Infinite Puzzle City

Chapter 759 Climbing the Steps - The Executioner

For the next two days, Xiao Ran stayed at home, seemingly oblivious to the turmoil outside. However, as the opening day drew closer, Xiao Ran sensed an impending storm.

This was not his wild guess, but rather a result of his own strong mental power and an extraordinary sensitivity to crisis.

If my speculation is correct, the Changchun police have probably already started preparing to make some underhanded moves.

It's not hard to deduce that he's about to open for business, and once he establishes a firm foothold, the revival of Changchun Club will likely be a long way off.

Moreover, at this time, a supervisor with unclear ties to Changchun appeared in Ruzhou.

It's like playing chess. Once the opponent has started placing their pieces in their own territory, you can roughly tell their strategy at a glance.

But Xiao Ran didn't care; in fact, she secretly hoped that those clowns from Changchun would come out and cause trouble.

"Little brother, how old are you this year?"

Xiao Ran took out a candy from her spatial storage and handed it to the doll in front of her.

After receiving the candy, the child still looked around blankly, feeling wary and fearful of the unfamiliar environment.

Seeing this, Xiao Ran took out a lot of snacks to comfort the child. After confirming that the child's emotions were stable, before the child could come to his senses, Xiao Ran quickly used a knife to shave a few times on the child's head. In no time, she shaved a zodiac animal head on the child's head to complete the child's missing destiny.

[Notification: You have completed the Barber profession quest and meet the advancement requirements.]

As the notification sound came, Xiao Ran knew that his barber skills had reached perfection, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

"Alright, let's take the child home."

Xiao Ran accepted the razor, had someone send the child home, and then turned to Yu Deng and said, "You've worked hard these past few days."

"Don't dare!"

Yu Deng cupped his hands in greeting, saying, "Serving you, sir, is simply the duty of a subordinate."

Xiao Ran smiled and patted Yu Deng on the shoulder: "You've managed to find eleven children for me in such a short time. I can tell you've put your heart into it. Feel free to make any requests. I'll do my best to help."

If these children didn't have the company's help, it would probably take them half a year to raise the money themselves.

With the help of Yu Deng and the others, Xiao Ran was able to gather the necessary twelve children in less than a week, which meant she owed them a huge favor.

"Your humble servant... Your humble servant..." Yu Deng knew this was a rare opportunity, his eyes darting around, and finally he gritted his teeth and cautiously said, "Sir, you know... I am a disabled person, and I am the only one left in the Yu family."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Ran chuckled and said, "I'm sorry, it was my oversight. I think I promised you that back then."

Xiao Ran had mentioned this matter when she subdued Yu Deng.

Back then, my skills weren't very good, but now this is a piece of cake for me.

"This isn't difficult. Go back and prepare yourself, wash yourself thoroughly, and have the hospital nurses shave you. You don't need to worry about anything else."

Upon hearing this, Yu Deng's breathing became rapid. Even though he had been prepared, he still couldn't help but tremble with excitement when he heard Xiao Ran agree.

With a thud, he knelt down in front of Xiao Ran: "Thank you, my lord. From now on, you are my second parents."

"Don't!!"

Xiao Ran quickly waved his hand to stop him; he couldn't accept such a filial son.

However, Yu Deng's loyalty is undeniable.

He helped Yu Deng up: "Any other requests?"

"Requirements..." Yu Deng's eyes darted around, and he swallowed hard. "It has to be big..."

……

After seeing off the cheerful Yu Deng, Xiao Ran couldn't help but smile. But then he thought of something: the profession of corpse sewing master is actually very strong.

It's not just about turning corpse slaves into zombies; if you're a doctor, that's practically a cheat code.

Having the ability to ignore rejection after suturing, and to repair or even strengthen any injury, no matter how severe, by replacing parts, Xiao Ran estimated that this profession was destined to become one of the most popular professions in the future.

However, there are advantages and disadvantages. If it really comes to the point where every doctor in a hospital is also a mortician, that would not be a good thing.

You might take your child to see a doctor for a minor illness, and afterwards, you might find your heart ripped out.

Xiao Ran shook his head. These things were too far off. He believed that once everyone realized the power of the corpse sewing people, this profession would inevitably be subject to strict control by the company.

Xiao Ran stopped thinking about it. He had already met one of the conditions for becoming an executioner, and only the [Swordsmith's Whetstone] remained as an important upgrade item.

This thing, like the alchemist's vessel, is not so easy to obtain.

However, this item differs from the alchemist's vessel in that the vessel requires luck, while the [swordsmith's whetstone] does not. There must be some of this item in stock in Donglongfang.

Given his current status, he doesn't even need to show up in person; he can just have Li Botong and the others make the trip.

By nightfall, the [Swordsmith's Whetstone] had appeared before Xiao Ran. Li Botong had gone to Donglongfang and proposed a trade. The Underworld possessed various rare and strange ores, each with unique properties, which Donglongfang desperately wanted. He also casually mentioned that this item had landed in Li Botong's hands without costing him a single penny.

This made Xiao Ran sigh deeply: "Although this thing is not a precious treasure, it is still a rare item. If it weren't for the Amazing Pavilion, it would probably not be so easy for me to buy it."

