Free Web NovelChapter 88: Chapter 88: Huh?
Tier Two Peak!
The testing device was always off-camera, and after the Flying Tiger Squad saw Jiang Che’s test results, the livestream immediately muted the sound.
No other reason, it’s just that the result was a little too freaky—they didn’t know whether to announce it or not.
Right now, Flying Tiger was sitting in front of the camera, calm and elegant, her long hair casually draped over her shoulders, as she shared the usual SSS-level dungeon clearance stats.
The viewers had been waiting for Jiang Che’s test to finish, all the way until Flying Tiger finally told the audience the result,
Everyone’s first reaction was disbelief.
Tier Two Peak was already considered unbelievable, but now they were told that Tier Two Peak was just the standard experience value for clearing an SSS-level dungeon.
[Wait, does that mean? Xiong Jie isn’t the first clear?]
[How is that possible, that old fox let that mental patient get the first clear?]
[No way, seriously?]
[Or maybe Jiang Che and Xiong Jie’s experience values are the same, and someone actually cleared before we even knew, but nobody noticed?]
[I’m leaning towards someone clearing earlier. Honestly, before the livestream started, what those initial survivors did, we have no clue.]
...
Some people concluded that powerful players had already cleared the SSS-level dungeon before the livestream even started.
Flying Tiger gave Qin a look, Qin immediately caught on and pulled Jiang Che aside, whispering, "Stats like this usually aren’t hidden."
"But we respect your choice."
"If you want to keep it quiet, the Flying Tiger Organization can cover up this result for you," Qin said earnestly—he’d read Miss’s signal loud and clear.
Both Jiang Che and Xiong Jie have huge potential, and if they’re brought into the Flying Tiger Organization, they’d be insiders.
So keeping secrets for our own people—it’s only right.
Jiang Che was silent; he didn’t have an answer for how to handle this.
He’d finally realized what he was missing: experience!
All those years in the mental hospital, nobody taught him how to deal with people, or the tricks and schemes of the world.
Everyone around him was a different kind of mental patient, plus medical staff who were just straight-up impatient with them.
"Why should we hide it?" Xiong Jie was the first to speak; he still looked angry and resentful. "If you cover for him, all the accusations will be aimed at me—but I wasn’t the first to clear."
"I can’t get shafted and take the blame for someone else." Xiong Jie acted thoroughly disgruntled, though only he knew that there was no need to hide it at all—he and Jiang Che’s situation was special now.
Whether or not Jiang Che became the son-in-law the boss recruited, he and Jiang Che were on the same team.
In some sense, he and Jiang Che were partners.
They’d be working together from now on.
If Jiang Che accidentally reveals his strength later, and the Flying Tiger Organization knows the truth, fine—but if another organization finds out, not knowing what Flying Tiger covered up, they’ll start digging into what happened in the SSS-level dungeon.
Instead of being dissected later, with people analyzing every frame of the video, every move—
It’s better to admit right now how the strength came about, cutting down on trouble and saving them from making more enemies.
He and Jiang Che each held a purple Life Essence; he was Tier Two Peak but had zero real combat, and with Jiang Che by his side, Tier Five Peak strength could scare off a lot of schemers.
"Then we won’t hide it," Jiang Che said to Qin.
"Hiding your strength is good for you—it’s a trump card, a secret weapon to play later." Qin kept coaxing him gently.
Qin honestly couldn’t understand how a mental patient’s brain worked—any normal person hearing Xiong Jie would just choose to hide his strength, let Xiong Jie take the heat. But Jiang Che listened, and still went for not hiding.
"Did you hide your strength?" Jiang Che asked Qin, genuinely puzzled.
Qin paused. "No, but we’re not the same..."
He was just a regular survivor, cleared a few low-level dungeons, a bit of brains, a bit of skill.
Compared with other survivors, what he had was nothing special.
He didn’t even qualify to meet those geniuses—how could Flying Tiger see him as a trump card, let alone a secret weapon?
"You don’t, I don’t either—we’re the same, no difference," Jiang Che said, expression calm as ever.
"If you hide it, you’ll become Flying Tiger Organization’s main trump card, their top weapon!" Qin grew anxious—the viewers couldn’t wait this long, and he was dragging Jiang Che off-camera to whisper, while Flying Tiger still hadn’t announced what everyone wanted to hear.
"And what’s Flying Tiger’s secret weapon got to do with me?" Jiang Che’s expression stayed flat when he heard that, but inside he felt annoyed.
If he could, he didn’t want to join any organization at all.
All those years in the mental hospital, he’d been locked up inside four little walls.
If he could, he just wanted to make some money and take his wife and family to travel the world and see things.
The tied-down life, it just wasn’t what he wanted.
"Qin, that’s enough," Flying Tiger waved her hand, then told the cameraman to adjust the shot.
Now, the camera showed Xiong Jie sitting angrily on a chair, and Jiang Che with Qin, looking totally unfazed.
"Tier Two Peak really is just the standard experience value for clearing SSS-level dungeons."
"And the first clear isn’t Mr. Xiong—it’s this handsome guy, Jiang Che." Flying Tiger smiled with her eyes, acting as if it was totally normal.
Just in an instant, Flying Tiger noticed several familiar IDs popping up in the livestream—big shots from different organizations.
"Looks like we’ve attracted a bunch of big names all at once." She covered her mouth and laughed softly.
[What’s the first-clear level?] a gold barrage flashed across the screen.
Flying Tiger didn’t rush to answer.
"Just like you all thought, not only myself, but even Mr. Xiong didn’t expect he wasn’t the first clear."
"Based on what Mr. Xiong said earlier and what we’ve investigated, Mr. Xiong did actually escape before the handsome guy."
"As for why Mr. Xiong wasn’t the first clear..." Flying Tiger kept going, thinking of the mix-up she was about to announce. She couldn’t help but laugh, "Even if the handsome guy was behind Mr. Xiong, his hand was just a bit longer, right..."
"Didn’t expect that skinny, tall one to snag the reward in the end."
As soon as Flying Tiger finished, the screen’s barrage completely cleared out.
Remembering what Xiong Jie had said earlier, everyone started mentally picturing both reaching for the escape door at the same time—Jiang Che behind, but somehow faster.
A moment later, a few unique gold-symbol barrages stood out brightly. Those famous big figures couldn’t help but send a message of pure confusion.
[Huh?]
