A piece of airspace is indeed cheaper than land, but not much cheaper, because the already highly advanced anti-gravity technology has made buildings like sky cities and floating islands a reality.
In almost all major cities, there are such enormous structures, which are the domains of the "upper class" or places of "luxury consumption" of this era.
The cost of purchasing airspace, added to the price of building a floating island, is much more expensive than buying a piece of land and a skyscraper.
Chen Gu took a deep breath: those bounty hunters like Milgray have really made a lot of money.
And a dormant super life form... can indeed fetch an excellent price.
Chen Gu had previous collaborations with the Qiao Family and the Shangguan Family, and the Qiao Family even once considered hiring Chen Gu to hunt super life forms together. However, that matter eventually came to nothing, and Qiao Shuangyi later privately explained to the family: at the last moment, this "project" was bought out by a friendly force of the Freedom Alliance.
The other party seemed to have a more urgent need for this "project", offering a price that the Qiao Family couldn't refuse.
However, hunting super life forms offers a high return but also risks a complete loss.
For example, if the super life form is far stronger than expected, or if the super life form has a certain innate skill in escaping, it could result in a waste of effort.
But a dormant super life form at least ensures that the possibility of it escaping is extremely close to zero.
This reduces the risk by at least one-third.
And how could a hunt for super life forms be complete without Nie He, who claims to be the number one life hunter in the Star Sea?
Milgray had previously mentioned this matter to Chen Gu but didn't bring it up again until Chen Gu really became her contact, revealing this bargaining chip, with intentions that were self-evident.
Chen Gu immediately agreed to Milgray, but how to use such a dormant super life form as bait to lure out Nie He... Chen Gu still needed to plan carefully and thoroughly.
Wanting to make a big splash and entice Nie He to join voluntarily, Chen Gu's "weight" was still a bit light, so Chen Gu invited the principal and Aviloya to discuss the matter together.
Since this was a private matter, it was not appropriate at the Bureau of Mystic Security, so Chen Gu decided to find a more high-end place to invite the two Ninth Power Levels for a meal.
After all, as a student and subordinate, he had never treated the two bigwigs before.
...
Early in the morning, Chen Zili, who hadn't shown his face in front of his grandfather for a long time, suddenly called.
"Are you... free the night after tomorrow?" Chen Zili asked a bit sheepishly.
"What's the matter?"
"I want... to have a family dinner together." Chen Zili stammered, "I'm bringing someone for you to meet."
"Hmm?" Chen Gu suddenly remembered, "Yang Yaoyao?"
"No..." Chen Zili sounded a bit embarrassed, "Her name is Hu Kekou."
Yang Yaoyao, Hu Kekou, you kid do you like this type?
Chen Gu chuckled, "Sure, the night after tomorrow, right? Where to?"
"At Gu Feast." Chen Zili mentioned a restaurant, "I'll send you the address, don't be late at six o'clock the night after tomorrow."
After hanging up, Chen Gu touched his chin and grinned sneakily, also feeling curious. When he first joined the Alliance, Chen Zili and those boys in their group had a "cold war" over Yang Yaoyao.
Chen Gu, of course, supported his eldest grandson and put up quite a show, leaving the other boys dejected.
At the time, Chen Gu could see that there was at least mutual interest between Yang Yaoyao and his eldest grandson.
How did it become this "Hu Kekou"?
Chen Gu immediately called his granddaughter, but this time, it was Chen Qingyu's assistant who answered the phone. When she heard it was Chen Gu, the assistant quickly handed the phone to Chen Qingyu.
Chen Gu laughed, "Not bad, you've become so popular, you already have a personal assistant?"
Chen Qingyu pouted, "Are you teasing me too? It's all thanks to you that I managed to become popular?"
The interaction with his granddaughter was pleasant and easy, quite different from that with his grandson. Chen Qingyu kept complaining about how exhausting it is being popular, sleeping only four or five hours a day, and having to maintain the best image on camera all the time.
Feeling sorry for his granddaughter, Chen Gu showed concern and finally asked, "I want to ask some gossip, that kid Chen Zili invited me for dinner the day after tomorrow."
"Hehehe!" Chen Qingyu chuckled mischievously, "You want to know what happened with Yang Yaoyao, right?"
"Any gossip?" Chen Gu was eager.
Chen Qingyu knew full well, "Of course, there is." The little girl loved gossiping about her "stupid brother" behind his back.
"Yang Yaoyao and Chen Zili were getting along well initially, but no one expected that as they got to know each other better, they realized they had the same interests and similar values, and eventually transitioned from almost being a couple to becoming good brothers..."
Chen Gu was stunned, "..."
Is it because they're too in sync, they can only be brothers and not a couple?
Through Chen Qingyu's storytelling, Chen Gu gradually learned that Hu Kekou was in the same grade as Chen Zili. After enrolling, she always kept a low profile, wore simple clothes, didn't wear makeup, and always wore a hat covering much of her face, and her grades were quite average.
But in college, where the air was filled with hormones, Hu Kekou only kept a low profile for more than a month before those boys, who were always observing female classmates, noticed that she was actually stunning. Although she missed the selections for "campus beauty" and "class beauty" at the start of school, she was later unanimously recognized as a "treasure girl."
