196: Chapter 196 The Strange Job Applicant

A young man stood at the entrance.

He was wearing a well-fitted gray suit, his hair was combed meticulously, a pair of rimless glasses rested on the bridge of his nose, and he carried a briefcase in his hand.

His entire demeanor exuded an air of scholarly refinement, forming a stark contrast with the previous applicants who were full of rough, street-smart vibes.

He even seemed completely out of place in this base filled with metal and violence.

"Greetings, Officer. I am here to apply for a position."

The young man walked to the desk and bowed slightly, his movements so standard that not a single flaw could be found.

"Resume."

Lin Fan leaned back in his chair, his fingers tapping lightly on the armrest.

The young man handed over a document with both hands.

Lin Fan opened it and took a look, his eyebrows involuntarily arching.

Name: Mo Yu.

Age: 24.

Education: Master's degree in Management from Kyoto University, with a minor in Ancient Artifact Circulation and Appraisal.

Experience: Formerly employed at the largest auction house in Kyoto, "Tiangong Pavilion," serving as a senior appraiser's assistant, later resigned due to personal reasons.

Strength: One-Star Martial Master.

This resume could be called perfect.

Whether it was his education, background, or work experience, everything was impeccable.

It could even be said that such a talent could command a million-dollar annual salary at any major aristocratic family or multinational corporation.

And yet, he came to apply at his newly established, notoriously famous (infamous) department?

"A top student from Kyoto University?"

Lin Fan closed the resume and looked at Mo Yu with a scrutinizing gaze, "Why come to my scrap collection station instead of working in an office at a big company?"

Mo Yu pushed up his glasses, a hint of just the right amount of bitter smile appearing on his face.

"Officer, you are joking. The New Martial Arts Special Strategy Department is currently the hottest place in Kyoto; even Saint Ye has personally inscribed a plaque for it, so how could it be a scrap collection station?"

"As for me..."

Mo Yu paused, a trace of helplessness appearing in his eyes, "I offended a major client at Tiangong Pavilion and was blacklisted by the industry. Now, in all of Kyoto, I'm afraid no one dares to hire me except for you here."

The reason was very sufficient.

Even that expression of being a talent unrecognized was performed vividly.

If it were an ordinary person, they probably would have believed it long ago and might even have felt smug about picking up such a blacklisted talent.

But Lin Fan was not an ordinary person.

He was the biggest Shrewd Merchant in all of Kyoto, and also the most cautious hunter.

"System, Eye of True Sight."

Lin Fan moved his mind.

A barely perceptible dark light flashed deep within his pupils.

[Target: Mo Yu]

[Race: Human]

[Realm: One-Star Martial Master (Stable)]

[Status: Slightly nervous, heartbeat steady]

[Talent: B-Rank Memory Enhancement]

[Note: No traces of disguise detected, no traces of mental control detected.]

Everything was normal, almost too normal.

Lin Fan's eyes narrowed slightly.

In this Kyoto filled with schemes, at a time when the eyes and ears of the four major families and various military factions were everywhere, a defector with a clean background and a perfect reason suddenly appeared.

This in itself was the biggest flaw.

If the Eye of True Sight couldn't see any problems, there were only two possibilities.

First, this person was really just a down-on-his-luck fellow and was truly just here to look for a job.

Second, this person was a top-tier expert, or was carrying some kind of rule-based treasure capable of shielding against s-grade alloy detection.

Lin Fan was more inclined towards the latter.

Because his intuition was sounding the alarm.

That was an instinctive sense of danger.

"Offended a client?"

Lin Fan suddenly laughed, smiling brightly, "Since you are an appraiser, let me test you."

He casually pulled a pitch-black stone out of his system space and threw it onto the table.

This stone was something he had previously picked up from a pile of military scrap; the system identified it as [Fossilized Excrement of a Mutated Abyss Demon Insect], which, apart from being a bit smelly, was worthless.

"Take a look at this and tell me how much it's worth."

Mo Yu picked up the stone, pulled a professional magnifying glass from his pocket, and observed it carefully.

He leaned in closer and sniffed it, his brows slightly furrowed.

"Officer, if I am not mistaken, this should be a fossilized excretion of some creature from deep within Rift No. 3."

Mo Yu put down the stone and said in a professional tone, "Although it is ancient and has fossilized, it still retains weak traces of abyssal toxins inside. It is highly toxic to ordinary martial artists, but for those who practice poison arts, it is a rare auxiliary material."

"The market price is roughly around fifty thousand yuan."

The vigilance in Lin Fan's heart instantly shot to the maximum.

This stone required the system to scan for two seconds before it could give a conclusion.

