Emotional enhancement
System Panel!
This is a cheat, it's Goldfinger!
Chen An was so excited that he almost cried. He had been waiting for more than thirty years, and finally, the system he had been longing for had arrived.
After calming down a bit, he quickly browsed through the information on the panel and finally focused on the spouse and offspring section at the bottom.
Combining the prompt message that popped up at the beginning, [Alchemy Experience +1], he vaguely guessed the function of his system.
So he touched his wife's delicate face and looked at her affectionately, saying, "Huaying, let's continue."
"Huh?"
Song Huaying thought she had misheard. She thought to herself that she had just become a newlywed and her body couldn't handle too much excitement. Why didn't her husband show some consideration?
[...]
After a while, Song Huaying's peach blossom eyes turned red. She pursed her thin lips and looked at Chen An with a resentful expression, saying, "Husband, I'm tired."
Chen An knew he was in the wrong and quickly comforted her, saying, "It's my fault. I didn't consider your feelings and made you tired."
"Rest well, I'll go make some chicken soup to nourish your body."
After speaking, he quickly got dressed, got out of bed, and went to the chicken coop in the backyard to catch an old hen. He personally cooked chicken soup for his beloved wife.
Out of guilt, he added many precious medicinal herbs to the pot that he usually couldn't bear to eat.
Afterward, he found a place to sit down and summoned the panel with a thought.
[Name: Chen An]
[Cultivation: Qi Refining Third Layer]
[Alchemy: First Stage primary(25/100)]
[Spouse: Song Huaying]
[Offspring: None]
"Just as I thought."
Chen An looked at the data behind the alchemy section, confirming his guess.
Moreover, in less than a day, his alchemy experience had increased by 6 points.
At this rate of increase, he would probably be able to break through and become a First Stage Intermediate alchemist in less than a month.
By then, his success rate would increase significantly, reducing the cost of alchemy and earning more spirit stones.
"Life is going to get better."
Chen An felt a slight excitement in his heart and was full of hope for the future.
At this moment, a rough knocking sound suddenly came from outside the house.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Soon after, a rough male voice sounded.
"Is anyone there?"
"Open the door!"
"Hurry up and pay the rent!"
The familiar knocking sound, the familiar loud voice.
Chen An didn't need to look to know that it was the steward from Bamboo Leaf Forest coming to collect the rent again.
He turned down the fire of the soup, took a low-grade spirit stone, and quickly left the kitchen to open the door.
"I'm coming, I'm coming!"
"Creak—"
Chen An opened the door, and what came into view was a burly man.
Steward Zhang, seeing that he took so long to open the door, didn't give him a good look and said coldly, "A grown man taking so long to do things, hurry up and pay the rent, one low-grade spirit stone!"
"..."
Chen An didn't say anything and silently handed over the spirit stone in his hand.
Steward Zhang took the spirit stone and his tone improved a lot as he said, "Starting next month, the rent will increase to two low-grade spirit stones per month. Don't say I didn't remind you."
Upon hearing this, Chen An furrowed his brows.
He felt very puzzled and couldn't help but ask, "Steward Zhang, why did the rent suddenly increase so much?"
Steward Zhang explained, "Because just recently, Azure Rock Town, which is more than ten miles away from Bamboo Leaf Forest, was destroyed."
"Destroyed?"
Chen An was shocked and felt a chill.
He had just been to Azure Rock Town in the morning and brought back a wife from there.
As a result, such a big place, a place where tens of thousands of people lived, disappeared in just an afternoon, as if it was a joke.
It truly was a world where life was as insignificant as grass and leaves.
Chen An calmed himself down and asked, "Azure Rock Town was fine, so how did it suddenly get destroyed?"
Steward Zhang continued to explain, "Just now, a large group of blood demons flew in from somewhere and when they passed through Azure Rock Town, they devoured everyone inside like locusts."
"These blood demons originally wanted to attack Bamboo Leaf Forest as well, but luckily they were blocked by the formation outside the forest."
"Now, the formation is severely damaged and needs to be repaired, so the rent has increased."
Chen An couldn't accept Steward Zhang's explanation.
He paid one low-grade spirit stone per month, just for this protection service, right?
How could providing protection services lead to damage to the formation, and yet we, the consumers, have to bear the consequences?
Although he was dissatisfied, Chen An didn't say anything.
Because he knew that in this world of cultivation where the weak were preyed upon by the strong, reasoning with strong people was useless, and only strength mattered.
Otherwise, he could only accept it.
"The world is becoming more and more chaotic now. It's not easy to find a place to settle down. I advise you not to think about moving just because the rent has increased. Otherwise, it will be difficult to come back once you leave."
After leaving this warning, Steward Zhang hummed a tune and walked towards the next house to collect rent.
Watching Steward Zhang's departing figure, Chen An felt anxious.
Two low-grade spirit stones per month for rent was already beyond his affordability.
Because now, he could only earn a little over one low-grade spirit stone per month.
The only solution to the current situation was to quickly raise his alchemy cultivation to the intermediate first stage.
This would reduce the cost of materials and increase his income.
And to achieve a rapid improvement in alchemy cultivation, his little wife's help was indispensable.
"Sigh, I wonder if Ying'er can handle it."
"I can only take good care of her usually and try to improve her physical fitness as much as possible."
Through the window, Chen An saw his little wife lying on the bed, resting, and felt worried.
At this moment, a strong aroma of soup wafted in.
The chicken soup in the kitchen was ready.
Chen An went over and brought the chicken soup out, all the way to his little wife's side.
"Husband, I am proficient in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. I can earn money for you and won't be a freeloader."
Song Huaying sat up from the bed, her watery eyes filled with a touch of pitifulness, looking at Chen An nervously, trying to show her own value.
She had heard the conversation outside just now, and now seeing Chen An's worried expression, she couldn't help but worry that she would be seen as a burden and abandoned. She felt insecure.
Chen An noticed her concern and sat beside her, comforting her by hugging her shoulder.
"Ying'er, don't worry. You are my first woman, and I will never abandon you."
"Husband..."
Song Huaying was deeply moved after hearing this. Her peach blossom eyes became watery, and she looked pitiful.
Chen An comforted his little wife a few more times, then patiently blew the chicken soup cool and gently fed it to her cherry-like mouth.
Song Huaying felt pleasantly surprised. She didn't expect that Chen An, a respected immortal master, would be willing to lower himself to take care of an ordinary person like her.
She looked at Chen An affectionately and thought that she must serve her cheap husband wholeheartedly in the future, making him live every day like a happy immortal.
Just as she was thinking this, several prompt messages suddenly appeared in front of Chen An.
[Wife: Song Huaying]
[Attribute: Grace of Water, Reciprocation of a Spring]
[Emotion: 1 star]
[Alchemy experience provided: 6]
[Note: The higher the level of marital affection, the higher the providing points will be obtained.]
...
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(End of this chapter)