CHAPTER 84: CHAPTER 53: LOOKING TO THE FUTURE

"...With your experiences, you shouldn’t have this kind of mindset."

After the shock, Sasa immediately realized this.

Yan Luo was a patient with severe mental illness, and his mindset didn’t align with his exhibited behaviors.

His awareness was incredibly high, not something he should possess.

Yan Luo stopped his exercise, turned to Sasa, and said, "Why shouldn’t I? I’ve thought deeply about the meaning of my existence in this world. I was sixteen at the time and had just returned from the wilderness for the first time. That outing made me realize that I am not actually afraid to die. So I reflected and sadly discovered that I am starting to forget what my parents look like, and even my resentment towards the Abyss is fading. To take revenge on the Abyss, I must find another starting point, a stronger starting point as the meaning of my life."

"So you think the Abyss is harmful to Blue Star..."

Saying this, Sasa shook her head.

It’s not a ’thought’; the fact is that the Abyss is indeed harmful to Blue Star.

Even though the Abyss has led Blue Star down a different developmental path, if things continue according to Yan Luo’s speculations, Blue Star will eventually be destroyed by the Abyss.

Current human weapons can kill City-breaking Level mutant creatures, but dealing with Catastrophe Level is somewhat difficult.

Sasa remembered reading a few papers that estimated how powerful Doomsday Level demons and mutant creatures could be, and the most notable characteristic of Doomsday Level is that even the most destructive human weapons cannot kill them.

If a Doomsday Level mutant creature appears on Blue Star, or rather, before that, if a Doomsday Level demon appears in the Abyss, triggering a demon tide that causes demons to pour out of the Abyss, then Blue Star will be powerless to resist.

Unless Blue Star finds a way for Engravers to reach Sequence One.

As the frequency of demon tides increases, such a future is not far off.

"The power of an individual is insufficient to destroy the Abyss; even a Second Rank powerhouse cannot destroy an Abyss alone."

Sasa squinted her eyes, "When do you plan to start forming your own team?"

The failed Bright Silver Abyss raid serves as a warning; a powerful raid team led by a Second Rank powerhouse nearly perished in the Bright Silver Abyss, with only two people managing to escape.

Yan Luo’s growth rate is not fast; comparing his growth rate with the growth rate of the Abyss, Sasa believes Yan Luo cannot possibly grow to Doomsday Level faster than the Abyss demons.

To completely eliminate the Abyss, plans must be made early.

"Before that, I need to support the development of basic sciences; otherwise, before the Abyss is completely eliminated, I will be utterly eliminated by the opposition." Yan Luo answered honestly.

He hadn’t thought about hiding his ideas because there was nothing to hide.

These are things he has to do in the future; keeping secrets like a riddle-maker is not his style.

Upon hearing this, Sasa let out a snort: "Basic sciences? Yan Luo, don’t you underestimate the investment required for basic sciences? The money you make from the Abyss is not enough to fill this huge gap. I know what you want is those basic sciences that are completely severed from Abyss-related matters, but doing so is even harder."

Yan Luo fell silent.

He had investigated beforehand, but Sasa’s tone suggested that she knew more than he did.

"So what do you think we should do?" Yan Luo asked.

Sasa laughed and shook her head, "Don’t forget, Yan Luo, you’re a celebrity now. Although you’ve missed the best opportunity to monetize your fame, missing it only means you can explain it as you’re a professional Hunter focused on the Abyss hunting career, different from those actors who try every means to monetize once they’re famous.

"Yan Luo, you have to find a way to commercialize yourself, and gather the strength of the masses to achieve your ideas!"

Yan Luo shook his head, "I don’t understand."

Sasa snapped her fingers, "Good, neither do I! I’ve never studied this, the concepts I know are just bits heard from others, so either we two figure it out ourselves, or you hire a professional agent. With your current fame, if you put the word out, many people will definitely scramble to become your agent."

"I don’t trust them." Yan Luo dismissed Sasa’s suggestion with a single sentence.

He doesn’t hold trust towards the vast majority of people in this world. The only reason he gives Sasa a bit of trust is because they have shared interests.