This Mo Yu had actually managed to accurately state its origin and usage in less than a minute.

This was absolutely not something an ordinary appraiser's assistant could do.

Even the chief appraiser of Tiangong Pavilion might not necessarily have this discernment.

"Interesting."

Lin Fan put away the stone, his smile becoming even more enthusiastic, "What a talent! My place is most in need of talents like you!"

"Since other places don't dare to hire you, I, Lin Fan, will!"

"From today on, you are our department's... Director of the Archive Room!"

Mo Yu was stunned for a moment, seemingly not expecting it to go so smoothly, and a flash of imperceptible joy crossed his eyes.

"Thank you, Officer! I will definitely..."

"Hey, don't be in such a rush to thank me."

Lin Fan waved his hand, "As you can see, we have just been established, and the archive room is currently a blank slate. You have a heavy task ahead of you."

"You need to be responsible for creating archives and filing everything in our base, including all supplies, personnel, and even the trash generated every day."

"Even the whereabouts of a single piece of toilet paper, I want to be able to check it in the archives."

"This position is the core of the core, the secret of the secrets, and I only entrust it to people I trust."

Lin Fan walked over and patted Mo Yu heavily on the shoulder, with an expression that said, "I have high hopes for you."

The corner of Mo Yu's mouth twitched slightly.

Manage trash?

Count toilet paper?

This is the so-called "core secret"?

But he quickly adjusted his emotions and stood at attention to salute: "Guarantee to complete the mission!"

"Good! Little Qin, take Director Mo to the archive room."

Lin Fan shouted to Qin Feng outside the door, "Oh right, the archive room is on the third basement level, that room with no windows and only one door. Remember to equip Director Mo with the best lock; after all, it contains 'secrets'."

Qin Feng ran in, looking at Mo Yu and then at Lin Fan with a bewildered expression.

The third basement level?

Wasn't that the place previously used to pile up radioactive waste? Although it had been cleaned up, that place was cold, damp, and even rats didn't want to go there.

Moreover, apart from a pile of empty shelves, there wasn't even a piece of paper there.

But he saw the deeper meaning in Lin Fan's eyes and immediately understood.

"Director Mo, please."

Qin Feng made a gesture of invitation, "I will take you to experience our department's core important area."

When Mo Yu left with Qin Feng, the smile on Lin Fan's face instantly vanished.

"Brother, this guy has a problem."

Lin Xiaoya, who hadn't spoken the whole time, suddenly spoke up, clutching a bag of potato chips tightly, "Although I can't read what he is thinking, his mind seems to have a layer of fog. But..."

"But what?"

"But just now when you patted his shoulder, his body instinctively tensed up. That was... that was a reaction of someone wanting to kill."

Lin Xiaoya's small face was full of seriousness, "Just like the poisonous snakes I've seen in the Wasteland Zone lurking in the grass, the feeling of wanting to turn back and bite the moment they are stepped on the tail."

Lin Fan nodded, cold light flashing in his eyes.

"I know."

"Being unable to read his thoughts means he has mental defense treasures. The instinctive murderous intent means he is an expert who has seen blood."

"An expert carrying precious treasures, who has killed people, yet disguised himself as a weak scholar, has infiltrated my base."

"Besides a spy, I can't think of any other identity."

Lin Fan walked to the window, watching Mo Yu's back disappear into the elevator entrance leading to the basement.

"Since he wants to act, I will play along with him."

"Putting him in the archive room is to isolate him. That place only has this one exit, and all the surrounding walls are s-grade alloy."

"I want to see exactly which deity thinks so highly of me, Lin Fan, that they are willing to send such a level of person to act as an undercover agent."

Lin Fan took out his mobile phone and sent a message to Qin Feng.

[Have that Hou San watch the ventilation duct of the archive room. Tell him, as long as he discovers any unusual movement from this person, don't alert him, just report directly to me.]

[Additionally, have Qian Duoduo add something when he delivers food to Mo Yu. Not poison, but the kind of laxative that makes one prone to farting after eating. I want to see if an expert can still maintain that perfect expression when he has diarrhea.]

After sending the message, Lin Fan put away his phone and turned to walk towards the cultivation room deep in the base.

"Xiaoya, I am going into seclusion for two days."

"During this time, no matter what happens, even if the sky falls, do not let anyone disturb me."

"Since the Zhao family has already made their move in Jianghai, I must also prepare a big gift for them."

"Martial Grandmaster Second Stage... is still too weak."

Lin Fan's voice echoed in the empty hall, carrying a resolute murderous aura.

He was going to push for a higher realm.

For the upcoming trip to Jianghai, and also to deal with this crisis that has already lurked by his side.