Chapter 469: Far in the heavens, near at hand

Next day.

Jiang Cheng called Xu Juan to inform her that he would be going on a mission the day after tomorrow.

Xu Juan's reaction was very calm, but she still gave Jiang Cheng a chance, saying that if he quit now, it was still not too late.

Jiang Cheng smiled and thanked her for her kindness.

After all, once words are spoken, even four horses can't take them back; moreover, last night Yu Yang had called him—if he stood them up, how could he face the Seventh Squad members in the base afterward?

Xu Juan didn't say anything more, just telling him to let Ma Ming know.

"Ask for a day off? No problem."

In the Director's Office, Ma Ming heard Jiang Cheng's words and agreed without hesitation—wasn't it just skipping one day of pill production? As the head of the Alchemy Workshop, he still had that authority.

"Thank you, Director, but from now on I might need to take a day off every week."

"You need to take a day off every week?"

Hearing this, Ma Ming looked troubled.

"Director Jiang, it's not that I disagree, but asking for four days off a month is really too much—even if you took two fewer days?"

"Director, the reason I need to take leave is because I have to go on a mission."

Jiang Cheng explained: "A few days ago I passed the Rebel Soldier assessment; now I am a Rebel Soldier, so I need to set aside one day each week to patrol the tunnels."

"Rebel, Rebel Soldier?"

Ma Ming opened his mouth wide, staring at Jiang Cheng in shock.

"Director Jiang, you, you are a Rebel Soldier now?"

"Yeah."

Jiang Cheng gave a faint smile.

Ma Ming's expression instantly became complex.

Besides the initial shock, there was envy, admiration, and so on.

To be honest, he had also once participated in the assessment to become a Rebel Soldier, but although his realm had reached the required level, his performance in actual combat was terrible to behold.

And Jiang Cheng now…

"Okay, I got it. What about Principal Xu?"

"Hmm, Principal Xu also agreed."

"Just agreeing is fine—I definitely agree." Ma Ming nodded repeatedly, then walked over and patted Jiang Cheng on the shoulder, "Director Jiang, you've worked hard, but please be extra careful."

"I'll pay attention, Director."

Jiang Cheng nodded, "Then I'm going to the Alchemy Workshop to refine pills."

"Go ahead."

Ma Ming waved his hand, watching Jiang Cheng leave, then silently walked to his seat, sat down, and muttered to himself, "Truly, heroes emerge from youth."

That evening, Qin Lao somehow heard the news that Jiang Cheng would be going on a mission and rushed over.

However, in front of Chen Sao and others, he didn't speak directly; instead, after finishing dinner, he took the opportunity of a walk to ask about it.

"Yeah."

Jiang Cheng said with a smile, "We'll meet at the base gate at seven tomorrow morning, and then we'll go together with the team."

After hearing that, Qin Lao's face showed worry.

"Sector 15-20 is a bit dangerous—even if he went there himself, there would be a chance of death."

Jiang Cheng saw his worry and smiled, "Qin Lao, haven't you forgotten that I still have a sixth-grade treasure on me?"

"Of course I haven't forgotten."

Qin Lao gave him an annoyed look, "You brat, do you really think having that treasure lets you rest easy? If you actually encounter danger, you also need to be able to react in time and use it."

"I'll pay more attention, Qin Lao." Jiang Cheng laughed and cried at the same time.

He felt the base wouldn't assign missions randomly—including Yu Yang, it was impossible to deceive him; since previous patrols had been mostly uneventful, this time was likely to be safe as well. Of course, the one who walks by the river often gets wet shoes—frequent patrols make it hard to say.

Fortunately, his strength kept improving thanks to the Virtual Combat System.

"Like this, take this with you."

Qin Lao said, taking out a palm-sized jade talisman from his person, its surface carved with a dragon baring its fangs and claws, bathed in thunder and lightning.

"Is this the Thunder Dragon Talisman?"

Jiang Cheng recognized it at a glance.

This treasure was exactly the one originally collected from Gu Zhanglin's person—a mid-grade five-star treasure, the Thunder Dragon Talisman.

After use, it can instantly kill masters below fifth level; even against a fifth-level master, if the timing is right, it can deliver a fatal blow in one strike.

"Yeah, anyway I'm not on a mission right now, so leaving this with me would be useless; your treasure is only for defense—if you ever run into danger and the enemy won't let up, causing your primordial force crystal to run out, what then? With this, you can also counterattack."

"This..."

"The original text is being watched!"

"To be honest, Jiang Cheng was somewhat tempted."

"Moreover, what Qin Lao said also made sense."

"Take it."

Qin Lao shoved the Thunder Dragon Talisman into his hand, feeling a bit pained, saying, "Remember, I'm just lending it to you—you have to return it after this mission."

"Got it."

Jiang Cheng laughed and cried.

He also didn't say it wasn't a loan.

But inside he was still deeply moved.

After all, not everyone can reach Qin Lao's level.

"Qin Lao, from now on when you go out on missions, if I have no mission, you can also borrow the defensive treasure I'm wearing."

"Really?"

Qin Lao's breathing suddenly became rapid upon hearing this.

"There's even a fake?"

Jiang Cheng laughed: "The principle of returning a peach with a plum—how could I not know it?"

"I knew it, didn't mistake you, you kid!"

Qin Lao gave Jiang Cheng's shoulder a hard pat.

Don't be fooled by how generously he stuffed things earlier; in fact, inside he also went through a battle between heaven and man.

If anything happened to Jiang Cheng, the Thunder Dragon Talisman would surely be gone, the person would be lost, and he would suffer a great loss.

But after thinking it over, he still made this decision.

"Oh, right."

He, with a slight ache, said: "Use it sparingly, don't use it all up at once."

"Don't worry, Qin Lao, we're going to scout, not to fight. If we really encounter a strong enemy, we'll prioritize avoidance; unless absolutely necessary, I won't use this Thunder Dragon Talisman."

"Ahem, I know, I'm just… reminding, just a reminder." Qin Lao coughed twice, then whispered: "Kid, do you know that a big incident happened at our Base a couple of days ago?"

"What big incident?" Jiang Cheng immediately perked up his ears upon hearing it.

"Someone successfully challenged the Big Chief for the first time!"

Qin Lao's tone was full of envy: "Challenging the Big Chief successfully, and being able to freely choose a True Martial… True Martial, at the Master Stage, obtaining a True Martial basically means you don't have to worry about later Secret Martial Arts, and that True Martial was given by the Supreme, stronger than ordinary True Martial. I really don't know which guy, luck so good."

Jiang Cheng thought inwardly, the lucky fellow you mentioned is far in the heavens yet right before his eyes.

(End of chapter)