Raindrops clinked and nked against the steel partitions and nted stairs, and with the asional passerby under an umbre, one could hear the pitter-patter of rain bouncing off the canopy.


    Hexia ced the document bag on her head, held onto the rough, corroded railing with one hand, and then hurried down the stairs.


    Her ck shoes sshed through puddles, making a clomping noise, and the ck over-the-knee socks were partly dampened by the rain, darkening in color.


    After a while, she hastily entered the structure of the Skylight, finally escaping the rain.


    Setting down the document bag and shaking off the water droplets, the gray-haired girl slowed her pace and leisurely looked around.


    Compared to the massive Skylight, this was just a small structure within its inner walls, with numerous simr entrances and exits visible in the distance, forming a web-likework leading to theplex Underworld.


    Pacing through the long steel corridor, Hexia and a few other scattered passersby arrived in front of the vertical elevator to wait.


    Click-click-click—


    Amidst the sound of heavy gears turning and the slight tremor of the floor, therge industrial elevator slowly ascended from the depths, its edges and rust marks visible through the wire mesh.


    But these were all minor details. The elevator, like a rugged beast, held a unique industrial beauty—sturdy, strong, and solid. Its main structure conveyed a reassuring presence.


    Inside, it measured approximately 16 meters in length, 12 meters in width, and 8 meters in height, potentiallyrger than many people''s homes, and it felt quite spacious as one walked in.


    More than 300 years ago, such elevators were mainly used for carrying goods, but now they had been converted for civilian use. Their length and width were designed ording to the size of the Federation''s armored vehicles at the time, intended for transporting the then ''Viper-R2'' medium-sized tanks.


    Recalling the history she had read about in documents, Hexia joined the other few pedestrians in stepping in. Her ck shoes clicked lightly on the ck grating floor, and droplets of water and dust fell through the gaps in the grate.


    Below the grating floory anotheryer, designed to catch dust, muddy water, and trash from above. To clean it, one only needed to spray the surface with a high-pressure water jet, then tip out the trash collected in theyer below—it was quite convenient andbor-saving.


    In the Federation, there were more advanced high-end elevators, like ss bubble balls, quietly and swiftly shuttling through transparent tubes, spotlessly clean inside. But such things were expensive to maintain and ill-suited for industrial cities like Payin City.


    After a two-minute wait, the elevator began to move. Hexia watched the thick steel doors close slowly, then, amidst the whir of gears, the elevator started to descend, speeding up from slow to fast, until the sound of the gears merged into a continuous screech without pause.


    They would travel through 7 kilometers of deep crust inside the elevator until reaching the underground district of Payin City. The reason for housing the district so deep underground was due to historical factors.


    Emerald Skirt underwent rapid and substantial development during the internal conflicts of the Federation; it was a designated for military-industrial production and naturally had to be prepared for potential enemy attacks.


    To preserve most of the living force during orbital bombardment by starships, the industrial cities built at the time were mostly underground, with domes above the cities that had extremely sturdy armoryers to withstand prative nuclear bombardments. The ''Viper-R2'' model was also a tank well-suited for underground construction and street fighting, serving as a temporary bulwark to block roadways.


    More than ten minutester, the elevator suddenly emerged from the dark tunnel into a bright light, and its speed gradually decreased.


    The underground world, with dim orange lights, unfolded before their eyes.


    Steel buildings were neatly arrayed, a few hover cars flitted through the air, pedestrians strolled under the streetlights, and the neon signs flickered dimly, their images changing constantly, attempting to capture the attention of passersby.


    [Underground Level 42, destination reached.]


    The old disy screen inside the elevator shed with these words, and the thick door slid open slowly.


    After stepping out of the elevator, she was greeted by familiar staircases and streets. She had walked this path for over ten years, and with such familiarity, Hexia''s footsteps became brisker.


    Beneath Payin City, levels 1 to 30 were the crustyer, featuring only a few buildings; levels 30 to 40 were the armoryer, uninhabitable; levels 40 to 45 were the publicyers, housing numerous supermarkets, shops, restaurants, public institutions, zas, and so on.


    Levels 45 to 50 were the officeyers, mainly used bypanies and enterprises; levels 50 to 70 were divided into sections, some for residentialyers, others for industrialyers; below level 70y the unknown regions.


    What should I eat tonight?


    Walking along the street, the girl eyed the brightly-lit supermarket in the distance, mentally tallying how much money and budget she had left. Setting aside her emergency funds and savings for the next two months'' expenses, she only had 525 Federation Coins at her disposal. No, it should be 405 Federation Coins, since she had just spent 120 on the hover car ride.


    It pained her heart, those 120 Federation Coins. Thinking of this, Hexia''s mood sank, and she gestured absent-mindedly in front of herself.


    It was time to start earning money.


    Having just graduated from junior high and with several months until high school, she needed to think about how to make some living expenses.


    Various ideas floated through her mind as Hexia walked into the familiar supermarket.