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As one of China's twelve Base Cities, River City had a population of over a hundred million. With Blue Moon's protection, it was safer than other cities, and people did not have to constantly worry about demon beasts attacking the city.

It also meant more opportunities and resources.

Thus, even Anbian Residential Area was packed to the brim. The poor could not afford a home in their entire lives; all the housing here was government-built low-rent housing.

The house Lin Feng's family rented was in Building 186, on the forty-sixth floor.

It was the top floor. To save electricity, there was not even an elevator. Worse still, the roof insulation was poor, making it freezing in winter and scorching in summer. Its only advantage was the cheaper rent.

A monthly rent of 1,800 New Dollars was nearly impossible to find in River City.

New Dollars were the universal currency of the modern world and held their value well. An ordinary worker only earned around 3,000 New Dollars a month.

I need to make money as soon as possible and get out of this hellhole.

The air in the narrow, dark, damp stairwell was foul, carrying a musty smell mixed with the lingering stench of blood, enough to make one retch.

"Big Sis, how have things been between you and Chen Hao lately?"

"What else could it be? You know his temperament. It's the same as always," Lin Kerou said with a faint frown, her tone deliberately light.

Lin Feng naturally knew that his elder sister was hiding it from him because she did not want him to worry, but he did not expose her.

"Heh, don't lie to me."

Lin Feng chuckled.

Though they were eight years apart, he and his elder sister had been close since childhood, able to talk about anything. "I already know. Chen Hao's family is unhappy with ours. They look down on us because we have no money and no background, right?"

"They're even afraid we'll become a burden to their family, right?"

The moment he finished speaking, Lin Kerou stopped. She looked up in surprise. "How did you know?"

"Did Chen Hao tell you? That fool—I told him not to say anything, but he still told you."

Lin Kerou was a little angry. She did not want her own troubles to make her family worry.

She also feared that Chen Hao's parents' snobbery would make her family dissatisfied with him and leave them with a poor impression of Chen Hao.

Their relationship was already hanging by a thread. If even her own parents opposed it, then this relationship would absolutely be impossible to sustain.

"Don't say anything reckless when we get home. I'll handle my own affairs," Lin Kerou said to Lin Feng, her stern tone carrying a trace of pleading.

"Don't worry. I won't say anything."

Lin Feng turned to look at his elder sister.

Although she had no particular talent for cultivation, aside from that, with her looks and personality, Chen Hao did not know how many lifetimes of blessings he must have accumulated to marry her. Yet his parents still dared to look down on her? They merely ran a small company with an annual income of a few million. Did they really think they were some great conglomerate?

If it were not because his elder sister truly loved him, and because Chen Hao genuinely cared for her, Lin Feng really would not want her marrying into such a family.

"Big Sis, don't worry either. Believe in your little brother. Give me half a year, and I'll change our family's life."

"Don't wrong yourself."

"In half a year—no, it will not even take half a year—I'll make Chen Hao's family too lofty for themselves to reach."

Lin Kerou looked at Lin Feng's resolute gaze and words. Her lips curled upward, and a warm smile appeared on her face. Touched, she nodded and smiled. "All right. Then we'll make their family too lofty for themselves to reach."

"Big Sis, cheer up. Believe in your little brother's abilities."

Lin Feng knew that his elder sister had not taken his words to heart, but he did not explain further.

"How about it? Do you want to rest for a while before climbing more?"

When they were halfway up and he saw his elder sister slowing down, Lin Feng asked.

For Lin Feng, with the strength of the Body Cultivation Seventh Stage, climbing stairs was merely easy endurance training.

But it was far from easy for his elder sister.

"No. The more I rest, the more tired I'll get!"

By the time they reached the forty-sixth floor, Lin Feng was fine, but Lin Kerou was sweating all over, her legs numb and her breathing ragged.

Although spiritual energy had revived and ordinary people were much stronger than before the Great Catastrophe, climbing forty-six flights of stairs was still difficult. Thus, once people returned home, family members generally hardly went downstairs at all.

Click!

Lin Feng took out his key and opened the door.

Before them was a small residence of less than thirty square meters, forcibly partitioned into two bedrooms, a living room, and a bathroom.

The location and layout of this home were poor. The rooms were gloomy year-round, and even on bright sunny days, the lights had to be turned on. There was no real decoration. Calling it bare walls would be a slight exaggeration, but apart from a refrigerator and television, there was almost nothing valuable inside.

