The Only Player in ‘Child of Stardust’
Chapter 361 - 250 Work Badge

This was a long-abandoned school known for its paranormal occurrences, now roaming with many terrifying abnormal creatures.

Last time on the 106 bus, three fierce ghosts got on at Yilin Private School, though they were heading out to work as a group...

At that time, Eyes of Identification had suggested that he wait until level 30 to explore, but now that Zhou Yuan had reached Rank 6, sorting this place out could be said to take merely minutes.

Some time passed, and the 106 had added many new stops; there were several times more passengers than before, to the point where seats couldn’t even be grabbed, and latecomers had to stand.

The bus shuttled between the real world and the Spirit World, and after a long while, it finally stopped at the entrance of Yilin Private School.

The school looked just as he had seen it before: the sky was dim, ivy covered the walls of the teaching buildings, the campus was deadly silent with not a single light turned on, emitting an indescribable aura of gloom and horror.

However, the ghostly shadows he used to see in the corridors had vanished, leaving the place eerily empty.

Zhou Yuan felt no trace of malevolent spirits; on a closer look, even the creepy atmosphere seemed much weaker than before, as if the strangeness here had receded.

[Two months ago, all the ghosts here had already left. You’ve come too late, but you can find them at the next stop.]

The next stop?

Zhou Yuan raised an eyebrow. If they hadn’t added any new stops in between, the next one would be Reagan Food Processing.

Had all the ghosts from here really run off to work at the factory?

[As the number of passengers on the 106 increased, more and more people entered Yilin Private School to explore and killed some fierce ghosts. This made the remaining ghosts realize that it was no longer safe. Just then, Factory Manager Reagan appeared and invited them to work at the factory, offering generous benefits, board and lodging included, comprehensive insurance, eight days off per month, and they only needed to work 16 hours a day.]

Sixteen hours a day? What kind of black slavery is this...

But considering ghosts don’t need sleep or rest from fatigue, maybe the work duration isn’t unreasonable?

Zhou Yuan shook his head. Since that was the case, he might as well head straight to Reagan Food Processing Factory, as it was also one of the instances.

...

"Reagan Food Processing Factory, we’ve arrived."

The vague announcement through the bus speaker caused many passengers to stand up from their seats.

[Reagan Food Processing Factory started a large-scale expansion three months ago, recruiting a vast workforce. With excellent benefits and salaries, applicants were countless.]

Looking out of the bus window, Zhou Yuan saw that the Reagan Food Processing Factory looked much more imposing than he remembered, now a massive industrial park.

[Reagan Food Processing Factory, specialized in producing a variety of snacks for global distribution, is widely praised for its exceptional quality, unique taste, and strict food safety standards, enjoying an esteemed reputation.

However, a small chance exists for abnormal items to appear among these snacks, resulting in hundreds of thousands disappearing mysteriously each year. This is tied to a significant secret hidden within the factory, which you will soon discover.

Recommended exploration level: 60.]

"Huh? Did they increase the recommended level?"

Zhou Yuan remembered the suggested level being 50 before. It must be due to the expansion that the difficulty had gone up.

Looks like there were many tough nuts among the new recruits.

Following those coming for the job interview, Zhou Yuan got off the bus, this time disguised with an unremarkable face.

Outside the factory gates, tables and chairs were set up for on-the-spot job interviews and immediate employment after passing.

A man wearing a badge marked ’HR Manager’ was using a megaphone to maintain order, instructing applicants to line up neatly in four queues.

The job seekers weren’t exactly "decent folk"—global fugitives looking for a hideout, alien races with hands soaked in blood, naturally evil demons and ghosts...Getting this assembly of miscreants to queue obediently was harder than reaching heaven.

Yet now everyone stood in line, docile as sheep.

The reason was simple: standing next to the seemingly harmless and skinny manager were three Rank 5 Transcendent Creatures.

They were a fierce-looking Caucasian man, a Hell Inferior Demon with skin red as blood, and a Beastman clad in cast iron armor. Each had a badge around their neck, denoting their position.

East Area Security Captain, South Area Security Captain, North Area Security Captain.

With the presence of three Rank 5 enforcers, no one dared to cause trouble. Although there were peers of the same rank among the applicants, clashing was clearly unwise since their goal was to find work...

Soon, the interview began.

"Your name," the interviewer asked.

"Ergou," the Goblin across from him answered.

"Why did you choose to interview at our company?"

"I saw your recruitment ad; the benefits were good, so I came," the Goblin answered truthfully.

"So, what can you bring to our company?"

"Uh..." the Goblin pondered for a long time, "a new employee?"

"Congratulations, you’ve passed. Go there to pick up your work badge," the interviewer pointed towards a small room next to the gate.

"Ah? Oh... Oh..." The Goblin was somewhat bewildered, apparently not expecting to be hired so easily.

"???" Zhou Yuan stood dumbfounded in the queue; this recruitment process was way too careless, wasn’t it?

The Reagan Food Processing Factory seemed desperate for workers, almost accepting anyone who came. In the end, including Zhou Yuan, all applicants were hired without issue. After receiving their work badges, they were led to the workers’ dormitories by the staff.

Passing by a group just off the assembly line in the distance, suddenly, a panicked scream echoed.

"Where’s my badge???"

A curly-haired man frantically searched himself but couldn’t find his work badge, so he crazily pushed through the crowd to run back.

The reaction from the other employees was intriguing; most appeared to take delight in the misfortune, as though something bad was bound to happen once an employee lost their badge.

Only a few cast sympathetic and pitying looks, almost all of whom were human, ranging from men and women to the old and young... and not one was an extraordinary person.

[As you know, the snacks produced by Reagan Food Processing have a chance to contain abnormal items. These are the lucky disappearances, captured to be eternal black slaves. What about the unlucky ones, you ask? I can only say they’re doing quite "well" in volcanoes, snow mountains, under the sea, in space, or in the raw material storage.]

Zhou Yuan narrowed his eyes; this factory indeed had no reason to exist.

"Heh, just the lesson for the new employees."

The HR manager smiled at the newcomers, "In the factory, your personal work badge is your identity proof, a very, very, very important item. Please keep it safe and do not lose it, or you may face some unfortunate consequences."