Warhammer: Start with a dog.

Chapter 877 The One Who Tied the Bell Must Untie It - Living in Shanghai is Not Easy
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"Wow."

Fograim Pallas made a perfectly innocent expression of surprise.

Magna Dorn, clad in golden armor, stood out incongruously yet lifelike on the holographic beach—in reality, he was also a projection, after all, he was the ship's machine spirit, and projection was more convenient.

"That's it."

The being wearing the Dorn mask nodded. "The terms of this temporary contract are very generous... so I thought you might be interested?"

"It is indeed generous and cost-effective for him. Think about it, he can summon Saint Gillenor's promise once and have the opportunity to obtain a guarantee from the Holy Blood Angel."

Lehman Russ raised his glass of chilled mead for who knows how many times, “But I can’t manage it all by myself. But if I bring my wolf pack—Little Pallas—would you be interested in earning some pocket money washing and blowing wolves?”

“No… no, my dear Uncle Ruth,” the young phoenix said with a “I knew you’d ask that” look on his face. “While I do enjoy tinkering and making things look brand new, if you’re asking me to wash two werewolves from Dalian, no way.”

"That's such a shame."

Ruth, unperturbed, raised his glass to them again, took a big sip of wine himself, and then slid into the newly dug sandpit to bury himself.

"It's not that I'm too disappointed, it's that you should let them shower themselves! I can't even get close to their quarters now, from a distance it looks like a rocky cave covered in grass! And every time they go to the canteen it's so obvious! Shedding fur, dog smell, and paw prints! -- Ugh, I really don't understand where they found so much hay on this ship?!"

Pallas continued to complain with a relaxed and intimate tone that he himself was unaware of.

"Even if the claws and limbs of the Thirteenth Company are too severely mutated, I remember that the remaining space wolves from other companies were not so severely mutated, right? Couldn't we have divided them into two groups to wash and blow them around?"

“The wolf cubs don’t have the patience to wash, disinfect, and dry their whole bodies,” Ruth said, squinting. “I don’t have the patience to scrub them either. I guess they’d rather hang themselves on the air conditioner’s vent to dry their fur.”

"—Then I bet the flying wolf hair will quickly break the air conditioner filter, and then we can temporarily 'enjoy' the pure Fenris doghouse smell and wolf paw stench throughout the entire ship, right?"

“Good taste, little birds. This is called immersing you in the atmosphere of Fenris’s ‘nest’!” Leman Russ laughed. “I asked them, and in thousands of years, very few people other than space wolves have been able to land on the surface of Fenris and enter Wolf Fang Fortress! This kind of atmosphere is not something everyone can enjoy!”

His eyes gleamed beneath his thick eyebrows. "Of course, I also know some other things..."

"Who wants to enjoy this godforsaken atmosphere?! You might as well send your resume to Nurgle!!! You slovenly uncle!"

—While these two Primarchs, whose ages and experiences differed greatly, were bickering, Magna Dorn observed them with great interest and rapidly categorized and entered certain parts of their conversation into his database.

Honestly, when he once asked why Ramizane was always so tolerant of the Primarchs, he closed the book and seemed to be able to appreciate, even a little bit, the "pleasures of birdwatching and wolf watching" described there.

“So,” he interrupted Pallas, who was trying to bury Ruth completely in the sand, and Ruth, who was laughing heartily at the idea, “neither of you wants to take on this temporary contract. Okay, let’s move on to the next step. Has either of you seen Clarks or his avatar?”

"never seen it."

Riemann Russ spoke first, blinking as he shook fake sand from his long, thick, golden eyelashes, just as he did when he shook off Prospero's ashes.

"The last time Clark's alter ego appeared and chatted with us was before we came into this beach sunroom,"

Pallas then thoughtfully added, "Perhaps you could try making an announcement throughout the ship to find him?"

“Never mind.” Magna shook his head, holding the data panel. This gesture reminded the Primarchs present of one of their brothers who had already been sentenced to death.

"Waiting for Clarkes to regroup and appear here is too uncertain. So we can skip him and move on to the next option. Apart from having to wait for the candidate to come over from the lab after get off work, this option is actually the best candidate for this mission. I'll have someone notify him now."

