Demon Cultivator in Abyssal Era

Chapter 57: Chapter 57: Parents

As his body gradually became illusory, Chu Xiu felt the world spinning around him, as if he had entered a space where there was nothing at all.

The surroundings were utterly void, and he hovered at the center of this space, like falling into a boundless deep sea.

However, Chu Xiu’s soul could guide his direction.

It was a very mysterious feeling, as he could sense two invisible threads connecting him to two different places.

”This should be the Awakening Space,” Chu Xiu thought to himself.

Awakened individuals could travel to different worlds through this strange space.

Of course, the premise was to leave an [Anchor Point] in that world, or else one would wander around like a headless fly.

Here, space was extremely compressed, and all measures were unbalanced; even a casual step could cross billions of kilometers, without relying on an [Anchor Point] it was impossible to locate a destination.

”Currently, my anchor points are only Blue Star and the Zombie World,” Chu Xiu mused.

He did not rush to return but first checked his settlement rewards.

[Settlement Rewards Completed!]

[Items Acquired: Cause and Effect Points*1170]

[Additional Reward: Silent Step Boots (Treasure)]

Chu Xiu revealed a satisfied smile.

The rewards for Awakening Trials could vary greatly depending on performance ratings.

The basic reward was only 100 Cause and Effect Points + a piece of standard quality equipment.

For those in support professions like Xu Hang and Song Zhiping, who muddled through, the rewards were basically this.

For those who performed too poorly, it might even result in deductions!

So for Chu Xiu, 1170 Cause and Effect Points plus a piece of Treasure equipment was satisfactory enough.

Especially when he saw that this Treasure equipment was quite suitable for him, increasing movement speed and decreasing the noise made while moving, it complemented his Qi Concealing Technique, directly transforming him into an Assassin Profession.

After summarizing his gains, he did not delay further but took a deep breath and headed towards Blue Star.

With just a thought, Chu Xiu sensed the sudden shrinking of time and space dimensions in the Awakening Space. Before he swam a few strokes, everything blurred, and when he regained his senses, he was in a bustling square!

The noisy sounds rushed into his ears, forming a stark contrast to the previous void, making him feel a bit agitated for a moment.

But Chu Xiu quickly adapted, looking around and realizing he had returned to the school’s playground, surrounded by countless students returning from the Abyss. In the distance, numerous parents anxiously searched the crowd for their children.

Due to the distance and the crowd, Chu Xiu couldn’t immediately determine whether his parents had come.

He then turned to look at the crowd, wondering if his good buddies had survived.

After only a few seconds of searching, he met a pair of large eyes also searching the crowd.

”Ah Chu!”

In that moment of eye contact, Zhang Qingshan excitedly ran over and gave him a bear hug.

”You survived!”

”Yeah,” Chu Xiu nodded, a rare smile on his face as he patted Zhang Qingshan’s back, ”Qingshan, you’ve gotten stronger again.”

Zhang Qingshan laughed, ”You too, used to be a skinny monkey, now you’re all muscles—your level must be high by now, huh?”

”Definitely not as high as you guys, the geniuses,” Chu Xiu chuckled, changing the subject, ”Have you been looking for me long? What Professional Talent did you awaken?”

Zhang Qingshan was about to answer when suddenly another voice called out joyfully from behind, ”Chu Xiu! You’re still alive!”

Chu Xiu turned his head to see Shen Zhuo and others, joyfully looking at him.

Zhang Qingshan laughed, ”Ah Chu, you’ve made quite a few friends.”

Then, he patted Chu Xiu’s shoulder, ”It’s chaotic here, we’ll talk about some things later when we go back. You talk with your friends first, I’m going to find my parents; they’ve probably been waiting anxiously.”

”Alright, go ahead.” Chu Xiu nodded.

He noticed, not far from them, a group waiting for Zhang Qingshan; they all seemed well-equipped, their overall quality much higher than those from their base, probably Zhang Qingshan’s partners in the trial.

Chu Xiu was very happy that Zhang Qingshan had found a group of cooperative teammates.

”Qingshan not only has strong talents but also an outstanding disposition, only he tends to think too well of others.”

”But for a genius like him, as long as he doesn’t get overshadowed by people like me early on, once he grows, there’s no need to worry about ordinary troubles.”

Chu Xiu withdrew his gaze and turned to look at Shen Zhuo and the others, who were walking over excitedly.

Their eyes were full of surprise and disbelief, as if they never imagined that Chu Xiu could return safely!

The happiest among them were undoubtedly Shen Zhuo and Yun Lu. Shen Zhuo excitedly pulled Chu Xiu aside, asking him all sorts of questions. Curious about how he had survived, Chu Xiu brushed them off casually. Even though Yun Lu didn’t say anything, her big, sparkling eyes never left Chu Xiu.

Chu Xiu sensed that the third person most pleased about his survival was, surprisingly, the suspicious Guan Ke.

As for the others, it seemed more complicated. Besides joy, there seemed to be a hint of avoidance hidden within them.

”That’s how people are. When faced with gratitude as immense as this, the instinct is to avoid it.”

”Sometimes, gratitude can become a burden, instead of a bond.”

However, he didn’t mind. After chatting a bit and exchanging contact information, he bid farewell and left.

He headed towards the area where parents were waiting.

After taking a few steps, he suddenly saw a group of people rushing over with a clamor. They passed Chu Xiu, heading straight towards someone behind him.

