Chapter 6: Don't Easily Take in a Stray Cat!

"It's not about the money," Tang Fei waved his hand, saying seriously.

People who like money saying it's not about the money means they're looking for more money...

Phoenix didn't speak either but just gazed at Tang Fei with a playful look in her eyes, waiting for him to give his reasons for refusal.

"We can't take the risk." Tang Fei looked serious and spoke up, "If it were just me, I'd gamble with you. What's that saying? 'Fortune favors the brave,' right? What doesn't involve some risk these days?"

"But as you have seen, I have an old man and Little Fatty at home... The old too old, the young too young, all of them couldn't even truss a chicken..."

Phoenix's gaze shifted to Little Fatty's face. That morning, when she got up, she'd clearly seen Little Fatty split a several-hundred-pound boulder in two with a single hammer blow. That clean line of breakage was straighter and finer than her own leg... Such a little freak, and yet he claimed to be as weak as a chicken in his description?

What kind of chicken was he even talking about?

Phoenix?

Ptui, ptui, ptui...

"I've said it before, you're here to evade those who are trying to kill you. What happens if those people who want you dead come after you? We're just poor folks with no power to protect ourselves. How can we stand up against fully-armed masters? We do want money, want supplies, but more than anything, we need to keep our little lives..."

"I need to keep not just my own life, but also that of the old man and Little Fatty; even our neighbors could get implicated. I know just how formidable the weapons from New Star are..."

"I can't let my kindness harm other kind-hearted people... That kind of kindness is hypocrisy..."

Phoenix nodded, giving Tang Fei's words her approval.

Then, lifting her delicate brows and with a charming curve forming at the corners of her mouth, she asked Tang Fei with a slanted glance, "So, Mr. Tang Fei, what do you plan to do?"

"What to do?" Tang Fei's eyes widened as he looked at Phoenix, how had this become his problem?

I've explained my difficulties; isn't it now your turn to convince me?

Give me weapons, supplies, everything I need... Lure me with riches, seduce me with beauty.

How did the ball end up in my court?

"Yes," Phoenix said, nodding demurely, "you saved me, you're my lifesaver, and also the first person I met on this planet..."

"Just because I can't immediately leave in an escape pod and can't contact my family on New Star, you've decided to abandon me to fend for myself?"

"You know, I'm a stranger here... Plus, I know how crazy and terrifying the people of the Wasteland can be, and I believe you know that even better than I do... If you don't care for me, death will be the only thing waiting for me..."

"We must care!" Little Fatty chimed in with empathy from the side.

Even though this woman couldn't help him smash rocks, she was pretty, had a pleasant voice, and on the way here with her to find Tang Fei, she had remarked how hard he must have worked even as a child to lift such a heavy hammer and instructed him to take care of his health. She even taught him the right way to exert force to avoid straining his back...

Where do I have a back? I only have a belly.

She also asked Little Fatty's name, and when Little Fatty said, 'I'm called Little Fatty', she asked for his real name...

Little Fatty was touched; no one had ever asked for his real name before, nor had such a lovely girl treated him so kindly and gently.

He felt they were already friends.

He couldn't just watch her be abandoned by Tang Fei, and he certainly didn't want her to fall into the hands of those predators and the Flame Society...

Only heaven knows what unspeakable acts they could commit.

Tang Fei shot Little Fatty a fierce glare, not expecting a traitor to emerge so quickly within his ranks.

He looked at Phoenix thoughtfully, arching an eyebrow as he spoke, "What do you mean? You're not trying to swindle me, are you?"

"There's a saying on New Star, 'Never casually adopt a stray cat.'"

"What do you mean?"

"Because you might easily grow attached to it," Phoenix said with a sly look on her face.

"..."

"Of course, I understand this might cause you difficulties, my presence could increase your living costs, even endanger your lives..." Phoenix looked earnestly at Tang Fei and Little Fatty and said, "But I absolutely won't let you suffer losses."

"Though the escape pod is broken and I can't contact New Star, if I don't check in and assure my family of my safety for a long time, they will come to Blue Star to look for me immediately... I didn't report in at the scheduled time last night, and if I'm not mistaken, they should be on their way here right now..."

"When my family arrives, I'm willing to give you double the supplies... On top of our previous agreement, I'm willing to give you double the supplies to show my gratitude for all that you've done for me."

