Evelyn stared at Lucian, her lips slightly parted in shock.
Her beautiful eyes were filled with disbelief.
She knew exactly what Martial Soul Lucian had awakened—a D-Rank Shadow Warrior.
But then what were these hundred Shadow Soldiers that had suddenly appeared?
How could he materialize his Martial Soul immediately after Awakening?
How could someone who had only Awakened yesterday kill five Otherworldly Beast Wolves so effortlessly?
And why had those five Otherworldly Beast Wolves been completely helpless against just five of his Shadow Soldiers?
Didn’t Lucian Awaken just yesterday, the same as her?
Had the world gone crazy...
or was she the one going crazy?
Countless questions flooded Evelyn’s mind, leaving her completely bewildered.
Meanwhile, Lucian was absolutely delighted.
His Shadow Soldiers were far stronger than he had expected.
But what shocked him even more was what happened when he activated his Shadow Devour Talent...
Lucian could clearly feel his Shadow Soldiers becoming stronger.
At the same time, the Otherworldly Beast Wolf whose shadow had been devoured rapidly withered away. Its massive body shrank at an astonishing rate, and within moments, only a pile of melted bones remained.
The Shadow Soldiers had grown stronger.
And even more astonishingly, their increased strength was feeding back into Lucian’s body.
Shadow Devour could actually strengthen them.
Lucian felt as though he had just discovered an entirely new world.
Without hesitation, he ordered the remaining Shadow Soldiers to devour the shadows of the other four Otherworldly Beast Wolves.
Once they were finished, Lucian dismissed the hundred Shadow Soldiers with a single thought.
As he felt the power surging through his body, the Floating Pagoda Mysterious Skill automatically began circulating within his body.
Meanwhile, within the Martial Soul Space in his Sea of Consciousness, the Shadow Soldiers had already returned to their passive Cultivation.
"Lucian, are you alright?"
Seeing him standing there with a foolish grin on his face, Evelyn couldn’t help asking worriedly.
She could tell that Lucian was hiding some kind of secret.
But if he didn’t want to talk about it, Evelyn wouldn’t force him to.
"I’m fine. Nothing’s wrong."
Lucian looked at the fallen tree blocking the road ahead and summoned ten Shadow Soldiers.
"Clear the road."
The ten Shadow Soldiers immediately moved forward and began clearing the path.
Lucian then turned to Evelyn.
"Let’s go and find Grandma."
He had grown up in the Slums and had never encountered an Otherworldly Beast in person before.
Yet now, five of them had appeared less than ten kilometers from his home.
The thought of Grandma being in danger made Lucian increasingly anxious, and he couldn’t help urging Evelyn to hurry.
Evelyn seemed to sense his uneasiness.
She said nothing and simply pressed down harder on the accelerator.
The Ferrari sped along the rough road.
Despite the poor road conditions, they covered the remaining ten kilometers in less than six minutes.
Soon, they arrived at the entrance to the village.
As they drove in, old buildings and worn-out streets came into view.
The area wasn’t dirty, but the weathered walls and dilapidated roads clearly showed how old the place was.
Lucian’s home was one of those old houses.
Fortunately, although it looked just as worn and aged as he remembered, it had not been damaged by any Otherworldly Beasts.
It seemed the beasts had not reached this area yet.
Lucian secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
After passing through one street after another, they finally reached the innermost alley, where Lucian’s home was located.
It was a small, single-story brick-and-tile house.
The place was old and somewhat dilapidated, but it was kept surprisingly neat and tidy.
Seeing the familiar house still standing safely and the busy figure moving around inside, Lucian immediately felt relieved.
The moment he stepped out of the car, he called out loudly,
"Grandma! I’m back! And I even brought your granddaughter-in-law with me!"
Whether Grandma heard him or not was another matter.
Evelyn’s eyes widened the moment she heard those words.
She shot Lucian a fierce glare, her cheeks turning slightly red.
But surprisingly, she didn’t deny it.
She simply opened the car door and began carrying the large and small bags of medicine and tonics into the house.
Just as she was about to step through the doorway, an elderly woman walked out.
It was Lucian’s grandmother.
Her hair was more than half white, her frame slightly thin, and she wore simple, coarse linen clothes. Yet despite her age, her eyes were sharp and spirited, giving her the impression of a capable and energetic old woman.
This was Lucian’s grandmother in this life, the woman who had once found him barely alive in a pile of garbage and taken him in.
"Lucian is back! And Evelyn came too!"
Grandma’s face immediately lit up.
"It’s been so long since I’ve seen you, Evelyn. It’s wonderful to have you both here. Grandma has missed you two so much."
She smiled warmly at them, the corners of her eyes crinkling with joy.
"Grandma, Evelyn and I brought you plenty of tonics. You’re not in the best of health, so make sure you take them regularly."
As he spoke, Lucian and Evelyn carried the tonics they had brought into the house.
"Lucian and Evelyn are such thoughtful children. It warms an old woman’s heart to have you two care about me."
Grandma’s smile grew even wider.
"Since you’re both here, let Grandma cook something delicious for you."
"Perfect! I’m hungry again."
Lucian rubbed his stomach with a grin.
"I’ll go wash the vegetables."
His Shadow Soldiers were constantly Cultivating, and the strength they continued to gain was making him increasingly hungry.
