Ji Xinghuo transferred ten million Ya Yuan to each of his siblings as his New Year’s gift.
Liangqiu Feiyan was extremely excited, hugging Ji Xinghuo tightly as she exclaimed, "Big brother, you’re the best!"
The other three were all very surprised.
Even Zhong Ming, who had the highest income, was shocked by the amount of money.
His annual salary was over a million. As a high earner in the Class B league, it would still take ten years to save what Ji Xinghuo had transferred to him.
Wang Zizhen was also extremely excited.
With these ten million, he could buy many advanced pieces of equipment that had been unattainable before, arming his character and earning back the investment in one or two years, avoiding the need to accumulate initial capital.
Ye Dongyun was initially happy, then shook her head.
In a soft voice, she said, "Xinghuo, this is too much! I know you are very rich now, but since you are a Mutant, you will have many expenses in the future. You should save it, not spend it recklessly."
"Big sister, don’t worry. This really isn’t much for me." Ji Xinghuo certainly wasn’t willing to take it back.
Liangqiu Feiyan curiously asked, "Big brother, how much money do you have now?"
"Enough to support you for a lifetime," Ji Xinghuo replied with a smile.
"Ah..." Liangqiu Feiyan suddenly sighed, "If only you weren’t my brother, then I could be your girlfriend, keeping the benefits within the family..."
"Feifei, what nonsense are you spouting?" Ye Dongyun smacked her lightly, glaring at her.
"I’m just saying," she muttered.
Liangqiu Feiyan stuck out her tongue, her face slightly red.
Ji Xinghuo was speechless too. As legal relatives, even though they had no blood relation, they couldn’t marry unless they first dissolved the kinship ties, a process requiring strict scrutiny to be approved. In principle, the law prohibited public children of the same family from marrying each other.
"Zhong Ming said, "Xinghuo, I’ll accept this New Year’s gift. With this money, I can greatly improve my abilities, so I won’t be polite to you."
He knew Ji Xinghuo truly was not short of money.
Just the weapon equipment he wore was worth hundreds of millions.
"Thank you, big brother," said Wang Zizhen as he stood up to express his gratitude. The ten million would allow him to live comfortably without working if he didn’t spend it on Ranger equipment.
"We are all family, no need for formalities."
Ji Xinghuo truly didn’t mind, and to put everyone’s mind at ease, he smiled and said, "Honestly, making money is really not difficult for me now. If I want, I can hunt at the Star Realm frontline for two or three days and earn ten million in bounty. Most things I want can’t even be bought with money."
All four shook their heads.
Listening to Ji Xinghuo, it seemed like the Beiluo Shimen Clan was his ATM.
"I also want to train and become a Mutant!" Wang Zizhen suddenly spoke up, sounding as if he’d made a great resolution, "I will make a training plan tonight, take big brother as my role model, and strive to pass the Star Realm Department’s physical fitness test within two years!"
"Good." Ji Xinghuo patted Wang Zizhen’s shoulder, "Let me know if you need any help."
Zhong Ming also felt reassured, "Zizhen, if you succeed, our family will have three Mutants."
"It might even be four."
The speaker was Ye Dongyun, surprising everyone.
She had first tried to merge with an Alien Species while in college and failed, thereafter seldom exercising.
"Don’t look at me like that," Ye Dongyun laughed, "Who doesn’t want to become a Mutant? But merging with an Alien Species the second time requires buying it with my own money, which I don’t have much of, and the success rate is not high, so I had to change my life plans. Now I have a new opportunity, and I want to try again."
"Big sister, you can do it!" Liangqiu Feiyan cheered her on.
Ji Xinghuo also nodded encouragingly.
However, he knew his big sister’s chances of becoming a Mutant were very low because she was older and had already failed once; besides, her aptitude was insufficient.
In reality, of the five brothers and sisters, Ye Dongyun had trained the hardest, even enduring much hardship.
She had started training at fifteen, but only managed to barely pass a physical test in her college graduation year and received an Alien Species, only to fail to merge with it.
Of course, he could not say such things and discourage his family.
Ji Xinghuo supported her unconditionally.
Possibly incited by Ji Xinghuo, with both the oldest sister and youngest brother saying they wanted to become Mutants, Liangqiu Feiyan also decided to pause her livestreaming to start training together.
However, given her fleeting enthusiasm, she might not last even a month.
Their conversation lasted from the afternoon into the evening.
That night, Ji Xinghuo took his family out to a grand dinner, full of joy, and then they all returned home.
He got home just after nine o’clock.
The apartment was exactly the same as when he had left it a year and a half ago, kept clean and tidy by a housekeeping robot. The rental and utility fees were deducted from his account every month, but the lease was set to expire in a few months.
Looking at the familiar yet strange apartment, Ji Xinghuo thought that maybe it was time to look for a better place.
Or rent a high-end apartment like his second brother?
While considering his options, Ji Xinghuo released Qing Hong, which quickly circled the apartment to acquaint itself with the surroundings.
Lying on the bed and looking out at the bustling city through the glass window, he suddenly felt somewhat bored.
He pulled out his phone and scrolled for a while, browsing news, watching movies and videos, but soon lost interest again.
"Might as well cultivate!"
Just as Ji Xinghuo was about to start training, his phone rang.
