My Misfortune Crushed Instances-Chapter 166: The World Has Changed

Li Rui's Secret Realm is in the afternoon, but he first has to send Kong Ji to the airport, as the latter is also heading to the capital.

Of course, someone like Fatty Kong can definitely find a driver if he wants, but Li Rui has already memorized the strategy guide and has nothing else to do, so he decided to personally send him, just to relax before the exam.

"The difference between advancing and not advancing is significant."

Kong Ji sat in the passenger seat and spoke eloquently, "Not only does your profession undergo a qualitative change, but the Secret Realm you encounter after advancing will also produce higher-level items. Think about it, dealing with an epic in the current Secret Realm is tough, right? Legendary items are basically nonexistent. But it's different after you advance."

Li Rui thought to himself that encountering something rare is already difficult.

"So theoretically, the differences between individuals become greater after advancing."

Kong Ji continued, "It's not hard to understand, previous equipment ranged from ordinary to epic, now it ranges from ordinary to legendary. Of course, I'm only talking about the theoretical increase in the upper limit, only a few can actually reach such prowess."

Li Rui understood and nodded.

Soon, they arrived at the destination, and after seeing Kong Ji off, Li Rui returned to the Qing Garden branch.

He opened his phone to find that the usually silent Secret Realm battlefield registration prompt group was quite lively; Song Yao had forwarded several items regarding the selection rules.

Among these people, Dong Sanchuan goes without saying—despite being a bit shy of level 40, his actual combat power is quite strong.

Some of the older veterans are senior advisors of the province branch, and some are even deputy presidents of the city branches, so they all passed the qualification review.

Li Rui noted that one of the notifications specifically excluded these elders from participating in the real combat selection.

Because as levels increase, the frequency of encountering Secret Realms further decreases, and their strength may not change much for a long time, knowing their roots and conditions, there's no need for special demonstrations.

Furthermore, selection does not only focus on strength; skill type and tactical style are also considered.

This is why opportunities in the Secret Realm battlefield are rare. After all, the number of Secret Realm agents in a major country is too high, but the slots are limited, and strong strength alone does not guarantee selection. If one can't cooperate well with others, unless their personal strength is exceptionally strong, they may still miss out.

He turned off the group chat and saw Wang Ba, as usual, saying "Let me know when you're out" before entering the Secret Realm. After replying, he saw a query from Dong Sanchuan.

He sent over the name of the Secret Realm, and seeing there was no response from the other side, he put away the phone, prepared himself, and lay in the awakening room.

The logistics personnel in the Northwest were as impatient as ever, helping to fasten a few buttons before asking if there were any discomforts, and upon confirmation, without waiting for him to enter the Secret Realm, they simply left.

In general, doing so doesn't cause any impact, merely makes the Secret Realm agents lying in chairs feel uncared for.

But if subsequently, there are any unforeseen circumstances with stamps or participation in the Secret Realm, issues might arise, though such incidents are exceedingly rare.

Li Rui has entered the Secret Realm here twice. It had accidents but nothing serious occurred, so they haven't realized this person is different.

.....

In the Hea family's mansion, Hea Yang was also lying in the awakening room.

Though the substitute player was found by his third uncle, He Pengxi, the latter is busy and certainly does not have the leisure to watch a younger member tackle the Secret Realm.

In reality, only a babysitter was keeping watch here.

She didn't know what people inside the room were doing, and only helped with preparations as per requirement, then exited.

Hea Yang lay on the chair, feeling both apprehensive and somewhat expectant.

His third uncle said the substitute player Li Rui was found, and he had no objections, in fact, he was quite pleased to see such a situation.

After all, when Kong Hua went in once, he came out with a rare skill and leveled up several times, which made many envious.

Yet, apprehension arose because this Secret Realm was only five stars.

For himself, the difficulty was just right, but if there was a strong ally, it appeared somewhat lower.

And the apprehension was precisely because of this, he worried that the benefits after entering this time wouldn't be high enough, leading to unmet expectations.

But nothing could be done, Secret Realm agents cannot refuse a Secret Realm.

He closed his eyes and fell unconscious.

...

At the edge of the capital district is a military base.

On a specially cleared ground were many people, mostly young; they had passed the initial screening of the Secret Realm battlefield qualifications and came here for selection.

In the corner were a few figures different from the majority: the one in all black with a blank expression was Guan Gui, the one with a small braid was Dong Sanchuan.

Another was a young girl in a white T-shirt and short denim shorts named Cheng Mingyue, also recognized among the top three rising stars, though it was unclear if she was second or third.

However, compared to the silent Guan Gui and the steady and efficient Dong Sanchuan, her attire and demeanor gave off a lazy older sister-next-door vibe, not like the top expert that everyone acknowledged.

Yet those who knew her were aware, although she appeared lazy, her fighting style was aggressive as soon as enemies were encountered.

"I originally said I'd spar with you this time."

Cheng Mingyue seemed uninterested, "but upon arrival, I found out we don't need to participate in selection."

Guan Gui remained silent as usual; Dong Sanchuan said, "There's no need for us insiders, the purpose of selection is for the reviewers to grasp each individual's exact situation, not to rank them."

"Just testing my skills."

Cheng Mingyue shrugged; she didn't necessarily need something to do.

Dong Sanchuan chuckled and elbowed Guan Gui: "You and Li Rui have executed a mission together, how was it?"

"How do you know."

"I know he's the Foggy Evil Ghost."

Dong Sanchuan said, "I've done a mission with him too."

This matter is known only by a few people who've had frequent contact with Li Rui.

Cheng Mingyue curiously asked, "Who's Li Rui?"

Unlike Dong Sanchuan and others, she was frequently sent abroad prior, so while arriving at the Secret Realm battlefield, she didn't deliberately train in the Northwest area and thus hadn't heard of him.

However, after Dong Sanchuan explained some Secret Realm announcements and Li Xiaolin and others, she remembered this person.

"Wow, which one is Li Rui, is he here? Point him out to me."

"He's not here."

Dong Sanchuan said helplessly, "He hasn't signed up yet."

Cheng Mingyue tilted her head: "Why not sign up, is it because he doesn't like it?"

"...Because he isn't level 30 yet."

"Huh? What's his level now."

"25, he just told me the Secret Realm came, Peach Blossom Spring."

Guan Gui also made a confirming sound.

Cheng Mingyue said in surprise: "25?! Surely that's not fast enough, how can you both even think that?"

Dong Sanchuan lightly shook his head: "Yes, if the final Secret Realm released a ten-star, there might be a chance."

Guan Gui made another sound.

Cheng Mingyue only felt the times had changed, how could they even think that, a person at level 25 passing a Secret Realm to reach level 30? Not even ten stars could make it!

The human heart is so restless.

She tore open a lollipop and popped it into her mouth.