Chapter 1

With a "slam," Li Feng angrily threw the clutter from the cardboard box into a corner of the dormitory, feeling utterly drained as he flopped onto the bed, staring silently at the ceiling.

"How many times has this happened now?"

In the past month, including this time, it was already the third time. Could it be that he had been fired three times in a month for "various reasons"?

At this moment, Li Feng's mood became increasingly irritable.

With less than a week left until the final deadline, the school would order all graduating students to move out of the dormitories. But he still hadn't found a stable job. What was he going to do next?

Was he supposed to slink back to his hometown and just get by?

No, that would be too embarrassing. Thinking back to when he had entered Qin City University with an astonishing score, the admiration and praise from his neighbors had never ceased. He, Li Feng, really couldn't bear the thought of returning home after four years with nothing to show for it, facing all the gossip and whispers.

He didn't mind for himself, but if his family also suffered because of this, it would be a great act of filial impiety.

Moreover, he was unwilling, unwilling to accept it. If it were truly due to his own lack of ability, he would have to accept his fate. But that wasn't the case. Everything stemmed from that person... Why? Li Feng gazed blankly at the ceiling, feeling lost.

"Old Three, what's wrong? Did you get fired from your new company again?" Qin Ming, the fourth roommate, looked up from his computer screen, his face hesitant as he asked.

"Uh-huh." Li Feng responded softly.

The two roommates fell into a moment of silence.

Originally, there were five people living in the dormitory, ranked by age. Li Feng was the third, and Qin Ming, who was two months younger, was the fourth.

Most of their batch of graduating students had already left the ivory tower of the campus. Now, only Qin Ming, a local, remained. Due to his family's wealth, he didn't need to worry about life after graduation.

Qin Ming stayed because, as he put it, he enjoyed the freedom and independence, taking full advantage of the last few days before the school kicked them out, playing games and enjoying himself.

He knew that once he returned home, he wouldn't have such freedom.

"Hey, why don't you come work at my dad's logistics company? It's not a big company, but at least it will help you stabilize in Qin City."

Whether it was Fang Zheng, the first, or the second and fifth, the five of them had lived together for years. Though they hadn't shared the same gun or indulged in the same vices, they had played games and faced challenges together, forming a strong bond of brotherhood.

Qin Ming, usually timid and refined, pushed up his glasses and said earnestly, "Old Four... thank you. I appreciate your offer, but that Xu Gang is someone my family can't afford to offend." Li Feng was moved by Qin Ming's loyalty, but he refused the offer without hesitation.

Among the five roommates, Qin Ming's family was the wealthiest. His father ran a logistics company and had some connections in the area. But deep down, Li Feng knew his situation. He didn't want to drag his brother or his family into trouble.

Xu Gang was a powerful figure, at least in the eyes of an ordinary person like him, someone he couldn't afford to offend.

"Then... what are you going to do? Go back to your remote Li Family Village?" Qin Ming asked, feeling frustrated.

At the same time, even he felt a sense of relief that Li Feng had refused his help.

In his moment of righteous impulse, he had genuinely wanted to help Li Feng, but the mention of Xu Gang's name had immediately doused his enthusiasm.

Li Feng was right; Xu Gang was someone Qin Ming and his father couldn't afford to offend. If Li Feng joined his father's company, it could jeopardize his father's years of hard work.

Thinking of this, Qin Ming felt both ashamed and cold sweat broke out on his forehead. He couldn't be blamed for being realistic. If it were just him, he wouldn't have hesitated, but involving his family was a different matter.

Qin Ming sighed inwardly, shaking his head. The ancients were right; beautiful women bring disaster. This was no exaggeration.

Originally, Old Three had been doing well. He was good-looking, academically excellent, and excelled in sports, whether basketball, football, or track and field. If it weren't for his family background, he could have been considered a campus heartthrob. But everything changed when the class beauty, Lin Qianqian, started getting close to him. Li Feng's troubles began.

Of course, it wasn't entirely Lin Qianqian's fault. It was just that, as the saying goes, beautiful women bring disaster.

Beauty is all well and good, but in today's society, if you lack power and influence, can you really handle it?

"It's mealtime. I'll go get some food. We don't have much time left together, so let's have a good meal and gather today."

Realizing he couldn't help much, Qin Ming felt guilty and quickly left to get food. He decided to buy a couple of extra dishes and leave some money for Old Three.

That was all he could do. Unable to help his brother much, Qin Ming, who had been stubbornly staying in the dormitory instead of going home, suddenly felt he had no face to stay there anymore.

After Qin Ming left, Li Feng remained alone, lost in thought.

"Should I really go back to Li Family Village?" The words of Old Four echoed in his mind, a buzzing sound that wouldn't go away, driving him mad.

Already irritable, Li Feng couldn't help but lash out in anger, slapping the air.

Finally, the annoying buzzing sound of the mosquito stopped, but the next moment, a cold, mechanical voice in his mind made him jump.

"You have killed one mosquito. You have collected 0.1 units of blood essence."

"What... is this?" Li Feng jumped up, looking around cautiously, feeling a sense of unease.

Why was there a voice in his mind?

Was it because he had been working too hard and was now experiencing hallucinations?

But no, that wasn't right!

It definitely wasn't right. If he remembered correctly, this voice had appeared before.

The first time was last week, when he had been woken up by a mosquito in the middle of the night. In a daze, he had swatted it, and the same voice had appeared in his mind.

But at the time, he had been half-asleep and hadn't given it much thought.

"What's wrong with me? This is really bizarre." Thinking of this, Li Feng felt a chill run down his spine.

He recalled the cold, mechanical voice in his mind, which seemed exactly like the kill notifications in a game.

"Could it be...?" Thinking of this, Li Feng's thoughts began to clear. He remembered last week when he and the others were playing an online game in the dormitory. A sudden thunderstorm had struck, damaging his laptop and causing him to faint.

"Could it be because of that?"

Thinking of this, a wave of shock washed over Li Feng. He tried to remain calm, looking around the dormitory.

Suddenly, he reached out and slapped a corner of the wall.

With a "plop," another mosquito was killed, but that wasn't his goal.

He wanted to test his theory.

"You have killed one mosquito. You have collected 0.1 units of blood essence. You now have a total of 0.3 units of blood essence."

Sure enough, the mysterious voice in his mind spoke again. Li Feng was stunned. "What the hell?"

...

PS: New book uploaded. During the New Year, I was dragged into playing games by some jerks, and I almost forgot to upload the new book. I've finally decided to delete my gaming account and focus on writing.

How tragic, right?

I'm posting the first chapter as scheduled. If you like it, please support me with clicks, recommendations, and collections. Your support is crucial for a new book, and it's a great motivation for me. Thank you in advance.

I'll do my best to write this book well, with a calm mind, hoping to provide some entertainment for both new and old readers. Thank you.