He shook his head helplessly and said, 'Haha, okay, I wonder if Brother Lin has heard of temporal rifts?'
'Of course I have.' Zhou Ran had already learned everything from the bestiary in his mind.
'That's good. Based on our estimates, this temporal rift should be a B-level one,' said Han Chengyong.
Zhou Ran nodded slightly, not particularly surprised.
In this world, temporal rifts are generally classified into five grades: A, B, C, D, and E, each representing a different level of danger.
Grade D and E are typically small temporal rifts that rarely spew out beasts to attack humans. They are usually suitable for newcomers to treasure-hunting teams to gain experience, as they are relatively safe.
As for the ABC grades, these are extremely dangerous temporal rifts. Not only do they spew out large numbers of beasts to attack humans, but the surrounding environment also undergoes mutations, such as magnetic field disruptions, withering plants, and rampaging beasts.
'Since you've determined it's a Grade B temporal rift, does that mean it's already appeared?' Zhou Ran asked.
'Yes, we just received news from the Treasure Hunting Headquarters. The military is currently engaged in a fierce battle with the emerging alien beasts, so we need to hurry,' Han Chengyong explained.
Zhou Ran nodded and began meditating.
Soon, the armoured vehicle arrived at the city's highway entrance. The vehicle had red emergency lights, allowing it to pass through smoothly without any obstacles, even bypassing the toll booths.
That's the power of authority!
Not only that, but in emergencies, they could even drive against traffic and run red lights.
Moreover, Zhou Ran had just looked up news about the treasure hunting team online and heard that several years ago, there had been a traffic accident where a treasure hunting team ran a red light while on a mission and killed a student.
After the incident, the victim's family was compensated with a sum of money, but the perpetrator did not face severe punishment, only a few days of detention.
But there's nothing to be done—that's their privilege. Killing doesn't require paying with your life!
As a result, tensions between the military and the treasure hunting team have escalated in recent years, leaving the government powerless to intervene, forced to maintain a balance between the two sides.
After driving on the highway for about half an hour, Zhou Ran saw many armoured vehicles along the way, all heading toward the same destination: Holy Emperor Mountain.
Shortly thereafter, Zhou Ran and the others finally arrived at the foot of Holy Emperor Mountain.
Tonight, Holy Emperor Mountain was particularly fortified, with high walls erected inside and out to prevent the emerging beasts from invading human cities.
Looking at the walls, which were over a hundred metres high, Zhou Ran was deeply impressed. What a monumental engineering feat!
"Inspection!" A military officer dressed in dark green approached.
Han Chengyong led the group forward, pulling out a red medal adorned with six stars from his pocket.
The officer saluted solemnly and allowed them to enter.
Zhou Ran muttered to himself, 'This military unit must be doing a good job. Despite the two sides being as hostile as water and fire, they can still treat each other with respect. Impressive, impressive.'
Upon entering the Holy Emperor Mountain, a strong smell of blood assaulted their senses. The ground was littered with the corpses of beasts, interspersed with many human bodies. War was indeed too brutal.
As they followed the mountain path for several dozen metres, they finally spotted a purple fissure halfway up the mountain. The battle had already ended, and all the temporal beasts emerging from the fissure had been eliminated. Surrounding the area were numerous officers and treasure hunters who had fought fiercely, their bodies covered in blood.
Each of them exuded an incredibly powerful aura, and Zhou Ran even sensed the presence of several eight-star beast tamers.
As they approached the crack, Zhou Ran was utterly shocked!
This...
How could this spacetime crack be identical to the system's otherworldly crack? The aura emanating from it was utterly familiar to Zhou Ran—this was the very place where he had fought countless battles day and night.
At that moment, a short-haired man in white robes approached and said, 'Han Xiong, you've finally arrived. I've been waiting for you for a long time.'
'I'm sorry for keeping Su Xiong waiting,' Han Chengyong immediately bowed with both hands.
'Haha, no problem. Is this young man the one you went to great lengths to invite?' Su Heng smiled at Zhou Ran.
Zhou Ran was still in shock when he suddenly heard Jiang Yuxi's call from the side, 'Lin Boss, this is the other external aid we invited, a seven-star beast tamer, Su Heng.'
Zhou Ran snapped out of his daze, put on a show, and nodded at Su Heng.
Su Heng furrowed his brows. This guy sure has a big ego.
"Lin brother, we need to go to the front to register. Since you haven't joined the treasure-hunting team before, you'll need to undergo a simple check-up first." Han Chengyong led Zhou Ran to a hall up front.
The hall was very spacious, but there were very few people there. After all, only those who had already been checked could come here.
Han Chengyong led Zhou Ran to an instrument in the centre of the hall and said, 'Lin, you just need to step on this pedal, have your irises scanned, and then the system will scan all your information and seal it for registration.'
Zhou Ran naturally stood on the platform, and Han Chengyong hurried over to press the start button on the instrument's large screen.
A large arm extended toward Zhou Ran's eyes.
Blue light flashed, recording Zhou Ran's iris.
At the same time, Zhou Ran's information appeared on the instrument's screen.
Zhou Ran.
Gender: Male
Age: 18
Address: Building 13, Unit 1005, Sunshine Community.
Educational institutions attended: Wenbo Kindergarten, Lily Primary School, Longcheng Middle School, Shengyu Vocational College
Family members:
Father: Lin Su.
Mother: Wang Qian.
No criminal record, clean background, approved for membership.
...
Zhou Ran was completely startled. He had only casually scanned his iris, yet all this information had appeared—even the schools he had attended, his home address, and all the details about his family members.
"This is terrifying..." Zhou Ran sighed.
Han Chengyong, standing beside him, was even more stunned. He hadn't expected Zhou Ran to be only 18 years old, and he hadn't been lying earlier. This information was too ordinary.
"Does this mean I've joined the treasure hunting team?" Zhou Ran walked down and asked.
Han Chengyong paused for a moment and said, "This is just temporary membership. To officially join, you still need to go through an interview at the headquarters. However, even temporary members have significant authority. Except for not receiving allowances and not having access to armoured vehicles, they have everything else."
"What else?" Zhou Ran asked directly.
"Remember we promised you could choose a treasure first? Every treasure brought out from the fissure must be registered and belongs to the government's property. The treasure hunter who brings it out can receive a substantial sum of money and corresponding honour points," Han Chengyong explained.
Zhou Ran was taken aback. The treasures don't belong to individuals, but to the government?
That's so unfair! It looks glamorous, but it's just a job!
"Honour points? What are they?" Zhou Ran asked.
"Honour points are actually very important. They not only affect promotions and pay raises but can also be exchanged for anything."
'For example, if you really want to keep this treasure and not hand it over, you can directly exchange it using your accumulated honour points, or you can go to the government warehouse and choose whatever you want. Even if you see a property you like outside, you can directly exchange it using honour points. In short, anything can be exchanged.' Han Chengyong patiently explained.
"Honour Points also apply to the military. They can obtain them by killing these invaders or completing government-assigned tasks. In short, they are effective and interchangeable for both sides." Han Chengyong added.
He then handed Zhou Ran a blue device and said, "This is the Honour Points Recorder, which will continuously track the Honour Points you've earned."
Zhou Ran understood. These Honor Points were essentially the government's means of balancing both sides, not only preventing treasure hunters from hoarding treasures but also motivating the officers engaged in bloody battles.
Truly ingenious.