Family Meeting

After finally washing away the fishy stench and soaking in a bath, Su Shijie changed into clean clothes, feeling refreshed.

His dad said he had something to discuss with Sergei, so Su Shijie left the shelter first and headed back to Residential Zone No. 2 with He Lei.

Even with the shelter's powerful air circulation system, a faint stench still lingered. He had no idea what the residential area's terrible ventilation system would end up like.

They still obediently took the subway passage home, and He Lei filled Su Shijie in on what had happened lately.

It was much the same as before. Nearly everyone in the residential area had gone out hunting, but since this time the location was farther away, there were more injuries than usual.

After all, they might encounter other predatory Spirit Beasts along the way. That was unavoidable.

If they ran into one, they could only treat it like getting hit by a car on the road and resign themselves to bad luck.

Without question, deer meat would be the shelter's staple food for quite some time. Especially over the next few days, they would definitely be eating perishables like offal every day.

After all, ordinary residents mostly hunted regular deer. If they were lucky enough to encounter a Spirit Deer, they would sell the whole thing. Most of what they brought back was ordinary venison...

"Sure enough, these days every year are a disaster."

Back in the residential area, Su Shijie smelled the odor and could only complain helplessly.

He had never liked it either. In the past, he would keep his helmet on and play games.

But from experience, once everything was dealt with in a few days, the smell would fade.

Residential Zone No. 2 also had dehydrators for processing venison, and all residents could use them.

"Come over tomorrow morning. I'll discuss it with those two today and try to break into the top forty to get a better discount."

Su Shijie parted ways with He Lei at the intersection.

After this final exam, everyone ranked in the top fifty overall would qualify to purchase an Awakening Potion. The top ten would receive one for free, while every ten ranks after that would receive progressively smaller purchase discounts.

They would also qualify to attend the Advanced Class in the Floating City.

"I'd be lucky just to make the top fifty. I'm really jealous of your talent. Every time you cram, you improve so much."

He Lei sighed. While getting into the top fifty would grant him purchase eligibility, his family could not come up with one million to buy it. He still needed to enter the Advanced Class in Prosperous City and gradually earn tuition reductions and discounts.

Thinking of that, he could not help feeling jealous again.

Great talent, a good family background, even able to obtain an Awakened Rank potion from a game, and capable of earning a decent placement in the Advanced Class... he really had every advantage.

He had no idea how hard life was for people at the bottom...

When Su Shijie got home, he found that aside from his dad, everyone else had returned.

Bai Congcong was bustling about in the kitchen wearing an apron, while his poker-faced second brother, Li Wei, was helping at his side.

Li Meier had changed into loose loungewear and was leaning back in a chair, drinking beer. Bai Xinxin, as always, was studying.

The family hierarchy was obvious at a glance.

"Oh? Our city boy finally decided to come home?"

When Bai Xinxin saw Su Shijie return, she turned and mocked him. Her smooth silver hair cascaded over her shoulders.

Li Meier and Li Wei had still returned every day during the hunting period, while Su Shijie and Su Ren had not been home for half a month after their trip to the city.

"Heh, did you start showing off now that you've reached the Awakened Rank?"

Su Shijie quickly noticed the difference. There was a qualitative leap between Mortal Tier Level 9 and the Awakened Rank, most obviously in one's intuition.

Bai Xinxin gave him a faintly spirited feeling. She had probably only broken through recently.

The same was true for Bai Congcong.

"If I didn't break through, someone's tail would be sticking up in the sky."

"Didn't you have to beg Big Sis and Second Brother to take you along?"

Su Shijie teased.

"Didn't your dad bring you along too?"

Bai Xinxin shot back without yielding an inch.

The two people in the kitchen paid no attention to the argument outside, while Li Meier held her beer and watched the pair with a tipsy, mischievous grin, as if she wished they would start fighting.

Although his mental strength had completely recovered, bickering with his little sister and enjoying this ordinary ease relaxed the heart that Su Shijie had kept tense for ten days. He cherished days like this.

