Anbian Residential Area

"All right, come over and line up. Get ready to go home."

With the light screen gone, Awakening Day was truly over. There was nothing left to watch, so Principal Wang clapped his hands and gave the order.

At Jiangxin First High School, the five hundred-plus boys and girls who had become Demon Spirit Masters held their heads high and stood at the front of the procession, displaying their newfound splendor.

Though their Soul Power was nearly exhausted, the youths still squeezed out every last drop, striving to maintain their demon spirit fusion states and savor the glory that belonged to them.

All along the way, their classmates crowded around them, offering every sort of flattery and envious remark. The boys and girls responded from time to time, basking in the jealous, admiring stares of the crowd.

They had once been equal classmates, but at this moment, a clear divide had formed between them.

"Is there really any need to be this exaggerated?"

At the back of the crowd, Gao Hai looked at the youths who had become Demon Spirit Masters and shook his head disdainfully, as though he found them childish.

At that moment, Gao Hai and Lin Feng were walking at the very end of the group. Though Gao Hai had already become a Demon Spirit Master, he had withdrawn his Soul Power and was not displaying his demon spirit fusion state.

"Heh, this might be the only time in your life. Aren't you going to enjoy it?"

Lin Feng looked at Gao Hai with amusement.

What teenager wasn't vain? Who didn't like showing off? Gao Hai was naturally no exception.

From what Lin Feng knew of Gao Hai, he would have loved nothing more than to stand at the very front. Yet, to spare Lin Feng's feelings, he stayed beside him. To comfort him and keep him from feeling dejected, he even cracked a few jokes from time to time to lighten the mood.

It made Lin Feng laugh, but it also moved him deeply.

Only after losing something did one know how to cherish it.

In his previous life, Lin Feng had been somewhat withdrawn. He had few friends, and brothers were even rarer.

Even among teammates who had fought beside him through life-and-death trials, it was not uncommon for people to stab each other in the back over heavenly treasures. He had witnessed too many betrayals. Other than his family, Gao Hai was probably the only person he could truly trust.

Having a brother like that was something worth cherishing.

Yage was not with the group at that moment. As for where she had gone, she had not said, and Lin Feng had not asked.

"What's so special about it? It's just kids playing at being grown-ups."

Gao Hai shook his head and put on a mature act. Yet not long after, when he spotted his parents beyond the crowd, he suddenly jumped up and shouted, "Mom! We're over here!"

Following Gao Hai's gaze, Lin Feng froze slightly. Beside Gao Hai's parents stood a young woman in a gray work uniform, looking straight at him. She appeared to be around twenty years old. Her face was full of gentleness, and every inch of her was captivating.

A faint trace of worry swept across her delicate face, making her already beautiful features all the more heart-tugging. But the instant she saw Lin Feng looking over, that worry vanished and was replaced by a gentle smile.

"Big Sis..."

This young woman was his biological older sister, Lin Kerou.

Since being reborn, this was the first time he had seen his long-lost family again. Even Lin Feng, who had seen countless partings of life and death, could not help but tremble inside.

He was sixteen this year, while his eldest sister was twenty-four.

Lin Feng knew that his sister had been troubled recently. She was not as happy as she appeared on the surface.

His sister and her boyfriend, Chen Hao, had been together for four years and had already reached the stage of discussing marriage. Yet his parents looked down on their modest family. Not only did they oppose the relationship, they even declared that if the two got married, they would cut all ties with Chen Hao. Under the threat of his parents, their relationship ultimately came to nothing.

Two years later, his sister married someone she did not particularly like and lived a quiet, difficult life.

Not long after his sister married, Chen Hao married another woman as well. He often contacted Lin Feng to ask how his sister was doing.

Lin Feng knew that his sister hoped he could become a Demon Spirit Master.

If he had managed to refine a demon spirit of the seventh rank or higher today, he would have leapt from fish to dragon gate. Their family's life would have changed completely, and some problems would have been solved as easily as splitting bamboo.

Just as in his previous life, after seeing that he had failed, she had been disappointed—perhaps even despairing—but she had not shown the slightest sadness. She did not want to place even a shred of pressure on him.

"Big Sis."

"Xiaofeng, you must be hungry. Come on, let's go home and eat." Lin Kerou smiled and rubbed Lin Feng's cheek without asking anything else.

Beside them, Gao Hai's father held onto Gao Hai, his expression somewhat excited. Their family had finally produced a Demon Spirit Master.

Though Gao Hai had only refined a second-rank demon spirit, the Mighty Demonic Ox, Demon Spirit Masters were precious. That was especially true for poor families like theirs.

Gao Hai had been fat since childhood, and his talent was ordinary. Though he was only in his third year of high school and just sixteen years old, his parents had already begun worrying whether he would be able to find a wife in the future.

Now that Gao Hai had become a Demon Spirit Master, a profession above martial artists, would he still have to worry about finding a wife?

Maybe they would not even need to pay a bride price.

Though they were happy and excited, with countless questions they wanted to ask, Gao Hai's parents did not say much for Lin Feng's sake. Only the smiles at the corners of their mouths revealed their excellent mood.

Lin Feng and Gao Hai both lived in the Outer City. The Outer City was more than thirty kilometers from the city center, and they normally took the maglev train home. But because it was Awakening Day, traffic throughout the city had nearly come to a standstill. They spent a full hour just lining up.

An hour and a half later, everyone exited the train station and walked toward home.

After passing through bustling, prosperous streets, a dense cluster of buildings came into view as they drew closer.