With that, Lucian headed straight into the kitchen and busied himself with the preparations.
"That’s perfect! I love Grandma’s cooking."
Evelyn smiled brightly.
"Today, I even bought some Otherworldly Beast meat. It’ll be perfect for Grandma’s dishes."
She quickly opened the back seat and brought out several kilograms of Otherworldly Beast meat.
"Otherworldly Beast meat?"
Grandma looked at the meat in surprise before shaking her head.
"You children really spend too much money."
"It’s not a waste at all, Grandma."
Evelyn smiled.
"Otherworldly Beast meat can strengthen the Physique, so it’s good even for people who aren’t Martial Artists. It’ll be especially beneficial for your health."
She paused before continuing,
"Besides, Lucian and I have both Awakened our Talents, so we need a lot of Otherworldly Beast meat to support our cultivation. Grandma, just cook it without worrying about wasting anything."
"If we run out, I’ll simply buy more. This much meat isn’t expensive anyway."
Evelyn clearly didn’t think much of it.
But Grandma stared at her in astonishment.
"Evelyn... what did you just say?"
Her eyes widened.
"You and Lucian have both Awakened your Martial Souls?"
"Yes, Grandma. Lucian has Awakened a D-Rank Martial Soul Talent. He’s already much stronger now, and in the future, he’ll become an even more powerful Martial Artist."
"That’s wonderful!"
Grandma’s face lit up with joy.
"Lucian has had such a difficult life since he was little. If I hadn’t found him in that garbage heap back then, he might not have survived to this day."
Her eyes grew slightly moist as she recalled the past.
"Now that he’s Awakened his Talent, he can finally say that all those hardships were worth enduring. I really wish I could see the faces of those two heartless parents who abandoned him. I wonder how regretful they’d be now."
Grandma’s voice carried a hint of resentment as she remembered Lucian’s biological parents.
"No, Grandma."
Evelyn gently reassured her.
"Lucian has you. And from now on, he’ll have me too. He’ll never be abandoned again."
There was a trace of heartache in Evelyn’s eyes as she glanced toward the kitchen.
Meanwhile, Lucian was busy preparing the vegetables.
His personal Martial Artist Terminal suddenly received a message from Principal Warren.
He glanced at it.
Student Lucian, I’ve arrived at the location you sent me. I’ve confirmed the bodies of the Otherworldly Beasts. You did well. I’ve already reported the matter to the Martial Artist Association and requested a thorough investigation.
Lucian immediately replied,
"Thank you, Principal."
Meanwhile, beside the suburban road, Principal Warren stood silently, staring at the shrunken corpses of the Otherworldly Beast Wolves.
"Principal, did a Martial Artist intervene and save them?"
"From the moment we received the message until we arrived, less than fifteen minutes had passed. Did you see any other Martial Artists on the way?"
"No."
"Then what exactly happened here?"
Principal Warren crouched down and carefully examined the remains.
"There are traces of dark attributes left behind."
He paused, his expression becoming thoughtful.
"And Student Lucian’s Cultivation Technique is also of the dark attribute."
The other person immediately understood.
"Principal, are you suggesting that...?"
"That’s exactly why I’m confused."
...
Having grown up relying on Grandma, Lucian had developed surprisingly good cooking skills. After all, he had learned from an early age how to take care of himself.
As for being abandoned by his biological parents, Lucian felt nothing.
To him, Grandma was his only true family.
His biological parents were nothing more than strangers connected to him by blood. Their existence had no influence on him whatsoever.
Lucian didn’t pay much attention to the conversation between Evelyn and Grandma either.
To him, spending time with Grandma was what mattered most.
As for Evelyn?
In Lucian’s heart, she was already his future wife.
So what was there to worry about while his future wife chatted happily with Grandma?
Grandma had originally planned to do the cooking herself, but the moment Lucian saw the Otherworldly Beast meat, his eyes lit up.
He immediately took over the kitchen, eager to show Evelyn just how good his cooking was.
After tasting the food, Evelyn couldn’t help praising him.
"I didn’t know you could cook this well, Lucian! You should cook more often from now on. I’ll come over and freeload a meal whenever I get the chance!"
At the dinner table, Evelyn savored the dishes Lucian had prepared and couldn’t stop praising his cooking.
"Of course!"
Lucian grinned proudly.
"I once dreamed of becoming a God of Cooking!"
He then turned to Grandma.
"Grandma, you should eat more too. This Otherworldly Beast meat is really good stuff!"
He buried himself in his food, eating without the slightest concern for his image.
Grandma couldn’t help shaking her head.
"Evelyn, don’t mind him. This child has always been like this. Ever since he was little, he’s eaten like a pig, gobbling down everything in sight."
"Pfft... hahaha!"
Evelyn burst out laughing.
"It’s fine, Grandma. I’m already used to it!"
"If I’m the pig then Evelyn is the little piglet!," Lucian immediately retorted, unwilling to lose.
"You’re the pig!" Evelyn shot back. "You ate ten bowls this morning alone!"
The dinner table erupted in laughter.
...
The meal was filled with warmth and laughter, but beneath Lucian’s relaxed expression, his thoughts were already focused on the future.
Although the Otherworldly Beasts hadn’t reached this area today, the remote Slums were still far too dangerous.
He couldn’t possibly leave Grandma here alone.
He had to find a way to move her somewhere safer.