Chapter 3: A Fortuitous Encounter

Ying Li did harbor resentment towards Wu Nian.

Without Wu Nian, his previous life would never have turned out that way, and he likely wouldn’t have died during the Beast Tide.

Before dying, Wu Nian felt wronged by him, but the truth was the opposite. He was the one wronged by Wu Nian.

That day, he was supposed to leave the city. If he had been outside the city at that time, he certainly wouldn’t have died. It was because Wu Nian came to discuss terminating the Guardian Contract that he remained in the city.

If Wu Nian had paid the compensation sooner, he wouldn’t have even stayed in Starlight City. After all, Starlight City contained the Yu Family, who disgusted him.

Even setting that aside… he was an A-Rank Sentinel with his own life-saving methods. Escaping from the Beast Tide wouldn’t have been a difficult task.

The Beast Tide had struck suddenly, but hadn’t all those members of the great families managed to escape?

At that moment, it was Wu Nian’s loud, hysterical outbursts that drew too much attention, and his exposed Mental Power that attracted several high-rank Mutant Beasts, which brought Ying Li into a fight he couldn’t win, leading to his death on the spot.

It could be said that Wu Nian was the cause of his death.

However, with everything reset, Ying Li wouldn’t go so far as to seek revenge against Wu Nian.

Firstly, Wu Nian was his own choice. He had been blind and failed to cut his losses in time.

Secondly, he actually had no way of seeking revenge against Wu Nian.

The world outside the underground city was dangerous. When Sentinels left the city, they not only had to face Mutant Beasts but also guard against other Sentinels.

In the months before his death in his previous life, the Yu Family had bribed some Sentinels to try and kill him when he was outside the city. He had ultimately killed them in self-defense.

But the wilderness was one thing; the underground city was another.

The underground city was full of surveillance. The great families might be able to make certain people disappear in the city without a trace, but a Sentinel without any backing like himself, if he laid a hand on a Guide, he would be immediately found out.

There was no need to ruin his new life just for a Wu Nian.

And he didn’t need to lift a finger against Wu Nian.

In this life, if he didn’t become Wu Nian’s Guardian, Wu Nian’s future prospects were likely dire.

Wu Nian’s ability to advance had been entirely built on the resources Ying Li piled on him. Without Ying Li in this life, Wu Nian could forget about advancing.

Wu Nian’s mind wasn’t particularly sharp, either.

A dim-witted D-Rank Guide simply couldn’t make waves in the underground city.

Ying Li’s deepest hatred, however, was reserved for the Yu Family.

In Starlight City, B-Rank Sentinels were common, but A-Rank Sentinels were rare. S-Rank Sentinels numbered less than ten in total.

His own strength had been forged in deadly combat against beasts, and he had also experienced some fortuitous encounters. Thus, he far surpassed other Sentinels of the same rank.

Against an A-Rank Sentinel like Yu Mingwei, who had barely experienced training outside the city and had almost zero combat experience? Ying Li could easily take on three such opponents alone.

If it truly came to a life-and-death struggle, even ten Yu Mingweis would be no match for him.

In his previous life, after moving to the Central District, Yu Mingwei introduced him and he joined the Yu Family’s Hunting Team.

When he was only B-Rank, he already helped the Yu Family retrieve many resources. After becoming an A-Rank Sentinel, he had performed even greater meritorious service for the Yu Family.

The Yu Family’s own S-Rank Sentinel was quite old and had long since stopped leaving the city. For several years, two-thirds of the resources the Yu Family obtained from outside the city were brought back by teams he led.

And what was the result? Yu Mingwei, while he was risking his life outside the city, seduced his Guide. When it was discovered, Yu Mingwei refused to even pay compensation, and then plotted to have him killed.

Sometimes he truly wondered how the Yu Family had managed to build such a large enterprise.

He’d given years of loyal service to the Yu Family, and this was how he was treated? Didn’t they fear that their other subordinates would feel a sense of dread and insecurity?

With his example set before them, who would still be willing to risk their lives for the Yu Family?

Although the Yu Family managed to flee when the Mutant Beasts invaded the underground city, Ying Li knew they wouldn’t meet a good end.

