"To be honest, the Beast Department has always lacked spirit beast masters with both status and skill. Most spirit beast masters only come to the black market occasionally to take on tasks. As a result, the black market has had very few skilled spirit beast masters. If Mr. Eight God were to join, the department's strength would certainly increase significantly, and it could even attract many other spirit beast masters to join us."
"The Beast Department is offering a high salary to become an Elder—one million credit points per month, with just two hours of work per day. In addition, you'll receive a 5% discount on purchases from the black market…"
Kent was stunned. Two hours a day, 44 hours a month—this meant an hourly wage of 25,000 credit points, an astronomical amount.
However, he was still a student, and Saint Stone High was quite a distance from the underground black market. He didn't have the conditions to accept. Besides, his knowledge of the black market was limited, and he didn't dare to get involved too deeply.
After thinking for a moment, Kent shook his head and declined, "Sorry, Master Ye Yan. I'm afraid I can't take the position. I'm just here to have a look."
His vague response only made Ye Yan and Spin Knife believe even more that Kent was a mysterious figure, with a powerful backing.
Ye Yan's eyes flickered with disappointment. After a pause, he said, "Perhaps Mr. Eight God could consider becoming an Honorary Elder. While there's no salary, you would still enjoy many privileges. How about it?"
Kent's interest was piqued. "No mandatory obligations?"
"None whatsoever," Ye Yan confirmed.
Kent thought for a moment, then nodded, "Alright, I'll accept."
Ye Yan was overjoyed. "Thank you, Mr. Eight God! Here is your Honorary Elder token. Please accept it."
Back in the mission hall, Lu Jia looked at Kent with curiosity and respect.
"Mr. Eight God, please wait. I'll process your reward right away."
Kent nodded indifferently.
His identity wristband lit up, and a large sum of credit points was deposited into his account. Kent checked and found over 525,000 credit points.
This wristband was made from a material derived from the Xuan-Silicon Armored Turtle, which had sensing capabilities. Once bound with the user's blood, the wristband would allow the wearer to access their information, much like an ID card, bank card, and communication device combined.
However, most people didn't like using the communication function of the wristband for fear it would reveal personal information and location. They preferred using mobile phones for calls, internet browsing, video streaming, and gaming.
"Mr. Eight God, would you like to accept another mission?" Lu Jia asked respectfully.
Kent felt the weight of several eyes on him, though the attention was subtle, he could still sense it. Feeling a little nervous, he decided to leave quickly.
"No, I'll come back when I have more time. Thanks to Xiao Wei for the hospitality." Kent said as he handed a bottle of advanced nutrition fluid to the cat-masked Xiao Wei.
Xiao Wei's eyes gleamed with surprise, and she thanked him profusely.
"Could you show me where I can buy some things?" Kent asked.
Xiao Wei nodded and led him through the black market. As an Honorary Elder, Kent was entitled to a discount on items sold by the black market itself. This was a huge benefit, as the black market circumvented the City Lord's official monopolies, selling goods at lower prices. Some shady items were also available here.
After walking for a while, Kent entered a shop named "Le Yuan Apothecary," where various potions were displayed.
"Advanced Evolution Liquid—99,000 credit points per bottle," the sign read.
This was about 1,000 credit points cheaper than the official price, and with the 5% discount, it was reduced by nearly 4,000.
"Rage Potion," Kent observed, standing in front of a row of blue liquids. These potions came in low, medium, high, and top-tier varieties. When consumed by a spirit beast, they would temporarily boost combat power. However, afterward, the beast would enter a period of weakness, and it could even suffer permanent side effects.
"Not as useful as Garfield's transformation," Kent muttered to himself.
He then browsed for about ten more minutes but didn't buy the 300,000 credit point top-tier Evolution Liquid. Instead, he bought various potions for strengthening the body, such as Strengthening Blood, Detoxifying Potions, Energy Potions, Muscle Growth Potions, and Mental Focus Potions. The most expensive item he bought was a 150,000 credit point gene-enhancement potion, which supposedly completed the genetic structure of the body.
Kent spent nearly 300,000 credit points, leaving himself with just over 20,000.
"By the way, Mr. Eight God, as an Honorary Elder, you have access to a secret passage for leaving. Would you like to use it?" Xiao Wei asked, noticing the suspicious attention around them.
"A secret passage?" Kent's eyes lit up. "Of course, that sounds perfect."
"Some damned fools, again, slipping out through the secret passage," a few masked figures muttered angrily.
Once on the subway, Kent decided to take a longer route to avoid any possible follow-up. He bought a few outfits on the way and eventually returned to Saint Stone High.
In his dorm, he placed the sleeping Garfield into the storage bracelet and took him to the training ground, renting a private training room for 50 credits.
"Garfield, come out."
Immediately, a plump, orange cat appeared, now a Silver-tier Overlord Cat after evolving.
Kent accessed the system, and Garfield's data appeared:
Name: Garfield
Tier: Silver
Level: 10
Combat Power: 98
Experience: 250/2500
Experience Pool: 250
Looking at Garfield's silly expression, Kent couldn't help but chuckle. "You really are a bit of an idiot, aren't you?"
"I've got three bottles of Intermediate Nutrition Liquid, thirty bottles of Advanced Nutrition Liquid, and three bottles of Advanced Evolution Liquid."
These were all obtained without spending a dime, so Kent wasn't hesitant to use them.
He took out a bottle of Intermediate Nutrition Liquid and fed it to Garfield.
Ding!
System Notification: Garfield, your Silver Overlord Cat, absorbed Intermediate Nutrition Liquid and gained 1,000 experience.
"Wow, this stuff really works," Kent thought, pleased. He then fed Garfield a bottle of Advanced Nutrition Liquid.
Ding!
System Notification: Garfield, your Silver Overlord Cat, absorbed Advanced Nutrition Liquid and gained 3,000 experience.
Kent felt confident. He then took out an Advanced Evolution Liquid, which was ten times the value of the Advanced Nutrition Liquid, and fed it to Garfield.
Ding!
System Notification: Garfield, your Silver Overlord Cat, absorbed Advanced Evolution Liquid and gained 30,000 experience.
"Ha-ha! It looks like reaching Golden-tier is no problem!" Kent thought with excitement.
He tossed all the remaining potions and liquids at Garfield, who, overwhelmed by the sheer amount, rolled around on the ground, meowing in discomfort.
Kent smirked and cursed under his breath, then checked the experience pool—183,250 experience. This was fantastic!
With this much experience, Garfield was ready to evolve.
From Bronze to Silver took 10,000 experience, and from Silver to Gold required 100,000 experience.
Crack!
With a sharp sound, Garfield's size expanded drastically, reaching nearly 1.5 meters long, resembling a robust little tiger. He now stood at Kent's waist.