Chapter 496: Second-level Spirit Master

"Second Level."

In the Quiet Room, as Jiang Cheng opened his eyes, he uttered those two words.

Tomorrow is the day to carry out the mission again, and that afternoon his Spiritual Power broke through once more, reaching the realm of a Second-Level Master.

The Spiritual Power range of a Second-level Spirit Master rose to two hundred meters, twice that of a Level One Spirit Master; as for destructive power, it increased tenfold, allowing control of any Psychic Weapon with an impact of ten thousand tons, equivalent to three or four 150‑mm howitzer shells detonating simultaneously!

At the same time, the proficiency of the Seven Treasure Light‑flow Pendant also reached Mastery.

Originally, advancing from a Second-level Spirit Master to a Third-level Spirit Master took over half a month; now it's been cut to about a week.

And the Seven Treasure Light‑flow Pendant still has two more stages to upgrade.

Of course, if the jade pendant's proficiency reaches Perfection, the time can no longer be shortened.

To use this method again, one would need a spiritual treasure superior to the Seven Treasure Light‑flow Pendant, but that approach currently seems highly unrealistic.

Jiang Cheng shook his head; anyway, the jade pendant's proficiency is only at Mastery now, and even if it reaches Perfection, the accelerated recovery effect can persist until breaking through to Supreme.

"As for Force, it still needs some time."

Jiang Cheng looked at the Flame Blade Technique on the Panel.

After acquiring this Secret Martial Art, he abandoned the Shadowless Blade Technique and devoted himself to cultivating it.

After all, the Shadowless Blade can only be cultivated up to a Fifth-level Force Master; to advance further, one must switch to practicing the Flame Blade Technique.

"No need to rush; with Spiritual Power raised, the speed of cultivating Force will be much faster."

Jiang Cheng closed his eyes and meditated again to restore his Spiritual Power.

Soon, a day passed.

Before leaving home, Jiang Cheng sent a message to Chu Feng; shortly after, the latter replied with a single "good", and Jiang Cheng then slipped his phone back into his pocket and headed toward the entrance.

At the same time, near the entrance, several silhouettes gathered and whispered among themselves.

"Captain, do you think Jiang Cheng will come this time?" Deputy Captain Di Yun asked softly.

"Why ask that?" Yu Yang looked at him oddly.

"You forgot what happened the last time we carried out a mission? We haven't seen him these past few days; maybe he'll change his mind. He's an Eleven-level Alchemist; there are few of those in Hope City. If he doesn't want to come and focuses on alchemy, neither the Academy nor the Base would object, right?"

Di Yun's words made Yu Yang feel uncertain as well.

"No, it won't happen, right?"

The latter stammered, "I called him yesterday and told him we'd meet at the entrance today to continue the mission; he agreed enthusiastically, not seeming like he'd back out."

"What if?"

Di Yun worried, "It's possible he might waver after receiving your call."

"No, it won't happen, right?" Jiang Ping's voice trembled slightly, then she looked at Xie Jianfeng, "Jianfeng, you and Jiang Cheng both work at the Academy; have you seen him these past few days? How was his condition?"

"I saw him a few days ago; he was in good shape and even signed up for the Academy Grand Competition." Xie Jianfeng scratched his head, "I think Director Jiang isn't the type to break his word. If he truly wanted to quit our squad, he'd say so early, not wait until right before the mission starts."

After speaking, he glanced into the distance, his eyes lighting up, and shouted, "Here he comes, here he comes!"

Yu Yang and the other two hurried to follow his gaze, and indeed Jiang Cheng was walking toward them.

"I think we shouldn't get too happy yet; look, he's not holding a weapon—what if…" Di Yun remained uneasy.

What if Jiang Cheng comes over to clarify things face‑to‑face?

With that remark, the others also noticed and felt uneasy.

"Sorry, Captain, I'm late."

Jiang Cheng walked up to the group, finished speaking, and then smiled and greeted the other three.

"It's fine, it's fine."

Yu Yang looked at Jiang Cheng's empty hands and couldn't help asking, "Jiang Cheng, did you forget to bring a weapon?"

"I did bring one, but this time it's a Psychic Weapon."

Jiang Cheng said, pulling out three palm‑sized needles; despite their small size, together they weighed over a hundred jin.

"I see."

Yu Yang finally relaxed, smiling at Di Yun, "Di Yun, so Jiang Cheng is also following the Spiritual Thought Master path; you two can spar more from now on."

Di Yun understood and promptly agreed.

"By the way, Jiang Cheng, the last mission was probably just an accident. Such accidents are rare; even after dozens of missions we might never encounter one, so don't worry too much this time."

"Yes, yes," the three of them, including Di Yun, echoed.

In their eyes, Jiang Cheng was now the squad's biggest pillar; unless absolutely necessary, they could never abandon him.

"I understand, Captain."

Jiang Cheng smiled; how could he not read their thoughts?

But to be safe, he also kept a strong backup behind him; thinking of that, he quickly added:

"Captain, it's getting late; let's set out."

"Alright, go!"

The group approached several Senior Grandmasters, showed their passes as usual, and were then allowed to pass.

Shortly after they left, a silhouette slipped through the checkpoint, but the guarding Senior Grandmasters only felt a slight breeze and did not notice at all.

Inside the tunnel.

Although they all thought the last incident was just an accident, they dared not be careless; at every fork they stayed on high alert.

After more than half a day of patrolling the target area, nothing untoward occurred.

The group returned to the entrance, showed their passes, and were let through.

Inside, Yu Yang smiled at Jiang Cheng, "How about it? I wasn't wrong, right? The last time was just a sudden situation—rare, so no need to worry."

"Exactly, just like this time—nothing unusual. The next part should be similar; even if a sudden situation arises, it won't be as dangerous as last time," Di Yun added, still feeling a lingering chill when recalling the previous incident.

A Fifth-level Spirit Master, without a word, launched a killing strike!

"The captain is right." Jiang Cheng laughed and nodded; his heart also wavered a little.

Could it be that the previous incident was truly just an accident, and not someone scheming to take revenge on me?

However, I cannot draw a conclusion so early, because only a week has passed since the last attack. If someone were indeed pulling strings behind the scenes, they certainly wouldn't be so hasty to strike again; after all, isn't that openly telling others that there's a ghost?

(End of chapter)