Unfortunately, those damned Evil God Cultists had hired assassins to hunt them down, and his dad had decided they needed to move.

Even now, he still felt reluctant to leave the shabby little home they had lived in for more than a decade.

By the time Bai Congcong and Li Wei had prepared a full deer feast made entirely from Awakened Rank Spirit Beast meat, Su Ren finally returned, fashionably late.

"Looks like I got back at just the right time."

"The Deer Herd Migration is finally over. We have to celebrate properly. And the three little ones have all broken through to the Awakened Rank, so we should celebrate that too."

Li Meier said it as though it were only natural.

Bai Congcong then went to the storage room and brought out a case of beer and a case of drinks.

It wasn't just their side—outside, the entire residential district was filled with a festive atmosphere, bustling with excitement.

"Cheers~"

Only his eldest sister and father were drinking alcohol. Even his usually expressionless second brother had chosen a soft drink. After clinking glasses, everyone began eating and drinking heartily.

"Dad, didn't you say you wanted to hold a family meeting? What's going on?"

Li Meier stuffed herself without the slightest concern for appearances, her mouth glistening with grease as she asked curiously.

"Eat first. We'll talk after."

When their father said that, even Bai Congcong paused for a moment. The atmosphere at the table soon cooled slightly.

It definitely wasn't good news, or there wouldn't have been a need for this.

After everyone had eaten and drunk their fill, Bai Congcong carried the pots and dishes into the kitchen. He was not asked to wash them, and the whole family sat down together in a row.

"You should all be somewhat mentally prepared. It's not good news. Basically, this is what happened..."

Su Ren then told them about how the two of them had gone to Prosperous Sky City and encountered suspicious people along the way.

He only altered the details slightly, saying that Su Ren had discovered them himself, reported them through the proper channels, and ultimately drawn their pursuit.

"They've probably already investigated me thoroughly. Although they must be dealing with the Task Force's suppression right now and don't have the strength to worry about us—perhaps they'll even be wiped out entirely—the shelter has also arranged for two Task Force members to stay here for a while.

"But it's best not to take chances. If any of them slipped through the net, then once things quieted down and they discovered I wasn't dead, there's a chance they might retaliate. The Task Force can't remain stationed here forever.

"After all, Evil God Cultists can't be judged purely through interests and benefits. They're easily swayed by extreme emotions."

Su Ren explained the situation as objectively as possible.

In this situation, not only did Li Meier and Li Wei, two veterans who had fought and killed for years, understand how serious things were, but even Bai Xinxin and Bai Congcong, who had been studying all this time, knew it was no small matter.

Indeed, there was a high chance that nothing would happen even if they did nothing, but they did not dare gamble on that small possibility.

"Are we moving somewhere else?"

Li Meier asked uncertainly, then glanced at her second younger brother.

"That was indeed what I had in mind. This time, Xinxin and Congcong have both reached Awakened Rank, so the journey shouldn't be much of a problem.

"But I also considered Li Wei's situation. Earlier, I went to talk with Sergei and jokingly tested whether, if we moved away, he would be willing to let his daughter marry far from home.

"Though it was only a joke, his answer was that as long as Eva didn't object, he personally had no issue with it."

After saying that, Su Ren glanced at Li Wei, whose expression was still as cool as ever.

During the time they had been away, Li Wei and Eva had made their relationship public. They still teamed up when hunting as well, and they were getting along quite well.

To be reasonable, the Evil God Cultists' main grudge was currently against Su Ren.

Under normal circumstances, even if some survivors really escaped the crackdown, then chose not to assess their losses or lie low and rebuild, but instead stubbornly investigated P-314 through Prosperous Sky City and discovered that Su Ren was still alive—then decided to retaliate despite the risk of provoking another suppression campaign—only to find that Su Ren had already moved away...

For them to then vent their anger on the child of someone who was merely Su Ren's comrade on the surface was indeed an extremely, extremely unlikely possibility.

But even so, Su Ren could not simply leave and let the child remain here to bear risks caused by him.

Every one of them was his child. He had to take every one of them into consideration, including their feelings...