Matthew Lee uncharacteristically looked nothing like a slacker; as he uttered that last sentence, his entire being seemed to glow.
A perfect demonstration that only shared, tightly bound interests could foster true loyalty.
"From what you're saying..." Cheng Ye frowned in thought. "Central Station's field task board only lists deliveries, reconnaissance, patrols, and coordinating with Inner City operations, doesn't it?"
"Why do you think people pick a side in the first place?" Matthew Lee scoffed. "The field assignments for you Easterners are arranged by Stationmaster Ding, while the ones for us Westerners are handled by Stationmaster Harlin. If you plan to stay neutral like me, you'll have to grind out those grueling grunt missions to scrape together contribution points.
"But if you choose a side, there's an endless stream of lucrative assignments. There are all kinds of ways to rack up contributions."
*So that's the advantage of picking a faction?*
Cheng Ye had a sudden spark of realization, finally grasping the underlying logic of the inspection station system.
"Your grandfather, Cheng Wu, was one of the founding elders of Happiness City.
"Back in the day, he was genuine top brass in Happiness City. It's just a shame he was never able to awaken as an Extraordinary. In the end, he and a group of fellow elders took the initiative to move out to the Outer City—what's now our Buffer Zone."
*Cheng Wu again?*
Among his inherited memories, Cheng Ye couldn't find any trace of that name; even his memories of Cheng Long were sparse.
Ever since his original host turned ten, he had only seen Cheng Long once every two or three years.
And they never met inside the Inner City either. The two would exchange a few hurried words in the passage at the Happiness Gate, and Cheng Long would make an excuse and leave.
"The inspection stations were built from scratch by that very group. Strictly speaking, if the first generation of inspectors hadn't put their lives on the line back then, Happiness City wouldn't exist as it is today.
"It was precisely because the Inner City enjoyed airtight protection that it could develop at breakneck speed during the chaotic early days of the New Era, taking in a massive population and driving industrial advancement. One step ahead led to every step ahead, turning it into the hegemon of Shi Province and even the neighboring provinces.
"Nowadays, plenty of shelter cities and settlements try to copy us by setting up inspection stations, but they never grasp the fundamental difference in how it works.
"Because their inspectors are just guard dogs kept by their inner cities—vassals of power rather than partners in development. They've never had stubborn daredevils willing to risk their lives wrestling for authority, nor inspectors with iron fists. That's why their systems can collapse at any moment under all sorts of trouble!"
Vassals versus partners.
A difference of just two words, yet worlds apart.
Cheng Ye gave Matthew Lee a curious look. "Then what's the situation now?"
"Each generation of inspectors is worse than the last, of course. Still, as long as the old-timers at the station haven't all died off, we can't quite be called vassals. But we're drifting further and further from true partners. Just look around—how many people sitting here are scheming for power and profit?
"Yeah, the Inner City brass is also degenerating with every generation. The infighting there is fierce too. One faction advocates re-embracing the Extraordinary, cultivating elite combat power to eradicate infected entities with violent force.
"The other faction advocates developing science and industry, gradually expanding the borders to establish a secure, unified survival sphere to keep infected entities out."
As Matthew Lee spoke, he let out a low chuckle. "Of course, there are also neutral idealists like me who just want to bring happiness and safety to the residents. Things like reducing utility fees, controlling prices, rolling out various policies to benefit the people—those are all done by the neutrals. They're also the ones who support our inspection stations the most."
"Mm..."
This time, Cheng Ye didn't tease him.
Happiness City's idealists really had helped him a great deal. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to activate the Collector in six months or a year, let alone rapidly charge and search with it.
And though Matthew Lee was a slacker, he was still better than those who mindlessly picked sides just to climb the ladder—Garcia being a prime example.
"How many of those old-timers you mentioned are left?"
"About a third. Most of them are out on field assignments and won't start trickling back until autumn."
*So around fifty people?*
Cheng Ye nodded slightly. With three inspection stations staffed by eight people each, a single rotation cycle required only twenty-four inspectors.
If the veteran inspectors occupied those posts long-term, newcomers would never get a chance to learn the ropes.
Besides, with fewer infected entities during summer and autumn, it opened up a perfect learning window.
That was also why he could go on duty immediately after reporting to North Station: the senior inspectors routinely stepped aside to make room for newcomers.
"What about my father? What kind of man was he?"
"Your father..."
Matthew Lee swallowed, hastily shaking his head as he slipped back into his seasoned slacker, non-committal mode. "I can't comment on that. He was an extraordinary man. If not for certain special circumstances, the next head stationmaster would definitely have been your father—there was no other possibility.
"Yeah. If you really want to know, you'll have to ask Liu Bi. He's Rank 4, while I'm only Rank 3. There are things he can talk about freely that I can't comment on."
