Lü Yuan, special-grade third-class worker!

At five in the morning, the third-class workers aged three and up in the nursery's dormitories began getting up one after another to eat in the cafeteria.

Lü Yuan was on paid leave and had no need to get up so early, but he did so anyway out of habit.

Compared with the children under three, they were much luckier. They only had to be at their workstations by six.

Put in some hard work, and another day's wages would be theirs. They didn't have to waste their lives like those children lying in bed, frittering away their time.

Honestly, he had no idea how those children could sleep at their age-

One thing they regretted, however, was that none of them were currently qualified to work overtime and earn more money.

Otherwise, they would have gotten up at one in the morning to work and earn Spirit Stone Vouchers.

In this Capitalist Immortal Cultivation Realm, they were only allowed to work overtime legally once they became second-class workers.

And the minimum requirement for becoming a second-class worker was to open a spirit aperture and master Embryonic Breathing.

For now, that was beyond their wildest hopes.

The only exceptions were those who performed well and were occasionally recommended by the factory to have their spirit apertures opened for free and enter elementary school.

For ordinary orphans like them to open their spirit apertures and save enough to attend elementary school, they would have to spend roughly fifteen years fastening screws on an assembly line.

Fifteen years...

It was hard to believe it would only take fifteen years. The True Lord masters of the megacorporations were truly kindhearted...

Just thinking that they only had to work for fifteen years to use the artificial spirit aperture technology the megacorporations promoted at a loss and set foot on a path of cultivation most ancient people could only envy-

Even the third-class workers in the slums at the very bottom of the Capitalist Immortal Cultivation Realm would proudly puff out their chests.

Generally speaking, the children at the nursery didn't waste much time eating.

But today was a special day-

Because, after so many years, their Mingyang City East District No. 13 Nursery had finally produced a factory-recommended student!

Lü Yuan!

This was a living example of the masters' grace among the lower classes!

He was also a hope and role model for the children who were not yet eight!

So, at such an important time, even the people usually in the greatest hurry were willing to waste a little time on Lü Yuan.

"Brother Lü, you're up?"

"Good morning, Brother Lü!"

"Brother Lü, I heard that recommended students like your venerable self get paid leave until school starts. Is that true?"

On his way to the cafeteria after waking up, people who spotted Lü Yuan greeted him one after another.

Lü Yuan didn't put on airs. He nodded in response to everyone who greeted him.

Although they were practically no longer in the same social class, he was the sort who most enjoyed sharing his pleasures with the people.

On a happy occasion like this, he ought to enjoy himself a little more. As for class differences, those could be set aside for the moment.

The class differences Lü Yuan spoke of were no joke.

Recommended students like him could generally get into junior high, which meant he would most likely reach at least Qi Refinement in the future.

That was enough to become a manager at a factory.

But for people like them, who had to work for fifteen years before opening their spirit apertures, the chances of getting into junior high were less than ideal.

Without an opportunity, they might spend their whole lives going in circles at the Embryonic Breathing realm. At best, they could become first-class workers at a factory, with the right to work overtime twenty-four hours a day.

His floor might well be their ceiling.

Life and the immortal path often branched off at a time like this.

Lü Yuan walked all the way to the cafeteria and sat in his exclusive seat, looking at his peers, who treated him with the utmost respect.

Without letting it show, he nevertheless felt that a thick barrier had already come between them.

After a faint sigh, Lü Yuan began to ponder why the spirit root felt completely different in him than it did in ancient cultivator Lü Yuan.

The systems in their two worlds shouldn't be all that different. The cultivation method that had appeared in the immortal book was proof of that.

Then, was his talent better than ancient cultivator Lü Yuan's?

That was impossible. Leaving aside the fact that ancient cultivator Lü Yuan had been born with the spirit root, the fact that he himself could only cultivate by opening a spirit aperture after birth said it all.

Then did he have some special physique that needed a spirit root to activate?

