Inner city officials?

Cheng Ye paused to think, refraining from asking if he could pretend not to hear a distress call and skip the rescue.

In principle, that was impossible.

Inspectors held an exalted status in the buffer zone, but within Happiness City’s power structure, they were essentially like sentinels: free to strike hard externally but bound by rules internally.

To put it bluntly, Happiness City was like a gated community, and inspectors were the security guards.

Even if these guards were armed, held authority, and had manpower, far more imposing than any five-star general from a gated estate, they couldn’t just stand by and let inner city “residents” die.

This was a fundamental issue, as the guards’ salaries came from the “residents’” property fees.

If they ignored such basic rules, there’d be no need for anyone to scramble for inner city access. Everyone could just become a guard and lord over the residents.

“When there’s no one in line, can I go to the back to rest?”

“Not only when there’s no line, even if there is one, who’d dare stop an inspector from resting?” Raven said candidly, not mincing words. “As long as no inner city officials are waiting for inspection, regular people can wait outside all day. Let them in when they behave and you’re in a good mood.”

The implication was clear: the North Station still followed the Western faction’s practice of “entry fees.”

Pay up, get in first. No payment, wait outside.

“Alright, you two can rest in the back. I’ll stay here.”

“Good, I’ll grab you a rain umbrella.”

Not having to stay with the inspector in the quarantine zone was undoubtedly good news.

After all, they had their own tasks. Just organizing the files for isolated personnel took hours, often keeping them working until two or three in the morning.

The two exchanged a glance, happily turning to leave. They soon returned with a large umbrella, securely propped up by the desk.

Cheng Ye casually crossed his legs, sipping nutrient paste while watching the growing queue in Zone B next door.

Not bad, quite relaxing.

The inspector job was great. As long as you had enough strength, there were no hassles.

Everyone had to respect you and follow your orders.

Defiance? Unless they were inner city officials, you could act first and report later without consequences.

Even better, inspectors controlled the buffer zone’s safety lifeline. The stricter the inspections, the more ordinary residents praised and adored you.

It was as the saying went: when interests align, scholars will defend you.

Who’d dare criticize an inspector?

They’d be drowned in the spit of the buffer zone’s hundreds of thousands of residents in minutes!

“Wait, why do I feel like I’ve skipped decades of struggle?”

Cheng Ye’s smile froze as he thought it over.

Damn, this security job was indeed soul-grinding. He’d come to the checkpoint to make a big splash.

Yet, after sitting for just a few minutes, he was already so comfortable he nearly dozed off.

No way.

He had to pull himself together!

Gulping down the rest of the nutrient paste, Cheng Ye sat up and reviewed his actions today.

Bullying a bunch of second-generation punks wasn’t worth mentioning; they were naively modern in their thinking.

Playing those convoluted games in the wasteland? If they met a real ruthless character, they wouldn’t even know how they died.

As for Station Chief Downs...

Cheng Ye vaguely sensed someone standing behind the screen when they spoke, though he couldn’t be sure.

But on second thought, even if there was someone, it didn’t matter. He hadn’t shown the slightest abnormality throughout.

“As for getting 90 points without firing a shot...”

Cheng Ye shook his head silently.

If he’d really scored 90 points with Downs, would he be lounging this comfortably now?

People fear fame like pigs fear fattening.

Being too clever wouldn’t change Ding Yishan’s view of him in the short term.

But in the eyes of the Western faction, it would be a different story.

It’d invite trouble, targeting, even constant tests of his limits, creating unnecessary high-pressure situations.

So, wearing the “brute” label was, for now, a good thing.

“Next, I’ll keep a low profile, survive the first week, and give Ding Yishan time to notice my changes.”

“Plus, with the slow charger for recharging, I can manage at least four more searches before the rotation ends.”

“With my current strength, any skill I search for will be a big boost!”

As he pondered, Cheng Ye suddenly remembered searching Barrett earlier and canceling it, earning double action points from the Collector.

He mentally opened the panel.

“Whoa, the action points unlocked a new function?”

His gaze froze as he scanned the panel.

He’d thought action points were a minor feature tied to the search function.

To his surprise, a new “Action” option had appeared alongside “Search.”

They weren’t integrated but independent?

This got Cheng Ye excited.

The search function alone had transformed his strength dramatically.

Could this newly unlocked action function also significantly boost his combat power?

More importantly, failed searches guaranteed action points, just in varying amounts.

This meant that until his three skill slots were filled or he couldn’t expand or swap skills to improve, action points would keep accumulating.

As his strength grew, the benefits of Lv.1 skills would diminish, and he’d eventually target Lv.2 skills.

But cross-level searches had only a 25% success rate, naturally increasing the chance of earning action points.

