The next day.

Weekend.

The sky hadn't brightened yet, and Lin Feng, still in his sleep, vaguely heard noises coming from the living room.

"So early?"

Half-awake, Lin Feng opened his eyes. The world outside the window was still pitch-black. He mumbled to himself and burrowed back under the covers.

Last night, Nightmare was acting weird, bombarding him with mental fluctuations, even attacking him. That evil and violent aura left him feeling dizzy and foggy-headed.

It went on all night. Not until four in the morning did Nightmare calm down, and only then did Lin Feng manage to get some sleep.

"Keep your voice down, your brother's had insomnia lately, sleeps pretty poorly."

In the living room, Lin Fang whispered to Ma Lele, who was just coming out of the bathroom.

Ma Lele nodded at once, tiptoeing around in a silly way.

Weekends were rare downtime for Lin Feng's family—a break from the exhausting grind of work. Only today could they really relax.

If they followed their usual routine, everyone would purposely sleep in a bit and enjoy a rare deep sleep.

But it was barely five o'clock, and Lin Fang and Old Ma were already up and washing up. They hadn't gotten up early—they'd chatted all night. Even though they hadn't slept, they seemed energetic, a bit overexcited even.

"I'll go buy breakfast." Old Ma pointed at the front door, whispering to Lin Fang.

The apartment was so tiny—barely thirty square meters. If they cooked breakfast at home in the morning, it would definitely disturb Lin Feng.

If it had been before, Old Ma wouldn't have cared.

Even if he did care, he'd definitely never go downstairs just to buy breakfast. He'd rather skip eating than climb all those stairs.

For a guy as chubby as Old Ma, climbing stairs was the absolute worst. One round trip—nearly a thousand steps—felt like a death sentence.

Economics decide status—even with family, it's the same.

Facing his talented stepson who's about to change everyone's life, Old Ma was clearly more attentive to Lin Feng's feelings.

"Go ahead, buy extra, Xiaofeng's been eating a lot more lately." Lin Fang was a little surprised at Old Ma's volunteering, but quickly got it and smiled.

"Okay."

Old Ma responded and left. After more than an hour—just as Lin Fang was running out of patience—he finally came back, both hands carrying two big, heavy bags full of breakfast.

"What took you so long?" Lin Fang took the bags, a bit annoyed.

"Can we really eat all this?" Lin Kerou was stunned.

There were at least twenty sticks of fried dough, and that bag of buns—maybe forty or fifty of them?

The buns were as big as her fists. Two would fill her up.

At the moment, Old Ma was drenched in sweat, smelling of BO, gasping, his chest heaving like he was about to collapse. After catching his breath, he complained, "Man, I'm wiped out! You wouldn't believe it—word's spread like wildfire in the whole complex! Every few steps, a neighbor stops me, asking if Xiaofeng really made eighteen million!"

"Everyone in the community knows?" Lin Fang was shocked, too.

"Are you kidding? More than a hundred neighbors surrounded me—I nearly panicked!"

"Left and right, questions nonstop—my head's about to explode. I almost couldn't get back up. These bags of buns and dough sticks—Old Wang wouldn't even take money. Said he's congratulating Xiaofeng in advance." Old Ma chugged water, sighing as he spoke.

He worked for the government, officially nine-to-five, but just as a low-level office worker. Honestly, some laborers made more money. Usually, the neighbors barely greeted him, maybe a nod at most. When had anyone ever treated him this respectfully?

"You can't just take free stuff—that's not right!"

"I know, I know! But Old Wang just refused to take my money, even got red-faced and almost blew up trying to push more onto me." Old Ma shrugged helplessly.

The three listened, finding it hard to believe. Old Wang was notorious for being stingy—since when did he get so generous?

"Dad, Mom, so which complex are we buying?" Ma Lele whispered.

"East Lake Port, I guess. The location and the environment are good!" Lin Kerou suggested.

She and Chen Hao had gone there once—it was supposed to be their wedding home. Then Chen Hao's parents objected, so it all fell apart.

"I'm soaked. I'm gonna change. Gotta dress nice today." Old Ma said, heading into the bedroom to get changed.

For the family, the wait crawled by until almost nine, when Lin Feng finally got up.

"Morning!"

Lin Feng opened his door and saw his family sitting together on the living room sofa, each dressed in their nicest new clothes.

"Bro, hurry! We're all waiting for you." Ma Lele said anxiously.

Just thinking about living in a big house, she was practically over the moon.

"Alright, give me two minutes."

Lin Feng smiled, understanding his family's impatience.

Buying a house—for those living in the Inner City, it's just moving someplace else. But for the residents of Shore District, it meant a whole new life.

After a quick wash, with everyone watching, Lin Feng gulped down soy milk, each hand clutching a big bun, eating more than twenty in one go.

"Don't choke! Don't listen to your sister, there's no rush." Lin Fang laughed.

"All done—let's go."

