Chapter 288: Water Storage District
Zenith City, underground third layer.
Baiyu arrived at the Bounty Hunter Association, a place he hadn't visited in a long time.
The Bounty Hunter Association in Zenith City is the headquarters for bounty hunters throughout Maple Leaf County, serving as the most authoritative semi-official, semi-private organization within the county.
The role of the Bounty Hunter Association.
Is to regulate martial artists within society, and provide them with a platform for growth.
Like Celestial South Martial Arts University.
The truly useful spirit techniques in the library can only be viewed through GPA, and are never open to outsiders.
Thus.
The Bounty Hunter Association becomes one of the few channels through which these societal martial artists can openly access various resources.
Baiyu's bounty hunter level is not low.
Back in Linjiang City, he earned a high-level hunter certificate by completing multiple high-difficulty tasks and fostering decent relationships there; the president gave him it.
Even though it was issued by a local department.
Baiyu's hunter certificate, when presented to the Bounty Hunter Headquarters in Zenith City, makes him one of the few A-level hunters.
Putting away the dream pocket watch in his hand, Baiyu entered the Bounty Hunter Association.
The area here is dozens of times larger than that of Linjiang City, with people casually chatting in the tavern at the hall entrance.
Every so often, hunter squads or bounty hunters escorting fugitives or dragging exotic beast corpses come to turn in their missions.
The Bounty Hunter Association has its own training grounds, accommodations, prisons, and security personnel, equipped with official hunters, all perfectly organized.
"Hello, please show your hunter certificate."
"If you're looking to register as a bounty hunter, please go to the nearby training facility, where our staff will test you without any fees."
A girl in a uniform walked over with an enchanting smile on her face.
"Here's my hunter certificate, I want to take on a search mission."
Baiyu pulled the certificate out of his pocket.
"Alright, please wait a moment."
"As long as your credentials are sufficient, you can accept the task of your choice."
The attendant took the certificate, and her professional smile faltered slightly with a hint of surprise flickering in her eyes.
She returned the certificate with respect, "I didn't expect you to be an A-level bounty hunter, aside from S-level tasks, you can accept anything in the mission hall."
"Do you have your own squad?"
Baiyu shook his head, "No, I always work solo and haven't formed a hunter squad."
"In the resting area nearby, many bounty hunters are seeking to team up. As an A-level hunter, you can hire an assistant below A-level for free every month to help you with tasks. They would certainly be willing to work with you."
The attendant's eyes lit up as she enthusiastically introduced the benefits of being an A-level hunter to Baiyu.
Such a young A-level bounty hunter is truly rare.
A person like him is either a true genius or has significant backing, either way, she felt it was worth treating him seriously.
If she can make a good impression on him, he might lend a helping hand if she ever faces difficulties.
"Hmm, got it. I'll go there if I need to."
Baiyu smiled slightly.
He waited for the attendant to register his hunter information in Zenith City before taking back his certificate and approaching the mission hall.
"Let me see, according to the pocket watch's guidance, that place..."
"It's just here."
"Investigating the disappearance case in the second layer Water Storage District, C-level task, Shi Yixian's target is hidden here too."
Baiyu checked the environment of the Water Storage District on his phone.
Here is the water storage area for the first three layers, with various sizes of water purification plants; of course, due to the numerous factory buildings, the living environment for residents is quite poor.
Sioman hiding in such a place is logical.
Baiyu reached out to take the task as a cover and head to the Water Storage District for investigation openly.
Just then another small hand beat him to it.
Baiyu turned his head.
A familiar face appeared before him.
Meng Siyu watched Baiyu with a curious expression, her eyes flitting up and down, "Why is it you?"
"That's what I should be saying, isn't it?"
Baiyu rolled his eyes at her and focused on the "Investigate Water Storage District" task sheet, "You're doing bounty missions too?"
"I'm a B-level hunter, I have to do tasks regularly to maintain my level."
Meng Siyu showed a proud look, "I was already a B-level bounty hunter in high school senior year, quite experienced with this type of task. Want to team up?"
"Ah, sure. I just planned to take this task too."
Baiyu chuckled.
Their teaming-up was almost seamless.
Both had a certain understanding of each other's capabilities.
And mutual trust.
Because of the "Oath Contract" in place.
Both Baiyu and Meng Siyu felt assured of each other.
After accepting the mission.
The two then left the Bounty Hunter Association together.
Yet a man with a sinister gaze in the association hall watched their departing figures, gently pressing the send button on his phone, dispatching the message about their venture to the Water Storage District.
...
The first three underground layers of Zenith City are primarily active areas for low-tier martial artists, extraordinaries, ordinary civilians, and sub-humans.
The Water Storage District is on the second layer.
Baiyu and Meng Siyu took the Heavenly Elevator, reaching the outskirts of the district in about an hour.
The roar of steam machinery echoed by their ears.
At the entrance of the Water Storage District stood a long fence with a gate in the middle.
The sign above the gate saying "Water Storage District" was already missing half of it.
From afar.
It looked like just "Water City."
"Let's go, the police station in the Water Storage District is nearby; let's go there first."
Meng Siyu took the lead.
The last incident at the mining area still lingered as a shadow in her heart.
Baiyu's terrifying combat ability echoed in her mind.
Despite both being human, she was born into a well-off family in Zenith City, yet the gap between her and Baiyu was so large.
Now she needed to prove herself in certain aspects.
For example.
This task at hand.
Perhaps it was just a small bit of stubbornness belonging to a young girl.
Baiyu had no objection to Meng Siyu's proposal; to operate smoothly in the Water Storage District, they would have to go to the police station to obtain search and investigation rights.
Otherwise, they would be restricted in many ways.
Once obtained, the latitude for bounty hunter operations expands greatly.
Just like how Baiyu previously, at the Dead Dog Tavern, a group of bounty hunters could blow up the tavern to capture fugitives.
"Oh, right, you need to be a bit careful; He Chenghai is dead, he had quite a bit of influence in his family. Also, he was the sole heir of the He Family."
On the road, Meng Siyu suddenly mentioned.
"Didn't they come after you?"
"My family's power is equal to the He Family's, even if they want to make it hard for me, they can't. Now the He Family suspects there's another mystery behind He Chenghai's death; these old martial artist clans are used to being arrogant, and sometimes their methods can be extreme."
Meng Siyu's eyes flickered.