Subsequently, many guys started to pursue her, but Hu Kekou was very indifferent. She still went makeup-free every day, went to study by herself, ate alone, and wandered through the school's tree-lined paths with her books.
On the other hand, Chen Zili was in a different state. Because he had a good relationship with Yang Yaoyao, he thrived in the student council and became a prominent figure in his year.
These two originally had nothing to do with each other, but during a student council essay contest, one of Hu Kekou's articles stood out.
And the competition for the essay champion ended up being between Hu Kekou and Chen Zili!
Chen Gu was shocked, "Does my grandson have literary talent? I never noticed before."
Then Chen Zili voluntarily stepped back, on the grounds that if the champion was given to him as a student council member, people would feel it's "unfair."
After the results were announced, Hu Kekou was not happy at all. She went straight to Chen Zili and gave him a good scolding!
And from then on, their relationship developed into a classic "love-hate relationship" dynamic. No matter how low-key Hu Kekou remained, she always ended up bumping into Chen Zili at various occasions, causing some "unpleasantness."
The boys who pursued Hu Kekou naturally saw Chen Zili as the "main competitor," which made Chen Zili the target of many jabs.
Fed up, Chen Zili sought out Hu Kekou and firmly expressed his feelings: "I'm not interested in you, so stop hanging around me. Getting misunderstood is not good!"
Infuriated, Hu Kekou was provoked and started targeting Chen Zili for real.
The two of them bickered back and forth, eventually muddling their way into being together.
According to Chen Qingyu, Yang Yaoyao played a significant role in "encouraging" this development.
Chen Gu couldn't help but sigh: "This kid always surprises me."
Finally, Chen Qingyu reminded him: "Grandpa, the day after tomorrow, you need to be a bit more kind to Hu Kekou. I know our family isn't the same as before, and Hu Kekou might not come from a high background. Please don't be prejudiced; my silly brother values this girl a lot."
"Am I that kind of person?" Chen Gu said, "Don't worry, as long as they have good character and true feelings for each other, I'll definitely accept them."
Chen Qingyu chuckled, "Of course, I'm not worried about you, but you know my dad's temperament."
It turned out she was actually worried about the stubborn Chen Jixian.
Chen Gu thumped his chest and promised, "Leave it to me. Can't I handle him?"
Chen Qingyu laughed but said no more. The two of them hung up the phone.
Chen Gu understood Chen Qingyu's concerns. Although Chen Jixian's real job was a secret, Chen Qingyu should be able to notice some things. In recent days, Chen Jixian must be showing some traits of a "higher-up."
And Chen Qingyu was already a rising star, with her official identity being a superstar of the Behemoth Alliance. The Chen family's background didn't qualify as a "wealthy family," but it definitely wasn't ordinary either.
Moreover, Chen Jixian often viewed his son unfavorably, being overly critical of him, so there was no guarantee he wouldn't show a bad attitude towards Chen Zili's girlfriend during their meeting.
Also... Chen Jixian's face often looked stern with half-lidded eyes as its normal state, which appeared to others as "I'm not happy."
While Chen Gu boasted about being able to "control" Chen Jixian, Chen Qingyu knew the family situation all too well and naturally didn't believe it. But with Grandpa as a "check," Chen Jixian wouldn't go too overboard.
After digging into the gossip, Chen Gu didn't concern himself too much with the matter. He originally didn't know where to host the gathering, but now [Antique Banquet] seemed nice, so he chose it.
The headmaster had to come, of course.
He had mixed feelings about this "good student." With such an opportunity, he certainly wouldn't pass up the chance to give the student a good feast.
The headmaster was secretly planning to raise the prices in the school cafeteria just for Chen Gu by 50%—30% of which they could negotiate with the vendors. 30% for himself, 20% for them.
But it was just a plan.
Aviloya also came, though she was dragged along by Rainbow.
Chen Gu knew that the senior Rainbow had some sway with Aviloya, so he specifically asked for help. The condition was, of course, to give the Qiao Family some benefits in this matter.
The headmaster came and deliberately picked the expensive items, enjoying a big feast. But when Chen Gu shared his plan, the headmaster coldly said, "Not appropriate!"
"Hmm?"
The headmaster waved his hand: "If the information about the slumbering super life was leaked from Milgray, have you considered what might happen in the future?"
Chen Gu, reminded by him, immediately realized: Since Milgray could provide information on a super life easy to hunt, then those greedy people would definitely think Milgray knew about other slumbering super lives.
They would find ways to force Milgray to give up this information.
This is exactly what the headmaster wanted to avoid. Because as this type of situation developed, the outcomes could be just a few:
First, Milgray is defiant and would rather die than comply. If it defects from the Confederation due to the lifelong employment contract, Milgray's death would mean the Confederation loses a super life equivalent to the Ninth Power Level.
The second is still Milgray refusing to compromise. The headmaster and Chen Gu, to protect Milgray for the greater good, become enemies with other diverse forces, leading to discord within the Confederation.
Third, Milgray compromises and hands over the information, but what would happen in the end? Those people wouldn't believe that's it; they'd assume Milgray is hiding more and would keep pressing for more.
Chen Gu, considering his perspective, overlooked this, whereas the headmaster's perspective was more objective.
Now the tricky issue in front of Chen Gu was how to solve the problem of this source of information.
And the headmaster, seemingly unintentionally, suddenly asked, "Why are you targeting Nie He?"