"You're back."

At the sound, footsteps came from the kitchen.

"Wash up. Dinner's ready."

A middle-aged woman wearing a little floral apron emerged from the kitchen.

Her hair fell to her neck, neither long nor short. Her skin was fair, with a few faint brown spots. She looked refined, yet gave off a delicate, fragile impression. This was Lin Feng's mother, Lin Fang.

Lin Feng resembled his mother by seventy percent, having chiefly inherited her genes. Standing together, anyone could tell they were mother and son.

Lin Fang first glanced at Lin Kerou, who shook her head almost imperceptibly. Lin Fang's expression did not change as she turned and returned to the kitchen.

At the sight of his mother, Lin Feng froze.

In his previous life, when River City had been breached by demon beasts, he had not been home. Thus, he had not known whether his family had been brutally killed. Even he could not guarantee he would survive, much less his family, who lacked the strength to truss a chicken.

"Mom, what meat are you cooking? It smells so good."

Lin Feng asked with a smile, though his voice trembled slightly.

"Stir-fried Tusked Pig with green peppers today. Of course it smells good," Mother Lin's voice came from the kitchen.

"Mom, how many pounds did you buy?" Lin Feng asked casually, clearly just making conversation.

The Tusked Pig was a First-Rank demon beast, equivalent in strength to a First-Rank Martial Artist. It was also the lowest-grade demon beast. Its meat was delicious and contained ten times the qi and blood of ordinary pork. Eating it regularly could strengthen one's qi and blood and improve one's physique.

Normally, a pound of Tusked Pig meat cost 300 New Dollars, while his mother earned only 3,000 New Dollars a month. One pound of Tusked Pig meat was equivalent to three days of her wages, so they only ate it on holidays and festivals.

But today, because it was Awakening Day and demon beast corpses littered the area outside the city, demon beast flesh was heavily discounted, costing only half its usual price.

This was also the one day each year when many residents of Anbian Residential Area bought demon beast meat in bulk, purchasing dozens of pounds at once and storing it in the refrigerator to last them a year or more.

Mother Lin had not gone to work today precisely so she could buy demon beast meat.

Because today was Awakening Day, tonight's meal was far more lavish than usual, comparable to a New Year's feast.

There was a full pound of stir-fried Tusked Pig with green peppers, hot-and-sour napa cabbage, braised carp, three dishes and a soup, with white rice as the staple.

After the dishes were set out, the door opened, and a middle-aged man carrying a briefcase walked in. He was in his forties, plain-looking and somewhat stout. His first impression was that of an honest, dependable man.

This man was Lin Feng's stepfather, Ma Yingzong, known as Old Ma. Through his older brother's connections, he had landed a public-sector job that paid 3,500 New Dollars a month. He had no other under-the-table income, proving it was a truly clean office. He earned even less than some ordinary laborers.

When Lin Feng was seven, his mother had gotten together with Old Ma. Although Lin Feng had never called him Father, he still held this stepfather in respect.

In Lin Feng's eyes, Old Ma was ordinary. Whether in looks or background, he had his own little schemes and lacked ambition. Otherwise, with his brother's connections, he would not have ended up in such a miserable state.

But no matter what, he had fulfilled a father's duties and raised both him and his elder sister.

Most importantly, he loved Lin Feng's mother deeply. Since they had married, the two had never even blushed in anger. Though they could not live in great wealth and splendor, their family's plain life was filled with harmony and joy.

"You're back."

Old Ma set down his briefcase. As he changed into slippers, he smiled at Lin Feng.

"Mm."

Lin Feng answered, but before he could say anything, a whirlwind of a figure rushed in.

It was a young girl, not very tall, with large eyes, a small mouth, and a slightly baby-fat face. She was not particularly beautiful, but she was very cute.

"Brother, what Demon Spirit did you refine today?"

The moment she entered, before even changing her shoes, the girl impatiently asked. Ma Lele was twelve this year and had just started middle school. That afternoon, they had not had classes and had watched the live broadcast of Awakening Day in the classroom from start to finish.

It was not just them. Even many companies were the same. On such a special day, who had the heart to work or attend class?

"Brother, I saw Sister Yage on television."

"A Bewitching Butterfly! An eighth-rank Demon Spirit! That's so cool!"

