Chapter 1 Reunion

Nie Yan logged out of the game as usual, drank a nutritional supplement, and was about to start his studies and exercise when he suddenly heard urgent knocking on the door, *dong, dong, dong*.

Not knowing who it was, Nie Yan stood up and opened the door. Two familiar figures came into view. His parents were back!

Nie Yan's father's facial contours were very similar to Nie Yan's. Although only in his forties, he already had a lot of gray hair. He wore a well-tailored suit. His heroic figure and upright posture unconsciously revealed the temperament of a soldier. Nie Yan's mother was a beauty when she was young, but as time went by, some crow's feet had appeared at the corners of her eyes, but one could still feel her dignified and elegant temperament, which was completely different from that of ordinary citizens. Perhaps this was why Nie Yan's mother was out of place among her relatives and friends.

Nie Yan's parents were travel-worn, their faces full of fatigue, probably having not closed their eyes for days and nights.

"Dad, Mom." Nie Yan's nose tingled, and tears filled his eyes. Too many things had happened in his past and present lives. Seeing his parents again, he couldn't help but feel a mix of grief and joy.

"Xiao Yan, I'm sorry for leaving you alone at home." Nie Yan's mother put her arm around Nie Yan, choking with sobs. They had left Nie Yan behind because they had no other choice. "Mom and Dad are back."

"Mom, Dad, it's okay, I understand. It's good that you're back safe and sound," Nie Yan said. He understood his parents' difficulties. Having been reborn, he was no longer the ignorant fool he once was. Being able to see his parents again was a gift from God.

"Xiao Yan seems to have grown taller and stronger," Nie Yan's mother said lovingly.

"Mom and Dad, you haven't closed your eyes for days, have you? Hurry up and get some rest."

Nie Yan seemed much more sensible than before. Nie Yan's father looked at Nie Yan, and a kind and amiable smile appeared on his usually stern face.

"I've always said that boys should learn to be independent. You spoil him too much. Nie Yan has become much more sensible during the time we've been away," Nie Yan's father said with a hearty laugh.

Nie Yan's father was a rigid man, and the father and son had never had much communication. As a result, Nie Yan always felt a sense of estrangement from his father when he was young. However, after being reborn, Nie Yan also understood that the ways fathers and mothers express their love are different.

The family was finally reunited. Nie Yan's mother was surprised to find that Nie Yan could actually cook, and his skills were not bad. She was very gratified. It seemed that Nie Yan had indeed learned to be independent during the time they were away. He was more down-to-earth and stable than before, and his physique had become much stronger. She couldn't help but feel very relieved.

The dinner was filled with joy and warmth. The feeling made Nie Yan, who had lived two lives, realize once again how hard-won happiness was. A strong belief slowly grew in his heart. He had to have enough power to protect this family.

"Let A Chen come over to eat with us. He's been helping us with everything during this time, and he's suffered a lot with us," Nie Yan's mother said. A Chen in her mouth was one of Nie Yan's cousins, who had been very close to Nie Yan's family since childhood. He had been out with Nie Yan's parents during this time.

"Don't make trouble. It's not easy for him to come home. Let him spend more time with his family," Nie Yan's father scolded.

Nie Yan's mother smiled, thinking that he was right.

"We should also return the money we borrowed from Luo Ming and the others," Nie Yan's father said. When he borrowed money, Luo Ming and the others had made things difficult for him. This time, he had returned home in glory and could finally hold his head high. The money he had earned at the border was enough to pay back the money and provide the family with a worry-free life. Moreover, he had made connections and would soon be able to start the company. The future looked bright.

"I've already paid back the money they borrowed," Nie Yan said, sneering inwardly at the thought of these relatives. He wanted his parents to sever ties with these so-called relatives from today onwards.

"What did you say?" Nie Yan's father was stunned. Nie Yan had paid back the money?

"During the time Mom and Dad were away, my uncle and the others came to our house to demand payment several times. Having no other choice, I had to borrow some money from Yaozi to pay the bills first," Nie Yan said.

"Bastard! Luo Ming, those bastards!" Nie Yan's father's face was frosty, and he slammed the table heavily. Although Nie Yan didn't say anything when he spoke, he could imagine how much Nie Yan had been wronged. They had left Nie Yan at home, partly because the border was too dangerous to bring Nie Yan with them, and partly to reassure Luo Ming and the others. However, during the time they were away, Luo Ming and the others had actually demanded payment from a child who was alone at home, forcing Nie Yan to borrow money from his classmates to pay it back. This was too much. Even a clay figure had some anger.

Nie Yan's mother was also very angry. Luo Ming was Nie Yan's uncle, how could he do this!

"Since the money has all been paid back, then forget it. From now on, we'll break off contact with them. Our family doesn't have such relatives! But we have to pay Yaozi back. Let's find a time to treat Yaozi to a meal. We're very grateful for his help this time," Nie Yan's father said. He was filled with guilt towards Nie Yan. Fortunately, Nie Yan had matured. Otherwise, if the eighteen-year-old child were to develop any psychological shadows as a result, they would feel guilty for the rest of their lives.

