glowing filaments were seeping from the gap between the blade and the scabbard, swirling in the air around it.

His gaze fixed upon it. ’After all these days,’ he thought, ’has it finally woken up?’

He strode forward, reached out, and lifted the Snow Monarch Blade from its stand.

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