Watchtower Observatory

Inside the gathering area. The burly man was currently interviewing a male player in his thirties who wore an automatic pistol at his waist. "Tell me about your track record!" "Big bro, I'm an absolute beast. Yesterday I ran an instance and took down a hundred players single-handedly—unlocked the Hundred Man Slayer achievement!" The applicant chattered on and on about his combat record. Zhao Chen could barely keep a straight face, snapping in annoyance, "Shut up! There's a limit to boasting! A hundred kills? Even if they stood there waiting to be shot, do you have that many bullets?" "Big bro, I'm not boasting! I'm really that good!" "Fine! Then what's your KDI?" "Uh, that's not accurate. Nothing worth looking at." "How much?!" "2.8." "Get lost!" Zhao Chen's face darkened completely, and he roared at the top of his lungs. Watching these interviews, Qin Ying yawned, entirely bored. "Brother, will this really work? We've interviewed for so long and only hired a few people. When are we going to gather enough?" "Soon," Qin Ye reassured his sister lazily. Just then, Qin Ying noticed Long Ming standing at the very back of the line and patted Qin Ye's arm. "Brother, look at that one. Doesn't he look strong?" "Which one?" "The masked player at the very end of the line." "Oh, well look at that! Hey, you in the back with the mask, skip the line and come over here!" Qin Ye stood up immediately and called out to Long Ming. Long Ming was slightly surprised to hear this. It seemed good equipment really was the ultimate business card—he didn't even have to wait in line. He walked over toward Qin Ye and his group. At that moment, the crowd turned to look at Long Ming, shock written across everyone's faces. "Holy crap, who is that guy?" "No idea, but look at his gear! So badass!" "A top-tier expert!" Under everyone's watchful eyes, Long Ming walked through the line and arrived before Zhao Chen. Zhao Chen took a deep breath. Just as he was about to start questioning Long Ming, Qin Ye stepped forward. "Stand down, Old Zhao. I'll interview him personally!" "Yes, sir!" Zhao Chen stepped back respectfully. A few sharp-eyed players standing nearby who had already been hired—all wearing full combat suits—furrowed their brows upon seeing Qin Ye conduct the interview himself. Qin Ye sized Long Ming up from head to toe, the heat in his eyes growing as he mentally tallied up the gear. A military bulletproof vest, mechanical power boots, a special ops mechanical mask, an advanced firearm in hand, and a top-tier tactical dagger tucked into his tactical belt. This was practically a fully geared, top-tier expert. Long Ming frowned slightly at Qin Ye. Seeing the young man stare at him for so long, he spoke in a cool voice, "I'm here for the job." "No problem. What do I call you, brother? Which guild are you from?" Long Ming was about to state his name and guild, but after a second thought, decided that was inappropriate. He changed his answer instead: "Red Ghost. No guild." "Red Ghost?" Qin Ye searched his memory to see if he had heard of such a person. "Why? Is there a problem?" "None at all! Cool name, has character—I like it! Still, for fairness' sake, you need to provide your past record and proof of strength." "My strength is average. My past record is decent." Long Ming was momentarily at a loss, unsure how to respond. "Ahem, do you have any highlight reels or combat clips?" Qin Ye was somewhat speechless. Every other applicant did their utmost to talk themselves up, yet this guy plainly said he was average. "No," Long Ming shook his head. In truth, even if he had any, he had no intention of showing them; it would only expose information. "Then what's your KDI?" Qin Ye asked patiently. "I don't know. How do I check?" Long Ming was stumped. Instantly, the area erupted into whispers as the onlookers began gossiping among themselves. "No way! He doesn't even know his own KDI?" "Could he be a fraud? Did he buy all that gear with real money?" "Unlikely. That gear can't be bought in the mall; it could only come from front-line pioneers clearing new content." Qin Ye almost laughed, but he explained anyway. "Brother, open your character status on your wristband and scroll to the very bottom; it's displayed right there! The KDI value doesn't mean everything—luck plays a part, and some people pad their stats—but generally speaking, it still reflects your combat ability." Hearing this, Long Ming tapped his wristband, opened his character status, and scrolled to the bottom. Then he said, "KDI rating 12.1." The moment those words left his mouth, the crowd went wild. "Holy shit! 12.1?!" "That high?!" "He's bluffing, right?" Qin Ye was stunned as well and asked in disbelief, "Brother, you're not pulling my leg, are you?" "No." "Let me see." "Sure." Long Ming raised his wristband to show Qin Ye. Qin Ye took a look, then broke into a brilliant smile. "Excellent! You're hired!" "Hold on. We haven't discussed the pay or the escort details yet," Long Ming interrupted. "Easy enough. My offer is ten million to sixty million Yiwei coins. For the ones hired earlier, I started them at ten million. For you, I'll guarantee a starting rate of twenty million, and whatever loot you get personally is yours to keep. Plus, do a good job and there will be bonuses afterward. However, if the mission fails and you die, you get nothing, and your losses are your own." Qin Ye laid out his terms. After hearing them, Long Ming pressed on, "And the escort details?" "The mission is Watchtower Observatory Base." "Watchtower Observatory Base? What's that?" "Wait, you don't know the most popular instance map right now?" Qin Ye looked at Long Ming in utter shock, half-suspecting the guy was messing with him. "No." "Watchtower Observatory Base is an extremely rich instance, and it's also one of the top producers of invitation letters. That's why it draws so many players fighting inside. I don't need to spell out how dangerous it is, do I?" "I don't quite understand. If the profits from this instance are so high, why are you willing to let us keep our individual loot?" Long Ming frowned, looking at Qin Ye in confusion. He didn't believe in free lunches. These wealthy players might have deep pockets, but they were hardly philanthropists. "It's exhausting talking to you. It's because the Observatory Base has the upgrade quest for a 2x2x2 safe box. I'm hiring an escort purely to protect my sister and me while we light up the Observatory Base. As for the loot from the instance and whether we can evacuate safely afterward, we couldn't care less." Qin Ye explained patiently. Truth be told, he had begun to doubt whether Long Ming was up to the task. Yet Qin Ye had no other choice. The guild he invested in simply lacked the strength to protect him while lighting up the observatory; they had tried several times and wiped out every single time.