306: Chapter 307 The Desperate Witch Becomes the Ultimate Construction Foreman! She Takes Bricklaying to a New Level!

The farce ended.

Lin Qi refocused his attention on the matter at hand.

Without the harassment of the Heavenly Eye satellites, the subsequent treatment process went much more smoothly.

The Abyss Curse inside Instructor Su Qing was like an old tree root embedded in her bones.

The normal method would be to slowly dig and excavate, which is time-consuming and laborious, and not guaranteed to be completely clean.

But Lin Qi's approach was much simpler and more brutal.

He used the Yin and Yang pill to create a "miniature Law storm" inside her body.

The Abyss energy attracted the Abyss Curse, drawing out all those roots hidden in the nooks and crannies.

Then, a burn from the Yang-polar power.

Clean as a whistle.

Another twenty minutes passed.

The last black marking on Instructor Su Qing's body slowly faded from her wrist.

It disappeared without a trace.

Instructor Su Qing's body trembled violently.

Then—it went quiet.

She sat there, dazed.

Motionless.

Lin Qi withdrew his finger and flexed his wrist.

"Done."

Instructor Su Qing did not answer.

Zhang Wei trotted over, peeking in to take a look.

"Instructor Su? Are you okay?"

There was no response.

"Did he break her while healing?" Zhang Wei muttered quietly, only to be smacked on the back of the head by Lin Qi.

"Shut up."

A few more seconds passed.

Instructor Su Qing lowered her head.

She stretched out her hands, turning them over and over, examining her palms repeatedly.

Before, her hands had always been covered by a faint, lingering layer of gray.

That was the external manifestation of the Abyss Curse.

It wasn't obvious, but she knew it was there.

Every time she saw that layer of gray, it reminded her—You are a cursed person.

Your Rank is locked.

You will never return to your Peak.

You are the "Despairing Witch."

But now.

That layer of gray was gone.

Her skin had become clean.

It wasn't in the sense of "becoming whiter" or "becoming more tender."

It was clean.

Like dust on glass being wiped away, revealing its original appearance.

Instructor Su Qing's hands began to tremble.

Then—her System panel jumped in the corner of her vision.

That Rank information, which had been locked for many years and displayed "Rank 60 (Locked)," changed.

The word "Locked" disappeared.

Immediately after.

60.

61.

62.

...

70.

She leveled up ten full Ranks in a row.

All that combat experience and essence energy that had been suppressed by the curse and accumulated over many years came flooding back the moment the shackles were lifted.

It was like a faucet that had been clogged for ten years suddenly being turned on.

A powerful force of Shadow energy erupted from Instructor Su Qing's body.

Jet-black shadows spread out beneath her feet, dyeing the ground within a ten-meter radius a deep black.

But this blackness no longer carried the disgusting Abyss Aura.

Instead, it was the pure, powerful Shadow Law belonging to the Shadow Dancer herself.

Zhang Wei was pushed back several meters by this Aura and landed on his butt.

"Holy crap!!"

He widened his eyes.

Third-Turn Peak.

No, wait, Fourth-Turn?!

Instructor Su Qing's Law fluctuations had already exceeded the scope of the Third-Turn!

She was charging toward the threshold of the Fourth-Turn!

"Yes, yes, yes!" Zhang Wei clapped on the ground, incredibly excited, "Instructor Su Qing is awesome! This is a huge win—"

Before he could finish his sentence.

The power fluctuations gradually subsided.

Instructor Su Qing stabilized at the Third-Turn Peak.

She hadn't broken through the threshold of the Fourth-Turn directly, but she was only a hair's breadth away from breaking through.

With her talent and combat experience, it probably wouldn't take long for her to cross it.

The shadows receded.

Instructor Su Qing stood up.

Zhang Wei looked at her and froze.

To be precise, he was stunned.

The previous Instructor Su Qing, although she had delicate features and a tall figure, gave off the feeling of: "Don't come near me, or you'll die."

She was cold, murderous, and always carried an unshakable gloom between her brows.

But now.

The gloom was gone.

The coldness remained, but that "Death Qi" that made people shudder had completely dissipated.

In its place was something—Zhang Wei thought for a long time and could only come up with one word.

Clean.

Just like snow on a high mountain.

It was cold, but it was a clear cold, a cold that made it impossible to look away.

"What are you staring at her for?" Lin Qi kicked him.

"No, no, no!" Zhang Wei hurriedly withdrew his gaze, "I just think... Instructor Su Qing looks so much younger..."

This was true.

After the curse was lifted, Instructor Su Qing's appearance and temperament had changed significantly.

The haggardness and aging caused by the erosion of the Abyss Law had all been reversed.

If the previous Instructor Su Qing looked like a cold and beautiful woman in her early thirties, then now, she looked at most twenty-five.

Instructor Su Qing ignored Zhang Wei.

She stood there, closed her eyes, and felt her body for a while.

The pain of the past was gone.

The despair of the past was gone.

That disgusting sensation of the curse crawling in her blood vessels, which she could feel every time she woke up, had completely vanished.

Her eyes turned red.

Instructor Su Qing, the cold-as-frost Instructor Su Qing, the retired Third-Turn powerhouse Instructor Su Qing, the Despairing Witch Instructor Su Qing.

In front of Lin Qi and Zhang Wei—there was moisture in her eyes.

But she didn't let the tears fall.

She took a deep breath.

Then, she did something that almost made Zhang Wei's jaw drop.

She knelt on one knee.

Facing Lin Qi.

"Boss."

Her voice was steady and powerful, without a hint of hesitation.

"From now on, my life belongs to you. Whether it's 996 or 007, feel free to exploit me."

