409: Chapter 408 Qin Yi's power surges, advancing to the peak of Dark Force!

From Beijing International Airport to the Military General Hospital, it was a journey of nearly forty kilometers, taking almost an hour to finally arrive.

After getting out of the car, Zhao Yichun and his wife, led by Xiao Wang, hurried to the outside of the ICU ward.

On a bench outside the ICU, a young man in military uniform saw the two arrive and immediately stood up, bowing as he said, "Uncle Zhao, I'm sorry. I didn't take good care of the old master."

Zhao Yichun hurried forward to support Xiao Liu. Although he felt some resentment in his heart, he said with a gentle expression, "I already heard from Xiao Wang on the way here. You've done very well. If you hadn't discovered it in time, the old master would have truly been in grave danger."

Zhao Yichun's wife also nodded in agreement. "Yes, Xiao Liu, you've done quite well. Both of us should be thanking you."

"How is the old master?" Through the glass of the monitoring room, Zhao Yichun looked at the old master, who was wearing an oxygen mask and hooked up to various instruments. His eyes instantly reddened, a wave of bitterness welled up in his heart, and he asked anxiously.

"Since the surgery ended, the old master has been in the ICU for twelve hours. The doctor said he hasn't passed the critical period yet." Xiao Liu's voice lowered.

"Where's Lintai? Where the hell is that boy? His grandfather is in such a state; why isn't he here at the hospital keeping watch?!" Not seeing his son, Zhao Yichun's anger flared up again as he questioned coldly.

"Didn't Young Master Lintai tell you? He left the capital half a month ago. First, he went to Shanghai, saying he had business to handle, and later he went to the Southwest." At this point, Xiao Liu paused, took out that copy of the Southwest Evening News from his briefcase, handed it to Zhao Yichun, and continued, "The old master suffered a sudden heart attack right after reading this report in the Southwest Evening News."

Could there be more to the old master's sudden heart attack? Thinking this, Zhao Yichun took the newspaper and immediately noticed the headline on the front page of the Southwest Evening News regarding the marriage contract between the Si and Zhao families.

As he read line by line, his breathing became heavier, his chest heaving with each breath. Then, he slammed a fist against the wall. "Outrageous! Those ungrateful dogs of the Si Family!"

Seeing her husband lose his composure like this, Zhao Yichun's wife immediately stepped forward, took his arm, and said in a low voice, "Old Zhao, control your emotions. What on earth happened? Is it worth such a huge outburst?"

"See for yourself! I was wondering why the old master, who's usually in good health, would have a sudden heart attack. It turns out it was all the Si Family's doing!"

Zhao Yichun's wife took the newspaper and looked at it, then turned to Zhao Yichun with a look of shock, muttering, "How can this be? Wasn't the marriage contract between our two families settled long ago? What does the old master of the Si Family mean by this? And what about our son? Could something have happened to him in the Southwest?"

Zhao Yichun finally came to his senses and grabbed Xiao Liu's arm, pressing for answers. "Xiao Liu, tell me the truth. Why hasn't my son returned from the Southwest yet? Does he not know about his grandfather being hospitalized? Or has something happened to my son in the Southwest?"

"Please don't worry. As soon as something happened to the old master, I called Young Master Lintai, but I couldn't get through. This matter has also been reported to Donghe Villa. According to the leader's Secretary Zhang, people have been arranged to look for him, and there should be news soon."

Speak of the devil!

Just as the words were spoken, someone walked quickly toward them. Xiao Wang, who had been watching quietly from the side, saw the person and hurriedly whispered a reminder, "Secretary Zhang has arrived."

Hearing this, Zhao Yichun immediately looked at the newcomer. He naturally recognized this chief secretary from Donghe Villa.

He hurried to meet him. After the two shook hands firmly, Secretary Zhang spoke first. "Comrade Zhao Yichun, I have come on the leader's instructions to visit Old Master Zhao. The leader wanted to come in person, but unfortunately, there are several important foreign affairs activities today that he cannot get away from. I hope you understand."

"You're far too kind. With the leader being so busy, we are already very grateful that he could spare a thought for my father."

