BOOM!

WHOOSH...

The sky over Celestial Sea City was shrouded in black clouds as an endless downpour lashed down.

Thunderbolt Silver Snakes slithered across the sky, dancing wildly.

DRIP. DROP.

Lin Qi closed his umbrella, rainwater dripping onto the floor. He walked up to the third floor of Building 4, bringing the damp air with him.

CLICK.

He opened the door, and the reek of alcohol from the living room hit him in the face.

Lin Qi focused his eyes and saw a familiar figure.

"Uncle, what are you doing here?"

The living room table was covered with dishes, and a pile of empty bottles lay underneath it.

Besides his parents, there was another person—a tall, well-proportioned, and handsome man in his thirties.

He was dressed in a black suit.

This was his mother Fang Huiyi’s older brother, Lin Qi’s uncle—Fang Zhe.

Compared to his burly father, Lin Zhen, his uncle Fang Zhe had more of a scholarly air about him.

"Little Qi, you’re back!"

Fang Zhe put down his wine bottle, his face slightly flushed as he sat on the sofa with a smile.

"I haven’t congratulated you on getting into the Elite class yet. This is a gift for you."

Fang Zhe stood up and handed him a box.

"These are Stimulant Potions. You’re a senior now, studying hard every day. The mental strain is too much for a few cups of coffee to handle."

Lin Qi saw that the box contained three vials of Stimulant Potion, worth a total of 3,000 Xia Country Coins.

"Uncle, this is too expensive."

"Thank you, Uncle!" Lin Qi didn’t refuse, because he knew his uncle’s personality.

If he said no, his uncle might actually take it back.

"Little Qi, you should sit down too. We want to hear your opinion," Lin Zhen said.

Fang Zhe’s expression also grew serious.

"Little Qi, besides coming to see your mother, there’s something else I came for."

"I’m planning to go to Coastal Base No.1 to work as a Meat Distributor. The Coastal area hasn’t been peaceful lately; Calamity Beasts are constantly emerging from the Space Gate."

"I’ll work as a Meat Distributor for a while. The pay is excellent, and I’d like your father to go with me."

Lin Qi fell into thought after hearing this.

Calamity Beasts had invaded Blue Star. They were numerous, and their carcasses were enormous after being killed. Due to their tough skeletons, cutting them up with machinery was too time-consuming.

Thus, the profession of a Meat Distributor was born. The role was filled by Martial Artists who studied Saber Techniques. They used their superb skills to dismember the Calamity Beast corpses in the shortest possible time, greatly increasing efficiency.

Every Meat Distributor’s salary was quite high.

Especially when a Space Gate opened and a Disaster Beast Tide erupted, there would be a huge shortage of Meat Distributors.

Some Martial Artists short on cash would go and work part-time.

Although the pay was high, the working environment was dirty, exhausting, and dangerous. It was easy to get all sorts of infections, and one careless mistake could mean spending all your earnings on medical bills.

Many Martial Artists wouldn’t choose to do it unless they were desperate for money.

Lin Qi also understood why Fang Zhe wanted to be a Meat Distributor. It was because his cousin, Fang Lin, would be a senior next year and needed money to buy resources to build a good foundation.

And his own family had borrowed a large sum of money from them, which meant their savings were now insufficient.

He felt a pang of guilt.

"Little Qi, it won’t be dangerous for your dad to go. I’ve recovered well now and don’t need to be looked after," his mother, Fang Huiyi, said, trying to persuade him.

The three of them looked at Lin Qi, seeking his opinion.

"I have no objection!" Lin Qi looked up and smiled.

The three of them finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"When are you leaving?" Lin Qi suddenly asked.

"The day after tomorrow!" his uncle, Fang Zhe, said.

...

A little over ten minutes later, his uncle Fang Zhe said his goodbyes and left.

Lin Qi returned to his room. Although his Spirit was still weary, he didn’t forget his stance training.

He took a few Qi and Blood Capsules, then got into position and began practicing the Hunyuan Posture.

In just a few moments, his face was flushed red, and sweat poured down like rain.

Lin Qi’s spine straightened, his shoulders rounded, his elbows dropped, and his head felt as if suspended from above...

His body trembled slightly as Qi and Blood surged through him, tempering every muscle.

Lin Qi felt an invisible pressure.

’Working as a Meat Distributor, while not dangerous, is incredibly exhausting. Dad has more and more health problems, so this will be a huge test for him.’

Although Lin Qi didn’t want his father to work so hard, he knew that besides earning extra money, his dad also wanted to quickly pay back the money they owed his uncle Fang Zhe’s family.

It was all because of money!

’I need to get stronger and earn more money.’

’The second-class student loan and the 500,000-coin reward from the Star Rank event... I have to get them both.’

Lin Qi steeled his resolve. A sudden surge of power welled up inside him as his Qi and Blood erupted, circulating throughout his body.

