Mysterious Stone

A corner of the bar.

Ouyang Heng sat in the bar, accompanied by several of his friends, including Lin Haoyang and Wu Chaojie.

Judging from Ouyang Heng's expression, he seemed to have recovered from the disappointment of losing the final. When the bar owner Li Xue, personally brought over the wine tray, he subtly touched Li Xue's shapely buttocks.

Wu Chaojie didn't notice this, but Lin Haoyang did. He shook his head and said, "Looks like you don't need any comforting words."

Wu Chaojie chuckled and said, "Although the outcome of the University League wasn't perfect, Boss's achievements over the past two years are still undeniable. Many guilds have been chasing after him to discuss signing him; he's a very busy man right now."

Ouyang Heng laughed and said, "Haoyang found a new team and signed a professional contract before the semifinals. Otherwise, you would have had no shortage of guilds seeking your services."

Lin Haoyang said, "I signed the contract early because I didn't think I could win the championship..."

That's the truth. The reason Ouyang Heng postponed signing the contract until after the competition was to take advantage of winning the CUAA championship again to increase his bargaining power.

Although the result was somewhat unexpected and he did not win the championship as he had hoped, Ouyang Heng's strength was still the strongest among this year's graduating college students, so it was reasonable that he was pursued by various guilds.

Lin Haoyang added, "You're so busy, how do you still have time to go to bars? Shouldn't you be focusing on negotiating with those big guilds?"

Wu Chaojie said, "The boss arranged to talk to them here."

"Here?" Lin Haoyang looked around. "It seems a bit too casual. Won't the guild representatives feel disrespected?"

Ouyang Heng waved his hand and laughed indifferently, "What does it matter? Guilds that value me naturally need to show enough sincerity. If they can't even find a place to negotiate, how can they be expected to value me? This can be considered a screening hurdle, and I'll also let Sister Xue check it out for me."

"Alright. Since you want to talk business, I'll take my leave first." Lin Haoyang stood up.

"Let's get together again next time." Ouyang Heng nodded slightly.

As Lin Haoyang left the bar, he encountered a group of people dressed in suits, whose attire clashed with the relaxed and tranquil atmosphere created by the bar's soothing music.

This group of people had clearly come to negotiate with Ouyang Heng. The man in the suit who was in the lead quickly walked over to Ouyang Heng after seeing him.

Lin Haoyang didn't talk much on the surface, but he actually had a strong curiosity; to put it bluntly, he was a repressed pervert. He didn't leave the bar, but slipped into the restroom. With his Divine Might focused, he heard low conversations.

"Hello Ouyang Heng, I'm Ye Yongchao, the personnel manager of the Yanyun Guild. I'm here today..."

Ouyang Heng's voice rang out. "I know, I'm fully aware of Manager Ye's purpose. However, I have other appointments, so it's not too late to start talking once everyone is here."

"... All right."

Lin Haoyang waited patiently and listened carefully. Several more groups of people arrived later, all representatives from various guilds, large and small.

Among them, three A-rank Guild: Yanyun Guild, Misty Rain Guild, and Southern Cross Guild.

Lin Haoyang pondered to himself that there should be more than just these three guilds pursuing Ouyang Heng. Perhaps some guilds had already been eliminated because they did not meet Ouyang Heng's expectations.

"Thank you all for your attention. Due to my tight schedule, as I will soon be going to the Spirit Realm for training, I will keep it brief."

Ouyang Heng's confident voice rang out. "You are all representatives from your respective guilds, and your purpose is to invite me to join your guild. I will consider two aspects: firstly, the background and strength of your guild, and secondly, your guild's positioning of me, and its training plan..."

After Ouyang Heng spoke, representatives from all the guilds, large and small, began to speak, causing a brief period of chaos.

"Our Yanyun Guild is located in the Beijing, the center of China, with a superior geographical location and abundant resources for enhancement, including various secret realms. As for the guild's strength, the Yanyun Team itself is a strong team in the Class-A League, achieving a top-eight finish in the last league. Joining us is the wisest choice for Ouyang..."

"The main members of the Yanyun Guild are all still in their prime, right? If you join Yan Yun, Ouyang, you'll have to start as a substitute, and even if you make it into the main lineup later, you'll just be a supporting character. Why not consider our Jieyue Guild? We guarantee we'll cultivate you as a core member..."

