60: Chapter 60: The Next Job: Transforming a City

The leading young man was in his early twenties and looked the most composed. The letter of introduction he handed over was written in a formal, classical style, roughly stating that "Kunlun Group" was responding to the national call to send its first batch of excellent young engineers to support the "Kuafu Project," asking for no special treatment, only the opportunity to contribute.

"Kunlun Group..." Director Zhao Lixin held the letter written with a brush, his eyelids twitching. These martial arts practitioners were keeping up with the times; they had even started a company.

"Director Zhao, is this... really someone from the Dongfang Family?" Chief Engineer Wang Jianguo leaned in, lowering his voice, his eyes wide as he scanned the ten young people. His gaze was like an engineer looking at top-tier materials, glowing with greed.

"Could it be fake? The letter is right here." Director Zhao Lixin handed him the letter, unable to laugh or cry. "Look at what's written here: 'support construction,' 'ask for no treatment.' Their awareness is even higher than some of our veteran comrades."

"High! This awareness is too high!" Chief Engineer Wang Jianguo slapped his thigh, his face turning red with excitement. "Director Zhao, these are all treasures! Look at each of them, they have such great energy! They're even better than when little Dongfang first arrived! If we put all of them on the construction site, wouldn't our progress fly?"

Chief Engineer Wang Jianguo was now completely conquered by Dongfang Shuo's inhuman strength. In his eyes, these weren't mysterious masters; they were top-tier laborers who were strong, tireless, and cheap.

One Dongfang Shuo could replace a whole team, so what would happen if ten more came?

"Don't get excited yet," Director Zhao Lixin patted his shoulder to calm him down. "Now that they're here, we need to set the rules first. You understand the Chief Consultant's intentions, right?"

"Understand, I understand!" Chief Engineer Wang Jianguo nodded repeatedly. "It's all the same; they all start as interns! If they want to learn skills, they have to trade their strength for them! This is Engineer Jiang's rule!"

He now admired Engineer Jiang's methods to death. Look, didn't it work? Not only was there no enmity, but they were even scrambling to send the best children of their family to work as laborers. This ability was miraculous.

As the two were whispering, Jiang Ning walked over from not far away.

She had just come out of the laboratory of the No. 2 furnace, still wearing her gray work uniform. She glanced at the ten newcomers at the door, her face expressionless.

The moment those ten young people saw Jiang Ning, their breathing subconsciously stopped.

Before they came, Dongfang Shuo had warned them countless times in his letters. The "Immortal Master" they imagined was either a white-bearded old deity or an ethereal fairy.

But the Jiang Ning before them was just an ordinary young girl, perhaps even a bit too plain. She looked about the same age as them, wore a ponytail, and held a tablet in her hand. If not for Dongfang Shuo's extravagant praise, they would have definitely thought she was just an ordinary technician at the base.

This was... the Immortal Master?

This thought popped into the minds of the ten young people simultaneously.

"Engineer Jiang, the people have arrived." Director Zhao Lixin stepped forward and reported in a low voice, "Ten from the Dongfang Family of Kunlun. As per your request, they came under the guise of 'job applicants.'"

Jiang Ning nodded, her gaze sweeping across the faces of the ten young people one by one.

Her gaze was very calm, as if she were inspecting a batch of raw materials just delivered to the factory. However, those swept by her gaze felt as if they had been seen through inside and out, feeling their hearts tremble and not daring to breathe loudly.

"Their natural aptitude is decent," Jiang Ning observed, drawing a conclusion. "Their foundation is cleaner than when Dongfang Shuo first arrived."

In her opinion, although the "Internal Breath" within these young people was messy, it had far fewer impurities than that arrogant Dongfang Shuo from before, making it easier to guide. It seemed the Dongfang Family had really invested heavily this time, sending elites who hadn't been "polluted" much by the outside world.

Not bad, all good laborers.

"Where is Dongfang Shuo?" Jiang Ning asked.

"I'm here, Engineer Jiang!" As soon as the voice fell, Dongfang Shuo, wearing blue work clothes, ran over from not far away. His face was stained with mud, but he was full of energy, and his eyes were sparkling.

He first bowed respectfully to Jiang Ning before turning to his ten stunned fellow clansmen.

"Senior Brother!" one of the girls couldn't help but whisper.

In their eyes, Dongfang Shuo was a genius rarely seen in the family for a century and an idol for all the young people. He had always been the proudest and most eye-catching one, always wearing white clothes, and not a speck of dust on him.

But now... he was wearing crumpled blue work clothes, a yellow hard hat, and had mud on his face, looking exactly like a laborer who had been working on a construction site for months.

The contrast was too great, leaving these newly arrived young people unable to react for a moment.

