Although this week was a bit more strenuous than the past two, Ma Lu ultimately managed to achieve his sales target smoothly.

In six days, he earned a total income of 80,535, with a profit of 75,926.7. Looking at the over 80,000 yuan in his bank account, he was truly exhilarated.

Moreover, there was more than just this piece of good news; Old Wang finally accumulated enough experience, and his chef level upgraded from Level 1 to Level 2.

"Hey, what's the difference between Level 2 and Level 1?" Ma Lu asked as he munched on an apple in his rented room.

"The level up improved my cooking skills, giving me a 25% chance of making a gourmet dish, which boosts the Deliciousness Index by one star based on the original foundation."

"So you're saying, without depending on the quality of the ingredients, just the advancement of the chef's skills can add an extra star?" Ma Lu was surprised.

"This is the divide between an excellent chef and a mediocre one. An excellent chef can create unexpected delicious dishes even with ordinary ingredients," Old Wang stated seriously.

"That sounds kind of reasonable," Ma Lu nodded and then had a thought, his eyes brightening.

"Wait a minute, if you keep leveling up, your chances of creating gourmet dishes will continue to increase, right? That means by the time you get to Level 5, you should be able to reliably add stars. In that case, can't we sell low-star ingredients at the price of high-star ones?"

Ma Lu felt like he saw a new financial path, realizing that as long as Old Wang's level was high enough, he might even be able to sell 1-star ingredients as 5-star ones.

"This will require a sufficient amount of experience points," Old Wang said.

Hearing this, Ma Lu finally made up his mind.

No, the pockets of those college students are too empty. I still have to find a way to start up a storefront, to have those working folks willingly hand over their wallets. That's the only way to keep pushing the unit price higher.

But this matter isn't urgent, setting up a shop is no small feat, and there is still plenty of preparatory work to do.

For now, Ma Lu focused his attention on the upcoming hunt.

......

Boggy had been feeling inexplicably irritable lately. She didn't know what time Ma Lu left that day or if he had heard what she said after.

It had been difficult enough to find the opportunity to clarify the misunderstanding, but after she did, their relationship seemed to have become even more awkward.

Boggy didn't even know how to face Ma Lu anymore and could only silently drive her motorcycle.

This time, however, she arrived at the storage point even earlier than Ma Lu, with three motorcycles following behind her.

Seeing Boggy park her bike, the three people behind her slowed down as well. Apart from Mai Mai, there was also a young couple.

"Has the deputy captain not arrived yet?" the younger man asked.

"Hmm, he'll be here soon," Boggy replied, pulling out a pocket watch to check the time. "In another half a minute, he should arrive."

"Half a minute?" the young man was skeptical. He looked around and didn't see any motorcycles approaching, so he asked again, "Are you sure this is the storage point you agreed on with him?"

The young woman beside him gently tugged at his clothes, suggesting he should speak less, but the young man seemed not to notice and continued. "Could the deputy captain have remembered the wrong place? Should I go check the nearby storage points?"

"It's good to see enthusiasm in newcomers, but you also have to trust the captain's judgment," Mai Mai said leisurely.

The young man still wanted to say something, but the tugging at his back became more persistent.

"Brother," the young woman said anxiously.

"I'm just making a suggestion to the captain."

"Not that, there's someone coming," the young woman whispered.

```

"Huh?" The young man turned his head and indeed saw a black figure behind him, a look of astonishment spreading across his face.

He had just surveyed the surroundings and hadn't seen anyone.

Moreover, there were no vehicles around this person, so how did they appear here?

The girl was also quite scared and moved closer to her brother, with even Mai Mai showing a surprised expression.

However, she recognized Ma Lu at a glance, "Deputy Captain, how do you always pop up out of nowhere?"

"This is one of the effects of my psychic power, called instant teleportation," Ma Lu casually lied. He also noticed the siblings not far away and raised his eyebrows, "New recruits?"

"Yes, Seta and Sadie," Boggy introduced, "The brother is an Earth-Series psychic power user, and the sister is a Beast-Series psychic power user."

After speaking, she pointed to Ma Lu, "Ma Lu, the deputy captain of the Twin Sunflower Hunting Group, skilled in Meat Pigeon Series psychic powers."

"Meat Pigeon?" Seta furrowed his brows, "What's that? Why have I never heard of it?"

"Today you're in for a treat," Ma Lu nodded toward Boggy and Mai Mai, "I'll go get the equipment first."

He entered the password on the metal cylinder, waited for the container to rise to the surface, and walked in.

When he came out, he had changed into hunting clothes and mounted his motorcycle.

Boggy began by briefing Ma Lu on the last hunt's takings, the Thousand-Tooth Sand Bream alone sold for 201,263 Electric Degrees, with the other prey totaling up to 12,913 Electric Degrees.

After deducting the guild's 10% commission and the 12,000 Electric Degrees rental fee for the air transport, the amount each person received was 60,252.8 Electric Degrees.

Hearing this number, Seta and Sadie couldn't help but swallow hard, their eyes filled with envy as they looked at the trio.

They had heard about the recently formed Twin Sunflower Hunting Group's good fortune, always reaping fine rewards, which is why they wanted to join.

The two of them were really short of money.

So when Boggy passed on the 15 red-bellied rattlesnakes she had bought at the market to Ma Lu and claimed that these expenses would be included in the Hunting Group's budget, Seta couldn't help but speak out again.

"This seems a bit inappropriate."

Boggy glanced at Seta, "I know you and your sister are quite capable, but you're not so good that I must keep you. Right now, you haven't even passed the newcomers' assessment, and you have no right to criticize the Hunting Group's affairs."

On hearing this, Seta didn't back down but instead looked directly into Boggy's eyes, "If we pass the newcomers' assessment, then can we raise our concerns about the unreasonable parts to you, the Captain?"

"You can."

Watching from the side, Ma Lu nudged Mai Mai, curious, "Where did you find this blockhead?"

"Hmm, they sent in their own application letters, but indeed, their overall quality is the best among the job seekers. And it turns out they have some connection to the Captain," replied Mai Mai.

"What kind of connection?"

Mai Mai adjusted her hair, "I also heard it from someone else, their father was once an elder in the Harpist Hunting Group, but he had to leave the Hunting Group early due to illness. Afterward, they spent a lot of money on treatment, which only barely kept the disease from worsening—still relying on expensive medication to sustain life.

"Their family has always been in a poor financial situation, and Captain Li, when he was alive, seemed to send money regularly, albeit anonymously. After his death, that money likely stopped.

"The siblings even had to drop out of school early to become hunters. Many Hunting Groups took advantage of their youth and lack of backing, treating them harshly. Seta probably developed his overbearing nature during that time.

"After all, he has a younger sister. Isn't that just what a black-breasted chicken does when facing an enemy? They cluck, spread their wings, raise their feathers, trying to appear very intimidating so that maybe the enemy will be scared away.

"But behaving like this can easily offend people. It's said that because he offended a deputy captain of their previous Hunting Group, they had to leave."

```