Catastrophe Containment Facility
Chapter 200 - 198: Corruption Follow-up and Black Cross

Chapter 200: Chapter 198: Corruption Follow-up and Black Cross

After playing with it a few times, Wen Wen tucked the cigarette holder into his pocket, his face full of disdain as he said to Lin Zheyuan, "Although it’s not very useful, it is somewhat interesting, so I’ll graciously accept it."

"Ha, you seemed so happy playing with it, you obviously liked it a lot," Lin Zheyuan said expressionlessly, though he complained inwardly.

"You came all the way to see me, there must be more than just this matter," said Wen Wen as he swiveled his chair.

Ever since the Association switched to new chairs, Wen Wen had grown even fonder of spinning around.

Lin Zheyuan’s mouth twitched as he said, "Stop spinning; if your chair breaks again, you’re paying for it."

Wen Wen immediately stopped, leaned on the back of the chair, and blinked his small eyes like a well-behaved child.

"I came here to update you on the situation in the Jiusan District," Lin Zheyuan continued, pausing briefly as if afraid Wen Wen would pull another stunt.

Wen Wen smiled and said, "Go ahead, I’m listening."

"The corruption in the district is mostly dealt with, but civilians are not allowed to enter for the next five years."

Though it seemed clean on the surface, who knew what complications could arise? Letting ordinary people move back in might result in a surge of mutated monsters within a few days.

"That Catastrophe Level entity has not yet clarified its stance; preliminary assessments suggest it might be benevolent, codenamed ’Black Cross.’ Superpower users who are in the know should pay attention to related information. If the information is significant enough, it could lead to a reward from the Association."

"Black Cross, that codename is not very imposing," Wen Wen muttered, but he was pondering whether or not to sell his own information.

Then, Lin Zheyuan proceeded with further details about the follow-up actions and concluded by saying to Wen Wen, "Keep this information confidential, don’t disclose it to anyone."

Wen Wen nodded. For information related to entities above the Catastrophe Level, the Association always maintained strict confidentiality.

However, direct participants in the event had to be briefed with essential information to prevent potential issues in the future.

"By the way, are you interested in becoming a Ranger?"

Wen Wen did not hesitate and replied, "Of course, I’m interested."

"Then, here’s something for you." Lin Zheyuan handed Wen Wen an envelope, which surprised him.

"This is from ’Bing He.’ It’s an introduction letter for the Ranger examination. When you reach the power of the Assimilation Realm, you can participate in the Ranger examination," he explained.

Wen Wen frowned and asked, "Can’t I take part in the exam without an introduction letter?"

"You can take the exam, but having ’Bing He’s’ introduction letter will give the examiners a better impression of you," Lin Zheyuan replied.

After saying that, Lin Zheyuan walked out of Wen Wen’s office.

He had just left when he poked his head back in and said to Wen Wen, "Uncle Gong is leaving Furong River City in three days to take up a new post, so we’re having a dinner the day after tomorrow to see him off. Don’t forget."

This time, Lin Zheyuan truly left, and Wen Wen, holding the introduction letter, felt a bit of anticipation for the future.

The introduction letter was actually obtained by Wang Qin from Bing He; during the fight in the district, Wang Qin had recognized Wen Wen’s potential and had asked Bing He for the letter.

Even among superpower users of the Assimilation Realm, not all are qualified to become Rangers.

Unlike most superpower users, Rangers often need to operate independently without support.

Thus, they require the ability to handle various abnormal events calmly and the capability to independently defeat monsters of the same level.

It can be said that every Ranger is an expert in handling supernatural events, which is why the examination is quite strict.

Wen Wen was inevitably going to participate in the assessment.

Merely hunting the monsters of Furong River City no longer satisfied his hunger; there was a broader world outside, and only by becoming a Ranger could he openly venture into it.

...

After packing a bucket of food from the Hunter Association’s cafeteria, Wen Wen returned home and began practicing swordsmanship.

The "Hunters Association Basic Sword Technique" contained no profound Sword Dao; it offered only fundamentals, yet some explanations of sword techniques were immensely beneficial to Wen Wen.

Although Wen Wen had mastered the sword technique secret manual of the Containment Officer and had even developed Sword Qi, he had never had a systematic understanding of swordsmanship.

His swordsmanship was like a castle in the air, a tree without roots; although it appeared strong, it was somewhat unstable.

Now, Wen Wen could gradually remedy these instabilities, supplementing his deficiencies in swordsmanship.

In the basic sword techniques of the Association, there were no complicated philosophical concepts nor were there any ornamental routines.

There was only how to make the sword in one’s hand exert greater power.

Swordsmanship had always been a means to kill enemies, and how to maximize damage was the fundamental issue.

After gaining some basic understanding of the basic sword techniques, Wen Wen’s comprehension of the Containment Officer’s sword technique secret manual deepened.

The sword technique consisted of thirty-six patterns, each representing a different method of Qi circulation.

Some could project Sword Qi, some could sharpen the sword further, and others could increase the speed of sword strikes. Different combinations of patterns could yield various effects.

Wen Wen was now proficient with only the first pattern, and to master it further, he needed much more practice.

He spent the entire night sweating in the Sanctuary.

As dawn was breaking, a several-meters-long, slightly distorted blood-red Sword Qi shot out from Wen Wen’s dagger, streaking past a wooden post in front like lightning.

Then, the upper half of the wooden post slowly slid down.

"Hmm, the power is quite good, it can be used in regular combat now."

"That senior didn’t leave a name for the sword technique; using it always feels a bit lacking in impact."

Wen Wen lightly tapped his chin, starting to use his quirky naming ability.

"Nameless Swordsmanship, Cosmic Swordsmanship, Calamity Swordsmanship... Ah... so annoying."

Midway through naming, Wen Wen gave up and directly went to take a shower.

Next, he needed to find other things to do; training needed to be balanced with rest.

Currently, what Wen Wen wanted most was to hunt monsters, but after several major incidents, the number of monsters in Furong River City had greatly decreased. Even if there were a few small fry, he was too lazy to make the trip.

Moreover, tomorrow night the Association was preparing a trial for Gong Baoding; once involved in a supernatural case, he might not be able to disengage.

Therefore, Wen Wen needed to find other things to do. After thinking for a while, Wen Wen made a decision.

"Might as well find a lucky one to become a Containment Officer; it’s time to expand the Containment Officer team."

Wen Wen placed the Catastrophe Gloves on the Containment Officer’s pendant, and bubbles began to appear around it, containing information about potential Containment Officers.

And Wen Wen was to select a new Containment Officer from these bubbles.