Chapter 105: The Goods Have Arrived ( PLAT )

A brilliant, cunning smile appeared on Mayor Everett Thorne's face as he shook Ethan's hand. “Ethan, I knew that a young man like you, with such a strong sense of justice, would definitely agree to help.”

Ethan, his mind still reeling from the high-stakes deal, couldn't wait to ask, “Then when do we make our move?”

The Mayor waved a calming hand. “Don't be in such a rush. We still need to make thorough preparations. A C-rank monster often has many dangerous D-rank and E-rank underlings in its territory. We will need to send other military forces to hold them back. I have decided to make our move on October 1st. You will have a seven-day holiday from school then, so the time will be sufficient.”

“To be honest,” Ethan said with a smirk, “with all my recommendation offers, I really don't have to go to school anymore.”

“It's still best if you go,” the Mayor advised. “We can't guarantee that your teachers won't give you new, important information regarding the changes to the college entrance exams.”

“That's true too,” Ethan conceded.

Mayor Thorne stood up. “Alright, I'll leave first. The things you exchanged your military merit for will be delivered in about a week.”

“That long?” Ethan asked, a little disappointed.

“What do you think?” the Mayor chuckled. “These are high-grade military items, not something we just have lying around in a city like this. They have to be securely shipped from the central command depots. It will take about a week.”

“Alright then,” Ethan said with a sigh of anticipation.

Six days later, on a Sunday.

“Wuhu! The goods have finally arrived!” Ethan couldn't wait to take the large, secure military package home. He opened it and found the various items he had bought with his hard-won merit points. He first picked up the package labeled “Aura Gatherer.” Inside was a sleek, black, box-like object with exquisite, glowing blue patterns carved on its surface.

Inside the box, a small, laminated instruction card read: "This product has 734 psionic runes. After activation, it can release an Aura Gathering Formation within a ten-meter radius, increasing ambient psionic energy concentration by twenty percent. Inserting one F-rank lower-grade Aura Core allows for twelve hours of operation. Purchase includes a complimentary two-hour trial experience."

“They sure know how to do business,” Ethan chuckled. With a press of a flush button, a slot opened on the top. Looks like this is where the Aura Core goes. He gave the device a critical eye. The psionic runes on it were already densely packed; there was no room for him to add any more. It no longer had any room for upgrading.

He put it aside and took out a sealed bag. Tearing it open, a pure black, high-tech cloak was revealed. It was made of a soft, flexible material, and the psionic runes on it were intricately drawn with a special, silver-colored conductive ink, covering the entire interior lining.

The instruction card read: “'Specter' model Stealth Cloak. 4,873 psionic runes. Can conceal the Aura of a Rank Four psionicist down to that of a Rank One, has a passive breath-concealing effect, and can activate an active invisibility psionic skill at night.”

Ethan looked at the interior of the cloak and found that the psionic runes were relatively scattered, with many empty spaces. When I get the chance, he thought with a grin, I'll use Grey Matter to fill this thing up completely.

He then took out a small, fragrant wooden box. After opening it, a refreshing, potent fragrance wafted out. “As expected of a supreme-grade Aura Gathering Pill. This taste, this scent, is second to none.” He solemnly put the lid back on and carefully stored it in his storage ring.

Next up was the most expensive single item of his purchase: the Healing Fruit. The beautiful, glowing fruit was safely sealed in a transparent psionic gear preservation box. The box itself had ten psionic runes on it, making it a beginner supreme-grade item. This must be a complimentary gift, he thought.

But this thing was still quite practical. He could use it to preserve delicate Aura plants in the future. He glanced at the user manual. The life force of the Healing Fruit was very strong. For people below Rank Three, a single bite was more than enough to completely heal a severe injury. But once the skin was damaged, the potent life force would quickly dissipate, so it had to be preserved immediately after being picked.

However, Ethan wasn't buying this for its healing properties. He licked his lips and ate the whole thing in a few quick bites. The Omnitrix on his wrist immediately absorbed all the potent life force, converting it into its own specialized energy and lighting up with a brilliant white light.

[DNA optimization progress: 16%... 17%......]

Ethan nodded with satisfaction, then ignored the ongoing process. He took out his phone, took a quick photo of the Aura Gatherer, and sent it to their three-person group chat.

[Monster Hunting Trio] Hero_Time: A good thing that can increase Aura concentration by twenty percent. It needs one F-rank lower-grade Aura Core per use. It's got a two-hour trial run left. Let's meet at the old place. Violet_Valkyrie: Coming right away! Muscle_Man_Actual: I'll be there! ٩(ˊᗜˋ*)و

The three of them met at the Linley Family Combat & Psionic Training Center. Marcus and Seraphina looked at the small, black box on the ground.

Seraphina’s eyes were wide. “This little thing is the Aura Gatherer that's worth five million credits?”

Ethan grinned. “To be precise, you might not even be able to buy it for five million on the open market.”

Marcus held up one of their shared Aura Cores. “How do I put it in?”

“Don't be anxious,” Ethan said. “They gave us a two-hour trial. Let's test the effect first.”

Ethan pressed the start button. The machine began to operate with a low hum, and the psionic runes on its surface began to emit a faint, pulsating blue light. After about two minutes, the three of them clearly felt the Aura concentration in the immediate surroundings increase by a noticeable bit. They didn't dare to dawdle and quickly sat down and entered a state of training.

Two hours later.

Marcus opened his eyes, a look of surprise on his face. “I originally thought a twenty percent increase was too little to make a real difference, but after actually channeling Aura with it, I found that it's not bad at all. The flow is much smoother.”

Seraphina nodded. “The main good thing about this is that it can be used as a supplementary tool for our daily training. You can use it whenever you want, as long as you have the cores.”

Ethan looked at the sky outside. “It's still early. Why don't we continue?”