I, the public enemy

The 21st floor of the makeshift hospital, Cangzhou, Gray Core City.

In this completely enclosed paradise, there is no distinction between day and night, no celestial bodies, and the sky is forever a psychedelic gray fog left by industrial emissions.

Inside a coffee shop far beyond China and abroad.

The decor features a retro style, distressed exposed brick background walls, wrought iron decorative items, and tables and chairs primarily made of natural wood.

Wang Qing sat sideways on a bench by the floor-to-ceiling window, observing the pedestrians outside. The management of the makeshift hospital described it as diverse, with various races coexisting. He could see some demons who, even after transforming, still retained some features such as horns, animal ears, and tails.

Based on my research on the social ecology of the makeshift hospital over the past month.

Humans still dominate here. Other races have been integrated by bloodlines and peacefully evolved under cultural infiltration, value transformation, and vertical identity politics. They have been completely integrated into the makeshift hospital. Most of them are mixed-race half-demons, and pure-blooded ones are very rare.

This will greatly reduce the effectiveness of the infused liquor.

"The money Mom and Dad send each quarter is barely enough for tuition and daily expenses. For your future, I've even gone into business to supplement our income! And you've even taken out loans behind my back, and you smell like... disinfectant!"

Wang Meng burst into tears, oblivious to everyone around her. Her face was filled with sorrow and tears. She was still in college, working part-time every month to pay off her credit card debt, and she also had student loans. Now she was about to fall into a vicious cycle.

She bears a resemblance to Wang Qing in her features, indicating excellent family genes. She has long, wavy hair dyed light gold, sunglasses hanging on her head, and a cropped top and tight jeans that accentuate her beautiful curves. Her chain earrings sparkle.

"Going into adult entertainment is alright, it's just uploading a 3D model and becoming a model online."

Wang Qing didn't take it seriously.

Sending her away wasn't difficult; the problem was how to calm her down and prevent any trouble.

Although the credit investigation system of private lending companies is shared with that of banks, it is always handled by a third party and is different from regular bank loans.

If your debt collection methods aren't forceful, then you shouldn't be in this business.

Wang Qing had no intention of repaying the debt, and the fact that the debt collectors dared to come to his door meant he was courting death.

As for what my older sister said about going into business...

The legal issues within the makeshift hospitals involve listed companies, so the regulations are quite stringent.

Whether it's virtual reality game companies, shopping platforms, or Super Dream Pictures, these businesses cannot directly purchase the copyright to people's gene sequence models; they can only sign contracts and pay for leasing.

In many cases, rendered images are not as convincing as actual photos, and the profession of model still exists.

Of course, there are various unregulated gray industries that are not publicly listed, such as black market gaming, private server games, and gene models that have been leaked. Women, in particular, will suffer greatly in virtual reality because the characters generated by their gene sequences are completely identical to themselves, as if they were in another world.

After a month, Wang Qing had a general understanding of how the makeshift hospital operated, but only on the 21st floor where he was located.

Each layer has an insurmountable information barrier, and the Internet is merely a large local area network limited to each layer, unable to communicate with other layers.

Wang Qing found this world very strange and somewhat ominous.

In the publicly available history, this system has been maintained for 20,700 years without a single major revolution or major battle, which does not conform to the historical cycle law and the Lewis turning point in economic models.

Wang Qing was the Supreme Demonic Cultivator in his previous life. For the past month, he has been slacking off in theory classes, playing on his phone, mainly researching local memes and popular culture, as well as many ACG (Anime, Comics, and Games) gadgets, making himself more like someone in the makeshift hospital. He has been very successful at it.

But most of the learning is still about basic knowledge. As the saying goes, "one can understand many things by analogy, but the essence remains the same." Apart from the cutting-edge psionic industry, many things are just different names for what Wang Qing already knows. The story of imperial power is endless, but industrialization and the information society have made domination and rule more roundabout and difficult to detect, hidden and concealed.

"Not bad? Not bad at all! You'd only be satisfied if I went to work as an actress in a karaoke bar!"

Wang Meng cried even harder. Her younger brother was like a completely different person! How could someone with a body temperature of 36 degrees Celsius say such cold words?

The two siblings' parents were assigned to work outside their designated area. Although they weren't elite professionals, they were blue-collar skilled workers in the working class, barely able to afford the siblings' tuition. They were also cultivators who had benefited from the cultivation system, so they were determined to push their children up the ranks, paving the way for them, even at the cost of their own lives. They were especially devoted to their two children after their eldest son passed away.

Wang Meng possesses exceptional talent, with dual spiritual roots, eliminating the need for spiritual root chips. She excelled in the college entrance examination and was admitted to one of the best universities in Cangzhou.

He is now at the fourth level of Qi Refining and is a sophomore in college. The college in the makeshift hospital is a ten-year program. As long as he passes the Foundation Establishment thesis and reaches the Foundation Establishment realm upon graduation, he can go to a higher level for graduate studies. However, very few people can do this in such a short time.