Plus, abandoning searches after detecting infected entities could yield double action points.

“Search is already so powerful. Action better not be some dud feature.”

“The rougher, the better. The dumber, the better. Don’t go easy on this weakling Collector!”

Cheng Ye silently prayed, mentally activating the action function.

The interface lagged slightly, as if loading.

After about four or five seconds, a new function panel appeared before his eyes.

[Action]

[This function is a derivative of ‘Search,’ designed to fully utilize energy lost from failed searches.]

[Proper use can save Collectors time and significantly boost information collection efficiency.]

[Function Description: When performing a repetitive task, Collectors can use action points to quickly complete it.]

[Current Remaining Action Points: 4 (Lv.1)]

[Current Action Targets: Collectors can silently recite the action function command to automatically scan actionable targets within a 10-meter radius.]

[Please note the following:

1. Action targets must be within the Collector’s capability. Slightly exceeding capabilities will display required unlock conditions.

2. Effects from action points automatically bypass biological perception and non-biological monitoring, ensuring logical actions. Collectors can use this confidently.

3. Action point levels are tied to the Collector’s rank. Advancing rank unlocks more action options.]

“Use action points to quickly complete a repetitive task?”

Skipping the verbose details, Cheng Ye focused on the concise summary.

After mulling it over, the function felt vaguely familiar.

Tracing his memory, around 2013 to 2020, the market saw a surge of time-based pay-to-win mobile games, especially RTS (real-time strategy) titles like “Some Coast,” “Some Clash,” or “Some War Room.”

Early in those games, building structures took seconds, maybe a minute, allowing players to quickly set up a territory framework.

But at a certain point, build times skyrocketed: from a minute to ten, twenty, an hour, even days, defying normal growth logic.

Impatient players could buy speed-up tokens to cut times drastically or skip waiting entirely.

Thus, you’d often see a single whale crushing an alliance of dozens.

“It’s a bit different, though. Game targets were pre-set by developers, with players as pay-to-play puppets. But the Collector’s action function lets me set the targets.”

“Let’s test the effect.”

Cheng Ye’s heart stirred, following the panel’s instructions to scan nearby targets.

Instantly, a blue light, matching the panel’s color, radiated outward from him in a 10-meter radius.

Something miraculous happened: everything the blue light touched glowed with a faint fluorescence.

The alloy floor, the desk in front of him, the rain umbrella clipped to the desk corner, the backpack on the table—all shimmered with a clear blue aura under daylight, as if imbued with a special life.

“Can others not see this?”

Cheng Ye’s heart skipped, quickly glancing around.

In the Zone B queue nearby, only a few people looked his way, not noticing anything odd but simply scanning their surroundings out of boredom.

“It’s really only visible to me.”

The blue scanning ripples were vividly tangible in his vision, yet invisible to others.

This put Cheng Ye at ease, and he began studying the changes brought by the blue light.

“For action targets...”

Quarantine zone items were out of the question; a successful action might raise suspicion.

His gaze swept the desk, soon locking onto the backpack.

He’d bought it from a street vendor after transmigrating.

It had a few holes on the side and looked worn, but its design was practical, with excellent load-bearing and durability, far surpassing the flimsy goods at general stores.

Cheng Ye had long meant to buy needle and thread to mend the holes but often forgot until it was time to head out.

Now was the perfect chance to test if action points could substitute for the sewing task.

“Mend the backpack, mend the backpack, mend...”

Creating a target with intent was new to him, so he recited it like a mantra, lacking experience.

But miraculously, as the thought formed, a blue panel appeared beside the backpack, text unfolding line by line.

[Wanderer’s Canvas Backpack (Lv.0)]

[Description]: A double-shoulder backpack hand-sewn from coarse canvas, treated with triple wax coating. It resists light surface tears even when scraped through thorny wilderness or rough rock walls.

[Action Directions]:

1. Basic Optimization (Mend backpack holes, slightly improve structure to increase durability) Estimated Action Point Cost: 3 (Cost can be reduced if Collector provides materials and tools)

2. Deep Modification (Greatly improve structure for better user experience; replace material with premium leather to resist sharp object scratches and wear; add open single-compartment design with hidden side rope buckles and weapon pouch for slight functionality boost) Estimated Action Point Cost: Locked (Prerequisite: Must possess sewing-related skills)

3. Complete Overhaul (Replace material with Happiness Alloy for indestructibility; add smart weapon system to auto-lock threats within a 50-meter radius for precise shooting; integrate a full survival gear library, including but not limited to: simple lifeboat, all-purpose climbing hook, automatic freshwater collector) Estimated Action Point Cost: Locked (Prerequisite: Locked)

[Please select an action direction, Collector!]