Chapter 17 - 14: Acquaintance

Chapter 17: Chapter 14: Acquaintance

"Congratulations. We’ll be colleagues from now on."

The Countermeasures Bureau’s assessment was simpler, or rather, much faster than expected. They merely tested Shi An’s spirit tolerance; once the results met the requirements, he passed the selection.

Song Qiming said, "Don’t think this test is too casual. In reality, eight or nine out of ten people wouldn’t meet the requirements.

"Aside from this core test, there are other conditions, such as a clean criminal record for three generations. For example, the minimum educational requirement for recruiting ordinary staff to our Countermeasures Bureau is a high school diploma. And that is only because if we raised the bar to a college or bachelor’s degree, the Bureau would be severely understaffed.

"Even so, a degree is very useful in our Bureau. Not all clerks here can start with a salary of twenty thousand. The main reason is that you, Shi An, have a bachelor’s degree. Well, not just a bachelor’s, but from Baijiang University. Quite a few of our senior executives are alumni of Baijiang University. You have a bright future ahead of you, young man."

Song Qiming introduced everything dutifully. He wasn’t very surprised that Shi An managed to pass the test. Shi An had always appeared extremely composed. Calm individuals usually possessed stronger stress resistance when facing anomalies and Nightmares, making them exactly the kind of talent the Bureau sought. However, as a clerk, he still had to clearly explain the necessary details.

Song Qiming’s expression turned serious. "Next, you’ll undergo a one-week special training to supplement your understanding and learn more about Nightmares. During this period, if you regret your choice, you can still have your memory erased and return to the life of an ordinary person. But remember, once the training period ends and you officially take up the post, there will be no turning back. Regret will be useless then."

"No problem, it’s a piece of cake." Shi An answered with certainty, "I will definitely slack—I mean, stick to my post and contribute my part to the great cause of fighting Nightmares."

In truth, he could hardly wait. The training was just learning about Nightmares? Wasn’t this exactly what he desperately needed?

Song Qiming shook his head slightly. He could understand this sense of urgency. After seeing a Nightmare and suffering deeply from the powerlessness of an ordinary person, it was natural to want to engage with Nightmares, understand them, and conquer them.

Many people had thought this way. No matter how much danger a Dream Descender faced, it was better than knowing nothing and dying a baffling death one day. But thoughts were just thoughts; once they actually came into contact with it, many would still shrink back and regret. Of course, there were those whose convictions remained firm. These people often became the backbone of the Countermeasures Bureau, or even powerhouses.

However, there was a third possibility. That was—people who had encountered many Nightmares yet were consistently ignored by them, forever unable to become Dream Descenders. It was hard to say whether that was a fortune or a misfortune.

"Which kind of person will you be?" he wondered.

***

"I think Shi An has the demeanor of an expert!" a teenage boy said.

His name was Zhou Luokai, but Shi An was unaware of his background.

At this time, having completed the onboarding procedures at the Countermeasures Bureau’s Anping District Branch, Song Qiming no longer needed to hide certain things.

"Let me formally introduce him again. Our Zhou here is no simple figure. Although he is very young and only just starting his first year of high school, he is already a new-generation Dream Descender being heavily cultivated by the Bureau—well, the Headquarter. He hasn’t been a Dream Descender for long, but he has already achieved outstanding results in the Nightmare World."

"It was actually just luck, pure luck. I was totally carried to victory," Zhou scratched his head, looking very embarrassed.

Shi An thought this Zhou looked a bit familiar. Not his appearance. In reality and the Nightmare World, a person’s appearance did not match up, but certain habits and movements could. The vibe Zhou gave him, combined with his resume as a newly-appointed Dream Descender...

"Could it be that this teenager, Zhou Luokai, is K?" he wondered.

It was highly likely. It was entirely possible! The number of Dream Descenders wasn’t that large to begin with, and the Dream Descenders the Safe Zone was currently able to invite were probably not located too far away from him in reality. To think that the person who showed up today under the guise of delivering the water meter was actually an acquaintance.

The shy newbie had turned into a rising star of the Countermeasures Bureau in the blink of an eye? Wasn’t the bar for this Countermeasures Bureau rising star a bit too low?

