Bai Qiu walked toward the small door, unlatched it, and said, “Come in and talk.”
Although he didn’t know what she wanted to say, he was willing to listen—after all, there were still about two hours left before his meditation time.
Zhang Shiyao and Bai Qiu sat on the same long sofa.
She fidgeted with the hem of her clothes, looking hesitant to speak.
Bai Qiu didn’t urge her; instead, he quietly poured a cup of warm water and handed it to her.
She took it, drank a big mouthful, then let out a long breath.
When she looked at Bai Qiu again, the struggle and hesitation in her eyes were gone, replaced with firm determination.
“Brother, about my family…” Zhang Shiyao began recounting her family situation and what had happened that day.
An hour later…
Bai Qiu remained expressionless.
Seeing her nervous and uneasy gaze, he suddenly smiled and rubbed her head.
After a sigh, he said, “Although you’re not yet an adult, you already have the awareness to understand reality and the ability to be independent.”
“No matter whether your father is really as you described… one thing won’t change—this is your choice. No matter the outcome, don’t regret it. Walk forward with conviction.”
“As long as this is what you truly think and how you truly act—if you stay consistent—I will support you and believe in you.”
Bai Qiu’s gentle voice filled the room.
Zhang Shiyao could no longer hold back; she threw herself into his arms and began to cry.
She had been afraid—if Bai Qiu were too bound by traditional beliefs and stubbornly insisted that filial piety must come first, then this conversation might have been the end of their relationship.
But she had so many things she wanted to say, and the only person she could think of who would listen was Bai Qiu.
Fortunately, Bai Qiu wasn’t shackled by such traditional views.
He had always lived by the principle: treat others as they treat you.
In the old world, there were countless touching stories of parents devoting their lives to their children.
But there were also those who vented their frustrations and resentment onto their kids—abuse, constant scolding, and blame.
Growing up in such a harsh environment would either create a monster that harms the world, or a broken person—timid, inferior, and easily manipulated.
To Bai Qiu, being a parent was more like a role or profession.
What was truly noble was a person’s soul—not the title they carried.
He sighed, his thoughts drifting away…
He too had a fractured past with his own family.
Though not as extreme as Zhang Shiyao’s, he had still chosen to leave it behind.
After gradually calming down, Zhang Shiyao rested her head on Bai Qiu’s lap.
She took out her storage card and grinned.
“Oh right, Brother! I opened one of those system-dropped treasure chests today—I got three really good items! Look!”
Bai Qiu glanced at the three items she took out, then froze for a moment.
His gaze sharpened as all their information appeared before his eyes:
Engraving Stone (C-rank)
After use, grants a C-rank skill based on the user’s base attributes. Skills obtained this way do not occupy a skill slot.
Transcendent Item Card Advancement Blueprint (B-rank)
Can be used on a selected embedded item card to forcibly enhance its growth potential. By investing rare materials, one can complete an upgrade ritual at a specific time and place.
Note: The item card will guide you.
Continuous Blink (C-rank)
After learning this skill, you can freely blink up to five times within a range of 53 meters. However, you cannot blink into obstructed areas such as walls or underground.
One blink charge recovers every 20 seconds. A maximum of five charges can be stored; if below five, it will continue recovering.
Cooldown: None
Mana Cost: Moderate
Bai Qiu was first shocked by the sheer power of these three items, but soon his expression turned serious.
He frowned and said: “You actually went to claim the system-dropped resources by yourself?”
“Sorry, big brother… these are for you. Don’t be mad, okay?” Zhang Shiyao felt a bit guilty.
She handed the items to Bai Qiu, originally hoping for praise, but unexpectedly, he didn’t seem happy—in fact, he even looked a little upset.
Bai Qiu shook his head and said calmly, “None of these three items suit me. You should learn Continuous Blink. As for the other two—the Engraving Stone—wait until all your attributes reach C++ before using it. And the Item Card Advancement Blueprint… save it until after this wave ends.”
The Engraving Stone and the Item Card Advancement Blueprint were indeed items with tremendous potential.
Especially the blueprint—using it meant gaining a chance at obtaining an Transcendent physique.
But both of them were filled with uncertainty.
Bai Qiu didn’t want to gamble on randomness, so he decided to leave them to Zhang Shiyao, who seemed to have better luck.
Besides, he himself already had an Transcendent item card.
He let out a sigh and said seriously, “Shiyao, it’s not that I don’t trust you, but the number of lord-level monsters in each system resource point is different.”
“In some areas, dozens of the strongest people went out together to search… and never came back. Do you understand? From now on, if you want to look for system-dropped resource points, come find me first, alright?”
In the cross-zone chat channel, there were often reports of people from certain areas heading out in large groups early in the morning to search for system resource points—only to never return by nightfall.
Checking their friend lists later, their profile icons had already gone dark.
Although Zhang Shiyao was now stronger than most people and capable of dealing with multiple lord-level monsters, what if she encountered a situation like Bai Qiu did that day—more than twenty lord-level creatures at once?
So Bai Qiu felt that some warnings still needed to be given.
Still, he asked about her battle today.
Zhang Shiyao sent him a first-person recording of her fight.
After watching her take down seven enemies in a single run, Bai Qiu fell silent as he looked at the girl resting her head on his lap.
It seemed she had already grown quickly to the point where she could stand on her own…
When the time reached nine in the evening—
Bai Qiu said, “It’s getting late. Go back and get some sleep. I need to start meditating as well.”
Zhang Shiyao looked at Bai Qiu, who was sitting cross-legged on the sofa with both hands resting on his knees, palms facing upward, and couldn’t help but feel curious.
She asked, “Big brother, do you not sleep at night anymore?”
“Mm. After obtaining the Transcendent physique granted by the Holy Demonic Body item card, and with my own high mental strength, I can enter a meditative state of inner wandering. In that state, I don’t need sleep to recover my energy.”
“Moreover, during this time, magic power continuously washes through my body, and my four basic attributes keep improving in this state. Right now, my Agility has already reached C+, and it won’t be long before my Strength reaches C+ as well.”
“Wow! We’re all still in the realm of martial arts, and you’ve already stepped into cultivation like an immortal! No wonder you don’t care about my little scraps…” Zhang Shiyao said, both shocked and envious, her anticipation for an transcendent physique growing even stronger.
— The end of the Chapter–
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