"Special External Activity Personnel"
1. Agents are allowed not to take the Exploration Bureau as their activity base, can freely operate within the Corner, decide the exploration direction on their own, and purchase property within the Corner.
2. There is no need to accept arrangements from the Exploration Bureau, including group tasks like exploration, rescue, extermination, etc.
3. Agents are allowed to return to headquarters at any time and enjoy the relevant resources within the Exploration Bureau (depending on the seat in their department).
4. If an agent encounters a life-threatening situation during external activities, they can request rescue from headquarters*.
*Rescue will depend on the detailed situation.
*After the rescue, headquarters will assess the entire process of the agent’s distress, and if it is confirmed that the agent is not suitable for external activities, the external activity status and related permissions will be revoked.
[Evaluation Requirements]:
1. The agent has rich experience in independent external activities.
2. The agent is more suitable for self-growth within the Corner compared to being nurtured by the base.
3. The agent’s pituitary rank has reached the sprouting level and has been recognized by the corresponding department.
The special application submitted by Luo Di is exactly this,
He has reported all his experiences in the Middle Layer Zone during this period. Now, with his impressive performance in the newcomer’s test, this status has been quickly approved.
The elevator door opens.
A muscular woman over two meters tall stands at the door, looking at Luo Di with a surprised gaze, observing this "newcomer" who joined the Exploration Bureau before reaching the age standard.
"Yuria, seventh seat of the Extinction Department.
Welcome to the Exploration Bureau, your external activity status has been approved, but before you leave, the minister needs to see you once, and your identity documents are with the elder, come with me."
Luo Di observes this blonde woman in her thirties, clearly feeling the exuberant power within her, likely directly related to ’destruction’ and ’havoc,’ and he never shifts his gaze away.
Perhaps sensing the young man’s gaze, she feels a bit uncomfortable.
"What are you looking at?"
"Your physique is much like a friend from Su Country I once knew."
"It’s rare for women to have my kind of build; didn’t she come to the Exploration Bureau?"
"She should still be working at the Investigation Bureau? It’s been a long time since I saw her after coming to the Corner."
"Makes sense, there are basically none who enter the Exploration Bureau at your age, and your current strength is pretty much above the median here, even going higher.
According to the materials you submitted, you seem to have an association with the Sisterhood in the Middle Layer? Moreover, while evading Joker ’Uncle Joke’, you resided for a long time at the Sisterhood’s base?"
Yuria was initially quite skeptical about this information; she knows the Sisterhood somewhat, and it’s absolutely exclusionary towards men, let alone allowing a human male to live there.
But after seeing Luo Di’s performance today, she somewhat believes it.
She even stops, forcefully squeezes Luo Di’s waist and abdomen, feeling the kidney structure inside, seemingly discovering something and nodding.
"No wonder... with the support of the Connector system, your kidneys far outstrip ordinary people, interested in a spar later?"
"Ah? That doesn’t seem appropriate, I might have other things."
This response actually makes Yuria laugh, "Haha, I thought after staying so long in the Sisterhood’s environment, you’d become particularly open, turns out you’re really like a just-arrived newcomer.
When you meet the minister later, try to lower your stance as much as possible.
The elder is indeed one of the earliest pioneers in the Corner."
Under Yuria’s guidance, they reach the deepest part of this floor, and although they haven’t arrived at the minister’s office yet, the entire space feels decaying, with a sense of reaching life’s endpoint.
Yuria simply explains, "The minister’s pituitary is related to death; if you have any related knowledge insights, the minister should be quite happy."
At the same time, Luo Di smells a familiar scent, precisely the scent he has been seeking since the test ended.
After the last corner, a young man is indeed already standing at the door of the minister’s office—it is Yu Ze.
Upon seeing Luo Di, Yu Ze hurriedly raises his arm, making a surrender gesture.
"Fellow countryman, I only did the pre-test for your own good. Newest update provıded by novel·fire.net
This way, your abilities can be most directly reflected~ otherwise, if a random caught monster was given to you, it might be chopped down by you in two strokes."
"What are you doing here?" Luo Di isn’t really bothered, as it gave him a good test of the effects of the Great Slaughter, he’s just curious why the other party is here.
"You’ll find out in a bit."
The so-called minister’s office is dim and decaying, with only an old incandescent lamp hanging from the ceiling, providing faint light.
An old man with severe bodily atrophy is sitting in a wheelchair, awaiting their arrival.
