Chapter 302

"You're not wrong—those things that look like dolls are actually living beings, and those miniature estates are real estates too."

Picking up the fallen money bag and tossing it to Li Ang, the lazy youth explained:

"The true god of the Scale Gold Sect is a very practical deity. Though he enjoys human faith, he prefers believers to live out his principles rather than kneel and bow—basically, things like 'wealth,' 'exchange,' 'value,' and 'commercial activity.'"

So the Scale Gold Gathering is less a ritual and more an utterly unrestricted bazaar.

Believers and followers of that true god come here to trade whatever they can offer—it's a kind of alternative prayer—and every invited person who enters the Gathering receives a temporary money bag filled with vast quantities of conceptual currency."

"Conceptual currency?"

"It's… uh… hard to explain. Why don't you open the bag? I'll show you an example."

"Ah, okay."

Following Tang Mu's instructions, Li Ang touched the cat-paw emblem on his chest, then touched the same emblem on the bag's seal—and the money bag opened on its own, revealing a pile of colorful, bizarre coins inside.

"Whoa, you've got quite the fortune!"

Peering at Li Ang's bulging money bag, the lazy youth raised an eyebrow in surprise, then pointed to the topmost gold coin:

"Look here—on the front of these conceptual coins are symbols like hearts, swords, chalices, crosses, and tarot cards, each representing valuable things: emotion, strength, health, faith, secrets, and so on."

For instance, this coin's staff symbol stands for power that can be traded; the lion on the back likely refers to the Lyon family's lion-heart crest."

So if I'm not mistaken, this coin represents your identity as the Lionheart Duke—you could use it to buy goods in the Gathering square."

And whoever receives this coin could replace you as the kingdom's Lionheart Duke… that's what I mean by 'conceptual currency.'"

What?!

After hearing the lazy youth's words, Li Ang was stunned, then asked in disbelief:

"Can the Scale Gold Sect really do something like this?"

"Of course they can."

The lazy youth raised an eyebrow:

"Don't underestimate the power of wealth. The concept of wealth isn't limited to humans—even a colony of ants or demons from the Abyss rely on it. For any group with social structure, wealth is a vital concept."

So while the Scale Gold Sect's true god isn't strong in combat—he couldn't beat our director in a one-on-one fight—his rank is still extremely high. He's a truly powerful true god, and doing this is no challenge for him."

"But… this counts as using 'anomaly' to interfere with the kingdom. Doesn't our Cleanup Bureau intervene?"

"Of course we do—trading at the duke level is strictly forbidden. But for low-level identity trades with minimal impact, and if the royal family doesn't complain, most branch offices prefer to ignore it."

Glancing into his own money bag, the lazy youth pulled Li Ang toward the square's center as he continued:

"The Scale Gold Sect is relatively mild—even when they cause trouble, they rarely go too far. And their abilities are uniquely useful: they let cleanup agents easily obtain helpful items, or even restore lost lifespan or limbs after missions."

So most branch offices turn a blind eye to them—only stepping in to crush them hard when they clearly cross the line, as a warning not to overstep."

For example, if some fool took your coin and didn't exchange it with the Scale Gold Sect, but tried to use it himself to become the Lionheart Duke, the Scale Gold Sect would suffer a massive backlash…"

"Oh, by the way—do you want anything? If it's not too expensive, I can buy it for you."

Want something… wait! Aren't we here to rescue someone? Why are you shopping?!

What you want... wait! Didn't we come here to rescue someone? Why are you browsing now?

"Tang Mu-senpai!"

Fearing for Emma's safety, Li Ang gently reminded the lazy youth:

"Emma-senpai's danger hasn't passed—we don't know how long she can hold out against the Serpent Spirit. Shouldn't we go look for her first?"

"Relax—we're already looking for her."

Pointing toward a hollow, ring-shaped building at the square's center, the lazy youth kept browsing the stalls as he spoke without moving his lips:

"See that latticed circular structure? We're only at the outer edge of the Scale Gold Gathering. That's the core zone—and only there could Emma be held captive."

The emblems we received are basic believer badges. We must complete enough 'purchases' out here to upgrade them before we can enter the core zone. So buying things? That's how we find her."

After buying up most of the junk from a street vendor's stall—whose eyes sparkled with delight—the lazy youth turned back to Li Ang with a smile and said calmly:

"I know you care about Emma, and you're worried—but don't rush.

I'm a Level One Cleanup Agent too, but I'm not like Emma, who's a powerhouse. My anomalies are mostly utility-based—I have almost no direct combat ability. I can't fight through a crowd to kill a Holy Spirit."

So right now, we shouldn't act rashly. We keep this identity, slip into the core zone without alerting the Scale Gold Sect's higher-ups, and then act."

So for now, we'd best not act rashly; instead, keep this identity and first infiltrate the core area of the *** Bureau without alerting the higher-ups of the Chengjin Sect... come on, you go pick out the items first, then I'll pay for them.

"Alright… but you pick the items—I'll pay!"

Thinking of the meaning behind the coins in his bag, Li Ang suggested:

"This duke identity means nothing to me. If you need coins representing health or strength to buy things here, let me pay—it'll keep you from losing your own vitality or power later."

"No need—I've got more than enough!"

The lazy youth glanced at Li Ang in surprise, then shook his head and opened his own money bag for him to see.

Holy shit—how is there so much?!

"Before we entered, I already prepared."

Amid Li Ang's stunned gaze, the lazy youth, whose bag overflowed with mountains of colorful coins, said confidently:

"Remember the ritual I performed before entering? The one using copper weights, a small silver mirror, and two gold teeth as main materials? That's a wealth secret rite called 'The Balance Law.'"

From the moment the rite fully activated, the next person who gave me money would have their wealth split equally with mine—and the next person to give me money? Exactly the cat spirit of the Scale Gold Sect that made these badges."

So for the next three hours, while the Balance Law holds, I can draw on the cat spirit's entire wealth. If I weren't afraid of drawing attention, we could buy everything here!"

So during these three hours of the Law of Balance, I may freely use the wealth of the Cat Spirit from the Scale Gold Cult; had I not feared that taking too much might draw suspicion, we could have bought everything here!