—-

Kent strolled through the foggy battlefield ruins, his hands tucked behind his head, whistling an off-key tune. The adrenaline from the earlier battle had already worn off, leaving him in his usual carefree state.

"Man, those ghouls were pathetic," Kent muttered. "But hey, they gave me a nice SP boost. And those kids' reactions? Priceless."

Ding!

System Notification:

+999 SP from 788 (Anger).

"Huh?" Kent stopped in his tracks, his eyes narrowing as he scanned the desolate landscape around him. "System, who's 788?"

Ding!

788 Identified:

A Dark Alliance Operative.

Cultivation Level: C-Low.

Motive: Unknown.

Note: Dark Alliance members typically have numerical codes instead of names. They are known for their ruthless tactics.

"A Dark Alliance member?" Kent murmured, his playful demeanour vanishing for a moment. "Didn't Miss Elena say something about those guys? Something about them being trouble… and having no names, only numbers."

He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "So this guy's been following me? I guess he's mad about something. What should I do? Should I fight him or run from him?"

Or I can report to a watcher or Nexus Jade Monroe about him. Nah! I can't do that. If they ask me how I find out about him, what will I answer? I can't say my system reveals his information.

😈 A grin crept onto Kent's face. "Perfect. He's angry, which means… SP farming opportunity! Let's have some fun with this guy.

Kent started walking again, his pace deliberately slow. He knew 788 was tailing him, so he made sure to leave a clear trail. Occasionally, he'd whistle loudly or kick a rock, ensuring his pursuer wouldn't lose him.

"Alright, System," Kent whispered. "Let me know whenever he gets close. And keep the SP counter running."

Ding!

System Monitoring Activated.

It wasn't long before Kent felt the faint pressure of spiritual energy behind him. 788 was closing in, but Kent pretended not to notice. Instead, he hummed to himself, stopping every now and then to inspect random rocks or sticks.

"This place is so boring," Kent shouted, stretching his arms. "No treasures, no cool artifacts, just a bunch of dead grass and fog."

Ding!

+999 SP from 788 (Irritation).

Kent smirked. "Oh, he's annoyed already? This is gonna be fun."

After a few minutes of walking, Kent reached a narrow ravine. The walls were steep, and the ground was littered with loose stones. He paused, pretending to tie his shoelace.

WHOOSH!

A sharp burst of spiritual energy shot past him, slicing into the ground a few feet ahead.

Kent straightened up, turning slowly to face his attacker. "Well, well, well. Suppose it isn't Mr. 788. Took you long enough to catch up."

How did you know my name? Who are you? Answer me! 788 said to Kent.

Kent replied. I am also a member… I saw your file. We both pretended to be students. My mission is to get close to the Nexus and Watcher.

The hooded figure stepped forward, his face partially hidden in shadow. His voice was cold and emotionless. "You ruined my mission."

"Oh, did I?" Kent said, feigning ignorance. "Sorry about that. I was just busy saving lives and being awesome. I didn't mean to mess up your plans. I want to save those students and help them gain some recognition so that I can get close to NEXUS.

As you know, they are very cautious. Your plan was very sloppy. If anyone from the watcher was present in the area, you plan… you need to be more clever."

Ding!

+1,200 SP from 788 (Frustration).

788's fists clenched, his spiritual energy flaring around him. "You think this is funny?"

Kent tilted his head, grinning. "A little, yeah. But hey, you look strong. How about we team up? Two fellow cultivators exploring the ruins together—sounds fun, right?"

788 hesitated, clearly caught off guard by Kent's sudden proposal. "You… want to team up?"

"Of course!" Kent said, stepping closer. "Think about it. With your strength and my… uh, charm, we could totally dominate this place."

Ding!

+500 SP from 788 (Confusion).

Despite his suspicions, 788 agreed to team up with Kent, if only to keep an eye on him. "788 thinks he knows my name. Only Dark Alliance core members can have that information. But something is different about him. I have to be careful around him."

The two walked through the ruins in tense silence, with Kent occasionally breaking the awkwardness by pointing out random rocks or pretending to hear ghouls nearby.

"Did you hear that?" Kent whispered, stopping suddenly.

788 froze, his eyes darting around. "What?"

"I thought I heard a ghoul growling," Kent said, squinting into the fog. "Maybe it's hiding behind that rock over there."

788 cautiously approached the rock, his spiritual energy flaring in preparation for an attack. But when he kicked the rock aside, there was nothing there.

"Oops," Kent said, scratching his head. "False alarm. My bad."

Ding!

+800 SP from 788 (Annoyance).

As they continued walking, Kent pretended to pull out a small pouch from his backpack. "He pulled it out from system storage."

"What's that?" 788 asked, eyeing the pouch suspiciously.

"Lunch," Kent said, grinning. He opened the pouch, revealing a batch of stinky momos he had saved from his earlier pranks. The pungent smell immediately filled the air.

788 gagged, covering his nose. "What the hell is that smell?!"

"Stinky momos," Kent said proudly, taking a big bite. "Want some?"

788 took a step back, his face twisted in disgust. "Keep that thing away from me!"

Ding!

+1,500 SP from 788 (Disgust).

Kent laughed, waving the momo in front of 788. "Come on, don't be shy. They're delicious!"

As they walked through a particularly foggy area, Kent suddenly gasped, pointing at something in the distance.

"Look! A treasure chest!" he shouted, dashing forward.

788 followed reluctantly, his eyes narrowing as he spotted the object Kent was running toward.

When they got closer, it turned out to be an old, broken crate covered in moss.

"Oh," Kent said, scratching his head. "Never mind. False alarm again."

788 glared at him. "Stop wasting my time."

Ding!

+1,200 SP from 788 (Irritation).

As the day went on, Kent continued to cause minor inconveniences for 788, all while pretending to be his comrade, a clueless teammate.

Every time 788 grew frustrated or annoyed, Kent silently celebrated the SP notifications flooding his system.

"Man, this guy's a goldmine," Kent thought to himself. "At this rate, I'll hit a million SP in no time from him." He already gave me over 300 thousand SP. My level-up is close, and I can feel that. "Thank you, 788."

Their "teamwork" was interrupted when a group of ghouls emerged from the fog, snarling and baring their fangs.

"Finally, some action!" Kent said, cracking his knuckles.

But instead of attacking, he stepped back, motioning for 788 to take the lead. "You've got this, buddy. Show me what you've got!"

788 hesitated, glaring at Kent. "You're not going to help?"

"Of course I will," Kent said, grinning. "I'm moral support. Go get 'em, tiger!"

Ding!

+1,000 SP from 788 (Frustration).

788 had no choice but to fight the ghouls alone. He dispatched them quickly, his movements efficient and precise.

Kent clapped enthusiastically. "Wow, that was amazing! You're like a one-man army!"

Clap!

👏 👏

Clap!

788 ignored him, wiping the blood from his blade.

As the two continued exploring, a sudden tremor shook the ground.

"What was that?" Kent asked, looking around.

Before 788 could answer, a deafening rumble echoed through the ruins. The fog grew thicker, and the air became heavy with spiritual energy.

788 said it was a fighting tremor. Someone is fighting with a powerful monster. From the force of this tremor, I can say this is definitely from a Level-B cultivator.

It must be Nexus Jade Monroe. He is the only Level-B cultivator inside this ruin. Let me move forward.