Raising Orphans, Not Assassins

Vol. 1 - Chapter 22 - System Upgrade! A Fleeting Month Passes

[Ding!]

[Detected that Chen Da Ming has three orphan attributes!]

[Number of adopted orphans reaches three!]

[System upgrade initiated...]

Chen Ye's motion to stretch his back halted.

"Hmm? The system is actually upgrading!"

"Not bad."

[System Upgrade Progress: 10%]

[30%]

[70%]

[90%]

[Ding!]

[System upgrade complete!]

A virtual system interface popped up before Chen Ye.

[Orphan Cultivation System 2.0]

[Host: Chen Ye]

[Age: 20]

[Points: 1172]

[Owned Director Skills: Invulnerability, Shrinking Earth]

[Indestructible Body: Nothing in the world can harm your body.]

[Ground Shrinking Step: You can reduce a maximum of 100 meters to a single step, appearing at any reachable location, with no cooldown.]

[Orphanage Capacity: 3/4 ]

[Special Building: Library]

Chen Ye noticed that the system interface now included "Orphanage Capacity" and "Special Building" sections at the bottom.

"System, what does 3/4 mean?" Chen Ye asked.

[Ding!]

System upgrade details are as follows:]

[1. Orphanage capacity indicates the number of orphans that can be adopted.]

[Note: Given the host's current level of ability, adopting too many orphans will decrease the quality of cultivation for other orphans.]

[2. Introduction of orphan-specific career missions, which will yield substantial points and monetary rewards upon completion.]

[Note: Orphans with active career missions will not earn points through daily settlement but will still contribute to daily reports.]

[3. Special buildings can now be upgraded.]

[Note: Task rewards will include more special buildings.]

The system upgrade report was presented.

Chen Ye pondered for a moment and understood.

"So, it means that I can currently adopt a maximum of four orphans. According to the system, if I adopt too many, the resources will be too scattered, which will affect the growth of the orphans..."

"Specific career missions... Does that mean Da Ming and Xiao Lian won't appear in the daily settlement anymore?"

"Completing career missions will yield substantial points... The rewards should far exceed daily settlements."

"Having more special buildings is fine; Da Ming reads comic books in the library every day and has learned quite a few characters."

Chen Ye sat back in the lounge chair as the system's task panel refreshed with three tasks.

[Task: Adopt four orphans (3/4)]

[Task Reward: 1000 points, 500 taels of silver, one orphan skill draw chance, one special building draw chance]

...

[Chen Da Ming's Special Task: Woodcutter]

[Task Information: Chop down 100 trees]

[Task Reward: 5000 points, 200 taels of silver, one exclusive wish item for Chen Da Ming]

...

[Xiao Lian's Special Task: Assassin]

[Task Information: Kill 100 people]

[Task Reward: 5000 points, 200 taels of silver, one exclusive wish item for Xiao Lian]

...

Seeing the task information pop up, Chen Ye gasped.

Chop 100 trees, kill 100 people...

"System, isn't the difficulty of these tasks a bit unreasonable?"

Chen Ye complained.

The system did not respond.

Cutting trees and killing people are not the same...

Chen Ye imagined Xiao Lian standing in front of him after killing a hundred people, exuding murderous intent, and felt a headache coming on.

"Forget it, let's take it one step at a time."

Chen Ye sighed softly.

Raising children is not a task that can be completed overnight; it requires years of effort.

...

In the blink of an eye, another month passed.

Dark clouds gathered together, producing a low rumbling sound.

Before long, a heavy downpour began.

Raindrops hit the ground, driving away the heat and bringing a refreshing coolness.

The time had entered August, different from July, which frequently saw rain, fluctuating between scorching heat and humidity.

The weather in Yuhang County had become increasingly stifling, but by the end of August, after the hottest period, it would get cooler.

Today, it was rare to see such rain, bringing a refreshing coolness along with the scent of rain on the soil, making people feel at ease.

In the room, Chen Ye sat in his lounge chair, eyes closed, listening to the sound of the rain outside, his fingers lightly tapping the chair.

In the cradle beside him, Xiao Fu curled up in her small quilt, sleeping soundly.

This past month has been peaceful and harmonious, with some changes, but not many.

"Plop..."

"Plop..."

Suddenly, urgent running footsteps sounded in the courtyard, with splashes as someone stepped in puddles.

Chen Ye opened his eyes and looked toward the courtyard.