Chu Xiu turned to look back and saw a tall young man, wearing intricately crafted armor with fierce beast engravings, landing in the square. As soon as he appeared, a large group of people surrounded him.

Journalists, teachers at the school, and even the principal were there.

”Ye Junlin.”

Chu Xiu recognized the guy.

Retracting his gaze, Chu Xiu blended into the crowd and left the field.

At the entrance, there were gathering points for each school. Countless parents were anxiously waiting, crying with joy when they received their children, while those still waiting were on tenterhooks.

Seeing the anxious faces, Chu Xiu couldn’t help but sigh secretly. This time, the Trial World’s difficulty level was extremely high, and the death rate would probably far exceed previous ones.

Exhaling lightly, Chu Xiu continued walking and soon reached his school’s gathering point. His eyes scanned the crowd, and even before he found his target, he heard an excited, hoarse voice shout, ”Ah-Chu!”

Following the voice, Chu Xiu saw a middle-aged woman crying tears of joy as she looked at him. It seemed the long-held tension in her nerves finally relaxed. She could barely stand, her legs going weak, and she squatted down.

”Mom,” Chu Xiu quickly called out, stepping forward to help the middle-aged woman up, and he couldn’t help but feel a wave of bittersweet emotion rising in his heart.

Even though he had only crossed over to this world for three months, with the original memories he possessed, he quickly adapted to the new life and accepted the affection from his parents.

Inhabiting this body naturally meant inheriting its Cause and Effect Points.

Wiping away the tears from Li Xiu’s face, Chu Xiu smiled and said, ”Mom, I’m fine, let’s go home.”

”Alright, alright,” Li Xiu nodded repeatedly, but perhaps too overwhelmed, her legs still lacked strength. Chu Xiu smiled and simply supported his mother as they walked.

Li Xiu clutched his arm tightly, asking continuously about the trial situation along the way. Chu Xiu didn’t want to worry her, so he didn’t mention the thrilling hunting process and instead talked about the stable life at the base.

Upon hearing that Chu Xiu had awakened a Support Profession, Li Xiu repeatedly said, ”Good, Support Profession is good. You won’t need to venture into the Abyss in the future, you’ll be able to gain experience slowly at home.”

A mother doesn’t care whether her son can become the most elite Awakened; she only cares whether he can live well.

Chu Xiu also didn’t want to make his family worry, so keeping it hidden like this wasn’t a bad idea.

The two chatted leisurely along the way. As they passed the market, they bought a freshly butchered big fish, wrapped in a red plastic bag. Chu Xiu carried it, occasionally feeling it twitch.

Passing through the market, they reached Chu Xiu’s home, an old apartment complex. Chu Xiu lived in apartment 602 on the second floor, left-hand side.

Opening the door revealed a tidy living room, but sparsely furnished; besides the dining table and chairs, there was only an old-fashioned television.

A middle-aged man without legs sat on the sofa watching TV, though his thoughts seemed far from the program. Hearing the door, he immediately turned his head and, upon seeing Chu Xiu, finally let out a long breath. He stared at Chu Xiu for a long time, tears glistening in his eyes before finally saying, ”The meal’s ready. Come eat.”

”Hmm,” Chu Xiu nodded with a smile.

Unlike Chu’s mother, Chu’s father wasn’t as emotional. Perhaps to maintain his dignity as the head of the family, he usually carried himself with a semblance of reserve. But Chu Xiu knew, his father’s feelings weren’t any less than his mother’s.

Both his parents were ordinary people. They had been living frugally so they could buy Chu Xiu good initial equipment for the Awakening Trial.

But half a year ago, Chu’s father had an accident at work, his legs crushed by unbalanced steel. The unscrupulous boss found various excuses to refuse compensation, leaving them with no choice but to sue. However, the company was a fraudulent one, its legal representative a penniless rogue, causing the lawsuit to drag on endlessly.

Pursuing it, they would surely win eventually, but that was the unethical company’s tactic. The lawsuit could drag on for a year or two, but could they delay the medical bills? Could they last long enough for the family to survive?

Back then, Chu’s father was in critical condition, with daily expenses in the ICU running into thousands. It forced them to privately settle for a meager amount, just to tide over the crisis.

Eventually, Chu’s father was saved but lost his legs; their savings were depleted, leaving the family relying solely on the mother.

This is also why, upon entering the Abyss, they could only afford to give Chu Xiu a set of clothing.

Looking at his parents, visibly aged, Chu Xiu gently touched his chest and silently promised, ”Don’t worry. I’ll take good care of your parents for you.”

Then, he smiled broadly, ”Dad, Mom, you won’t believe how incredible my awakened profession is. I earned tens of thousands this time, and you’ll never have to worry about money again!”

”Ah-Chu, don’t risk your life in the Abyss for a bit of money. This family doesn’t need you to earn money so urgently!” Li Xiu immediately cautioned.

Chu’s father also added, ”That’s right. Even though I’ve lost my legs, I’m not useless. I’ve got interviews with three companies today and should land a job soon. You don’t have to worry about this family.”

Chu Xiu laughed, ”Dad, Mom, don’t worry. I’ll just be assisting those with Combat Professions; no need to stress yourselves.”

Hearing this, Chu’s father and mother were completely relieved. The family started eating, and the small home was filled with a warm atmosphere.