Chapter 3  : A Difficult Family Situation

Everything was like a dream, and how much time had gone by was unknown. Perhaps a mere second had passed or maybe 10,000 years. Chu Yunfan finally woke up from the endless vision.

“Huh, huh, huh!”

Chu Yunfan could not stop panting. It was a brief moment, but he felt as if his entire life had passed him by and he had entered another life when he woke up.

It was like he had experienced everything in the dream himself, from the uncertainty of learning to refine medicinal pills in the beginning, to bathing in glory when he became a well-known Alchemy Master, then the glow of the limelight when he became the Alchemy Emperor, and at last, his death in the end. He felt each and every scenario very clearly.

It was as if he was really in the ancient era, witnessing the earth-shattering war himself.

It was a dusk of many gods. The magnificent powerhouses that had been slain were like flowers strewn all over the ground.

Chu Yunfan had no idea how powerful the greatest of the modern human powerhouses were. After all, his level was so low. Nevertheless, his instinct told him that even the best of them could not compare to those monstrous warriors in his dream.

The elite warriors of modern times claimed that they could not be killed by nuclear bombs. That was beyond imagination during the Common Era. However, nobody had ever heard of anyone being able to turn rivers and oceans over nor the ability to capture the stars and the moon.

‘That must have been the Ancient Zenith civilization?’ Chu Yunfan recalled the images in the dream. The characters that those people used were indeed the ancient seal script.

In any case, he did not know why that world’s glorious battle, along with the experiences of the Alchemy Emperor and his memories, had been preserved within the landscape painting. All of them had rushed into his head at once.

He concluded that it was definitely not a dream. How could a dream be so vivid? He could not even imagine how formidable such powerhouses were. Although he had never experienced it, that did not mean that he did not understand it. The Ancient Zenith civilization had many secrets hidden in it that had yet to be uncovered.

Historiographers speculated that the Ancient Zenith civilization was a great world of Martial Dao. They could see this from the many things they excavated related to Martial Dao.

Nonetheless, they definitely could not envision what a wonderful world it was. After entering the Kunlun Era, the revival of Martial Dao had begun. That being said, it had only been hundreds of years by any measure.

Judging by the Ancient Zenith records that had been excavated so far, their civilization had been going strong for tens of millennia.

In any case, he had his questions. How could the incredible Ancient Zenith civilization disappear just like that?

That was still an unsolved mystery for historians. From what they learned in the documents that had been discovered, the Ancient Zenith civilization did not wane gradually but vanished overnight.

What was the secret behind it?

Could it be related to the massive war in his memory?

Chu Yunfan felt that something had been added to his body. That was why his thoughts were clearer than ever. Everything he saw was brighter than before, as if all that lay between Heaven and Earth had become more vivid and slightly altered.

The change was quite obvious. He could feel it within him even without having to search for it intentionally. It was as if there was energy filling his entire person.

“Hey, what are you thinking about?” Gao Hongzhi asked. “You’ve been standing still for a while. Were you in a trance? Quick, let’s go home!”

Gao Hongzhi’s voice pulled Chu Yunfan back from the dreamy, flourishing age. He turned to look around and saw the students leaving. The sun was setting and shadows stretched across the floor.

“It’s nothing!” Chu Yunfan shook his head. In the end, he had decided to bury the dream he had had deep in his heart without telling anyone.

“Why do I feel like you’re different now?” Gao Hongzhi said as he stared at Chu Yunfan. He had a vague feeling that his good friend had changed, but he could not tell what was different about him. He just had the sense that his friend had gone through a complete transformation, as if his soul had been renewed.

“Am I more handsome now? Ahh, I just can’t help it. I’ve been good-looking since I was born!” Chu Yunfan snickered.

“Get lost. I see that you’re getting more and more shameless!” Gao Hongzhi said with a frown. The strange feeling that he had vanished entirely.

“Alright, stop your nonsense. Let’s go home!” Chu Yunfan replied. He could tell that his body was different now. Impatient, he was eager to go home to find out what exactly had happened to him.

As usual, a flying car took Gao Hongzhi away as soon as he got through the school door. In the Kunlun Era, petrol was no longer used for cars. It had been replaced by energy blocks, a fuel that produced no pollution. Moreover, as the anti-gravity system was widely used, cars were flying instead of driving on the ground. It was far grander than the vehicles in the Common Era.

Meanwhile, Chu Yunfan had to walk a short distance to take the bus. It was very popular to own a car during the Common Era, so many people had them back then. Conversely, in the Kunlun Era, cars had been upgraded into airborne vehicles, and the price had invariably shot up. Regular people could not afford that, so public transportation had become more advanced than ever.

