Chapter 18: The Promotion Ceremony

Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

“Haha, our Saint Mage is finally here. I’m really honored!” The tycoon hurriedly came forward to welcome Xue Qiaoqiao. His chubby face was full of smiles and he looked like Maitreya Buddha, full of enthusiasm and joy.

The corners of Xue Qiaoqiao’s mouth twitched slightly as if she was a little dissatisfied with the nickname of Saint Mage. However, she still politely extended her hand and shook the other party’s hand. At the same time, she said thoughtfully, “Since Chairman Wang invited me through the Light Mage Alliance, it would’ve been rude of me not to come. I haven’t even thanked Chairman Wang for supporting our Alliance in the past.”

“That’s a small matter. What meaning does money have to big shots like you? I’m just doing some insignificant support work,” Chairman Wang said with a smile before turning to Su Mo with a trace of surprise on his face, “May I know who this handsome young man is?”

“His name is Su Mo, a member of the Furong Team. He’s a sword saint.”

“Oh my, a sword saint?!” Chairman Wang was shocked and quickly extended his hand, “I’m sorry, I didn’t expect you to be of the famous sword saint profession. Your arrival really brings light to my humble dwelling.”

Well, his humble home was really exaggerated.

Su Mo hurriedly reached out and shook his hand, saying humbly, “Chairman Wang, you must be joking. I’m just here to learn some things from Sister Qiaoqiao. I might not be of much use in healing illnesses, so I hope you won’t mind my presence.”

“Geez, what are you saying?” Chairman Wang feigned unhappiness, “Even if you come over for a walk, my door will always be open to you.”

Su Mo smiled and did not say anything else.

Chairman Wang led the two of them to the door and said apologetically, “I’m really sorry, there might be some conflicts today. My daughter’s condition suddenly worsened, so I’ve been sending out requests for help through various channels. These two saw the reward I posted on the forum and specially came to heal my daughter. It just so happens that the Saint Mage, you have also arrived today. Now that both parties have clashed, it is entirely my fault, I should be punished. As such, the one who is successful in healing my daughter will get 1000 points, but even if the rest fail or haven’t done anything, you will still get 500 points. This will be my compensation for not handling your schedules well, I hope everyone is satisfied.”

Xue Qiaoqiao nodded slightly in agreement.

At that moment, Su Mo thought of the bounty for healing someone that he had seen in the bounty area not long ago.

It seemed that it had been issued by this Chairman Wang.

At the door, both parties greeted each other. The two opposite them were civilian Transcendents.

One of them was dressed as a programmer in a plaid shirt and jeans. His name was Sun Lie and he was a level-three exorcist.

The other looked so malnourished that it seemed that even a gust of wind could blow him away. His name was Wu Linfeng, a level 3 priest.

The two often worked together and completed many missions. They could be considered a rather famous pair.

At least, Xue Qiaoqiao had heard of them.

The pair had obviously heard of the Saint Mage’s great name, and their faces could not help but reveal a trace of fear and worry.

After all, Su QIaoqiao was their competitor and a light mage who specialized in healing. They might not be able to win.

There was still a difference of 500 points between a reward of 1000 points and 500 points.

At the very least, they would have to complete a few missions before they could earn that much.

Not everyone was as forthright and generous as Wang Pengju.

After they met each other, they entered the villa under Wang Pengju’s lead.

They went all the way to the second floor and turned into the master bedroom.

The huge 180 square meters master bedroom had been built into an exquisite princess room.

The walls were a girly light pink, and the floor was covered with a hand-painted carpet drawn with a cartoon character.

At the end of the carpet near the end of the bed, there were several animal dolls like bears and hippos, arranged neatly.

Two green plants stood in the corner, growing freely and spreading their branches.

In front of the huge window sill were a few pots of succulents and an unfinished landscape painting.

On the cloud-like soft and white bed, a delicate young girl lay there.

She looked to be only 15 or 16 years old. Her black hair was luxuriant, her facial features were delicate, and her skin was fair. One could even faintly see the green veins through her skin.

No matter from which point of view, she was a rare beauty, and people couldn’t help but want to take good care of her at first sight.

However, the young girl’s current state was clearly somewhat abnormal.

