Once a person forms a habit, they feel a sense of loss when things deviate from it.

Qin Chuan felt he was currently showing this tendency.

For the past week or two, every time he logged into the game, besides running dungeons with his master "Peppermint Tea," the two of them would team up to PK on the Celestial Ascension Platform. Now, suddenly being all alone felt a bit strange.

He participated in the Celestial Ascension Platform's arena mode a few times by himself and found that the teammates randomly matched by the system were always terrible. Either their skills were worse than his, or their coordination was poor, turning winnable matches into defeats. The other party would then start complaining that Qin Chuan wasn't cooperating.

Boss Qin couldn't be bothered to argue with people. Without another word, he left the team and pulled in his former master, "Eight Whiskers."

But Qin Chuan still felt something was off.

Before teaming up with "Peppermint Tea," he thought that although "Eight Whiskers'" technique couldn't compare to "Peppermint Tea's," it was still quite good.

But after being coached by "Peppermint Tea," both Qin Chuan's technique and his judgment had risen to a new level.

Players he used to look up to, he could now stand with as equals. Looking at "Eight Whiskers" again, his previously masterful technique was now only on par with his own.

Compared to with "Peppermint Tea," he and "Eight Whiskers" lacked that bit of chemistry.

"Eight Whiskers" was a chatterbox and liked to give voice commands during PK.

"Peppermint Tea" didn't even need voice chat; he could use his actions to let Qin Chuan anticipate his next move and coordinate accordingly.

What's more, "Peppermint Tea's" class skills were a better fit for teaming up with Qin Chuan's class. The two of them just needed to add their usual three fixed teammates to allow the team to unleash its greatest potential.

After playing for a while, Qin Chuan found it boring. He told his teammates he was going to take a break, disbanded the team, and went AFK to gather herbs.

"Eight Whiskers" seemed to notice Qin Chuan's distraction and asked him what was wrong.

Qin Chuan didn't overthink it and just typed a line: My master should have been online by now.

"Eight Whiskers" teased: I never saw you rely on me, your former master, this much. Don't tell me you really think of yourself as a girl now!

Qin Chuan let out a faint, inaudible scoff, too lazy to refute it.

Just then, the game's message icon flashed and bounced, displaying the notification: "Your friend Peppermint Tea has come online."

"Eight Whiskers" had apparently received the notification too, and he immediately pulled the two of them into a team.

Eight Whiskers: You're finally here! Your disciple was missing you so much he was about to get lovesick!

Peppermint Tea: Sorry, something came up with work in real life today, so I'm late.

Eight Whiskers: What's up, work not going well? I still don't know what you do in real life.

Qin Chuan: Good evening.

Qin Chuan felt that "Eight Whiskers" really hadn't chosen his name wrong. He was just like his name—extremely gossipy.

If it were him, he would never pry into what someone does in real life.

For Qin Chuan, the game and reality were clearly separated.

Although he was on good terms with "Peppermint Tea" and "Eight Whiskers" in the game, in reality, the three of them had vastly different life situations. Even if they passed each other on the street, they would be strangers.

Even if they met, they would not recognize each other.

He wasn't curious about others' privacy, and naturally, he wouldn't satisfy others' curiosity either.

However, "Peppermint Tea" didn't change the subject and actually answered "Eight Whiskers."

Peppermint Tea: I was transferred back to my original department today. There's some work I need to catch up on.

Eight Whiskers: That's not right! I remember you were late last week and seemed quite happy, saying you had just been promoted and were treating your old department colleagues to a meal. How come you were transferred back?

Peppermint Tea: Haha, you have a good memory. I made a mistake at work and was knocked back to square one.

The fact that he could still laugh about it showed he had a good attitude.

Eight Whiskers: Then that must have been a really serious mistake. You didn't get chewed out, did you?

Peppermint Tea: It's fine. You live and learn. I'll be smarter next time.

The group teamed up and started playing on the Celestial Ascension Platform. "Peppermint Tea" didn't let his real-life situation affect his gaming mood. His performance was as stable as ever. With him leading the charge, the team won one match after another, quickly rising two ranks. It looked like they would soon be in the top three.

In the final battle, the opposing team was, on average, a whole realm higher than them. Both of their team's healers had been worn down and killed, lying on the ground on opposite sides, leaving only Qin Chuan, "Eight Whiskers," and "Peppermint Tea."

And the enemies were still at full health.

Even Qin Chuan was ready to give up.

But "Peppermint Tea" leaped up, soaring into the sky. A dense rain of arrows instantly fell. "Eight Whiskers" quickly coordinated, charging forward with his sword and slashing away half of the enemy healer's health with one strike. At that moment, "Peppermint Tea" swooped down from mid-air with the speed of a thunderclap, his longbow switching to a short dagger. He teleported behind an enemy, the dagger pierced through their chest, and the enemy fell dead instantly.

Qin Chuan also snapped into action. Without a word, he gestured, and his flying sword shot out like a streak of white light. The enemies scattered to dodge. It was as if "Peppermint Tea" had already predicted their evasion routes; he retreated a few steps, nocked his bow, and fired several arrows in succession, hitting the enemies and pinning them in place.

The few seconds of the slowing debuff were enough for Qin Chuan and the others to act. A few flying swords descended, and the entire enemy team was wiped out.

When the victory symbol popped up on the screen, with its golden special effects shimmering and spinning brilliantly, everyone felt a rush of hot blood and surging passion.

Qin Chuan finally understood why he had felt so bored earlier.

It was because of "Peppermint Tea" that this game was imbued with a true soul.

Pure, passionate, ultimate.

A team without "Peppermint Tea" was like a robot with an empty shell, forever unable to replace a human, unable to possess complex and rich emotions and character.

However, up to this point, Qin Chuan's perception of "Peppermint Tea" was still only on the level of a "game mentor."

What truly made him feel that "Peppermint Tea" was worthy of being a friend, and even made him want to build a deeper connection, was a sudden in-game incident that happened not long after.

...

Back in the Customer Service Department, Bo He's work also returned to its original rhythm.

Her department rarely had any direct dealings with people from the President's Office, let alone seeing the boss.

Comparing the two, Bo He found that the work here was indeed more relaxed. Working under the boss's nose all day added an extra layer of pressure out of nowhere. However, the generous compensation drove them to constantly push forward. If someone like Bo He was eliminated for making a mistake, it wasn't as if Tang Mi and Li Xi had it much better.

Bo He felt very fortunate that her current supervisor was a reasonably fair person. Otherwise, for anyone to be "demoted" to this extent, it would already be considered good if their superior didn't kick them while they were down. Who would actually encourage her to stay calm and work hard?

But, she never expected that not only would she soon meet Boss Qin again, but it would be under such unexpected circumstances.