But what Shi An didn’t yet know was that after a Nightmare ended, Dream Descenders actually went through a "Nightmare Experience Settlement." Most of the time, the reward for this settlement was a small amount of Dream Crystal Dust. However, Xi Xue, Old Yao, and K had successfully conquered the Nightmare. Even though K had contributed very little and basically freeloaded his way to victory, his settlement at the end was still calculated based on the standard of "clearing the Nightmare." This kind of settlement often deepened the fusion progress of a Dream Descender’s Lifebound Curse Object.

Although K had not yet undergone Curse Fusion, his application and development of the Ghost Candle had become much more proficient. Currently, according to the Bureau’s assessment, his risk of fusing with the Ghost Candle was very low, and it wouldn’t be long before he advanced to a Fusion Stage Dream Descender. This was also why the Countermeasures Bureau was putting so much effort into cultivating him. While many people felt that K had just gotten incredibly lucky, in the eyes of the higher-ups, luck was precisely the most essential element a Dream Descender needed. Temperament, combat ability, and intelligence could pave the steps on the path to becoming an expert. But without luck, those steps would collapse in an instant.

***

Under Song Qiming’s guidance, Shi An took a tour around the Countermeasures Bureau’s Anping Branch.

This branch wasn’t anything special. It was just an ordinary building. On regular days, they mostly handled trivial matters like locking down Nightmare-related information and controlling local public opinion. The missions that truly involved the dangers of Nightmares were all handled by the Headquarter; ordinary clerks like them didn’t even have the clearance to touch those.

For a clerk, the greatest risk was the danger of becoming entangled in a Nightmare. Many clerks eventually turned into Dream Descenders, and the disappearance rate among Dream Descenders was extremely high. This was the reason the Countermeasures Bureau was always short-staffed.

"I’ll take you to visit the Headquarter when there’s a chance in the future. The Headquarter is something else. It’s just that peripheral clerks like us rarely get the opportunity to go there."

Before they left the branch, Song Qiming handed Shi An a stack of foundational materials. "These materials are very basic. The real training will take place at Baijiang University, likely starting tomorrow. You’ll receive a notification when the time comes."

Song Qiming then went back to his work. He seemed to be quite a veteran clerk, as all his colleagues addressed him respectfully as a senior. Zhou had left early; supposedly, he had gone back to school for classes.

At the time, Shi An’s reaction was just: "???"

He had thought himself quite dedicated for taking on the dual role of the Manager at the Safe Zone and moonlighting as a corporate drone. He hadn’t expected to encounter a true master of multitasking. Conquering the Nightmare World, serving as a core operative for the Countermeasures Bureau, while simultaneously being an ordinary high school student... his schedule was absolutely packed to the brim. He truly had the makings of an expert.

After returning to his rented apartment, Shi An looked through the physical documents in his hand. Well, they were very ordinary—all information he had already figured out on his own. The real substance would likely have to wait until he went to Baijiang University tomorrow. Shi An began to feel a sense of anticipation. Since graduating, he hadn’t been back to Baijiang University.

But right now...

"The job at the Countermeasures Bureau is just a side gig, a cover to put food on the table. What truly guarantees my survival in this world still depends on our Safe Zone," he reminded himself.

Shi An closed his eyes. He did not enter a dream. After contracting Employee Number One, the Little Blood Hand, he discovered that even if he didn’t descend into the Sea of Dreams, he could vaguely sense the situation inside the shop. A miniature map of the Safe Zone shop appeared in his mind.

Employee Number One, the Blood Hand Seal, was dozing on the counter. Seemingly sensing its boss’s gaze, the Blood Hand Seal jolted awake and pretentiously marched around the shop on its stubby little legs, pretending to patrol.

"I’m working! I’m really working!" it seemed to say.

Shi An didn’t actually mind. It wasn’t like they had any customers anyway. The greatest significance of the Blood Hand Seal’s existence was that he didn’t have to watch the shop every single second. Just for this point alone, the value of Employee Number One was fully realized. Not to mention, the Blood Hand Seal was also the primary combat force of the entire Safe Zone shop.