As spiritual energy revived, I, having acquired certain attributes, gradually ascended to immortalit

Second floor, room 203.

Shen Qing took a deep breath in front of the door, and after mentally preparing herself, she carefully placed her hand on the doorknob.

With a "click," the door opened, and he poked half his head out to look around.

The entire room layout was immediately visible: a one-bedroom apartment with a living room, a kitchen, and a bathroom. It was about 50 square meters, which didn't seem small, but it was occupied by three people.

The layout is still the same as the decoration from ten or twenty years ago, and the walls are yellowed and even peeling.

"You're back?"

Looking in the direction of the sound, Shen Qing confirmed that only the young man sitting on the sofa was in the living room before whispering:

"Brother, where's sister-in-law? Did she go to put little Qian to sleep?"

The young man nodded.

Shen Qing finally breathed a sigh of relief and walked in, closing the door behind him. He plopped down on the sofa and looked at the young man beside him.

Jiang Cheng, his older brother who is not related to him by blood.

The two came from the same orphanage, were five years apart in age, and had known each other for twelve years, with the other person sponsoring him for seven years.

With the help of the government, scholarships, interest-free loans, and so on, he was able to complete high school and university without having to work.

His parents earned a decent salary, so his family was well-off when they were alive. But after he disappeared, he left nothing behind, and they were renting a house.

Before Shen Qing could say anything, a woman's voice suddenly came from behind.

"What, does my presence or absence affect you?"

Shen Qing's back stiffened.

A woman with a gentle face walked out of the kitchen, but her expression was angry, and she said with a hint of disappointment:

"Coming home so late again! You're a college graduate, why do you have to deliver food? Riding an electric scooter, aren't you afraid of getting into an accident!"

As she spoke, she reached out and grabbed Shen Qing's ear.

"Sister-in-law, it hurts, it hurts!"

Shen Qing subconsciously stood up in the direction the woman was exerting force, and quickly begged for mercy, "Isn't the job of delivering food relatively free?"

He tilted his head, stammering as he explained, "Sister-in-law, you know my personality perfectly well. How could I possibly sit still?"

Considering that he drowned due to lack of physical strength in his previous life, he diligently trains every day in this life.

"Besides," Shen Qing continued, arguing, "if I were to work in a company with my major, wouldn't 996 be the norm? You could easily die from overwork if you're not careful."

"Um?"

These words were like adding fuel to the fire. The woman raised an eyebrow. "So, it's my fault after all?"

She tightened her grip, lifting slightly upwards, then looked at Jiang Cheng gently and said, "What do you, as the older brother, think?"

Beneath that gentle tone lay a murderous intent that Shen Qing was familiar with.

"No, no, no, sister-in-law, brother—help!"

Shen Qing's reasoned argument crumbled within three seconds, and he hurriedly begged for mercy.

Although it didn't hurt much, the lessons he learned from childhood told him that backing down was the right thing to do at this point.

"Shut up, you brat."

Jiang Cheng, who had been watching the show, saw that the fire was about to reach his head and quickly said:

"Honey, Qingzi is twenty-two today. She's not a child anymore, and she definitely has her own ideas. Besides, let's not wake Ziqian up."

The last sentence is the key point.

Shen Qing felt the pressure on her ear lessen, and quickly seized the opportunity to pull out the roasted sweet potato she had bought in advance from her pocket.

"Yes, yes, sister-in-law, I was wrong!" he said sincerely. "I have sweet potatoes here, your favorite roasted sweet potatoes!"

A subtle sweet aroma of sweet potato wafted up with the steam.

When the two first started dating, they were dirt poor, so his older brother used this to fool his sister-in-law, even though it represented all his sincerity at the time.

Perhaps recalling the scene from back then, the woman gave a soft hum and released her grip.

"Hmph, dinner's in the pot. Eat and get out of here. If you disturb Ziqian's sleep, neither of you brothers will have a good time."

As she spoke, she turned and walked towards the bedroom, muttering to herself, "She was such an obedient child back then..."

Shen Qing scratched his head. That was just to help his older brother put on an act.

Jiang Cheng walked over and patted him on the shoulder, "You know your sister-in-law has a sharp tongue but a soft heart."

