The kitchen lights were warm, but the air instantly turned cold. After Manager Si had spoken those words.
Ling'er's shoulders stiffened like someone poured ice water down her back. Which, in this case, is metaphorically correct.
Auntie Qiu's face tightened too. She didn't dare move an inch, but her eyes flicked toward the back door as if she wanted to push Ling'er out and pretend none of this happened.
Manager Si didn't rush. He took his time stepping forward, hands clasped behind his back, robe clean, and shoes spotless. His gaze landed on Ling'er again. Then, he smiled. Not a real smile. More like a blade's sharp edge formed into a smile.
"Yu Ling," he started, "you're getting bolder."
Ling'er lowered her head quickly, swallowing hard.
"Manager Si… I'm sorry. I didn't mean to—"
"You didn't mean to borrow money again?" Manager Si cut in, his tone gentle like he was asking about the weather. In reality, he really was filled with contempt. "Or you didn't mean to get caught?"
Ling'er's lips parted, but no sound came out.
Auntie Qiu forced herself into the conversation, voice cautious. "Manager Si, it's late. The child just—"
"Qiu."
One word was all it took to silence her. Auntie Qiu froze mid-sentence like she'd been slapped. She lowered her eyes and took a half-step back.
Manager Si's gaze didn't even bother staying on her that long.
"Do you know how many times we've had this conversation?" he asked Ling'er. "Do you know how many times I've heard 'just this once'?"
Ling'er clasped her hands tighter, knuckles whitening. "I'll pay it back. I swear. I'll work more shifts. I'll—"
"You've already worked," he said, and the softness in his voice became sharper. "You've worked and worked and worked. And you still owe. This isn't some game."
He leaned slightly, as if speaking confidentially.
"Two years of wages worth of debt, Ling'er."
Those words landed like a hammer in Li Shaobai's heart. 'Damn, I really was a waste.'
Auntie Qiu's fingers twitched in response. Ling'er's eyes reddened instantly, but she didn't cry. She just bowed deeper, as if bending far enough, the weight of the situation would just roll off her back. But, things weren't so simple.
"I know," she whispered. Manager Si's smile widened a fraction at this.
"You know?" he repeated. "Then, answer me. How did you even rack up that much debt?"
Ling'er's voice trembled. "It's… it's because…"
"Because of your Young Master," Manager Si finished for her, disdain now evident in his voice. "Right?"
Silence. Manager Si didn't stop.
"You fed him." He lifted one finger.
"You bought him medicine." Another finger.
"You bought him clothes when the manor stopped giving you proper funds." Another.
Then his tone turned even uglier.
"And you paid for his 'pleasures' as well."
Auntie Qiu's face changed, anger flickering through her restraint. "Manager Si—"
Manager Si's eyes slid to Auntie Qiu for a heartbeat. Auntie Qiu stopped again, her rebuttal quickly cut off. There was no helping her now.
Ling'er shook her head fast, voice cracking. "No… it wasn't like that. I didn't—"
"But the money still came from here," Manager Si said, smiling. "From this kitchen. From this restaurant. From the Gate Ruler's mercy."
He clicked his tongue, as if disappointed.
"Do you think I don't have accounts? You think I don't know what the Gate Ruler has been letting slide because of old favors?"
Ling'er looked like she was being strangled by shame. She tried to speak, but her throat wouldn't cooperate.
Manager Si sighed, a performance.m this truly was.
"Ling'er, I'm actually impressed. Truly." His voice softened again, almost sweet. "A servant girl, born with nothing, still clinging to a fallen young master like your life depends on it."
He tilted his head. "It's loyalty," he said.
Then his tone dropped into something cruel.
"Or it's stupidity. Both of which you do not lack."
Ling'er flinched. Her eyes flashed with anger and not fear for the first time.
"My Young Master is not—"
"A waste?" Manager Si finished smoothly. "Is that what you were going to say?"