The education system in makeshift hospitals is a pure stress test, an obedience test, a kind of breeding-like selection process, and it costs a huge amount of money. Loans from prestigious universities can take decades or even centuries to repay, which is quite cruel. But once you get into university, you can support yourself through various part-time jobs.

Wang Qing, though he didn't need to rent a spiritual root chip to implant in his body, possessed some talent, but not much. He had an ultimate pseudo-spiritual root with the four attributes of metal, wood, water, and fire. Before he transmigrated here, he was only at the second level of Qi Refining in his senior year of high school.

With the college entrance exam approaching, the original owner of this body became increasingly insane under immense social pressure and family expectations, taking out loans recklessly and then defaulting on them.

In the early stage of Qi Refining, one refines the spiritual energy of heaven and earth to form spiritual Qi and true essence mist within the dantian and dantian. In the middle stage of Qi Refining, the spiritual Qi and true essence have become liquid, and are more than ten times stronger than in the early stage.

Reaching the mid-stage of the training is considered the threshold for getting into a good university. Except for certain regions and ethnic groups that can retake the exam, ordinary people without preferential treatment will be out of the game if they fail the college entrance exam.

You either go to study a useless psionic industry major, or sign a lifetime contract with a big company, get a cybernetic body implanted, undergo violent training to increase your cultivation, and then become a super-achiever in various industries. When you retire, you have to remove the cybernetic body and reclaim your cultivation.

Of course, one can also live the rest of their life as an ordinary person, doing jobs that are not very useful. Most people live like this, and ordinary people are also protected by the law in makeshift hospitals.

but……

A celestial being is still a celestial being. There is no overt discrimination based on cultivation level. People with such tendencies will face criticism, and if they are public figures, their reputations will collapse.

However, in reality, ordinary people are always inferior to immortals, since the laws of nature always take precedence over the order of civilization.

Wang Qing remained expressionless. His older sister was quite conspicuous, and the other guests were staring at her, but it didn't matter.

"I've broken through to the third level of Qi Refining."

Wang Qing casually mentioned good news, sending a useful signal.

In the makeshift hospital where strength is paramount, this news is more effective than anything else; let's reassure this woman first.

"real?"

Wang Meng held Wang Qing's hand. Although he hadn't reached the Foundation Establishment stage and hadn't developed spiritual consciousness, he was sharp-eared and sharp-eyed, and his perception far surpassed that of ordinary people. He could indeed feel that Wang Qing's blood and qi had become much stronger, and the spiritual qi and true essence within his body were nourishing his physical body, making his body much more robust? Or rather, excessively robust, far exceeding the performance of the third level of Qi Refining.

For Wang Qing, he was no longer bound by the cultivation system. As long as there were enough resources, breaking through was just a matter of physical strength. However, breaking through too quickly would attract attention. Some of the collected personnel who had been refined were used to strengthen their bodies.

One of the effects of the "Great Floating Pagoda Record" is that it can refine a cultivator's physical body, blood, and primordial spirit into "Undying Precious Blood." This precious blood continuously tempers the muscles, bones, internal organs, limbs, and bones, and after it is burned out, it has the ability to be reborn without dying.

Although these debt collectors are of rather poor quality and far from being considered invincible, they are more than enough for Wang Qing at present.

Although there were still tear stains on Wang Meng's face, her worries turned to joy. Although it was a loan, it wasn't a waste of money. As long as she made a breakthrough, that was more important than anything else.

But then she burst into tears of joy.

Wang Qing was surprised. Still crying?

"Tell me how much you owe now, and plan how to repay it. I still have more than 30,000 yuan on me. I'll pay the minimum payment first, otherwise the penalty interest will be even more frightening."

Five debt collection platforms have already called Wang Meng: Wudao Jie Tiao, Xiu Bei, Ling Cai Ge, Lian Qi Le, and Tian Ji Hao Qi Dai.

Given Wang Qing's student status, each platform could only lend him a maximum of 20,000 to 30,000 yuan. The lenders would not lend more than the borrower's actual value. Wang Meng estimated that the maximum amount he could get was around 200,000 to 300,000 yuan.

Wang Qing, a senior in high school, couldn't afford to be distracted. Her idea was simple: she could find another part-time job and get through this difficult time.

"Oh, this..."

Wang Qing pondered his words.

The original owner was quite insane, even borrowing from underground money lenders to pay off other loans, using organs as collateral, repaying the money once a week, and tolerating up to two weeks at most, hence the name 714.

They haven't paid off the loan in two weeks, and now they're going to harvest my organs.

The gang that controls this bank is called the "Spider Gang." It is a criminal organization composed of street thugs who are mostly cultivators. They are also skilled in Qi cultivation and have been illegally modified with cybernetic bodies from the psionic industry. They especially like to modify their eyes, so they are called the Spider Gang.

