Sister-in-law Arrives

Looking at the message popping up on his panel, Sun Yang was exceptionally excited.

Although Chen Ming had already told him before that he would take him into a dungeon to level up, he was still incredibly thrilled now that the moment had truly arrived.

He looked at the member information in the squad—

[Chen Ming (Captain)—C-rank Shield Guard]

[Qin Zhixue (Member)—SS-rank Holy Radiance Angel]

[Sun Yang (Member)—B-rank Shadow-Hiding Blade]

Good heavens...

One was ranked first in Cloud Sea City, and the other was ranked second.

He dared not imagine how fast or how fierce the dungeon clearance speed would be.

Even if he were just tagging along, it would surely be faster than his own leveling speed by who knows how much.

Was this heaven-sent fortune finally coming to him, Sun Yang?

However, there was one thing Sun Yang was still a bit puzzled about.

"Say, Brother Chen, when exactly did you and Qin Zhixue get together? You hid it so deep, not even telling your brother..."

Chen Ming raised an eyebrow, looking at Sun Yang with a strange expression.

"It's a friendly collaboration between her and me. Where is your mind wandering?"

But it was clear that Sun Yang did not take Chen Ming's explanation to heart.

Upon hearing this, Sun Yang revealed an 'I understand you' expression.

Keep pretending, keep on pretending.

The corners of his mouth turned down, revealing an inverted V-shaped smile.

"Brother Chen, no need to explain to your brother, I understand everything..."

Just at this moment, two familiar figures walked over from the direction of the city gate.

It was Qin Zhixue, followed by Lin Wei.

"Sister-in-law is here."

Sun Yang said to Chen Ming subconsciously.

Qin Zhixue was also a member of the Morning Light Squad; later, when Chen Ming took him to level up, they would definitely be coordinating with Qin Zhixue.

Sun Yang felt that as someone tagging along for points, he had to at least play some role.

For instance, helping his brother and sister-in-law foster their relationship.

It would also leave a good impression on Qin Zhixue, so she wouldn't look down on the team for having a B-rank existence.

He certainly didn't want to affect Brother Chen's lifelong happiness because of himself.

"Do you have nothing to do? If not, get moving!"

Chen Ming shot Sun Yang an annoyed glance.

"Alright, I've got the tact; I'll make space for Brother Chen and sister-in-law."

Sun Yang immediately stood up and left.

Before leaving, he didn't forget to give Chen Ming a thumbs-up for 'encouragement.'

Qin Zhixue walked up with Lin Wei at this moment.

Sun Yang's voice had been very loud just now, so she must have heard it.

Chen Ming had expected Qin Zhixue to be embarrassed or angry, or to call Sun Yang out on the spot to clarify the rumors between him and her.

However, she did not.

Qin Zhixue simply walked up in a composed manner, her expression calm and as indifferent as ever.

It was the big-eyed girl behind her who seemed to be looking at him with some hostility.

"Are you... is your body alright?"

Qin Zhixue looked at Chen Ming and asked.

She had spotted Chen Ming, this 'popular figure,' from afar.

After walking closer, she realized Chen Ming's body was like a red-hot branding iron, making one worry if he might melt on the spot the next second.

Chen Ming waved his hand, "No worries, I just swallowed a rare resource. I'll absorb it when I go back later."

Qin Zhixue's willow eyebrows furrowed slightly.

Swallowed a rare resource?

And then his body turned red, becoming this human furnace?

Even with her extensive experience, she had never encountered a situation like this.

Because swallowing resources raw was a major taboo for class-holders, and most who attempted it met a grim end.

Yet, considering it was Chen Ming, she suddenly felt it was inexplicably reasonable.

"There should still be room in the team, right?"

Qin Zhixue brought up the matter of forming a party.

"Naturally, there are two spots left," Chen Ming nodded.

The team limit was five people.

Including himself, Qin Zhixue, and the newly arrived Sun Yang, there were two spots remaining.

