A Family of Four

When Linley carried the Earth Demon Bear home, Avril and her mother were sitting by the stove, secretly wiping away tears. Her father, Aguda, stood in silence, puffing on his pipe without a word; the swirling smoke betrayed the turmoil churning within him.

Linley left the carcass of the Earth Demon Bear right in the courtyard. Such a heavy object was something most people couldn't steal, nor would they dare to.

As Linley pushed the door open and took in the gloomy atmosphere of the house, his mind shifted, and he immediately understood the situation. He feigned a cheerful tone to address his family.

"Haha, look who's back."

Hearing Linley's voice, the three people, each lost in their own thoughts, looked up in surprise at the figure they had assumed would never return. Young Avril rushed straight into Linley's arms, crying out, "Brother! Brother!"

The grief and fear she had been holding back erupted in that instant. Tears flowed like a broken faucet, unstoppable, and her snot and tears smeared all over Linley's clothes.

Linley didn't mind these small details; he simply comforted Avril, "Don't cry anymore, or you'll turn into a big, tear-stained cat."

Linley's comfort had no effect; instead, it only made Avril's sobbing louder.

It wasn't until their mother composed herself and pulled Avril away that the scene finally ended.

The dining table was already set with food, yet father, mother, and Avril had no appetite; not a single bite had been touched.

"Didn't you run into an Earth Demon Bear? How did you manage to escape?" Seeing Linley back, it was his mother, Alyosha, who asked first.

"I killed it, then came back," Linley replied, pretending to be nonchalant.

"You killed it?"

"Yes, its carcass is still in the courtyard. I'll take it to the market to sell tomorrow."

As he spoke, Linley pulled his skeptical parents outside to witness the body of the Earth Demon Bear with their own eyes.

When Alyosha and Aguda saw the massive beast in the courtyard and reached out to touch its hide, they finally believed that Linley had indeed slain the Earth Demon Bear.

However, Alyosha and Aguda didn't ask how Linley had managed to take down such a behemoth. After seeing the carcass, they simply ushered Linley inside to eat, leaving Linley, who had prepared his own explanations, with no use for his words.

The food on the table had been sitting for a long time and much of it had gone cold, so Alyosha hurried to the kitchen to reheat it, while Linley and the others started on the black bread.

Upon hearing that Linley had killed the Earth Demon Bear, Avril insisted on sitting next to him during the meal, eager to hear him describe the battle.

Linley naturally agreed. He recounted how he defeated the Earth Demon Bear, painting a vivid picture of the highlights while omitting the dangerous parts. Even Aguda, who was eating nearby, was left stunned by the scene Linley described.

Looking at his petite and cute sister, Linley thought of Yang Jian, who also had a beautiful sister, the Holy Mother of Three. Linley shared many similarities with Yang Jian; both cherished their families and both possessed a loyal dog.

However, unlike Yang Jian, who helped his sister from the shadows, Linley preferred to act according to his own heart—protecting his loved ones in this world without compromising, daring to fight and strive.

Returning to his room that night, Linley washed his hands and burned incense, preparing for his double draw.

As the wheel spun rapidly, the long pointer came to a stop on the white "Miscellaneous" section.

"Ding! Congratulations on obtaining a set of Brocade Garment. The Brocade Garment is handcrafted from fine silk and satin, designed for the upper class, and was once a tribute for the Imperial family."

"Impossible. My luck can't be this bad."

The first draw yielded a useless piece of clothing. Although it was a luxury item, it was of no use to Linley. Was he supposed to show it off to the villagers?

Unwilling to accept this, Linley pressed the draw button again.

After another rapid spin, Linley felt confident about this draw. He was 99% sure he would land a Hero Card.

As the pointer settled, it landed in the yellow "Equipment" zone.

Linley felt a bit awkward and muttered to himself.

"It's fine if I got equipment. If it happens to be a divine artifact, that's even better than a Hero Card."

"Congratulations to the host for obtaining a Chicken-Slaughtering Knife. Quality: Unknown."

"...Something with an unknown quality must be a good thing," Linley tried to force a justification.

But in the end, he couldn't hold it in.

"Drawing should be a happy thing... even if I get a knife, I should be happy... I draw your mother!"

"I thought I was a 'European' who had escaped the 'African' curse, but it turns out I'm even more of an 'African' than the tribal chief. My mentality has collapsed."

Having drawn two pieces of trash, Linley didn't even look at their stats or descriptions; he tossed them directly into his inventory, confident that this would be the last time he ever saw them.

In a foul mood, Linley shut down the system panel, blew out the lamp, and went to sleep.

