Zhang Yang’s brow twitched slightly, his eyes remaining closed as he continued to communicate with the Sacred Hand System in his mind.

"Reward Missions are missions that appear purely for the sake of offering rewards. Such missions are either already completed or extremely easy to finish, serving as a type of upgrade bonus. However, the specific reward depends on luck!"

Zhang Yang thought internally, "Why didn't you tell me this before?"

"That is because you did not ask, and Reward Missions only start appearing after an upgrade, so there was no need to mention them previously!"

"Fine, let’s say I didn't ask. Besides Reward Missions, are there any other benefits?"

Zhang Yang asked again, this time intending to get every last detail. The system always felt too intelligent to him, as if it were keeping secrets.

"Yes, after upgrading, you will receive Ability Value rewards, which you can freely allocate to your existing abilities!"

The mechanical female voice answered again. This time, Zhang Yang paused slightly and finally opened his eyes. The answer had once again exceeded his expectations.

As his eyes opened, he saw the virtual green main screen floating in the air before him.

After a moment of thought, Zhang Yang inquired further, "Can those Ability Values be added to the two categories listed in the Ability Column?"

"Correct. Ability Values can only be increased during upgrades, apart from Level Four and above missions. The amount of Ability Value gained differs based on the level you ascend to!"

"So, how many Ability Values will I gain from this upgrade?"

Zhang Yang clicked on the Ability Column option and was surprised to find that his Zhang Family Qigong was already at a value of 25. He clearly remembered that the last time he checked, this number was 23.

His other ability, Traditional Chinese Medicine Skills, remained at 38.

The mechanical voice stated, "Upon upgrading to Level Two, you will gain two points of Free Ability Value!"

"Only two points? That’s too few!"

Zhang Yang was slightly disappointed. His ancestral Qigong had depleted its internal energy while healing someone last time, and even after replenishing, the increase felt minor. Now, it seemed that minimal growth was already reflected in the system.

If he added the two Free Ability Points entirely to 'Zhang Family Qigong,' it would only amount to about the same growth he had already experienced, which disappointed him slightly.

"Every little bit adds up. You receive points with every upgrade. If you complete more Level Four and above missions, your Ability Value can increase further—you might become one or even twice as strong as you are now!" the mechanical voice continued.

"Don't mention missions to me. By the way, after upgrading, are there any mandatory missions?"

Zhang Yang quickly replied in his mind, posing another question that concerned him. He deeply worried that one day the system might go rogue and assign him missions he absolutely had to complete, which would exhaust him completely.

This wasn't an impossibility; he had read novels where similar situations occurred.

"No. Sacred Hand System Level Two has no mandatory missions!"

The mechanical voice's words somewhat soothed Zhang Yang's anxiety. Overall, upgrading now seemed beneficial, with many advantages and no apparent negative consequences to his status.

"There are three minutes remaining for the current system session. Host, please make your decision regarding the upgrade promptly."

The mechanical voice chimed in again. Zhang Yang now understood that his Sacred Hand System was very low-level and could not be summoned at will. If he hadn't completed the 'Mi Xue’s Crisis' mission, the system wouldn't have appeared before him.

The three-minute limit likely wasn't a bluff; the system had time restrictions last time as well.

"Alright, I will upgrade!"

After pondering for over two minutes and considering everything carefully, Zhang Yang secretly nodded. At least this upgrade presented no discernible drawbacks, so proceeding was fine, especially since it would unlock the Data Library, something he had wanted to view for a long time.

"Host has decided to upgrade. Free Index allocation is perfectly matched for the upgrade; system is automatically allocating..."

The mechanical voice resonated slowly, and Zhang Yang couldn't shake the feeling that it carried a distinct tone of satisfaction, as if his decision to upgrade pleased the system greatly.

This feeling was strange, yet undeniably present, leaving Zhang Yang somewhat bewildered.

However, it was too late for regrets now. The green virtual screen displayed an upgrade progress bar, overlaid with text indicating the process could not be interrupted.

The entire upgrade took only one minute. After sixty seconds, the original green virtual screen reappeared. The difference was that four of the five sub-panels were now flashing, while only the Pet section remained greyed out.

Zhang Yang was no longer unfamiliar with this interface; he immediately clicked on the Ability Column.

Indeed, the number in the Free Allocation section of the Ability Column had changed from zero to two; he truly had gained two points of Free Ability Value.

Without hesitation, Zhang Yang allocated both points to 'Zhang Family Qigong.' As the two points were added, a warm, comforting current flowed through Zhang Yang's body, appearing quickly and vanishing just as fast.

But after the warmth dissipated, Zhang Yang felt an ineffable sense of comfort, and he distinctly sensed that his internal energy had genuinely increased—the system hadn't lied about the correlation between the values and reality.

"Good, they didn't deceive me!"

A faint smile touched the corner of Zhang Yang's mouth. The increase in Ability Value was the primary draw for him to upgrade. What he lacked most currently was the deficiency in his ancestral Qigong; having his power reduced by half made performing many tasks feel awkward.

It was like someone who originally had very long arms suddenly finding them shortened by half—using them would naturally feel uncomfortable. The reduction in internal energy wasn't as severe as the sudden shortening of a limb, but the sensation was comparable.

Exiting the Ability Column, the main external screen was brightly lit, showing three remaining sub-panels. Zhang Yang focused his attention on the Data section.

Just as he was about to open the Data section and examine its contents, his head snapped toward the side.

"Zhang Yang, are you alright?"

Two people rushed into the hospital room. Zhu Zhixiang and Wu Youdao had arrived, and Zhu Zhixiang was the one who spoke.

Upon entering, both men walked directly to the bedside. They first glanced at Mi Xue, who was sleeping soundly in the hospital bed, and then looked at Zhang Yang.

The way they regarded Zhang Yang was distinctly different.

Wu Youdao looked surprised, tinged with bewilderment, while Zhu Zhixiang's eyes held more elation, mixed with a degree of shock. He had been genuinely startled when he received Director Li's call that day, fearing Zhang Yang had been in a car accident.

He later learned it wasn't him, but his girlfriend who was in critical condition, apparently so urgent that Zhang Yang needed to borrow the operating room to perform surgery himself.

Director Li's intention was to agree. Zhu Zhixiang hesitated for a moment but temporarily concurred, though he had firmly instructed Director Li to assist Zhang Yang thoroughly and ensure absolutely no mishaps occurred during the surgery. After hanging up, he rushed to the hospital. Before leaving, he hadn't forgotten to notify Wu Youdao, knowing Wu was the one who admired Zhang Yang the most.

He and Wu Youdao arrived at the hospital almost simultaneously. At that time, Zhang Yang had just finished the surgery. They didn't approach Zhang Yang immediately but went to the office to question Director Li.

The results of that interrogation completely defied both their expectations.