Chapter 11: Colleagues

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio Xia Ping’an followed Mo Yanshao around in the building. Mo Yanshao introduced him to the situation in the National Order Council as they walked.

A few charmingly naive robots were moving around inside the building. Mo Yanshao casually placed the document that Xia Ping’an signed on the tray of one of the robots. The robot sent the document to the data archives, turning around and getting on an elevator as it went on its way.

“The main responsibilities of the National Order Council are to deal with dimensional invasions and the threat of creatures from other worlds,” Mo Yanshao explained. “At the same time, we handle all matters regarding summoners, the Awakened, and all incidents related to supernatural powers that pose a threat to national security and the stability of society.”

“The National Order Council Xianghe City branch has two units. One of them is the Special Forces Unit. The members of the Special Forces Unit are mainly divided into two groups. One is the combat squad, and the other is the support staff.

“The combat squad consists mainly of summoners as well as Awakened like you. The Special Forces Unit is under my command. Aside from the Special Forces Unit, there is a military base behind this building. A garrison of the National Order Council’s Security Response Team is stationed there. The commanding officer of the Security Response Team is Colonel Si Shiming.

“According to the nature of the task and the difficulty, the Security Response Team will cooperate with us on missions. However, the Special Forces Unit will also act independently at times. Sometimes, we will receive requests for assistance from the Xianghe City Police Force, Anti-narcotics Department, Department of Homeland Security, and other government departments. We will also carry out missions with them. You will encounter some of them in the future.”

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The two of them walked as they talked. In the time it took for him to convey all this, Mo Yanshao brought Xia Ping’an to the entrance of an office labeled ‘Finance Office’. Mo Yanshao pushed the doors open and entered.

The atmosphere in the office was relaxed. Music was even playing. The aroma of coffee filled the office. A plump-bodied woman in her 40s wearing a loose dress was watering a bonsai in the office using a watering can. She seemed quite relaxed. When she saw Mo Yanshao enter the office, she put down her watering can and greeted, “Director.”

“Hmm, this is Lu Qi, the Director of Finance of our Special Forces Unit. You can call her, Sister Lu,” Mo Yanshao told Xia Ping’an. “In the future, when you are making claims for special event funds or operating expenses, you can come here.”

After he said this to Xia Ping’an, Mo Yanshao said to Lu Qi, “Sister Lu, he is a new recruit of the Special Forces Unit. Please help him go through the financial procedures according to the Special Forces Unit’s Tier 1 salary.”

“Alright,” Sister Lu answered as she glanced at Xia Ping’an. She then turned, opened a drawer, took out a form, and passed it over to him. With a smile, she said, “Young man, come and sign here. Write down the name of your beneficiary for accident compensation and their relationship with you. Don’t worry, this is just standard procedure.

“A Tier 1 salary has a basic monthly pay of 69,000 dollars. It will be issued on the first of every month. It does not include mission rewards and special allowances. I will give you your salary card when your salary is issued. Your accident compensation will accumulate according to your years of service in the Special Forces Unit. During the first year, it is four million, and it will increase by 500,000 each year.”

One month of basic pay was already 69,000 dollars and did not include mission rewards and special allowances? This treatment was excellent. It was comparable to the pay of a senior white-collar salaryman. Compared to when he was a mechanic, the pay was worlds apart. The accident compensation was also an astronomical sum.

With such a stable income, he could consider moving Xia Ning to a different place. Hmm… He should buy a house. Xia Ning had always wanted to have a stable home. They would no longer need to keep renting places every month. As Xia Ping’an thought about this, he quickly signed his name on the form. As for the name of his beneficiary, he naturally put down Xia Ning’s name.

After filling out the form, Xia Ping’an handed it in. Sister Lu took a look at it and nodded. “Everything seems in order,” she said as she put the form away. She then continued to take care of her bonsai. Mo Yanshao then brought Xia Ping’an and left the Finance Office.

“May I ask how many salary tiers are there for the Special Forces Unit?” Xia Ping’an asked curiously.