"It's only right. Old Master Zhao has served the country well; his sudden heart attack is truly worrying. So, has the old master regained consciousness yet?"

"Sigh," Zhao Yichun shook his head and sighed. "He's at such an age, after all. No matter how successful the surgery was, his bodily functions are what they are—not like when he was young. It's a pity that both of us work abroad year-round and can't be by his side. Our only son is far away in the Southwest and can't be reached, leaving us to just worry in vain..."

Secretary Zhang patted his shoulder and consoled him, "Rest assured. When I came, I had already received a report from the Southwest Military Region. Young Master Zhao Lintai has been found and is currently on a plane back to the capital. By my calculation, he should arrive around nine o'clock. Perhaps once the old master hears his grandson's voice, he will wake up."

Hearing this, Zhao Yichun and his wife exchanged a glance, the anxiety in their eyes finally fading a bit. As long as their son was safe, it was fine. As for the Si Family—how dare they insult their family like this! Once the old master woke up, they would definitely make the Si Family pay!

...

Meanwhile, at the Southwest International Hotel.

Qin Yi rolled over. Before he could wake from his slumber, a System notification chimed without warning within his Sea of Consciousness.

[Ding! Congratulations, Host! It has been detected that Si Hongbin's favorability toward the Host has increased by 10 points. Current favorability: 90!]

[Ding! Congratulations, Host! The mission to increase Si Hongbin's favorability has been completed! Rewards: Mental Energy +2, Intelligence +3, Special Gacha Draw +1!]

Qin Yi's consciousness was instantly pulled into his Sea of Consciousness. Yawning and stretching, his face beamed with an uncontrollable smile as he muttered to himself, "It seems Brother Bin has woken up. Not bad, another System draw!"

Thus, Qin Yi immediately sat cross-legged within his Sea of Consciousness. With a voice still laced with post-sleep lethargy, he commanded the System, "System, stop dawdling and start the draw!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a gacha wheel instantly appeared and began to spin rapidly.

Before long, as the System notification sounded, the reward item floated within the Sea of Consciousness.

[Ding! Congratulations, Host! You have obtained a special item—Elementary Skill Upgrade Card *1!]

"Uh, that's it?!" The moment he saw the reward, the smile on Qin Yi's face froze. His heart full of anticipation felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over it, instantly cooling his excitement.

He curled his lip and sighed helplessly. "Fine! It seems my luck has run out. If I want to draw something good again, I'll have to accumulate more karma."

Whatever, let's check the six-dimensional attributes again!

I don't even know how much my strength has increased after absorbing the Black Dragon Essence Blood. I was interrupted by that sudden dragon phantom earlier and forgot to check my six-dimensional attributes.

Thinking of this, he immediately perked up and impatiently ordered the System, "System, check six-dimensional attributes!"

As soon as he spoke, a screen of light appeared within his Sea of Consciousness. On the screen, Qin Yi's six-dimensional attributes and various skill lists were displayed in full.

[Host: Qin Yi]

[Strength: ??]

[Agility: 33]

[Intelligence: 38]

[Endurance: 36]

[Mental Energy: 40]

[Charm: 37]

[Realm: Peak Anjin]

[Cultivation Techniques: Fist Technique—Xingyi Quan (Major Achievement), Movement Technique—Divine Movement Hundred Changes (Second Stage), Body Refining Technique—Basic Body Forging Art, Internal Mind-Cultivation Technique—Supreme Soul Suppressing Art (Perfection), Blazing Sun True Art (Minor Achievement), Jade Maiden Heart Sutra (Entry-Level)]

[Special Skills: Eye of Truth (Advanced), God-level Driving Skill, God of Hackers (Entry-Level), God of Cooking, Firearms Proficiency (Elementary), Financial Prophet (Advanced), Jade Appreciation Master, Craft Master (Divine-Grade), God of Alchemy]