He chuckled. "Fine. Call him what you want in your heart." He leaned closer, voice quiet enough to feel like one was getting ASMR done to them. "But in everyone else's eyes? He's a disgrace. A joke. A piece of Li Clan shame that should've been buried a long time ago."
The kitchen went dead silent.
Outside, pressed into the shadow by the back door crack, Li Shaobai's pupils shrank.
The rat's mockery earlier didn't hurt like this.
This did because he couldn't even deny it.
Because he knew exactly how it looked from the outside, even from the manor and city. A washed-up genius who drowned himself in wine and perfume, who let a fragile servant girl carry him until her hands burned.
He felt his chest tighten. Then, something else rose up behind the tightness. A cold, clean anger that was more or less directed at himself.
Li Shaobai's fingers curled. With a resolve, he pushed the back door open.
There was a creaking of its hinge as he opened it. Loud enough for those present in the room to turn their attention toward it.
Auntie Qiu's eyes widened instantly. Ling'er spun around, startled. And Manager Si paused mid-breath, gaze sliding toward the door as well; wondering who was entering this late in the night. More beggars?
Li Shaobai stepped into the kitchen proudly, even if his robe was shabby and his body was still too thin. His face was pale under the lamplight, but his eyes were steady.
Ling'er's voice stumbled out first. "Y-Young Master…?"
She looked horrified. Like she'd been caught doing something shameful. Like she wanted to hide him behind her.
Li Shaobai didn't let her. He walked to her side and stood there. Close enough that she could slightly feel his breath.
"Ling'er," he said quietly.
Her eyes trembled. "Young Master, why are you here…? I-I was just—"
"I heard it." That was all he said.
Ling'er went still. Her face drained of color, then flushed with humiliation, tears gathering again but refusing to fall.
Manager Si studied Li Shaobai from head to toe with that same bladed smile.
"So," Manager Si said lightly, "the 'Young Master' finally crawls out of his courtyard."
Li Shaobai didn't answer immediately. He first looked at Ling'er's thin and red hands.
Then, he looked at Auntie Qiu, whose expression was pulled tight by curiosity and worry.
Finally, he looked at Manager Si. "Two years of wages worth of debt," Li Shaobai repeated slowly.
Manager Si's brows lifted. "You can hear. Congratulations."
Li Shaobai smiled faintly, but there wasn't warmth in it.
"Put it on me," he said.
Almost immediately, Ling'er snapped, "Young Master, no—!"
Li Shaobai raised a hand slightly, stopping her words without even looking at her.
Manager Si's eyes narrowed. "On you?"
"Yes," Li Shaobai said. "But I'm not begging."
He met Manager Si's gaze like a blade meeting another blade.
"I'll work the debt off."
Manager Si stared at him for a moment. Laughter broke out as he looked at Li Shaobai, as if he'd just heard the funniest joke in Skybridge City.
"You?" he said. "Work?"
Ling'er looked like she might collapse. "Young Master, please… you don't have to…"
Li Shaobai's voice stayed calm. "I do."
He looked at Ling'er now, and his tone softened just a little.
"You've carried me long enough."
Ling'er's eyes blurred instantly. Her lips trembled. "I… I wanted to…"
Li Shaobai's voice dropped, solid as a vow.
"From today on, no one will use you to step on me again."
The words weren't loud. But they were impactful nonetheless. Auntie Qiu's eyes shook.
For the first time, the man's expression sharpened into something real.
"So you want to work," Manager Si said slowly. "Fine."
He stepped closer.
"Let me be clear, I don't run a charity hall." His gaze dragged over Li Shaobai's shabby clothes. "A fallen young master doesn't get 'easy work' just because he's got a surname."
He gestured toward the back courtyard, where the slaughter area was.
"You want wages?" he said. "You'll earn them the way everyone else does."
Then he tilted his head again, smiling thinly.
"I need a butcher."
Ling'er's breath hitched. "Manager Si…!"
Manager Si didn't look at her. "What? It's honest work."
