Chapter 183: Chapter 164: Invitation
"You're still hiding things from us, huh? Next time, make things clear, so people don't have to make a special trip."
Tao Hu was utterly bewildered as he looked at the beaming Ze Chuan in front of him.
Although he had no idea what had happened, he managed to keep his expression composed and accepted the official appointment letter with a smile on his face.
Yet on the way back, he was still puzzled.
He had been ready to go to the Inner City to seek out his backers and see if he could pull some strings, but the matter had resolved itself?
From what he gathered from Ze Chuan's words, someone else had put in a good word for him?
Who?
Tao Hu quickly thought it through and then considered Tao Yu.
However, he didn't think Tao Yu himself had done it. Instead, he believed that Tao Yu's talent had caught the eye of some important person who then gave him a nudge in the right direction.
"Heh, if it's really this kid, then he's become quite impressive," Tao Hu chuckled to himself. After some thought, he didn't go home directly but instead hopped on his beloved motorbike, turned it around, and headed in the direction of the Tao family.
Meanwhile, Tao Yu returned to his room and put away the partner's costume.
After leaving the security team, he took the opportunity to slip into the shadows to tidy up the costume.
It wasn't that he was being overly cautious, he just didn't want the cloak dragging on the ground and getting dirty...
"My sister's problem is solved, Uncle Hu's issue has been taken care of, third brother checked and is absorbing it smoothly, he can even handle four pieces a day without any problem..."
Tao Yu thought about some of the miscellaneous issues he had addressed upon returning and was quite pleased with himself.
But then he heard the sound of a motorcycle approaching from afar and guessed that it must be Uncle Hu.
Sure enough, Tao Hu's booming voice soon reached them,
"Is Yu at home? I have a question."
Tao Tong, who had just finished absorbing a "Demonization" meat chunk and was resting at the doorway, put on a smile and said,
"He's here, just got back. He must have heard you."
"I'm coming."
Tao Yu stepped out of his room and saw Uncle Hu parked his bike in a casual yet flamboyant manner.
"You little rascal, did you get someone you know to help me out?" Tao Hu asked bluntly.
"Kind of," Tao Yu replied, not bothering to explain in detail. "I heard about it at the dojo from senior brother, so I thought I'd see if I could lend a hand."
Tao Yu, not wanting to overwhelm his family with too much information all at once, decided to feed it to them slowly, bit by bit, like slicing sausage.
"Haha, you've done me a big favor, thanks," Tao Hu smiled from ear to ear.
He had been very anxious because the appointment he had nearly secured was in jeopardy.
With the official appointment now in place, he was naturally relieved to have that weight off his chest, and upon further reflection, he felt a mix of emotions.
It hadn't been long—when he helped his great-nephew, he had some investment thoughts, thinking it would be a long time before it paid off.
Yet in just four months, Tao Yu had solved such a difficult problem for him, which was no small feat.
What a promising future...
Since Tao Hu had come all this way, he wasn't just going to say hello and leave. He stayed and chatted casually with his nephews Tao Tong and Tao Yu.
He also shared some of his own perspectives and experiences.
And to be honest, even though Uncle Hu had always hung around the Outsider areas, he had his unique outlook on the Abyss, honed from decades of experience. Not all of it was useful, but he had still managed to draw some valuable lessons.
Tao Yu, taking his own situation into account, filled in some gaps with additional insights.
However, while they were chatting at the doorway, Tao Shi came running from the direction of the farm.
"Bro, someone's looking for you."
Upon seeing his younger brother, Tao Yu's expression stiffened.
Who was looking for him?
It couldn't be another "Cowgirl Sister," could it...
Ever since he returned, Tao Yu felt that there were even more people eyeing him.
Going out to the dojo for training or errands was one thing, but once back home, he might run into a number of attractive women from the Outsider areas loitering nearby.
The ones he had vaguely fantasized about during his adolescence, when his memory was not fully restored, seemed to be wanting to get close as well.
And according to Tao Yu's judgment, many of them were simply hoping to hit the jackpot, all well aware and without any intentions of getting attached.
Or to put it differently, in the face of his talent, it was impossible to get attached; the company had no rules protecting against such interactions, and in fact, they even encouraged it.
If he wanted to, his night life back home could certainly be plentiful.
However, with higher standards, he didn't want to waste time indulging in such matters.
With that time, wouldn't it be better to practice some boxing?
"Who is it? Didn't I say I'd be straight back?"
Tao Yu glanced at his younger brother with annoyance.
"No, it's not Sister Cow, it's Brother Chao. It seems someone has invited you to a gathering."
"Lin Chao?"