Sasa shrugged helplessly, "Then we two figure it out ourselves; considering your mind’s not very bright, I’ll probably have to think about this on my own."

Yan Luo nodded, "I’ll leave it to you."

"Hey, you’re really not modest at all!" Sasa wasn’t sure if the smile on her face was brought out by Yan Luo’s attitude.

Then, her smile faded, she sighed, reclined in the lounge chair, and said nothing.

How did she go from being just a sophomore in Abyss Ecosystems to becoming Yan Luo’s agent?

Speaking of which, what does an agent even do?

......

"That’s right! Just like that! Hold that pose!"

Not far from Crimson No.2 in the wilderness, Yan Luo, wearing an exoskeleton, sat on a big rock, squeezing energy gel into his mouth.

Several drones hovered around him, taking photos.

Sasa moved quickly. That day, she asked Yan Luo for authorization, registered his personal image, and registered a studio under his image.

The next day, the manufacturer of the energy gel Yan Luo most frequently consumed sent him an endorsement invitation.

Due to today’s transportation difficulties between cities, many companies, when collaborating with famous Hunters across cities, would pass the job of taking endorsement photos and videos to local photographers in the Hunter’s town or use remotely operated drones.

The energy gel manufacturer ’Bao Han,’ partnering with Yan Luo, chose the latter.

Bao Han is a powerful and established food company, although it has been gradually declining in recent years, it is still beloved by many Hunters.

Yan Luo grew up eating the food produced by this company; besides energy foods, Bao Han’s business scope also includes pre-prepared dishes and snacks.

After finishing the photo shoot, Yan Luo returned to Crimson No.2.

In town, Yan Luo ran into Li Xinyue, who was leading a team returning from the Abyss, and he stopped his motorcycle, set down the stand, and asked Li Xinyue.

"How’s the situation in the Abyss?"

After the Abyss underwent a mutation, some Hunters returned from the Abyss, while others entered the Abyss with the task of investigating the situation.

The seventh squad of the Glazed Group, to which Li Xinyue belongs, was one of the teams that entered the Abyss with such tasks.

Seated at the street side with teammates waiting for bubble tea, Li Xinyue turned her head upon hearing Yan Luo’s voice.

Seeing Yan Luo, Li Xinyue first pressed her lips together, then shook her head and said, "Feels no different from before, neither the demons nor the environment have changed."

Yan Luo furrowed his brow.

Again, the same result as before.

A short while ago, there was a three-second day in the Crimson Abyss, and many teams’ investigation results afterward were also ’no change.’

What exactly happened in the Crimson Abyss?

"Want some bubble tea?"

While Yan Luo was pondering, Li Xinyue handed over a warm cup of bubble tea.

Upon hearing this, Yan Luo looked up in surprise, saw the bubble tea in Li Xinyue’s hand, and shook his head, "No thanks, I just filled up on energy gel."

"Oh..."

Li Xinyue was somewhat disappointed; she pierced the bubble tea’s seal with a straw, sipped twice, then said hesitantly, "Um... did you go and endorse for Bao Han Company?"

Yan Luo was a bit taken aback, "How do you know?"

Li Xinyue curled the locks of hair hanging at her temples, smiling awkwardly, "That’s my family’s company..."

Yan Luo was stunned for a moment, then chuckled, "Looks like I owe you one."

"No, no, no, it’s your excellence; I haven’t really been in contact with my family since I left home." Li Xinyue quickly shook her head in denial.

If she hadn’t been in contact with her family, how did she know I endorsed for Bao Han Company?

Yan Luo smiled, didn’t say much more, and after saying goodbye to Li Xinyue and her team, he started the motorcycle and left.

Just back at the villa, Yan Luo received a message from a stranger.

If it were just an ordinary harassing message, he would delete it directly, but this message was somewhat interesting.

[Do not approach Li Xinyue again; if you do, bear the consequences!]

Expressionless, Yan Luo replied with a "Scram," then blocked the sender, and walked into the bathroom to wash up.

After looking at himself in the mirror, rubbing his chin, Yan Luo felt dissatisfied, so he unblocked the sender.

"Asshole!"

He replied, then blocked the sender again.

Yan Luo laughed, unsure whether the smile on his face was because Sasa had amused him.