"Oh." Pallas and Ruth both suddenly realized.

--------

After confirming that Magna Dorn and his surveillance focus had left the holographic room, a dark cloud drifted over and once again obscured the surveillance cameras hidden behind the holographic projection.

Then, Clarkes, in the form of a Raven Guardian, emerged from the shadows.

"I didn't expect you guys to cover for me, brothers," the Lord of the Ravens said with a hint of amusement. "Has our brotherhood suddenly become stronger than ever?"

“No, not at all.” Just before Pallas could speak, Ruth grinned. “I just think that the one who tied the knot must untie it. The trouble in Nurgle’s Realm should be left to that guy to handle.”

"Is that so?" Pallas asked in surprise. "I thought Clarks told you not to say anything..."

"Because I want to stay here comfortably, sunbathing and drinking chilled mead while Clarks plays the following exciting live stream for us to enjoy with my drinks."

Ruth answered very honestly, his seemingly savage face appearing so sincere.

"Don't you want to?"

"..."

So they sat down together on the beach, poured more chilled drinks (minors shouldn't drink alcohol! —By Pallas) and cut open a new chilled watermelon. ————————

The pale, thin, gray-haired young man adjusted the gold-rimmed glasses on his nose.

This report is finally finished. Barat from the team was completely counterproductive…

Veins bulged on the back of his thin hand, but fortunately he stopped before he broke his newly bought pen.

Living in Shanghai is no easy feat! Even the Pale King has to be careful with his money here. This is what a terrifying megacity in the universe is like!

Aside from essential expenses like rent, transportation, food, utilities, and internet, as a new recruit in the biology lab, he also has to ensure the availability and usability of the necessary equipment for his studies and research, as well as other supplies.

Well, I actually received scholarships when I was studying, but now that I'm back in Shanghai, I can only rely on my past savings, careful budgeting, and taking on freelance work.

—It's impossible to farm here. Even if you had inexhaustible strength, there wouldn't be any land for you to cultivate—and you couldn't outfarm large-scale integrated agricultural machinery...

As for your question about how someone who works in genetics, biology, and chemistry can take on lucrative side jobs...

A new message flashed.

He raised an eyebrow, saved the paper data, and then opened the message box.

The stubborn rock is the foundation upon which all things stand (persona): Good evening. Are we working overtime in the lab tonight?
Mitochondria and the Lord of the Living: Expecting me to work overtime? Ha! Your plans to laugh at me are likely to be dashed! Not only am I not working overtime today, I'm already home! I'm about to finish my thesis and give myself a two-day break! I've prepared plenty of food, warm bedding, and unopened games! Nothing can stop my vacation!
The stubborn rock is the foundation upon which all things stand (persona): ...I regret it, but...

Mitochondria and the Lord of the Living: I've said it before, even if the universe is going to end the day after tomorrow, I still have to take this vacation—do you know I haven't taken a single day off in the past month and a half and have even been working overtime frequently?! A few days of my overtime are still owed to you! You despicable, wicked, tempting devil…

The stubborn rock is the foundation upon which all things stand (persona): ...That's a shame, this job with an hourly wage of 900 yuan and an estimated 3 hours of overtime might really be too much for you...

Mitochondria and Lord of the Living: Wait! You devil! (Motalian chess piece expression, gritting teeth) What's the hourly wage?! What happens if it's over 3 hours?! Is it settled on the spot?! Is it paid in Seris currency?!
The stubborn rock is the foundation upon which all things stand (persona): Didn't you already decide to take a vacation? Besides, you said you haven't finished your thesis...

Mitochondria and the Lord of the Living: I can finish my paper quickly—answer my questions!
Persona: Okay. Seris currency payment. Reliable payment method, supports both blue and green software, instant settlement to the designated account upon completion. For transactions exceeding 3 hours but less than 1 hour, it will be calculated as 1 hour…

Mitochondria and the Lord of the Living: I accept! When do I start work?! Do I need to go there now?
The stubborn rock is the foundation upon which all things stand (persona): ...Aren't you going to ask about the job description and location?
Mitochondria and the Lord of the Living: What job or work location could be more terrifying than the resentment of a poor man and me for forgoing vacations for money?!
Persona: Okay, the work location is the lower deck of the Destiny Steel. I'll send you the specific route, available elevators, barrier entrances and exits, a map of the lower deck's continental distribution, etc...

