[Dusk, The 13th Street Temporary Command Center]

  "Pleasure doing business with you, Mr. John! You're a straightforward man!"

  The Goblin merchant in the flashy suit smiled so wide the wrinkles on his face bloomed like a flower, revealing a mouthful of gold-plated yellow teeth. He shook John's hand vigorously, as if holding a walking jackpot.

  "According to the agreement, our Chamber of Commerce will provide the first batch of construction materials and medicine, and you provide the venue and... cough... security services. Fifty-fifty split on profits. Oh right, this is the deposit."

  The Goblin pulled an unregistered Black Card from his pocket and placed it respectfully on the table.

  "It's not much, but enough for you to buy some good lubricant for that... skeleton gentleman."

  After sending the Goblin away, John collapsed into his chair, feeling utterly drained.

  All day, he had been spinning like a top, mediating between various factions. The Goblin Chamber of Commerce, the Rogue Mage Guild, and even a few unknown mercenary groups... they all wanted a piece of this newly risen "Free Port."

  "Fifty-fifty... fair enough."

  John picked up the Black Card and twirled it between his fingers.

  "Grace, check the balance."

  "Yes, Boss. There are 50.000 New Currency in the card." Grace's voice sounded exhausted. "Plus the miscellaneous income from earlier, our cash flow is finally... positive."

  "Fifty thousand." John smiled bitterly. "Just enough for Mom's next course of treatment."

  He looked out the window at the neighbors working enthusiastically on reconstruction. Although there was hope, the Sword of Damocles hanging over his head (that two million Merit debt) remained, ready to fall and crush him at any moment.

  "DING-DONG!!!"

  Just then, that heart-stopping notification sound rang out again.

  The Yin-Yang iPad's screen lit up violently. Before John could react, Daoist Singularity's big face was practically pressed against the screen.

  "Apprentice! Save me! Your master can't hold on anymore!"

  John jumped, nearly dropping the Black Card. "Master? What now? Server blew up again?"

  "Worse than blowing up!"

  Singularity looked utterly hopeless. He was even more disheveled than last time; his sage-like Daoist robe was torn in several places, and he had yellow talisman seals stuck to his face, looking like Shen Gongbao fresh out of Investiture of the Gods.

  "Look who this is?"

  Singularity turned the camera.

  Behind him, John saw the Accountant (the old man who looked like an abacus spirit) sitting on a grand chair made of stacked gold ingots. He held a massive abacus glowing with red light. Every flick of a bead sounded like a thunderclap.

  Crack-Crack-BOOM!

  "Singularity, stop playing dead," the Accountant said coldly. "That agent named John Doe... his repayment deadline has passed by... three seconds."

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  "Three seconds?!" John jumped up on his end of the screen. "Didn't we agree on a month?!"

  "That was for the Principal!" The Accountant didn't even look up. "Now we are talking about Interest. Interest generated from High-Frequency Trading is calculated by the second. Considering you just concluded a large commercial negotiation (referring to the Goblin deal), the system determined you possess repayment capability, thus triggering the 'Instant Collection' protocol."

  "What kind of protocol is that?! This is robbery!" John roared.

  "This is Finance," the Accountant replied indifferently. "You can choose not to pay. But I've just sent you the recruitment brochure for the uranium mine in the 18th Layer of Hell. Room and board included. Radiation is a bit high, but you can retire after just 10.000 years."

  Daoist Singularity turned his face back, winking furiously at the camera.

  "Apprentice, don't be stubborn. This old abacus spirit even dares to dock King Yama's allowance. If you don't show some sincerity, he really will forcibly... uh... cancel your soul!"

  Singularity pointed behind him to the Heroic Spirits still working overtime.

  The camera panned. John saw the legendary figures slaving away miserably.

  Nikola Tesla, hair fried, sat on the ground winding coils for a generator, muttering, "I am a scientist... not an electrician... I am a scientist..."

  Edison stood by handing him tape, gloating, " told you AC burns things out! Serves you right!"

  Qi Jiguang was leading his army to carry cooling water, their armor askew from exhaustion.

  Even the mighty Guan Yu, who had just displayed godlike power, was currently sitting on a rock, using the Green Dragon Crescent Blade to... peel an apple?

  "Lord Guan?!" John exclaimed.

  Guan Yu looked up, giving the camera a helpless look.

  "Just... passing the time, cutting some fruit for them. The food down here lacks vitamins."

  Singularity explained with a bitter face: "See that? Because we have no money for energy, these big shots have to generate electricity and cool the servers manually. The resentment in the Energy Center right now is heavier than the 18th Layer of Hell! If we don't pay wages (Merit), they're going on strike! Who's going to protect you then?"

  John watched this scene, feeling both amused and heartbroken.

  So these Heroic Spirits, so majestic in the mortal realm, were just struggling wage slaves down below.

  "Master... I want to pay too." John turned his pockets inside out. "But I only have New Currency, no Merit! This 50.000 is my mom's life-saving money..."

  "Who wants your money!" The Accountant suddenly interrupted. "New Currency doesn't circulate in Hell. We want... Performance."

  "Performance?"

  "Correct." The Accountant flicked a bead.

  "Since you are already a 'Godfather,' since you control a district. Why don't you turn that district into our... 'Merit Production Base'?"

  Daoist Singularity's eyes lit up, and he quickly took over.

  "Yes, yes, yes! Apprentice, that's exactly what I wanted to tell you!"

  "Grinding monsters alone is too slow. You need to learn how to 'Collect Taxes'!"

  "Taxes?" John was confused.

  "Not money, but 'Willpower'." Singularity lowered his voice, looking like he was sharing a get-rich-quick scheme.

  "Look, you're the boss of that district now. Those Goblins, Fishmen, and your neighbors... they all have desires, troubles, and moments where they want to pray to gods or buddhas."

  "Open a 'Hell Office Branch' right in your clinic. Let them come to make wishes, confess, or seek protection."

  "As long as you help them fulfill their wishes (even if it's fixing a pipe or finding a cat), the generated Merit Points will automatically deposit into your account."

  "This is called... 'Platform Operation'!"

  John listened, dumbfounded.

  "So basically... I'm opening a temple?"

  "Something like that." Singularity nodded. "But more advanced. We are O2O (Online To Offline). Take orders online, solve problems offline."

  "Once you get this model running, that two million debt... will be peanuts."

  "And," the Accountant added, "If you can expand the business to the Upper Sector and harvest the willpower of those rich people... I might consider lowering your interest rate."

  The call ended.

  The screen went black.

  John sat in his chair, holding the Black Card, the words "Platform Operation" echoing in his brain.

  He suddenly felt less like a Necromancer and more like... a startup CEO.

  "Boss, what happened?" Bone leaned in. "That old Taoist pushing for debt again?"

  "Yeah." John nodded, then took a deep breath and stood up.

  "Bone, send word out."

  "Our clinic... is going to renovate."

  "Renovate? Into what?"

  John pointed to the shrine that only housed Singularity's statue.

  "Into... 'The Room of Requirement'."

  "From now on, we don't just sell medicine. We sell... Hope."

  John looked out the window at the reviving district, his eyes becoming firm and deep.

  To pay off the debt, to stop Guan Yu from peeling apples, and to keep himself out of the coal mines.

  He had to make this pie... bigger.

  "Bone, Grace, wake up. Time to work."

  [Message from Singularity]

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