Liu Qiang was still rubbing his sore backside, grumbling loudly.
"Why don't you believe me? I really am level 10!" he shouted, half in pain, half in frustration.
Zhao Xue, standing nearby, wasn't having any of it. She just shot him a disbelieving look.
Liu Qiang, realizing that further explanations were futile, decided to hold off and wait for a bigger surprise after the college entrance exam. Wang Chen had already promised to team up with him for the exam, so he was eager to show Zhao Xue just how much progress he had made.
The so-called "college entrance exam" would involve small teams battling through the Trial Tower, with each team consisting of at least four members and up to six. The reason for the team setup was simple: nearly every dungeon and monster hunt required a team to tackle. Solo missions at similar levels were nearly impossible.
But Wang Chen wasn't worried. He could solo the Trial Tower with ease, and having Liu Qiang with him would hardly be a problem. However, it was rare for anyone to form such a team—after all, this exam determined one's future, and most people wouldn't waste a precious team slot on someone they didn't trust.
But Wang Chen didn't care. Liu Qiang's family had been incredibly kind to him, and now that he had the ability to repay them, he would.
The two arrived at the second floor of the building, where Liu Qiang, still uneasy, pressed Wang Chen. "Brother Chen, are you sure you want to bring me along? You'll be wasting a team slot for me."
Wang Chen clapped him on the shoulder with a smile. "We're brothers, don't worry about it."
Liu Qiang grinned, his eyes shining. "If you weren't a guy, I'd totally marry you!"
Wang Chen rolled his eyes and raised his middle finger in a mockingly disapproving manner. "Cut it out. Even if you turned into a girl, I still wouldn't want you!"
They laughed together before the conversation shifted.
"You said you awakened two new skills, right?" Wang Chen asked, curiosity piqued.
Liu Qiang's face flushed with embarrassment. "Yeah, but honestly? I don't even know what these two skills actually do."
The second skill was called Water Therapy Aura, and the third was Mental Euphoria.
After witnessing the overwhelming power of his first skill, Healing Aura, Liu Qiang was understandably skeptical about these new abilities.
"Maybe we should try them out on something?" Wang Chen suggested, glancing around. His eyes landed on a stray dog lazily napping by the street.
The dog stirred, its ears twitching as it sensed the two young men watching it. Before it could even react, Liu Qiang raised his staff and cast the Water Therapy Aura. A soft, blue light enveloped the dog.
To Wang Chen's astonishment, the dog suddenly leapt up, its entire body shuddering as it began to uncontrollably urinate all over the ground, as though it had lost all control.
"What the hell? Water Therapy Aura? Are you sure this isn't some kind of... uh, incontinence spell?" Wang Chen asked, stunned.
Liu Qiang scratched his head, his face red with embarrassment. He quickly activated his third skill, Mental Euphoria. The stray dog, still in the middle of its chaotic episode, suddenly collapsed to the ground in a bizarre fit of spasms. It writhed and twitched, almost as if it were experiencing some kind of overwhelming pleasure.
"What the hell?! This dog is way too euphoric!" Wang Chen exclaimed, staring at the twitching creature in disbelief. "Are you sure these skills are meant for animals? Because, uh, I would not want these effects on me!"
Liu Qiang could only shrug, feeling deeply regretful. "I swear, I never expected them to be this weird."
Wang Chen raised an eyebrow, trying to look on the bright side. "Look at it from another angle: you can't use these skills on humans, but they might work on monsters. Imagine a monster charging at you, suddenly uncontrollably excited and, uh, peeing itself. That's definitely a type of crowd control."
Liu Qiang paused and then nodded slowly. "You know what? That actually sounds kind of useful when you put it that way."
As evening fell, Wang Chen patted Liu Qiang on the back. "I'm heading home now. Don't forget to meet me early tomorrow. We've got that dungeon run we planned."
With a quick wave, Wang Chen left.
On the way, he stopped by the Guild Treasure Merchant's Association to sell off all the Goblin materials he had collected. He was in no mood for more surprises.
Meanwhile, back at the merchant's store, a few girls huddled together, laughing.
"Yueyue, the stuff he brought this time is way below what we expected," one of the girls said.
"Just wait," Yueyue replied, puffing out her cheeks, though she felt a small sense of doubt creeping into her mind. If Wang Chen kept bringing in such low-level materials, paying off that 500,000 debt would seem like an impossible task.
After returning home, Wang Chen went straight to a magical equipment store. He had been meaning to buy a new wheelchair for his younger sister, Wang Luohan, who had been using a cheap, uncomfortable model.
This time, he splurged and bought a high-quality electric wheelchair. It was a sleek, pink model that cost over 30,000 credits. He knew his sister would love it.
Of course, Wang Chen wasn't content to simply buy a wheelchair. He had bigger plans in mind. Someday, he was going to cure his sister's illness. And with it, he would heal his family's wounds and give them the life they deserved.
No matter what, he would make sure of it.