Security Guard, Food Delivery Rider

Darong City, outer district, Chenghua Avenue.

Deep within a dim, old alleyway, dilapidated rain awnings crisscrossed and connected overhead.

The faded, tattered sign for Backbone Food Stall flickered with a faint light in the evening breeze.

The smoke from high-heat stir-frying surged straight toward the corrugated iron roof, while the screech of plastic chairs being dragged and the crisp clinking of beer bottles rose in succession.

Amidst the clamor, Li Jinshui, wearing a face that looked excessively young, stood in a standard at-ease posture behind a folding table with several colleagues, hands clasped behind his back, eyes fixed straight ahead.

The folding table, already small, was occupied by over a dozen people sitting on both sides, all staring each other down; the atmosphere was heavy and slightly tense.

Li Jinshui and his men were dressed in solid black special-duty anti-riot gear with steel riot batons at their waists, while the leader, the security captain, leaned against his plastic chair with a bold, imposing air, his presence cold and sharp.

On the other side of the table, dressed in uniform fluorescent yellow windbreakers and helmets, were the familiar figures of delivery riders, though they had electric batteries strapped to their legs.

"Captain Liu."

The lead Station Master Chen took a fierce drag of his cigarette and spoke first: "I'll get straight to the point. This year, our station has a powerhouse aiming to compete for the district's Top Order title, and it's tied to our station's year-end cultivation technique quota.

"You know as well as I do that Green Osmanthus Garden is notoriously difficult to deliver to. It's over nine hundred meters from the main gate to the nearest unit building. If we get stopped and interrogated every time we enter the complex, our blood-energy breaks, the batteries have to recharge and overload, and the order is guaranteed to be late. I hope your team can give our Top Order contender a green light from now on—no blocking, no registration, just let him through."

"Ha! You think I'll just let him through because you say so?"

Security Captain Liu sneered, leaning forward with a mocking expression: "Complaining about nine hundred meters? That's just because your riders have weak footwork. You strap on those speed-limited 'New National Standard' batteries and then wonder why you're always late and missing orders!"

"Hmph, there are only two reasons we miss orders: either scavengers ambush us to steal the food, or you security guards block the gate."

Station Master Chen said, his gaze darkening as he held up two fingers: "I'll add twenty percent to the toll! To be honest, the dedicated delivery stations don't even dare to take orders for your complex anymore. If this keeps up, aren't you afraid of being reported by the residents?"

"Hmph, the dedicated riders don't dare take them, so you crowd-sourced riders think you can?"

Captain Liu raised an eyebrow, his knuckles rapping against the tabletop with a rhythmic thud: "And you talk about resident complaints? Last time, a crowd-sourced kid was worried about being late, so he took a sharp turn once he got inside the complex. He crashed, spilled the food everywhere, and the residents complained that our property management's cleaning wasn't up to standard. Our Auntie Zhang from property management is still looking for that kid everywhere!"

"The person you're talking about is our station's candidate for Top Order. He'd pulled several all-nighters to boost his order volume, and his battery just couldn't take it anymore. Don't worry, our station will cover the fines you were charged."

"Oh, your candidate is working that hard? What? Does he want to steal your position and become the station master? A double-station-master setup? You're a station master, he's a station master, and you both get rich together?"

"Captain Liu, there's no need for the provocation. A-Ji has shouldered bad reviews for the station and taken penalties from the supervisors; he has contributed much to the station. This time, no matter what, I am going to support him in competing for the Top Order. If you have any conditions, just say them."

Li Jinshui watched this scene with an expressionless face.

Ten days ago, he had just transmigrated here and taken over this frail body that had been in a deep coma for two years.

After his brain digested some memories, he realized this wasn't a simple transmigration.

He had belonged to this world all along. After falling into a coma from poisoning two years ago, his soul had transmigrated to Earth, where he died accidentally, and now he had returned.

This made him feel annoyed.

Because it meant he had been misdiagnosed during those years on Earth; he never had any mental illness at all. Those scenes he often dreamed of were real—they were all memories of his past life in this world.

If he hadn't talked to the doctor about those dreams back then, perhaps he wouldn't have needed to increase his dosage, and he might have even been discharged from the hospital earlier.

However, now that he had returned to his original body, his memories were primarily those from Earth, and his recollections of this world were reduced to scattered, fragmented pieces.

This place seemed to be a parallel world to Earth.

But this world belonged to High Martial Arts, far more dangerous than the environment on Earth!

High Martial Arts, capital, the law of the jungle, strength is supreme.

And strength depended on whether one's wealth was substantial.

To study martial arts, you have to pay for the copyright of cultivation techniques, pay for food supplements, and pay even more for medicinal supplements...

"Bang!"

A dull thud interrupted Li Jinshui's train of thought.

Station Master Chen had slammed his palm onto the grease-stained table, causing several empty beer bottles to clatter and fall.

"Captain Liu, we've reached this point—are you still not going to give me any face?" Station Master Chen stood up and stared fixedly at Captain Liu, his eyes sinister.

