Chapter 185: Helping with the Upgrade
“You don’t need it…” Tao An glanced between the two of them. “What do you mean?”
“It means every single ability-user in our team has already upgraded,” Xu Sa tossed out a bombshell, but acted like it was no big deal.
“All of them?” He Ping, who had suspected they might be B-level, was still visibly shocked.
Tao An narrowed his eyes and studied the group again, finally focusing back on Ning Yuan. “How can I be sure this thing actually works? What if… it’s just a scam?”
“You pay only after you successfully upgrade,” Ning Yuan replied.
“Using it first, then paying—that’s pretty fair, right?” Xu Sa added with a grin.
“Can’t you go any cheaper? Whether it’s that quality of jade or a crystal core, it’s a huge cost,” He Ping said, examining the jade on the table.
Ning Yuan shrugged and shook his head.
“Valuable things come with matching price tags,” Xu Sa said. “Besides, Sister Ping, this really isn’t that expensive. I just walked around the base once and already heard plenty of people doubting your team. Isn’t it all because of power? If you guys had a few B-Tier ability users, who’d dare say anything? Am I wrong?”
He Ping stayed silent.
“That just now—was that a crystal core?” Tao An asked.
“Yeah,” Ning Yuan said, but didn’t explain further. “A type we discovered by chance.”
Tao An lowered his head, lost in thought. The tent fell silent except for Zhuang Ai Yi’s sweet voice reciting, “Two yellow orioles sing in the green willows, one row of white egrets flies into the blue sky…”
“Mr. Tao, don’t get any funny ideas,” Zhuang Mingxu, flipping through a book while holding Zhuang Ai Yi, suddenly spoke up. “Let’s cooperate fairly and part amicably. If things get ugly, trust me—it won’t be us who lose out.”
Tao An turned to glance at Zhuang Mingxu, who was sitting in a wheelchair behind them. When their eyes met, both smiled faintly.
“Sir, you’re overthinking it,” Tao An replied. “I was just calculating whether we have enough crystal cores in our stock to afford it.”
Zhuang Mingxu didn’t expose him and simply said, “It’s always best to make a decision early when it comes to good things. What others might miss is just an item—what you might miss is your life.”
“…” Tao An pressed his lips together and remained silent.
It was He Ping who spoke up instead, “We’ll take it. But I want you to stay with my husband during his upgrade. If it succeeds, you’ll get everything we promised, not a bit less. If it fails…” Her eyes swept over the people seated across from her, her voice solemn, “I’ll take you down with me, even if it kills me.”
“Nannan…” Tao An called softly.
“They’re right—we don’t have time to wait,” He Ping held Tao An’s hand, eyes already brimming with tears. “We have to take the gamble. Don’t worry, if you die, I won’t live either. I won’t give those bastards the chance to bully me.”
“Sister Ping, Brother An…” Even Yao Mei was moved by her words.
“Your relationship is really touching, Sister Ping,” Xu Sa praised with a smile. “But just to clarify—the upgrade crystal cores have to come from you. We’ll just be in charge of making sure nothing goes wrong.”
The touching atmosphere was broken by his words. He Ping’s chest hitched for a moment, but she soon regained her composure. “Alright. When can you start?”
Ning Yuan glanced behind him. “Captain?”
Lu Weiyi was a bit uncomfortable being called that, but he didn’t correct it. They needed a leader in front of outsiders. Still using his mental energy to sort out the newly expanded space, he replied, “Anytime.”
The cool, clear voice made both Yao Mei and He Ping turn to look at him. Even Tao An stared at him intently, surprised that such a young and delicate-looking man was the leader of this burly team. He felt both doubt and wariness.
“We won’t be here long, Sister Ping. When do you want to start?” Xu Sa asked.
“Midnight tonight,” He Ping decided quickly. They would make the necessary arrangements and start right after.
“After midnight, we’ll need to get the goods. Are you sure that’ll be possible?” Xu Sa pointed to the jade on the table. After all, most teams could bring out some crystal cores—the difference was just in the quantity and quality.
“Yes,” He Ping said. Ever since the jade-space phenomenon, people with spare energy had been collecting them. Most major forces weren’t short on jade now.
“But the upgrade has to happen on my turf,” Tao An added.
Lu Weiyi, having finished organizing his space, stretched and replied, “That’s fine.”
“Let Liu… Ning Yuan and Antonio go with you,” Zhuang Mingxu originally wanted to suggest Liu Rui, but Liu Rui stuttered. Both Antonio and Lu Weiyi weren’t the talkative type when they didn’t have a specific task. Ning Yuan, then, would have to handle the diplomacy.
“Little Daddy, you’re not sleeping with Ai Yi tonight?” Zhuang Ai Yi closed his book and looked at Lu Weiyi with wide, expectant eyes.
“Little Daddy has something to do tonight. You stay with Big Daddy, and tomorrow I’ll bring you your favorite milk tea, okay?” After spending time with Ai Yi every day, Lu Weiyi had gradually learned how to get along with children. He leaned down and kissed the boy’s soft cheek, speaking gently, “Mmm, smells like egg. Did Grandpa Xi secretly make you some egg again?”
