"I remember where I came from; I understand clearly that what flows in me is not expensive wine and honey, but water and plasma polluted by industrial exhaust."

"I understand everything about the lower-level people, I know how cheap life here is in the eyes of the upper class, and I hate all those who don't see people as humans, so Old Jin, rest assured, I will never look at the weak from a high and mighty perspective like most Apprentice Death Gods."

"I might not help them, but I definitely won't actively harm them. Your apprentice is mad, but not despicable."

Faced with Yun You's response to the question "how to view the lower-level people," Old Jin nodded slightly, clearly very satisfied.

"I believe in my student."

"But speaking of which, girl..."

Old Jin's tone suddenly shifted, and he asked, "Aren't you curious about what Li Cang just said? It might concern your own interests, you know?"

"Of course I'm curious."

Yun You tilted her head and replied softly, "But such things depend on individual willingness. If Old Jin, you're willing to tell me, you'll naturally say so... and if you don't want to speak, then no matter how much I ask, it won't work, right?"

"Everyone has their privacy, even between biological father and son, let alone teacher and student."

"Of course, if you want to talk, I'm willing to listen too."

Yun You remained carefree as always.

"Hey, you little girl."

Old Jin shook his head in amusement, teasingly saying, "Sometimes I feel like you're more mature than those old men who have lived for decades."

"Actually, there's not much to say, just some stupid things I did thirty years ago."

"Thirty years ago?"

Yun You's eyes lit up, and she rubbed her hands together in curiosity, asking, "Wasn't that during the Ninth Corporate War? Could it be that Old Jin served in the army for the big corporations?"

"Tell us, come on, tell us."

In fact, when Yun You first met Old Jin, she felt that this man in a military uniform most likely served a giant corporation in the past.

In this era, the traditional military working for national governments has long perished; only giant corporations have the capital to establish their own military.

Strictly speaking, one of the entry standards for giant corporations is to have an army of at least 500,000 people, equipped with satellites and giant combat machinery.

Corporations use military and councils as means to control various Nest Cities, such as Nest City No. 3, where Yun You resides, whose main controller is a giant corporation by the name of [Biotechnology].

In theory, all the defense forces and military of Nest City No. 3 are assets of Biotechnology, and the titular ruling body—the Supreme Council—has over half of its seats held by Biotechnology.

Here, Biotechnology is the actual ruler.

However, this rule won't last forever, because corporations often engage in large-scale conflicts over interests and market competition.

These conflicts vary in size, and the highest level of conflict is referred to as a "corporate war."

The last corporate war occurred 30 years ago, around New Calendar 2047, led by the current ruler of Nest City No. 3, the [Biotechnology] company.

It, along with [Northern Hemisphere New Energy], [Military Technology], [Salon Group], and [Phantom Heavy Industries Group], waged war on the original ruler of Nest City No. 3, [Chief Airline].

It's said the war nearly spanned half a planet, involving millions, and billions of drones clashed in the sky, with nuclear weapons and genetic gas being dropped like dumplings on the ground, creating a nearly thousand-mile permanent pollution zone.

Every time Yun You saw this description, she couldn't help but think that the so-called Death Domain and mutant creatures were simply weak.

Even if they caused trouble for a thousand years, the destruction and casualties might not be more than a single corporate war.

After this war, Biotechnology seized control of Nest City No. 3 and drove Chief Airline out.

But there's rumors that Chief Airline has been gathering strength recently and has found several partners. They might launch a corporate war against Nest City No. 3 again at any time.

However, none of these concern Yun You, as she doesn't plan to work for a giant corporation.

She's just curious why someone like Old Jin wouldn't become a soldier for a giant corporation?

"I'm not a soldier for any giant corporation."

Old Jin shook his head and said softly, "But I did teach at the Death God Academy, which was built with corporate investment."

"Li Cang was right about one thing, that I gathered a lot of talented kids back then, gathering those geniuses under my wing."

"But I didn't take them as my apprentices; I absorbed them into my [organization], having them act alongside me, stirring up trouble during corporate wars to gain benefits for more people."

"We rescued civilians, balanced corporations, served as battlefield doctors without borders, and acted as guerrilla fighters, assassinating the thugs that indiscriminately massacred cities."

"Honestly, I kind of miss those times."

Old Jin sighed softly, but his emotions remained as steady as usual.

"However, we were immature at that time, made many mistakes, and even had quite a few traitors, leading to the collapse of all plans, with people dead or injured... That's why Li Cang said I harmed them."

"Objectively speaking, that is indeed true. It was my responsibility, so I won't argue with Li Cang... As a teacher, I'm not a good one, nor am I a good person."

"I see..."

After hearing this explanation, Yun You nodded understandingly, if somewhat confused.

She knew that Old Jin was still hiding some things, like what Old Jin's so-called "organization" was, what their actions were, and why they ultimately failed...

But the little girl could tell that Old Jin wouldn't reveal these things anytime soon.

Yun You shouldn't know... or rather, she wasn't qualified to know these things.

But for her, this was enough.

Yun You only needed to know that Old Jin wasn't intentionally harming his students.

Actions can fail, life is rarely perfect, and making mistakes is completely normal, so they can just try again slowly in the future.

Yun You believes that Old Jin won't harm her.

At least not intentionally.

"Do I need to join your organization, Old Jin?"

Yun You asked tentatively.

"No need."

Old Jin shook his head, saying, "There's only one thing you need to do now, and that's to become as strong as possible."

"If I'm not mistaken, the drones of Ethernet should have delivered the items to your house by now."

"Complete the final step, finalize your sequence... and then take on your first task to pass your internship period."

"By doing this, you can officially step onto the path of an Apprentice Death God and become a 'Climber'... Keep it up."

"By the way, Li Cang's [Kiss of Nothingness], due to its high price, needs to go through a notarization process, and it'll probably take about a month before you can get it. So, don't think about it for now, and focus on doing tasks."

After speaking, Old Jin didn't linger and logged off in a flash.

Seeing this, Yun You nodded as well, took the money she earned from the Duel Arena along with her golden talent, and returned to the real world.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.