[Through training in the "Hunyuan Posture," your Qi and Blood have broken through. Qi and Blood Value +0.2]

[Qi and Blood Value: 6.7 → 6.9]

...

’It’s not enough. I need to break through even faster.’

Lin Qi clenched his fists and shook his head, dissatisfied with his rate of improvement.

But the next second, a powerful wave of exhaustion washed over him.

’The mental drain is too great, I’m so tired. Even a Stimulant Potion can’t fully restore me.’

Lin Qi shook his head.

...

In the living room, Lin Zhen and Fang Huiyi were clearing the table together.

Fang Huiyi said softly, her voice filled with worry, "Even though there’s no danger at the War Base this time... but the environment is harsh. The accumulated organs and blood of some Calamity Beasts are corrosive, and there are all sorts of toxic fluids."

"You have to be careful. Don’t work yourself to exhaustion."

Lin Zhen nodded with a smile. "Don’t worry, I know my limits."

"I’ll just work part-time for a while and then come back."

"Okay," Fang Huiyi nodded.

...

Two days later, Lin Qi’s father, Lin Zhen, and his uncle, Fang Zhe, departed for Coastal Base No.1.

Lin Qi continued his routine of attending classes and practicing Martial Arts.

That evening, after class, in the Elite class—

"Kang Feiyue, let’s go to the Martial Arts Classroom after class for a duel. You dare?!"

"Who’s scared? I’d be a coward if I didn’t go!" Kang Feiyue shouted back.

Two students in the class had arranged a fight.

"Brother Qi, Kang Feiyue was in our old Class 3. We should go support him. Want to go to the Martial Arts Classroom together after the evening self-study session?"

Jiangtao asked. Lin Qi nodded.

Lin Qi was used to such challenges. They were all martial arts practitioners, full of energy, and on top of that, they trained with weapons.

They were all geniuses, and none of them was willing to submit to another, so challenges were common.

DRINGGG~

When the evening self-study session ended, a group of students flooded into the Martial Arts Classroom.

Zhang City was already standing inside the Martial Arts Classroom, a wide grin on his face.

"I heard there was a challenge, so I’ll be the referee."

Soon, the two challengers had changed and were facing off in the Martial Arts Classroom, weapons in hand.

"The rules of the challenge are as follows: the match ends when one side surrenders, or when I call it."

"No attacking vital points during the fight."

"The match begins now!"

Zhang City announced, raising his right arm.

Kang Feiyue and his opponent immediately began to fight. Weapons in hand, they clashed swiftly in the middle of the room.

Lin Qi watched from the crowd, his mind racing as he put himself in their shoes, considering how he would react if he were in the ring.

The two combatants were ranked 22nd and 18th in their grade, respectively—extremely close.

Lin Qi silently compared their Spear Technique Realms to his own. Others didn’t have a panel like he did, which allowed him to quantify his realm and precisely confirm every point of progress.

He was certain that in terms of Spear Technique, the gap between him and these geniuses had narrowed almost completely.

Not far away, Yang Lei was also watching the duel, his gaze shifting restlessly as if he were plotting something.

「A few minutes later.」

BANG!

"I win!"

As his opponent fell to the ground, Kang Feiyue swung his Battle Saber and pressed it against the other’s neck, excitedly declaring the end of the match.

"Kang Feiyue wins!" Zhang City also announced loudly.

The crowd erupted into cheers.

"That wasn’t enough! Let’s have another fight," someone suggested.

"Does anyone else want to issue a challenge?" Zhang City asked.

"I do!"

From within the crowd, Yang Lei raised his hand and stepped forward.

"Who do you want to challenge?" Zhang City asked.

"I want to challenge Lin Qi!"

Yang Lei pointed a finger at Lin Qi. Many people started to hoot and holler, and all eyes turned to lock onto him.

Lin Qi remained expressionless as he exchanged a look with Jiangtao.

"Lin Qi, do you dare accept my challenge?" Yang Lei asked, raising his voice.

Lin Qi could sense Yang Lei’s malicious intent. If he didn’t accept, it would be like admitting he was afraid.

He had long since forgotten about this person, but now he had unexpectedly popped up again.

’Then I’ll just have to teach him a lesson he won’t forget.’

"Yang Lei, I have a suggestion. If you lose, how about you give Lin Qi 50,000?"

"Likewise, if Lin Qi loses, he’ll give you 50,000," Jiangtao suddenly said.

"Fifty thousand!"

The crowd was in an uproar. Fifty thousand was no small sum.

"This..."

Yang Lei hesitated. Even for his well-off family, 50,000 was a lot of money.

"What, no confidence in your own strength? Are you scared?" Lin Qi finally spoke up.

His expression was serious, his gaze as sharp as a torch fixed on Yang Lei, and an invisible aura began to spread from him.

Provoked like this, Yang Lei was instantly annoyed and, in a fit of temper, blurted out:

"Who says I’m scared? Fifty thousand it is!"

...