[Name: Li Wei Mojito (Zhong Shenxiu)]
[Heavenly Show Points: 188 (2%)]
[Gateway of Ten Thousand Doors: To be Opened]
Inside the Baihua Forest.
A blood-covered man lay beside Zhong Shenxiu, who conjured the attribute panel with his mind, his face illuminated by an odd glow.
"The Heavenly Show Points were depleted earlier during healing, and mixology is surprisingly recognized as a skill in the attribute panel, even though it’s just at the beginner level, but that Li Wei Mojito clearly also put in a lot of effort to practice it."
"This world... must possess supernatural powers, but why do I feel the essence of heaven and earth is different from before..."
He closed his eyes for a long while, a hint of confusion appearing on his face.
"Perhaps, the essence of this world manifests in another form, such as Magic Power or magic? Does this also mean I can’t refine the Gang Sha Qi to restore my Divine Skills?"
Truth be told, even if he could restore them, Zhong Shenxiu was not willing to expend Heavenly Show Points.
He traveled through worlds to reap, not to expend.
Based on his previous experiences, it was best to actively integrate into this world and explore its different systems and paths, which might yield unexpected gains.
"Martial Arts Divine Power... forget it, I could manage it, but the cost is too great. I can wait until real danger strikes to add points."
Just then, Zhong Shenxiu heard a groan coming from a scarred man nearby.
Though the man wasn’t hit vitally, he was shot and had a large hole in his body. He had moved so far with just a simple bandage, and he was already bleeding profusely, appearing close to death.
Through the hazy moonlight, Zhong Shenxiu’s vision blurred and he seemed to see a semi-transparent soul trying to leave the scarred man’s body.
"Eh? Does this body have something special that allows me to see souls with the naked eye?"
Zhong Shenxiu was slightly shocked and then conjectured about himself: "Or is it the influence of the ’Pastor’ ability? Why wasn’t it present in the last two worlds? Is it because this world better fits such powers? And also... the ’Pastor’ ability is not related to Divine Power Talismans or physical strength but leans more towards the soul, thus it can transfer with the True Spirit?"
He felt that in this world, if he were to use Heavenly Show Points, unlocking the Martial Arts Divine Power and ’Pastor’ ability, the latter would likely be less consuming.
"Even, I don’t need to use the Heavenly Show System. By following this inspiration and training more, I could figure out some supernatural abilities, just like in other worlds where practicing martial arts helps regain my own martial skills, which is the most economical method."
However, by this time, Zhong Shenxiu couldn’t care too much.
He saw the scarred man’s soul was almost leaving the body, the body beginning to stiffen as he exhaled his last breath. At that very moment, Zhong Shenxiu, holding onto the idea of experimenting, gently pushed.
The scarred man’s soul, expressionless, was pushed back and curled into the body again.
The lying scarred man coughed once and his body twitched.
Zhong Shenxiu’s eyes flickered, and he immediately began treating the wound, bandaging it carefully.
Half an hour later, the scarred man opened his eyes, "Li Wei... did you save me?"
This form of address was a bit unusual.
Zhong Shenxiu felt somewhat strange inside, thinking about the ’Pastor’ ability, but he hadn’t pastored the scarred man’s soul.
"Perhaps... during contact, it left a certain impact, like making a very profound psychological suggestion."
"This kind of suggestion, coupled with the life-saving gratitude, means gaining a devoted follower shouldn’t be hard."
This was also why Zhong Shenxiu had decided to help the scarred man.
"It was me, are you feeling alright?"
Zhong Shenxiu turned around and flashed a sunny smile.
His body was still handsome, with brown short hair and blue eyes, distinct facial features, and a high nose bridge, giving off the aura of a model.
"Before... I felt like I was almost dead..."
The scar-faced man with cracked lips murmured fuzzily, "But at the critical moment, I seemed to see you, and I came back to life... I think, all of this must have happened for a reason..."
’Is this guy self-hypnotizing? He’s beyond saving...’
Zhong Shenxiu secretly rolled his eyes and suggested, "You’d better find a place to hide. I’ll go get you some medicine and food..."
"I know there’s a hunter’s cabin nearby. I rested there when I was chopping trees!"
A smile appeared on the scar-faced man’s face.
Byron City was located to the west of Balmo Port, requiring half a day’s travel by carriage.
Zhong Shenxiu had walked for most of the night, and well into the morning, finally entering the city area around noon. After walking through a few streets, he arrived at a slum.
Low buildings, dilapidated streets, and filthy, stinking drains.
A few grimy boys wearing duckbill caps and gray jackets squatted at the corner of the street. After scanning Zhong Shenxiu with their eyes and realizing he was someone they knew, they all showed faces of regret.
They were the Golden Fingers of this street, surviving on theft, with gang backgrounds to boot.
If it were a stranger who also disclosed that they were wealthy, they would have to watch their wallets.
These Golden Fingers were not only pickpockets but also ready to slice open something else with the knives in their hands when necessary.
Zhong Shenxiu, recalling Li Wei’s memories, walked up to a shack.
This area was filled with such buildings, row houses partitioned into cramped and closed-off rooms, rented out to the poor and craftsmen who couldn’t afford the exorbitant rent in other districts.
Of course, the living conditions were poor, with no separate washrooms. His two sisters, Carmela and Jennifer, always complained about this.
Zhong Shenxiu walked for a while and stopped in front of a door.
Before he could figure out where to pull out his key, the house’s door suddenly slid open, revealing the messy floor, tables, chairs, and stacks of matchboxes piled up like a small mountain.
Two blond and blue-eyed girls, one about thirteen or fourteen, the other even younger, possibly only eleven, were busily sticking labels on the matchboxes.
Many children in the slums found doable jobs, from delivering newspapers and milk, to laundering clothes, pasting matchboxes, to being gang informants or pickpockets... They did everything except go to school.
The one who opened the door for Zhong Shenxiu was a boy who looked about fifteen or sixteen, his features somewhat similar to Li Wei’s but younger.
This was Li Wei’s younger brother, Jones, while the older sister was Carmela, and the younger was Jennifer.
Jones complained, looking at Zhong Shenxiu’s empty hands, "We’ve run out of bread and butter at home..."
Before, Li Wei had boasted to his siblings about finding well-paid night work and had promised to bring home bread and milk in the morning.
Clearly, he would never be able to keep that promise.
"Something bad happened, to put it simply... I messed up."
Zhong Shenxiu turned his pants pockets inside out, mimicking a gesture common to Li Wei when he felt helpless.
Jones sighed, seemingly having confirmed something from the first look at his brother, "We don’t have much money left at home. I need to go out to work. I’m already sixteen, I can earn ten cents a day even doing hard labor at the docks... I need to make money, I want to be wealthy!"
"Before that, you might need to change your own name first..."
Zhong Shenxiu shrugged his shoulders, making a joke only he understood, "How do you get rich if you’re dead broke?"