America: Starting from collecting corpses, leveling up to godhood

"Absolutely impossible!"

Sofia jumped up from the bench like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.

"That's my private property, and I've said before that I don't live with men..."

"First, Chen Ming just saved your life, and he also saved mine."

Evans held up two fingers.

"Secondly, the apartment is in my name. If he moves in, I can waive half your rent; otherwise, your rent will double!"

"Aha—"

Sofia's screams stopped abruptly, replaced by a warm smile.

"make a deal!"

After saying that, she put her arm around Chen Ming's shoulder, her amber eyes full of sincerity.

"Actually, I've always dreamed of having a handsome Asian roommate. Seriously, it's always been my dream."

"Does this also mean I can eat authentic Chinese food every day? Like... sweet and sour General Tso's chicken, right?"

Chen Ming pulled his arm away expressionlessly.

That's fucking Americanized Chinese food!

Before Sofia could continue promoting her love for General Tso's chicken, the office door was pushed open again.

Sheriff Miller walked over with a manila file folder tucked under his arm, his expression like someone who had been constipated for a week and had suddenly felt much better.

"Hey, Schumacher."

Miller greeted Chen Ming and casually slapped the file folder onto the bench.

"If I were you, the first thing I'd do after leaving the police station would be to go to 7-Eleven and buy a Powerball lottery ticket, the kind with double the bet."

"What do you mean?" Chen Ming subconsciously looked at the interrogation room, where the lights were still on.

"Will I be in trouble?"

"Relax, kid...you've practically been kissed on the ass by God."

"The black guy on the Kawasaki died on the spot, but this bastard has two counts of armed robbery and three counts of intentional assault, and he's still on parole—not to mention he fired a shot."

"So I'm alright?" Chen Ming confirmed.

"Criminally, yes, this matter wouldn't even go to a jury trial."

Miller pulled a ballpoint pen from his pocket and tossed it to Chen Ming.

"Sign a document confirming that hitting him was an 'instinctive reaction' when your life was threatened, and then you can both get lost."

Chen Ming took the pen and quickly signed his name where Miller pointed.

This is Los Angeles, a place where chaos and order coexist, where the law becomes incredibly lenient as long as the reason is "legitimate" and certain conditions are met.

……

Forty minutes later, Chen Ming's gray Corolla, which made noise everywhere except for the horn, stopped in front of a red brick apartment building on the edge of Koreatown.

The exterior walls looked quite old, but fortunately the neighborhood was relatively clean, and there was even an access control system downstairs—for homeless people like Chen Ming, this was already paradise.

Sofia hummed a song, turned the key, kicked the door open, and turned on the living room light.

"Ta-da! Welcome to my..."

As soon as Chen Ming stepped across the threshold, he stepped on something soft and squishy.

Looking down, I saw a black lace openwork bra with half a flesh-colored stocking wrapped around it.

Looking up, a mountain of boxes occupied the coffee table like building blocks, and the air was filled with the mixed smell of leftover cheese and cheap perfume.

The sofa was covered with all sorts of tank tops, jeans, and bottles and jars of cosmetics; the only place to stand was on top of the television, which was still flashing a red light.

"...This is your private property?"

Chen Ming kicked away the half-eaten box of Pizza Hut at his feet, and a huge Jerry immediately jumped out of it.

"Your territory has quite a few residents."

"Haha... It might be a little cramped and messy for two people, why don't you help me tidy up?"

"I'm giving you one hour to clean my room, or I'll send a picture to Professor Evans... You don't want to add a cleaning fee to your rent, do you?"

"Damn it, Chen, you really should be sitting on Wall Street!"

Upon hearing that more money was required, Sofia's languid expression vanished instantly.

While muttering curses under her breath about the "evil landlord," she swiftly grabbed underwear and stockings from the coffee table, haphazardly piled them into a ball, and kicked the peeking Jerry back under the sofa...

"The bathroom is on the left, and the towels are in the closet—if you use my pink bath towel, I'll put hair removal cream on your toothbrush!"

With the bedroom door slamming shut, Chen Ming's world finally became quiet.

He shook his head and went into the bathroom.

Hot water gushed out and washed over his skin, and Chen Ming felt as if his soul was about to fly away. Even the most luxurious gentle spa could not compare to the refreshing feeling brought by this cheap shower.

Just hours before, he was a homeless dog sleeping in a leaky car, burdened with huge student loans, and about to go fry French fries.

Now he not only has a place to live and a well-paid job, but he also has the ten Franklins that Evans just gave him in advance.

A thousand dollars.

This money is enough for him to fix his car and buy two decent sets of clothes.

"High risk, high reward...that's a classic American storyline."

"system."

As I silently recited the mantra, a pale blue light screen unfolded on my retina.

[Host: Chen Ming]

[Occupation: Current student at USC School of Medicine (currently suspended) / Trainee Cleaner]

[Strength: 21] (The average strength for an average adult male is 20. If you exercise occasionally, you will be a little stronger than the average person, but only a little.)

[Agility: 23] (The near-death experience just now pushed your reaction speed to its limit, but that's all.)

[Body Condition: 18] (Long-term consumption of cheap fast food and sleeping in a car is detrimental to your health. It is recommended to eat more beef.)

[Mental Strength: 26] (Your experience of being reborn twice has given you a heart far stronger than that of ordinary people.)

"Barely passable..."

Chen Ming chuckled self-deprecatingly.

Apart from his slightly outstanding mental attribute, all other attributes are so ordinary that he would be lost in a crowd. In fact, due to his recent difficult life, his physical condition is still hovering on the edge of passing.

He then clicked on the [Skills] tab below.

The once empty skill tree was now densely covered with lights.

[Basic Driving: LV.2 (Is this what you call driving skill? Without ABS, you'd be meeting your maker in a corner by now.)]

[Clinical Anatomy: LV.2 (You have a thorough understanding of human anatomy and know how to make an incision, but that's all you know.)]

[English: LV.3 (Fluent, can swear without any problem.)]

[Basic Combat: LV.1 (Master of wild, unrestrained punches.)]

[Cooking: LV.4 (Can cook delicious dishes, but knows nothing about American Chinese food.)]

……

Chen Ming was not surprised by the levels of these skills.

Although he inherited his predecessor's memories and some skills, many skills, such as clinical anatomy, cannot be used well without long-term practical experience...

At the very bottom of the panel lay his biggest prize of the night.

Remaining attribute points: 3

[Remaining skill points: 1]

The numbers are simple and unassuming, but based on his experience reading novels in his previous life, if Chen Ming can stack up a few numbers in the future, he can cosplay as Steve Rogers with a manhole cover...

Should it be called Captain China or Captain America?