"I’m not just flattering you. These wontons you made yourself are honestly way better than what you get from the shops..." Lin Li said earnestly to Xia Qing, taking another bite.

Seeing Lin Li’s earnest expression, a smile played on Xia Qing’s lips. She didn’t say anything, instead picking up her own spoon to eat a wonton.

Zhou Tongtong, sitting next to Xia Qing, glanced at her mother, then at Lin Li sitting across from them. ’This seems like the first time Mom has ever invited someone over for dinner,’ she thought.

"Is Zhou Tongtong still taking swimming lessons?" Lin Li asked after eating about half his bowl of wontons.

"Mhm, she is! There’s only one week of classes left before it’s over," Xia Qing said.

"I already know how to swim, so I don’t have to go to the rest of the classes," said Zhou Tongtong, who had been focused on her wontons, chiming in when she heard the adults mention her swimming lessons.

"Wow, you’re amazing! You learned to swim in such a short time," Lin Li praised Zhou Tongtong.

Receiving the praise, Zhou Tongtong raised her little hand and shyly scratched her head.

"Lin Li, can I ask you something?"

"What is it?"

"The neighborhood committee is holding an election for chairperson. The ones competing for the position this time are Ms. Liu and Ms. Wang. Who do you think I should vote for?"

"The annual neighborhood committee election... It’s that time already? I would’ve had no idea if you hadn’t mentioned it!" Lin Li said, raising a hand to scratch his chin.

"Ms. Liu and Ms. Wang are both good choices. You can’t go wrong with either."

"Who are you planning to vote for?" Xia Qing pressed.

"Me? I’m voting for Ms. Wang... It’s not that Ms. Liu is bad, I just know Ms. Wang a little better. As for you, you can vote for whoever you want..." Lin Li said with a smile.

Xia Qing nodded. After hearing that Lin Li was going to vote for Ms. Wang, she decided that when it was time to vote, she would do the same.

"Lin Li, I’ve been living here for a while now, but I’ve never seen your parents. Do they not live with you?" Xia Qing suddenly asked.

"My family passed away some years ago... I live alone now," Lin Li said, his tone calm.

Xia Qing hadn’t expected such a reply. A look of shock appeared on her face. After a moment of silence, she said apologetically to Lin Li, "I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked."

"It’s okay. It was a long time ago..."

They continued to chat while they ate. After Lin Li finished the late-night snack Xia Qing had prepared, he got up to say goodbye to the mother and daughter. Xia Qing had just finished eating as well, so she walked him to the door.

"Those two people who were harassing you before, they haven’t come back, have they?" asked Lin Li, who had rarely been home during the day recently, just as he was about to leave Xia Qing’s apartment.

Xia Qing knew Lin Li was referring to her late husband’s older brother and sister-in-law. She shook her head and said, "After what happened last time, they haven’t come back to bother me."

"Good to hear..." Lin Li nodded, then returned to his own apartment. 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

THUD.

After closing the door, Xia Qing returned to the dining room. Seeing that her daughter, Zhou Tongtong, had just finished the wontons in her bowl, she began to clear the dishes and spoke to her.

"Tongtong, your stomach is full now. Don’t go climbing into bed just yet. Go sit in the living room for a bit."

"Okay, Mom." Zhou Tongtong nodded. Then, she glanced at the freezer compartment at the bottom of the refrigerator and asked her mother in a small voice, "Mom, can I have an ice cream?"

Hearing this, Xia Qing immediately shook her head. "You just finished your wontons and your tummy is full. No ice cream. You can have some tomorrow."

"Okay." Unable to get her ice cream, a slightly disappointed Zhou Tongtong nodded, then left the dining room to go watch cartoons in the living room.

Time passed, and in the blink of an eye, three days went by.

On August 20th, the weather was clear. In the wilderness outside the East District, a figure in camouflage was surrounded by five Mutant Beasts.

Wielding a Spiritual Longsword that pulsed with a faint golden Spiritual Light, Lin Li panted slightly as he faced the beasts surrounding him: two at Tier Two Initial Stage and three at Tier One Peak.

HUFF...

Lin Li had been busy in the wilderness all morning. He was just about to find a place to eat lunch and rest when he was ambushed and surrounded by these five Mutant Beasts, which had been hiding and waiting for a long time.

"You bastard. You were quick to run yesterday. I never thought you’d actually bring back helpers to ambush me today."

Although Lin Li was surrounded by five Mutant Beasts, he wasn’t nervous. He looked at the one-eyed Wolf-like Beast before him and spoke in a calm tone.

ROAR...

The one-eyed Wolf-like Beast, a Tier One Peak, watched the human before it warily.

’Yesterday, it had ganged up on this human with two other Tier One Peak Forest Wolf Beasts. In the end, those two Forest Wolf Beasts were killed in just a few moves by this powerful human.’

’Luckily, it had reacted quickly enough. The moment the human killed the two Forest Wolf Beasts, it had immediately turned and fled. If it had been a few seconds slower, it might not have escaped.’

’Having narrowly escaped with its life, the one-eyed Wolf-like Beast held a deep grudge against the human who had nearly killed it.’

’So, it sought out powerful allies it knew, convincing them to come here and ambush him together.’

’The plan for revenge was going exactly as the one-eyed Wolf-like Beast had imagined. The despicable human had fallen into their encirclement, just as planned.’

’Judging by his condition, he had clearly used up a lot of his stamina and Spiritual Energy. With their combined strength, taking down this hateful human wouldn’t be a problem.’

’But for some reason, even though its revenge was at hand, the one-eyed Wolf-like Beast couldn’t help but feel a flicker of unease.’

"This is the first time a Mutant Beast has come looking for revenge. I guess that’s a new experience for me. So, thanks for that."

Lin Li said with a smile to the one-eyed Wolf-like Beast. Then, with a thought, three Spirit Fruits that looked like cherry tomatoes appeared in his left hand.

CRUNCH, CRUNCH...

He popped the three Spirit Fruits from the Mysterious Small Island into his mouth, chewed them a few times, and swallowed.

His Dantian, over half-depleted of Spiritual Energy, rapidly absorbed the energy from the Spirit Fruits. In just a few seconds, it had recovered a significant amount of Spiritual Energy.

The five Wolf-like Beasts watched as the human suddenly produced three small fruits out of thin air and ate them right in front of their faces. Their expressions were filled with confusion.

Soon, the two Tier Two Initial Stage Wolf-like Beasts’ Perception picked up a rapid surge in the Spiritual Energy fluctuations from Lin Li’s body. He was no longer weak. The confusion on their faces instantly turned to shock.

"Alright, let’s begin. None of you are getting away today."

After eating the Spirit Fruits and recovering most of his Spiritual Energy, Lin Li raised his left hand.

A faint golden Spiritual Light bloomed in the palm of his left hand. With a wave, arcs of menacing, cyan Wind Blades shot out at incredible speed toward the Wolf-like Beasts surrounding him.

WHOOSH, WHOOSH, WHOOSH...

As Lin Li launched his Superpower offensive, the battle erupted in an instant.

ROAR...

Seeing the human unleash so many astonishingly powerful Cyan Wind Blades in a single instant, the five Wolf-like Beasts roared in panic and scrambled to dodge.