Li Shaobai stared toward the back. A butcher.
A man who used to be Skybridge City's pride, now cutting throats of beasts for coins.
If this spread, it would become a laughingstock. Manager Si's smile widened, like he could already taste the rumor.
Li Shaobai inhaled once, nodding.
"Good."
Ling'er froze. "Young Master!"
Li Shaobai didn't flinch.
"Arrange it," he said, eyes locked on Manager Si. "As long as the debt stops touching Ling'er."
Manager Si stared at him for a long moment, then chuckled.
"Deal," he said softly. He leaned in, voice cold. "If you can't handle it, don't come crying. If you quit, Ling'er's debt comes back… with interest."
Ling'er's face went white. Li Shaobai's eyes darkened, but he didn't back down.
"I won't quit."
Manager Si straightened, satisfied.
"That's the spirit. You'll start tomorrow."
He turned away in a bright mood, slipping back into the inner room without another glance, as if the entire situation wasn't worth more attention.
The moment the inner door closed, Ling'er grabbed Li Shaobai's sleeve with both hands, shaking.
"You didn't have to…" she whispered, voice broken. "Young Master, I can work, I can endure—"
Li Shaobai looked down at her hands gripping him like he was a lifeline.
Then he sighed.
"I'm not letting you endure alone anymore," he said quietly. "That's final."
Ling'er's tears finally slipped out, hot and silent.
Auntie Qiu stepped closer, her voice low. "Young Master Li… I… I don't know what changed in you."
Li Shaobai didn't answer that.
How could he explain his transmigration? His system? Three lifetimes stitched together? The countdown tied to his inevitable death?
He just bowed slightly to Auntie Qiu.
"Thank you," he said. "For not throwing her out."
Auntie Qiu's cheeks reddened. She looked away quickly. "Don't thank me. I didn't do much."
Li Shaobai's jaw tightened and thought, 'I'll make it so she never has to beg again.'
That night, Ling'er finished her work at Moon-Scent Kitchen with Auntie Qiu watching over her like a shield. Li Shaobai stayed in the back, quietly helping in any way. He washed bowls, carried water, and scrubbed greasy pots until his fingers went numb. Even though his body complained with every movement, his mind stayed oddly clear and eager.
Work didn't humiliate him anymore. Being powerless did. 'Besides, I'm an employed young master, the first of its kind.'
Near two in the morning, Auntie Qiu finally pointed to a corner room that was more or less the same as his back in Li clan home.
"There's space," she said. "You can rest here tonight. It's safer than going back to the Li Manor at this hour."
Ling'er looked at Li Shaobai, hesitant. He nodded in agreement.
"Stay."
Ling'er's shoulders relaxed, like she'd been holding her breath for two years.
When the restaurant quieted, Li Shaobai lay on a rough wooden bed that smelled of old grain sacks. The ceiling was low. A thin blanket covered him.
The silence was more different here than at the manor. This silence was tired, honest.
He closed his eyes and pulled up his panel.
—
STATUS
Name: Li Shaobai
Level: 0
Realm: Body Tempering— First Layer (0/1000)
Vital Qi: 0
Physique: Heaven-Cursed Astral Body (Sealed)
Skills: None
Talents: None
Divine Abilities: None
Unfair Points: …
Luck: 0
—
He stared at the numbers, then clicked his tongue. This system wasn't just stingy, it was shameless as well.
The second layer of the Body Tempering Realm required a disgusting amount of 3000 EXP to level up. Li Shaobai didn't want to know how much the third layer cost; an arm and a leg probably.
He exhaled slowly.
'I knew it,' he thought to himself. 'This system wants me to grind until my soul peels.'
His consciousness slid into the system warehouse, pretty much an inventory. Li Shaobai wasn't sure if it stored any items or only system-related items.
Upon completing the mission, he was rewarded some thins.
A small, dark space appeared in his mind that only had empty shelves, four of the five were empty.