"Okay, I'll call Yaozi tonight and ask him to come over for dinner tomorrow," Nie Yan said. He had been wondering why Luo Ming and the others had come to demand payment. Maybe it had something to do with that woman Lin Jia, but since it was all over, he didn't need to dwell on it. Luo Ming and the others' demand for payment directly led to his parents breaking with them. When his father started the company, he would naturally not let these so-called relatives squeeze into the company. Lin Jia had actually done Nie Yan a great favor.

"When should we have Lao Lin and Lao Liu come to our house? We're also very grateful to them this time," Nie Yan's father said. Those relatives were still not as good as these old comrades who had gone through life and death with them.

"Yes," Nie Yan's mother nodded.

The family chatted until late at night.

"Mom and Dad, get some rest early so you'll have energy tomorrow!" Nie Yan said. He was actually in his twenties, but wearing the shell of an eighteen-year-old, he had no choice but to act sensible to please his parents.

"You should get some rest early too," Nie Yan's mother said, touching Nie Yan's head affectionately.

Although Nie Yan's father didn't say anything, Nie Yan could feel that he was extremely happy in his heart.

Returning to his room from the living room, Nie Yan lay on the bed. His parents were back, and the feeling was extremely comfortable. Today was the most peaceful day he had had since his rebirth. He glanced at the helmet lying quietly by the bed. Many things would still happen in the future, but everything was developing steadily. No matter what, he would never let his family repeat its old path.

For the next three days, Nie Yan went into the game at night to farm quests and dungeons, and accompanied his parents to visit relatives and friends during the day. After all, people like Luo Ming, his aunt, and his aunt were in the minority. There were still many relatives who had helped them when the family was in trouble. His parents visited them, invited Tang Yao to their house for a meal, and also visited Uncle Lin and Uncle Liu, as well as Nie Yan's cousin A Chen.

On the third day, Nie Yan's father began to prepare for the company anxiously. He had finally connected with someone on the other side. If he didn't start the company quickly, the connection would easily be broken.

Registering a company was not a troublesome matter. With a fixed business and a few people to recruit, it could be up and running. Nie Yan's father was doing a highly profitable business, and he didn't have to worry about the market. Someone on the other side would ship the goods over, and the country would immediately buy them at a high price. Otherwise, Nie Yan's father wouldn't have amassed a huge fortune in just a year or two in his previous life. Of course, after the company expanded, it would also do legitimate business, but that was just to cover things up.

Since his father's side was going smoothly from the start, Nie Yan could focus his attention on *Faith*.

Logging back into the game, he checked his quest status: 11997/12000.

He only needed three more to complete this stage of the quest. Nie Yan continued to kill headless horsemen. Anyway, it had always been like this, and he had become numb. He killed three more.

System: You have completed quest progress 5 and have obtained the Intermediate Demon Hunter title.

This quest was really difficult. If there was another quest progress 6, Nie Yan would definitely go crazy. He checked the status attributes of the Intermediate Demon Hunter. Respect value for all human kingdoms +12, all dark creature attributes within 10 yards -20%, comes with Daze skill, Intimidate skill.

Daze: Can cause the target creature to enter a state of fear and rigidity for 2 seconds, range 3 yards.

Intimidate: When this skill is cast, it can disperse nearby monsters, lasting for 10 minutes, ineffective against monsters more than 20 levels higher than yourself.

Daze was a short-range control skill, which was still very good. It could be used in both PK and monster killing. As for Intimidate, it was quite useful when farming monsters. Most importantly, with the Intimidate skill, he seemed to be able to enter the temple in the center of the Mirage Realm.

The rewards for the Beginner Undead Hunter, Intermediate Undead Hunter, and Advanced Undead Hunter, although not bad, were just symbolic. It wasn't until the title became Beginner Demon Hunter and Intermediate Demon Hunter that the rewards for this quest became truly generous!

Nie Yan looked at his respect value. His previous respect value was already 19 points. With the 12-point respect value bonus, he had a total of 31 respect points with Carol. Now, it didn't matter if he returned to Carol City in a red-name state! The guards wouldn't kill him!

Immediately afterwards, Nie Yan received another quest.

System: Congratulations on completing a round of quests, Strength +10, Agility +10, Intelligence +10.

System: Quest progress 6, kill undead creatures above level 30, quantity 0/50000.

When Nie Yan saw the words Quest Progress 6, he almost had the urge to kill someone, but he breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that it wasn't the headless horsemen. This quest only required him to kill 50,000 undead creatures above level 30, and it didn't require him to complete it here. He could do it outside as well. He wondered what the rewards for the Advanced Demon Hunter title were. Also, was the Advanced Demon Hunter title already the highest level, or were there more?