This entry is suspicious.

Zhou Ran decisively equipped the [Exquisite Heart] and began to study the paper from the beginning.

To be honest, the difficulty of this paper far exceeded his expectations. Not to mention high school students, even college students might not be able to understand it without some talent. If he didn't have a sharp mind, he probably wouldn't even be able to get through the first page.

An hour later, Zhou Ran had memorized the entire paper word for word.

With the help of the exquisite heart, he had already practiced various forces repeatedly in his mind hundreds of times while reading.

In other words, even before he had officially started using them, he had already learned most of the 118 types of force.

This is the terrifying aspect of Linglongxin: her comprehension increases dramatically, she can master any technique after just one glance, and she has an unforgettable memory.

Zhou Ran went to the balcony, took off her shoes, stood on the yoga mat, and began to practice the eighteen basic strengths one by one.

Manifest strength, concealed strength, transformative strength, powerful strength, soft strength, explosive strength, penetrating strength, sticky strength, spiral strength, oscillating strength...

Half an hour later, he began to practice the double combination of force, Ming Jin + Bao Jin, An Jin + Nian Jin... then the triple combination of force, then the quadruple, the quintuple... until he had mastered all eighteen basic forces and one hundred combinations of force.

"This is terrifying."

Zhou Ran stopped what he was doing, his eyes filled with amazement and shock. Even the most talented genius couldn't learn all the power in such a short time, right?

If only the "Exquisite Heart" attribute didn't have any side effects, I could maintain an unparalleled level of comprehension all day long, and becoming an immortal would be just around the corner.

pity……

Zhou Ran shook his head, stopping thinking about those irrelevant things, and began to plan his next move.

"I've mastered all the different types of force now, but I have almost no combat experience. I need to find some fighting videos to watch and learn some practical combat skills."

"Also, my physical strength is too weak, I need to find a way to improve it, but there's no rush, I can take it slowly, I can only improve my physique after I've earned enough money."

"The most urgent thing is to pay off the loan first, so that Brother Dao won't come and block me again."

Zhou Ran was very wary of the debt collection gang. Dao Ge was a whole realm ahead of him, and he was not strong enough to surpass them.

Besides, even if he were stronger than Brother Dao, it wouldn't make much difference. Brother Dao was just a debt collector under the loan company. There were other debt collectors besides him, some of whom were even more skilled. If you beat one, a whole group would come.

So just focus on paying off the loan. At your current earning rate, you can pay it off in a month. There's no need to create unnecessary trouble.

Zhou Ran briefly made some plans for the near future, then took a shower and went to bed.

……

In the blink of an eye, a week has passed.

By tutoring Song Ci, Zhou Ran successfully earned 170,000 yuan. Although it was still a long way from completely paying off the loan, at least he could pay off some of it and no longer have to worry about being blocked at the door by debt collectors.

That afternoon, during a break between classes, Zhou Ran received a text message from Dao Ge.

"Kid, the deadline's up. Time to pay me back."

Zhou Ran transferred 50,000 yuan: "I've made money, and I'll pay off the loan gradually."

[Heh, how much do you have left to sell?]

In Dao Ge's eyes, how could a high school student possibly earn 50,000 yuan in a week? The only explanation is that he sold his organs—kidneys, bone marrow, or something even more sinister.

He had seen too many people who were desperate and sold their blood, kidneys, or bodies—they would sell anything.

"I'm running a legitimate business."

[It doesn't matter whether you sell your organs or your body, you'll never be able to pay off all the debts. The initial investment of 30 yuan has grown to 60 yuan today. Add to that the three lives lost, each worth 100 million yuan, for a total of 360 million yuan.]

[Oh no, it's 355 million now.]

Zhou Ran stared at his phone screen, his face instantly darkening: "What do you mean?"

[During debt collection, the debt collector died unexpectedly, and the debtor is held liable for the death. Each life is valued at one million, added to the outstanding debt. This is clearly stated in the contract, in black and white, and you signed it yourself.]

Brother Dao then sent a photo, which was the loan agreement, and it did indeed contain such terms.

Zhou Ran recalled that his predecessor was only focused on getting the money as soon as possible and did not read the terms and conditions carefully, so he had no idea that this matter existed.

"That's not my fault. I didn't bring the strange occurrences here."

The contract is final, not yours, and the person did indeed die because they were trying to collect a debt from you.

"I suspect you tampered with the contract."

[Think what you want, not a penny less than 355 million.]

"Fuck your mother..." Even Zhou Ran, who was usually gentle and refined, couldn't help but swear.

It's impossible to repay 355 million within the set time, and with interest compounding, it will only increase and become an astronomical figure.

Zhou Ran was initially angry, but quickly calmed down.

Even if you sell his house and kidnap him to work as a hostess at a nightclub under the Hehuan Sect, you still can't earn that much money. The other party must have other motives.

Sure enough, Dao Ge's next text message arrived.

"Is it difficult to repay such a large sum of money? Now, here's an opportunity for you. If you agree, the 355 million will be wiped clean, the original contract will be torn up on the spot, and we will never bother you again."

Zhou Ran narrowed his eyes: "Speak."

There's been some strange happening at a hotel in the east of the city lately, quite eerie. A private law firm has taken on the case and needs manpower. We have a partnership with them; if you go, all your debts will be wiped clean.

Zhou Ran's expression darkened completely. Wasn't this just sending him to be cannon fodder as a scout?

Sometimes, when the authorities are short-handed, they will delegate some strange incidents to qualified civilian teams. These teams will recruit members through various channels, but in reality, they are just looking for a group of expendable resources to explore the area. Most of them are desperate people who cannot repay their loans.

"This is suicide."

You have no choice but to come; you can't afford to pay back 355 million. On the contrary, your arrival is your only chance to survive.

Just then, two short car horns sounded from the street outside the school.

Did you hear that? We're waiting for you outside. You're not going anywhere.

Zhou Ran gripped his phone tightly. Clearly, there was no room for negotiation; the other party had him cornered.

He took a deep breath and suppressed the surging anger in his heart.

I am still too weak, so weak that I can be manipulated like an ant.

We must become stronger, strong enough to control our own destiny!

As for this deal...

"Okay, I'll go."

With the Book of Fate in hand, one has a natural advantage in strange events and is less likely to suffer serious consequences.

[So sensible. Came straight after school, let's get started tonight.]

Zhou Ran then sent a message to Song Ci: "Tutoring is suspended tonight, I have something to take care of."

Song Ci, sitting near the front of the class, was stunned when she saw the message. She then turned around and saw that Zhou Ran's brows were shrouded in a solemn expression, like the dark clouds before a storm.

Song Ci raised an eyebrow and typed, "What happened? Perhaps I can help you."

"You can't help with this, thank you, I'll handle it myself."

Song Ci remained silent for a long time, typing and deleting repeatedly, before finally choosing to respect Zhou Ran's wishes: "Okay, good luck."

……

School ends at nine o'clock.

There were no stars in the night sky; the thick clouds, like wisps of dirty cotton, completely obscured the moonlight.

As Zhou Ran walked out of the school gate, a silver van was parked across the street, and a burly man in a vest was standing next to it smoking.

It was Brother Dao.

He exhaled a puff of smoke and grinned. "Get in the car."