It's a hell game, who can still be a human being?

Chapter 667 Ace: I Heard You're a Master at Picking Up Girls

"As expected of Brother Zheng, he has a really good eye for people."

Ace laughed.

"Don't speak yet, let me speak first."

Liu Zheng said.

"You say it, you say it."

“I have a friend who comes from the mountains, and I want to help him get citizenship.”

He said.

Do its parents have citizenship?

The ace asked.

"I don't know. It's an orphan with only one master. Its master is basically dead now."

Liu Zheng replied.

"That would be difficult. At least one parent would need to be a second-class citizen or higher for it to work out."

Ace said.

Citizenship hierarchy is one of the most fundamental systems in a metropolis, and even for the most elite individuals, it cannot be too outrageous; there must be a plausible reason for it.

"By the way, its species is a metal-eating beast."

Liu Zheng added.

"An iron-eating beast? Never heard of it."

Ace shook his head.

"What about the pandas?"

"I haven't heard of it either."

The ace still shook his head.

"If you've never heard of it, that must mean this species is very rare, right? Could we start from that angle?"

He used reverse thinking.

“What you said makes sense. I heard from my colleagues in the Household Registration Department that there seem to be preferential policies for rare species. Wait a minute, let me ask someone in the Household Registration Department again.”

After saying that, Ace hung up the phone.

A while later, he called again.

"I asked around, and they said I could get a rare species certificate from the Biological Management Bureau, and then I could take the certificate to us to register my household registration. Depending on the rarity, I could be registered as a first-class citizen or at least a third-class citizen."

Ace said.

In metropolises, species and race are not the same thing.

Only species whose members can develop intelligence naturally can be classified as races.

"Then I need to go to the Biological Management Bureau to get a certificate?"

"That's right, as long as you can get the proof, I mean it, I'll take care of the rest."

Ace emphasized.

"Okay. Alright, it's your turn, bro. Is there anything I can help you with?"

Liu Zheng asked.

"Hey hey hey"

The ace didn't say anything, he just kept awkwardly laughing.

"Brother Pai, can you stop laughing? You're giving me goosebumps."

He shivered.

"Hey, Nightingale said you're pretty good at picking up girls, Zheng-ge?"

The ace finally spoke.

"That's utter nonsense. Don't listen to her lies. I'm a chaste person who focuses on my work and never chases after women."

Liu Zheng vehemently denied it.

"I get it, I get it, Zheng Ge, you're the one who gets chased by girls, not the other way around."

Ace winked on the other end of the phone.

"That's someone else's business, I can't stop them. No, Brother Pai, why are you bringing this up?"

He was puzzled.

Wasn't Ace previously troubled by his family pressuring him to go on blind dates? How come he's talking about picking up girls now?

Besides, given his status, does he need someone to teach him how to pick up girls? It's not like he can just open his mouth and do it.

"and many more."

Liu Zheng had a bad feeling.

"You're not going to ask me to help you pick up girls too, are you?"

"Almost. Wait, why did you say 'again'?"

Ace asked in confusion.

"Nothing. So who is it? Someone your family introduced you to on a blind date?"

he asked.

"No, no, it's a visual novel I recently bought. Zheng-ge, you know what a visual novel is, right?"

"I know, it's a game with many dialogue options, different plots are triggered based on the player's choices, and the goal is to unlock all the erotic content in the end."

Liu Zheng replied.

He had played some before, but he was an outlier among visual novel players.

He would always make sure the protagonist remained a virgin in any visual novel where there was a chance of avoiding any explicit content.

As for the explicit content, just download a full CG save file after you're done playing and use it.

"Yes, yes, Zheng-ge, you really are my soulmate."

Ace said emotionally.

It's really not easy for someone of his status to frequently meet people who, let alone be a groom every night, could easily afford to go to brothels every day. He simply can't find anyone who likes to play visual novels.

When looking for like-minded people online, Wangpai worries that the other party might have ulterior motives, since such things are not unprecedented.

Now he has finally met Liu Zheng, someone who understands visual novels and has no ulterior motives.

"Well, actually I don't play visual novels that much."

Liu Zheng is trying to clear his name.

“I understand. It’s like cultivation; it’s all about talent. A genius like you, Zheng-ge, is like my father. He became a Planeswalker after only attending a few crash courses in magic, while you can become a galgame master after just a few games.”

Ace said with reverence.

"You don't understand anything."