“There are 19 tiers,” Mo Yanshao replied with a smile. “My salary is at Tier 5. My monthly basic pay is 390,000 dollars. The National Order Council will not be stingy towards people with special powers. The country won’t ask us to bleed and also be broke. The highest annual salary among summoners in the National Order Council is in the hundred millions. It is comparable to a high-level fund manager. No one is poor in the Special Forces Unit.”

A summoner with an annual salary of hundreds of millions?

It seemed that there were truly no poor summoners!

“When you put it that way, I feel as though I hit the jackpot by coming here,” Xia Ping’an told Mo Yanshao.

“You aren’t taking advantage of the situation. The price for hiring summoners and the Awakened does not come cheap. The work here is considered high-risk. Such remuneration is considering that you are serving the country. Summoners and Awakened are hired by governments of other countries, large corporations, conglomerates, and wealthy private charge even more.”

Xia Ping’an blinked and asked, “We even have the opportunity for side jobs while working here?”

“You will see in the future. Summoners are a rare resource. It is not just any country or wealthy person who can have a group of summoners waiting on their beck and call like the few large nations.”

“I kind of understand when you put it that way,” Xia Ping’an said as he nodded. “By the way, the National Order Council seems to favor the number 9. My Tier 1 salary starts at 69,000 dollars. Your Tier 5 salary is 390,000, and the entire salary system has 19 tiers?”

Mo Yanshao laughed and said, “So you noticed. Us summoners can be superstitious at times. This is a tradition that has been passed down long ago. Everyone felt that the number 9 was a lucky number as it represents longevity. Hence, all the basic salaries for the different tiers end with the number 9.”

As they talked, the two of them got into an elevator. Mo Yanshao pressed the seventh floor underground. In the blink of an eye, the elevator descended swiftly. It reached the seventh floor underground. As the elevator doors opened, Xia Ping’an could faintly hear the sound of gunshots from this floor.

Mo Yanshao introduced, “This is the armory and training grounds of the Special Forces Unit. You will certainly be coming here often in the future.”

After they exited the elevator, they walked down a 20-meter-long hallway and made a turn. Xia Ping’an felt as though he had arrived at a supermarket when he looked at the scene before him.

The market had sparkling clean floors and was well-illuminated. It looked stylish, like stores that sold jewelry and luxurious items. Long display shelves and counters were placed in the market. The goods were nicely displayed on them. The variety of the goods was impressive.

Displayed on the left-hand side of this ‘supermarket’ were various exquisite firearms from all over the world. There were pistols, assault rifles, sniper rifles, submachine guns, and automatic grenade launchers. There was every kind of firearm one could expect to find here. If a gun enthusiast came to this place and saw the enormous collection, they might faint from happiness.

Placed right behind the counter in the center were all sorts of cold weapons. There were all kinds of daggers, swords, machetes, spears, nunchucks, darts, and others. Each and every weapon displayed had its own charm. The large collection dazzled those who looked at it.

The right-hand side of the market looked more like the store of a luxury brand. The glass closets were shining. Handsome suits, shirts, shoes, belts, and watches were displayed in the closets. There were also handphones, earrings, necklaces, handbags, bulletproof vests, tactical vests, and other stuff.

“The weapons displayed here are top-tier products from various countries,” Mo Yanshao said. “You can also modify or custom-make weapons here. Those clothes appear ordinary, but they are all made with unique polymer materials. Every single one of these clothes is bulletproof and puncture-proof. Every member of the Special Forces Unit gets free standard uniforms. But if you want to come here and custom-make something special, you have to pay for it. Some of these items are exorbitant.”

“Is that so?”

Mo Yanshao looked somewhat emotional as he rubbed his own nose. He laughed wryly and said, “When you get your salary, you feel like you are a rich man. But when you come here, you will discover that you are but a pauper.”

As the two were speaking, a door opened from the wall behind the counter. A bald old man dressed in a gray shirt and bib jeans emerged from inside. He had white hair and a round belly. The lenses of his glasses were as thick as the punts of glass bottles. He put a fountain pen behind his ear and had a measurement tape around his neck. He greeted Mo Yanshao, “Director Mo, is this fella a newbie?”

