Chapter 4: The World's Rejection
"Blue Lightning Tyrannosaurus Rex."
"Neither lightning nor light. Beibei's bloodline is still unstable at this stage."
In the virtual world, An Zhen looked at Huo Yutong, who was eating, and the man and woman sitting across from her.
An Zhen watched them discuss him quietly.
An Zhen had indeed had a fight with his roommate before. He wanted some privacy, and he agreed, but only if it was resolved the way a spirit master would: combat. Huang Chutian, a somewhat minor character in the original novel, was a rather passionate man. He later offered to acknowledge An Zhen as his big brother, but An Zhen refused.
"I wonder if the others have arrived."
An Zhen thought of the young geniuses in the original novel. His second spirit skill, Rubbing.
People, objects, martial spirits, everything in the real world can appear in his virtual world, but once outside the range of his virtual world, they disappear unless he touches them first. However, this only works on humans, and the virtual world refreshes every time he closes his martial spirit.
With Rubbing, he can leave a projection of it in the virtual world.
Originally, he had copied many low-level soul guides and the martial spirits of the Hongchen siblings but these certainly couldn't be displayed at Shrek Academy, so all but Meng Hongchen dispersed.
Meng Hongchen except for the time he spent in the orphanage before the age of six, after being adopted by the Hongchen family, Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen treated him well, providing him with excellent food, drink, and training expenses.
"Forget it, let's practice."
A luxurious bed appeared out of thin air.
He sat cross-legged on it.
An Zhen currently studied two meditation techniques: one, the top-level meditation method passed down from the Hongchen family, and the more common meditation method of the Douling Empire, used to conceal his identity.
But in reality, meditation didn't help him much.
From a different perspective, within Shrek Academy, a vast, illusory sphere rhythmically expanded and contracted, like a living being breathing—the world itself breathing. With each breath, strands of vitality emerged from the surrounding creatures and were absorbed by it: sunlight, breeze, and everything both tangible and intangible were instinctively absorbed.
The technique itself is a way for a person to sense the laws of heaven and earth based on their own body structure, or to absorb the energy of heaven and earth by imitating powerful beings. The world's own absorption method is itself a divine technique.
As for why An Zhen is only a twenty-third-level Great Spirit Master now, a pair of black eyes that seemed to encompass everything opened, a hint of helplessness flashing across them.
Only here was the rejection slightly weaker.
To An Zhen, the world is his soul. The world is constantly absorbing the energy of heaven and earth, and his soul is slowly growing stronger, but his spirit power cultivation has not increased much faster.
The reason is that he is rejected by heaven and earth.
To the Douluo world, he is a thief, a thief who steals the power of heaven and earth.
Although this power is nothing compared to this world, a thief is still a thief. He is now to the Douluo world like a bacterium to the human body. Although he alone will not have any impact, how can a human be kind to harmful bacteria? Even his subconscious rejection is an irresistible force for An Zhen.
When he first awakened, his cultivation speed was like that of a normal genius with full innate soul power. But as his cultivation progressed, it slowed down. Currently, An Zhen's cultivation speed in the outside world is only one-tenth of his normal speed. While cultivating in the virtual world, with his cultivation reflected in the outside world, his speed is two-fifths, and he has reached level 23, proving his dedication.
"Alas!"
He was just a small world.
Weak and pitiful.
How could it possibly compare to the Douluo World?
This was also the reason An Zhen persuaded Jing Hongchen. He felt Shrek Academy might have a solution.
Jing Hongchen didn't know that An Zhen was ostracized by the world, but he believed that Shrek Academy's research on martial spirits was unparalleled in the world. If anyone in the world could solve this problem, it must be here.
And the person An Zhen had in mind was... The Daughter of Luck!
The world favored Huo Yutong. If Huo Yutong favored him, wouldn't the problem be solved?
As for confronting the world head-on?
Who likes to hit a stone? Besides, if that were the metaphor, he was nothing more than an egg before the stone of the world.
Cultivation, this process of constantly growing stronger, was a deeply addictive experience for An Zhen.
It was getting dark.
Time in the virtual world flowed at the same speed as the outside world.