"Jieyue? I've hardly ever heard of that team. They probably can't even make it into the Class-A League. Our Southern Cross Guild's core player is about to retire. He's similar to Ouyang in that he's a high-damage damage dealer. Once Ouyang arrives, he'll be groomed as a future core player..."

Hearing the enthusiastic praise from representatives of various guilds, Lin Haoyang couldn't help but sigh. Although he and Ouyang Heng were childhood friends, it was precisely because they were friends that there was competition. Ouyang Heng had always been one step ahead of him, and now, with graduation season upon us...

Beep beep beep, Lin Haoyang's phone vibrated. He looked down and saw that it was Fang Ziyi calling.

Feeling a little guilty, Lin Haoyang went into the bathroom and answered the phone.

"Ziyi."

On the other end of the phone, Fang Ziyi's voice was short and abrupt. "Have you seen the news on the Virtual Community, Haoyang?"

"No, what happened?"

Bai Xiaowen announced that she will graduate early!

"Oh, I see..."

Lin Haoyang casually agreed, then suddenly realized what he had said.

"Wait a minute! Bai Xiaowen is only a freshman this year, is he going to graduate early?!"

"Yes, this is his last semester. He's already decided not to participate in next year's CUAA league, but will instead switch to the Professional League ..." Fang Ziyi spoke as fast as a bullet, "My God, I really don't understand his thinking. He can already do whatever he wants in CUAA, why would he leave early?"

Lin Haoyang murmured, "Now he's our classmate."

"Yes, since we're competing at the same time, comparisons are inevitable... Luckily, we signed the contract before the semifinals, so we won't be affected," Fang Ziyi said.

"Has Bai Xiaowen decided which guild to join?" Lin Haoyang asked.

"There's no news yet," Fang Ziyi said.

"This is getting interesting..."

Lin Haoyang hung up the phone, logged into the CUAA League section of the Virtual Community, and sure enough, he saw a news article that had been forwarded many times and was pinned to the top of the trending list.

[New champion Bai Xiaowen plans to graduate early and may compete in the Professional League]

After carefully reading the news article written by the reporter named "Wei Xiaoxiao," Lin Haoyang was already eighty or ninety percent certain of what was going on.

He closed his phone, walked out of the restroom, crossed the corridor, and left the bar.

What the guild representatives discussed with Ouyang Heng was no longer important; he could already guess what would happen next.

"I'll be facing Bai Xiaowen again in the Professional League... and not just him, but many more formidable opponents. I must intensify my training, acquire more Spirit Realm Ticket, and strengthen my abilities as quickly as possible! I don't want to lose to anyone on the professional stage again..."

The negotiations continued inside the bar.

Seeing the guild representatives offering generous terms and arguing heatedly with each other, Ouyang Heng felt extremely pleased.

I enjoy being admired.

Ouyang Heng.

At this point, the last representative had finished speaking, and Ouyang Heng raised his hand and smiled, "The conditions you've all mentioned are quite good. Now I want to reiterate two points. First, I only accept invitations from the A-rank Guild. Second, I hope to become the core member of the team within two years of joining; this must be written into the contract..."

Buzzing.

Ye Yongchao's phone vibrated. He glanced at the caller ID on the screen, his expression immediately turning serious. He said softly, "Excuse me, I need to take this call."

Coincidentally, Zheng Chengzhi, the HR manager of the Southern Cross Guild next door, also received a phone call. He apologized as well and went to the side to answer it.

Just like a contagion, more than half of the guild representatives suspended negotiations and ran out to answer phone calls, leaving only a handful of people in front of Ouyang Heng.

"What's going on?" Ouyang Heng was dumbfounded.

Wu Chaojie laughed and said, "Boss, isn't it obvious? They can't make decisions on these conditions themselves; they can only consult the boss... The fact that they didn't directly refuse means the conditions are within their negotiable range."

Ouyang Heng smiled and nodded, looking at the guild representatives sitting in front of him with a hint of superiority. These people hadn't called to ask for permission.

"Please wait a moment, everyone. We'll talk again when the representatives from the other guilds return," Ouyang Heng said confidently.

The group exchanged bewildered glances. One of them stood up, apologized, and left.

Ouyang Heng didn't mind. The other party was a representative of the B-rank Guild, and after hearing his two demands, they probably realized they had no chance and left. Ouyang Heng muttered to himself, "B-rank Guild trying to compete for my title as the strongest in CUAA? Who gave them the courage?"

Before long, Ye Yongchao and the others returned one after another.

"What have you all decided?" Ouyang Heng took these representatives from the A-rank Guild very seriously.