Ma Lele shouted excitedly, completely failing to notice the meaningful looks her father and elder sister were giving each other.

"Brother, what Demon Spirit did you refine?"

"But you're so amazing, you must at least have refined a sixth-rank Demon Spirit."

"I heard Sister Yage even signed with Juxing Club. She's hit the jackpot, hit the jackpot..."

At this point, Ma Lele finally noticed that everyone else's expressions were off. She immediately stopped herself, not daring to continue.

As an adult, Old Ma had learned the news from neighbors the moment he entered the residential area, so he deliberately avoided mentioning it. Ma Lele, on the other hand, had gone wild when she saw Yage on television at school. After class, she had run all the way home like a madwoman and had no idea what had happened.

"Heh, it's all right."

Lin Feng smiled and rubbed Ma Lele's chubby little face. Though she shared neither father nor mother nor blood with him, he doted on this younger sister as if she were his own.

"Brother didn't find a suitable Demon Spirit today. Those Demon Spirits were too low-grade."

"Brother, really?"

Ma Lele seemed to come alive again. She jumped up and cried out in surprise.

She was Lin Feng's loyal fan. In her eyes, Lin Feng was an unquestionable genius.

She did not think her brother would lie to her, but she was a little puzzled. "Didn't Ye Qiu refine the Thorn Demon Dragon, ranked forty-sixth on the Earth List? Brother, even such a powerful Demon Spirit doesn't catch your eye?"

"Brother, you're a little proud, you know."

"Lele, eat. You're a girl, yet you spend all day running around like a lunatic."

Old Ma spoke at just the right moment. He, too, hoped Lin Feng would become a Demon Spirit Master, as that could change the family's living conditions. But like Mother Lin, he would not put pressure on Lin Feng.

Moreover, Lin Feng was already at the Body Cultivation Seventh Stage. Barring any surprises, getting into a key university would not be a problem at all.

After graduation, he would at least become a First-Rank Martial Artist.

A First-Rank Martial Artist, even if he did not pursue the martial path and merely became an ordinary office worker, could earn at least twenty or thirty thousand a month—far more than Old Ma.

Martial artists were not merely muscleheads with simple minds.

Powerful martial artists were not only energetic enough to work overtime for days on end, but also had better memory, comprehension, and reaction speed than ordinary people. Companies today were sorely lacking martial talent.

In the future, this family would still depend on Lin Feng.

"The Thorn Demon Dragon is naturally not low-ranked, but Brother was unlucky and didn't encounter it."

Lin Feng said with a smile.

Neither Mother Lin nor Old Ma took his answer to heart. They assumed Lin Feng was merely brushing it off casually, or trying to preserve his great and mighty image before his little sister.

Lin Feng did not offer any further explanation.

"Feng, eat more. You're still growing. You need to eat to grow," his mother said at the dining table, placing meat in Lin Feng's bowl while eating none herself.

It was not only his mother. His elder sister was the same.

Old Ma clearly wanted to eat too, but he put his portion in Lele's bowl and did not eat any himself.

"Mom, Little Sis, and Old Ma, you eat too."

Lin Feng placed several pieces of Tusked Pig meat into the bowls of his mother and the other two. He knew that if he did not serve them some himself, they would not eat any at all.

"All right, enough, enough."

Lin Fang pressed down on Lin Feng's chopsticks with her own. A heartfelt smile appeared on her slightly weary face.

Her son was so filial. She was clearly immensely gratified.

"You're still in the Qi-Blood Stage and need to replenish your qi and blood. We aren't martial artists, so demon beast meat doesn't do much for us."

Lin Fang ate the thinnest, smallest slice of meat, then placed the meat back into Lin Feng's bowl. Lin Kerou did the same.

In their eyes, Lin Feng was the future pillar of this family. Only if he grew strong would the family have hope.

Old Ma ate one piece, then gave all the rest to Lele.

"All right, stop passing food back and forth. I like fish. Hurry up and eat," Mother Lin urged.

"Brother, I'll give you some too." Ma Lele copied the adults and placed a piece of meat in Lin Feng's bowl before lowering her head and digging in.

That left Lin Feng torn between laughter and tears.

Looks like I need to make money quickly, or we won't even be able to afford meat.

Still, Lin Feng greatly enjoyed this feeling—the harmonious joy of a family of five.