Back to reality.
She cleared the recliner, went to the snack street outside to grab some barbecue, and returned to the dorm.
Dormitory 110.
She pushed open the door. A luxurious bed took up most of the space, leaving only a bathtub and a wardrobe.
She couldn't let herself suffer.
Regaining a new life, eating well, drinking well, sleeping well, having fun, and doing whatever he wants.
If he's still a slave after traveling through time, then his journey has been in vain! He pulled a quilt from the bottom of the closet. Silk, down, and wool, all sourced from soul beasts cultivated for centuries.
Food, drink, clothing, and daily necessities—the vast majority of the City Lord's funding went toward these items. For example, An Zhen's lunch alone cost thirty-five gold soul coins. An Zhen spent his money without a second thought, every penny wisely.
"Knock, knock!"
An Zhen knocked on the door of dormitory 108.
"Open the door, bringing warmth."
"Click!"
The door swung open a crack. Seeing the newcomer, Huo Yutong's face lit up with joy. A clear, youthful voice called out, "Brother An Zhen, what's going on?"
An Zhen looked inside. The two wooden beds remained.
"Bringing warmth."
An Zhen tossed the quilt he was holding onto the bed, where the basin of water lay beneath.
Without waiting for Huo Yutong to speak, An Zhen frowned and asked, "What's wrong with your voice?"
"Huh? Well, I had a cold before, and my voice was a little strange. Now I feel much better, and my voice is back to normal," the little girl explained frantically.
"Strange? I think it sounds very nice, soft and sticky. I dream of having a sister with such a beautiful voice," An Zhen retorted seriously.
"Don't refuse the bedding."
An Zhen pulled out a small chicken drumstick from the bag in his hand and stuffed it directly into the cherry mouth, blocking out what Huo Yutong was about to say.
"I guess you didn't eat much this afternoon. I packed some soul beast meat. It's not nutritionally balanced, but it's nutritious. I also packed a bottle of sour plum soup. The meat is quite oily."
"Alright."
An Zhen put the bag down, finishing his daily feeding, and couldn't help but stroke the little girl's head. "Don't waste food. I'm leaving. Get some rest."
"Brother An Zhen!"
"Why are you so nice to me?"
Her azure bangs obscured her bright eyes. The little girl lowered her head, hiding the complex expression on her face. Her white teeth curled around her delicate lips.
"I'm kind-hearted. I can't bear to see someone living so miserably, especially when it happens right next door to me."
An Zhen lived in luxury in the dormitory, but the thought of the little girl next door who didn't even have a blanket and could only eat vegetables and bean sprouts was a bit unbearable.
"Brother An Zhen..."
A hazy mist lingered on her bright eyes.
...
Virtual world.
"Hehehe, adorable Xiao Yutong!"
A handsome young man held a petite and adorable figure in his arms. A fitted black and white maid dress perfectly outlined her youthful curves. Her small, youthful breasts were adorable, and her small, perky hips were beautiful and alluring. Thin white silk wrapped around her slender, white legs, and her pair of white silk lotus feet were exquisite and petite.
Petite and cute, but too thin. She looked completely malnourished.
"Damn White Tiger Duchess!"
This kind of person wasn't jealous at all, but malicious.
A rosy fingertip gently brushed across the white silk lotus feet.
"Hmm?"
The boy, holding the sweet and soft little cutie and playing with ice cream, suddenly gave a puzzled look.
Just now, a creature had tried to force its way into his virtual world. Although An Zhen could stop it, its weak aura and the world's instinctive desire for it made An Zhen think it would be better to devour it.
"..."
A pair of eyes as bright as stars opened hazily, and the strange gaze continued to stimulate her senses. "Brother An Zhen?"
Is she dreaming?
An Zhen:?
The boy turned his head mechanically and met those bright and hazy, but still lively eyes.
Looking at the white silk feet whose fingertips had already touched his chin, An Zhen felt that he might still be able to explain or fool around.
"Actually, you are dreaming."
The boy's voice was extremely sincere.
"Huh?!!"
This is not a dream!
(End of this chapter)