The Yu Family’s S-Rank Sentinel was already very old. His combat strength was at most equal to Ying Li’s before his death. As for the several A-Rank Sentinels from the Yu Family’s main line? They probably couldn’t even defeat a B-Rank Sentinel.

A group like that, wanting to travel safely from Starlight City to another city? Extremely difficult.

Most importantly, among those Sentinels the Yu Family had recruited, there were quite a few who, like Ying Li, harbored hatred towards the Yu Family.

Even those who didn’t hate the Yu Family…

The Yu Family had three Hunting Teams that rotated going out to hunt.

The Sentinels in these three Hunting Teams were the top combat power the Yu Family possessed.

When he first joined the Yu Family’s Hunting Team, he hadn’t been allowed to lead a team. But after advancing to A-Rank, he became the Team Leader of one of those Hunting Teams.

What was more, in the final years, Yu Mingwei, to keep him outside the city as much as possible, would have him go out with the other two Hunting Teams even when his own team was resting.

In other words, the people from all three Hunting Teams had once fought side-by-side with him through life-and-death situations.

Many among them had been saved by him and received his help.

After his falling out with the Yu Family, they had all become dissatisfied with the Yu Family.

After Yu Mingwei sent people to kill him, he had also set up certain arrangements. He gave a kind of medicinal powder that could attract Mutant Beasts to two members of the Hunting Team who hated the Yu Family just as much as he did.

His original intention was to trap Yu Mingwei outside the city on one of the rare occasions that young master ventured out.

But now, with the Yu Family abandoning the city and fleeing as a whole group…

While he hated the Yu Family, he hadn’t wished for every single one of them to die. Those two, however, were different.

If they used that powder and the Sentinels of the Hunting Teams then scattered… the Yu Family would likely be completely wiped out.

The events of his previous life tumbled within Ying Li’s mind, eventually calming into stillness.

He began to focus on the present moment.

Although everything in this park was artificial, it was exquisitely designed, and the scenery was beautiful.

And those people coming to the park, although many were in a hurry, their faces were full of hope for the future.

His own condition was also better than it had ever been.

In his previous life, chasing money, he had always stayed out in the wilderness. He ate poorly, slept poorly, and pushed himself too hard. His body had been overdrawn, even affecting his potential lifespan.

Whether a Sentinel or a Guide, advancing in rank wasn’t easy. His ability to go from a D-Rank Sentinel to an A-Rank Sentinel in his previous life was not only due to his diligence but also because of a fortuitous encounter he had.

If he had properly utilized that opportunity, he might even have had hope of becoming an S-Rank Sentinel. But his body in his previous life simply couldn’t sustain it.

What about this life?

Although he had been leaving the city since sixteen and had already been fighting desperately for four full years, his body had some deficits now, but it was nowhere near as severe as it would become later.

Right now, he was still very young!

As long as he took good care of himself, he could certainly become an S-Rank Sentinel.

Regarding his previous life, Ying Li was filled with regret.

All he wanted was to live a good life, but if he truly calculated it, he hadn’t lived a single comfortable day.

He’d squeezed himself dry, sacrificing everything, and in the end, it was Wu Nian who enjoyed the fruits of his labor!

If Wu Nian had merely been devoted to him wholeheartedly, that would be one thing. But Wu Nian had an affair.

And most importantly, Ying Li had only lived to be thirty.

Ordinary people in the underground city lived very hard lives, with an average lifespan of only sixty or seventy years. But Sentinels were different.

The Sentinels of those great families in the Central District had lifespans more than double that of ordinary people. Some long-lived Sentinels could even live past two hundred years.

Dying at thirty was truly rotten luck.

In this life, he was determined to live to a hundred years old—no, two hundred years old!

Lying there, Ying Li felt his heart become perfectly still.

Getting a second chance at life… was wonderful.

Resting for two hours, even taking a short nap on the grass of the park equipped with air purifiers, Ying Li finally got up.

He noticed many people around him eyeing him with envy.

Staying in the park cost money every minute and every second. After coming in, he hadn’t gone to see the sights, hadn’t played any amusement games—he’d just lain there. This clearly showed he had money to burn. How could others not be envious?

Wu Nian loved being envied, which was why he wanted to eat good food and wear fine clothes. Ying Li, however, didn’t care about such things at all.

His generosity today was mainly to celebrate.

