Chapter 27: Soros, Assembled!
After purchasing information on the Han family, Yu Xun'ge went straight to a massage parlor. She booked a three-hour package, intending to catch up on sleep while getting massaged, as she had no plans to sleep that night either.
Time was of the essence; she wanted to finish her business quickly so she could return to her alchemy lessons.
It was already July 3rd, and the third closed beta test was scheduled for October 10th. She needed to level up her alchemy as much as possible.
The masseur, number 88, lived up to his reputation; such prime numbers were only ever assigned to the truly elite. Yu Xun'ge slept for three hours during the massage, yet felt as refreshed as if she had rested the entire night. She glanced at the masseur, thinking that once the game invasion began, his massage technique would likely be digitized into a skill.
Yu Xun'ge didn't bother looking for a hotel. The massage parlor allowed guests to stay overnight for a fee. After confirming there were no surveillance cameras in the room, she booked it and instructed the staff not to wake her until eight the next morning.
Once the staff left, Yu Xun'ge meticulously checked for hidden cameras again. Finding none, she locked the door, tossed her bag onto the massage bed, and stepped into the bathroom. She cast the Disillusionment Charm and then Apparated to a logistics delivery station near the entrance of the black market.
She disliked the habit of having couriers deliver goods to the scene of a crime; she didn't want anyone to map out her patterns.
She had obtained the delivery schedule. A transport truck stopped at this station at this exact time every day. After unloading, it would continue its route, and the seventh stop was only five kilometers away from the Han estate.
It was a bit of a hassle, but since she had never been to the Han estate, she couldn't Apparate there—without a clear mental image of the destination, she feared she might materialize inside Han Qianshan's body.
Riding the delivery truck, Yu Xun'ge arrived outside the Han estate before dark.
*Must one live in a manor to be worthy of being the wife of a matrilocal son-in-law?*
Yu Xun'ge took a deep breath. Relying on her extensive experience in breaking and entering, she quickly located Han Qianshan.
As for Han Qianhai, he was just like her—a relative of the protagonists. But her treatment was nothing compared to his; Han Qianshan and Han Qianhai were truly as close as brothers. Even after Han Qianshan fell in love with Yu Xunhuan, he would never have harmed Han Qianhai for her sake.
In her past life, Yu Xun'ge had been incredibly envious of that.
Her mission today was Soros, not revenge. Using a potion, Yu Xun'ge walked straight into Han Qianshan’s room and expertly crawled under...
Damn it, Han Qianshan's bed was solid, with a wooden base.
Yu Xun'ge sat cross-legged at the foot of the bed, grateful that she had learned the Disillusionment Charm.
She kept her eyes lowered, avoiding Han Qianshan. People were strange—even in their sleep, they could keenly sense someone’s gaze.
As usual, she started with "Wheel of Fate" to whet her appetite, dropping Han Qianshan's luck to 1, followed by a "Stupefy" for insurance. Then, she began chugging Lesser Healing Potions without regard for cost, casting "I Want This, This, and This" on him.
Intelligence +1
Intelligence +1
Soros Top Hat +1
Stop!
She had actually seen this hat in her past life; it turned out to be the final piece of the Soros set.
Wait, was this thing really standard equipment for the female lead?
She couldn't wait to inspect the Soros Top Hat.
[Soros Set · Top Hat (3/3)] (Grade A): Even a diviner capable of crossing the river of fate—assuming their skills and items are Grade A or below—cannot track your whereabouts. Must be worn to take effect.
When she placed the [Soros Set · Glasses] and [Soros Set · Mask] alongside the top hat, the black hat, gold-rimmed glasses, and silver mask emitted a faint glow, slowly merging into a small, exquisite silver pocket watch.
[Soros's Time] (S): You don't need to know who I am, where I am, or what I'm doing. I'm in a hurry.
[Skill 1] Disguise: You may disguise anything about yourself at will; the disguise takes effect immediately.
[Skill 2] Probe: You may probe anything you wish to know. Probing detailed information costs 10 mana per second. An energy-saving mode is available, displaying only basic information about characters/items at a cost of 1 mana per minute.
[Skill 3] Concealment: You cannot be divined by anyone or anything. If someone attempts to divine your whereabouts, you will perceive their existence. (Soros is the strongest. Even if an SS-rank comes, they will only see a fog. That is what I say—Soros.)
[Set Skill] I'm in a Hurry: Teleport to any location within your line of sight (up to 5 meters). Cooldown: 10 seconds.
A massive haul!
Yu Xun'ge smoothed her breathing and immediately activated the energy-saving mode for Probe. Now, just like in a game, players in her field of vision had a line of shimmering blue text above their heads, displaying their name, level, and percentages for HP and mana.
For instance, Han Qianshan’s read: Han Qianshan | Level 0 | 100% | 100%.
Suppressing her excitement, she used the skill on Han Qianshan a few more times.
Physique +1
Time to go!
She then headed downstairs to Han Qianhai’s room.
"Wheel of Fate" was still on cooldown, so she could only use "Stupefy" plus the "God of Thieves" package.
She worked until dawn, netting only two points of Physique.
As she walked out of the Han estate, her main stats were:
[HP]: 150/150 [Mana]: 200/200
[Strength]: 8
[Physique]: 8+3
[Intelligence]: 12+2
[Agility]: 21
[Luck]: 10 (Max)
[Charisma]: 10 (Max)
Her HP had finally begun to increase. Physique was a comprehensive attribute affecting vitality, defense, magic resistance, mental resistance, and recovery speed. Her initial Physique had been only 6, so her HP hadn't changed during previous increases. But once Physique exceeded 10, every additional point added 50 HP. Leveling up also provided growth, though the amount wasn't fixed—those with higher Physique gained higher bonuses upon leveling.
The same applied to mana; thanks to the increase in Intelligence, her mana was now 300.
Yu Xun'ge hung the pocket watch around her neck and tucked it inside her undergarments. If she could, she would have sewn a small, lockable pocket onto her bra to secure it.
Although the disguise effect worked just by keeping the items in her bag, the anti-divination effect required her to wear them. Moreover, she needed to wear them to use the set skills; the Soros set skills were too practical to ignore.
Since she had hitched rides to the Han estate, she had seen the route. Even though the Han estate was over thirty kilometers from the massage parlor, she could now Apparate. With 14 points of Intelligence, she could cover 14 kilometers per jump. After three jumps, Yu Xun'ge was back in the bathroom of the massage parlor.
She showered, changed, unlocked the door, and got into bed to avoid sudden death.
When the staff came to wake her at 8:00 AM, she simply ordered three more hours and went out for a meal at noon.
She needed to think about what kind of "gift" to leave for Han Qianshan and Han Qianhai.
Otherwise, she would be failing the slave formation she had once carved into her own back.
Back then, Yu Xunhuan had arrived just in time to save her. But now, with her "2.0 version" brain, she realized something was off: *Why did you arrive exactly when the formation was finished and the incantation completed, neither a moment sooner nor later?*
She couldn't bear it; she simply couldn't bring herself to kill Han Qianshan with one swift blow.
She had to torture him before killing him to find peace of mind.
Otherwise, she would be left with the emptiness of someone who had fasted for ten days, only to walk into a buffet and force themselves to eat chicken and vegetable salad for their health.
If she killed her enemy with one stroke, she would spend the rest of her life waking up in the middle of the night to slap herself: *Wait, you just killed him like that?!*