He was speechless.

How can Liu Zheng, a food deliveryman, compare to Ace's father?

Ace's father attended a crash course in magic and became a Planeswalker. He spent a fortune on a guaranteed pass course for the CET-4 (College English Test Band 4), but still had to take the test twice before passing.

"Brother Zheng, please help me this once. I won't die in peace if I can't win Yumiko's love!!!"

The ace screamed at the top of his lungs, his voice so mournful that it broke the hearts of all who heard it and brought tears to their eyes.

"Alright, alright, stop howling. When and where are we going to play?"

Liu Zheng couldn't take it anymore.

"Anytime or place is fine, I'll bring my game console and come find you."

Ace immediately said.

"Let's stay at the clinic then. I'll call you when I have time. By the way, don't mess with the Sphinx this time."

he warned.

"Don't worry, Zheng-ge. As long as you can help me beat the game, I'll even make it bark like a dog."

Ace guarantees it.

"Forget it, you dare to call it but it doesn't dare to listen."

Liu Zheng rolled his eyes.

Who knows if Ace's Planeswalker father has planted surveillance on him? If he comes back and finds that his unlucky son is barking like a dog, Ace will be in big trouble, and none of those who know about it will escape either.

After hanging up, he called 4399 again.

"Brother 4399, I want to help Abao get a rare species certificate."

Liu Zheng got straight to the point.

"Where are you?"

4399 asked.

"I'm at the clinic."

“Okay, I’ll bring the people from the Biological Administration Bureau over later, and I’ll hand over the procurement funds to you while I’m at it,” 4399 said.

"okay."

After waiting for about half an hour, the roar of the Sphinx came from outside the door.

He took Panda and Niu Daji out and happened to see 4399 getting out of the car with someone.

This person had a very ordinary appearance, the kind that you wouldn't notice if you threw him into a crowd, but he had two extremely deep and long scratches on his face that almost split his head into three parts, making him unforgettable at first sight.

He was wearing a green uniform with a pattern of flowers, lizards, birds, and small fish in the upper left corner.

"This must be the legendary Liu Zheng. Hello, hello. My surname is Li. You can just call me Lao Li."

The man with the scratches was very enthusiastic and even shook hands with Liu Zheng.

"Hello, Brother Li. I've long admired your reputation."

Liu Zheng also said enthusiastically.

"Have you heard my story?"

Old Li asked in surprise.

“No, but your face tells a story.”

He looked at the scratches on Old Li's face and said.

"Oh, you said this."

Old Li touched the scratches on his face and said.

"This is what I left behind when I subdued a two-toed anteater. That beast had an incredibly bad temper, but its body was extremely fragile. I went to great lengths to avoid hurting it, but in the end, I almost got myself killed."

He said with lingering fear.

"Brother Li is awesome."

Liu Zheng raised his large tentacles.

"Hey, that's all from when I was young. I wouldn't dare do that now. I'll just do administrative work now. Let the younger generation handle the things that involve charging into battle and making meritorious contributions."

Old Li waved his hand and said.

"By the way, who are you going to get a rare species certificate for?"

he asked.

"Abao, come here."

Liu Zheng called the panda over.

"that's it."

"I just saw it. This panda is quite good-looking, with big ears, small bird eyes, and a round face."

Old Li touched the panda all over.

The panda's fur stood on end from his touch, and it immediately hid behind Liu Zheng.

Does it meet the criteria for rare species certification?

Liu Zheng patted its big head to comfort it, and then asked.

"Yes, of course it fits. Pandas are already among the rarest species, not to mention it's a metal-eating beast that has been atavistically introduced into the species."

As expected of a professional, Old Li recognized the origin of the panda at a glance.

"Then I'll have to trouble you, Brother Li. It's a small token of my appreciation that you've taken time out of your busy schedule to help."

He pulled out a wad of banknotes and slid them smoothly into Old Li's pocket.

"We're all on the same side, why are you doing this? Don't do it again."

Old Li feigned anger.

"understand."

What do you mean by "this is the last time"? It's clearly a call to keep up the good work.

"Come on, stand still, I'm going to take your picture."

Old Li took out a Polaroid camera and pointed it at the panda.

What is taking photos?

The panda asked, puzzled.

"It's a portrait. Don't move around or close your eyes. This certificate will be with you for life. If you think it's ugly, we won't replace it."

Old Li reminded him.

"what?"