Stuffed and satisfied, Lin Feng went to grab his phone and called Gao Hai. After a second, Gao Hai picked up: "Big Head, let's go."

From the other end, Gao Hai sounded hesitant: "Brother Feng, I still…"

Before Gao Hai could finish, Lin Feng interrupted with a joking scold: "Hurry up—your Brother Feng isn't short on your pocket change!"

After a moment, Gao Hai's voice was excited: "Then wait for me!"

"Let's go—time for a new life." Lin Feng said to the family.

"Let's go!" Ma Lele cheered and marched out front.

By the time the family came out of the stairwell, Gao Hai was already there, out of breath.

"Let's roll!"

Seeing Gao Hai's awkward, nervous look, Lin Feng put his arm around the guy's shoulders—a gesture that calmed him down a little.

"Aunt Lin, Uncle Ma, Sister Kerou." Gao Hai greeted them, looking kind of embarrassed.

Lin Fang and Old Ma smiled at him. Since Lin Feng had decided, they didn't have much else to say. They'd watched Gao Hai grow up, after all, and he was close to the family.

"Xiaofeng, where are you all going?"

Lin Feng's family had just reached downstairs, and their neighbors—always keeping a close eye on that building—quickly crowded over.

"All dressed up—going to a banquet?"

"Xiaofeng, did you really sell that ad spot for 18 million?"

"How many years did you sign for?"

"Xiaofeng, did you really join Thunder Club?"

The neighbors crowded around, excited and curious, firing off questions.

Early that morning, many had just gotten up, turned on the morning news, and were shocked by the headline: "Lin Feng endorses Huating Grand Restaurant—endorsement fee hits 18 million!"

Some skipped breakfast entirely, gathering at Lin Feng's building, gossiping non-stop.

"It's true—we're going to check out houses in Inner City."

Lin Feng smiled at them.

No point in hiding—sooner or later, the neighbors would know anyway.

"It's real! Xiaofeng's really made it big!"

Anyone living in Shore District dreamed of moving to Inner City.

It was every family's goal—the thing they worked every day and night for.

Even renting in Inner City was a struggle—let alone buying a place outright!

Just three days ago, Ya Ge had signed with Ju Xing and moved out of Shore District. People envied her for ages, and felt sorry for Lin Feng in the meantime.

Who'd have thought, in just a few days, the neighborhood's "loser" turned the tables, became a high school senior advertising star—and bagged an 18 million deal?

Who could've seen that coming?

"Lin Feng, can you really refine an Earth Chart Demon Spirit?" someone asked curiously.

The same question every neighbor was dying to know.

If Lin Feng could really refine an Earth Chart Demon Spirit, no doubt about it—he'd be the most gifted, most dazzling star in Shore District's history.

"You'll find out soon enough."

Lin Feng grinned, not answering directly, but sounding totally confident.

"Old Ma, your good days are coming." the neighbors said, envy all over their faces.

Old Ma gave a modest smile: "Hope so!"

Soon, word spread fast—ten people told ten more, until eventually almost everyone in the district knew. People crowded down the stairs, so packed the hallway was jammed solid. Good thing Lin Feng's family had already left, otherwise they might not have gotten out.

"Looks like we really do need to move!" Lin Fang sighed as they walked down the street.

The neighbors' sudden warmth even made her a bit nervous.

"Bro, where are we going?"

"Tingfeng Garden!"

Lin Feng waved down a cab.

Tingfeng Garden—the complex he'd lived in during his previous life.

But that was ten years later, after he became a Fifth Grade Martial Artist and got a mortgage on a secondhand flat.

Back then, prices were up to seventy thousand per square meter. Now, the complex had just hit the market. Yesterday, Lin Feng looked it up—a square meter was about forty thousand. Compared to places with fancy names like Yu Long Lake or Dijing Bay, Tingfeng Garden sounded fresh and artsy.

The complex was right in the heart of Inner City, but designed to be peaceful and green, a community with lots of landscaping.

Tingfeng Garden—meaning that on quiet days in the community, you could hear the breeze rustling.

After an hour and a half, and three hundred and twelve yuan in cab fare, Lin Feng's family stopped in front of a sales office.

As Lin Feng's family entered the sales center, a saleswoman came over to greet them.

"They look kind of familiar…"

The saleswoman glanced at Lin Feng, thinking she'd seen him before, but couldn't place where.

"Hello, which apartment profile would you like to see?"

The saleswoman smiled politely.

As she spoke, she surreptitiously checked out Lin Feng's family.

With her eye, it was obvious: these five weren't rich. Their clothes, though new, were cheap.

Except for the calm-looking boy—everyone else looked a bit nervous. Even the middle-aged couple, probably the parents, kept shooting glances at the boy, as if he was in charge.

What a strange family!

The saleswoman thought to herself.

Not far away, two girls about twelve or thirteen were hanging out—bored, playing on their phones while their parents went house-hunting. As Lin Feng's family walked in, both girls perked up, faces full of excitement.

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