I Am Your Natural Enemy

The next day, Feng Yao showed up at Wen Yan’s doorstep with breakfast.

After breakfast, Feng Yao casually asked,

”Any progress?”

”I found out that there were Different Races appearing in the livestream, even among the audience. Besides the normal broadcast, there’s also an inside stream.”

Wen Yan roughly talked about what he’d discovered.

”I think there’s something wrong.”

”I’ll find some people to help investigate.”

”That won’t alert them, will it?”

”People from the Sanitation Office are just looking through records. As long as they don’t interact, it shouldn’t raise suspicion. There’s no way you can get through all this alone.”

”Alright, let’s start by looking for people who went missing after getting involved with this company.”

”Not just the ones with police reports, right?”

”Yeah.”

”That’s a massive project. Relying on manual work alone would make it almost impossible to filter them all. I’ll have to borrow some computing power from HQ.”

”Keep it discreet.”

...

At Virtue City First High School, the class bell rang. A big-eyed, twin-tailed girl immediately grabbed Chen Qimo.

”Xiao Mo, let’s go! I can’t hold it in anymore.”

”Then just go already.” Chen Qimo was a bit speechless.

”No way, you have to get up and move, you work too hard—it’s break time and you’re still doing worksheets! Come on, come on, I’ll buy you milk tea.”

Chen Qimo got dragged out of the classroom, and soon the two girls were sitting in the backyard with a cup of milk tea each.

”Weren’t you on leave to go to Yu State for a training class?” Chen Qimo asked curiously.

”Not anymore, I’m pissed.” The twin-tail girl sucked her straw angrily, cheeks puffed.

”What happened? Didn’t you say your dad checked, and it’s a legit entertainment company?”

”Hmph, when I first went, the director showed up in person.

Said my eyes had a lot of spiritual energy, very unique, and I had a dance background.

My singing isn’t great, but my voice is really recognizable, tons of potential.

Totally sold me on the whole thing, I was over the moon.

Afterward, my dad asked around—turns out it really is a legit company, even made some movie actors.

I only got to sign because I said if my dad refused, I’d just do livestreaming and become an internet celeb.”

”So what happened next?” Chen Qimo was curious. This sounded pretty good?

”So, I went to train again yesterday, and bumped into that director. He heard I was from Virtue City and started acting all snobby with me. I couldn’t take it, talked back a couple times, and then he fired me—sent the penalty fee straight to my dad’s account.”

The more twin-tail talked, the more aggrieved she got—her eyes were starting to brim with tears.

”Dad saw that and said, ’This company would rather pay a penalty than keep you. You’ve just been spoiled at home and can’t handle people; you must’ve pissed them all off’—then he scolded me.”

”Alright, whatever, it’s their loss… You’ll definitely be a star in the future, but right now, focus on the college entrance exams. People online keep saying the entertainment industry is full of idiots—go get into a good school first, then you’ll have even more options.”

Chen Qimo tried to comfort her friend.

”Yeah! People from Yu State actually look down on Virtue City. What’s wrong with Virtue City? I’ll take the entrance exam for Capital City next!”

”Yeah, yeah, forget about them.”

...

In a conference room of an office building in Yu State New District, a sharply dressed man with slicked-back hair sat in a chair, carving an apple with a small knife. As he peeled, he spoke.

”I’m pretty sure I’ve mentioned it at least twice—those rules the company gave us, what are the important ones? Did you forget again? Come on, read them.”

At the long table, a man’s hand was nailed to the wall by a little knife. He was ghostly pale, but didn’t dare make a sound.

”Don’t take anyone with an ID starting 4401.

Don’t recruit people whose families work in public offices, or who have good family backgrounds.

Only recruit people who come to Yu State from outside.

Don’t recruit anyone whose family is from Virtue City or lives there.

If they have Martial Arts School connections—don’t take them either.

If their family has any link to Taoists, they’re forbidden too...”

The man with his hand nailed to the wall recited a whole string of conditions, then finished:

”Anyone who meets these criteria, no matter how qualified, is absolutely off limits.”

By now, the man in the suit had finished peeling the apple. Biting into it, he flicked the little knife, and in an instant, nailed the other man’s other hand to the wall through the palm.

”Do you know why, in Yu State we can recruit some people, but if they’re from Virtue City, we don’t take anyone—no exceptions?”

”I… I’m not sure. The company says not to poke into things.”

”Good answer.” The suited man nodded.

”Now I’ll tell you why—because I don’t want to randomly offend those people over there.

I don’t want to end up hanging from a street light one day and not even know why I died.

Most of the time, the Scorching Sun Department is reasonable. But some people—they’re not. They won’t even talk to you before they go lethal.

We can’t mess with the kind of psychos who can make even the Scorching Sun Department back down.

Do you get it now?

So anyone from Virtue City, no matter who they are or how well they fit, absolutely no hires.

We’re here to do business long-term—we have to avoid risks in advance, understand?

And I’m not talking about getting checked for fire safety or taxes,

I mean, you could die, get it?”