Tao Yu raised an eyebrow. His impression of Lin Chao was quite good, but he had already declined the invitation to join Lin's Chaoyang Society, and even if Lin hadn't given up, it wasn't like him to come directly to the house.
"It's not an invitation to join the society. It seems to be a dinner initiated by a genius with Level S talent from the new Development Zone, and it's taking place at 'Gourmet Fort'."
"Oh."
Tao Yu paused upon hearing this. Level S talent?
Unless specified otherwise, such a Level S talent should generally be a standard combat talent.
Even so, that was quite impressive.
But considering that four months had passed since people started entering the new Development Zone, and if you included those who had died, the total number might well be around ten thousand by now, so the emergence of a Level S talent didn't seem so strange.
The common view in the Outer City was that with a Grade C combat talent, one could just barely make it to the bottom rungs of the Inner City, but normally, no one would choose this option, as they would not even have a place to live, leading to a deficit living in the Inner City.
A Grade B talent could secure a foothold, a Grade A talent might have the opportunity to become part of the middle tier, like a mid-level partner, while a Level S talent could have the chance to squeeze into the elite class in the Inner City, even possibly becoming a senior partner.
Having been to the Inner City, Tao Yu knew there was also an underclass there, with many people lacking combat talents or possessing less than Grade C talent, but they had their family's radiation to rely on—at least they had a place to live and could survive in the Inner City.
There were also many who ended up in the Outer City because of their family circumstances.
Just revealing a Grade A talent of his own had brought him lots of goodwill and advance investment.
This genius with a Level S talent, especially in the new Development Zone, was probably already receiving every kind of angel investment, growing much faster than the average Outsider.
"It wouldn't be bad to meet him..."
Tao Yu quickly thought it over. Wang Goudan had said before that many new groups in the Inner City also formed alliances.
Everyone's goal was just mutual support, gathering a group of talented geniuses to get to know each other, which could also be quite good.
Whether it was now or in the future when everyone had grown stronger, a simple callout could often provide many conveniences.
"Alright, did they say when?"
"Tonight at six o'clock, at Gourmet Fort's Restaurant Number One."
"Okay, tell him I'll come on my own later, and I'll see him then."
With Uncle Hu here, Tao Yu didn't intend to leave his guest behind, and besides, Lin Chao wouldn't mind these things. He would just see him later.
"Oh, alright."
Tao Shi sprinted off into the distance again. Watching his monkey-like antics, Tao Yu figured the boy was bound to lean more towards their mother's talents in the future.
At this moment, Uncle Hu also spoke,
Stay connected through M-V-L
"Don't mind me, I should be heading back soon. You young people should socialize more."
Obviously, Uncle Hu was very supportive of such interactions.
It's hard to clap with one hand. No matter how strong a person is, how many nails can they hammer in by themselves?
Even the Sun Shiyu siblings, who are as strong as they come, need layers of assistance to succeed. The system of Floating City, Inner City, and Outer City operates similarly.
Powerful individuals who can't be everywhere at once need to focus on holding down the fort and making breakthroughs, striving to obtain rare items whenever possible. The main work of producing Yuan Force on a daily basis has to be distributed to others.
"In the old Development Zone, animal husbandry, aquaculture, agriculture, and mining all have substantial Yuan Force income, but actually, it's the ordinary Pioneers who are mainly responsible for production. With your talent, you will definitely be able to break out of that cycle.
"In the new Development Zone, first try to find some reliable partners to break new ground, earn your first pot of gold, and grow as quickly as possible. Later on, becoming a manager of production resources will be better than anything else."
Tao Hu seemed a bit emotional and envious while speaking.
With a Grade A talent going to an old Development Zone, there wouldn't be much opportunity, just a worker's life. But in a new Development Zone, one could certainly try to control some production resources!
Those were resources that could continuously generate Yuan Force.
Why was he fighting tooth and nail for the vice-captain position of the South City area? Because having more trained subordinates ready to be called upon would drastically increase his influence!
When power levels are within a certain range, numbers can be very cost-effective.
The entry threshold for the Outer City's security forces, added to experienced coordination, can overpower any high-level Outer City expert with sheer numbers, including Ze Chuan, the team captain!
Tao Yu largely agreed with this, but his own situation was somewhat exceptional. In his view, the Abyss offered limitless possibilities, which meant that even if he were unmatched in the world one day, he would have to keep his ace in the hole secret.
What if enemies came from the heavens?
In Uncle Hu's view, everyone has a growth ceiling based on their talent, so one must form alliances and climb within groups, but Tao Yu hadn't yet seen his own ceiling...
So connections could only serve as an aid, offering some help in improving his strength.
But controlling production resources? That indeed piqued his interest.
Even Alien breeding counts as one, and what Panda and the others had started to consider regarding machinery and bullet production lines also counts...