Chapter 520: Smoking Is Harmful to Health

Although finding any relevant clues from this is almost impossible, the fact that he managed to get this thing shows he does have some skill.

"What about this shipment?"

Min Xingyao finished the main business and, without forgetting to keep Lingxiao's image, casually mentioned it.

She didn't know why Lingxiao chose to blend into the Slum this way, but the identity she used was merely a lackey of the Undercurrent Mercenary Corps, elevated by the corps' higher‑ups because of his Aberrant Arts, yet still far from reaching true officer rank.

But Lingxiao's reputation has already spread, and it's said that his promotion to officer is only a matter of time.

"Hey! You certainly can't imagine what kind of fine goods these are; I've been saving them especially for you!"

Lingxiao's reputation in the Slum remains excellent; no matter how much food the Mercenary Corps allocated to him, he always shared it generously with his subordinates.

Ah, of course.

The Church never owes her any food; it's basically aiming to keep her well fed to the point of ruin.

But in a Slum where even getting full is hard, there's no doubt this is the most effective way to buy hearts.

The person quietly approached Min Xingyao and, in a low voice, claimed credit.

"This time I've brought a Special Ability Practitioner linked to the Rules!"

Min Xingyao's eyes flickered; Special Ability Practitioners are already rare, and those connected to the Rules are even rarer.

And in this Slum beyond the Church's jurisdiction, such human trafficking is not uncommon; even a lofty Special Ability Practitioner could fall to this state before fully maturing.

After all, a Special Ability Practitioner can be taken back for taming, cultivated into a strong subordinate, or used for some terrifying concoctions...

In short, Special Ability Practitioners have become a "commodity" in the Slum that has value but no market.

She was just about to let the person take her down for a look when someone knocked on the door—was it the Undercurrent's prearranged signal, or someone else from the Mercenary Corps?

Min Xingyao's vigilance instantly rose to the maximum; Lingxiao had scheduled a meeting with this dealer tonight, so logically he wouldn't arrange any other deals at this time.

It could only be an old customer who dropped by due to a sudden matter.

The dealer gave Min Xingyao an apologetic smile, thinking that given this adult's temperament, even a slight delay would be forgiven, right?

He pulled the door open a crack, only to see two completely unfamiliar figures standing outside.

"Y‑you… who are you…?"

The dealer furrowed his brows, scanning the two people before him; their attire was lazily distinctive, yet the fabric looked exceedingly comfortable and likely expensive.

Caught off guard, the dealer was abruptly drawn into those captivating peach‑blossom eyes.

A hint of stupefaction showed on his face, his body seemed to collapse and surrender in an instant, his consciousness wholly consumed by darkness.

"Please, come in."

He opened the iron door, and Min Xingyao immediately furrowed her brows tightly.

She thought the dealer would send the outsiders away, but since he let them in, it was a bit too brazen, wasn't it?

Who would truly consider a person who makes a name for themselves in the Slum to be a kind soul?

A blade of pure energy, white‑blue in hue, materialized beside the dealer at the doorway as a deterrent.

Her Aberrant Arts differ fundamentally from Lingxiao's, but as long as they're merely attacks of pure energy, they're fully sufficient for the current situation.

"…you've been far too dismissive of our Undercurrent, haven't you?"

Dealers like this usually have their own small crews, which are linked to each other, so any organization with even a modest reputation tends not to offend them—provided they know their limits and don't act recklessly.

"That remark is somewhat defamatory,"

Hua Jian Lei's bright, laughing voice rang from outside; the black‑market dealer obediently opened the door, then slunk into a corner and pretended to be dead.

Hua Jian Lei surveyed the girl before her; despite the many disguises, Min Xingyao was still too inexperienced at this point, her shoulder pads were subpar, and a close look revealed flaws.

"After all, we're here to help, aren't we?"

Hua Jian Lei looked at Min Xingyao and spoke meaningfully.

According to the guide provided by Yang Yixie, their system‑assigned identities are genuine, yet there is room for manipulation.

They only need to proactively converse with these key NPCs; once they exceed the NPCs' known comprehension, the system will automatically refine their identity data.

So could they also use this method to change their identities, boost NPC favor, and thus gather intel?

Anyway, Hua Jian Lei is already eager to try.

As the guide team said, the person before them seemed to have their brain suddenly go on strike, frozen in place; the tip of Hua Jian Lei's cigarette drifted upward in a thin white plume, slowly spreading outward.

He was attempting to exploit this bug with his Aberrant Arts, to see if he could force a favorable identity perception from Min Xingyao.

The next second, the white smoke that was about to reach Min Xingyao's sea of consciousness was suddenly frozen by an extreme chill.

"That's not a good habit..."

The ice‑blue eyes gave Hua Jian Lei a cold glance, and the room's temperature dropped a few degrees.

Did it fail?

Hua Jian Lei hadn't expected a simulated NPC from a copy to possess such strong conscious resistance; as soon as his Aberrant Arts brushed the limit, the intrusion was forcibly terminated.

Lao Bao shifted slightly, already prepared for the possibility that Min Xingyao would treat them as enemies and open fire.

However, the NPC levels in this copy aren't high yet, so dealing with them isn't a difficult problem.

The only concern might be whether the storyline copy can still progress normally after killing a key NPC.

To prevent that possibility, they could only choose to flee.

Min Xingyao's sudden outburst was without warning; ice crystals spread from her feet, instantly covering the entire floor.

Frost began forming on the ceiling as well, yet Hua Jian Lei remained still, watching Min Xingyao's every move.

"Since you too were chosen by her..."

Min Xingyao's voice echoed through the ice; her fingertips held white light as ice spikes sprouted from the walls in all directions, their tips aimed at Hua Jian Lei.

"Then you should know the rules,"

The next second, all the ice in the room turned into fine white energy, which Min Xingyao reclaimed entirely, leaving only the sudden drop in temperature to forcibly calm the few present.

Min Xingyao slightly lifted her gaze toward Hua Jian Lei.

Although I can also understand, as an ordinary person, developing one's own Aberrant Arts to a level close to that of a Divine Oracle would entail a huge cost, even one's sanity would be affected.

Now, have you calmed down?