That seemed even more unlikely. Every nursery conducted comprehensive physical examinations every year precisely because they feared missing anyone born with a spirit root or special physique.

If he really did have some special physique, he would have been taken away long ago.

That meant the most likely explanation was that the concentration of Spiritual Qi in his world far exceeded that of the Ancient Immortal Cultivation Realm.

That was why, after obtaining a spirit root, he could sense the Spiritual Qi around him before he had even begun cultivating.

It also meant that merely sensing the spirit root's existence had caused it to absorb Spiritual Qi passively, nearly getting him high on it.

Tsk, if that's the case, maybe ancient cultivator Lü Yuan won't pull too far ahead of me in cultivation just because my cultivation method isn't good enough.

Actually, that makes sense. What kind of stinking ancient times was he living in? His era had neither science and the hard stuff nor drugs and dual cultivation. How many True Lords could there have been? How could it have been a golden age?

Our Capitalist Immortal Cultivation Realm has more than a hundred megacorporations of all sizes out in the open alone. With so many True Lords around, of course the boost and blessings they bring to heaven and earth are much better than what he has over there!

Capitalist cultivation wins!

Punk Lü Yuan felt an indescribable satisfaction. He had finally found something better about his world than ancient cultivator Lü Yuan's.

He wolfed down several bowls of noodles, fish, and vegetables, and to his delight discovered another advantage over the Ancient Immortal Cultivation Realm.

The Capitalist Immortal Cultivation Realm might be inhuman in every other respect, but when it came to ordinary grain and meat, it was unexpectedly generous.

Lowly livestock at the bottom of the ladder like them really couldn't get their hands on Spirit Cuisine.

But ordinary grain was basically supplied in filling quantities. It was one of the few things they could enjoy to relieve their stress.

Huh...

Could there be a business opportunity here? If, after reaching Embryonic Breathing, I can confirm that I can take things from here over to him-

Jie jie jie...

Lü Yuan let out a sinister laugh.

From what he knew about the morals of his other self in the Ancient Immortal Cultivation Realm, if he had the means, he would never turn a blind eye to the refugees he saw.

So he would definitely need grain.

Hmm... When the time comes, I'll have to reverse what the two of us call each other and make him call me Daddy a couple of times for my own enjoyment.

Lü Yuan's thoughts were interrupted by a sound in front of him.

That wasn't right. How did the untouchables around him dare disturb him while he was eating alone?

Hearing the sound in front of him, Lü Yuan frowned and raised his head.

At that moment, everyone in the cafeteria turned their eyes toward them.

Before Lü Yuan stood a girl about his age, young and small.

Although children in their Capitalist Immortal Cultivation Realm generally matured early, eight was still too young to be talking about marriage.

So Lü Yuan couldn't yet say what she would look like when she grew up.

He had no impression of her, though, so he was fairly sure she was an untouchable.

Otherwise, with his memory, he wouldn't have failed to recognize her at once.

Before either Lü Yuan or the girl in front of him could speak, several voices scolded her in unison from beside him.

"How dare you!"

"Where did this untouchable come from?"

"Who gave you permission to breathe the air around Brother Lü?"

Three peer-aged protectors appeared from who knew where and, amid their scolding, blocked the girl a short distance from Lü Yuan, refusing to let her take another step.

Then...

Then they stopped paying attention to the girl and greeted Lü Yuan one after another with ingratiating smiles.

"Brother Lü, do you remember me? I gave you the latest game console for your birthday last year-"

"Zheng Zheng. How could your Brother Lü forget?"

"Brother Lü, Brother Lü, I gave you a Jihu-brand phone!"

"Ji Nong, you're the one I have the highest hopes for. Maybe the factory will recommend you next year too."

"Brother Lü, I gave you a clock. A mantel clock."

"Then I don't remember."

Lü Yuan shook his head, but didn't leave the speaker too disappointed. "Your Brother Lü doesn't hold grudges."

