Page 7

"Good morning. When did you get here?"

The system fell silent for a moment. It couldn't exactly say, I came back when you almost died last night, could I? After a pause, it said, [Just arrived. The General Bureau requires systems to conduct daily follow-up visits.]

Qi Chao remarked that it sounded exhausting, completely unaware that anything was off with the system. He climbed out of bed, washed up, slipped on his slippers, and left the master bedroom. The first thing he did was knock on the door to the room next door.

No response. His Little One was probably still asleep.

Qi Chao didn't disturb Lan Luo's rest and turned toward the study instead. This was when he used to work, and his body clock had already formed the habit.

Before dying from overwork, he had been designing a new doll.

Having his train of thought interrupted had been really frustrating.

Even though he had transmigrated, he couldn't put work aside.

He wondered whether he could still find that old feeling.

With the original owner's memories, Qi Chao was familiar with the villa. He took a notebook from the bookshelf and sat down at the desk.

The notebook on the desk wasn't meant for drawing, but Qi Chao didn't care. His dark brown eyes grew focused as his long, distinct fingers held a pencil and sketched across the pages. Even the air around him seemed to fall quiet.

The system watched its host work from within his sea of consciousness. For nearly an hour, the host didn't raise his head once. He tore out quite a few pages, and crumpled balls of discarded sketches littered the floor.

It was nearly seven-thirty when Qi Chao finally put down his pencil. He rubbed his wrist and revealed his first smile of the day.

Qi Chao had a fierce, handsome face, yet two dimples appeared on his cheeks whenever he smiled. That smile made him look younger, lending his roguish good looks a hint of sweetness.

Seeing this, the system unexpectedly took the initiative to ask, [Host, aside from dolls, what else are you interested in?]

Interested in what?

Qi Chao was a little surprised. The system was actually asking such a... human question?

The system was very serious.

There weren't many artisans as hardworking as Qi Chao.

For example, the artisan next door was the system's second host. After bringing someone over last night, he had spent until now imitating a screaming chicken, without any thought of working at all.

By comparison, the system felt that its host had great potential.

It would be such a shame for him to die like this.

If the host was interested in ceramics or bamboo weaving and was willing to hone those skills, perhaps the system could pull some strings. Maybe the host could really leave this place and save his life.

Qi Chao assumed it was just a casual question and didn't think much of it. He twirled his pencil, considered it, then said, "Money, I guess. Other than my Little Ones, I like money the most."

[Other than money? Don't you have any hobbies, like bamboo weaving or something else?] The system's electronic voice rose and fell unevenly, sounding a little exasperated by his lack of ambition.

"Nope." Qi Chao failed to notice that something was wrong with the system's tone and replied casually, "Even though your Artisan General Bureau chose me, I'm really not some lofty person. I learned to make dolls in the first place to earn money."

Qi Chao had come from a poor family and clawed his way up from nothing. He had always been an ordinary man. Only after becoming a dollmaker and earning a great deal of money had he gradually developed his own style and convictions.

In the end, aside from the career he had always persisted in, the only thing that could interest a placid twenty-eight-year-old man was money.

[Understood.] The system's electronic voice became flat.

No hope. Just wait to die.

Qi Chao had no idea he had missed his only chance at survival. When he heard the doorbell ring, he happily set down his pencil and ran to answer it.

A round-bellied robot stood outside, delivering a package.

The package contained the High-Grade Energy Stones he had purchased on Starweb last night, as well as the clothes he had picked out for his Little One.

After signing for it, Qi Chao thanked the robot. Its bean-sized red eyes narrowed into slits as it spun around in place, bowed, and left.

Truly intelligent.

Qi Chao smiled and carried the package to the living room to open it.

Unlike the single-colored Low-Grade Energy Stone from last night, the High-Grade Energy Stones came in every shade of red, orange, yellow, and green. They looked like exquisite gemstones, clear and radiant. Different colors seemed to contain different kinds of energy, but opinions on Starweb varied, and there was no conclusive evidence.

Qi Chao carried nearly thirty pounds of Energy Stones into the kitchen. He left the clothes unopened on the sofa, planning to open them later with the little doll.

Though there were only two items in this pile of packages, they had cost quite a bit—nearly thirty thousand Star Coins.

Thirty thousand Star Coins had been nothing to the original owner.

But in truth, the original owner had thrown more than ten million into buying that regulator, nearly emptying his bank account.

Qi Chao didn't regret destroying the regulator, but thinking about how absurdly expensive that piece of trash had been still made his heart ache.

Fuck.

The first crisis he encountered after transmigrating was actually a financial deficit. For Qi Chao, who had spent more than a decade poor before finally earning money, only to transmigrate, it was nothing short of ironic.

After leaving the kitchen, Qi Chao looked up at the time. It was exactly eight o'clock.

Was the little doll still not awake?

Thinking of how Lan Luo had gone a week without consuming an Energy Stone and had only replenished his energy for the first time last night, Qi Chao felt a little worried. He went upstairs again and knocked on the door.

No response.

Qi Chao was just about to open the door directly when it suddenly swung open.

Lan Luo stood behind it, blond-haired and blue-eyed. Dressed in a little white suit, he looked like a young nobleman. His azure eyes were as clear as the sea, and his smile was sweet and healing.

Seeing that his kid was awake, Qi Chao immediately breathed a sigh of relief. He smiled as well and teased, "Kid, you slept pretty well."

"Mm!" Little angel Lan Luo was still brimming with energy.

Qi Chao felt deeply gratified.

He ruffled Lan Luo's soft hair and smiled. "Does Little One want to watch cartoons?"

"Yes!"

Lan Luo comfortably narrowed his eyes like a kitten, apparently enjoying the petting. At the mention of cartoons, his eyes immediately lit up.

The system silently left the plane from within his sea of consciousness.

How the hell was the host supposed to stand a chance against these demons?

At this rate, who could possibly tell what the demon was thinking?

Qi Chao led his little angel downstairs.