"All right."
It seemed Cheng Long definitely harbored deep secrets, especially regarding the Civilization Collector he had left behind.
"By the way, can you bring family with you when entering the Inner City?" Cheng Ye suddenly posed a new question.
"Of course not," Matthew Lee said firmly. "The upper management of Happiness City grants inspectors refuge purely out of consideration for their personal contributions. Your family members didn't risk their lives for the city, so what right do they have to go in and out?"
"Not even Rank 4 or Rank 5?"
"Never mind Rank 5—not even Stationmaster Ding can bring family. That's an ironclad rule laid down by the first generation of inspectors. It's a matter of principle."
"An ironclad rule... Then what about your family?"
"In the Inner City, of course." Matthew Lee looked surprised. "The rule says you can't *bring* family inside, not that your family can't be Inner City residents. My wife and kids are all in there... Wait, didn't you grow up in the Inner City? Why are you asking that?"
*So that's why my predecessor was able to grow up in the Inner City?*
Cheng Ye had a revelation.
He had assumed Cheng Long had found a way to smuggle his former self inside, never imagining that Cheng Long had actually started a family in the Inner City.
"I don't know anything about that. No one ever told me," Cheng Ye said, shaking his head.
His predecessor's mother had died of dystocia, leaving behind only a few blurry photographs in his memory. On top of that, his father, Cheng Long, had abandoned his only son in the Inner City, leaving him completely to his own devices.
That was precisely why, on the very first day he stepped out of the Inner City, he had literally been scared to death by the "real" world outside.
"Oh..." Matthew Lee patted his own forehead and made a show of slapping himself across the mouth twice in apology. "Sorry, my bad. Spoke out of turn."
"What about Rank 4? What privileges do they get?"
"Rank 4..." Matthew Lee hesitated, finally squeezing out four words through gritted teeth, dripping with resentment.
"An Extraordinary opportunity!"
...
*Dong.*
*Dong!*
The bell signaling the start of the lecture suddenly rang out across the hall, instantly subduing the clamor.
The attendees at the study meeting weren't just off-duty inspectors; dozens of observers wearing blue armbands and staff from key posts occupied the back rows as well.
The legs of the projector stand dragged against the concrete floor, letting out a grating screech.
Cheng Ye barely registered it, still engrossed in the bombshell Matthew Lee had just dropped.
Compared to an Extraordinary opportunity and the true purpose behind inspector field missions, a Rank 3 inspector's privilege of entering the Inner City truly amounted to nothing.
*Happiness City is actually keeping special infected variants in captivity?*
Cheng Ye was stunned.
According to Matthew Lee, this didn't involve infecting humans with the S-series virus to induce and draw out Extraordinary abilities through viral power; rather, Happiness City was secretly breeding and raising captive special infected variants.
The Extraordinary plants clinging to these special infected variants grew at an agonizingly slow pace, harvestable only once every five to eight years.
Once harvested, allocation quotas were determined by the yield.
During the previous round, for instance, each Rank 4 inspector had been allocated nearly five grams.
Though the dosage sounded minuscule, it still held a chance of awakening the dormant Extraordinary genes within the human body.
Moreover, the Extraordinary genes awakened in each individual seemed to differ completely.
The last time someone at the inspection stations had successfully activated an Extraordinary ability dated back eleven years. The on-duty stationmaster at the time, Liu Kun, had awakened an ability and stepped straight into the Inner City to serve as Chief of the City Defense Bureau.
It was precisely because he rose into Happiness City's upper echelon that the inspection stations' standing saw a massive boost.
The Public Security Bureau, which previously held checks on the inspection stations' authority, had its powers repeatedly stripped before finally being disbanded eight years ago. From then on, the inspection stations reigned supreme!
Before that, it was the head stationmaster who preceded Ding Yishan's appointment thirteen years ago—the last time an on-duty stationmaster had fallen.
Reagan Carl!
No one knew how he had awakened his Extraordinary ability.
Ever since, however, he had resigned as head stationmaster at lightning speed and transitioned to Chief Executive of the Industrial Zone.
Now wielding immense power, he was one of the core figures in the Inner City's Tech Faction.
With both men rising so meteorically—wielding Extraordinary power while occupying pivotal leadership positions—it inevitably stoked the inspectors' relentless hunger to climb higher.
*So what the East and West Factions are really fighting over is... Extraordinary power, and the authority that comes with it?*
Armed with sufficient information, Cheng Ye understood at once, grasping the fundamental root of the conflict between the East and the West.
Rank 4, Rank 5, on-duty stationmaster, deputy stationmaster, stationmaster.
Climbing each rung of the ladder wouldn't bring another qualitative leap in authority, but it yielded a larger share of Extraordinary plants to activate Extraordinary abilities.
