Chapter 46: The Day of Publication Draws Near

“Let’s give our congratulations to Jiang Zheng for successfully completing the challenge!” The host stirred up the atmosphere.

Jiang Zheng had cleared the stage smoothly, accomplishing his task. As he walked down, a staff member approached him.

“Mr. Jiang, congratulations on advancing to the next round,” the staff member said.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Zheng replied, “I’m sorry, but I don’t intend to participate in the subsequent competitions.”

The staff member’s smile froze on his face. He had come over to discuss with Jiang Zheng, but hadn’t expected him to immediately refuse further participation.

“Mr. Jiang, I’m afraid I can’t make that decision myself. How about I ask for you?” the staff member offered.

“Thank you, I appreciate it,” Jiang Zheng said.

The staff member left, returning shortly with another person beside him.

“Mr. Jiang, allow me to introduce myself. I’m the director of this show. May I confirm—you’re sure you don’t want to join the next round? The upcoming competitions have substantial rewards, and with your ability, you stand a great chance of winning,” the director said.

Normally, even if some contestants chose not to continue, it wouldn’t warrant the director coming personally to persuade them. Directors are busy and rarely spend time convincing a single contestant. But Jiang Zheng was different—his performance today had been remarkable, breaking the record for fastest completion. If he competed in the later rounds, he would be a major highlight. That’s why the director came in person.

Listening to the director, Jiang Zheng shook his head firmly. “Thank you for your kind offer, but my mind is made up.”

“Is that so? What a pity,” the director said, disappointed.

“I’m sorry,” Jiang Zheng replied.

“No worries. Everyone has their own aspirations. Since you don’t wish to participate, I won’t insist,” the director said.

He had come to persuade Jiang Zheng in hopes he would continue, but after Jiang Zheng’s clear refusal, he wouldn’t press further.

The director left, and Jiang Zheng returned to the hotel.

Zhou Quanyi was in the hotel room, watching television—it was the show “Boys and Girls Charge Forward.” At that moment, the scene happened to feature Tao Luna’s participation. She wore a stylish outfit, her makeup was meticulous, and she performed an impromptu act. She danced with evident seriousness.

But her performance wasn’t long; after all, this wasn’t a song-and-dance program, and impromptu acts were brief. Next, Tao Luna tackled the obstacle course. Unlike Jiang Zheng, who pursued speed and ran as fast as possible, Tao Luna aimed for steadiness, taking each step carefully and securely. Though she took longer, she successfully passed the stage.

Zhou Quanyi watched intently, not realizing Jiang Zheng had returned until Tao Luna’s segment ended and he felt a sense of loss.

“Why didn’t you go gaming today?” Jiang Zheng suddenly asked.

Startled by Jiang Zheng’s voice, Zhou Quanyi hadn’t noticed his return, and the sudden question was quite unnerving.

“Whoa, Fourth, it’s you! You nearly scared me to death,” Zhou Quanyi complained.

“You were just too absorbed and didn’t notice me,” Jiang Zheng replied.

Zhou Quanyi didn’t deny it, then said, “Fourth, congratulations on clearing the stage. I didn’t expect you to run so fast.”

He had seen Jiang Zheng’s scene, watching him fly through the course.

“It was alright—just lucky to pass,” Jiang Zheng said with a smile.

“You’re really playing it down!” Zhou Quanyi said.

Jiang Zheng smiled but didn’t explain. He truly believed it was luck; after all, he had missed breaking the record by just one second. According to the system task description, if he hadn’t broken the record—even tying it would have been meaningless.

“By the way, Fourth, just remembered—aren’t you going to participate in the next round? If so, you won’t be able to travel with me, right?” Zhou Quanyi asked.

“By rights, I should participate,” Jiang Zheng nodded, then changed his tone. “But I refused.”

“What? You refused? Why?” Zhou Quanyi was puzzled. Just yesterday, Jiang Zheng had told him that since he’d come to compete, he couldn’t quit halfway. Now he’d rejected the next round. Zhou Quanyi found himself unable to understand Jiang Zheng.

“I’ve participated and experienced it; there’s no need to join the later rounds,” Jiang Zheng said with a smile.

“Uh… alright then,” Zhou Quanyi was at a loss for words.

Of course, Jiang Zheng’s reason for not participating wasn’t so simple.

He chose not to continue partly because he had completed the system task and lost the temporary skill. He couldn’t guarantee he could replicate his previous performance. Another reason was that Jiang Zheng wanted to try other paths.

Competing in this show had its benefits, but in Jiang Zheng’s eyes, those benefits were just so-so. He could trigger more tasks elsewhere, and as long as he completed them smoothly, the rewards would be considerable.

Taking a step back, if he had time for competitions, he’d rather spend it writing. His book hadn’t been published yet; he didn’t know if it would earn money, but now it had many followers and a Silver Alliance sponsor, so his income wouldn’t be bad. Besides, if a novel became popular, it could support him for life.

Jiang Zheng was clear about his priorities.

Zhou Quanyi was naturally thrilled that Jiang Zheng wouldn’t compete further—now someone could accompany him.

“Boss, you didn’t answer me—why didn’t you go gaming today?” Jiang Zheng asked again.

“Just didn’t feel like it, taking a break for a day. But since you brought it up, let’s head to the internet cafe together,” Zhou Quanyi said.

“I’ll pass; I have things to do,” Jiang Zheng replied.

“What’s up? Fourth, it’s the holidays—what could you be busy with?” Zhou Quanyi asked.

“Nothing much. You go ahead; I’ll work in the room. When it’s time to eat, send me a message,” Jiang Zheng said.

He really didn’t want to reveal his writing.

“Alright, you do your thing, I’ll head to the internet cafe,” Zhou Quanyi said, walking out the door.

Jiang Zheng sat on the bed, opened his laptop, and started writing for the day.

His book already had over twenty thousand words, and thanks to his fast updates, it hadn’t been published yet. Because he was updating so quickly, his editor kept holding off, wanting him to stay longer in the new book phase and run through all the recommended promotions.

That way, when it launched, it could achieve good results.

No matter how much they held back, it wouldn’t be for long. The day his novel would officially launch was approaching, and he needed to stockpile more chapters so he could explode with updates when it went live.