"I will remember this kindness for the rest of my life."

Lin Qi looked down at her, expressionless.

"Get up."

Instructor Su Qing didn't move.

"I said get up."

"...Okay." Instructor Su Qing stood up.

"Kneeling around, aren't your knees sore?" Lin Qi waved his hand, "Don't do that empty stuff. Just work hard in the future. If your performance doesn't meet the standard, I'll deduct your salary."

Instructor Su Qing: "..."

Zhang Wei was struggling to hold back his laughter on the side.

"Alright, stop standing there." Lin Qi clapped his hands, "This place will be my laboratory from now on; it can't always look like this ghost town."

He looked around.

It was devastated, full of ruins, rubble, and scorched earth with lingering Abyss Aura.

It really wasn't suitable for living.

"Instructor Su Qing, what is your current status?"

"Third-Turn Peak, full stamina, combat power fully restored." Instructor Su Qing's answer was concise and powerful.

"Good." Lin Qi pointed at a pile of broken walls and ruins in the distance, "First, clean that side up. Move those big stones away, level the ground, and get me a clearing of at least five hundred square meters."

Instructor Su Qing: "...Now?"

"Otherwise what? Wait for the New Year?"

Instructor Su Qing was silent for two seconds.

Then, without a word, she turned and walked toward the ruins.

Shadow energy condensed in her hands, turning into dozens of tentacle-like shadows.

Those shadows burrowed into the rubble, easily lifting boulders weighing several tons and throwing them a hundred meters away.

The movements were incredibly smooth.

It was like a crane with cheats enabled.

Zhang Wei was dumbfounded.

"This... she's already starting to move bricks?"

"Don't just stand there either." Lin Qi glanced at him.

"Huh? Me?" Zhang Wei pointed at himself, "Brother Qi, I'm just an alchemist... manual labor really isn't my specialty..."

"Who asked you to move bricks?"

"Then what do I do?"

"What is your specialty?"

"Making money."

"Then that's it." Lin Qi pulled a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket—he didn't know when he had written it—and handed it to Zhang Wei.

Zhang Wei took it and looked.

It was densely packed with a list of supplies.

Things like high-purity essence crystals, S-Rank Law metals, space-stabilizing alloys, isolation rune Materials... there were many categories, and each item was marked with a precise quantity.

"For these things, go through the Federation's channels to buy them. If you can't buy them, go through the black market. If the black market doesn't have them either, find Chen Shu."

"Price is no object."

"Get it done quickly."

Zhang Wei looked at the list, his mouth twitching.

"Brother Qi, if we get all this stuff, it's going to cost at least a hundred million..."

"Is there a problem?"

"No problem. Money, after all, is just for spending for fun."

Zhang Wei chuckled and put the list into his pocket.

He said he felt the pain of spending money, but in reality, he was happier than anyone.

Brother Qi was starting to build a base!

What did this mean?

It meant Brother Qi was going to put down roots!

Once Brother Qi put down roots, he, Zhang Wei, would have the biggest backer!

In the future, the business of Huichun Hall would definitely take off, right?

The three of them each performed their duties.

Instructor Su Qing was responsible for demolition, Zhang Wei was responsible for procurement, and Lin Qi was responsible for sitting on a relatively intact stone slab, munching on an apple he had created, supervising the work.

Standard capitalist behavior.

Just as everything was proceeding in an orderly manner, the sound of aircraft engines came from the horizon again.

But this time, it wasn't a fighter jet.

It was a huge Federation military transport ship.

The logo of Longya Academy was painted on the hull.

Instructor Su Qing coldly stopped her work, watching the transport ship slowly land.

Zhang Wei also ran over.

"Brother Qi, more people are coming."

Lin Qi took a bite of the apple.

"Hmm. This time, they are here to deliver things."

The transport ship's hatch opened.

A familiar figure, looking several years older, walked out.

Zhao Shouzhen.

Behind him followed a squad of orderlies, pushing over a dozen space-compression carts, piled high with supply crates.

The old man's expression was complex and stifled.

Half a day ago, he had been roasted by Lin Qi to the point where his blood pressure skyrocketed, and now he had been kicked over by General Luo Zhenbang to act as a delivery man.

Life, it rises and falls too quickly.

He looked up and glanced at Instructor Su Qing, who was moving bricks with Shadow energy.

He froze.

"Su... Instructor Su Qing?"

That woman, filled with powerful Shadow energy, whose face looked a full ten years younger, and who was exuding the pressure of a Third-Turn Peak—was that Instructor Su Qing??

Zhao Shouzhen rubbed his presbyopic eyes vigorously.

Instructor Su Qing didn't even turn her head, just said indifferently.

"Dean Zhao."

"I am now an employee of Boss Lin."

Zhao Shouzhen's mouth opened, but he couldn't say anything.

He turned his head to look at Lin Qi, who was sitting on the stone slab munching on an apple.

Lin Qi lifted his chin toward him.

"Did you bring everything?"

Zhao Shouzhen forcibly suppressed the mixed feelings churning in his heart and pulled a folder from his pocket.

"The three major conditions, General Luo Zhenbang approved them all."

His voice was a bit dry.

"This is the transfer document for the highest jurisdiction of the D-3 Region, the incorporation procedures for Sword Saint Ye Qingtian, and the proof of the cancellation of the favor between Instructor Su Qing and Longya Academy. All the stamps are from today."

"Also, General Luo Zhenbang asked me to pass on a message."

"What message?"

Zhao Shouzhen took another deep breath.

"He said—'Thank you for not hitting me with that ball of mud.'"