Yuanxing City, Ninth Commercial District.
This was the Punisher commercial district with the highest prices and best quality in all of Yuanxing City, and the only special zone that catered exclusively to Punishers.
Luo Yang walked down the clean, orderly street, his eyes wide as he looked at the exquisitely decorated shops on either side.
After leaving the academy, Qiu Shubai had used an Ability Bureau vehicle to bring him here to procure weapons and equipment. Both were employees of the Ability Bureau, and though Luo Yang was an external hire without a formal position, it didn't stop them from finding a random excuse to take the car out.
Luo Yang's ability was no secret within the Yuanxing City Ability Bureau. He had displayed it before many people, and most members of the bureau knew just how much money his ability burned through. Even Qiu Shubai, who rarely dealt with him, had heard a thing or two.
She had brought Luo Yang to this place, which was practically a luxury district, for no particular reason other than the fact that she wasn't short on cash.
Or rather, the thing she had the most of was money.
“This is the commercial district specifically for Punishers in Yuanxing City.”
Seeing Luo Yang's look of a country bumpkin seeing the city for the first time, Qiu Shubai couldn't help but pinch the bridge of her nose in exasperation.
“You can buy up to Grade 7 mass-produced equipment here. Grade 8 appears occasionally, but it's rare and heavily marked up. The shops that take custom orders are at the other end of the street. I can take you there if you want.”
Luo Yang rejected the proposal for custom orders without a second thought.
His attitude toward equipment was fundamentally different from that of an ordinary Punisher.
In Luo Yang's hands, equipment couldn't simply be called a consumable; it had to be prefixed with “single-use” to be accurate. Equipment that an ordinary Punisher could use for months or even years might not even last through a single battle before being scrapped in his hands.
The purpose of custom equipment was to make it better suit an individual's habits, allowing a Punisher to better utilize their abilities. But in the face of Luo Yang's ability, personal habits and performance preferences—things most Punishers considered vital—didn't need to be considered at all.
His ability was, in the truest sense, “plug and play.” No matter the type, he could force the weapon to perform at its absolute peak, and he could move them as he pleased, utilizing them in all sorts of inconceivable ways.
He didn't need flawless, exquisite weapons; he needed a massive quantity of usable, mass-produced items with a steady supply.
“So, what you're saying is...” Qiu Shubai tilted her head slightly, her silver-white hair shimmering softly in the sunlight. “You just need a bunch of usable weapons, the cheaper the better?”
“That's about the gist of it,” Luo Yang said, adjusting his glasses while his gaze lingered on the display window of a nearby weapon shop. “But they can't be too cheap. If they're too cheap, they won't last long enough in my hands, which would actually be a loss.”
“Value for money,” Qiu Shubai summarized.
“Exactly, value for money.” Luo Yang snapped his fingers. “As expected of the Ace, your summary skills are top-notch.”
Qiu Shubai didn't bother responding to his quip and walked straight toward a shop on the corner. It wasn't large, but its sign was polished until it gleamed.
“This shop mainly sells Grade 1 to Grade 3 mass-produced weapons. The prices are fair, and the quality is stable. Many newcomers from the bureau get their supplies here.”
“Which bureau?”
Qiu Shubai curled her lip. “The Ability Bureau.”
“Get their supplies...” Luo Yang followed behind her, the corners of his mouth curving. “That's a very fitting way to put it.”
He pushed open the glass door, and a faint metallic scent wafted over him. The interior was simply decorated, with walls covered in various weapons—longswords, short swords, daggers, hand crossbows, and several oddly shaped spears. Beneath each weapon was a small tag listing the model, grade, and price.
Behind the counter sat a white-haired old man wearing reading glasses, wiping a short sword with a piece of flannel. Hearing the door, he looked up, his gaze sweeping over the two before landing on Qiu Shubai's face.
“Oh, little Qiu, long time no see.” The old man's voice was raspy but full of vigor. “Here for more supplies?”
Qiu Shubai nodded slightly. “Uncle Zhou, I brought a friend to take a look.”
The old man, called Uncle Zhou, turned his gaze toward Luo Yang. He sized him up, a playful glint flashing in his eyes.
“This lad is quite handsome.”
He even shot Qiu Shubai an approving look, clearly implying: “You've got good taste, girl.”
“Uncle Zhou, he needs a batch of Grade 1 and Grade 2 mass-produced weapons,” Qiu Shubai said, seemingly ignoring Uncle Zhou's look. “The kind with good value for money.”
“Oh?” Uncle Zhou raised an eyebrow. “How many?”
Luo Yang thought for a moment and held up three fingers. “Let's start with thirty.”
“...”
Uncle Zhou was silent for two seconds, and Qiu Shubai was silent for two seconds as well.
