Meng Yishan's eyes lit up, but he was also caught between hope and fear. "The Undergraduate Program isn't easy to get into. Are you really sure? Sigh, the social climate is getting worse and worse these days. Ten or twenty years ago, where would you find people like Shen Rongfa and Qin Hu?"
Meng Chao understood what his father meant.
When Dragon City had first crossed over, resources were scarce, the environment harsh, and the pressure to survive immense. Yet the social climate had been remarkably pure. The citizens' spirits had gleamed like gold, and everyone had worked together with one heart. Every job was merely a different division of labor—where was there any distinction between high and low, noble and base?
Back then, people like Zuo Haoran, Shen Rongfa, and Qin Hu were rare. Whoever dared abuse privilege, throw their weight around, or put on airs would be like a rat crossing the street, with everyone shouting to beat them.
But while people could share hardship, they could not necessarily share wealth—such was Human Nature.
Over the past ten years, it seemed that monsters had grown fewer, life had become more prosperous, and the threat to survival no longer existed. Once the fog dispersed, Dragon City's Iron Torrent would be able to sweep across the entire Otherworld, just as colonialists of old had conquered whole native continents with a few hundred muskets.
The social climate gradually became restless and impetuous.
Many Transcendents in their forties and fifties had raised a second generation as well. One Superhuman Family after another began to emerge, social classes gradually solidified, and all manner of rotten old habits from the Earth Era once again floated to the surface.
Rich second-generation heirs bullying others through influence, insider trading within the Survival Committee, the extravagant lives of Superhuman Families... none of it was news anymore.
People like Zuo Haoran, Shen Rongfa, and Qin Hu were merely a microcosm of this restless era.
Meng Chao vaguely remembered that Dragon City's internal conflicts would cause them to suffer greatly when they faced Another World Civilization in the future.
By the time Earthlings discovered that the Otherworld was not so simple and once again faced a survival crisis, everyone would unite again—but unfortunately, not every crack could be repaired with enough time.
"It was precisely because so many pests hollowed Dragon City out from within that the mighty Otherworldly Calamity suffered such a crushing defeat."
Meng Chao could not help pondering, If I can slap these people hard across the face and completely knock the arrogance and impetuosity out of them, would that count as preserving social harmony, promoting the rise of civilization, and making a huge contribution?
Just when he had finally put his father's mind at ease, an unexpected surprise arrived.
Special Citizen Bai Jiacao (Black Night Witch), corruption probability decreased by 2%, Contribution Points +1000
That was right. In his previous life, there had been two major triggers for his little sister's corruption. The first was their mother being grievously injured by a monster, and the second was their father being swindled by Shen Rongfa.
Now that both "landmines" had been cleared, of course her corruption probability had decreased.
Meng Chao smiled, but his smile suddenly stiffened. "Wait, 2% this time and 3% last time. Clearing two 'landmines' only lowered Bai Jiacao's corruption probability by 5%?
"So it has nothing to do with external factors, then. The darkness of society, loopholes in the law—those are all excuses. This brat was born a Witch, right?"
Grinding his teeth, Meng Chao went home and directly shook the little girl awake.
It was five-thirty in the morning. The little girl had been sleeping soundly when she was suddenly awakened, and she was just about to throw a waking tantrum.
Meng Chao piled on a smile and said gently, "Xiao Cao, your brother brought you something tasty. Want some?"
Bai Jiacao's eyes immediately shone. "Yes, of course! Long live Big Brother!"
"Come on, down it in one gulp. It's sweet and delicious." Meng Chao pulled the ring tab on a bottle of concentrated nutrient solution.
The little girl had no idea what was going on and gulped it down. Her eyes suddenly widened larger than goose eggs. Just as she was about to spit it out, Meng Chao lightning-fast pinched her nose shut and forced her to swallow it.
"Ah! What is this? It's so bitter, bitter to death!" The little girl stuck out her tongue, clutched her throat, and rolled around on the bed.
"This is called Strong Tranquilizing Brain-Boosting Liquid. It's an advanced potion formulated by the Thunder Battle Team themselves. It can stimulate brain cell activity, promote central nervous system growth, and even increase mental power. It's especially beneficial for adolescents like you, who spend all day thinking who knows what." Meng Chao smiled.
Earlier, he had consulted Ning Shewo about cultivation resources. Based on the differing circumstances of him and Bai Jiacao, Ning Shewo had recommended two medicinal package sets the Thunder Battle Team used to train newcomers. They were immensely helpful for cultivation, balanced and gentle, with absolutely no side effects. They could not even be bought on the market.
Their only drawback was that they were slightly... bitter.
Normally, they had to be taken together with a rather sweet beverage.
