Chapter 11: Monetary System
"Can you see it…?"
When Nuwa and Wu heard the word Capital, they thought it would be comparable in size to the Capital in the Earth Realm, but the difference was too overwhelming.
"I can"t…" Wu replied, also speechless. "Who knew it would be so big..."
The Capital was supposed to have a circular shape and four gates, yet they couldn"t even see it curve! From one end of the horizon to the other, all they saw was a giant straight wall. It was almost a hundred meters tall, not counting the set of transparent barriers which spread far into the sky, not leaving any s.p.a.ce uncovered. The only way to enter was the lone gate with a long queue in front of it.
Thankfully, the queue moved quite quickly with multiple people scanning for visitor"s ident.i.ty. They landed on the ground and pa.s.sed the first barrier that did the initial scanning. Their bodies got examined from all angles before they heard a robotic voice in their minds.
"Scanning completed successfully. No Personal ID detected. No criminals detected. Welcome to the Fire Land Capital. You have entered the Safe Zone. If you are new to Heaven Realm, please inform the staff by the gates and visit the Registration Center within three working days to create your Universal ID Card. I hope you enjoy your stay."
The message seemed automatized, but it created more questions for them. Safe Zone? Universal ID Card? Was there some kind of system to catch criminals in the Heaven Realm?
They followed the procedure mentioned and joined the queue with all other Cultivator. To their surprise, once they entered the Safe Zone, everyone seemed civilized and organized. Guards monitored the line from the sky, making sure no one created trouble. It made them feel relatively safe.
"Pull down your hood, present your ID Card, state the reason for your arrival, and prepare the fee."
Once they reached the front, they heard a standard call from the staff. Wu and Nuwa had no choice but to uncover their heads. The male representation of the staff immediately extended their necks in their direction, checking out the beauties.
"Good day, sir. We just arrived in Heaven Realm, so we still have no clue about anything. We don"t have the ID Card or know the rules of the City. Would you be so kind as to help us?" Wu explained their situation with a gentle smile, taking the role of a good cop once again.
"Cough, of course! We are here for that very reason." The City Staff replied as he cleared his throat and fixed his dark black hair. "Let me quickly check if you were registered anywhere."
He pulled out an eyeball and aimed it in the girls" direction. A moment later, he brightened. "Perfect. You are both clean. How about we start from the beginning? Shall we move to the side to not hold down the queue? I will answer all of your questions."
"Sure," Wu naturally agreed, seeing hundreds of people behind them.
All other males glared at the male staff with jealously, acting as if he just won a lottery while the females rolled their eyes. The three of them didn"t walk far, standing only a few meters away.
The City Staff opened his mouth to speak when Wu disturbed him, calling out first.
"What does the Safe Zone mean?"
"Oh, good question!" The man praised. "Safe Zone is a s.p.a.ce where you are safe from all crimes. A powerful Spirit monitors all Cities and keeps the data of all citizens. Once you committed a crime, you will be quickly localized and either kicked out or killed, depending on the offense. You can"t enter any Safe Zones while being marked as a criminal, so everyone behaves."
"What"s an ID Card?" Wu followed up with another question.
"It"s a Universal Identification which registers you as a citizen of Heaven Realm. Just like this," the man replied while showing his own. It was a thin rectangle card with his picture and personal data on it.
"ID Cards are recognized everywhere, and not only do they act as a tool to show your status but also as a money bag," the City Staff added.
Only then did the girls realize they had a bunch of them already after killing the bandits. They wondered why did the bandits have no money on them, but it seemed like those ID Cards had storage inside them.
Nuwa and Wu exchanged glances, and Nuwa pulled out of one the ID Cards she collected.
"A bandit attacked us, and we killed him. Is there a way to withdraw the money from his ID Card?" Nuwa questioned, showing one of the cards.
The man glanced at the card, and his eyes widened.
"Oof… I know this guy. It"s good that you are okay," the City Staff sighed in relief. "And yes, although you can"t add new credit into that man"s ID Card, you can still pay with it or transfer the funds into your ID Card if you wish. Because of that, it"s best to never lose it, or someone will steal all your credits. You can only stop it by blocking your ID Card inside the Central Bank and create a duplicate."
"Central Bank?"
The girls became even more confused. The whole system was too complicated.
"Right, you don"t know that as well," the City Staff realized. "Because large payments became troublesome while only using Spirit Stones, a new system replaced all payments within the last few hundred years. Instead of holding onto all your Spirits Stones, you can deposit them in the Central Bank and convert them into credits. Afterward, you can use those credits to pay for almost everything, from food at the restaurant to a Spirit Artefact. Right now, there are no other methods of payment in the Heaven Realm, so everyone is required to use ID Cards."
"What if I want to withdraw my Spirit Stones for personal use?" Wu questioned.
"That"s also possible. Central Bank can convert your credits back into Spirit Stones with a minimal fee. Aside from that, they invented a system in which you can borrow credits from the Central Bank and use them to pay for your daily expenses. Isn"t that amazing? Once you have money again, you can pay them back later," the City Staff explained excitedly.
"What if someone dies?" Nuwa went straight to the worst-case scenario.
The City Staff scratched his head. "Well, that"s not their problem anymore, right? They are dead. Its the risk the Central Bank is willing to take. Once you borrow credits, you have to pay them back in one year, or else the bounty hunters will hunt you down. Naturally, you also have to pay double what you borrowed else you will be considered a criminal and permanently blacklisted in all Safe Zones."
"You will be forced to work for the amount you borrowed in the Spirit Stone Mines owned by the Central Bank. I suggest you two think twice before you borrow anything," the City Staff advised.
"I see… That"s an amazing system," Wu muttered fascinated. "Thank you for explaining it to us. Is there anything else?"
"Hmm, being new to the Heaven Realm, you are required to create your ID Card within the next three days. I finish my shift in barely ten minutes. If you wait for me, I can lead you to the Central Bank today and later show you around the Capital. What do you think?" The City Staff asked with a confident smile.
He finally showed his hidden agenda.
"I"m sorry, but we are married," Nuwa said casually and grabbed Wu"s hand, pulling her towards the gate.
When they pa.s.sed by the City Staff, she put an ID Card in his chest pocket. "Consider it a tip for helping us. We will take our leave."
"Wait!" the City Staff stopped them, pa.s.sing the ID Card back. "I didn"t help you in exchange for money. It"s my job. If the Spirit of the City spot me taking bribes, that will be my last day of work."
"Alright." Nuwa didn"t mind, taking the ID Card back. The more money for her, the better.
The Spirit seemed invasive, but at least there was no crime in the City, which was for the better.
"If you two have any more questions, you know where to find me!" The City Staff called out after them, but they didn"t stop anymore.