[System Items: longevity pill Formula *1, purple gold life-prolonging pill *1, clear spirit pill Formula *1, spirit gathering pill Formula *1, hundred herb pill Formula *1, dragon saliva liquid (Mission Item), xuanwu domain suppressing ring, golden dragon longevity tripod Fragment, Miniature Bionic Tracker *1, bionic disguise mask *1, basic strength enhancement potion *10, Basic Agility Enhancement Potion *10, junior misfortune talisman *1, longevity pill *1, Low Grade Spiritual Artifact Dagger—clear shadow, type 54 pistol *1, Bullets *4... (Various property items omitted)]

[System Rank: Level 1, Upgrade Experience: 49,365,268/100,000,000]

[System Points: 1,900]

[Pending Missions:]

1. Random Mission—Endure for a moment and the winds calm, take a step back and the more you think about it, the angrier you get! Find the mastermind behind your family's bankruptcy and let them taste the feeling of being forcibly plundered! No time limit! Current mission progress: 90%!

2. Special Mission—Only children make choices; adults, of course, want it all! Within one month, establish two companies and get them on the right track! Mission progress: 85%. Time remaining: 18 days, 12 hours, 15 minutes!

[Remaining draws for today: 0]

"Wait, System, why is my strength value a question mark?" Qin Yi looked at the question mark displayed for the strength attribute on the panel, his brow furrowed in confusion.

[Ding! Reporting to the Host, after the Black Dragon Essence Blood was absorbed and refined, the Host's current strength value has far exceeded the maximum for the current Realm; therefore, the System will not display it. Once the Host elevates his Realm to Huajin, the numerical value will be displayed normally!]

Hearing the System's explanation, Qin Yi's body jolted, and a look of wild joy bloomed on his face. "Does this mean my current strength far exceeds those in the same Realm, and has even reached the level of Huajin? This Black Dragon Essence Blood is truly awesome! Not only has my strength increased, but my Realm has also risen to Peak Anjin!"

According to what the System said before, if the average value of the six-dimensional attributes exceeds 25, it's Peak Clear Strength; if it exceeds 30, it's the Anjin Stage. Now that it's judged as Peak Anjin, it means the average has already exceeded 35.

Qin Yi looked at the values of his six-dimensional attributes and did a quick mental calculation. Sure enough, excluding the unknown strength value, the average of the other five categories had reached 36.8.

It seems reaching Huajin is just a matter of a few more missions.

Afterward, Qin Yi turned his attention back to his special skills. At this stage, the only skills that could be upgraded with the 'Elementary Skill Card' were 'God of Hackers' and 'Firearms Proficiency.'

After some thought, he decided to upgrade the 'God of Hackers' skill first.

After all, with his current terrifying strength, it should be very difficult for anyone to hurt him anymore. Upgrading the 'God of Hackers' skill might be useful for managing his companies.

"System, use the Elementary Skill Upgrade Card to upgrade the God of Hackers skill!"

As soon as he spoke, the Elementary Skill Upgrade Card vanished before Qin Yi's eyes, and a second later, the System notification rang out.

[Ding! Congratulations, Host! You have successfully used the Elementary Skill Upgrade Card to upgrade the God of Hackers skill to the Elite Level! As an Elite Level God of Hackers, the Host can easily breach the network defenses of large internet technology companies such as Fruit, Penguin, and Ali without leaving any trace!]

After upgrading the skill, Qin Yi shifted his focus back to the dragon saliva liquid.

This trip to the Southwest had two purposes: one was to pose as Si Yao's boyfriend to strike at Zhao Lintai, and the other was to find this dragon saliva liquid. Now that the dragon saliva liquid was in his possession, Qin Yi fell into deep thought.

At this moment, he didn't want to use his own True Qi to refine the clear shadow Dagger.

Compared to himself, the spiritual liquid in that cavern would be of greater use to the Si Family. Moreover, the Si Family had suffered heavy losses in the battle at Zhuilong Valley, which ultimately was because of him.

Whether out of emotion or logic, he should do something to make amends, which would also help ease his conscience.

Having made up his mind, Qin Yi took the clear shadow Dagger out of his System Space and placed it on the bedside table. At the same time, he poured the collected dragon saliva liquid into an empty mineral water bottle.

He would find a suitable opportunity later to hand these two items over to the Si Family as compensation.

Just as he was thinking this, the phone on the bedside table rang urgently.