Chapter 91: The Agent of Time

While Lin QiYe and the others were pinching their noses to eat raw meat, a delicious aroma suddenly wafted through the cafeteria. Everyone perked up, turning their heads in unison.

They saw Old Sun carrying a large tray stacked with dishes, quickly walking over to the table where the Masked Squad was seated.

"Braised pork, chicken with mushrooms, stir-fried glass noodles, steamed bass... Wow! This is amazing!" XuanWu's eyes lit up as he stared at the dishes, swallowing hard.

"Hehe, you little brats rarely come back, so of course, I have to make something good for you," Old Sun said with a laugh, wiping his calloused hands on his apron.

"Thank you, Old Sun."

"Thanks, Old Sun!"

The others thanked him before eagerly picking up their chopsticks and diving into the feast.

Gulp.

In the quiet hall, the sound of people swallowing filled the air. Even the new recruits, who had barely managed to stomach their plain steamed buns, now found it impossible to eat.

Over 200 pairs of hungry, wolf-like eyes fixed on the Masked Squad's table, as if ready to charge and snatch the food at any moment.

Wang Mian glanced at them, then casually placed his weapon, YiYuan, on the table in front of him... and resumed eating.

"I don't get it! Why do they get to eat such good food while we're stuck with buns and raw meat?!" a recruit grumbled.

"Hmph," Old Sun huffed, his face darkening. "When you little brats make it out of this camp alive and come back, I'll make a feast for you too!"

At that moment, Wang Mian seemed to remember something. He waved at Lin QiYe.

"QiYe, come and have a bite."

Whoosh!

Every recruit turned to look at Lin QiYe, who was gnawing on raw meat.

Lin QiYe raised an eyebrow, hesitated briefly, then carried his bowl over to the Masked Squad's table and sat down.

"Here, have some chicken." Wang Mian picked up a clean bowl and began serving Lin QiYe.

"XuanWu, pass him some fish."

"Got it."

"And the soup too—it's really fresh."

"I'll grab him a pair of chopsticks," someone said.

"How's the rice? Do we need more? I have some left," QiangWei offered as she got up to scoop rice for Lin QiYe.

The Masked Squad treated Lin QiYe with such hospitality that he felt a little embarrassed. He waved his hands quickly.

"No need, no need. You all eat. I just came to ask some questions. I'll stick with my own food."

YueGui blinked. "You've got good food here, and you're still eating raw meat?"

"Yep."

"Come on, look at your teammates behind you. Their eyes are practically glowing green. Are you sure you don't want some?"

"I'm a recruit. I'll eat what recruits are supposed to eat," Lin QiYe replied firmly.

Seeing his resolve, the Masked Squad sat back down. Wang Mian looked at Lin QiYe approvingly and said, "You're here to ask about the Agents, right?"

"Yes."

"Ask away. I'll tell you whatever I know."

Lin QiYe thought for a moment before asking, "What's the relationship between the Agents and the gods?"

"That's a deep question..." Wang Mian paused to think before speaking slowly. "At its core, the relationship between an Agent and a god boils down to two words: contract."

"Contract?"

"Yes. For various reasons, gods generally don't appear directly in human society. If they want to accomplish something, they need a suitable person to do it for them. That's where a contract comes in.

The contract is essentially an exchange. The god grants part of their divine power to the Agent, and in return, the Agent must fulfill certain tasks for the god.

Of course, not just anyone can become an Agent. You have to be chosen and approved by the god to qualify for the contract."

"Contract..." Lin QiYe murmured the word, his brow furrowing with doubt.

If it really was a contract, why didn't he know anything about it? The seraph had given him part of its divine power but hadn't mentioned what he needed to do in return.

It felt more like a gift than a contract.

"What does the God of Time want you to do?" Lin QiYe asked, then quickly realized the question might be inappropriate. "If it's not something you can talk about, just ignore me."

"It's fine," Wang Mian said with a shake of his head. "About eight or nine years ago, when I was still an ordinary person, I was wandering aimlessly down the street when a drunk driver in a truck came speeding toward me.

I couldn't react in time, and just as I was about to be hit, time around me suddenly stopped.

Then, the God of Time appeared out of nowhere, made a contract with me, and gave me his Superpower. In exchange, I must one day enter Takamagahara and retrieve something for him."

"Takamagahara?" Lin QiYe was stunned. "The legendary land of the gods from Japanese mythology?"

"That's right."

"It really exists?"

"If the God of Time says it exists, then it does. I just haven't found it yet," Wang Mian replied with a sigh.

Lin QiYe nodded. "Did you join the Night Watchers by choice?"

"Yes. Before I joined, the Evil God's Agents from the Ancient God Church tried to recruit me," Wang Mian said calmly. "But I refused."

Lin QiYe frowned thoughtfully. "Because the God of Time's task for you isn't tied to any faction, they thought they could recruit you?"

"Exactly. In fact, some people in the Ancient God Church have already found clues about Takamagahara. But I simply couldn't bring myself to work with them, so I turned them down."

"And they just let it go?"

"Not at all. The people in the Ancient God Church are lunatics. If they can't recruit you, they'll try to kill you.

When I first joined the Night Watchers, they ambushed me three or four times. If I weren't lucky, I wouldn't be here now." Wang Mian shrugged. "But they don't dare come after me anymore."

"Why not?"

"Because they're not sure they can beat me. And..." Wang Mian glanced at his teammates, a smile forming on his lips. "I've got a reliable team. Whether it's one-on-one or a group fight, they wouldn't dare mess with us."

"Ahem, Captain..." XuanWu said awkwardly. "Could you not get all sentimental while we're eating? It's kind of gross..."

"But it's true."

"Even so, could you save it for later? Saying it now is just awkward!" QiangWei puffed her cheeks indignantly.

"Alright, I'll keep that in mind."

Lin QiYe sat quietly, watching the seven of them banter and laugh. After a while, a faint smile appeared on his face.