"Sorry..." Ye Yongchao picked up his coat from the back of the chair, "I suddenly have something urgent to take care of, I'll have to go now."

"?"

"I also received a call from the guild; there's an urgent matter to attend to. Ouyang, the doors of our Southern Cross Guild are always open for you... if you could lower your expectations a bit," Zheng Chengzhi said before hurriedly leaving.

"??"

"Excuse me, I'll have to leave for a moment. Let's talk another day." The representative from the Misty Rain Guild also left.

"???"

The remaining guild representatives received text messages and emails. They whispered to each other for a few moments, then took their leave.

Ouyang Heng and Wu Chaojie looked completely bewildered (black guy with a question mark face. jpg).

Who am I? Where am I? What happened?

The phone rang, Ouyang Heng received a voice notification that Lin Haoyang had sent him a text message.

After reading the text message, Ouyang Heng remained silent for a long time.

In front of the teleportation array in the Beijing.

"Senior Qiao Rui, thank you for coming to see us off." Bai Xiaowen reached out and took Qiao Rui's hand, giving it a gentle squeeze.

Li Shuyi whispered, "Senior Qiao Rui, don't take things on the internet too seriously. Anyone with eyes can see there's a problem; Wu Chaojie and his group are just making things up."

Qiao Rui brushed a strand of hair behind her ear and said with a smile, "It's okay, I don't care anymore."

"That's good. If it were me, I would definitely sulk for days," Li Shuyi said.

Qiao Rui stared intently at Bai Xiaowen for a long time.

"Xiao Wen, I have something for you as a parting gift. Please don't refuse."

Qiao Rui stretched out her hand, and an unremarkable gray stone appeared in her palm.

Bai Xiaowen was somewhat stunned. "This is..." He activated his Insight.

[Mysterious Stone: Special Item. This stone contains a rich concentration of spiritual energy.]

"Just an ordinary stone, a parting souvenir." Qiao Rui's smile carried a hint of mystery.

"Then I'll accept it. As a return gift, I hope you'll also accept my present."

Bai Xiaowen put away the Mysterious Stone and handed a [Return Scroll] to Qiao Rui.

Bai Xiaowen had redeemed three Return Scroll in total, one for him and one for Li Shuyi as a safety net, and they had never used them.

The extra card was originally intended to be auctioned or sold directly in the Virtual Hall, but Bai Xiaowen didn't lack Psionic Points, so it remained unsold, since it held its value anyway.

The value of Return Scroll is hard to estimate, but no one would complain about having too many.

Qiao Rui hesitated for a moment, but she did not refuse and accepted the Return Scroll.

"Senior, there's something I'd like to discuss with you..."

Bai Xiaowen looked into Qiao Rui's slender eyes. "I plan to graduate early and participate in the Professional League. I will build a team from scratch. Currently, there are only three confirmed members: myself, Han Xu, and Shu Yi..."

"You want me to join?" Qiao Rui asked.

"Yes, I hope you can join us," Bai Xiaowen said earnestly.

"I'll think about it," Qiao Rui chuckled. "I'd prefer to find a permanent team to explore the Spirit Realm together and participate in the Professional League."

The implication in this statement seems rather obvious?

Bai Xiaowen sighed, "I really wanted to invite you to join my permanent Spirit Realm team, but unfortunately, my team only has two spots, and they're already full. The Spirit Realm Spirit Realm team can be upgraded in the future, and when the number of spots increases, I'll invite you first..."

After a pause, Bai Xiaowen smiled and said, "So we should start building teamwork now, beginning with the Earth League teams."

"Don't rush, I haven't decided yet whether I want to join your crew..." Qiao Rui said with a touch of reserve, "It all depends on fate. If we happen to meet in the Spirit Realm... then I'll join you."

"The odds..." Bai Xiaowen shook his head and smiled bitterly.

"If we're meant to be, we'll definitely meet." Qiao Rui smiled playfully.

"The teleportation array has been debugged; it's time to go back." Yan Xiaoxin walked over.

Yan Xiaoxin's recent mood is, how to describe it? It's like experiencing both ice and fire.

Bai Xiaowen's team winning the championship brought her many surprises. She originally thought that she would have to work hard for two years and wait until the golden generation graduated before she could achieve results. Unexpectedly, Bai Xiaowen helped the school win the highly prestigious CUAA championship in her first year.

But graduating early... it's all so sudden. The prowess of Jinghai University really was just a flash in the pan.