But one had an object there. It was a jade-green manual, faintly glowing.
He narrowed his eyes.
'So this is the 'Special Cultivation Technique' reward.'
He willed it out. The manual appeared in his hand. Its cover was cool to the touch, with characters written in flowing script:
Hidden Leaf Descends.
Li Shaobai blinked.
"…Why does that sound familiar?"
The system answered as if it was waiting.
DING!
[Sword Technique: Hidden Leaf Descends detected. Do you wish to learn it?]
Li Shaobai didn't hesitate.
"Yes."
DING!
[Learning…]
The instant the panel flashed, a surge of information such as stances, breath patterns, footwork, sword angles, killing intent entered his brain. It hit so hard he almost sat up. His muscles felt like they were forcefully remembering something he never taught them.
For a moment, he could almost see his old self practicing in the Li Clan courtyard while elders nodded and praised.
Then the memory sharpened. His expression twisted.
"…No."
He sat up slowly, staring at the manual like it offended him.
"This…" he muttered, voice low. "This is the Li Clan's Hidden Leaf Descends sword technique."
It was the exact same thing. One of the core sword arts he learned back when he was still Skybridge City's pride.
He clenched his jaw so hard it hurt.
"You shameless system," he whispered, furious. "You give me my own family technique and call it a 'special reward'? I should curse your Creator's mother!"
The system didn't respond. It never did, even when he insulted it.
Li Shaobai breathed in, then out.
'Fine.'
Even if it was a scam… the result was real.
His body now held the technique again, more refined and complete than he did when he practiced it daily for years.
If he had a sword, he could use it. If he didn't… he'd carve with whatever blade he could find.
He layed back down, staring at the ceiling.
Tomorrow, he'd become a butcher. And he would treat it like cultivation. Because in this world, the knife and the sword were both tools of survival.
***
The next morning arrived and the back courtyard of Moon-Scent Kitchen smelled like blood and wet straw.
A chopping board the size of a door slab sat on a low platform. The wood was scarred and stained dark from years of slaughter. A wooden stake beside it was pocked with knife marks like old wounds.
Several workers stood at a distance, whispering, curious.
They didn't know exactly who Li Shaobai was. They just knew Manager Si had personally assigned a "new butcher."
Ling'er stood off to the side, biting her lip, eyes full of worry.
Auntie Qiu watched too, expression neutral but still hinting at curiosity.
Li Shaobai wore a rough beast-skin apron over his robe. His sleeves were tied back. In his hand was a short knife that was more like a kitchen cleaver's narrow cousin than a sword.
But it was sharp. He was looking into a cage.
Inside, a chicken-like beast paced in circles.
It wasn't a normal chicken.
Its body was thicker with bigger muscles, rough feathers, and its claws looked like they could tear skin easily. Its eyes were bright and alert.
Li Shaobai exhaled.
"Alright," he muttered. "So this is my first monster."
He reached in, grabbed it firmly, and yanked it out.
The beast thrashed violently, claws scraping, wings beating like a fan.
Li Shaobai's grip tightened.
His body was still not strong, but his assassin memory slid over him like a second skin. He slammed the beast onto the board.
It tried to spring up. Li Shaobai didn't hesitate. The short knife flashed.
One clean cut across the neck and blood sprayed hot. The beast fluttered twice, then went limp.
For a heartbeat, the courtyard went silent.
DING!
Then the system chimed.
[Kill confirmed.
Target: Ironclaw Fur-Chicken
Reward: +10 EXP
Reward: +1 Unfair Point]
Li Shaobai's eyes widened slightly. So, it worked just like how he thought it would.
Killing monsters gave EXP along with missions. Real combat and real kills did that.
His heart pounded hard in excitement.
Behind him, workers started murmuring.
"Yo… this kid's hands are steady."
"Not bad. I thought he'd get pecked to death." Snickers followed shortly.
Ling'er's face lit up like dawn.
