"Let's go!"
Leilin kicked Misi, who was on the verge of falling asleep.
"Hmm? Where are we going?" Misi hunched his shoulders, his eyes still bleary.
If he had a choice, he would certainly rather stay here and sleep. It was sweltering outside — hot enough to make a man faint.
"Move it!" Leilin raised an eyebrow, and Misi immediately shot to his feet, leaving Leilin somewhat speechless.
"Alright! We're heading to the logistics department first. This month's assignments are coming down soon, and we can check while we're at it…"
"Fine! Fine! Who told you to be the boss?" Misi shrugged.
Since the last incident, Leilin had been promoted on the spot to squad leader of the special task force, and Misi had been assigned under him as a subordinate.
As for that Locke fellow — somehow he had pulled the right strings. Though he wasn't promoted at the time, he had subsequently accumulated a massive number of merits and earned his own squad leader rank just a few days ago, now standing at the same level as Leilin.
The logistics department of the special task force was situated not far from the residential area. Every single staff member there was fat and bloated, like plump pigs, completely devoid of the slender elegance unique to the Fire Feather Race. It was a constant source of grumbling from Leilin and his men.
"Bring me all of this month's special rations! And add a redemption list!" Leilin addressed the large, bald, oily-skinned fat man behind the glass counter.
"Yes, Captain Leilin!" The fat man wore an ingratiating smile, his manner careful and deferential.
Leilin's reputation had long since spread throughout the special task force. So young, yet he had already advanced to the eighth rank of the Fire Feather Technique — a Sky-level powerhouse! His future was limitless!
And more importantly, he had once saved Instructor Shike's life. Everyone knew that Shike was famous for having a powerful backer, strong methods, and being fiercely protective of his own.
So Leilin's continued rise through the ranks was practically a foregone conclusion.
Squad leader was definitely not his endpoint. Some were already speculating that he could one day earn the rank of Marshal in the Federation, adding a Marshal's star to his insignia!
The fat man naturally dared not slack off with such a person. He immediately produced Leilin's supply allocation in full, without skimming a thing.
Leilin casually took the supplies — this was a benefit every task force member received.
The Atlantean Federation largely relied on offering resources and noble titles to attract wandering powerhouses and the like.
Leilin tossed the supplies back to Misi, who stood behind him looking for all the world like a lackey, then opened the redemption list.
Right at the top was the Fire Feather Technique's content, covering everything from the first to the ninth rank, complete with a wealth of practical application experience and personally developed killing moves — thoroughly comprehensive.
However, there was nothing involving the Morning Star level for the tenth rank, which furrowed Leilin's brow.
After spending enough time here, he already knew that the special task force was the Atlantean Federation's covert operations agency. Though its reputation wasn't exactly stellar, its members wielded terrifying levels of authority. Even his current rank of squad leader was equivalent to a Major General in the Federation.
Yet even with his current standing, he still couldn't access the tenth rank of the Fire Feather Technique. It was somewhat disheartening — he remained deeply interested in the later stages of this technique.
A power path that could perfectly merge the physical and the spiritual — Knights and Wizards unified into one — so far, the Fire Feather Technique was the only one he had encountered.
Moreover, with Shike and the others as specimens, the Chip could at most deduce the Fire Feather Technique up to the ninth rank. As for the Morning Star content of the tenth rank, it would require enormous computational power and a vast amount of time, clearly exceeding Leilin's expectations.
"The path of power only becomes truly clear at the Morning Star tier. The first nine ranks of the Fire Feather Technique are merely innovative at best… I wonder what the real path looks like…" A glimmer of longing flashed through Leilin's eyes.
In the legends of the Fire Feather Race, they were all descendants of the Phoenix. But Leilin clearly didn't buy it — he had already searched and found no ancient bloodline gene fragments among the Fire Feather people.
Yet when the Fire Feather Technique was stimulated to higher ranks, it clearly bore some connection to the Phoenix. That was another thing that left Leilin puzzled.
"The Fire Feather Technique's issues can wait. Let me look for Fire Source Stone!"
Leilin scrolled further down, and soon a picture of a fiery-red mineral appeared before his eyes. "Fire Source Stone! Accelerates Fire Feather Technique cultivation progress and can even assist in breakthroughs! Top-tier treasure! Redemption price: one hundred Nobility Points per gram! Restricted to Captain rank and above!"
"One hundred Nobility Points per gram?" Before Leilin could even say anything, Misi was already shouting in disbelief.
"Something this expensive — you couldn't afford it even if you sold me!" Misi stuck out his tongue.
Noble status in the Atlantean Federation was held in extremely high regard, and the vetting process was very strict. Besides earning Nobility Points through the special task force, the only path to nobility was probably through the bloody battles in the Great Death Canyon, earning exceptional merit.
As such, task force members guarded their Nobility Points as carefully as they would their own eyes.
Upon seeing such an exorbitant price, Misi's first reaction was that he simply couldn't accept it.
"Heh heh… This is Fire Source Stone! A resource only the Federation's upper echelons can enjoy! Just one gram can help you break through to the sixth rank of the Fire Feather Technique!"