Starting with Proficiency Panel-Chapter 698: See the truth in 2 hours (contents of the leisure new book)

"Li Qing, want to see a movie this weekend? I found a really good horror film called 'Zhenzi vs. Gourd Kids,' and it's getting rave reviews lately! I really want to go, but I'm too scared to go alone. Will you go with me, pleeease?" 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

"Sorry, I've got to play Luke this weekend, can't make it."

Li Qing looked at his phone with a melancholic expression, staring at the 'smile' emoji sent by the woman he marked with a red heart.

He didn't know what he said wrong for her to respond with such a deadly 'smile' emoji. Clearly, he was handling serious business, moving bricks to save for a down payment.

He really liked this woman, though she was three years older than him... But as the saying goes, a woman three years older is like hugging a golden brick, right?

"Sigh!"

He sighed deeply, then quietly opened his phone browser, skillfully navigated to a website, and picked up a tissue next to him...

To wipe the grease from the corner of his mouth.

He looked at the fiery blood video edits on a small website, and silently sighed long Qi once more.

Today was his thirtieth birthday. People say at thirty you stand firm, but for him today, it was just thirty.

His somewhat cluttered rental room had a table with leftover takeout, old posters on the wall, randomly placed clothes, and a computer monitor still glowing, streaming something from a live platform.

This was the most typical bachelor pad, messy yet with an order only Li Qing knew by heart.

Turning to look at the content on the computer, Li Qing touched his face.

"I don't look bad at all, so why can't I find a girlfriend, really…"

To be honest, life was tough; Li Qing exuded only two words his whole life.

Mediocrity!

Though he was fair and clean-looking, a cultured bonus, and friends introduced him to many prospects, any initial vague goodwill vanished once they started talking.

It just disappeared.

Li Qing was very troubled by this; he consulted many female friends, asking and even simulating scenarios.

The unanimous conclusion was that Li Qing's way of speaking was off, so to speak, he's harder than steel, comparable to the latest super-hard alloy.

His words killed invisibly, causing max damage to women.

So much so that the helpful female friends didn't talk to Li Qing for three days after simulating dialogues with him.

Thinking of this, Li Qing was very troubled. He wanted to do something practical, but in reality, it ended in a mess, full of mishaps.

Thinking here, just as he was about to get some takeout again, his phone suddenly vibrated.

Li Qing paused and looked at the strange caller ID, puzzled. Who would call him at this hour? Does someone remember his birthday?

No, no, it's definitely not that. His parents disappeared when he was fourteen and left no trace. He lived alone since, renting his own place out for a bit more comfort in this mega-city, and renting a single room for himself.

No one else would know today is his thirtieth birthday.

Maybe it's work-related.

He answered with a hint of resignation.

"Hello?"

"Zzzzzz..."

Hearing the static on the phone, Li Qing frowned, ready to hang up when suddenly a male voice came through.

"Hello, hello, is this Mr. Li Qing?"

Hearing the somewhat jumpy voice full of laughter, Li Qing got a sense of it.

Probably a prank.

Li Qing replied calmly, "It's me, who's this?"

"Ah, congratulations! You're the luckiest person in the world, you know… Oh oh, first, happy thirtieth birthday to you, and also your thirtieth anniversary of being single, hahaha..."

At this point, the male voice seemed unable to hold back laughter, slightly breaking character.

This didn't please Li Qing: "Do you find my thirty years of being single funny?"

"No, no, I just thought of something delightful."

"What?"

"My wife is giving birth..."

Li Qing couldn't bear it: "Don't act like I haven't watched movies; could you not bring these stale tricks into this conversation? Don't go too far; I advise you to cut it out!"

Just as he was about to hang up, the other party quickly said: "Wait, wait… I haven't finished speaking, this is a call that could change your life. Don't you want to listen?"

Li Qing hesitated, suppressed his irritation, and said, "Go on then."

The other party coughed twice, introducing himself, "My name is Zhuang Xu, an admissions mentor from Gray Magic Academy. Congratulations on meeting the qualifications and being successfully admitted… Um, I believe the acceptance letter will arrive at your residence soon..."

"...What the heck, Magic Academy?"

Li Qing was confused, could this scam be more reasonable? Saying this wasn't Nonsense Possession?

Hearing this, Li Qing got intrigued; it was his first time encountering such a scam call.

"So tell me, why exactly did I qualify to enter this Magic School?"

Zhuang Xu's voice suddenly grew deep: "Have you ever heard this legend? If a man remains pure until thirty, he can become a mage and use magic."

Li Qing was stunned: "Wha… what the heck?"

"It's true; if a man is still a single dog at thirty, he can switch to becoming a mage and learn all sorts of magic. Trust me, this is your life's turning point, don't…"

Snap!

Li Qing expressionlessly hung up the phone, thinking this lunatic somehow got his number just to prank him today.

Knock knock knock!

Li Qing was startled, turning to look at the window, terrified to see a shadow on the windowsill, eyes glowing green, staring at him.

Its head bobbed, making a 'knock knock knock' sound.

A creepy, horrifying atmosphere suddenly rose, making his scalp tingle, legs so weak they almost couldn't stand.

Gulp!

Li Qing swallowed, standing there for about thirty seconds. Seeing nothing happen, he forced himself to calm down, and moved step by step over.

Upon seeing it up close, Li Qing let out a big breath and cursed: "Scared me to death!"

It was an owl, but it had jet-black feathers all over, not a hint of any other color. Its eyes, incredibly human-like, were like embedded black gems, staring at him with a look of disdain.