Wang Qing killed many of the Spider Gang members who came to cut off his kidneys. It was through these people that he got in touch with the pharmaceutical company's purchasing brokers and connected with the pharmaceutical company he was now doing business with.

The Spider Gang's debts are still outstanding, and the amount is even higher, but Wang Qing will not repay them. He even killed some of their people, thus creating a deadly feud.

To get rid of Wang Meng, the online loans were always small amounts.

Anyway, the next deal brought in more than seven million, and you should know that the average monthly income in Cangzhou is only six thousand.

He took three million for himself and gave the rest to his subordinates.

A stable reward mechanism to generate profits and a reasonable promotion channel are necessary to manage the organization and expand it. Once it grows large, a core ideology and action plan must be incorporated.

Providing such a large sum of money in a short time is very inconsistent with the original owner's identity. This woman will definitely be frightened, so she can only go along with what Wang Meng said.

With my older sister's guidance, I downloaded all the apps I had uninstalled one by one.

The minimum repayment is one-tenth, and each platform requires repayment of two to three thousand yuan, which continues to accrue interest, like a bottomless pit.

Without the slightest hesitation, Wang Meng transferred 20,000 yuan to Wang Qing, telling him to pay the minimum amount first, as the payment was already overdue and incurring daily penalty interest, so the sooner it was paid off, the better.

Wang Qing didn't stand on ceremony and used his own sister's money to repay the loan.

Thinking about it carefully, I've been dealing with a lot of debt collectors lately, about fifty this week. They were all stored in the freezer and processed today.

Online lending companies are very cunning. To evade the law, debt collection is handled by third-party groups that have nothing to do with the platform. Since these are people who are already living in the shadows, the risk of dealing with them is very low.

Let's hold back for now, lay low for a while, and pay off the entire amount after she leaves, so she won't keep coming back every now and then.

"Okay, I've paid it all off."

Wang Qing showed the phone screen.

"It's only for this month."

Wang Meng's worry remained undiminished. Considering that Wang Qing might not have much money, but the use of spiritual veins at the school required money for various spiritual food injections and tablets, she transferred another five thousand yuan to him.

My parents send me 60,000 yuan every quarter, and I also earn 7,000 to 8,000 yuan a month from part-time work. If I save money and give more to Wang Qinghua, we should be able to make ends meet this year.

Wang Qing accepted the five thousand without hesitation, which was more in line with his current status.

"Your most important thing right now is to focus on your cultivation. If you need to invest more money, you should tell me in advance; that's necessary. Don't do anything reckless on your own; I'll help you plan."

Wang Meng didn't condemn Wang Qing too much for taking out small loans and defaulting on them. Ultimately, it was all about becoming stronger and having a better future. She also understood that teenage boys are often competitive, reckless, and don't consider the consequences.

"You don't actually have to repay online loans, as long as you have enough credit. Regular banks will still approve student loans for university students."

Wang Qing understood that student loans were the biggest expense, especially for prestigious universities, where the minimum cost was several million yuan.

Therefore, if you take out a small loan, even if you get into a bad university, the investment value is questionable, and your credit score will be affected, so you won't be able to get a loan. It's like a sudden death, and you can start over.

My older sister must be worried about this too.

"That kind of wishful thinking, that gambles on luck for one last chance, is the most terrifying thing! I've been there, don't you know? I'm afraid that if your contacts are leaked to the school, you'll be bullied and looked down upon by your classmates."

Seeing Wang Qing's nonchalant attitude, Wang Meng also got a little angry. She adopted the demeanor of a guardian and reprimanded him with a stern face.

She had attended high school and understood the hierarchy of contempt among students—contempt based on family background, academic performance, and the intense competition and oppressive environment. During her own three years of high school, suicides were commonplace, and two of them, who went completely insane, even had connections to demonic practices and made the news.

Terrorist organizations, especially those driven to desperation, love to recruit people, particularly students, to participate in terrorist activities, which can destroy an entire family.

Wang Meng naturally had no idea that her younger brother was involved with the demonic path; it was something she dared not even think about. It was the death line of the makeshift world; let alone crossing it, even touching it would mean certain death.

Wang Qing nodded upon hearing this.

Wang Qing got it right about "social death"—this woman is quite kind-hearted.

Gray Core City is one of the major cities with the highest economy in Cangzhou. Wang Meng's university is also located there, but it is quite far from here, so she rushed over in a hurry.

"Thank you so much, I'm going back to class now."

He took off Wang Meng's sunglasses, put them over her eyes, and got up to leave.

Wang Meng was only surprised, and then she started touching him roughly. "How dare you talk like that? I'm your older sister!"

Wang Qing did not respond.

"Call me if you need anything!"

She kept shouting.

Wang Qing ignored him, turned away without looking back, gestured that he didn't need to be seen off, and left the coffee shop.

Wang Meng clicked her tongue. This kid must think he's incredibly handsome. What's with this "Jiahao" thing?

Has this kid grown up or something? He seems so unfamiliar, but it's good that he's made a breakthrough.