Walking up to the shelves on the first floor, Kai saw many scrolls with tasks and brief descriptions beside them.
"Escorting a transportation group from the mine to the city and ensuring their safety. Due in 5 days. Payment 5 energy crumbs."
"Hmm, the task is quite simple, but the payment isn't very satisfying... In five days you can only earn half a stone of energy, and even a military dormitory costs three stones a month. It seems like it's really hard for new masters here..." - Kai thought to himself.
"Diso is really good, he was able to earn five spirit stones in two weeks, that's a lot more than a fifth rank warrior could do. I guess now that he has his own trading post, there's definitely no need to worry about him." - Pondering this Kai began to look at other jobs.
"Mining jobs. Hiring for mining jobs. Pay 1 energy crumb for 2 days work."
It seemed that there were also tasks here for the weakest masters who came to Border Beast City for simple work rather than cultivation.
"Gathering spiritual herbs, on mountain number 334. Payment depends on the herbs you collect and find."
Looking at the tasks, Kai even saw jobs like restaurant waiter, livestock caretaker, administrative workers, and even janitors there. It seemed that he had misunderstood the function of the Job Hall.
Kai had originally thought of the Quest Hall as only a place for warriors and martial artists, but it turned out that there were quite a few simple tasks. It was a place where almost every person in the city could find something to do.
Thinking that there was nothing for him to do on the first floor, he started to go up to the second floor and look at the tasks there. Then he realized that the first floor was designed mainly for all the people of the city, with the second floor starting with tasks only for martial artists. But mostly there were tasks from the ranks, guarding, guardian work, protecting caravans and similar jobs.
Each of the tasks on the second floor already had the potential threat of encountering ferocious beasts, but it was better paid. But after looking over the many tasks, Kai realized that they were also tasks that were not interesting to him.
"It's a good thing I got rank three beforehand, for otherwise, at this rate, it would have taken me months to get to normal missions." - Thinking about this Kai went to the third floor.
With each floor, there were fewer shelves and missions, and understandably so. As the complexity of the missions increased, there were fewer people to complete them.
Looking around Kai began to read the task descriptions again.
"Ice Snake Hunt. Obtain the poisonous gland of the Ice Snake, which dwells in places where there is shadow and cold energy gathers. The reward depends on the amount of ingredients mined, one gland in exchange for one energy stone"
The ice snake was not a weak opponent, it was about three meters long and could match a mid-stage Cultivator in strength. It was quite dangerous to hunt such a thing, usually a group was gathered to hunt it in order to keep themselves safe. It was easier to collectively harvest a few poison glands and split the proceeds rather than risking one's life oneself.
"Hunting the Moon Scarab. Obtain the wings of the Moon Scarab, which shows up at night. Reward depends on the amount of ingredients mined, two wings in exchange for one energy stone."
Another obvious benefit of the group was emerging. Each member of the group could take on one task each. If planned so that all the hunting targets would live in roughly the same area, you could earn far more of the needed ingredients in less time, and simply split the proceeds at the end of the task. Thus, it was much more profitable to go on hunting missions as a group.
Kai continued to look at the quests.
"Alchemy Quest. Assist in the creation of a Concentration Pill. Requirement: Beginning Alchemist. Payment upon success in creating 10 stones of energy."
"Hmm, a crafting task? Oh, and also such a big payment..." - Kai looked at it thoughtfully.
It appeared that from the third floor, classes related to various crafting skills were starting to appear. It seemed that martial artists who could also do an additional craft were quite rare, and the pay for their labor was much more than that of an ordinary warrior.
"Array Master's Assignment. Assist in the creation of an Energy Gathering Array. Requirement: Beginning Array Master. Payment 2 energy stones per array."
Kai used to wonder how the entire city was dotted with different arrays. From primitive ones like locks on doors, to more complex ones like the arrays that collected energy in the dorm rooms. He realized now that they were all made by different craftsmen taking missions in the Hall of Quest. It was a very sensible system for running the city, Kai praised it once more in his head.
- Damn, and these artisans are making good money without having to go out of the city and risk their lives. In other words, they can make a good living at all and buy time in the cultivation halls and rent a place with denser energy inside. - He said to himself.
Right now, Kai was starting to realize that there were other good ways to live in Border Beast City.
"Maybe I should try to learn some craft too... Right! I can see the Essence of Energy, I think I'll have a much easier time than others learning Array Mastery!" - Kai exclaimed in his head.
"Except where do I find the information to learn. If I just sit and look at arrays, it won't be very effective, but if I have study material and books... Maybe I could go to the Array Masters Association and see if they take apprentices?" - Pondered in his head Kai.
"Okay, that's not important right now. I need to go out into the wasteland to get a sense of the situation there and gain some experience fighting real ferocious beasts, staying safe all the time is not an option. We'll do a few missions first, then we'll think about an extra class." - Pondered Kai.
"If the fat man makes good money from trading, it might actually be more profitable to go learn a trade. Then we can safely cover the costs of the various cultivation areas..." - Having finally made up his mind, Kai continued to look at the various tasks.
After a quarter of an hour, he found something interesting. This assignment caught Kai's attention for several reasons. First, he could travel deep into the Boundless Wasteland. Secondly, the assignment was starting just today in a few hours, which was very convenient. Although it required teaming up with a group of people, which Kai didn't like. But nothing had to be signed with them, so it should be fine.
"Research Expedition. My name is Fabian, I am a Wasteland explorer and have recently discovered the entrance to a cave deep into the east of the Endless Wasteland. I am gathering companions and guards for an expedition there. Conditions: no lower than the middle of the Cultivator. Payment: 15 energy stones upon return to the Border City of the Beast. Also, whatever is found along the way will remain in the possession of the finder."
Someone named Fabian was gathering a group for an expedition deep into the wasteland. There was no need to share the loot, which pleased Kai. It seemed like this guy had just left some contracts in the Quest Hall to recruit a team.
- Good method! - Kai praised himself. - I'll take it, I think it should be an interesting and dangerous assignment. Just what I need! - Smiling, Kai took the scroll and walked towards the exit of the Quest Hall.
While he still had a few hours left, he decided to grab a bite to eat and stock up on alcohol, water, and dry rations just in case, since anything could happen on a trip. The Boundless Wasteland wasn't a forest in the Moonlight Shine Empire where there was a lot of game, many ferocious beasts could be inedible here, so it was better to be safe. Kai decided that he would finish all the preparations first, and then head to the wall, to the team gathering point that was specified in the contract.