The Abyssal Garden: No Room for the Idle

Stars Hall Eve.

Holographic ads rolled ceaselessly through the streets and alleys of Night City!

Though Stars Hall had not officially opened, both its interior and exterior had been fully decorated long ago. Even in Night City, it was the most dazzling building, shining brightly at all hours!

"Guests from various worlds will gather at Stars Hall"

"Tickets on hot sale, only 500,000 Cyber Coins"

Su Qi glanced at the various push advertisements popping up, and said, "Simon, how many people in Night City do you think are willing to fork out 500,000 Cyber Coins?"

"This..." Simon, who was currently planning with Life Group and transferring various capacities here from Night City, was extremely busy and had to frequently answer Su Qi's questions.

He lifted his head:

"I'm afraid more than you'd imagine, President."

"In Night City, besides money being supreme, there's also a strict class stratification; everyone is ranked, and if your status is low, you can't get good jobs, and to elevate your status, you must spend."

Simon added, "It's not everyday consumption, there's a specific category called 'Luxury,' which includes many high-premium goods; only by consuming these can one have a chance to elevate their status."

In the past, many people, even with empty accounts or in debt, would buy presentable clothes just to maintain their 'status,' which is vital for finding a job.

But to climb higher, one must continue being 'sucked dry,' faced with layers of barriers and restrictions and maintaining high consumption.

After all, a citizen's Level fluctuates according to the smart system's judgments.

Thinking of saving money? Impossible.

"There are even loan services specially designed for Level upgrades, which allow people to find better jobs, advance to higher positions."

"Although it looks like salaries have increased a lot on the surface, in reality... a large part goes back," Simon sighed, "That's also why, despite Lawless Place being dangerous and filled with violent criminals, there are still many people living here."

"And this Stars Hall event is an opportunity to raise one's citizen Level, as well as for the elite to flatter many powerful forces." Simon's gaze returned to the panel, "But it doesn't concern us."

"Really?"

Su Qi slowly looked towards the advertisement slogan.

"Superstar, the legend of hosting—Mr. Nancy, has arrived in Night City!"

He chuckled, "It's hard to say."

---------

"Respected Mr. Nancy! Welcome to Night City!"

"Everything you need is prepared for you!"

Greeting Nancy was a row of luxury sports cars, and not a few elites in person. Though they were the top tier in Night City, in other worlds, they were nothing compared to the stern and handsome man before them.

Around him, massive crowds of fans cheered and shouted, blocked by various electromagnetic barriers.

Nancy responded with a smile and a wave, eliciting a lot of screams, then he got into the car. The smile on his face instantly disappeared as if nothing had happened.

"Mr. Nancy, we have also arranged many of Night City's top activities for you..."

"Okay, no need for such pomp."

Nancy calmly said, "I want to go straight to the event now."

The organizer hesitated, "But—"

Those were for advertisement opportunities; just having Nancy there for a photo would blow up.

Nancy said emotionlessly, "Don't make me say it twice."

The organizer sweated, quickly nodding, "Understood."

The man wasn't from Night City and aside from his celebrity status, Nancy's own power wasn't simple either; challenging to handle wherever he was, the organizer didn't dare to defy him.

Nancy didn't speak along the way; looking out the car window, his seriousness stemmed from...

This time, no mishaps could occur.

If it were beings from other worlds, he wouldn't need to care too much, just proceed as usual.

But.

This time was different, those attending included... the Spirit Prince's Heir.

Previously a Priest had come, and though Nancy had planned to impress, it was utterly ruined by some damn person!

Luckily, a Priest has their own dignity and generally doesn't mind such matters.

And with the Spirit King's prestige and power in the Present World naturally surpassing others, they don't serve the Divine Positions, especially after the Gods were sealed a thousand years ago, many new forces emerged, and each current Spirit King fought their way to the top.

Moreover, many worlds, to gain their Sanctuary, plant Spirit King's Shrines to defend against Abyss Pollution.

"Ah, what a headache."

Nancy's headache wasn't the Spirit King—he was a super VIP, higher-ups always carry a high distinction, rarely speaking or even intangible, not showing much.

But their heirs were entirely different.

Many Spirit Princes' Heirs were arrogant, cruel, unpredictable—all sorts of characters existed, after all, a Spirit King has been alive for thousands of years, some have children enough to form an army, not to mention generations of descendants.

Plus, they have countless worlds under them for their heirs to mishap and wreak havoc, creating many inhumane incidents.

"So, nothing should go wrong this time."

He only knew Spirit King's Heir... would attend, but exactly how many, who they were, he had no idea.

However.

"It's not a big problem; he'll get everything prepared and control the rhythm, which is what he excels at the most.

