Chapter 1940: Opportunity to Enter the East District
In the afternoon, Xu Huo planned to take a nap, so he asked the mute girl to wake him up at dinner time.
Unexpectedly, before the meal was even ready, the boy from downstairs came knocking on the door. The mute girl had just woken Xu Huo and went to open the door.
The boy straightened his thin body as much as possible. "I want to eat. I can help you with things—cleaning the house, cooking, running errands, anything."
The mute girl immediately panicked. Her survival instinct made her worry that this boy's appearance would get her kicked out, but her humanity prevented her from harboring ill will toward him. So she could only frantically point to the kitchen, indicating that the food was almost ready and she would go serve it.
Xu Huo let the boy in and told the mute girl to cook all the ingredients she had bought that day.
In the cramped living room, Xu Huo asked the boy a few questions.
The boy looked small and thin, but he was actually ten years old. In the West District, ten was considered a big child, old enough to be a family's labor force. The reason he was so thin and weak was simple—his irresponsible father had left him to fend for himself.
"Why don't you leave?" Xu Huo asked finally.
"I'm not leaving. I'm going to grow up right under his nose. I'm going to watch him grow old, then torment him, and then kill him." The boy made no attempt to hide his malice, then looked at Xu Huo. "I'm the spawn of an evil man, so I'm evil too."
Xu Huo didn't say anything more. When the food was on the table, he called the boy to eat, then told him to take the leftover bread crusts home. "Your father is a physically fit adult with a normal brain, while you are a malnourished child with no friends. Don't think that just because he's missing limbs, you can do whatever you want to him."
The boy clutched the bag and nodded seriously.
"If you're hungry, come eat from now on," Xu Huo said to him. "When I'm not here, you and the mute girl can look after each other."
The next day, Xu Huo went to work as usual. But when he arrived at the Supervision Department, he learned that a major incident had occurred in the West District the previous night—a siege against the Rebel Army had failed, and the East District had even lost two high-level players.
Xu Huo expressed some regret, then, like everyone else, pressed for details.
A talkative inspector eagerly shared what he had found out.
Because attacks on inspectors had been increasing recently, the East District headquarters had been deliberately or unintentionally pointing the finger at the Rebel Army—after all, whether or not there was any real connection, they were already opposed to the Rebel Army anyway. Taking this opportunity to eliminate some of them would be no loss to the East District, and it would serve as a warning to others.
This was indeed a move befitting the East District's status and position. A few lives were a small matter; reacting to the situation from a broader perspective was the way to demonstrate the East District's superiority.
So they had planned to take down the Rebel Army's headquarters, intending to kill a number of their core members and keep them from causing trouble for at least a year.
Coincidentally, the incident at the frozen processing plant had happened at just the right time, and the East District Supervision Department had even sent additional personnel. But while they were planning to ambush others, the others were also planning to ambush them. The Rebel Army killed two high-level players at a minimal cost, severely injured more than ten high-level players, and escaped quickly themselves. They hadn't even lost a single player, let alone suffered any real damage. Their core members had long since been relocated.
This battle was a brilliant victory for the Rebel Army, a stark contrast to their previous struggles against the East District, where they had barely managed to survive.
"The Rebel Army used to be dirt poor. Have they come into money recently?" one inspector asked.
From the perspective of those in the Supervision Department, the contest between the Rebel Army and the East District players ultimately came down to items and instruments. The East District's instruments were second to none—just the rotating incense alone was enough to make people wary. The Rebel Army's easy escape this time meant they must have obtained items or instruments specifically designed to counter the rotating incense. And the fact that they had killed two people indicated they had significantly increased their weaponry.
"What is the rotating incense?" Xu Huo interjected.
"It's that ball hanging from the East District players' belts," Lin Guang explained. "Its real name is the D2 Vibration Disruptor. It can cause people to lose consciousness quickly—not just ordinary people, but even players are afraid of it. But the thing is hollow, a bit like an old-fashioned incense ball. Some people have seen East District players put incense inside, so that's what we call it."
"The rotating incense doesn't work on East District players themselves. I think they rely on it too much, which is why they fell for the trap," the veteran inspector analyzed with authority. "If you ask me, they were too careless. The Rebel Army has players too, and it's not impossible for a few talented individuals to emerge. It's not surprising if someone brought back something good from another district."
"Since the rotating incense is so effective, why don't they equip inspectors with it?" Han Cong couldn't help asking. "It's way cheaper than a laser cannon. If we had that disruptor, maybe not so many inspectors would die."
"What wishful thinking. Only people who've been to the East District get those," the veteran inspector said, unable to hide his envy. "But you still have a chance."
"Is it the inspector training?" Xu Huo said. "I've heard people mention it."
"Kid, you're pretty well-informed. That's considered inside information; newbies usually don't know about it." The veteran inspector glanced at him.
Xu Huo smiled and said nothing.
This wasn't really inside information. It could be glimpsed from the Supervision Department's past records.
The turnover of personnel in the Supervision Department was too frequent. It wasn't just the recent deaths—recruitment notices had always been posted, and they were distributed to the neighborhoods under the department's jurisdiction. However, inspectors couldn't serve in the areas where they lived, so the branch inspectors were all people like Xu Huo, who had come from elsewhere.
With so many people, they couldn't all have been killed. And as everyone knew, there was only one promotion path for inspectors: going to the East District.
But the East District certainly wouldn't accept that many people. Participating in training as a "reserve East District resident" was more plausible. As for whether these trainees ended up staying in the East District or going elsewhere, it was hard to say. In any case, they probably wouldn't return to their original branches.
Judging by the duty records within the Supervision Department, veteran inspectors like Li Song hadn't left this place for at least two or three years. Were they just not selected?
Not necessarily.
So whether they were genuine inspectors or players disguised as inspectors, some of them would inevitably enter the East District.
And both the Supervision Department and the East District were well aware of this.
"Can you stay and work in the East District after completing the training?" Han Cong quickly asked.
"Young people, there are plenty of opportunities." The veteran inspector smiled and patted his shoulder. "If you ever make it to the East District, don't forget us old colleagues."
Han Cong was embarrassed by the comment but asked a few more questions about the training, looking very eager.
Xu Huo, who seemed to know a bit more about the situation, didn't say much.
However, his behavior was interpreted by others as having "connections," drawing envy from some. (End of chapter)