Chapter Seven: What Should an Unemployed Young Woman Do?

"Don't worry, Uncle Feng. I'm already fine. I've missed two days of work, so I have to make up for it with some extra energy." Holding the hefty utensils she had just used in her left hand, Zhuang Xiaoyuan raised her now free right hand, flexing her bicep in a mock bodybuilder pose to show off her strength.

Having grown up in a military institution and graduated from the academy with top honors, Zhuang Xiaoyuan was naturally in excellent shape. Furthermore, with the blessing of her Guardian Spirit, her divine power had advanced to the lower Faith Level, boosting her physical abilities even further. After all, the cultivation of divine power inherently strengthened the body—without a robust vessel, how could one withstand the descent of a Guardian Spirit?

So, once the viper’s venom had been neutralized, Zhuang Xiaoyuan was perfectly fine. Not to mention, her breakthrough in divine power came after that, likely purging any lingering toxins. Now, she felt nothing like someone who’d been comatose for two days and nights—in fact, she felt she could punch a bull to death.

"Alright, it looks like you can't sit still anymore. I'll permit you to get back to work, then," Feng Guoqing smiled at her energetic display, then added, "But, the autumn harvest is already over. Your job is temporarily gone."

"What? Already? That fast?" Zhuang Xiaoyuan stared in shock. Just before her accident, there had still been more than half the fields left to harvest; by the previous pace, it should have taken at least four or five more days. How could it have finished in just two? Surely they hadn’t worked through the nights—no one could handle that.

Catching her astonished expression, Feng Guoqing suppressed a smile and continued with feigned seriousness, "Ahem, due to a certain someone's incident, everyone submitted a request to the Resource Allocation Department for the use of fuel-powered harvesters. Upon hearing about your accident, the department actually approved it. So, with the machines’ efficiency, the harvest was completed in less than two days. They're probably already drying the rice now."

"Those stingy devils in Resource Allocation—aren’t they usually so tight-fisted, especially with precious, nonrenewable petroleum? And now they're generous?" Zhuang Xiaoyuan frowned in discontent, inwardly cursing the group responsible for her sudden unemployment and wishing them a lifetime of instant noodles without seasoning packets.

As an active-duty soldier, Zhuang Xiaoyuan received a fixed monthly stipend, but that was barely enough to cover three meals a day. Anything extra required outside income. The harvest had been a lucrative opportunity she’d counted on, and who could have predicted an accident would cut it short? That viper should have been hibernating—why did it have to wake up just to bite someone? Now she was out of a job and her extra pay was gone; she wouldn't be able to afford her strengthening elixirs this month.

"Come on, don't be discouraged. Go check if there are other openings later. You never know, there might be a high-paying vacancy," Feng Guoqing said, patting her on the back in consolation.

"Hmph, the Mecha Division has it best—their basic monthly salary is enough to feed a family of three for a whole year, several times what we get. If only I could switch to Mecha..." Zhuang Xiaoyuan muttered, thinking of her meager pay. Since her innate cultivation potential was weak, she could barely train at all, relying on sheer willpower and monthly purchases of strengthening elixirs just to develop a modest amount of divine power.

Now, having unexpectedly improved her cultivation potential, she could train at the speed of the lowest-ranked Divine Armored Warrior—a reason to celebrate. With strengthening elixirs, she might even reach fifth-tier potential speeds, and those with fifth-tier potential saw even more dramatic increases with the elixirs...

It's not that the product is bad; it's just that comparison is the thief of joy. Her old snail's pace, even with elixirs, was barely that of an ant crawling—hardly any different. Now that she suddenly had rabbit-like speed, she should have been delighted, but knowing that, with money, she could reach cheetah speed yet being unable to afford it, was enough to sour anyone’s mood.

For now, all she could do was check the job postings. If she was lucky, maybe there'd be a high-paying temp job. As for permanent positions? Zhuang Xiaoyuan didn't even consider it. Those were scarce to begin with, and several months had passed since graduation—any available jobs had likely been snapped up by the new military academy graduates. Finding a long-term post now was about as likely as reaching the heavens.

In this world, the military was nothing like in the old one. Here, the military was the ruling authority, and most cities were under martial law. This was the best way to prevent evil gods from infiltrating the population. Unlike the monstrous fiends with physical forms, evil gods existed more like Guardian Spirits and were nearly undetectable to ordinary people. They hid within the weak-willed, only to erupt and attack humanity at a critical moment. If one of those infiltrated a city, the resulting chaos would be no less than a direct fiend attack.

With such militarized cities, more than half the population were soldiers, leading to an overabundance of personnel and too few positions. The frontline divisions—Mecha, Demolition, Sniper—always had vacancies, but the Logistics and Command departments were crowded and slow-paced. Many roles had shifted from permanent to temporary, with jobs frequently rotating. Finding work was truly a challenge.

"Alright, enough worrying. The Mecha Division’s pay and privileges are high, but it's also the most dangerous post—you have to be ready to die at any time. I don’t want to see you die young; your life shouldn’t be wasted here. Your strength will be needed when the time comes," Feng Guoqing lectured as he opened the kitchen door. By now, they’d reached one of the three major departments of the Logistics Division: Resource Allocation, Medical Support, and the Army Canteen—the latter's main kitchen.

"Make way! Make way! Injured personnel headed for Medical—clear the way!" No sooner had Feng Guoqing opened the door than a group of white coats rushed out—not kitchen staff, but medical personnel.

Two male medics carried a stretcher between them, flanked by several doctors, all hurrying. On the stretcher lay a slightly overweight middle-aged man, his body covered in scrapes and bruises, but clearly the worst injury was his right arm, grotesquely bent the wrong way. It looked agonizing just to see it.