"Young Master is amazing!" she blurted, voice bright enough to make the workers glance at her.
Li Shaobai turned his head slightly, catching her expression.
That pure, stubborn admiration.
DING!
The system chimed again.
[Ling'er's admiration detected.
Luck +1]
Li Shaobai blinked.
So luck could increase from things like this?
He swallowed, then turned back to the cages.
He needed to take every available advantage possible.
He worked and worked. One beast after another.
Grab. Slam. Slice.
Blood splashed and feathers flew.
His arms burned and shoulders trembled.
The metallic smell of blood clung to his skin.
But the system kept chiming.
At some point, another panel popped up.
DING!
[Milestone achieved.
100 EXP obtained.
10 Unfair Points obtained.
Achievement unlocked: First Blood Ledger
Reward: +1 Achievement Point]
Li Shaobai froze mid-wipe.
"Achievement point?"
DING!
The system answered immediately, like it wanted credit.
[Achievement System activated.
Achievement Points can be exchanged in the Achievement Store.]
His panel shifted, showing a new interface.
Achievement Store.
He scanned it once, and his breath caught.
One Achievement Point could be exchanged for a massive chunk of EXP.
Li Shaobai didn't think twice.
'Exchange, exchange, exchange.'
[Exchange confirmed.
Achievement Point -1
Reward: EXP +10,000]
The EXP surged like a flood.
His body jolted, heat rushing through his bones.
DING!
[Level Up!]
[You've reached Body Tempering Realm — Second Layer]
The heat didn't stop.
DING!
[Level Up!]
[You've reached Body Tempering Realm — Third Layer]
Li Shaobai staggered slightly, knife still in hand. His breath deepened as his muscles tightened further. The fatigue he was feeling in his limbs faded like smoke. He could feel it clearly now. The gap between layers.
Ling'er stared at him like she was seeing a legend happen in front of her. Li Shaobai exhaled slowly, gripping the knife tighter.
Chickens.
He stared at the cages like they were treasure.
"I didn't expect you," he muttered in his heart, "to be my first stepping stone."
Days passed.
He slaughtered beasts until his arms learned the rhythm. He worked missions when the system forced them. He watched the countdown tick lower, lower.
58 days.
Then 57.
Then 56.
The EXP from slaughtering was steady but still painfully small compared to what he needed.
And every time he thought about leaving the city to hunt real demonic beasts in places like Starfall Mountain Range, where strong beasts roamed and EXP would pour out in waves—
The system flashed a warning.
DING!
[Warning: Series Mission "Ling'er's Kindness" incomplete. If host leaves Ling'er's range, Ling'er will be permanently lost.]
Li Shaobai's jaw tightened every time he left the range for too long. He didn't know if the warning was real or not, but losing her was not an option. Nor was he going to gamble Ling'er's life.
So he stayed. Grinding. Cursing.
One night, after counting his Unfair Points, he finally hit the lucky number. He stared at it like it was salvation.
The system immediately chimed.
DING!
[Unfair Points threshold reached. Do you wish to activate an Unfair Function?]
Li Shaobai didn't even blink.
"Yes."
The system paused.
Then:
DING!
[Activation failed.
Reason: Host realm too low.
Please level up as soon as possible.]
Li Shaobai sat there in the dim storeroom, staring into the air.
"Are you f*cking serious? Too low your sister, you scamming, cheap-sh*t system!"
He cursed as he read it over again. Then, checked his EXP requirements.
To reach Body Tempering Realm — Fourth Layer…
He needed an amount that made his face go blank. He was still missing over fourteen thousand.
Li Shaobai slowly leaned back against the wall. For a second, he looked genuinely defeated. Then he laughed, quietly and filled with bitterness.
"Unfair," he whispered in
He clenched his fist. "Fine."
He stood up, grabbed his knife, and looked toward the back courtyard where the cages waited.
"If this system wants me to grind…" he muttered, eyes turning cold, "then I'll grind until the heavens get tired first."