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As he replied, Xu Qingran walked into the consultation room.

The doctor was a fairly young man wearing glasses. He asked Xu Qingran about his condition as he checked his information, but his expression suddenly grew a little strange when he saw his name.

Xu Qingran paid it no mind. In a hoarse voice, he truthfully told the doctor about his high fever, making both the doctor and the nurse beside him nervous. Only after confirming that his brain hadn't been damaged by the fever and that his body hadn't suffered any serious harm did they relax a little.

Then the doctor noticed the extensive bruising on his neck.

The doctor gave him a complicated look. "You... I'll treat your injuries first, then prescribe some fever medicine. Get an IV afterward. If your condition improves after an hour, you won't need to stay in the hospital for observation."

As he spoke, he glanced at something resembling a monitor beside him. "The system data also shows that your MT level is very low. Your mental power has been depleted from overuse. I'll have the nurse give you an MT injection to speed up its recovery."

"That will help your fever improve a little faster, too."

Xu Qingran lifted his long lashes slightly and saw the nurse fetch a syringe and some medication.

His pupils instantly contracted, as though he had seen something terrifying and utterly repulsive. Before she could approach, he sprang to his feet and took the prescription the doctor had written. His voice was cold. "No need. I'm not getting an injection."

With that, he walked straight out. The people in the room didn't even have time to call out and stop him.

The system asked in confusion, "Host, why did you refuse the MT injection?"

"It's just a mental power supplement. It was originally invented to give soldiers fighting across the star seas a quick resupply. It's basically a nutrient supplement, and there's nothing dangerous about it."

Xu Qingran didn't answer. After leaving the consultation room, he stood motionless in the corridor, lost in thought for once.

It wasn't even clear whether he had heard the system's question.

Only when the next number was called and a mother carrying a child of two or three approached did he come back to his senses. He moved aside and headed for the pharmacy window.

He had only taken a few steps when he saw Xu Qing'an, who was also said to be coming to the hospital, appear at the other end of the corridor.

But Xu Qing'an didn't come his way. Instead, he walked toward another corner, chatting and laughing with several medical staff, so he didn't notice him.

Xu Qingran looked away. Before long, a member of the medical staff came to find him.

The IV he'd been told about, which he'd assumed would involve a needle, had instead been arranged as a mist for him to inhale. Perhaps his earlier reaction had led the doctor to mistake him for someone afraid of needles.

He couldn't be bothered to explain. Following the instructions, he placed the nebulizer mask over his face and closed his eyes wearily in his seat.

The system had been tinkering with something again. After a while, it suddenly asked, "So are you sure you don't want to take the assistance mission?"

"It's only available for seven days. If you decide not to accept it within those seven days, it'll disappear automatically, and you won't ever be able to unlock it again."

Xu Qingran fell silent for a moment, then asked, "If I don't take the mission, is there another way to expand my mental pool in this world?"

Even if it meant taking a more extreme path.

"There is, but opportunities like that require you to wait for the right moment, and they're usually very difficult."

Xu Qingran didn't mind. "As long as there is one."

The system sighed. "All right, but if you don't accept the mission, you won't be able to get back the ability from your previous life."

On the hospital bench, the man whose eyes had been tightly shut suddenly opened them.

Chapter 4: The S-M System

"...What did you say?"

Xu Qingran's voice was steady and quiet.

The system didn't notice the change in his attitude and replied eagerly, "That's right! I helped bring it over with you. Impressive, right?"

"If you don't believe me, I can show you right now."

With that, it pulled out the glowing orb containing the ability, which it had carefully treasured, and displayed it in Xu Qingran's current mental sea.

After examining it, Xu Qingran said nothing for a long while.

The system said, "It originally belonged to another world, so because of the restrictions of its laws and factors such as your constitution, it's temporarily sealed in the system's energy sea and can't be used."

"But as the host chosen by the system, as long as you complete the assistance mission approved by headquarters, it can return to you intact. You can even use it in combination with this world's mental power."

The footsteps of people passing by were no louder than Xu Qingran's heartbeat at that moment.

His breathing grew rapid without his noticing. He choked, his eyes turning red, but he had no time to steady himself.

"Where is he?"

His tone had grown more urgent.

The system didn't understand at first. "Huh?"

Xu Qingran's grip on the mask tightened slightly, and he raised his voice. "The conquest target, where is he!"

"I'm taking the mission."

The system really hadn't lied to him. His familiar ability was right there beside him.

At that moment, any bottom line was just a passing cloud.

He could give up everything else, but he had to hold on to that ability from his previous life.

When the system didn't respond, Xu Qingran frowned and pressed it along. "So what should I do? Just rush over and declare my love?"

"The Xu family seems pretty rich. Should I throw money at a grand confession on television?"

"Or use a helicopter to airdrop him 9,999 roses?"

He asked in all seriousness.

The system: "..."

What a straight man's way of thinking.

It replied helplessly, "He's an admiral of his faction, and the family backing him is a major clan. I'm afraid the closest you'll get lately is seeing his back from a distance."

"So charging in headfirst won't work. I've already planned it out for you. You can start with this world's S-M System."

Xu Qingran: "?"

What system?

...Was it the S and M he was thinking of?

Xu Qingran's face darkened, and he nearly crushed the mask delivering the medicine.

This man surnamed Shen—