“Thirty?” Uncle Zhou's voice rose an octave. “Young man, are you opening a shop or going to war?”
“Going to war,” Luo Yang answered seriously. “I'm going to clear a Level 2 Rift in a couple of days, and I'm afraid I won't have enough.”
Uncle Zhou opened his mouth but ultimately said nothing, turning toward a shelf deep in the shop. Qiu Shubai, meanwhile, looked at Luo Yang with an indescribable expression.
“Thirty... are you serious?”
“Dead serious.” Luo Yang sighed. “The last time I went on a mission, I scrapped twelve Grade 1 longswords, six Grade 2 daggers, and three specialized short swords. I heard that when the logistics department saw the scrap list, their faces looked worse than a Heterosequence's.”
Qiu Shubai was silent for a moment, as if processing this information.
“...How exactly does your ability work?”
“It's simple.” Luo Yang shrugged. “I can make weapons belonging to me perform at their maximum capacity while preventing them from being damaged. But the price is that after a certain period, the weapon will be completely scrapped. The duration depends on the weapon's grade, material, energy capacity, and so on. A Grade 1 weapon lasts about thirty seconds to five minutes, Grade 2 lasts about ten minutes, and Grade 3 can barely manage over half an hour.”
“The highest I've tried so far was a Grade 7 mass-produced weapon, which could be controlled for twelve hours without issue. Anything higher than that, I'm not sure.”
“So you need a large quantity of weapons to rotate through.”
“Exactly.”
Qiu Shubai looked at him thoughtfully and suddenly asked a seemingly unrelated question. “Why is your ability rank ‘undetermined’?”
Luo Yang's smile faltered slightly.
“Because it can't be measured.” His tone became a bit flatter. “If I use an Ability Measurement Stone, even if I control my blood energy output to the minimum, the stone will still burst from the pressure. The academy tried several times and eventually gave up.”
“The matter even reached the principal. He eventually said that instead of wasting money on stones, it was better to save it for buying teaching equipment.”
The answer sounded reasonable, but Qiu Shubai felt he was hiding something.
She didn't press him.
Just then, Uncle Zhou emerged from behind the shelves, dragging a heavy black metal case.
“Grade 1 Grantee Longsword, fifteen of them.” He placed the case on the counter and flipped the latches. The lid opened to reveal fifteen standard-issue longswords arranged neatly, their blades gleaming with a cold silver light.
“Grade 2 Armor-piercing Dagger, ten of them.” He brought out another slightly smaller case containing ten daggers with sharp edges and slightly curved blades.
“And Grade 2 Penetrating Hand Crossbow with complimentary bolts, five of them.” The last case opened to reveal five small, exquisite hand crossbows, their limbs engraved with dense energy circuits.
“Thirty items in total.” Uncle Zhou clapped his hands. “Two thousand for each Grade 1 sword, three thousand five hundred for each Grade 2 dagger, and eight thousand for each hand crossbow. That comes to...”
“Sixty-seven thousand five hundred,” Qiu Shubai stated the number before he could.
Luo Yang's mouth couldn't help but twitch.
Sixty-seven thousand five hundred.
With the monthly salary and subsidies the Ability Bureau gave him, he made at most ten thousand or so in an ideal month.
In reality, he'd be lucky to see sixty-five hundred Shenzhou coins in his account each month.
“Can you make it a bit cheaper?” Luo Yang asked tentatively.
Uncle Zhou glanced at him. “Since you're with little Qiu, I'll knock off the change for you. Sixty-seven thousand.”
“...What's the difference?”
“It's a huge difference,” Uncle Zhou said seriously. “You're saving five hundred bucks.”
Luo Yang took a deep breath and was about to grit his teeth and pull out his card when a hand reached out in front of Uncle Zhou.
“Swipe mine.” Qiu Shubai's voice was as flat as if she were talking about the weather.
Luo Yang was stunned.
“You...”
“Consider it a loan.” Qiu Shubai didn't look back. “Pay me back when you have the money.”
“I have money...” Luo Yang protested weakly.
“Are you sure?” Qiu Shubai's hand paused mid-swipe. She turned to look at him, her eyes filled with disbelief.
Luo Yang opened his mouth but ultimately said nothing more.
It wasn't that he couldn't produce sixty-seven thousand five hundred, but coughing up such a large sum all at once really felt like cutting into his own flesh.
“Thanks.” There was a hint of gratitude in his voice.
Qiu Shubai didn't respond. After swiping her card, she picked up two of the cases, leaving the remaining one for Luo Yang.
Luo Yang obediently picked up the last case and followed her out of the shop. Behind them, Uncle Zhou waved cheerfully. “Come again!”
Luo Yang muttered to himself that the next time he came, he hoped it wouldn't be to pay off a debt.
Rate on N.U.
