Lin Rui's visit to the indoor activity area felt like Granny Liu entering the Grand View Garden, a real eye-opener.
There was even a fully-equipped bio-enhancement surgery room here, where members could undergo bio-enhancement just by arranging for a doctor to visit their martial arts club.
Finally, Fang Ranran led Lin Rui into the interior of a suite and pointed to a transparent, octagonal column-shaped sleep pod: "This is the 'Divine Sleep Model 3,' the most advanced sleep-based cultivation enhancement pod recently developed by the Sky Blue Group. Are you familiar with it, Lin?"
Lin Rui, having only crossed over for twelve days, naturally hadn't heard of it.
As he opened the search bar on his smart terminal to look up related information, the nearby Wang Sen raised his hand, "I know, this is a device that helps bio-enhanced martial artists operate their cultivation techniques in their sleep, thus comprehensively strengthening their physique, spiritual power, and True Qi."
Fang Ranran nodded, "The 'Divine Sleep Model 3' is currently the most advanced and high-end model among similar products. It hasn't hit the market yet. It covers a total of twenty-nine basic cultivation techniques, fifty-two advanced techniques, and one hundred thirty-seven high-level techniques, nineteen of which can attain a perfect training efficiency, with the rest also achieving over 90% efficiency.
It is actually designed for the wealthy and Alien Body practitioners. Previously, Alien Body practitioners controlling their alien bodies within the planet Tianji rarely had time to concurrently cultivate their own bodies, until the recent appearance of the sleep-based cultivation enhancement pods which changed this trend."
Her eyes filled with expectation, she looked at Lin Rui: "If you decide to join the Martial Arts Club, I can arrange for the Sky Blue Group to customize a model for you that is tailor-made for Thunderfire techniques and subsequent cultivation, allowing you to control your Alien Body without neglecting your own cultivation. Such terms are not something other Alien Body companies can offer, they would never provide such high-end sleep pods for an intern."
This was her trump card to convince Lin Rui.
Lin Rui had found information and various promotional articles about the Divine Sleep Model 3 online, where Sky Blue Group had praised it to the skies.
Since the Divine Sleep Model 3 was not yet on sale, Lin Rui only found the official price of the Model 2—3,999,999, and that was just for the basic model.
He instantly felt a whiff of the tycoon's atmosphere hit him in the face.
As Nolan Wei said, this Miss Fang was a bit too extravagant.
Lin Rui was already very tempted, but his face showed no hint of emotion: "As good as this thing is, the problem is that if I join the Martial Arts Club, the sleep pod will have limited use for me."
The cultivation technique operated within the sleep pod couldn't possibly compare to the efficacy of his Grandmaster level techniques.
"It will be useful," the professional woman pushed her glasses up: "Lin, according to the competition rules, our Martial Arts Club can't pay you a salary. However, Mingde University's Arts and Sciences College and Biology College support more than a dozen Alien Body exploration teams. We can arrange for you to join one of them, earning the team's salary. It will be a bit lower than outside the university, about thirty thousand or so for internships, and the official salary is seventy-five thousand."
Lin Rui suddenly realized that this was Fang Ranran's idea of having the best of both worlds.
University competition committees don't allow students to accept any external financial support, but if the money is earned by the student themselves, it's a different story. This is exploiting a loophole in the rules.
Thirty thousand or so a month, plus all kinds of drugs provided within the Martial Arts Club, and those devices, were actually better than the treatment offered by the Skywalkers Exploration Company.
The lips of the professional woman curved in a persuasive manner: "The school's offer may be lower than the company's, but it has a good side. Members of all the Alien Body exploration teams, whether from the Arts and Sciences College or Biology College, are enrolled in a consecutive bachelor-master's program, which allows them to freely access various materials from the school's library, learn different cultivation techniques controlled by the school, as well as receive government subsidies, free housing, a monthly shopping voucher of ten thousand federal dollars, a public transportation card, and covering medical insurance for family members, life accident insurance, and many more benefits."
Moreover, your Alien Body doesn't have to sign an exclusive agreement or non-compete clause. If you achieve something in Tianji, you can directly sell it to the school, or to Sky Blue Company, at a price that is definitely more conscientious than those companies, without having to give them a share."
Wang Sen gasped upon hearing this, secretly nudging Lin Rui's waist with his hand, and whispered in a voice that only Lin Rui could hear: "These terms are really good, much better than those outside, and the future is more promising. If you can become a Martial Arts star, your income could be much higher than that of Alien Body practitioners, by more than a hundred times, without the need to face bloody fights for survival in Tianji."