Zhuang Ai Yi giggled and whispered mischievously, “Grandpa Xi steamed some minced meat egg for me. It was super tasty.”
“If it’s tasty, eat lots. Sleep with Uncle tonight and be good, okay?” said Lu Weiyi.
“Mhm! Ai Yi is the best little boy!” Zhuang Ai Yi covered his mouth with his hand and blew Lu Weiyi a kiss with a loud “mwah.”
Utterly adorable.
Lu Weiyi stood up, ruffled his hair, and his face returned to its usual cold calm. He turned to the three waiting by the tent entrance and said, “Let’s go.”
*
On the way, Tao An tried to get Lu Weiyi to talk, but the man was tight-lipped. Ning Yuan deflected everything smoothly.
With no time to waste, Tao An made some quick arrangements with a few trusted people, then led them directly to his home.
Tao An lived in a small villa. It wasn’t large, and there weren’t even any servants, but the home was filled with the atmosphere of everyday life. A pair of couple’s pillows were placed on the sofa, black-and-white mugs sat on the table, and the wall held photos of Tao An and He Ping together—clearly showing their deep bond.
“What do I need to do?” Tao An gestured for the others to sit wherever they liked, then asked Lu Weiyi.
“Nothing. Just focus on absorbing the crystal cores. If needed, I’ll assist,” Lu Weiyi replied. Then, looking at the others, he said, “Wait outside.”
Tao An nodded, pulled He Ping into an embrace, kissed her, and entered the room without another word.
“Mr. Lu…” He Ping grabbed his sleeve, her earlier boldness gone, now just a worried wife. Her whole demeanor was fragile. “Please… I’m begging you.”
Lu Weiyi gave a small nod and followed her husband in.
The room wasn’t large. A meditation cushion was placed on the floor, with various crystal cores scattered beside it. Tao An, barefoot, sat cross-legged on the cushion, looking rather dignified.
The only question was, would he still look dignified when the pain hit?
Lu Weiyi glanced around, found a spot not too close or too far, leaned against the wall, and said, “Begin.”
Tao An took a deep breath, picked up a crystal core, and began absorbing. Lu Weiyi leaned lazily on the wall, yawning from boredom, occasionally glancing over at him.
After ten minutes passed, Lu Weiyi’s gaze remained fixed on Tao An. The man’s head was bowed, his face obscured, his entire body stiff like a wooden puppet. Only the hand holding the crystal core showed that he was still alive.
Upgrading through ordinary crystal cores was extremely painful—and the higher the level, the worse the pain and the longer it took.
In his past life, Lu Weiyi had used a mutated plant core left by Zhuang Mingxu to upgrade. It made things better than average, but it still hurt like hell. He’d never suffered before, so when the pain hit, he completely lost his composure—begging Zhuang Mingxu to kill him. That was also the first time Zhuang Mingxu ever cried.
Looking at the man before him gritting his teeth through it all, Lu Weiyi felt a bit ashamed of himself. Still, he had to admit—a man who could endure like this was impressive. He reminded him a bit of Zhuang Mingxu from his past life.
At the fifteen-minute mark, beads of cold sweat began to form on Tao An’s forehead. Droplets of sweat glistened, making his face appear even paler. His lips had already been bitten through, a trail of blood running down—under the bright white light, he looked rather terrifying.
The arm reaching out to grab the crystal cores trembled slightly, and his movements had slowed significantly. Though his consciousness urged him to persist, his body instinctively resisted the pain—each attempt was like a battle between mind and body.
Lu Weiyi stepped forward and nudged a crystal core closer to his hand.
Tao An wanted to say thank you, but when his lips moved, he feared opening his mouth would result in a groan. In the end, he tightly shut his lips again.
At the twenty-minute mark, the energy within Tao An became unstable. His face contorted in pain, and he could no longer hold back—his teeth clenched tightly, grinding audibly. Lu Weiyi came closer and took out a processed crystal core from his space, placing it into Tao An’s palm. “Absorb it.”
Tao An’s mind was already foggy at this point, but by pure reflex, he began to absorb the crystal core. As the energy surged through him, the excruciating, body-tearing pain suddenly vanished. He became much clearer-headed and couldn’t help but marvel—this thing was truly amazing.
“Keep going,” Lu Weiyi reminded him as he paused.
Tao An quickly gathered his focus and continued absorbing crystal cores. This time, the process felt no different from usual—there was no more pain. Relieved, he happily absorbed for another ten minutes or so until the energy in his body surged outward.
Success.
Tao An took a deep breath. A weight that had long pressed on his heart was lifted, and his whole body felt lighter.
“Congratulations,” Lu Weiyi said, yawning as Tao An stood there in a daze.
“Oh, thank you,” Tao An replied, climbing off the mat a bit disheveled but in great spirits. “Thank you, Mr. Lu.”
The quality of the jade items varied, but Lu Weiyi estimated them at around 1,250 kg, and had the other party supply an additional 500 units of crystal cores. The transaction was settled in one go.
“Pleasure doing business. You’ll be staying where you were last night. If you need anything, talk to Yao Mei. It’s getting late, so we won’t keep you. Let’s meet again tomorrow,” He Ping said, eager to discuss things with Tao An, and took the initiative to see them out.
