Chapter 251: Flickering Candle in the Wind

“So this… is a Bone-Cleansing Pill? That’s insane!”

Lin Lingling stared in disbelief at the concrete wall she’d just punched straight through.

“Over in the American District, they have this rare resource called the ‘Superman Gene.’ It’s an injectable drug—gives ordinary people a 1% chance of awakening the gene and gaining super strength...” Zhao Ying clenched her fists, joints and muscles letting out cracking sounds, clearly brimming with power.

Feeling the transformation in her body, she couldn’t help but sigh, “This Bone-Cleansing Pill is even better than the Superman Gene. And that gene only works 1% of the time—plus, regular people can actually die from it.”

The awakened faction in the U.S. was called the Super Enforcers.

Back when different regions exchanged technologies, she could only envy the American Gene Serum.

Their holy water, mithril crosses, and even the onmyōji shikigami and talismans from Neon were more advanced than anything the Exorcist Division had. Compared to that, their tools looked like they were used by a bunch of cavemen swinging rocks.

That’s why they had to spend a ton of funding to import better resources.

And if all the money went toward resources? Well, of course bounties would get cut.

That’s why the Exorcist Division’s missions always seemed so stingy.

It wasn’t stinginess—they just had no money.

But now things were different.

Now,

they

had access to a resource even more advanced than the rest of the global factions.

“Governor, where did you get these Bone-Cleansing Pills?”

Chen Huaian was lounging atop a mountain of supplies, legs crossed, rolling his eyes:

“If you’ve got resources, just use ’em. Don’t poke around too much. Knowing too much won’t do you any favors.”

Zhao Ying covered her mouth and wisely stopped asking.

Xiang Xiaoyuan came out of the shower, sniffed her arm, and only relaxed after confirming the weird stench was finally gone.

Bone-Cleansing would purge the filth from your body.

For these Common-grade Bone-Cleansing Pills, a single use couldn’t expel everything. Only High-grade and above could do a full cleanse in one go. And above that, Top-grade and Immortal-grade pills not only cleansed but also supercharged the effects.

Of course, Chen Huaian

wanted

this kind of effect.

It would take 20 Common-grade pills to fully expel the filth and push the body to its mortal limit.

It was basically like dangling a carrot in front of a donkey.

“Governor, this Bone-Cleansing Pill is

incredible

.” Xiang Xiaoyuan clenched her fists. As a medical staff member, she’d never imagined she could one day have the power to smash a wall with one punch.

And best of all—she didn’t even bulk up!

The Exorcist Division had tools in the past that could boost physical strength and endurance, but the side effects were horrifying—not just bulging muscles, but also thick beard stubble and armpit hair like a prehistoric jungle.

Sure, she wanted to get stronger.

But

that

price? No thanks. She’d rather stick to logistics.

“All right, distribute the Bone-Cleansing Pills,” Chen Huaian said. “Anyone who’s been with the Exorcist Division for over a year gets one for free. As for the rest, you’ll need to earn them through merit—complete missions, earn points, and trade them in. How many points it takes? That’s up to you all to decide.”

He handed the warehouse access card to Zhao Ying:

“This Venerable One needs to enter closed-door cultivation. Don’t bother me unless it’s urgent!”

“Governor!” Zhao Ying clutched the card, stunned. “Aren’t you worried some members might just take the pill and then quit the Division? You’re giving these away without any restrictions at all?”

Chen Huaian paused mid-step, then chuckled:

“Do you really think people are

that

dumb?”

Zhao Ying watched in silence as his figure disappeared out the door.

Right now, she felt nothing but moved—and guilty.

Earlier, she’d complained that Chen Huaian blew all his money on games, thinking he’d forgotten his promise to get resources for the Division. He

was

the governor, after all, so she didn’t press him.

But now she realized—she’d been too cynical. He’d quietly prepared

everything

for them behind the scenes.

And even gave every veteran member a free Bone-Cleansing Pill!

He really wanted to increase their survival chances against monsters and cursed spirits.

“Xiao Yuan… I was so wrong.” Zhao Ying wiped her teary eyes, her nose stinging. “We should never gossip behind the Governor’s back again. It’s not easy for him either. Who knows what he went through to get these resources? And he’s so good-looking… these pills really seem like something only a mysterious faction would have access to…”

Xiang Xiaoyuan recalled Chen Huaian’s carefree expression earlier when Zhao Ying asked about the source. A bold guess flashed through her mind:

“H

ly sh

t! Sis Ying, you know how mysterious factions have all those ancient freaks with high cultivation? What if the Governor… sold himself to—”

Zhao Ying instantly slapped her hand over Xiang Xiaoyuan’s mouth and shook her head hard:

“Shh! Nobody needs to know—just you and me. Especially not Lin Lingling!”

“Meh?”

Lin Lingling had somehow popped up behind them and tilted her head. “You mean he sold his

butt

? That’s not a big deal. There are so many male escorts nowadays. Totally understandable. Wait here—I’m going to buy some Six-Flavor Rehmannia Pills for the Governor right now!”

With that, the girl jumped out the window and bolted toward the pharmacy.

Xiang Xiaoyuan @ Zhao Ying: “…”

“Did I say anything?” Xiang Xiaoyuan asked.

“Nope. Nothing at all.” Zhao Ying shook her head furiously.

“So this conclusion came entirely from Lingling’s

own

imagination, right?”

Zhao Ying nodded again. “Exactly.”

“Then we’re good. Let’s go pass out the pills…”

The two exchanged a smile—some things didn’t need to be said aloud.

…

Containment Site 0

Chen Huaian had sent Shrimp King and Strawberry Bear to go stand by the wall before heading inside to begin closed-door cultivation.

Sure, they’d done well on the last mission, but discipline and punishment from leadership didn’t need a reason.

He pulled out his phone and logged into the Digital Girlfriend game.

Now that he had money, it was time to help his three personal disciples regain their talents.

Sword Spiritual Roots and Sword Bones were pricey—but that was only a problem for the old him.

Now that he was sitting on 1500 billion, he could gear up every single disciple in the Sword Pavilion if he wanted to.

Chen Huaian opened the in-game shop—and went silent for a moment.

〈Sword Spiritual Root: ¥50 million (First-time purchase only, price doubles with each additional purchase)〉

〈Sword Bone: ¥100 million (First-time purchase only, price doubles with each additional purchase)〉

The fine print was

really

small.

Chen Huaian couldn’t remember if this had always been there. Maybe it was added in a new patch.

He couldn’t prove it either.

With that pricing model, trying to equip hundreds of Sword Pavilion disciples would burn through 1500 billion in no time.

Still, if he kept making money, there’d be chances later.

Instead of the inner world, the game’s current view showed the area

outside

the small world.

It was pouring rain in the canyon where the Sword Pavilion used to stand. In the middle of it, he spotted a woman in plain white, kneeling before a stone stele.

“That’s… Yun Baiyu, the Head of Lingxi Valley?”

Chen Huaian furrowed his brows.

As he focused on her figure, her status popped up:

【Head of Lingxi Valley: Yun Baiyu】

【Status: Flickering Candle in the Wind】

…