Chapter 127: Upgrade Complete!

The person at the front of the group spoke coldly, “You really are a genius to have noticed something none of us did.”

The masked man was taken aback. “So you found it?”

“Of course. I’m the pathfinder,” the guide said, casually cutting through a vine branch. “Someone must have cleared monsters here recently.”

“Will this affect our mission?” the masked man asked.

“We need to move forward a bit more to see how long this situation persists. If it’s severe, it could interfere with our operation,” the guide replied.

The masked man lowered his head in thought. At that moment, a deep voice came from someone in the middle of the group: “It doesn’t matter. If it doesn’t affect us, that’s perfect—we proceed with the containment as planned. If it does, we deal with the obstacle and then proceed as planned.”

As soon as he spoke, both the masked man and the guide fell silent, listening intently. It seemed he was their leader.

“Follow the ruins, face the mysteries,” the leader concluded.

The others echoed the phrase, and the group fell into silence once more.

…

The warm white glow faded as Wang Chen stepped out of the teleportation array.

Using his Mist in Five Miles skill, he had wandered the Old Smokers’ Jungle for four or five hours, deliberately seeking the densest foliage to maximize the coverage of beasts by the mist.

As the sun began to set, he finally reached level thirty. Now he needed to go to the Job Transition Shrine to accept the next quest, completing the system’s task.

He ventured deeper into the jungle. Returning the same way would mean traveling through darkness, which was unsafe. Wang Chen knew many nocturnal beasts hunted in the jungle at night, posing a danger, especially since his energy was not at peak.

So he activated a one-time-use teleportation array, a gift from Manager Liu when he purchased his entrance ticket.

In an instant, he was back in Luzhou.

“This portable teleportation array is truly convenient, but a pity it’s single-use,” Wang Chen muttered, looking at the stone in his hand.

The stone, once glowing with warm white patterns, had now become an ordinary rock after activation.

“Next time I’ll check the trade market to see if these portable arrays are expensive. If the price isn’t outrageous, I’ll just get one.”

…

Wang Chen silently calculated. Having a portable teleportation array meant he wouldn’t have to spend much time traveling or fending off beasts on the way, greatly improving his leveling efficiency.

“Why does leveling up feel this easy?” Wang Chen marveled inwardly.

Then he thought, it was only natural.

He had specifically chosen a secret realm that suited his skills, spending hundreds of thousands on the entry ticket.

At the third job transition, he had awakened a wide-area, high-damage skill, something impossible for most professions.

Thanks to the Reversal System, he had succeeded.

Plus, he preferred solo play, so no one was sharing his experience points.

Wang Chen was a strange case—a wealthy, relentless lone wolf.

These factors combined to make his rapid advancement possible.

He glanced at his phone. “At this hour, the Job Transition Shrine is probably closed.”

“That’s fine. I’ll rest at home tonight and go tomorrow. Running around for tasks nonstop is really tiring.”

With that, he hailed a taxi to take him near his home.

Wandering the streets, his eyes scanned for a restaurant.

Suddenly, an idea struck him. “Why not eat at the bathhouse? I could wash up too.”

After trekking through the jungle’s stifling heat and sweating profusely, a good bath was well-deserved.

He headed toward a small bathhouse he frequented, unaware of the shadow lurking beneath his apartment building.

…

A young man wearing frog-eye glasses sat on a small stool, talking on the phone.

“Hello, Chairman?” The moment the call connected, he complained, “I’ve been waiting outside Wang Chen’s place for a whole day and night, and he still hasn’t come home. Can I leave now?”

A gentle male voice responded, “Ah Jie, a man destined for greatness must endure loneliness.”

“But I’ve waited so long already! Last night I camped outside his building all night, and half the day today. I even helped Auntie sweep the floor just to get a stool.”

Ah Jie poured out his woes. “You don’t know—when I picked up a trash bag to throw it back in the bin, it ripped, and I ended up with pink paint all over my hands!”

“People these days have no manners, just throwing away unfinished paint without sorting!”

“I washed my hands for ages to get most of it off, but there’s still some stuck under my fingernails no matter how hard I scrub.”

Hearing this, the chairman’s tone softened. “When heaven is about to confer a great responsibility on a man, it first stains his fingers. Ah Jie, you are close to success.”

Seeing no change in the chairman’s attitude, Ah Jie urged, “I’m starting to suspect he moved. Shouldn’t we call him to confirm?”

The voice on the other end remained calm: “Calling now would ruin everything. It would give him an easy chance to refuse. You must ask him in person.”

Ah Jie scratched his messy hair. “Chairman, you’re making it sound like I’m asking a girl out.”

“That’s right. You need to approach Wang Chen with that kind of feeling, then recruit him.”

“Ugh—” goosebumps crawled up Ah Jie’s arms. “You don’t want me to use my looks, do you?”

“No, according to the data, Wang Chen isn’t into that.”

Ah Jie sighed in relief, only to hear the chairman add, “There are professions who are into that. When you go recruit them next time…”

“Chairman! I’m your loyal recruit! You can’t make me do something like that!” Ah Jie wailed.

“Oh, I’m joking. You’re so easily teased,” the chairman laughed heartily. “Listen carefully: never think waiting is a waste of time. The longer you wait, the better.”

The chairman patiently explained, “The longer you wait, the more it shows our association’s sincerity. When Wang Chen sees you’ve waited a whole day and night at his place, he’ll be moved and accept your invitation on the spot.”

Ah Jie’s tone turned bitter. “But what if he still doesn’t come back tonight?”

“That’s even better. Wait another night. When he returns tomorrow morning, he’ll swear brotherhood with you!” the chairman declared grandly. “Then you’ll have made a great contribution to the association. I’ll grant you twenty days of paid leave to vacation in the Maldives, with all expenses covered!”

Ah Jie’s eyes brightened even behind his sunglasses. “Is that for real?”