"Do you even need to tell me?" Shen Qing said matter-of-factly.

Su Wan, his sister-in-law, he had known her for six years, so he naturally knew her personality.

Otherwise, who would be willing to let their husband continue to financially support a younger brother who is not related to them by blood?

From high school onwards, through college, and even now, I still invite him over for meals every day.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that the two of them are his biological brother and sister.

However, great kindness needs no words of thanks, and saying more would be useless. Besides, he couldn't even support himself before, so what was the point of talking about repaying a debt of gratitude?

"By the way, what about mine?"

Seeing Jiang Cheng's outstretched hand, Shen Qing rolled her eyes at him. Wasn't this the time when he gave her leftover roasted sweet potato?

"Go buy it yourself."

After saying that, she walked into the kitchen with practiced ease, quickly finished her meal, and then washed the dishes herself.

"Alright, brother, I'll head back now."

Shen Qing waved from the entrance hall. He wasn't so clueless as to live with a young couple.

Although neither of them minded, it was like a dowry and a bride price.

"Get lost, get out of here! You're just trying to freeload and then run away." Jiang Cheng waved his hand impatiently.

Shen Qing chuckled, opened the door, and the smile in his eyes vanished instantly.

It wasn't that he didn't want to stay longer; it was simply that those with supernatural powers were more likely to attract demons than ordinary people.

The way that middle-aged man died today made him somewhat uneasy. He had cultivated so that he could better protect himself and his elder brother and sister-in-law in the future, not bring disaster upon himself.

As soon as she stepped out of the building, the sound of rain pelted down on her, followed by a loud "boom." Shen Qing frowned slightly and looked up at the sky.

"No, it's not even June yet, and the weather is already changing so quickly."

There were no clouds just now, but now there's a layer of dark clouds and it's raining. It was the same the day before yesterday.

The electric scooter was left in the shed. Shen Qing rolled up his trousers and started running wildly in the rain, splashing water that flew several meters away.

"Xiao Shen, you didn't bring an umbrella!"

The old man at the security booth saw him from afar, looking like a drowned rat, and pulled an umbrella out from under the table.

"It's alright, sir, you're soaked anyway."

Shen Qing didn't stop running; she just waved her hand and continued running towards the neighboring community.

"Hey, Xiao Shen... I heard your neighbors are haunted..."

The old man stood at the entrance of the pavilion, holding an umbrella, watching Shen Qing disappear around the corner. "That kid ran too fast. I wonder if he heard me."

The shower came and went quickly.

By the time Shen Qing reached the neighboring community, the rain had gradually subsided, and he looked up.

Compared to my brother's neighborhood, this one is much older, with peeling paint and streetlights that have been broken for who knows how long without anyone fixing them.

It's said that it's going to be demolished soon, and there are hardly any other households living in the building besides him.

So the price is very cheap, seven hundred yuan for a two-bedroom apartment, which also saves him the trouble of messing with his neighbors.

"Haunted? Another supernatural event?"

In the hallway, the lights flickered as Shen Qing pondered the old man's words.

But that's unlikely. The organization has monitoring capabilities; if ordinary people already knew, they would have notified him long ago.

On the third floor, Shen Qing unlocked the door and pushed it open, a gust of damp wind hitting her face.

"Did I leave the window open when I went out, or was it the wind?"

He frowned, stood at the door and looked around. The living room contained only a sofa, a coffee table, and a refrigerator, all of which were clearly visible.

"Was it really the wind?"

Shen Qing looked around the room again and noticed that the living room window was open. She probably forgot to ventilate it and closed it without paying any more attention.

Along the way, he had fully experienced the passive effect of the new term, with spiritual energy constantly flowing into his body to temper his physique.

I'm now eager to try out my initiative.

Back in his bedroom, Shen Qing sat cross-legged. As he actively absorbed spiritual energy, he immediately felt a spiritual energy far exceeding that of his usual self.

The spiritual energy surged into the body like a tide, being refined into blood and qi to cleanse the body from skin to bone.

Several hours passed in the blink of an eye. Shen Qing, who was sitting cross-legged on the bed, suddenly opened his eyes. In just one week, he had achieved another breakthrough.

"Mid-stage Ninth Rank..."