The panda immediately widened its eyes and struck what it thought was a very cool pose.

"Crack!"

A bright light and white smoke appeared; a small Polaroid camera managed to make the noise of an old-fashioned camera.

"Hmm, the filming is alright, but the eyes are wide open too much, making him look like he's not very smart."

Old Li picked up the printed photo, looked at it, and said...

The panda dared not speak out against its anger, and could only bare its teeth behind Liu Zheng's back.

Old Li ignored it, took out a stamped certificate from his pocket, filled in the contents, and pasted the photo on it.

"It's done, take it."

He handed the certificate to Liu Zheng.

"Remember to keep this safe, as replacing it is much more troublesome than applying for a new one. With this certificate, various departments in the city hall will at least offer some assistance."

"Thank you, Brother Li. By the way, Brother Li, there's something I'd like to ask you about."

Liu Zheng said.

"You said."

“My subordinate is an orphan. He has no parents and has never even seen anyone of his kind. He came with me from the Ten Thousand Mountains to find his own kind. Brother Li, you are from the Biological Management Bureau and have seen a lot. I wonder if you can provide some clues?”

He said.

"I know a little about this, but the answer might disappoint you."

Old Li said.

"It's alright, Brother Li, you can go ahead and say it."

"There should be more than 300 registered pandas in the Metropolitan Area. They were originally scattered among the residents. But more than 100 years ago, a regressive iron-eating beast appeared and brought all the pandas together to live together."

"The staff member in charge of the pandas at the time had some contact with this panda, but thought it was not very dangerous and that the pandas living together would be easier for him to manage, so he let it roam freely."

"But decades ago, when the staff member was monitoring the panda population, he discovered that they were fighting each other, and all the pandas had reverted to their ancestral form as iron-eating beasts. Several of them even used supernatural powers such as the Heaven and Earth Transformation Technique. The scene was extremely tragic."

"The staff member immediately reported it, and the Biological Management Bureau quickly dispatched a large force to suppress the outbreak. However, by the time they arrived, the entire panda population had been wiped out, with not a single red panda remaining."

Old Li said.

"There's clearly something wrong here."

Liu Zheng frowned.

He didn't know what pandas did, but he knew about monkeys.

When monkeys fight for leadership, it's usually a one-on-one battle between the alpha male and the challenger. At worst, it's a group fight between the alpha male and the challenger with their respective confidants, but it can never turn into an unrestricted free-for-all between the entire tribe.

Moreover, the fact that all the pandas reverted to their ancestral form as iron-eating beasts seems unlikely to be a natural event.

“That’s right. We did investigate afterwards, but found nothing unusual. At that time, the staff member was exposed for embezzlement, poaching rare animals, drinking their blood, and selling the carcasses to poachers. He was quickly executed because the evidence was conclusive. At the same time, the bureau encountered an even more difficult situation, and most of the staff were transferred to deal with that matter, so this matter was left unresolved.”

Old Li nodded.

"Too many coincidences are no longer coincidences."

"There's nothing we can do. The person directly responsible for this is dead. As long as the investigation isn't reopened, no one will be held accountable. But if someone requests a reopening of the investigation, that person will take over the responsibility. Everyone prefers to avoid trouble, so naturally no one wants to create problems for themselves."

Old Li put it very bluntly.

"Miscellaneous person".

Panda had been holding back from speaking, but finally couldn't help tugging at Liu Zheng's sleeve.

Liu Zheng turned around and met its bright red eyes.

"Ugh."

He sighed and rubbed the panda's head.

"Brother Li, can you think of a way? This subordinate of mine risked his life for me, and its entire clan was wiped out. As its leader, I can't let it not even know who its enemy is."

Liu Zheng turned to Old Li and said.

"This is a tough one. We're on the same side, so I won't beat around the bush. If it were easy to investigate, that staff member would have been found out long ago. It took him over a month to be taken away for questioning back then. Now, decades have passed, and things have changed drastically. Although we've protected the body and the crime scene, to put it bluntly, if there really is a mastermind, it's hard for them to tamper with the body, but it's not difficult for them to tamper with the crime scene."

"If your brother Li weren't married, considering the credit you gave me and the purchase quota you allocated, I would definitely not hesitate to help you find out even the deepest waters."

But now, sigh.

Old Li also sighed.

"Brother Li, could you take us to the crime scene?"

Liu Zheng took a step back.

(End of this chapter)