"As for those who want to kill me, if they come too late and my family has already taken me away, you can completely disclaim responsibility and say that you don't even know me... I think they wouldn't want to trouble some innocent blinds... indigenous people, that would only expose their tracks."

"If they come too early..." Phoenix's eyes flashed with a heavy killing intent, and he said harshly, "then they won't return. Rest assured, my injuries have healed considerably, and I am not completely defenseless... as long as we handle things properly, we'll make sure they don't gain any advantage..."

Tang Fei stared at Phoenix and asked, "Are you a cultivator?"

Phoenix didn't deny it, nodded, and said, "Yes."

"What level are you?" Tang Fei asked.

"Realm?" Phoenix looked at Tang Fei and said, "Above New Star, they classify strength into realms... I heard this concept originally comes from the Wasteland..."

Phoenix, worried that the words 'Wasteland' might hurt the youth's pride, glanced apologetically at Tang Fei and added, "Sorry, I didn't mean to..."

"It's okay." Tang Fei shrugged casually and said, "Just look around, isn't this a wasteland? People living like neither humans nor ghosts... even these plants and animals have mutated..."

"The first rule of survival in the Wasteland is, nothing is more important than being alive. As long as others don't steal your food, they can spit on my face and I won't mind."

Phoenix was shocked and asked, "Has anyone spat on you?"

"It happened."

"And... what happened afterward?"

"He's dead." Tang Fei said with a smile, revealing that disturbing signature grin of his again. "He spat on me and tried to steal my prey... so I killed him."

...

After a moment of silence, Phoenix then looked at Tang Fei and went on to explain, "The realm classification on New Star comes from the Old Land and is divided into Body Refining, Qi Control, Tongyou, Wishful, and the five realms before Grandmaster, which are also known as 'Mortal Realm'..."

Tang Fei nodded, this perfectly matched what the old man had told him.

"Of course, the Grandmaster Realm is further divided into the Lesser Grandmaster and Great Grandmaster. Although it's just a small difference in wording, the power and prowess they represent are worlds apart... A Lesser Grandmaster can dominate a territory, a Great Grandmaster can protect a nation, a Great Grandmaster is the pinnacle of human martial arts... Every Grandmaster is a highly sought-after figure by all countries..."

"Beyond that are the realms of Burning Star, Immortal Wanderer, and Domain; these three are called the 'God Realm'... but these are legendary realms, I've never seen them... and probably no human could ever reach them..."

Tang Fei's eyes burned with intense aspiration.

What a glorious thing it would be if he could one day step into the Grandmaster Realm, the center of everyone's attention, the admiration of all?

Of course, he also knew the likelihood of such a thing happening was next to none. If it were so easy to step into the Grandmaster Realm, wouldn't the world be flooded with Lesser Grandmasters as common as dogs, and Great Grandmasters walking everywhere?

What would be so special about the Grandmaster Realm then?

Noticing Tang Fei's look, Phoenix asked curiously, "Do you also cultivate?"

"No." Tang Fei shook his head and said, "What cultivation could we possibly do? Without any Cultivation Techniques or Supplemental Medicine, every day we just think about how to stay alive... to hunt for food one has to traverse entire mountains... where's the time for cultivating?"

"That is also cultivation." Phoenix said with firm conviction.

Tang Fei stared at Phoenix's face for a long while until Phoenix, feeling a bit uncomfortable, took the initiative to ask, "Why are you silent?"

"You're really good-looking." Tang Fei said seriously. "Even better-looking than me."

"..."

"But you have somewhat of a literary youth tendency." Tang Fei retracted his aggressive gaze and said, "I heard that people who read too much tend to have this problem... that every step is an experience, every place is a landscape, every dire hardship is cultivation, life should be full of uncertainties..."

"Only those who are full and idle like to say such things. If every hunt determined life or death, if every time you drew your sword it could be your last... let's see how you'd still think 'may the years be gentle and I remain calm'..."

"Like Little Fatty and me... we just want to quietly stay at home lying down... not needing to go out hunting, not having to draw swords against others..."

Little Fatty nodded eagerly and said, "And have meat to eat every day."

"..." Phoenix was speechless.

These two people were not friendly.

But he could endure it.

For the sake of staying alive, one could bear anything.

"You've said so much, but you still haven't mentioned what realm you are in." Tang Fei spoke up.

"Qi Control Realm." Phoenix said, "I've just entered the Qi Control Realm."