The last Extraordinary opportunity had occurred five years ago, while Ding Yishan had been in office for nearly a decade.
By all accounts, he must have already received one Extraordinary opportunity, yet failed to seize it.
With Easterners currently in a weaker position, Harlin certainly wouldn't pass up this chance to climb higher.
*Besides, Extraordinary power was right beside me all along?*
Realizing that Extraordinary abilities could eventually be attained simply by methodically raising his rank, Cheng Ye felt a surge of excitement.
His heart burned with anticipation, but he had no intention of dutifully climbing all the way to stationmaster just to await handouts from the Inner City.
Instead, he planned to use his search ability to directly seize fully formed Extraordinary abilities!
Before, he hadn't known who actually possessed Extraordinary power. Now, thanks to Matthew Lee, he had finally identified two prime targets.
"Liu Kun!"
"Reagan Carl!"
*One Easterner, one Westerner. You two better hope you don't run into this inspector one day.*
Mulling over those two names repeatedly, Cheng Ye seared them into his memory. Then, he forcibly reined in his wandering thoughts, tamping down the restless surge in his chest.
Even the weakest Extraordinary ability would far outstrip a genetic talent like Iron Body; they were at least Lv. 3 or Lv. 4, entirely beyond the current Collector's ability to search.
His top priority remained focusing on ranking up and clearing his probation as fast as possible.
"Cheng Ye, Cheng Ye!"
Seeing Cheng Ye still lost in thought with his head down, Matthew Lee lowered his voice and nudged him twice under the desk with his knee.
"The overseers are here. Stop spacing out. If they make an example of you, you're in for a world of trouble."
"Overseers?"
Cheng Ye looked up and followed Matthew Lee's gaze toward the exit of the hall, where two figures were walking in.
On the left was Qiao Yuan, an Easterner and Rank 5 inspector; on the right was Dario Haven, a Westerner and Rank 5 inspector.
Noticing Cheng Ye looking his way, Qiao Yuan gave a slight nod, offering a somewhat friendly glance, though his expression retained the customary aloofness of leadership as his gaze swept across the hall.
Dario Haven's reaction, however, caught Cheng Ye off guard. Finding Cheng Ye looking at him, the Western Rank 5 inspector actually offered a warm smile, his eyes filled with benign approval, as if looking at a distinguished junior of his own family.
*Huh? Am I hallucinating?*
Cheng Ye quickly looked away. He had a faint feeling that if they kept making eye contact, the man would surely stroll over and strike up a conversation.
"Stop looking around. Listen up. Even if it's boring, at least pretend to pay attention."
Matthew Lee's slacking skills had reached perfection; his lips barely moved, yet his voice came through crystal clear.
"I heard yesterday someone fell asleep and was dragged out as a negative example, forced up on stage to answer questions in front of everyone. If it were just our own people, that'd be one thing, but with so many observers and staff watching, it was utterly humiliating."
As he spoke, a burst of applause erupted from the front rows where the East Faction inspectors sat.
Cheng Ye focused his gaze and hurriedly joined in the clapping.
To his surprise, the first lecturer to take the stage today was Luo Xiaoxue.
Though Liu Bi was considered an eccentric brute within the East Faction, when it came to their faction's face, the Easterners showed ample respect. Observers and staff aligned with the East Faction all applauded as well.
In contrast, the West Faction remained largely indifferent to Luo Xiaoxue's appearance.
A few even curled their lips with apparent disdain.
"Don't look so surprised. This is just the beginning. The next Extraordinary opportunity is still over a year away. Once winter passes and spring arrives next year, that's when the real knives will come out."
Matthew Lee never meddled in factional disputes, but right now he joined Cheng Ye in applauding, drawing glares from several West Faction members.
Yet he seemed rather pleased with himself, as if relishing the sense of presence it gave him.
Each presenter was allotted only five minutes. Luo Xiaoxue selected a single water-affinity infected entity she had faced head-on, concisely breaking down the methods for dealing with it.
Once Luo Xiaoxue stepped down, the curtain at the backstage entrance parted, and the next presenter walked out.
He looked like an old veteran, but both the East and West Factions treated him with sheer indifference.
Nobody applauded to welcome him, nor did anyone offer any reaction even after he finished.
Even so, from Cheng Ye's perspective, the veteran's tactical advice had its merits.
"Class divisions really are ruthless..."
Cheng Ye sighed inwardly. His gaze suddenly shifted toward the curtain entrance, catching sight of the remaining presenters waiting in the wings.
*Wait, am I seeing things? Didn't Uncle Dong say last night he was going to settle an old wish?*
*How did he end up... invited here as well?*
...
Chapter 47