Three weeks passed in the blink of an eye.
With the help of the bounty information, Mo Chuan's passive stacking efficiency increased significantly, and he earned a good income. (While he wasn't lacking money for now, no one ever complained about having too much.) Furthermore, with the assistance of the school's combat training, Mo Chuan had become proficient in using the grapple.
It was Saturday, five-thirty in the afternoon, at a construction site in the center of Jibei City.
"Aah!!" A thin ghost with festering skin, dragging dark brown bloodstains, ran out screaming madly.
However, it hadn't taken more than a few steps before a ghastly green chain shot out from behind, its sickle piercing the ghost's shoulder.
The thin ghost yelped in pain, letting out an even more piercing scream. It began to desperately struggle against the grapple, crawling towards the outside.
"Tremble like a fish." A voice emerged from the shadows behind the thin ghost. The ghost, upon hearing this, froze for a moment before struggling even more intensely.
A sound of dragging chains followed, and the soul-guiding lamp, glowing with a ghastly green light, silently floated above the thin ghost. Before the ghost could react, it transformed into green light and was absorbed into the lamp.
"Okay, 800 acquired." Mo Chuan nodded. "System, show me the panel."
"Ding! Mo Chuan
Age: 18
Awakened Object: Gate of Ruin
Attack: 62
Armor: 217.5 (30+187.5)
Magic Power: 203.5 (16+187.5)
Magic Resistance: 25
Status: Hungry
Hell's Curse: 250 layers
Level: 3 (45%)
Skills: Hell's Curse (Passive), Judgment of Death, Lamp of the Soul Guide, Pendulum of Misfortune."
"250... a lucky number..." Mo Chuan rubbed his nose. His phone suddenly rang.
"Hello! Brother Chuan! We've ordered food! Hurry up! Eating with a group of beautiful ladies and you're still this slow, it's not like you!" Zhang Hanshan shouted into the phone.
"I'm on a mission... I'll be there soon. Da Sha Barbecue, right?"
"Yes! No need to bring drinks, we have them here!"
Mo Chuan walked out of the construction site, took 800 yuan from a portly foreman with a slicked-back hairstyle, and rode away on his electric scooter amidst the awe-filled gazes of the workers.
As for why no one doubted whether he had completed the mission, everyone knew. After all, the screams from earlier were truly chilling...
The portly foreman wiped the sweat from his forehead. Hearing his phone ring, he answered it. A gruff voice came through: "Old Shi, how was it? My brother is amazing, right? The ghost should be cleared by now, shouldn't it?"
"Hu Zi, where did you find... uh, I mean, hire this expert? I've seen many ghost-clearing scenes, but this is the first time I've seen someone make a ghost scream its head off!"
"Heh heh, impressive, right? We're brothers who've risked our lives together! He even gave you a discount of 200 yuan out of respect for me!"
"Ah? I heard that craftsmen who charge over 1000 are basically seasoned veterans. Isn't this kid not even twenty years old?"
"That's what makes him so impressive!" Wang Hu, sounding a bit tipsy, said, "This kid has awakened an S-rank ability and is participating in the early exam next week! Alright, I can't chat anymore, I have something to do later. You carry on!"
With that, Wang Hu hung up.
"This..." Shi Dahong nodded, remembering Mo Chuan's phone number and saving it as "Master Mo"...
"Achoo!... Who's slandering me?..." Mo Chuan scratched his nose, parked his electric scooter, and walked into the barbecue restaurant.
"This way!" Zhang Hanshan waved, guiding Mo Chuan to the table where everyone was gathered.
"Brother Mo, why are you so late? What kind of troublesome ghost was it?" Tang Jingjing handed him a cup of cola and asked.
"Probably some good-looking female ghost, and Mo Chuan couldn't resist, so he took care of it while it was hot," He Lanxin made a suggestive remark nonchalantly.
"Sister Lan Xin! You've been corrupted by these two hooligans! Where's your usual cool demeanor?" Mo Fei pouted, asking with displeasure.
"Alright, alright... Stop the nonsense. It was just a Burning Ghost, but it was so fast that I couldn't deal with it in time," Mo Chuan steered the conversation away from its tangent.
"Alright, let's toast. The exam is next Monday. It's time to see what we're made of," Zhang Hanshan raised his soda.
"Cheers!"
After eating for a while, Mo Chuan looked up and asked Mo Fei, "Mo Fei, have you reached Tier 2 yet? With only a week left, you need to hurry."
"Brother, you're so annoying! Is your sister really that weak? Of course, I broke through today! I am now Tier 2 ability user Mo Fei!" She said, raising her chin proudly.
"Alright, alright... So, Great Ability User Mo Fei, may I ask what your second psychic skill is?"
"It's the dual skills [Ri Xiao] and [Yue Xiao], both are displacement skills. However, the former excels in offense and control, while the latter is better for protection and sneak attacks," He Lanxin replied.
"How is it? Much better than someone whose second skill is just soul draining, right?" Mo Fei glanced at Mo Chuan and asked.
"Just give them my ID number..." Before Mo Chuan could finish, he heard a man's voice from the neighboring table shout, "Why haven't the dishes arrived yet? What are you people doing?"
The five frowned and looked over. They saw that the neighboring table was also occupied by five people: a tall, dark-skinned man; a short, gloomy-eyed young boy; a purple-haired woman; a woman with long black hair, glasses, and a black ponytail; and a thin, tall man.
Though their appearances varied, the five shared one common characteristic – they were all wearing the school uniform of a certain school.
"From Linfen Second High School. They must have arrived early to participate in the special recruitment exam in Jibei," He Lanxin narrowed her eyes and said.
"If they don't make a move, we don't interfere," Mo Chuan gave a direct order, and the other four agreed. They continued eating their food, their attention, however, was fixed on the five people from Linfen at the next table.
"Sir... It's normal for service to be slow when it's crowded... If that's the case, I can bring you some appetizers first to tide you over."
"What do you mean, 'crowded'?" the tall, thin man pointed at Mo Chuan's table and said, "Why have they been served so many dishes already? We've only got a plate of peanuts! Who are you trying to fool?"
"Sir, this table arrived much earlier, more than twenty minutes before you..."
"You're talking nonsense!" The tall, thin man, seeing more dishes being served to Mo Chuan's table, blocked the waiter and said, "Serve it here!"
"Sir, these are not your dishes..."
"If I say they are, then they are!" The tall, thin man snatched the plate and then, with a fawning smile, placed it on the table. "Eat this first, Brother Long, Sister Li, Ah Xu, Sister Ru, eat first, alright? Eat first."
Just as the five from Linfen were about to pick up their chopsticks, Mo Chuan's calm voice echoed throughout the entire restaurant, "My friends, doing this isn't very proper, is it?"