She clutched the blanket tightly, and her brows were furrowed with worry that could not be dispelled. Her lips were pale, and her expression was slightly twisted with indescribable panic and fear. Anyone could see that she was in a deep and terrifying nightmare.

“Linglan suddenly became like this three days ago. At first, I thought that there was something wrong with her body. After getting a private doctor to check, the doctor couldn’t find the cause of the illness and couldn’t wake her up either. A light mage used a spiritual enhancement on her, and she woke up for a short time. She only said “six more days” before fainting again. Her complexion has become much worse since then. That light mage did not dare to make a move again and asked me to find a level 3 Transcendent for help, which resulted in your arrival today. There are only four days left, so please save her!” Wang Pengju looked at the crowd with an extremely sincere expression. There was even a hint of pleading in his eyes.

At this time, he was no longer a wealthy businessman, but an ordinary father who cared about his daughter.

“Chairman Wang, you’re too kind. We’ll do our best,” Wu Linfeng, who was as thin as a bamboo pole, quickly responded.

Xue Qiaoqiao also nodded slightly.

“Who’s going to try first?” Sun Lie, who was dressed as a programmer, looked over.

Xue Qiaoqiao said magnanimously, “Since the two of you arrived first, you can go first.”

Sun Lie and Wu Linfeng looked at each other and did not refuse, “Then we won’t be courteous.”

The first person to perform the healing had a higher chance of successfully healing the girl and winning 1000 points.

However, if the condition was too complicated, the person who performed the healing later could accumulate experience by observing the healing situation previously and improve the odds of winning.

Therefore, it was hard to say who had the advantage in this healing sequence.

The first to go was Wu Linfeng. As a skinny, malnourished man, his priest profession was not convincing at all.

“As a priest, if you want to gain the trust of your customers, you should at least make yourself look rosy and healthy,” Su Mo thought to himself.

He had reason to suspect that if Wu Linfeng made himself fair and chubby, his business might be ten times more popular than it was now.

“I’ve seen him before. He looked normal then. He only became like this after performing the advancement ritual,” Xue Qiaoqiao seemed to have guessed Su Mo’s thoughts, and she came closer to say to him in a soft voice.

Smelling the refreshing fragrance coming from Xue Qiaoqiao, Su Mo calmly asked, “What’s the advancement ritual?”

Xue Qiaoqiao didn’t seem to be used to people talking to her so close, and her cute earlobes were thus stained with a layer of bright red. She turned her head slightly and explained in a low voice, “Other than the pure cultivators, no matter if it’s the mixed cultivators or turbid cultivators, when breaking through to levels 3, 6, and 9, they must perform an advancement ritual.”

“The advancement ritual is to purify the mind, remove impurities, and reduce the negative effects of origin power on one’s body, laying the foundation for future advancement. Every profession’s advancement ritual is different, and even the advancement ritual of each individual may be slightly different. However, no matter what kind of advancement ritual it is, it will be extremely dangerous. Once the ritual fails, it can result in serious injuries and degradation, or even mutation and death. As a result, you will see that many Transcendents are at level 3. They are all preparing for the advancement ritual. Without absolute confidence, many would rather stay at level 3 than break through to level 4.”

When Su Mo heard this, he was enlightened.

He thought about it carefully. Among the members of the Furong Team that he had met before, whether it was Captain Zhang, Chu Qingwu, Old Master Zhou, or even Xue Qiaoqiao, they were all level 3 Transcendents.

He had thought that there was something special about level 3, but now it seemed that the real special thing should be the advancement ritual.

He recalled what others had said in the garrison building. Captain Zhang had been stuck at level 3 for four years. It seemed that the advancement ritual was more difficult than he had imagined.

This was only the first obstacle, so how difficult would it be to break through to level 6 and level 9?

It was no wonder that there were only ten official Transcendent professions among the mixed cultivators that could break through to level 9.

There were probably many special classes stopped by these three obstacles.

Every time they tried, a large number of people had to die to find out the rules of advancement.

He had to admit that the transcendent world was far crueler than he had imagined.

Thinking about this, Su Mo looked at Wu Linfeng with a trace of respect.

Even if he was just a civilian Transcendent, the fact that he still dared to challenge the advancement ritual made him worthy of respect.

At this time, Wu Linfeng had completed the initial diagnosis and started to heal the girl on the bed.