This old man looked like an old tailor.

“Hmm. This is Xia Ping’an, a new member of the Special Forces Unit. This is Big Zhou. His full name is Zhou Nian. He is the director of the armory. His words are absolute on this floor. Everyone listens to his orders here.” Mo Yanshao introduced Xia Ping’an and the old man to each other. Then, he said, “Big Zhou, have a look at this kid. Bring him a set of equipment for a newbie.”

“A set of equipment for a newbie. Alright!” The old man smiled as he played along with Mo Yanshao’s joke. He glanced at Xia Ping’an and grinned, saying, “Young man, come over here. Show me both your hands so that I can check what equipment is suitable for you.”

Show the old man his hands? What was the old man trying to do? Was the old man going to read his palms? Xia Ping’an was doubtful as he glanced at Mo Yanshao. The latter merely nodded at him, implying that he should obey the old man’s instructions.

Xia Ping’an said nothing. He stepped forward and extended both his arms.

“Relax your hands,” Big Zhou said as he touched Xia Ping’an’s right hand. He touched every single one of Xia Ping’an’s knuckles and hand bones. The old man stroked Xia Ping’an from his fingertips to his shoulder. He also used the measurement tape and measured the lengths of Xia Ping’an’s forearm, upper arm, and shoulders.

When Big Zhou was done with Xia Ping’an’s right arm, he picked up his left arm and repeated the same thing attentively.

After he was done feeling Xia Ping’an’s hands, Big Zhou turned around and searched on the shelves. He took a box over and placed it in front of Xia Ping’an. He opened the box, and inside was a shiny large-bore silver revolver with a sight.

“Kid, this is the most suitable pistol for you. It is a Manurhin MR98 sniper enhanced variant from Matra Weaponry, France. This is the improved version of the Manurhin MR73. It is almost exactly the same as the MR73 on the outside. It has a slightly larger caliber, and its barrel has been slightly elongated.

“The MR73 has a caliber of 0.357 inches, while this one is 0.5 inches. This gun preserves the MR73’s competition-level shooting accuracy to the maximum. It is safe and reliable to use and can fire 50-caliber Magnum rounds at the same time. Its muzzle kinetic energy is 3,100 joules. Even a wild bear will be knocked over when hit by this. The sight on the gun was fitted on by Matra Weaponry for special forces. I believe this design reflects the unyielding spirit of the Gallic rooster. Hence, I have kept it around.”

Three thousand one hundred joules of muzzle kinetic energy? F*ck, the AK47 only had a muzzle kinetic energy of 2,000 joules. If the one using this revolver did not have enough wrist strength, the gun would be sent flying from their hands with just a single shot, or it might smash right into the user’s face.

Before Xia Ping’an could wrap his head around what was happening, Big Zhou turned around and took out a black box from beneath the shelf of cold weapons. He opened the box. A black and weighty steel whip was curled up like a cobra and was lying in the box.

The handle of the steel whip was very thick while the tail of the whip was slim. At a glance, the steel whip looked exactly like a black cobra.

Mo Yanshao lifted his brows when he saw Big Zhou take out this box. He pointed at the black whip and said, “Big Zhou, this Black Cobra has been stored here for many years. Nobody can handle it. Are you sure he can handle the thing in this box? If he is not careful, he might just hurt himself when trying to use it.”

Big Zhou glared at Mo Yanshao and snorted, “My judgment is acute. Others can’t handle this, but this brat will surely be able to. Even if he can’t use this now, he will surely be able to use it in the future. Do you want to bet with me?”

“I’ll pass!” Mo Yanshao rubbed his nose and rejected Big Zhou’s offer to have a bet.

When Big Zhou took out the shiny Manurhin MR98, Xia Ping’an’s eyes flickered, but he wasn’t too surprised. However, when Big Zhou took out the black steel whip from the second box, Xia Ping’an was astonished. How could this Big Zhou tell that he knew how to use a whip?

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