A boy wearing a bamboo hat and carrying a small axe on his waist ran in. His short yellow hemp shirt was soaked by the rain, and his straw shoes were muddy.

"Da Ming, be quiet, don't wake Xiao Fu," Chen Ye called softly.

The boy immediately slowed down and tiptoed into the house. He called out to Chen Ye with a simple grin, "Dad."

"Mm," Chen Ye responded.

Da Ming was one of the few changes in the orphanage.

Because of the frequent need to buy firewood, Chen Ye, Da Ming, and the firewood seller, a man named Zhang Long, gradually became familiar with each other.

Zhang Long, who made a living by chopping wood, had two daughters, aged 8 and 6. His wife had suffered complications during childbirth and had not conceived again.

Zhang Long had always longed for a son.

After getting to know Zhang Long, he saw that Da Ming was strong and interested in chopping wood, and was about the same age as his eldest daughter.

So, he suggested that their families become in-laws, with the plan that his daughter would marry Da Ming when she turned 14.

Chen Ye met Zhang Long's eldest daughter, who was of average looks, neither beautiful nor ugly, but had a good temperament.

After some consideration, Chen Ye agreed to Zhang Long's proposal, and their families became in-laws.

Zhang Long was overjoyed and grew even more fond of the honest Da Ming.

This past month, he often took Da Ming into the mountains to chop wood, teaching him the skills.

Chen Ye learned that most of the wood Zhang Long chopped was sold to the wealthy in the city. Although it was hard work, it was enough to cover the family's expenses.

After some thought, Chen Ye decided to let it be, considering it as finding a mentor for Da Ming.

Zhang Long, being Da Ming's future father-in-law in name, wouldn't harm him.

Chen Ye didn't have high expectations for Da Ming, only hoping that he would be able to support himself in the future.

Da Ming, with his simple and honest appearance, had someone willing to marry their daughter to him, which made Chen Ye quite satisfied.

Among these children, the one Chen Ye was most at ease with was Da Ming.

The one he was most worried about was Xiao Lian.

This past month, Xiao Lian had been handling the daily life in the orphanage as usual, taking turns with Chen Ye to take care of Xiao Fu.

But through the daily reports, Chen Ye knew that Xiao Lian was practicing hidden weapons and internal martial arts every day.

After a month, Xiao Lian had already reached the initial stage of martial arts.

Her Drifting Rain Footwork had reached a small achievement, and she had started to grasp the basics of Tangmen's hidden weapons.

Although Chen Ye didn't know much about martial arts, he understood that such achievements were extraordinary.

In Yuhang County, Officer Song, who was in his thirties, had reached the Non-Ordinary Level. Yet in just one month, Xiao Lian had broken through to this level, and that was not to mention her mastery of body techniques and hidden weapons.

To be honest, Chen Ye felt a bit envious. Not long ago, he had witnessed Xiao Lian's skill with hidden weapons.

While coaxing Xiao Fu, a fly buzzed around. Xiao Lian picked up a fallen leaf from the ground, and with a flick of her fair fingers, the fly was sliced in half by the leaf.

Unknowingly, Xiao Lian had become the martial arts master that Chen Ye had always dreamed of!

"There's food in the kitchen, go fill your stomach," Chen Ye said, glancing at Da mMng and yawning.

Gratitude shone in Da Ming's eyes as he, still wearing his bamboo hat, headed straight to the kitchen.

Over the past month, Da Ming and Xiao Lian's progress on their respective missions had been minimal.

Da Ming had chopped down only two trees, while Xiao Lian focused solely on her training without taking any lives.

Da Ming possessed immense strength, with the physical power of an adult despite being only ten years old. However, his stamina was lacking, requiring frequent breaks while chopping wood. Upon returning, he had a ravenous appetite and ate a lot.

Perhaps in a few years, as Da Ming grew older and the effects of his attributes accumulated, his potential would be truly terrifying.

Since Da Ming and Xiao Lian no longer contributed to the daily score, Chen Ye's daily points could only come from Xiao Fu, averaging around 30 points a day.

After deducting the points used for exchanging books and supplies, Chen Ye's point balance had only reached 1723 after a month.

The points were manageable, but what puzzled Chen Ye the most was the gratitude levels.

Da Ming's gratitude had risen to 80% but hadn't changed for a month. Xiao Lian's gratitude grew slowly, increasing by only 2% in a month, now at 70%.

Perplexed but unable to figure out why, Chen Ye could only blame the system.