"Good, then let Lin Wei join as well."

Lin Wei was the wide-eyed girl standing behind Qin Zhixue.

An A-rank Contractor!

Chen Ming had heard of this class; it was a rather unique support profession.

Compared to standard support classes, a Contractor could only assist one person.

However, the person granted the 'contract' would receive an immense boost.

It could be said that this was a 'binding-type' support class that became incredibly powerful if paired with the right person.

It was no wonder her leveling speed was faster than the three S-rank class-holders in Cloud Sea City.

By following Qin Zhixue, an SS-rank class-holder, the A-rank Contractor's utility could even rival that of an S-rank support.

[You have invited Lin Wei (A-rank Contractor) to join the team!]

Chen Ming sent the invitation.

Since Lin Wei was with Qin Zhixue, he naturally wouldn't refuse.

[Lin Wei (A-rank Contractor) has joined 'Morning Light Squad'!]

Qin Zhixue said, "By the way, when will you have time? I have a special Dungeon Rune Stone."

Chen Ming perked up.

A special Dungeon Rune Stone?

He immediately thought of the Cloud Hidden Ravine dungeon; that wild dungeon had yielded him a bountiful harvest.

Thus, Chen Ming was currently very interested in Dungeon Rune Stones.

However, such items were rare and hard to come by.

Chen Ming knew that Qin Zhixue was inviting him to team up and challenge a dungeon.

He smiled.

"It should be soon."

He was actually a bit uncertain.

Judging by the speed at which he had absorbed rare resources previously.

Although the Azure Flame Molten Fire was of a very high level, it shouldn't take too long.

Perhaps he could finish absorbing it by this morning.

"Alright, I'll wait for you."

After entering the city gates, Chen Ming headed straight for the guild.

He needed to sell the beast cores he had harvested and take care of his equipment issues while he was at it.

It would only take a moment to buy and sell a few things anyway.

It was early morning, and there was almost no one in the guild hall.

Five minutes later.

Chen Ming walked out of the guild.

The sale of the beast cores this time had netted him 10 gold coins, dozens of times more than yesterday.

It was worth noting that the majority of this came from the two Trick Beast cores.

The level 7 Wind Demon Beast Core was worth 2 gold coins, equivalent to the total value of all the beast cores Chen Ming had obtained from killing exotic beasts while leveling from 3 to 6.

Trick Beast cores were inherently precious; they were the top choice for crafting high-quality equipment and even offered a chance to forge Epic-grade gear.

The level 8 Flame Spirit Beast Core was worth even more, valued at 6 gold coins.

Beast cores containing spiritual energy are essential materials for crafting spiritual equipment.

Chen Ming had originally intended to ask a guild blacksmith to craft a piece of spiritual equipment for him, but with the epic-grade Dust Heart Ring in his possession, there was no longer any need.

[Rock-Shattering Blade, Strength +20!]

[Dust Heart Ring, Spirit +300!]

At the same time, Chen Ming had his ordinary longsword with Strength +10 reforged by the guild, successfully extracting 10 Strength Rune Stones.

He also spent a hefty sum of nearly 10 gold coins to purchase 19 Spirit Rune Stones.

"Damn, this is expensive; the price of a single Spirit Rune Stone is five times higher than usual."

Between his selling and buying, he hadn't earned a single gold coin after an entire day of work.

There was no helping it; if he relied solely on killing exotic beasts, he had no idea how long it would take to max out the Dust Heart Ring's bonuses.

By the time he finished, Chen Ming might have already reached level 10 or higher.

He took a look at his current attributes.

[Level]: 6

[Strength]: 83

[Constitution]: 3500/4550 (20%)

[Recovery]: 435 (19%)

[Agility]: 79

[Spirit Power]: 1020 (20%)

"Not bad, my Spirit Power has finally broken the thousand mark."

After finishing everything, Chen Ming returned home.

It was time to get down to business!