The bus was extremely fast, and within about 20 minutes, Chu Yunfan had arrived home. It was a rather quiet neighborhood with some tall buildings. All sorts of security measures could be seen starting from outside of the community. In the Common Era, such a place was beyond the means of most, but it became the residence of ordinary people during the Kunlun Era. The wealthy would live in the villa areas which were far superior both in terms of environment and safety.

It was even said that people had set up a formation in the villa areas to gather Spirit Energy using the knowledge of formations left behind by the Ancient Zenith civilization. It had caused the Spirit Energy in the villa areas to be much denser than the common areas. It was just as thick as the Spirit Energy in the Kunlun Realm.

Everyone knew that the more Spirit Energy there was, the greater the benefits to the human body. Breathing Spirit Energy of such thickness could subtly improve one’s physique without even having to cultivate, allowing them to live an extremely long life. It would be even better if one was to cultivate, as it would guarantee accelerated growth in one’s cultivation base. Those born and bred in such an environment had higher chances of advancing in life compared to the common folk.

The polarized disparity among humans of modern times was extremely obvious.

The door finally opened after he entered the password, pressed his thumbprint, and scanned his face. A house of approximately 100 square meters welcomed him. It was considered average-sized.

“Mom, Dad, Sister, I’m home!”

Chu Yunfan entered the house after removing his shoes.

“You’re home. Sit down. Dinner will be served soon. We’ll eat when your dad gets here!”

A pretty woman of around 30 walked out of the kitchen. She was tall and had an apron tied around her waist and a warm smile on her face. Human longevity had improved greatly in the Kunlun Era, so 30 years was equivalent to only 10 in the Common Era.

This was Chu Yunfan’s mother, Yang Yayun.

“Brother, you’re home!” A young lady’s voice rang loud and clear along with the sound of wheels on the wooden floor. A girl of approximately 13 or 14 years of age came out of a room in an electric wheelchair.

Though she appeared to be a teenager, her body seemed to be that of an 11 or 12-year-old. She was at least a head shorter than most kids of her age. Below her waist, her legs were noticeably underdeveloped and were covered by a blanket.

Chu Yunfan walked over and patted the young lady’s head. She could not see the pain and strife flashing through his eyes.

She was his sister, Chu Qingxuan. She was the darling of the family as well as the sorrow in everyone’s heart.

Due to a congenital gene defect, her lower body had begun to shrivel gradually ever since she was born. For as long as any of them could remember, she could only move with the aid of a wheelchair. Her ill health led to her continuous weight loss, and her hair was rather dull as well. She was already 13 or 14, but she looked 11 or 12.

In the Kunlun Era, medical standards for humans were great. For instance, cancers, HIV, and heart diseases that were incurable in the Common Era were nothing but minor inconveniences in the Kunlun Era.

Despite that, congenital gene defects were a big issue. Although the technology to treat such illnesses had been invented years earlier, the cheapest treatment would cost up to ten million federal coins. No matter how heartbroken the Chu family was over Chu Qingxuan’s condition, there was nothing they could do.

The family income depended on the parents, and they made 4,000 to 5,000 per month. It would only add up to around 10,000 with extra income. Even if they spent nothing on food, they could only afford the treatment after saving up for about a century.

Moreover, just to remain in her current condition, Chu Qingxuan had to consume a lot of medicine and replenish all sorts of nutrients. This was already a great expense.

Therefore, if Chu Yunfan could not get into the martial arts stream, he would not consider going into a liberal arts university. He would have to join the workforce so that he could help to ease their burden.

Although Chu Qingxuan had had the problem since young and she could not even go to school, she was so sensible that it was heartbreaking. She knew that her family was in a difficult situation, so she would never request anything troubling. On the contrary, she would stay home every day to learn from the internet. She was not just on par with students in junior high, she had actually far surpassed them. She was talented, smart, and analytical. There was almost nothing that could leave her puzzled. Chu Yunfan would even go to her regarding some problems that he could not solve.

If not for the burden of her body that stopped her from practicing martial arts, she would definitely be a genius that surpassed Chu Yunfan. She would be a well-known scientist if she was to study academically.

That devastated Chu Yunfan even more. He would eagerly switch their situations if he could. He could practice martial arts, but whether martial arts or academics, his abilities were just too mediocre. He was nowhere near as talented as his sister.

“Brother, I found a job today. I’ll be doing commentaries on battle videos live-streamed online. I already have many fans. I’ll be making money, and I’ll no longer be a burden to you guys!”

Chu Qingxuan’s eyes widened as she excitedly told him this.

“How can you say that? You’re not a burden to us!”

The more sensible Chu Qingxuan was, the worse Chu Yunfan felt.. He swore to himself that he would try his best to make enough money one day to treat his sister’s congenital gene defect.