Association

Ooh, head hurts!

When he regained consciousness in a dazed state, Chen Hao felt as though he had been knocked out from the back of his head with a rod. The heavy and painful sensation made his face twist in agony.

Rubbing the back of his head vigorously, Chen Hao sat upright and looked at his surroundings.

It was bright outside the windows. From the looks of it, it was almost noon. The rumbling noises from his stomach made it clear he had woken up because he was too hungry.

Slowly, Chen Hao recalled what he was doing before he fell unconscious and couldn't resist laughing bitterly. "Indeed, I'm not powerful enough. Blessing magical artifacts is too taxing on my body."

With a sigh, Chen Hao got out of bed. After he blessed them, those two objects now seemed to have a spiritual nature about them. The more he looked at them, the more pleased he felt—whatever conflict he had felt earlier dissipated.

Suffering a little to obtain two magical artifacts was totally worth it.

Eh, why so many missed calls?

Chen Hao was instantly startled when he tapped open his phone.

On his phone interface, it was indicated that he had more than thirty missed calls and more than ten text messages. The minute he saw the name, the corner of Chen Hao's mouth twitched, and he thought to himself "Oh crap."

The missed calls came from Sister Wang, his immediate superior.

A sense of doom washed over him. He had been so focused on his mission and the blessing of artifacts that he completely forgot he still needed to go to work. Come to think of it, he had skipped work yesterday, and today…

Chen Hao looked up at the skies, helplessness was written all over his face.

Seems like he was about to lose this very decent job.

Chen Hao hurriedly tapped open his phone and returned Sister Wang's call.

The other party answered nearly instantly and a female voice bellowed over the phone.

"Chen Hao, what's the matter with you? You think you're still in school and you still have two days off?"

Chen Hao held the phone away from his ears. After she was done screaming at him, he then said into the phone, "Sister Wang, sorry. I ran into something, so…"

"Don't tell me so-and-so passed away in your family, and also don't tell me who you offended and how you're being bullied. You're not acting in a TV drama. Chen Hao, if you don't feel like coming to work, just resign. I promise you I'll approve it. Don't bring your darned habits from your school days into the company," Sister Wang continued ranting. Then, without waiting for him to reply, she hung up.

Chen Hao was speechless.

Okay, that's a gone case.

It was okay, though. Ever since he found the Pleasure Helping Spirit System, he did not view highly this ordinary job anymore. Perhaps this was an opportunity for him to break free.

Chen Hao took a deep breath and quietly resolved to do his best to accomplish the missions so that he could achieve something as quickly as possible. Only then would he become a true master and make his riches with his abilities to bless artifacts.

Chen Hao made another call.

"Hur hur, I was just thinking of calling you, Brother. Surprisingly, you made the move first. We're indeed connected by telepathy," Zhou Gang said cheerfully when the call got through.

Chen Hao's mouth twitched.

What a glib tongue. He's indeed someone adept at playing the political game in an organization.

"Brother Zhou, I've prepared the gift for your daughter. Are you free now? I'll bring it over right away," Chen Hao said with a smile.

Zhou Gang replied, "Of course. My wife is out buying groceries. Do come over now. The two of us should have a good drink."

Chen Hao accepted the invitation.

After hanging up the phone, he took a shower and changed into clean clothes, before leaving the house with his two magical artifacts.

Half an hour later, Chen Hao arrived at Zhou Gang's place. He knocked on his door and was instantly welcomed into the house by Zhou Gang as if he was his close kin. This was vastly different from the way he was treated previously.

Chen Hao said with a smile, "Why? You're so free after cracking such a big case?"

Zhou Gang said with emotion, "I took action at the spur of the moment. You have no idea what a huge commotion this matter is causing. The higher-ups are having a huge fight about this."

Chen Hao said, "No matter how they fight, you do deserve credit for cracking the case. Surely you won't be faulted for this?"

Zhou Gang told him frankly, "I definitely won't be faulted. I'll probably be promoted one level. But I can't very well take full credit for this myself. The benefits must be distributed."

Chen Hao suddenly realized that for someone to successfully work his way up in an organization, he must not be a simple character. An outsider like him needn't worry for him.

"Here, this is my present for your daughter. Put it on her and ask her not to take it off easily." Chen Hao took out the jade Buddha he had prepared and handed it to Zhou Gang.

Zhou Gang didn't stand on ceremony. There was an amazement in his eyes as he received the item and sized it up.

He could detect right away that this jade Buddha wasn't genuine jade.

But upon a careful look, he could tell that this was an extraordinary piece of jade. The sentient vibes it gave off made even him feel as though this jade Buddha was alive.

Zhou Gang felt a heavy sensation in his heart all of a sudden.

Sometimes you can't base the value of an object off the price tag attached to it.

Such as this jade Buddha. Zhou Gang knew that this jade Buddha was perhaps really cheap, several hundred yuan at most.

But with this spiritual energy, and the magical effect Chen Hao seemed to imply it carried, the value of this jade Buddha immediately rose by several hundred folds—perhaps you couldn't even put a price tag on this.

Feeling burdened, Zhou Gang wanted to pay him for it.

But looking at Chen Hao's relaxed expression, it seemed as though he totally wasn't treating him as an outsider. After some thought, Zhou Gang decided against it.

It wouldn't be worth it to ruin his ties with such a remarkable person in his attempt to be polite.

Moreover, after witnessing Chen Hao's incredible methods, Zhou Gang was certain that this remarkable man was a godsend, and that he would be of significant help to him in the future.

"Alright, I won't stand on ceremony then. I thank you on behalf of my daughter." Zhou Gang gave his sincere thanks.

Chen Hao smiled.

Although a magical artifact that had been blessed was very precious and he had risked his life for this, it might appear to be a cheap gift.

Then again, in this world, money isn't everything. Connections aren't something that can be measured with money.

"You're being too polite, it's just a toy for your daughter. It's cheap stuff and not worth much money. No need to stand on ceremony. Mm, why isn't Sister-in-law back yet? I haven't eaten since yesterday. I'm famished."

Zhou Gang laughed heartily. "Then fill your stomach with some fruits first. These are homegrown oranges my wife brought back from her maiden home. The green color is natural, and it's full of nutrition."

Zhou Gang then offered Chen Hao a platter of oranges.

Chen Hao obliged. He picked one up and started peeling it.

They were chatting as they ate when Chen Hao's expression suddenly changed. He asked, "Brother, as a police officer you have seen a great deal. I wonder if you can introduce some special places to me."

Zhou Gang paused in surprise before asking, "What special places?"

Chen Hao replied, "Such as haunted places where people have died. The legendary 'unclean' places."

Ugh!

Zhou Gang's mouth twitched, speechless.

Talking about things like this was so incompatible with his image as a police officer.

Chen Hao continued, "Don't doubt me. I'm not going to do any bad deeds. I merely wish to accumulate some merit. In this age, cultivation isn't simple. We basically need to rely on accumulating merit to improve ourselves. It hasn't been long since I started cultivating in the mortal world, so I can't very well loaf around and waste my days away. Else, if I don't amount to any accomplishments, I'd be disgracing the founder."