Major System Upgrade, Divine Level

Cao Cheng grabbed his change of clothes and headed for a shower.

Standing under the showerhead, he began inspecting the newly upgraded system.

A lot had changed.

The collection range had expanded significantly.

This was evident from the upgrade details of the [Emotion Energy Ring].

The collection scope had widened from a single city to an entire province—almost full coverage of the province where the host resided.

It could now trace the sources of various emotions and even analyze their specifics.

The loot boxes had also been upgraded, offering richer rewards and better items than before.

Additionally, a new feature called "Box Fusion" had been introduced.

Ten Iron Boxes could be fused into one Bronze Box.

Ten Bronze Boxes could become one Silver Box.

Ten Silver Boxes could merge into one Gold Box.

Ten Gold Boxes could combine into one Diamond Box.

And ten Diamond Boxes could be fused into a single [Divine] Box!

Based on the average drop rate—one Gold Box per ten draws—reaching a [Divine] Box would require a thousand draws.

The emotional energy needed? A staggering 100,000 points!

How many people would he have to piss off for that?

Cao Cheng took a deep breath. That was brutal.

But…

The words "[Divine]" burned brightly in his mind.

He wanted one.

Yet he knew it wasn’t achievable in the short term—he lacked the patience to hoard ten Diamond Boxes.

Right now, opening boxes was crucial for power progression. Storing them without opening would waste precious early-game development time.

So,

his immediate goal would be Diamond Boxes. Once he reached a certain level of strength and had spare resources, he could start saving for a [Divine] Box just to see what it offered.

Divine gear was for the late game.

Early game was all about rapid growth.

Cao Cheng understood this principle well.

"Expanding the collection range to a whole province…"

"That opens up a lot of possibilities."

He mulled over the system’s upgrades, strategizing how to maximize his gains.

The system wasn’t upgraded for nothing.

Before, the limited range meant most emotional energy had to be collected face-to-face.

But now,

with such a vast scope, remote collection had to be prioritized.

Of course,

if he could upgrade it again, the range might extend nationwide?

Or at least cover multiple provinces?

The conditions for the next upgrade were unclear, though. It probably wouldn’t be as simple as opening a hundred boxes.

After all, his collection speed had skyrocketed.

At first, gathering 10 emotional points a day was a struggle.

Now, with the right opportunity, he could net thousands in a single burst.

The difference was night and day.

……

Currently, he had over 1,300 emotional points left—enough for a ten-draw.

But Cao Cheng wasn’t in a hurry.

He continued reviewing the system’s changes while showering.

Half an hour later.

Dressed in board shorts and a snug T-shirt, he emerged—a vision of post-shower handsomeness that left the two sisters momentarily dazed.

Yes.

Dazed.

The T-shirt clung slightly, likely because his physique had improved lately, making it more form-fitting.

His frame looked sharp and defined.

Plus, post-shower glow added an extra 30% to his charm.

The effect?

Impossible to ignore.

Entering the living room,

the warm, fragrant air from the bathroom wafted in, carrying the scent of shampoo and body wash. The sisters instinctively inhaled.

Women were olfactory creatures.

Later studies would show that most women prioritized a man’s natural scent when choosing a partner—ranking it above looks or other traits.

Unless, of course, one trait was overwhelmingly prominent—like… money.

A wealthy, rotund tycoon who threw cash around could overshadow even the foulest body odor.

But generally speaking,

women were scent-driven…

Both sisters’ faces flushed.

Waves of happiness and embarrassment radiated from them.

Ren Yuege "snapped": "Ugh, you’re blocking the TV! Move!"

"……"

If not for the [Emotion Energy Ring], he might’ve believed her.

Cao Cheng shot her a knowing smirk.

He understood her sudden irritation—it was just flustered deflection, masking her shyness with exaggerated annoyance.

Tch.

What a tsundere.

He pointed at the tea set. "Don’t drink too much tea at night. And this brew’s too weak now—barely any effect."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Stop nagging and get out of the way!" Ren Yuege waved him off impatiently.

Third sister Ren Yushang, however, remained composed. She nodded gently and asked in a soft voice, "Are you heading to bed, little brother?"

"Mn. I’m pretty tired today, so I’ll turn in early."

"Well then, good night!"

"Good night, Third Sis. Good night, Fourth Sis."

"I’m Fourth Sister," Ren Yuege corrected loudly.

"Alright, alright, keep it down. This old place has thin walls—your voice carries to the next building."

"Pfft. Exaggerate much?"

"I’m not exaggerating. Just making sure you believe me."

After some light bickering, Cao Cheng finally retreated to his room.

Another few dozen emotional points collected.

Once inside, he locked the door.

A man’s gotta protect himself, even at home!

Instead of sleeping, he pulled out his laptop and set it on the desk, ready to surf the web.

Back then, browsing the internet was called "surfing."

On QQ, you could cycle through dozens of "wives" in a day.

Truly a golden age.

Cao Cheng logged into QQ, skimmed through random profiles, and added a user named "Serious Snow"—a reference to the recently released hit song many girls adored.

The girl accepted quickly.

Cao Cheng opened with:

"Hi, mind if we chat? I really like your username."

"Hello! Sure. Do you like the song too?"

"Absolutely."

His fingers flew across the keyboard as they exchanged pleasantries for three minutes, establishing basic rapport.

Then Cao Cheng dropped:

"Wanna be my wife? (🌹)"

The girl replied: "Okay! (😊)"

Just like that.

Cao Cheng followed up: "Nah, you’re not worthy. (😎)"

[Ding~ Negative Emotion +18]

"#￥%&@!…"

The girl erupted.

"Serious Snow" turned into a blizzard of curses.

Cao Cheng chuckled.

Of course,

he wasn’t just trolling for fun—this was a test of the province-wide collection feature.

He’d specifically chosen a girl from Fancheng, over 300 kilometers from Sanjiang City.

Still within the province, but barely—one step across the border and she’d be out of range.

As expected, a strange sensation arose—threads of distant emotions, like quantum entanglement, flowed into the system.

Cao Cheng backpedaled: "Just kidding, don’t be mad, wifey."

Flirting 101.

"Hmph! (😠)(😠)"

So easy to placate.

He almost felt bad messing with her.

"Come visit Sanjiang sometime. I’ll treat you to good food."

"As if I’d go."

"Then we’re breaking up!"

"……"

[Ding~ Negative Emotion +11]

Tonight,

one girl would lie awake, cursing him in her dreams.

Such was the fate of those who crossed Cao Cheng.

He didn’t linger in the chat. After testing the feature, he confirmed the provincial boundaries—emotions from even one step outside the province didn’t register.

Attempts with users from neighboring provinces or cities yielded zero results.