First-Year Internship—And You Went to Site 749 to Contain Monsters?!
Chapter 96: What’s Yours Is Mine—If Lu Ding Sees It, It’s His

Yan Feifan had just arrived, and without wasting a second, he pulled out his phone and started scanning faces.

Standing up, he said, "Brother Lu, this is Chen Xian, a formal investigator from Yaodu 749, and this is Shangguan Qing, also a formal investigator from Yaodu 749."

"Both of them have been investigators for less than a year. They came to participate in the Three-District Combat Trials, and apparently, they’re even considered so-called 'seeded players'—two of Yaodu's strongest rookies."

"Among them, Shangguan Qing is the top favorite to win."

Seeded players?

Yan Feifan didn’t lower his voice, so everyone around heard it loud and clear.

The place was packed with Cultivators of Qi, and the moment they heard that these two were supposed to be seeded players, some couldn’t hold back their laughter.

Countless gazes swept over Lu Ding and Bai Hemen. If these two were 'seeded players,' then what about the "Corpse-Shattering Taishui" Investigator Lu, and the battle-hardened Investigator Bai?"

"Seeded players, sure... But against Lu Taishui, who's grown into a towering tree, and Bai Futuo, they’re still just saplings."

"Forget them. Cuff them and take them back to the Bureau. Boss Cao, make sure to tally up the damages and have them compensate for it."

After saying that, Lu Ding turned his attention to the most severely injured Cultivator of Qi from Caojia Alley.

"Brother, how’s your injury?"

The man looked a little touched. "It’s nothing, Lu Taishui, just coughed up some blood. I’ll be fine after some rest."

"Rest well when you get back. I’ll make sure you get compensated for medical expenses."

Hearing Lu Ding’s words, the man glanced at Chen Xian, who was still lying unconscious on the ground.

Lu Ding added, "Don’t worry. He won’t be paying for medical expenses. He started the trouble, ignored the rules, and refused to play fair—he got what he deserved."

"Thank you, Lu Taishui."

A few people came over to help the injured man away.

Meanwhile, Xie Shunan picked up a slightly scuffed Yimu Knot from the ground and stepped forward.

"Sorry, Lu Taishui, I don’t know why I always run into these things. This is what I was telling you about."

"It’s called the Yimu Knot. I heard it can suppress corpse energy. That Yaodu 749 investigator was after it."

Lu Ding took it and gave it a quick look—nothing special. It was just like any other rare spiritual treasure.

Yan Feifan's fingers were flying over the 749 App, searching for information, but before he could even start reading—

Bai Hemen spoke up. "Can I have it? Name your price—money, rare spiritual treasures, or techniques. I can’t trade anything from 749, but I have things of my own."

Xie Shunan looked over.

How should she put it?

That offer sounded really nice.

To her, money was just numbers at this point. What truly mattered were the other resources. If Chen Xian had just made a decent offer—something rare, even if not outrageously valuable—she would have considered it.

But that guy had the nerve to demand her item after seeing her buy out an entire vendor’s stock, throwing out some ridiculous "ten million" price tag. Who was he trying to insult?

"Sorry, Investigator Bai, but I actually wanted to give this to Investigator Lu."

Before she could even finish speaking, Lu Ding casually tossed the Yimu Knot to Bai Hemen.

"You gave me clothes last time—this is my gift in return."

He didn’t care what Bai Hemen wanted it for. If Bai Hemen wanted it, that was enough.

No need for overthinking. Lu Ding had no use for it himself—he didn’t need to suppress corpse energy.

Bai Hemen accepted the Yimu Knot. This was incredibly useful for him. Shangguan Qing only had lingering corpse energy sticking to her.

But he?

He was half-human, half-corpse—born from a mother who was a corpse.

His birthday fell in a year of Yin, on a Yin day, at a Yin hour, and now, with penalties stacked on him from his past actions—including killing his own teammates—it was a miracle he was even alive.

With everything settled, Yan Feifan called for the group to disperse.

Cao Ying leaned in.

"Brother Lu, I just got my hands on another Wrathful Qing Chicken. When you were showing off your might earlier, I had my guys slaughter it and start stewing it."

"You know how my men are—mountain folks with rough hands. They probably went overboard with the salt. Can you guys come help me check if it’s too salty?"

They had originally planned to eat hotpot.

But since Cao Ying was inviting them now…

The taste of that last Wrathful Qing Chicken had been unforgettable.

Lu Ding looked at Bai Hemen and Yan Feifan. "Shall we go help Boss Cao taste-test it?"

The group chuckled and left together.

This time, Xie Shunan didn’t refuse.

That Night—In the Yunhai 749 Bureau’s Jail Cells

Shangguan Qing was the first to wake up.

Sitting on the cold prison bed, she felt a little dazed. Her mind kept replaying the fight from earlier.

Lu Ding had completely crushed her with pure technique.

The physical pain had mostly faded thanks to the medicine applied while she was unconscious.

But the mental devastation lingered.

Shangguan Qing kept trying to convince herself.

"A normal Divine Palace Realm Cultivator of Qi shouldn’t have this kind of skill… right?"

If Bai Hemen had an advantage due to his corpse energy, that was one thing.

But Lu Ding?

He had defeated her in her strongest domain—with nothing but skill.

How could she not feel crushed?

She thought back to the insignia on Lu Ding’s shoulder.

She thought back to how, when he fought, no one dared to make a sound.

The silence had been unreal.

That kind of authority, that kind of dominance…

He must be a senior investigator. His strength was already overwhelming, and on top of that, his talent was exceptional—so it made sense that he could learn in a moment what took her years to master.

"Master one thing, master them all. When your cultivation is high enough, understanding follows naturally—from the top down, rather than from the bottom up."

If I had trained as long as he has, I’d definitely surpass him!

I will!

Tomorrow, I’ll ace the evaluation, take first place in the Three-District Trials, go for advanced training, and when I return—I’ll challenge him again!

Where did this belief come from?

Well—

Shangguan Qing was twenty years old. She had been with 749 for ten months. In that time, she had gone from Aperture-Unlocking to Linghai Realm Seventh Layer, fought countless battles, and gained endless opportunities.

She was known as a genius.

Her peers idolized her.

Every leader in the Bureau praised her.

She had both talent and hard work on her side.

Her journey had been shaped by the clash of innate ability and relentless effort, forging something unique.

She had fought powerful opponents before.

Some won through sheer realm superiority.

Others had deep, profound techniques.

But never—never—had someone beaten her like this.

And to make it worse, Lu Ding had flat-out told her that her techniques were a mess—completely shattering her pride.

No wonder she assumed he was a seasoned veteran investigator.

Not once did she consider…

What if he was actually just a rookie?

That thought flashed briefly through her mind.

After all, Lu Ding did look young.