Moreover, he's quite familiar with Night City.

The elites of Night City wouldn't dare make a misstep; they would rather serve their heads as chamber pots to each other if it would please these figures, so there shouldn't be any problems.

"Speaking of which."

Nancy suddenly turned to the person in charge.

"I remember, there seems to be a chaotic place in Night City, called Lawless Place, right?"

Nancy furrowed his brows slightly. "It seems like there are two forces in there..."

He had hosted so many shows, traveled everywhere... seen countless worlds, but none as extreme as Night City, where the Cyber psychosis always gives rise to a lot of lunatics, afraid that when the time comes.....

The person in charge hastily said, "Respected Mr. Nancy, rest assured, those two forces were completely eradicated by us not long ago... Now, well, it's considered a legitimate territory."

He hesitated a bit while speaking.

Although Night City was forcibly established, to maintain their dignity and deterrence, they had completely wiped out the two major evil forces in the Main City.

Moreover, the Life Group also spent nearly half of their assets buying territory here and gave up on major factories, losing a large number of orders; public opinion, interests, all had... they were actually happy to see this scene.

"Then I feel relieved."

Nancy murmured softly.

It seemed like all external factors were nearly negligible; this hosting gig seemed to become another highlight in his career.

He soon arrived at Stars Hall.

The massive architectural giant, akin to... building another mountain on land.

"How many does it accommodate?"

"One million."

"Hmm, quite a lot."

Nancy raised an eyebrow; this was indeed one of Night City's most magnificent buildings, with the elites having gone all out in renovations, especially since, this time, it wasn't just the city's residents but also a large number of entities from various worlds.

"But rest assured, all the ticketed entrants from Night City will be in the ordinary outer area; they won't have the chance to interact with any elites or visitors from other worlds."

Nancy glanced at the person in charge, squinting his eyes, "Why should I be reassured about this? Shouldn't this be something you say to your superiors?"

The person in charge hastily said, "My deepest apologies!"

Damn it, too used to kissing up to higher-ups and he wasn't mindful.

Nancy didn't concern himself with it; each world had its own rules and order, which he had seen plenty of.

Upon entering Stars Hall, the various arrangements, holographic images, and Night City technology--all were explored before the formal auction and the opening events and performances.

Nancy's assistant took charge of the hand-over and organized the agenda for him.

"Boss Nancy, I've removed all the ad scripts; it's just right now."

Nancy just glanced through the schedule and memorized all the processes.

The person in charge twitched his face, but there was nothing he could do except find some opportunities to place ads inside the venue.

He coughed, "Mr. Nancy, won't you rehearse once? Or check the scripts?"

"Are you doubting Boss Nancy's ability?"

The assistant, however, remained calm and adjusted his glasses: "Boss Nancy is a professional... he doesn't need any rehearsal, no one can match his hosting skills...."

The assistant suddenly paused, a name popped into her mind, but seeing Nancy's dangerous glare, she quickly said very seriously, "No one can match even a little bit of Boss Nancy!"

Nancy: "..."

That statement didn't seem problematic, but the pause was awkward!

The biggest blunder of his life!

But it's all past now; it doesn't matter.

"Oh, have the items needed for the program and auction been delivered?"

"Most have arrived, but some are still on the way; here's the list." The person in charge quickly handed over the documents.

"Okay."

Nancy scanned through, it was indeed very thorough; he suddenly paused: "Why does the piano performance have no pianist and yet takes up so much time?"

The person in charge grimaced, "That's a program specially ordered by a big shot from above; we dare not defy, and that piano is a pollutant, delivered early."

"We can only send EMTs to dare to get close."

It seemed that the significant person was none other than the Spirit Prince's Heir, a music aficionado? And even bringing a pollutant to perform on stage? Nancy couldn't say much, considering it was the Spirit Prince's Heir; they could do as they pleased.

When the time comes, no matter how bizarre the music that resounds, he would perform with the professionalism of a host.

After scanning through all the processes and details again, Nancy felt completely prepared.

"Boss, need to confirm anything else?" asked the assistant.

"No need, now everything is under control," he said calmly and confidently, as if holding a winning ticket.

Seeing this, the person in charge's eyes sparkled slightly, "As expected of Mr. Nancy, then next... shall I arrange a dinner for Mr. Nancy? All the elites of Night City are waiting for you, and we've also invited quite a few entities from other worlds who have arrived early."

Nancy calmly nodded his head, "Okay."

He preferred to confirm work first then deal with these trivialities; after all, they were just part of social niceties, and Night City's arrangements were indeed good. Relaxing a bit wouldn't be a problem.