Captain Liu unhurriedly picked up a disposable plastic cup, took a sip of tea, and didn't even lift his eyelids: "Face? How many bottles of supplement serum can your bit of face buy? Is twenty percent of the toll supposed to be charity for a beggar? I want fifty percent."

As soon as these words were spoken, the air seemed to freeze instantly.

"Fifty percent? Why the hell don't you just go rob someone!"

The rider beside Station Master Chen flew into a rage on the spot.

After deducting the platform's commission and then paying a fifty-percent toll, it was essentially stripping away the blood and sweat money the riders earned by risking their lives!

This was clearly a refusal to negotiate; they were just being toyed with!

"Damn it, these guard dogs are pushing too far."

"Station Master, stop talking to them."

"We crowd-sourced riders stand tall and upright; do they really think we're easy to bully? Let's go back, break through their two gates, and then plant our flag before we talk to them."

Accompanied by a series of angry roars, several hot-tempered riders directly pressed the battery switches on their thighs.

"Hum—"

A sharp, buzzing electric hum suddenly exploded, and a series of arcs danced wildly around the fluorescent yellow pant legs, the intense heat scorching the oily grime on the ground into wisps of white smoke.

"What are you doing? Looking for a fight?"

The deputy captain of the security team didn't show the slightest weakness, whipping out his telescopic riot fork with a sharp swish.

A dozen security guards stepped forward in unison, their eyes fierce and their blood surging. A majestic force of vitality flowed through their arms into the riot forks, forcibly repelling the encroaching electric sparks.

The two sides stood in a standoff; the air in the food stall instantly crackled with blood-energy and flickering lightning, a massive brawl ready to erupt at any second.

The attention of the surrounding residents and diners was instantly drawn, all of them wearing expressions of playful anticipation, clearly not their first time witnessing such a scene.

Li Jinshui, as one of the security guards, stood protectively in front of the others without hesitation, only to turn his head and bolt toward the restroom in the back alley of the food stall.

Are you kidding me? I just woke up from being a vegetable for two years. My vitality is weak, and I don't even have the basics—how the hell am I supposed to fight?

If I accidentally get grazed by those people, I might just be checking out for good tonight.

No one noticed me slipping away, right?

Bang!

Just as Li Jinshui shut the restroom door, the fighting broke out outside.

The sounds of fists and feet colliding, tables and chairs being smashed, and shouting filled the air.

Accompanied by the whistles and cheers of the onlookers, one could vaguely hear the food stall owner cursing loudly, the commotion growing ever more intense.

"Whatever. That scumbag Liu knew I had no strength, yet he dragged me into this high-stakes mess. He's clearly trying to finish me off and collect my death benefits."

Li Jinshui grumbled, rubbing his sore, aching thighs.

He hadn't been idle while "standing guard" outside; he had been tempering his [Basic Stance] using the standard posture and a special breathing technique.

After all, he only had eighteen days left before the security team's end-of-month assessment.

If his [Basic Stance] didn't reach "Entry Level," he'd be kicked to the curb immediately.

By then, he wouldn't even have a place to stay, and he might just starve to death on the streets.

"So, even a high-martial world has a kill threshold."

"Even if my experience is unique, having soul-traversed from Earth and possessing a 'Qidian Orphanage' template, what good does it do?"

"For an ordinary person like me, if I want to survive, I have to rely on my own desperate, painstaking efforts!"

Li Jinshui silently pulled his security uniform tighter and slowly closed his eyes.

In his mind, a plaque became clearly visible, the four characters "Heaven Rewards Diligence" glowing with brilliance and refracting into a panel:

[Name: Li Jinshui]
[Realm: None]
[Martial Arts: None]
[Technique: Basic Stance (Not yet entered 81/100)]
[Trait: None]
[...]

"Nineteen points of proficiency left. On average, I get one point for every five hours of stance training. Aside from eating, sleeping, and physical exhaustion, ten hours a day is my limit, which nets me two points."

"At this rate, I can reach the entry level for Basic Stance in nine days at the earliest. Time is plenty, but the sooner I enter, the sooner I have the power to protect myself!"

Li Jinshui gritted his teeth, knees slightly bent. With a long, deep breath, he suddenly tucked his waist and pulled in his abdomen, his spine tightening segment by segment like a fully drawn hard bow.

An invisible force rippled through his muscle groups, vibrating slowly in rhythm with his breathing.

Every inch of skin, flesh, and fascia on his body felt as if it were being violently stretched, faintly grinding out wisps of stance-energy within him, circulating throughout his entire body.

At this moment, the sounds of fighting and combat raged outside the restroom.

Inside, the air was stifling, hot, and reeking of filth.

Li Jinshui remained unaffected, his expression focused, sweating profusely as he held his [Basic Stance] to temper himself.

"Bang!"

Suddenly, the entire restroom door rattled violently; someone had clearly slammed into it from the outside, shaking dust down from the ceiling.

Li Jinshui was startled, nearly breaking his breathing rhythm.

But at the same time...

[Stance training maintained in a dangerous environment, Heaven Rewards Diligence, Basic Stance +2]
[Basic Stance (Not yet entered 83/100)]