Celebrating his new life.

After leaving the park, Ying Li entered the nearby mall.

In his previous life, he hadn’t cared much about his own body. This was a common trait among many people with backgrounds similar to his.

They were very good at enduring illness and pain, and would even choose to trade their health for money.

He spent most of his previous life outside the city. Partly, this was due to the Yu Family’s deliberate arrangements. Partly, it was his own desire to earn money.

He’d desperately wanted a house that belonged solely to him.

By the time he caught Wu Nian cheating, he’d actually already saved enough money to buy a hundred-square-meter flat in the Central District. At that point, he was thinking he could finally take things easier. Unfortunately, plans change faster than circumstances.

In this life, he wouldn’t be so foolish again.

First, Ying Li went and purchased some protein-rich Supplements suitable for Sentinels.

Previously, he always ate the ordinary Nutrient Paste meant for common people.

Nutrient Paste was rich in various nutrients, but truthfully, it had some deficiencies.

Ordinary people eating Nutrient Paste long-term could still become malnourished, let alone Sentinels who had huge energy expenditures.

In his previous life, while still studying at the Sentinel Academy, the Supplements and some of the food issued by the academy had compensated for his nutritional needs. But after graduation, in order to save money, he’d eaten the cheapest food, and it truly led to some malnutrition.

Now that he’d just become a B-Rank Sentinel, he needed to replenish himself even more.

Looking at his somewhat overly thin arms and legs, Ying Li then walked into a restaurant that sold natural food produced in the Ecological Zone. He ordered four servings of chicken stew with potatoes.

Potatoes were the staple, and the small amount of chicken was the main dish. This was one of the most popular natural food items in the Upper City District.

The reason for its popularity was simple: it was cheap.

Potatoes were the cheapest among the various staple foods, and chicken was also the cheapest type of meat.

These four servings cost Ying Li five thousand Credit Points.

Thinking back to his previous life, when he’d come to eat with Wu Nian, they’d spent even more money, and he hadn’t even gotten enough to eat… He felt he’d been a complete fool.

Thankfully, at this point in time, the money he’d spent on Wu Nian wasn’t that much yet.

Although he’d been going outside the city for four years, his rank had been low before, so the money he’d earned wasn’t much.

Because he hadn’t confirmed his relationship with Wu Nian, the money and resources he’d given Wu Nian were also within limits.

Thinking of this, Ying Li pulled out a box from his person.

His advancement from D-Rank Sentinel to C-Rank had entirely depended on his own hard work coupled with aging.

In fact, many Sentinels could rise by one rank when they were about to come of age.

But advancing further after that was extremely difficult. Most Sentinels wouldn’t advance again in their lifetime. Those who could advance further would need decades of accumulation.

But he had advanced again in just two years, becoming a B-Rank Sentinel.

This was because, not long ago, he’d received a fortuitous encounter.

At that time, he’d accidentally fallen into a cave and encountered a B-Rank Mutant Beast, nearly losing his life.

Severely injured, he hid inside a narrow crevice in the rock. The Mutant Beast was too large to enter, so he barely managed to keep his life.

Inside that crevice, he drank the water trickling down the rock face and ate the small bugs attracted by his blood. And then, somehow, he advanced in rank.

Afterwards, he killed that B-Rank Mutant Beast, rushed back to Starlight City, recovered from his injuries, registered his new rank, and then went to find Wu Nian to confess his feelings.

And the box he held in his hand contained the Crystal Core from that very same B-Rank Mutant Beast.

It was the very first B-Rank Crystal Core he’d obtained in this life.

On this day in his previous life, besides spending fifty thousand Credit Points on Wu Nian, he’d also given Wu Nian this Crystal Core, which held such commemorative significance.

Of course, Wu Nian hadn’t treasured it. He’d later converted it to money and spent it.

Ying Li took the Crystal Core out and studied it carefully.

When he was young and inexperienced, with no one to teach him, when he was out in the wild, he often encountered good things without recognizing them, losing out on a lot of money.

But his discernment now was nothing like before. He would never let such a thing happen again.

After carefully examining the Energy Crystal Core in his hand and confirming that this core didn’t have any special properties, Ying Li took it to a Crystal Core purchasing point, intending to sell it.

Right now, he was short on money.