"What are you calling out for!" Dongfang Shuo straightened his face and scolded in a low voice. "There is no Senior Brother here, only fellow worker Dongfang Shuo! This is Chief Consultant Jiang! From now on, you must listen to Engineer Jiang!"

He turned back to Jiang Ning, his attitude immediately becoming incomparably humble: "Engineer Jiang, they are my junior brothers and sisters, just down from the mountain, and they don't understand anything. If there is anything they do wrong, please bear with them. Don't worry, I will definitely lead them well, make them follow the rules, and work hard!"

Director Zhao Lixin and Chief Engineer Wang Jianguo watched Dongfang Shuo's foreman demeanor and held back their laughter. This kid, he really got into character quickly.

Jiang Ning didn't react, only asking the ten newcomers: "Has Dongfang Shuo told you the situation here?"

The leading young man hurriedly stepped forward, mimicking Dongfang Shuo's manner, and replied respectfully: "Reporting to Engineer Jiang, fellow worker Dongfang Shuo has already explained everything in his letter. We are here to learn through labor, and we will listen to all your arrangements."

"That's good." Jiang Ning nodded, not bothering with small talk. "I don't keep idlers here. If you can work, stay; if you can't, get out. Your identities and origins are top secret. Whoever dares to leak a single word, think about the consequences yourself."

"Chief Engineer Wang," she turned to Chief Engineer Wang Jianguo, "You arrange these ten people. First, break them up and assign them to the teams that are short-handed, and have them learn from the master workers from scratch. Their salary and benefits are the same as Dongfang Shuo's, intern standard."

"Alright! No problem!" Chief Engineer Wang Jianguo beamed and agreed immediately.

"Dongfang Shuo," Jiang Ning looked at him one last time, "You are an old employee now, you are responsible for supervising them. If anyone slacks off or doesn't follow the rules, report directly to me."

"Yes! Guarantee to complete the mission!" Dongfang Shuo puffed out his chest.

That was settled.

The ten most elite disciples of the Kunlun Dongfang Family hadn't even had a sip of water before they were happily led away by Chief Engineer Wang Jianguo, changed into work clothes, and assigned to the hardest and most tiring posts on the construction site.

Watching the backs of this "Cultivator Laborer Group," Director Zhao Lixin felt moved. He felt that he was witnessing the beginning of a new era. A new era where ancient heritage was integrated into national construction.

Just then, the communicator on his wrist vibrated.

He glanced at the message, and his face sank immediately.

"Engineer Jiang," he walked to Jiang Ning's side, his voice very low, "The meeting in the capital has just concluded, the highest level. The plan for the next step of our project has been decided."

Jiang Ning said "Hmm," signaling him to continue.

Director Zhao Lixin's tone was heavy, as if the words that followed weighed a thousand pounds.

"The first phase of the 'Kuafu Project,' which is our The Oasis project, has been evaluated as... far exceeding expectations. The impact it has brought is no longer just a sand control project. The higher-ups believe that this technology can no longer be limited to no-man's-land; it must be used in broader, more complex environments as soon as possible to exert maximum value and also to show our determination to the whole world."

Jiang Ning had no expression, just listening quietly. She understood all of this; it was nothing more than the project being a success, and the higher-ups wanting to do something bigger.

"So..." Director Zhao Lixin looked at Jiang Ning, speaking word by word, "The higher-ups have decided to launch the second phase of the 'Kuafu Project.' Codename — 'Pearl of the East Sea.'"

He paused and handed over an encrypted tablet.

"Our new task is to transform a city. A large coastal city with a population of ten million — Donghai City."

On the tablet screen was a huge satellite map of the city and dense data.

"The goal is to use your technology to turn Donghai City into the world's first 'Spirit Energy Metropolis' capable of energy self-circulation, environmental self-purification, and possessing a brand new defense system."

Jiang Ning took the tablet and quickly browsed the project overview.

The workload was one hundred times that of The Oasis. The complexity was one thousand times greater.

But when her gaze fell on the project budget column, her face, which had been expressionless, finally had a reaction.

The system's prompt sounded in her mind at the same time.

[Detected large-scale merit infrastructure project: "Pearl of the East Sea" plan.]

[Mission Objective: Complete the preliminary spirit energy transformation of Donghai City, and deploy city-level spirit-drawing, purification, and defense complex arrays.]

[Mission Reward: merit points + 50000, unlock "Detailed Explanation of Mountain Protection Array".]

Fifty thousand merit points.

Jiang Ning calculated in her heart; these merits were almost enough for her to exchange for materials to break through to the Golden Core Stage.

She looked up at Director Zhao Lixin, her tone still as flat as ever.

"When do we start?"