Li Qinghe

Lu Yuan stared in bewilderment at the Spiritual Energy particles swirling through his consciousness. After a moment's silence, he carefully followed the prescribed steps of the Spiritual Energy Guidance Technique and attempted to absorb them.

The result was immediate: every last particle snapped toward him like iron filings to a magnet, surging forward in a rush and flooding into his body.

In his inner vision, the particles passed through a veil of white mist and fused into the double-helix Gene Chain. The chain, which had glowed only dimly before, began to brighten from its lowest point — slowly at first, then with steadily building intensity.

As the Gene Chain grew more radiant, warmth spread through his body. A faint, swelling pressure gathered between his brows, and his mind felt sharper with every passing moment.

The one concern: his absorption speed seemed far, far faster than anything the Spiritual Energy Guidance Technique had described.

According to the technique, those with decent talent generally needed three to five days to complete this initial stage; those of average talent might take ten days to half a month.

*Could this also be the Evolution Cube's influence?*

Just then, his consciousness swelled — and a small, distinct space split away within it.

Though completely empty, he could feel the connection between himself and it, immediate and unmistakable.

He knew instinctively what it was.

Wasn't this exactly what that forum post had described? The storage space that the Gene Battle Mark unlocked when you first absorbed Spiritual Energy?

According to the post, opening this space was supposed to be exceptionally difficult.

The space started no bigger than a clenched fist. As he continued absorbing Spiritual Energy, it expanded steadily.

Eventually it settled at roughly one cubic meter.

A bit small — but it would do.

*I didn't expect it to come this easily.* Everything had simply fallen into place, naturally and without effort.

*I just closed my eyes once and the whole thing worked. What on earth do you even call that kind of talent?*

*Pretty impressive, if I say so myself.*

A quiet, pleased thrill settled in his chest.

When the space stopped growing, Lu Yuan opened his eyes.

He reached for his phone.

6:34.

*Morning already?!*

He could have sworn only a few minutes had passed. He hadn't expected so much time to slip by unnoticed.

A shaft of morning light slanted in through the window. He stared at it for a moment.

The strange thing was that he felt completely fine. Better than fine — sharper and more refreshed than after a full night of deep, quality sleep. He hadn't even closed his eyes, yet here he was.

*Is this Spiritual Energy at work?* Based on what he'd just experienced, Spiritual Energy refined the Gene Chain, and the Gene Chain in turn nourished the body and mind.

*Sleep is for the dead. The living can always catch up later.*

*Not bad at all, predecessor. That body of yours had more going for it than I thought.*

Lu Yuan got up, washed his face, and stepped out of his room.

The moment he opened the door, a woman came in through the front entrance — fitted red dress, careful makeup, decent-looking, with a pair of bright and lively large eyes.

When she spotted him, her face lit up.

"Lu Yuan, heading to class?"

Li Qinghe had been living here longer than Lu Yuan had. A lone girl, slight and on her own, making her way through the slums — it hadn't been easy. Life in a place like this demanded you pay for everything, in every sense of the word.

She had also regularly passed along tips about the neighborhood: what areas to avoid, what kinds of trouble weren't worth inviting.

From the original host's memories: the moment Li Qinghe found out he was an orphan scraping by on a meager monthly allowance, she had started buying extra breakfast every morning and bringing some back for him, without fail. The original host had been deeply grateful. She was one of the few genuine sources of warmth left to him after becoming an orphan — without Li Qinghe, he might not have survived at all.

Lu Yuan, carrying those memories, had no romantic feelings for her. But he regarded her completely naturally as a caring older sister.

He nodded. "Yeah. Just got off work, Sister Qinghe? You've worked hard."

Li Qinghe caught the smile on his face and paused. Something shifted in her expression as she studied him.

"What?" he asked, puzzled.

"Just... you seem a little different today. You wouldn't have smiled like that yesterday."

It clicked. He had changed — probably quite noticeably.

"Something good happened, actually."

"Oh? What kind of good thing?"

