Chapter 269

After the elder finished speaking, the others fell silent, staring at each other, unsure how to continue.

He realized he had spoken too much, and quickly gave Lin Meng an apologetic smile.

"Miss Lin, please don't take offense; I merely value talent, but Ye Xiu's talent is one in a million—even if he can't go to the front lines, he will surely achieve something."

After speaking, the elder felt he had said something wrong, but didn't know how to remedy it, feeling embarrassed for a moment.

Seeing this, Elder Zhou quickly stepped in to smooth things over.

"In my view, not going to the front lines is fine; nowadays anomalies are growing stronger, S‑grade anomalies appear frequently, human soldiers suffer countless casualties, and being a Night Watcher is inherently a high‑risk job. If one can provide support from the rear, it's not a bad posting at least—at least it keeps the peace."

Elder Zhou's words made everyone present grow solemn.

Especially when mentioning S‑grade anomalies, even Wu Jiang caught his breath, grief welling up.

"Yeah, my fellow comrades from the same batch—some died, some were crippled—when will these anomalies finally be eradicated from the world?"

After another deafening silence, Elder Zhou was the first to speak.

"Miss Lin, since you left in a hurry earlier, I forgot to ask where you're from. Our Night Watcher organization offers excellent benefits—someone of your rank can get a free lakeside villa here, no strings attached. Are you interested?"

Elder Zhou addressed Lin Meng with "you" throughout, clearly having another idea in mind, though he didn't say it outright; Lin Meng saw through it.

A lakeside villa didn't impress her much, mainly because her stay would be short—it wasn't worth it.

But thinking that Ye Xiu still lived in a cramped rental, she could get one for him.

"What conditions? What do you want me to do for you?"

"I'll say it up front: I'm not interested in becoming a Night Watcher for now."

"Why? That supernatural item of yours packs quite a punch," Elder Zhou pressed.

Lin Meng thought and said, "It's not anything special—I just don't like being tied down. Your Night Watcher organization has all kinds of rules to follow, and I'm used to freedom."

In truth, she just found it troublesome; she was merely a time‑space traveler passing through…

Elder Zhou heard this, exchanged looks with the others, then said:

"How about this? All the benefits will still be yours, but we'd like you to serve as an external member—take on organization tasks as you see fit, do them if you want, and you'll still receive the rewards; if you'd rather do nothing, we won't force you, and everything will follow your wishes."

Lin Meng frowned; the words sounded nice, but there's no such thing as a free lunch.

"Elder Zhou, just speak plainly—I don't want to take something for nothing; free things are the most expensive, you know that, right?"

Seeing Lin Meng pierce through that facade, Elder Zhou couldn't help but give an embarrassed chuckle.

"Haha, Miss Lin, you're perceptive—let's not beat around the bush. In fact, every city secretly competes, especially in strength, vying for rank year after year to determine resource allocation."

"You possess a supernatural item, and a rare offensive one at that; if you agree to register yourself in our Night Watcher system in Gan'an City, even if you do nothing, it will benefit us."

Lin Meng raised her eyebrows, understanding: they wanted to borrow the prestige of her gun to secure a higher ranking and extract benefits from above.

For her, it entailed no loss—just a nominal affiliation.

Even if they later tried to involve her in external loans, they'd still need to find her.

The benefits, however, were concrete; if she didn't use them, she could give them to Ye Heng and his sibling.

Especially Ye Zhizhi, the poor thing still has to study in Gan'an City for over a decade; having a villa is far better than living in a low‑rent district where crowds make it unsafe.

After thinking, Lin Meng said:

"All right, let's do as you said—except my ID information has expired; I came today to get a new one."

As she spoke, Lin Meng produced that ID card.

Soon, an elder beside Elder Zhou rose personally to handle the paperwork for Lin Meng.

After taking a drop of blood, the ID was quickly processed and returned to Lin Meng together with a special magnetic card.

"Please keep this, Miss Lin—your ID has been registered. This special magnetic card is the identification of the Gan'an City Night Watcher branch; it carries the highest priority, entitling you to top‑tier Night Watcher benefits wherever you go."

Lin Meng raised her eyebrows; not bad.

"Miss Lin, how about we go pick out a villa now?"

Lin Meng calculated that her time was running short and bluntly said:

"I'm afraid I don't have time—could you ask Team Captain Wu to tell my brother to run the errand for me? If he likes it, that's fine; I'm okay with anything."

Upon hearing this, Wu Jiang's eyes flickered; the bond between Miss Lin and Ye Xiu is truly deep.

However, he had just checked Lin Meng's ID—she and Ye Xiu share no blood relation; they're merely both orphans.

Ye Xiu is fortunate to have such a mysterious sister looking out for him.

After thinking, Wu Jiang nodded and replied:

"Please rest assured, Miss Lin—I also teach at Gan'an University and will pass along your message."

Seeing that everything was settled, Lin Meng prepared to leave.

The several elders escorted her all the way, and to prevent anyone outside from watching, they specifically had her take a back route.

"Please, elders, stay where you are—I'll go on my own."

Lin Meng declined the elders' escort, turned and left, only to notice Wu Jiang silently following her.

She had sensed that Wu Jiang wanted to say something, but with the elders present he had held back.

Once they were sure they'd gone far enough, Lin Meng stopped and waited for Wu Jiang to catch up.

"Team Captain Wu, is there something else?"

Wu Jiang hesitated a moment, then said:

"Miss Lin, are you aware of Ye Xiu's true ability?"

Lin Meng nodded without changing her expression; Wu Jiang's eyes darkened, and he immediately continued:

"I truly think highly of him—throughout history, fewer than a thousand have awakened as summoners, at least a few hundred, yet none could contract a beast, spending their lives in mediocrity."

"But Ye Xiu has broken the summoner's shackles, gaining the special ability to contract ordinary beasts; though still inferior to true supernatural power, he is the first in history to overturn it. I don't want him to die midway—those Hundred Anomalies Night Walks are extremely perilous, and I don't want him to take risks. Could you persuade him?"

Lin Meng fell silent; she didn't know just how dangerous the Hundred Anomalies Night Walk was, nor did she feel comfortable making a judgment for Ye Xiu.

"He has his own ideas and integrity; that Officer Xu bullied people too much, withholding the reward that rightfully belonged to Ye Xiu, and he's seeking justice for himself."

Wu Jiang heard this and yet said:

"Qi Blood Pill, I can apply to the team for it; supplying him with twenty is no problem. As for that supernatural item…"

"Forgive my bluntness, Miss Lin, you possess a genuine supernatural item; there's no need to risk Ye Xiu over a counterfeit."

"Counterfeit? What do you mean?"

Wu Jiang widened his eyes, looking at Lin Meng with utter disbelief.

"Miss Lin, you and Ye Xiu couldn't really think the reward is a genuine supernatural item, could you? Historically, the so-called supernatural items given as rewards have all been counterfeits, with power less than one-tenth of the genuine article."

Lin Meng:?

There's also this saying?