Even if you can't make it to the finals, you could still have a certain fame, and you can keep your Alien Body in your own hands, without being exploited by the company in the future. Wouldn't it be great to open your own studio later?"
The professional woman and Fang Ranran shared a smile.
Their hearing had long been enhanced to a non-human level, several times stronger than that of bats, and they wore special equipment to amplify their hearing.
Thinking they were being quite quiet, they were as audible to the two women as a broadcast inside a shopping mall when they paid attention.
Lin Rui glanced at Wang Sen and saw envy all over the chubby boy's face.
He himself was also very tempted.
The mere fact of not having to sign exclusive revenue agreements and non-compete clauses made him lean towards Fang Ranran's Martial Arts Club.
Lin Rui had a general understanding of the Alien Body industry and knew that, although the salaries for Alien Body practitioners were high, the minimum contract duration was typically fifty years, and most companies also required practitioners to sign contracts for three mandatory missions per year.
In such a situation, if you sign with those companies that have strong financial resources and a good internal culture, it's fine, but if you sign with the wrong company, then things can get very bad.
Moreover, those alien companies take a heavy cut, typically 50%, and only those at the top of the industry have the bargaining power.
Lin Rui felt as if he was almost knocked out by the barrage of money Little Boss Fang was throwing at him.
Although these conditions do not involve money, each one is supported by robust financial resources.
Lin Rui took a deep breath to keep himself calm.
This was a major decision, and he had to carefully weigh the pros and cons.
In terms of treatment, there might not be much room for improvement. Young Boss Fang was wealthy, and the Sky Blue Group was financially powerful. However, limited by the rules of the university martial arts league, they could only operate within the confines of those rules.
After pondering for a moment, Lin Rui asked Wang Sen in a very low voice, "Wang Sen, are you interested in joining the school's exploration team?"
Wang Sen glanced at him unhappily and said, "I would like to."
Although the salary of the school's alien exploration team was a bit low, the other benefits were something companies did not offer. If they included the supplements for the martial arts club, the monthly income would already be quite high. Wang Sen had just calculated for Lin Rui that with all factors combined, it would be close to seventy-thousand during the internship period and estimated to be around one hundred and twenty-thousand after becoming a regular.
But the problem was that they were interested in Lin Rui, not him. What did that have to do with Wang Sen?
Still, Wang Sen was quite happy in his heart; his close friend was making it big.
Upon hearing this, Lin Rui nodded and thought to himself that it was good to have the will. He then said to Fang Ranran and her companion, "I am very satisfied with the conditions of the martial arts club. It would be even better if the salary could be a little higher. Besides that, I would like to bring someone else in."
Lin Rui pointed at the chubby boy beside him: "My classmate here ranked two hundred and thirteen in the alien practical combat assessment. I wonder if that qualifies him to join the martial arts club and the school's exploration team?"
Wang Sen was taken aback and looked at Lin Rui in enormous surprise.
Lin Rui's face remained expressionless.
He had seen that Wang Sen was quite envious of the treatment Fang Ranran had offered him.
Lin Rui also happened to need a reliable helper.
He knew that the early stages of alien arrival were very dangerous, and pulling together as a group in this phase was an effective way to improve the chances of survival.
In Lin Rui's view, this chubby boy by his side had a very reliable character.
Although Wang Sen's family was just a regular middle-class household and could not afford many Type 1 genetic potions, he was willing to share one with Lin Rui before the exam.
Trouble reveals true friendship, and this friendship was worth maintaining.
Importantly, Wang Sen himself was quite capable, achieving full marks in subjects like Tiānjí Star language, history, and geography.
"Two hundred and thirteen?"
Fang Ranran looked at Wang Sen in surprise.
She hadn't expected this chubby boy to be extraordinary either.
Though the Alien Body College at Mingde University was not great, any top students who managed to stand out from this college should not be underestimated, especially those from ordinary family backgrounds.
As long as they were given sufficient resources and teaching, their performance often improved significantly.
Ranking two hundred and thirteen in the city's alien practical combat assessment was enough to serve as an alternate member in their martial arts club.
Fang Ranran then smiled and extended her hand towards Lin Rui and his companion: "Definitely enough! So, welcome to both of you to the Mingde University martial arts club."