Chapter 56: Chapter 56: Legally Purchased Talent

A "talent market"—a term that seemed to belong to a civilized society, yet one existed right here in the City East Alliance.

The City East Alliance already had many shops and the beginnings of a basic market. With supply and demand came the natural emergence of a talent market.

Many mercenary teams would sometimes recruit people here, often able to hire someone for just a bit of food.

However, the competition was clearly fierce. The place was filled with people holding signs that listed their skills, all seeking employment.

"General Manager of Haitian Group before the apocalypse... Daily wage: one nutrient paste. Skilled in team management, corporate strategy, and business planning!"

"Technical engineer from Daer Air Conditioning before the apocalypse... Daily wage: one steamed bun. Skilled in repairing air conditioners and polishing part molds!"

"..."

Evidently, many of these job seekers had been elites before the apocalypse, but now they were struggling for a daily wage of a single nutrient paste or a steamed bun.

To Lu Feng’s surprise, not long after they entered the talent market, he saw a group of people being led deeper inside, all chained to a vehicle. Each wore some kind of electronic lock around their neck, and their faces were ashen.

Moreover, the word "SELL" was painted in large letters on the vehicle.

"What’s going on here?" Lu Feng asked, confused.

Lin Jiao explained, "These people are for sale. Not all survivors in the City East Alliance are free. Some who have lost their freedom are sold as commodities."

"Some of them had no other choice and borrowed food or Energy Value from the Alliance, but couldn’t repay the debt. Others lost their freedom for committing some offense."

"People like this are fitted with electronic chains by the City East Alliance and sold as goods, just like slaves."

"And many people buy them. With the electronic chains, the owners have complete control. All they have to do is press a remote, and these people are finished."

This piqued Lu Feng’s interest.

After all, a controllable asset was far better than an unknown variable.

As they were talking, Lu Feng saw the vehicle stop. A fat man, leading a squad of soldiers, herded the chained people off.

Among them, a pair of twin sisters were especially eye-catching. They looked to be in their twenties. Not only were they gorgeous, but they had great bodies, with particularly full chests and shapely behinds.

The twin sisters’ faces, however, were drained of all color, clearly aware of their predicament.

After everyone was herded off, the fat man started banging a gong and shouting, "Look here, everyone! More officially processed merchandise for sale! Just pay up, and you can control whether they live or die!"

Sure enough, a crowd gathered. Most of them were armed with either blades or guns.

These were mostly people who dared to venture into the outside world. As long as they stayed alive, they definitely lived more comfortably than other survivors.

As the crowd closed in, the twin sisters clearly became the center of attention. Many of the onlookers wore lecherous smirks.

’With looks like theirs, having them do certain... activities together would probably be very exciting.’

Lu Feng, Lin Jiao, and their two companions walked closer. The fat man seemed to notice they were different and asked, "Sir, take a look at this merchandise. The prices are very cheap."

Lu Feng looked at the slaves and asked bluntly, "Do any of you know about home appliances? Specifically, home appliance and electronics technology design?"

He hadn’t forgotten his purpose for coming to the City East Alliance: to find someone to fully repair the electromagnetic rice cooker technology and then create the game.

The fat man gave Lu Feng a surprised look, clearly not understanding what use home appliance technology could be now.

Still, he was responsible enough to turn to his merchandise and demand, "Did you hear him? Whoever knows about home appliance technology, speak up now."

"I... I do..." a clear but nervous voice spoke up.

Lu Feng looked over and was surprised to see it was one of the twin sisters.

He frowned and asked, "Are you sure you do?"

’An employee with a great body and a pretty face is definitely better than some foot-picking brute.’

The girl said hurriedly, "I studied home appliance and electronics design! I even have a certificate as a home appliance technology engineer. My records are in the City East Alliance’s database."

The fat man, acting quite professionally, stepped forward and scanned the girl with a special electronic device. A moment later, he handed the device to Lu Feng. "Here, Boss, she isn’t lying. She really does have this skill. Also, this is the first time they’ve been put up for sale. Their father owed the Alliance a lot of Energy Value and committed suicide a few days ago."

Lu Feng frowned and took the device. Sure enough, the girl’s information appeared on the screen: Cheng Yaoyao, 25 years old, majored in Home Appliance and Electronics, holds a Home Appliance Technology Engineer certificate.

"What’s her price?" Lu Feng asked after confirming the details.

"4 Energy Value," the fat man said with a smile, introducing the price. "Of course, Boss, you can also pay with items of equivalent value: food, nutrient paste, some valuable Mutant Beast body parts..."

Lu Feng knew that Energy Value was the energy contained within the crystal cores. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

’To be able to buy a talented person for just 4 Energy Value... that’s shockingly cheap.’

’Or maybe, it’s just that these people who’ve lost their freedom are truly worthless.’

He pretended to put his hand in his pocket, and with a thought, retrieved a crystal core from his backpack space.

Just then, Cheng Yaoyao immediately pleaded with him, "Buy my sister too! I’ll do anything you ask."

The fat man didn’t miss a beat, chiming in, "Boss, if you want to buy the other girl too, that’ll be 8 Energy Value. But I’m sure you won’t regret it. After all, with their figures and looks, they should give you double the pleasure."

As he spoke, he gave Lu Feng a lewd and wicked wink.

Lu Feng naturally understood what the fat man meant by "double the pleasure."

Seeing Cheng Yaoyao hugging her sister tightly, her eyes filled with desperate hope, he ultimately softened. He took out the crystal core and asked the fat man, "How do I pay?"

’I just hope this Cheng Yaoyao can actually fix that electromagnetic rice cooker technology,’ he thought. ’Otherwise, this will be a huge loss.’

The fat man immediately grinned and took out a special device, which seemed to be some kind of energy storage unit. He had Lu Feng place the crystal core on it and then entered the number 8 on the device.

Then, they watched the numbers on the energy storage unit jump: 0.2...0.4...1...4...6...8!

Finally, the number stopped at 8. The fat man said with a grin, "Congratulations, sir. The twin sisters are yours."

Lu Feng used his game’s inspection function to examine the crystal core in his hand and was somewhat surprised:

[This is the crystal core of a Mutant Beast Slaying Dog. Quite valuable, it can be used as currency or an energy source. Energy Value: 1!]

Previously, this crystal core had 13 Energy Value. He had used 2 to recharge his laser pistol, and Lin Jiao had used 2 to recharge her laser rifle, leaving 9.

Now, the instrument in the fat man’s hands had accurately absorbed 8, leaving only 1.

’That’s pretty amazing.’

Soon, the Cheng Yaoyao sisters were brought over and handed to Lu Feng. The fat man also gave Lu Feng a remote control, saying with a laugh, "Boss, this’ll keep them obedient. Otherwise, just one little press, and their heads will blossom like a flower."

"Of course, if you want to give them a little punishment, there’s a punishment button on here too. It makes their electronic collars release a current. At maximum power, it can instantly rob them of all ability to resist. You can do whatever you want then."

The fat man’s words grew increasingly lewd.

The twin sisters’ faces, however, grew even paler as they clung tightly to each other.