The next morning, Linley was woken up early by the chattering of voices outside. Looking out the window, he saw a sea of people. The courtyard, the walls, and the trees were packed; it felt as if the entire village had arrived.

Linley pushed the door open and asked his sister, Avril, with some curiosity.

"When did these people get here?"

Avril counted on her fingers at her brother's question and told him happily.

"Brother, they came at five o'clock."

"Tsk tsk, that is early. They came as soon as the sky turned bright." Linley nodded in amazement.

The crowd outside saw the man who had killed the Earth Demon Bear appear, and the already noisy chatter grew even louder.

"That kid over there, don't touch the bear's claws, be careful not to cut yourself."

Linley saw several children, newborn calves unafraid of tigers, trying to touch the claws of the Earth Demon Bear. Was a Magic Beast of the Silver rank really that easy to touch? Watching from the side, Linley had to quickly stop them.

Glancing around, he saw his mother chatting happily with the neighbors, and even the usually reticent Aguda was wearing a smile he couldn't hide as others showered him with compliments.

Seeing the crowd growing larger, with people from neighboring villages even showing up, Linley decided it was time to take the Earth Demon Bear to the town to sell it, otherwise, his home would surely be overwhelmed.

Thinking of this, Linley found a few wooden boards at home, assembled a giant cart with some wheels, and placed the carcass of the Earth Demon Bear on top.

After explaining the situation to his parents, he set off with Ah Huang toward the nearest town, Wheat Town.

Avril originally wanted to go with Linley, crying and making a fuss about wanting to play in the town, but Linley sternly refused; he did not agree to take her along just because of her crying.

He didn't know how many greedy people the carcass of a Silver-tier Magic Beast would attract, and if they encountered robbers, he wouldn't be able to protect Avril's safety with her by his side.

Linley pulled the Magic Beast carcass at a pace that wasn't very fast, only slightly quicker than the walking speed of an ordinary person.

He encountered a few groups of bandits on the road, but they all left as soon as they saw Linley from afar.

Not far away, on a hillside.

A lackey who was clearly new to the trade asked the One-Eye beside him.

"Boss, there's only one person down there with so much meat, why don't we go down and rob him?"

One-Eye listened to this idiot's words, his anger flaring up.

"Are you a pig? Such a huge Magic Beast carcass—not to mention the strength required to kill it, just pushing it alone requires the strength of at least a Bronze Tier 4. Do you or I have such power?"

As he spoke, One-Eye still felt unsatisfied and gave him a few good whacks with his stick, making the lackey yelp in pain.

On the road, Linley had a safe journey without any close calls; he didn't encounter any overly powerful bandits, only ordinary people struggling to survive, and he wasn't attacked by them.

When he arrived at the town gate, the people around cleared a path for Linley, letting him transport the Magic Beast carcass into the town first. The guards nearby watched Linley hauling such a massive Magic Beast carcass, their legs trembling uncontrollably.

It wasn't until Linley had passed that they finally reacted.

One of the town guards said to the captain.

"Such a huge carcass, could it be a Silver-tier Magic Beast? I was trembling with fear the moment it passed by me."

The words of this town guard clearly resonated with the people around, and they began to chime in one after another.

Meanwhile, the captain on the side slowly began to realize something.

"A Silver-tier Magic Beast... isn't there a lord's daughter from Flower Territory who recently came down needing a Silver-tier Magic Beast to break through her Bronze Tier 2?"

Thinking this, the captain said to the guards beside him.

"Brothers, I have an urgent matter to attend to. Please keep an eye on things; I'll be right back."

With that, before the others could react, he disappeared without a trace. Looking from above the town, it was clear the captain had gone to tip off the mayor.

Back on this side, as Linley arrived at each place, he caused a sensation. By the time he reached the market specifically for selling Magic Beasts, a large crowd was already following behind him.

However, Linley was already unfazed. Having been watched by others throughout the entire journey, he had learned to remain unmoved.

He arrived at the most central spot provided by the market manager and simply dropped the Magic Beast carcass there. The foot traffic in the entire market increased by more than double.

Most people were just there to catch a glimpse of a Silver-tier Magic Beast, which rarely appeared in the small town, and weren't buying anything. However, a small portion did buy a little something here and there, and the market made a fortune.

But none of this concerned Linley. He knew exactly what the market manager was thinking by giving him this spot, yet he didn't care.

He set the price for the Earth Demon Bear at five hundred gold coins, a figure that made most people shrink back. Linley didn't mind if it didn't sell today; he had prepared two or three days' worth of dry rations, ready for a long battle.