The teeth have all fallen out,
skin wrinkles covering bones,
underneath the drooping eyelids, there are no eyeballs.
Even so, the entire person still seems spirited, staring at the two "newcomers" with dark eye sockets. Luo Di felt from this minister a kind of death that’s somewhat different from the death he had seen before.
[Exploration Bureau - Section Eight]
Chief of Violent Suppression, Executor of Extinction Orders, First Minister.
"Yuria, you go attend to your tasks, I’ll chat with these two young ones alone."
As the office door closed, waves of death aura instantly entangled the two of them. Yu Ze’s body automatically released True Qi, forming a protective layer to isolate the death.
However, Luo Di had no protective measures, allowing the death to touch his flesh.
This death affinity made the old minister even more delighted.
"Luo Di, your Black Door attribute possesses undead abilities, and you seem to have some understanding of death yourself?"
"Yes, during an activity with the Sisterhood, there was a very powerful monster related to death. I followed her and learned for a while, gaining some superficial understanding of death."
"Your grandmother’s executioner, [Yu Lu], right?"
"Being able to coexist with such a dangerous monster, you’re indeed more suited to live outside; keeping you confined in the General Administration would hinder your development.
Can you feel how my death differs from that monster’s?"
"Yu Lu’s feature lies in the Spiritual Body, range, and curse.
Whereas you, Minister, are about the physical essence... Your physical strength should be several times stronger than that Miss Yuria just now, or even more.
Though you appear decrepit, you should essentially be a concentration of death.
If the death shackles were released and your body fully unleashed, it would likely fill the entire floor, or even the entire department store instantly."
"Excellent, very good! Here, take this, it’s your External Activity Certificate."
Luo Di’s Russian wasn’t bad; he probably didn’t hear wrong.
"Yes, Yu Ze also submitted an application, and he met all the conditions as well. Considering that you two came out together as part of the Special Action Group, going outside together should increase efficiency, so it was approved for both of you."
Luo Di immediately turned his head to glare at Yu Ze,
who quickly tucked his chin and leaned back, once again making a gesture of surrendering with upraised arms.
"Ah, seeing you, my fellow countryman, grow so quickly outside, how could I not be tempted~ Plus, I’m also meeting the standards for going out, it’s perfectly reasonable, isn’t it?"
"Yu Ze, did you predict this a long time ago, calculated my situation, and figured out that I’ve already met quite a few ’people’ in the Middle Layer, which is why you applied?"
"Didn’t I tell you, fellow? It’s difficult to predict in the Corner; circumstances are unfavorable, even a slight calculation shortens life. I simply believed you would do well in the Corner, and upon your return would be our time to set out together."
"Alright~ I’m just about to go somewhere that might welcome human visits."
Yu Ze made an OK gesture and signaled with his eyes to talk later, passing the topic to the minister.
The old minister didn’t mind; he was very open-minded and supportive of young people venturing out.
"I don’t have much to say; your experiences in the Middle Layer already surpass many Investigators.
My only requirement is one.
When returning to headquarters later, you need to synchronize your exploration progress.
Also, when you come back next time, I hope each of you can bring back the corpse of a mature monster, which the headquarters can process into decent ’Relics’ for you, dramatically improving your exploration efficiency."
When Luo Di stepped forward to take his External Activity Certificate, his wrist was suddenly seized by the minister, the immense strength making it impossible for him to withdraw his hand.
"Before you leave, there’s one last simple question I need to ask you personally.
What do you think is the fundamental purpose, for which humans make such significant sacrifices to establish the Exploration Bureau in the Corner?"
If this question had come earlier, Luo Di would have answered with the textbook standard answer, which is "To eradicate the Corner, eliminating unknown risks threatening human civilization."
having experienced the Video Tape incident and touched the deep layers of fear, acquiring ’that finger,’ Luo Di had a completely different answer.
"To do everything possible to cultivate one or more humans who can grasp the essence of the Corner ahead of the monsters, securing a priority in this passive world selection.
Only then is there ’a slight’ possibility of ensuring the continuation of human civilization."
This answer made the minister sit up straight, staring with large black hole-like eye sockets, "You’ve already touched the deep layers? Is it the Video Tape incident mentioned in your submitted documents?"
"Yes... I can guess a little about the essence of the Corner, it might just be the tip of the iceberg, but the direction shouldn’t be wrong."
We need human beings like you! Never slacken your pace, strive harder than before, than now. Unfortunately, you were born a bit late, time is running out for us."
"Understood, Minister."