It was Lu Yunhai who called.
As he answered the phone, Lu Yunhai’s face immediately occupied the screen, excitedly shouting, "Damn! It’s really true! Xinghuo, when did you get back?"
"I was in the class group chat, and someone mentioned that you sued those who bad-mouthed you, and that’s how I knew you were back." Lu Yunhai was extremely thrilled, "Where are you now?"
Ji Xinghuo was about to say at home when his phone signaled another incoming call—it was from an unknown number.
Then the screen kept showing incoming calls.
Some from classmates, friends, and teachers I knew, and some from strangers.
"Let’s meet at the old place later." Ji Xinghuo ended the call after speaking and then cut off the phone’s ringtone, finally enjoying some peace.
He got up and went out, heading to a barbecue restaurant near the archery hall.
"Xinghuo, over here."
Lu Yunhai popped his head out of a private room and waved.
"Yunhai." Ji Xinghuo walked over, sizing him up before exclaiming in surprise, "Did your second fusion with the Alien Species succeed?"
"Of course!" Lu Yunhai said with a proud face, "You’ve climbed the ladder to the heavens; how could I not become a Mutant, otherwise wouldn’t I be far behind you?" After speaking earnestly, he added, "This is also thanks to you. Without the money you lent me, it would have taken me several more years."
Ji Xinghuo patted his shoulder, "You are being too formal."
He walked into the private room and saw another person there, which took him by surprise, "Miss Fang?"
They had met once before.
The year before last, at the "Ye Cup" competition, Fang Yinpeng was one of his competitors. It was said that she was quite influential, and though a small misunderstanding had occurred, it was quickly resolved.
"Mr. Ji, long time no see," Fang Yinpeng greeted him generously.
Ji Xinghuo looked towards Lu Yunhai and passed him a questioning look, asking what this was about.
"Yinpeng is now my girlfriend; we’ve been together for over a year," Lu Yunhai explained somewhat sheepishly, "She heard I was meeting you and insisted on coming along no matter what, and I couldn’t stop her."
Ji Xinghuo raised an eyebrow, suddenly understanding.
Back at the Ye Cup, when Lu Yunhai mentioned Fang Yinpeng, something had seemed off, and it turned out he was already harboring some intentions. Probably Lu Yunhai had not dared to pursue her before, but becoming a Mutant had boosted his confidence.
No wonder I felt he was so full of himself when I saw him just now; it turns out he had won over a beautiful woman.
Ji Xinghuo was sincerely happy for him.
After being dumped by his ex-girlfriend, which deeply wounded him, moving on was indeed a happy occasion for him, and his current state was very good, apparently reaping the rewards of both career and love.
Fang Yinpeng was immediately interrupted as Ji Xinghuo laughingly said, "Miss Fang, you can call me Xinghuo just like Yunhai. No need to be so formal."
"Alright, Xinghuo." Fang Yinpeng’s eyes sparkled with curiosity as she laughed, "Yunhai worries about you all the time at home, saying that when you returned, he wants to properly thank you for helping him become a Mutant. We were shocked to see your news online."
Lu Yunhai nodded, "Yeah, I couldn’t believe it at first. I even thought it was someone with the same name."
The following conversation centered around Ji Xinghuo.
Given that Lu Yunhai’s relationship with his family was a bit estranged and Fang Yinpeng was present, Ji Xinghuo didn’t share too much, but it was still enough to leave them both immensely impressed.
Ji Xinghuo discreetly observed Fang Yinpeng and, realizing that she truly cared for Lu Yunhai and had no other intentions, he finally felt relieved.
After a while, Ji Xinghuo went home.
Looking at a string of missed calls, he thought for a moment then called back a few close friends and classmates, briefly updating them on his situation.
He also chatted with his foster parents for a while.
Everyone, including his foster parents, displayed a noticeably different attitude towards him.
They were warmer and even somewhat reverential and flattering.
Some expressed it subtly, but making the effort to call already spoke volumes.
Ji Xinghuo was rather moved.
He set up a contact whitelist in his phone, allowing only those listed—the total was just over a dozen people—to reach him.
He then added a few of his teammates’ contact details.
Chi Zhonglin, Jiangnan Caiyi, and Jing Ji were all currently on Earth, although only Chi Zyonglin lived in Chang’an; Yuan Chongzhen was still in the Star Realm and had not returned.
Ji Xinghuo arranged with his teammates to meet up when they were free.
After sorting out his social relations, it was already late into the night.
"Slacking off for a day, I won’t cultivate today." Ji Xinghuo sat at his desk, browsing through the Alien Species Trading Platform, when he suddenly turned to glance at Qing Hong lying at the corner of the bed, who had just enjoyed a delivered barbecue feast and was now dozing off.
Since returning to Earth, Qing Hong’s Dimension Stomach was unusable.
Nothing could be taken out or put in.
As Sister Ren had said, the universe’s space on Earth was billions of times more solid than in the Star Realm Space, causing any space-related Abilities and items to become ineffective in the Milky Way.
Ji Xinghuo regretted deeply, sensing the items inside his Dimension Stomach. Casually thinking about it, he had no expectations.
However, in the next instant.
A dazzlingly radiant gemstone appeared in his hand—it was a Star Tear!
Ji Xinghuo’s expression froze.