This was River City's famed "Anbian Residential Area."

It was called a residential area, yet more than a million people lived there. It was like a miniature city.

Thousands of high-rises stood in rows. The hundred-meter-tall buildings had the same shape, the same height, and the same appearance. There was less than a meter between each floor of neighboring buildings, with no consideration at all for sensible planning.

The streets here remained dim all year round, even during the day. Sometimes, merely wanting to bask in the sun was a luxury.

The place was unbearably stifling and dull, the complete opposite of the city district's prosperity.

This was the Outer City, at the very edge of the Outer City.

Less than a hundred meters away lay the limit of Blue Moon's energy barrier. It was also the area with River City's worst environment. If demon beasts attacked the city, this place would bear the brunt of it. It could be called the most dangerous place of all.

Through the blue protective barrier, demon beast corpses could be seen strewn everywhere. A pungent stench of blood assailed their noses, while figures in black work uniforms moved about from time to time, spraying disinfectant.

People called this place River City's slum. Only those without money lived here.

This was Lin Feng's home!

A place he had wanted to escape from every waking moment in his previous life.

Crack! Crack! Crack!

Before they even reached Anbian Residential Area, deafening firecrackers exploded beside Lin Feng's ears. Then he saw a plume of gray smoke soaring into the sky.

Lin Feng was not particularly surprised by the sight. He knew it was a custom of Anbian Residential Area.

In the past, whenever Lin Feng and Gao Hai heard firecrackers like these each year, they would feel deeply envious, because this was how Anbian Residential Area celebrated when one of its youths became a Demon Spirit Master.

Today was like a festival for Anbian Residential Area. People came and went, and everyone who was home had stepped outside, gazing in one direction with envy and jealousy in their eyes.

"Yage refined an eighth-rank demon spirit, the rare Bewitching Butterfly. She's joining Juxing Club, and her family is moving away."

The news spread through all of Anbian Residential Area in an instant.

There was no need for much publicity. The residents who had watched the live broadcast on television had recognized at once the young girl whose purity carried a bewitching charm. It was Yage, whom they had watched grow up.

Yage had refined the Eighth-Rank Charm Butterfly. She was one of the ten genius girls featured on this year's light screen. Her signing fee from Juxing Club was enough to buy a three-bedroom, one-living-room apartment in the Inner City and move out of Anbian Residential Area.

For people who had spent their entire lives in Anbian Residential Area, moving into the Inner City was the beginning of soaring to great heights.

It was the dream of their entire lives and every parent's greatest hope for their children. To the people of Anbian Residential Area, it was proof that one had truly entered high society.

Those who lived in Anbian Residential Area were poor people with no status, no assets, and no backing. The path of cultivation required not only talent but resources as well. This was why so few youths from Anbian Residential Area became Demon Spirit Masters each year.

Therefore, whenever someone was able to move into the Inner City, it became a major event for Anbian Residential Area.

Moreover, not all Demon Spirit Masters were equal. Yage, who had refined the Bewitching Butterfly, was undoubtedly the most successful of them all.

"Lin Feng is here!"

"He's here, he's here. You old busybodies, stop talking."

"How pitiful. I watched those two grow up together. I'm afraid they'll..."

The crowd whispered among themselves, looking at Lin Feng with strange expressions. Lin Kerou, who had been pretending to remain calm beside him, changed slightly in expression.

Lin Feng knew exactly what those strange looks meant.

In the past, facing such looks, he would lower his head slightly, feeling awkward and even inferior. He would not dare meet the mocking and pitying gazes of the crowd. But now, he took it all in stride.

The crowd had gathered beneath Building 34, where Yage lived.

Yage's family was moving downstairs at that moment. There was not much to move, only a few simple clothes. Everything else was clearly superfluous for Yage, who was about to join Juxing Club.

When they saw Lin Feng arrive, the residents watching nearby could not help focusing their attention on him. Following their gazes, Yage's family naturally noticed Lin Feng as well.

Normally, whenever he appeared, Yage's parents would warmly greet him. After all, he and Yage had grown up together as childhood sweethearts. They knew each other inside and out, both lived in Anbian Residential Area, and had similar living standards. They were a Match in Social Status.

Reaching the Body Cultivation Seventh Stage at sixteen, Lin Feng's talent was considered outstanding in Anbian Residential Area. He was handsome as well. Both his talent and looks suited Yage.

But now, the polite smile Yage's father had been wearing while chatting with neighbors abruptly vanished. Looking somewhat awkward, he merely nodded at Lin Feng in greeting. Yage's mother glanced at Lin Feng, immediately shifted her gaze away, lowered her head to sort through their belongings, and occasionally exchanged pleasantries with the neighbors. Some of Yage's relatives even looked at Lin Feng with critical, disdainful eyes.

Yage herself, the protagonist of this whole affair, was not there. She was probably busy handling matters after signing with Juxing Club.

"Brother Feng..."

Gao Hai wanted to say something, perhaps words of comfort, but in the end, nothing came out.

"What kind of people are these?"

Gao Hai's father looked angry. Yage's family's behavior seemed to be declaring a fact to everyone.

Lin Kerou looked at Lin Feng with concern, because he was too calm.

That unnatural calmness was worrying.

"Big Sis, I'm fine."

Seeing Lin Kerou's worried expression, Lin Feng smiled.

He did not care much about Yage's family's attitude. After all, he had already experienced it once before.

If they had been overly warm instead, he would not have known how to react. This was just right.

From now on, they would go their separate ways, each minding their own business.