Over a hundred bucks won’t last long in Bupen, especially with the new bills already here.

If Rica were to pay these bills, around sixty or seventy bucks, he’d barely have anything left in his pocket.

Almost everything in the house that could be sold has been sold, leaving only the house itself with any value—he needs to figure out a way to bring in some money.

When someone is in urgent need of something, they exhibit incredible subjective initiative, remembering methods they wouldn’t normally think of.

Once, there was a gentleman who was an old smoking addict, waking up in the middle of the night needing to use the bathroom, suddenly wanting a cigarette.

He prepared to smoke as he always did, reaching for the cigarette box, but found it empty!

At that instant, something very peculiar triggered his nerves, his emotions became unstable, and he began frantically searching for cigarettes at home.

He didn’t leave any place unchecked, unfortunately he couldn’t find a single cigarette.

The more he couldn’t find, the more terrifying the anxiety within became, forcing him to find a cigarette to calm his increasingly out-of-control emotions.

Eventually, in desperation, he was banging on a neighbor’s door at three in the morning for a cigarette when the neighbor shot him, sending him to the hospital.

Rica found himself in a similar situation, feeling the urgency of money, recalling his "father" in name.

He knew the High Priest might not be his father; in the temple, no one knows who is related to whom, everything is based on appearance.

If you feel it is, then it is.

He spent the first twenty years of his life under the High Priest’s care, never worrying about mundane concerns like money, and now he remembers his nominal father again.

He didn’t believe that the High Priest had no money at all, or rather he thought the High Priest could still get money, like the incense formula he held.

He was clear that incense formulas were a crucial part of the priestly inheritance, believing that the priests in Nagariel who persisted would be interested in these formulas.

Once this incense is lit, followers will believe they are incarnations of gods in the human world, willing to pay enough for these things.

"I shouldn’t have let him go then!", Rica muttered, sitting in a chaotic room, pressing his palms tightly against his scalp, brushing his hair backward.

This sensation of tightly covering his head provided him insignificant security; he stood up, paced a few steps, and began searching again.

Before long, he found a photo, featuring him and the High Priest standing together, contrasting the High Priest’s solemn demeanor with his sunny smile.

This was taken when he first studied abroad, left for the High Priest, brought over when he came.

Past memories clouded with a touch of discomfort, he shook his head, clutching the photo as he headed downstairs.

He roused a few drunken young men, handed them the photo, "Get him back here, I’ve got a way to make money, and our divine incense is running out!"

Initially, the drunken youths seemed uninterested in money, but when Rica mentioned the shortage of divine incense, they sobered up almost instantly.

One of them asked, "How long can it last?"

Rica honestly answered, "At most a week..."

The young men exchanged glances and stood up.

Holding the photo, they began searching; what truly motivated them was the divine incense.

The divine incense was a very special type of incense; Nagariel’s priests in antiquity also played the role of doctors; their exploration of plants was profound.

In this process, they discovered many remedies for disease and pain, but also many poisons; among them, the "Ghost Face Mushroom" was particularly unique.

Its size varied, with diameters reaching two feet; initially it looked like nothing, but once its diameter reached half a foot, it resembled a head with messy hair.

It had distinct facial features, a mournful expression, hence the name.

It couldn’t cure any illnesses, but consuming too much could be lethal, while possessing a unique effect: hallucination and paralysis.

Initially used as a painkiller, when a priest discovered that combined with other plants, it had controllable hallucinogenic effects with minimal side effects, it was widely used in religion.

In a closed room, when the scent concentration in the air reached a certain level, people were drawn into a fantastic illusion during ancient religious chants.

In the hallucination, they could see deities in the sky, the sleeping main god, everything in religion and its stories!

This is how Nagariel’s priests managed to firmly control society, using the hallucinations induced by such things to maintain people’s reverence towards them and religion!

A cheap hallucinogen.

Rica’s use of it differed from the situation in Nagariel; the "followers" here weren’t continually influenced by Nagariel’s religious culture. Even with similar guiding rituals, what these people saw in their hallucinations wasn’t what Rica intended, but what they themselves wanted to see.

They might become gods, soaring into the sky instantly, destroying a world with a flick of the wrist.

Or they could fall into a world full of aliens and become the only master here.

If someone wants money, in the illusion, they become the richest person in the world—no one dares to speak loudly in front of them!

In the hallucination, everything is bizarre, yet it can bring them satisfaction.

They love this feeling, this group of young people without homes, nowhere to go, and mentally extremely empty, can only find true self and satisfaction in each ritual.

They feel it is their true self; the girls don’t care who’s sprinting behind them, nor do the boys mind who they satisfy or who satisfies them. Their only need is the spiritual satisfaction they get from the ritual!

But now, Rica actually tells them that spiritual satisfaction is almost unable to satisfy them, like not finding a gentleman who can satisfy their addiction, like Rica who has gone mad wanting money.

The room fell silent instantly, everyone began searching outside—they can give up everything, including dignity, but will not give up that humble, fleeting, spiritual satisfaction!

The power grid worker hesitantly asked the girl pressed beneath him, who was about the same age as his son, "Where did they go?"

The girl didn’t answer him; instead, she used her abundant experience, making the technician unable to control himself in a very short time, left her side.

She briefly cleaned herself, changed clothes, and also went outside to find that old man.

Only Rica and the power grid worker were left in the room; after the two exchanged a glance for a moment, Rica also got up and left. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

There’s nothing valuable here anymore, and the house can’t be taken away...

An old man from Nagariel, with tattoos all over his body, including his face, people like this are very special in the Federation, maybe there are just a few in the entire Federation.

In Bupen, perhaps just one or two, among them is the High Priest.

Soon these rumors reached Lynch’s ears, and after a slight surprise, he issued a command.

At two in the morning that day, a dozen young people in formal clothes, wearing wool plaid flat caps, walked out of the station.

You can feel that their outfit is actually a bit tacky; in Bupen, no one would wear a formal dress and a flat cap—a thing worn by newspaper boys and children from the lower classes, often the attire of the poor.

But when worn by these people, it gives them a very special flavor.

Green Brothers.

And their most capable assistants.

Lynch had considered letting Darkstone Security do the job, but he quickly rejected the idea.

When used for external purposes, Darkstone Security is safe, but when used internally, it will certainly cause problems.

So he still brought in the Green Brothers, who did not hesitate at all—directly bought tickets and took people overnight to Bupen.

They stayed at a hotel near the station for one night, and early the next morning, they went to Lynch’s villa.

When they arrived, Lynch was having breakfast.

"Want to join me for a bite?", Lynch asked, sitting at the table.

The brothers shook their heads, elder Noel mentioned they had eaten something along the way.

"Bupen’s breakfast sandwiches are much more expensive than in Sabin City; it’s only sixty cents there, but a dollar here."

This price difference is actually quite normal, like Bupen’s average salary being higher than Sabin City’s—you add labor cost plus other raw material costs increased by labor cost, forty cents more isn’t particularly expensive.

Lynch nodded and didn’t insist on having breakfast together.

He continued eating breakfast while slowly saying, "This time having you over, there are two things I need you to do."

The two stood straight, heads lowered, honest—nothing like some people’s impression of scary guys.

"The first thing is, after all, Sabin City is a small city; we’ll only move toward better places, rarely moving to worse ones. The territory there can be left to reliable people to watch over, move your company to Bupen."

The brothers also run a company now, a labor company—all their subordinates are their employees.

Noel nodded in agreement, he also liked the prosperity here, just previously constrained by the authority Lynch held in their hearts, daring not to actively bring it up.

This time, it fulfilled their wishes.

"Secondly, I need you to do something for me..."