Chapter 101: The More Prosperous Martial Arts Become, the Harder Life Is at the Bottom

When recruiting workers, it was clearly stated: meals provided, but no lodging. Of course, the meals wouldn’t be anything special—no separate, fancy dishes prepared just for him. “Meals provided” meant he could join the workers in the cafeteria for a meal either before or after his shift.

Around ten past eight in the morning, the cafeteria was just opening for breakfast. Since the workers followed a three-shift system, meal times generally coincided with shift changes.

Shitie Xin went to the counter and ordered a meal that looked rich with meat and oil, a towering heap of white rice. Glancing down at the sauce, he saw it brimming with chunks of meat, and the aroma was mouthwatering.

Yet, the workers around him mostly wore disgruntled expressions upon seeing such fare, with some ill-tempered ones even grumbling curses. Shitie Xin had grown used to this.

The workers at the Meat Union Factory themselves disliked eating the meat they produced. As for why, the regular line workers refused to discuss it with a temporary worker like him.

Security inspection was a thankless job. Here, Shitie Xin was ostracized and isolated. When there were many people, some would deliberately rush to take his seat, pushing him aside with sneers and mockery.

So, Shitie Xin always found a corner to eat alone in silence.

The food smelled delicious, almost overwhelmingly rich, but Shitie Xin ate without tasting it. He devoured his meal quickly, his mind racing with calculations.

He was facing a huge problem.

One word—money.

The kind of money that settles debts, the kind that can bring even heroes to their knees!

Working here was tough, but Shitie Xin wasn’t afraid of hardship. Yet, while working these rotating security shifts, he found it difficult to find time for other jobs. Over the past few days, he had tried multiple avenues but discovered that every job he could access required long hours of heavy labor, clashing heavily with his security schedule.

There were short-term hourly jobs, but they generally demanded a certain level of skill and finesse to qualify. Especially those that paid well—requirements were frighteningly high.

Shitie Xin had even applied for temporary supermarket cashier positions, confident in his arithmetic skills. One job advertised a staggering fifty points per hour—a salary almost unreal. But upon arrival, he saw his competitors were cunning and skillful, some on entirely different levels.

Particularly one young woman, whom Shitie Xin estimated to possess at least a fourth-level mastery of mental acuity. With a single glance, she could swiftly calculate the total price of an entire cart of goods, leaving Shitie Xin dumbfounded.

He tried as well; his accuracy matched hers, but his speed lagged far behind. At times like these, boasting about a first-level perfection was useless. This was simple addition, maybe subtracting a few discounts. Whoever was fastest and error-free got the job.

Outmatched, Shitie Xin had no choice but to slink away from the supermarket.

Other well-paying hourly jobs were mostly taken by seasoned practitioners who could skillfully exploit any loophole or advantage.

In Fengming No. 1 High School, a practitioner was a rare and precious figure, and opportunities came flooding in. But here, in this world where cultivation and martial arts thrived everywhere, it was different. In Tumu Fort, second-level cultivators and above were valuable, but first-level practitioners of second, third, or even fourth rank were not so uncommon.

Shitie Xin simply couldn’t compete with them.

Often, the flourishing of martial arts and cultivation didn’t mean more opportunities for the lower class. Quite the opposite. The more widespread cultivation became, the harder it was for the underprivileged to access resources and chance, thus harder to advance. This vicious cycle meant wealthier peers quickly left them behind—a gap rarely bridged by mere effort.

Since childhood, Shitie Xin often felt this was a world designed to crush hope.

There was an old saying: “Dare to risk death to pull the emperor off his horse.” Even the supreme rulers were mortal, with fears and compromises. If one risked everything, even the lowliest could bring down the highest.

But now, that was no longer true.

Resources and opportunities were monopolized. No matter how desperately you fought, ten Shitie Xins couldn’t defeat a skilled nurse like Shi Yu Hui, let alone higher-level cultivators. To second- or third-tier masters, Shitie Xin was mere dust, utterly insignificant.

If not for legal constraints, these elites wouldn’t even leave the bottom rung a way to survive.

Returning to odd jobs, after thorough searching, Shitie Xin found no hourly work suitable for him. He wasn’t afraid of hardship, but the jobs he could do had too low a cost-benefit ratio. Even risking his life, he couldn’t earn enough to repay his debts.

Moreover, security work was exhausting. Overfatigue could cause lapses in vigilance, leading to even bigger trouble.

Most crucially, there was the matter of progressing in rhetoric cultivation.

If he spent too much time on odd jobs, how could he advance his rhetoric skills? He had only a few ticks left before reaching perfection. If he couldn’t attain the perfect realm soon, he might as well not dwell on it and break through to the second level directly. But since perfection was within reach, and the divine golden light was ready, he couldn’t afford to give up these last few ticks.

Not only did he have to achieve perfection, but he had to do it quickly!

He had to break through to perfection before the qualification test and reach at least the second-level pass!

But failing to repay his debts would severely hurt his credit rating... Damn it, who was the kind soul who sent me to the hospital back then? If they hadn’t, I wouldn’t be in this predicament! If I’d just stayed in the orphanage practicing calligraphy and sleeping, I’d have had first-level perfection done ages ago!

Besides, with my current recovery rate, a few more days and I’d be perfectly fine, no consequences at all. Some good Samaritan just pushed me into a debt abyss, leaving me trapped. I can’t curse the person who helped me, but damn, I’m really freaking out right now!

So, no matter how I look at it, how do I quickly, massively, and easily earn money?

Hmm... the ordinary routes are definitely out...

I need to think of some unconventional, clever method that suits my abilities. What are my strengths... strengths... especially long...

Huh?!

Why did Captain Chen’s “related work” suddenly flash through my mind?! No, no, that’s too dangerous, better kill the thought immediately. Though I, Shitie Xin, am handsome, charming, and radiant enough to captivate all sorts of girls, I can’t get involved in related work—who knows if the client is a girl?

What if it’s an older woman?

What if it’s a big black man?

Better keep thinking of other options. What’s my most outstanding skill right now, besides that big water pipe...

“Hey there, mind if I sit here?” A young man in a security uniform, bright-faced and smiling, approached Shitie Xin. Grinning broadly, revealing a full set of white teeth, he said, “Hello, hello, my name’s Si Chong Tian. I’m new here today. Please take care of me, senior!”