"So hot… it feels like a thousand needles are pricking my skin, a searing pain."
Xu Fan was awakened by thirst, his throat unbearably dry.
He struggled to open his heavy eyelids, but the dazzling sunlight made him close them again instantly.
Around him was cracked earth, and the air was filled with the smell of dust and withered grass.
This was not the world he was familiar with.
Confused memories surged into his mind, the Soul of a modern office worker entangled and merged with the memories of a nineteen-year-old farmer's eldest son.
Xuan Cang Continent.
Mortal, Immortal Master.
Qingyang Town.
Xu Fan, the eldest son of the Xu Family.
Below him were five hungry younger siblings, a pair of worried parents, and two grandparents who had been bedridden for years.
The entire family… had been without food for three days.
Those emaciated faces, those dull eyes, were etched into his heart.
Unprecedented pressure and responsibility weighed heavily upon him.
"Fan'er, you're awake?"
A hoarse voice came.
Xu Fan looked up and saw a man, so thin he was just skin and bones, walking towards him—it was Xu Chang, the father of this body.
His dark face was etched with lines, and his eyes were filled with an unshakeable sorrow.
"Your body… can it still hold up?" Xu Chang looked at his son's pale face, his lips moved, and finally, it turned into a long sigh.
"Alas… this year's harvest, I'm afraid we can't count on it again. This Heaven-Defying weather…"
Just then, a man walked along the field path, glancing sideways at the father and son.
It was Xu Laosan, a clan uncle from the village.
"Oh, isn't that Xu Family's Eldest Son from Xu Chang's family? So hungry he could be a door plank, and still has the strength to work the fields?"
Xu Laosan spat into the field, his tone full of contempt.
"I've said it before, if you don't have the ability, don't have so many mouths to feed."
He shook his head, his voice deliberately raised a few octaves in a sarcastic tone: "The more you have, the poorer you get; the poorer you get, the more you have. Your family is just a den of paupers! Sooner or later, you'll all starve to death and your line will end! You've even shamed your ancestors!"
These words made Xu Chang subconsciously clench his fists.
But in the end, he still loosened them, only burying his head lower, silently enduring all the humiliation.
What could he do?
And what could he say?
Xu Fan quickly adapted to the role; his past life as an office worker had trained him to be patient.
As he looked at his father's hunched back and then at Xu Laosan's smug face, an inexplicable anger rose from the bottom of his heart.
But he said nothing.
In this era where human lives were cheaper than grass, dignity was a luxury; survival was the only reality.
He couldn't let his parents despair like this any longer, he couldn't let his siblings starve to death.
He had to do something!
He wanted to change his fate!
Under the stunned gazes of Xu Chang and Xu Laifu, Xu Fan staggered to his feet and picked up the old, broken hoe.
The hoe was heavy, and his arms trembled weakly, almost unable to hold it steady.
"Fan'er, what are you doing! Your body isn't fully recovered yet!" Xu Chang cried out in a hurry.
Xu Fan did not answer.
He gritted his teeth, raised the hoe high, and then slammed it down!
Clang!
His arm was numb from the shock, his body swayed, and golden stars danced before his eyes.
"Hahahaha!" Xu Laifu let out a piercing laugh, "Still trying to work like this? Go back and drink milk! Don't you dare die of exhaustion in the fields and bring bad luck to our village!"
Xu Fan ignored him.
In his mind were the small figures of his younger siblings, and the hopeful yet helpless eyes of his parents and grandparents.
Again… and again… he mechanically repeated the motion, sweat quickly soaking through his patched coarse linen clothes, and his vision blurred.
Just as he felt he was about to pass out.
A light blue transparent panel appeared before his eyes.
"You performed your first hoeing in life, experienced the hardship of labor, and unlocked the proficiency panel."
"Farming Proficiency + 1."
A line of concise text floated silently in the air, visible only to him.
Xu Fan's movements suddenly stiffened.
He thought he was seeing things.
He blinked hard, but the light blue panel was still there.
An illusion?
Could it be… a Golden Finger?!
A Transmigration standard feature?
He suppressed his excitement, and with a mix of doubt and belief, he raised the hoe again, aiming at the ground beneath his feet, and struck again!
"Farming Proficiency + 1."
The text on the panel refreshed again, proving that this was not an illusion!
It was real!
He seemed to see the hope of survival, the future of his entire family being well-fed!
"Ha… haha…"
Xu Fan couldn't help but laugh softly, and as he laughed, his eyes began to sting.
He swung the hoe like a madman, striking the ground repeatedly, faster and faster.
"Farming Proficiency + 1."
"Farming Proficiency + 1."
..."Name: Xu Fan."
"Skills: Farming (Beginner 128/200)."
Xu Fan looked at the panel, laughing wildly: "Hahahaha!"
This was the hope for the future!
Xu Chang was startled by his son's appearance, quickly dropped what he was doing, rushed over in a few steps, and reached out to feel his forehead: "Fan'er, you… are you confused from hunger?"
"Stop working, I'll go find a way, I'll go borrow some more grain from Old Zhang's house at the village entrance…"
"Father, I'm fine." Xu Fan stopped laughing.
He leaned on the hoe, his chest heaving violently, gasping for air.
Fine?
How could he be fine!
Xu Chang looked at his son's pale face and chapped, peeling lips, his heart aching so much that his eyes welled up.
He knew his own son well.
Xu Fan had been sensible since childhood, but his nature was somewhat weak. When had he ever acted so close to madness?
"You child! Are you trying to die!" Xu Chang's voice carried a hint of anger as he reached out to snatch the hoe from Xu Fan's hand.
But this time, he couldn't take it away.
The hoe remained firmly in Xu Fan's hand, unmoving.
Xu Fan felt that as his Farming skill reached beginner level, each swing of his hoe became more standard and effortless.
This was not an illusion.
The once heavy hoe also became lighter.
"Father, trust me this once."
Xu Chang was stunned.
He looked at his son, and in those once dim eyes, there now seemed to be flames burning.
This gaze was unfamiliar, yet it made him feel inexplicably at ease.
He let go of his hand as if possessed.
"You… you take it easy." Xu Chang retreated two steps, stammering.
Xu Laosan, who had long been impatient, mocked in a sarcastic tone: "Act, keep acting. Such a touching father-son drama, one would think your family could produce a top scholar this year."
"With these few barren fields, even an Immortal Master couldn't grow grain!"
Xu Fan turned a deaf ear.
He adjusted his breathing, recalling the newfound insights in his mind, and his body naturally assumed the correct posture.
His waist exerted force, driving his shoulders, which then transferred to his arms.
Clang!
"Farming Proficiency is full, promoted to: Farming (Skilled 0/500)."
A warm current flowed through his body, quickly dispelling his fatigue and soreness.
He felt his strength and stamina had both increased!
Xu Fan straightened his back; his once slightly hunched spine was now perfectly straight.
He looked at his family's fields again, and everything in his vision was different.
He could tell which plot of land had the poorest soil, and which plot was only dry on the surface, still retaining a trace of moisture deeper down.
"This…" Xu Chang's eyes nearly popped out.
He rubbed his eyes, unable to believe what he was seeing.
Just a moment ago, his son looked like he could collapse at any moment, but in the blink of an eye, he was like a different person?
Not only was his complexion rosy, but his entire demeanor and spirit were completely different.
Xu Laosan's mocking laughter also caught in his throat.
What did he see?
Xu Fan's recent hoeing movements were as standard as an old farmer who had worked for decades, even… more experienced than the best farmer in the village!
This… was this still the sickly Xu Family's Eldest Son?