After all, they had come to suck up to him. In their Capitalist Immortal Cultivation Realm, there were no grudges that lasted beyond a page.

Then Lü Yuan waved for the three to quiet down and looked with interest at the girl who had been staring at him the whole time.

One look at her eyes told him she hadn't come to confess her love.

Then she must have come looking for trouble. Just how badly had she lost her mind?

Rather than wait for her to make the first move, Lü Yuan spoke first. "Do you need something from me?"

"Come to think of it, you looked pretty imposing walking over here. I don't remember you being among the people recommended by the factory."

"You're this arrogant without a recommendation. If you got into elementary school, would you even dare hit me?"

As Lü Yuan finished speaking, a figure who had been watching finally made up her mind after some hesitation and moved.

She was another girl, clearly a friend of the girl standing in front of Lü Yuan.

With an ingratiating smile, she took the girl's hand and bowed repeatedly.

"I'm sorry, Brother Lü. Lin Qi drank too much and isn't thinking straight."

Lü Yuan said nothing. He was thinking about the name Lin Qi and why she dared come provoke him.

He had memorized the names of everyone his age in the nursery, but aside from his competitors, he usually couldn't recall the others until he heard their names.

The three acting as his protectors continued to scold her. "If she's drunk, take her and get lost! What are you waiting for, to keep breathing the air in front of Brother Lü?"

The girl reacted as if she had been granted a great pardon. Apologizing repeatedly, she pulled Lin Qi's hand, trying to take her away.

But...

She couldn't budge her.

"Are you crazy? Do you know what you're doing?" she whispered.

"It's fine, A-Lian. Don't worry about me. I'm not crazy." Lin Qi didn't lower her voice. She gave the person beside her a reassuring look and told her to leave first.

The girl looked at her friend and, for some reason, found an unprecedented resolve in her eyes.

Just then, Lü Yuan finally remembered who Lin Qi was, but he still couldn't understand why she was doing this.

Then, then he laughed.

"So you're a low-grade third-class worker. Speak. Since you're not crazy, what did you come to me for?"

Lü Yuan chose to ask directly, without the slightest beating around the bush.

Lin Qi looked at him, her voice firm. "I'm here to challenge you!"

The entire cafeteria erupted in an instant.

The girl who had thought her friend knew what she was doing suddenly felt that her brain had been flooded with water.

In front of Lü Yuan, the one who had given him the mantel clock for his birthday was the first to scoff. "This is rebellion! A low-grade third-class worker dares to provoke Brother Lü."

"Big words. Did you eat celery?"

"There's no need for Brother Lü to step in. I'll teach you a lesson!"

"Li Ning, intermediate-grade third-class worker-"

It wasn't just him. The other two beside him also announced their names in turn. "Zheng Zheng, intermediate-grade third-class worker!"

"Ji Nong, intermediate-grade third-class worker!"

Ji Nong, at the front, beckoned with a finger. "Come on. Do you want the three of us to duel you alone, or do you want to duel the three of us alone?"

Lü Yuan appreciated their good intentions, but he couldn't simply let them handle it.

Although letting them deal with her would save him a lot of trouble, he hadn't become the best of his age group just by fastening screws quickly.

Lü Yuan wasn't some beast of burden who could only swallow his anger. He had plenty of strength and means.

A king could not be insulted!

A low-grade third-class worker dared provoke him at a time like this. Did she have a death wish?

Especially when she was a girl.

If he didn't strike hard, how could he, the nursery's Little Song Jiang, save face?

"Make way, everyone. I'd better handle this myself. I also want to see what exactly she's trying to do."

Lü Yuan stood up. Wherever his gaze passed, no one but Lin Qi dared meet his eyes.

How dare you! A nursery peer who sees me without fear has already found a path to death!

Lü Yuan sneered and stated the gap between them in the most direct, straightforward, blunt, and uncomplicated terms.

"Lü Yuan."

"Special-grade third-class worker."