"I awakened as a Gene Warrior yesterday." He kept his tone easy. "Feels like things might go somewhere different from here. I thought I'd try to change."

Li Qinghe blinked — then her face broke into a wide, delighted smile.

She reached into her chest pocket, pulled out a pack of cigarettes with practiced ease, plucked one out, lit it, and took a long drag.

Cradling her right hand in her left, she exhaled a slow curl of white smoke and grinned at him.

"Congratulations, Lu Yuan! You're going to be someone important!"

She stepped forward and clapped him on the shoulder.

"Oh, and — hehe — I bought a few too many buns this morning. Want to take some for the road?"

Warmth settled in Lu Yuan's chest. He smiled. "Sister Qinghe always buys too many."

Li Qinghe laughed, bright and easy, and raised her bun-laden hand.

He looked at her and said quietly: "I always remember who's been good to me and who hasn't. Sister Qinghe, you're the only person here who's ever looked out for me."

Li Qinghe fell silent for a moment. Then she smiled and reached over to ruffle his hair.

"What? You're not disgusted with your big sister?"

Lu Yuan straightened up, his expression serious. "Sister Qinghe — when the time comes, I'll find you a good job. I'll take you with me when I leave."

She stilled for a beat. Then a bright, genuinely pleased smile spread across her face.

"Nothing's certain yet — we'll see when the time comes." She shook her head. "Here, grab some buns and get to class. Don't be late. I don't know anything about Gene Warrior business — handle it yourself, and safety first."

"I don't know the details yet," Lu Yuan said, "but I definitely won't be staying in the slums long."

"Yeah, yeah." Li Qinghe nodded warmly. "Getting out of here would be wonderful."

She nodded several more times, still smiling.

"I'll head out then."

Lu Yuan sighed and smoothed down his disheveled hair, grabbed two buns, and headed out the door.

After he left, Li Qinghe walked to his closed bedroom door and stood there for a moment.

Then she narrowed those bright eyes of hers, took a single step forward —

— and passed straight through the door, her whole body slipping through the wood as if it weren't there. The door remained firmly shut behind her.

She took a bite of her bun and looked slowly around the room. Her gaze settled on the battered old laptop, then drifted to the handwritten three-step plan on the desk — the one Lu Yuan had drawn up for his Land of Origin expedition.

She walked over and looked it over. A small smile crossed her face.

After a moment, she stood in silence, looking at the closed door.

Then she ground out her cigarette, clamped a bun between her teeth, and stepped back through the door — returning to the living room, then making her way to her own room, still quietly munching.

Lu Yuan had not actually gone to class.

For the next two months, he could skip whenever he wanted. He had already arranged a leave of absence with his homeroom teacher, who had agreed without a second thought — it wasn't hard to understand why. The original host, reclusive as he had been, had always ranked near the top of the class academically. There was nothing to worry about on that front.

Lu Yuan had no interest in spending the next two months on schoolwork. His focus was now entirely on his advancement as a Gene Warrior.

Today's destination: the mall.

With five thousand Red Maple Coins sitting in his account, he felt like he owned the world. Even his stride carried a certain swagger.

As the old saying goes: a full granary makes for a calm heart. Having money works exactly the same way.

Red Maple Coins had slightly more purchasing power than the RMB of his previous life, but not by much. Five thousand wasn't all that impressive in the grand scheme of things.

Still — supplies weren't going to buy themselves.

He had a Land of Origin expedition to prepare for.

Dressed in his finest outfit — which happened to be his school uniform — Lu Yuan strode into the mall and got to work.

Military compressed rations. Energy bars. Dense, filling bread. Bottled water.

Insect repellent, odor eliminator, rope — the standard wilderness survival kit.

He had originally planned to pick up a sleeping bag and tent, but given that the Land of Origin only allowed a twenty-four-hour stay, he decided to keep things lean.

Fortunately, everything on his list was entirely ordinary goods — nothing that might draw any attention. Even so, it all added up to roughly a thousand coins.

That left him with four thousand.

With the remainder, Lu Yuan made his way to the Alloy Weapon store inside the mall.