Meng Chao had merely, uh, been so busy nourishing his little sister that he had forgotten!
"Mom, Big Brother is bullying me again!" Bai Jiacao screamed.
"What happened?" Bai Suxin limped out from the inner room.
"Mom, put these potions away. Whenever I'm not home, make sure you supervise Little Sis and have her drink them every day." Meng Chao took out a week's worth of middle school cultivation potion packages from his bag and explained in terms Old Mom could understand. "Drink these, and she'll get into a key high school. Besides, they're expensive—a single bottle costs several hundred!"
"Several hundred for one bottle?" Bai Suxin was startled. In an instant, she shared a common enemy with her son. "Then I'll definitely make your sister drink every last drop, not a bit left behind!"
Bai Jiacao: "..."
Her completely bewildered expression, furious but too afraid to speak, made Meng Chao laugh.
"All right, stop pouting. Your brother really did bring you something tasty." He took several Thunder Battle Team field-combat quick-meal packs from his bag. The monster jerky inside tasted unexpectedly good.
"You didn't poison it, did you?" Bai Jiacao was full of vigilance.
"No."
"You didn't put laxatives or anything in it either?" The little girl was still hesitant.
"Forget it if you won't eat it. I'll eat it myself."
"Who said I wouldn't? At least your conscience hasn't completely rotted away." The future Black Night Witch hurriedly snatched it away, tore open the package, and took a deep sniff. Her eyes immediately curved into crescents.
While she ate happily, Meng Chao trimmed off the beginning and end and briefly told her about what had happened in the middle of the night, including the fact that he had already recovered for the most part.
Of course, the source of his strength was still "guidance from an Abnormal Human on the Deep Web."
"What!" Bai Jiacao exclaimed. "You're still visiting those unhealthy websites?"
Meng Chao was exasperated. "Why are you reacting just like Dad? I told you, the Life Science Forum isn't an unhealthy website. Besides, you're so young—what do you know about unhealthy websites?"
Bai Jiacao put her hands on her hips. "Don't look down on me. Do you dare take out your phone and computer and let us inspect them?"
Meng Chao directly stuffed a huge wad of monster jerky into her mouth.
After clearing his throat, he said, "In short, the matter of the Crystallized Nerve Ball tells us that we should be like your brother and Dad: upright, honest, and kind. Good people receive good rewards.
"And we must believe in the law, and believe that the vast majority of Transcendents are good people.
"Qin Hu is so powerful, so why did he not dare lay a finger on a weak high school student like your brother, who couldn't even truss a chicken? It's because there is law, because there is the Superhuman Tower, because all of Dragon City stands behind your brother—and behind every ordinary person, behind tens of thousands of citizens.
"So if something happens to you, don't burrow into a bull's horn. You still need to give the law a chance, understand?"
Bai Jiacao listened in a muddled daze, concerned only with eating, her mouth slick with grease.
Meng Chao sighed. "Forget it, I can't explain it clearly in a moment. Anyway, don't go stirring up trouble. If someone bullies you, come back and tell me immediately, and I'll help you take revenge a hundredfold. If you want to bully someone else, come back and tell me too, and I'll help you torment them until they cry for their fathers and mothers."
The future Black Night Witch immediately raised her hand. "What if you're the one bullying me?"
Meng Chao thought for a moment, then comforted her. "Then just endure it. Endure it long enough, and you'll get used to it."
After eating Old Mom's fried egg, steamed bun slices, and Luncheon Meat sandwich, then dozing for half an hour, Meng Chao went to school.
Although some monster remains still lingered in the residential compound, and the air was filled with a pungent odor.
The residents had nevertheless returned to their former lives. Elderly men and women had come out early to exercise, while children could be seen playing and laughing.
At the entrance to the Vegetable Market, breakfast stalls had been set up. The sizzling of potstickers, pan-fried dumplings, and egg pancakes on iron griddles intertwined with the laughter and banter of stall owners and customers, becoming the warmth of everyday life—a sturdiest shield against the stench of monsters.
Meng Chao ran into Grandma Wang beneath his apartment building.
The old woman held the leash of her Biochemical Pet Beast and hummed a popular song from her youth. With her kindly, benevolent appearance, no one could tell that she had wielded a shotgun last night.
"Grandma Wang, taking the dog for a walk again today?" Meng Chao greeted her.
"What's wrong with today? Didn't a few bugs just hatch in the compound? Could some enormous monster stop this old woman from walking her dog?" Grandma Wang glared, her voice full of strength.
Meng Chao smiled.
That was right. Whether zombies or monsters, or the demons and ghosts, sprites and specters that might come later.
Life had to go on. No one could stop the people of Dragon City from living their ordinary yet happy little lives.
Before you continue