"Wealth, companion, law, and place—indeed, none of them can be lacking."

With a sigh, Xiao Ran became even more determined to make the Amazing Pavilion bigger and stronger; otherwise, without the support of the Amazing Pavilion, his path to advancement would only become more and more difficult.

After a brief moment of reflection, Xiao Ran cleared her mind of distractions and took the items to the secret room.

Take out the class scrolls needed for advancement, namely the D-grade [Horizontal Training] and the D-grade [Hundred-Man Slayer].

Xiao Ran himself possessed the "Horizontal Training" profession scroll.

The D-rank [Hundred-Man Slayer] is a rare profession, so Xiao Ran directly used the privilege of the C-rank cursed item [Blank Profession Scroll] to conjure up a profession scroll.

His whetstone rested quietly on his lap, its rough surface gleaming with a dull metallic sheen in the dim light, like congealed blood. Upon closer inspection, one could see many fine marks of friction on it.

This item is a cursed artifact; it's not only used for advancement, but it can also grant the blade a special "Sharpness" bonus.

"call……"

Xiao Ran took a deep breath, his gaze sharp as a hawk, and first tore open the D-level [Hundred-Man Kill] scroll.

"His!"

The instant the scroll shattered, a strong, rusty, and sweet-smelling stench of blood suddenly erupted! A powerful killing intent tore through the scroll, transforming into scarlet runes that surged forth. At the same time, Xiao Ran's own rune, [Barber], was activated. The rune traveled along Xiao Ran's hands and was drawn into the whetstone in his arms, merging into it.

"call!!"

The red runes flashing in the air immediately turned around like sharks smelling blood, and followed suit, burrowing into the whetstone.

"Shhhhh..."

At this moment, Xiao Ran heard a piercing sharpening sound. The whetstone in his arms vibrated violently. Its rough surface became smooth as a mirror under the baleful aura. Crimson light surged and condensed inside, as if a thirsty container was frantically swallowing.

Immediately afterwards, Xiao Ran tore up the second scroll, a D-grade [Horizontal Refinement] scroll, without hesitation!
The pale yellow runes, like the surging Yellow River, plunged into the whetstone, and instantly the two surging torrents collided violently within the whetstone's central core.

Crimson and earthy yellow intertwine and swirl, the sharp blade intent and the weight of the rock permeate and hone each other! The humming sound from the whetstone grows louder and louder, as if countless invisible blades are repeatedly grinding and tempering the stone surface, which is even slightly red and hot, and the air is filled with the smell of high-temperature iron forging in a blacksmith's shop!

"Om-!"

When the fusion reached its peak, the whetstone suddenly erupted with a dazzling beam of blood-gold light, instantly engulfing Xiao Ran!
Advancement begins!
"Uh!"

Xiao Ran groaned, instantly feeling as if he were between a high-temperature furnace and an icy winch! That blood-gold pillar of light was not a simple infusion of energy, but more like a giant millstone, forcibly placing his bones, fascia, flesh, and even spirit on it to undergo the most brutal tempering!
A sharp and pure killing intent surged into Xiao Ran's mind like a torrent.

However, this frenzied will, which was enough to drive a beginner mad, was like mud sinking into the ocean the moment it entered Xiao Ran's sea of ​​consciousness, without even making a ripple.

Xiao Ran is now a completely different person. His immense spiritual power makes him like Xu Zhu, who has been given a cheat code, possessing terrifying internal strength.

What would be unbearable pain for others is nothing more than a ripple for Xiao Ran.

But at this moment.

Xiao Ran suddenly felt a chill churning inside her body.

This power did not come from the advancement of the spell, but from another power. Xiao Ran looked down and found that it was the bracelet on her wrist.

"This thing..."

The bracelet was shimmering with fluorescence, and invisible roots were growing rapidly inside Xiao Ran's body.

"Suppress me!!"

Not knowing what this thing was up to this time, Xiao Ran's mental energy surged like a flood into her limbs and meridians, forcibly suppressing the power on the bracelet.

"boom!!"

In that instant when Xiao Ran was distracted, it was as if a blood-red lightning bolt exploded in his mind! An indescribable pain, accompanied by a chilling killing intent, pierced through his soul!

A massive, ghost-headed sword, stretching across the heavens and earth, appeared in Xiao Ran's mind.

The blade gleamed with a chilling light, exuding an aura of utter desolation and annihilation! Beneath the blade, countless heads of various shapes rose and fell—human, demonic, and even some indescribable evil spirits.

They all retained the terror and frozen roar of their last moments, surging like a tide under the blade, emitting incomprehensible low growls.

But these furtive whispers had no effect on Xiao Ran. When Xiao Ran focused her will on the knife, a strong sense of enlightenment instantly compelled her to grip the broadsword in her hand, thrust it forward, and slash with all her might.

In an instant, the world cleared, and the heads that had been floating before his eyes were reduced to dust under the blade.

At the same time, a familiar notification appeared before Xiao Ran's eyes, the handwriting as heavy as if stained with blood:

"You have advanced to the Executioner rank, gaining a +5 attribute bonus to all attributes!"

[Executioner] Rank C: Constitution +25, Strength +25, Agility +25
Professional Skill: It's high noon!
(End of this chapter)