Mitochondria and the Lord of the Living: ...The Continent?
Persona: Oh, we've now installed a very powerful sewer waste disposal system on the lower deck, which can efficiently and easily handle the stern waste disposal needs of our ship, which has an ever-increasing demand for passengers and processing.

Mitochondria and the Lord of the Living: So I can understand everything else, but what does this have to do with the mainland?
The stubborn rock is the foundation upon which all things stand (persona): Our main sewer system is excellent in every way, and the decomposed waste from fermentation meets discharge requirements. However, he insists on using his hometown's original ecological waste treatment pond and other fermentation equipment in conjunction with it…

Mitochondria and the Lord of the Living: ? Wait, what's your supervisor's name? (A wary Mortarian chess piece expression)

The stubborn rock is the foundation upon which all things stand (persona): Scarbea Salax the Swollen One. You should have heard of him.

Mitochondria and the Lord of the Living: Of course I know him... Wait, could that so-called "native-home" waste disposal equipment be...?

Persona: Well, considering the need to simultaneously improve efficiency, increase redundancy, and meet employee demands, we've restructured the lower deck, added barriers, and placed Scarbea Sarax's own exclusive demon world within it—the Corruption Pit, or the Withered Abyss. Its second continent has now been specifically assigned to us by Scarbea Sarax to handle all matters related to our ship. It's quite impressive; our sewers have never backed up, not even a stench.

Mitochondria and the Lord of the Living: ...You've gone mad! Even I...would never have done something like this before! Placing the Great Impurity and its home planet, the Demon Planet, on the lower deck of your own ship!
Persona: It's alright. After all, there's still a War Machine Ark hovering in the armory. And based on my database analysis, besides the current Destiny Steel, there's no other ship registered under human names in this galaxy that can only do this.

Mitochondria and the Lord of the Living: Of course not! That's the most ancient demonic world! It should be hidden in the deepest part of the garden, because you must know, unlike other great impurities, the Wind of Necromancy has the qualifications to harbor impurity! ...Wait, wait, could it be because of this...?

Persona: Yes. It's good to see your mind and knowledge become as clear and bright as your knowledge. Scarbea Thrax possesses a fairly complete set of powers such as "corruption," "decay," "fermentation," and "degradation," and can construct a functioning small cycle on his own demonic planet. This is the significance of having him as the master. Scarbea Thrax is always pleased; he doesn't care so much whether corruption must occur in believers, enemies, or the living.

Mitochondria and the Lord of the Living: ...Because Scarbeas Thalas is decay itself, he is immortal as long as life exists; his existence is destined to continue until the day the last life in the entire universe ends. Therefore, he is more concerned with whether decay and decay are taking place.

The rock is the foundation upon which all things stand (persona): Correct. So he was very happy to work there, responsible for fermenting our garbage into compost and then into black soil suitable for farms and gardens. The only thing that would displease him was that he felt the garbage supply was a bit low, leaving him with nothing to do.

Mitochondria and the Lord of the Living: ...Alright. Since it's him, the difficulty of the job is actually greatly reduced. I'll get ready and come over immediately. By the way, what exactly is the job again?

The persona: Removing forty-six flesh-tearers and one alien judge from Scarbea Salax is not enough to cause the sewer system to shut down or the supervisor to die.

Mitochondria and the Lord of the Living: ? Do I look like a very patient and reasonable negotiator?

The stubborn rock is the foundation upon which all things stand (persona): No. But there is only one great unclean being as good-natured and useful as Scarbea Salax.

Mitochondria and the Lord of the Living: ...

The stubborn rock is the foundation upon which all things stand (persona): What else?
Mitochondria and the Lord of the Living: ...Add 7% tea for a mouthwash fee!
The stubborn rock is the foundation upon which all things stand (persona): Let me ask... Okay, deal. But you must leave immediately.

Mitochondria and the Lord of the Living: Deal.

(End of this chapter)