Chapter 3 - Underneath the cover

After washing the pots and pans, Li Rui washed his oily hands before going into the living room.

Li Rui stared at the old 32-inch tv as it was playing something from Animal Planet. The antelopes on the tv were effortlessly running wild in the African prairie.

On the side, Li Rui could feel the admiration and anticipation coming from Li Wei's eyes.

She was at the age of playing and running around, but she had no other choice but to sit and rest like a chronically ill patient.

The only thing worth gratifying about this was that she could still take care of herself.

However, when he noticed that she had gotten even thinner compared to last week, a sense of determination flashed through his eyes.

"System!"

He said it silently to himself. A translucent panel that was invisible to everyone else appeared in sight.

The familiar game interface showed up, and all of the icons were gray in color. His EXP had been stuck at the same 99% of level 0 ever since a few years ago.

"System, how can I break through this level?"

"Reply to me, god damn it!"

"Fuck you! System!"

After trying to communicate with the system for the thousandth time, Li Rui was once again smacked by the cold, hard truth.

This was a cold-blooded system with no such thing known as emotions.

"Brother, hug."

He sat next to Li Wei, and she immediately and habitually crawled into Li Rui's arms. Once she found a comfortable position, she continued to beautifully watch Animal Planet.

As Li Rui gently held her in his arms, his heart turned sour.

Li Rui had loved holding her in his arms when she was younger, but now, it had become the most painful thing in his heart.

When she was younger, she was just like a meatball, and hugging her was like hugging a teddy bear. Her eyes would turn into a crescent shape when she smiled. Li Wei was such a cute little girl.

But now, all that was left were skin and bones. Other than the small amount of baby fat left on her cheeks, her body looked like a skeleton that had been entirely covered with a layer of skin.

Every time he held her in his arms, Li Rui could directly feel the immense change in her life. At this moment, it was as if her life could be easily blown out like a candle's flame.

Her arms were as thin as a bamboo stick, and they seemed like they would break with just a snap. Her thighs were even thinner than Li Rui's arms.

The more he noticed his little sister's changes, the more he started tearing up. He quietly wiped it off.

Why was this happening?

Her endocrine system, digestive system, circulatory system, and even her hematological system…

They had tested everything over and over again, but they were still unable to figure out what was wrong with her.

It was as if there was an invisible colander in her that was constantly draining out her vitality and blood.

When science was unable to provide an explanation, Li Rui could only resort to supernatural forces.

In fact, he had never worshiped god in the past, but when the old director of the Imperial College of Traditional Medicine saw Li Wei, he had noticed that there was a 'spooky' aura around her. According to him, this was a sign that she was surrounded by evil spirits, and suggested that Li Rui should take Li Wei to a 'master'.

Li Rui took his sister to all sorts of mountains and valleys all over the world trying to look for help. They visited every single temple and shrine that they could find and even went to churches in Italy and Vatican City. In the end, they were no such 'masters'; all of them were just fucking scammers!

The only good thing about this was they got to travel to all sorts of places and Li Wei did have a good time whilst traveling.

Since there was no hope even after praying to god, Li Rui had turned to the system for help.

As the system was the most direct supernatural force that he could find, Li Rui believed that it would be able to benefit his sister's condition.

But as his EXP grew and his body became even stronger, the system jammed…

Could you believe it?? It was stuck!!

Li Rui was so frustrated that he wanted to beat up the system itself!!

His EXP had been at 99% for as long as he could remember. No matter how many competitions he won and how many opponents he defeated, it still remained the same.

After trying all sorts of methods, there was only one last possibility remaining.

"Haiz….."

"Brother, what's wrong?"

Li Wei looked up at him.

"Nothing, it's time for your meds now."

"Huhuhu….."

Li Wei pouted her lips and tried to coax her way out of taking her meds.

However, Li Rui did not care. He walked into his room and carefully took out a thick 'test-tube'.

The test tube was filled with a thick emerald-green fluid.

"Come here."

Li Rui unscrewed the cap for her, and Li Wei unwillingly took the 'test-tube'. She then easily opened it and started drinking it bit by bit.

The little face that was now twisted like a knot showed how disgusting the medicine was.

Li Rui let out a sigh of relief as he watched Li Wei finish the medication.

This tiny bottle of nutrient fluid cost more than ten thousand Yuan, and it wasn't available in the market. Li Rui had owed others tons of favors in order to get his hands on this medicine.

"I'm done!"

Li Wei held the empty 'test-tube' and showed it to Li Rui with her face still twisted in a knot.

"Hmm, good girl. How about a piece of chocolate as a reward?"

He took out a bar of chocolate from the fridge and broke a piece off for Li Wei.

A smile immediately bloomed on her face.

Li Rui couldn't help himself but smile along with her as if all the bitterness and pressure had been washed away.

Even though this single piece of chocolate had cost him the price of four to five buffets, after seeing Li Wei's smile, it was all worth it.

"Anything else you wanna watch other than Animal Planet?"

After returning back to the sofa, Li Rui had picked up the remote and was randomly changing the channels.

"I don't feel like watching anymore; you decide."

Curled up in Li Rui's arms, she let out a big yawn.

After a good meal, she couldn't help but feel sleepy.

He changed it to a news channel and absent-mindedly watched the weird news that was being reported from all over the world.

Even after being in this world for more than ten years, he still couldn't understand the situation here.

Although the fundamentals were still similar to the world in his previous life, if you closely observed, this world was weird and peculiar.

"The Tian Chao Eastern China Fleet has recently visited the Yokosuka Base in Japan. The Prime Minister of Japan and the commander of the US military both attended a dinner together. All three parties had a cordial and friendly meeting, and will be exchanging their opinions on the 'Determination Defence Strategy' which will be held next month…"

On the TV, the host was professionally reporting the news.

In reality, these three parties were usually head to head, but now they were happily sitting together. The Prime Minister of Japan was sincerely smiling, and it definitely wasn't an act. It was a smile from the bottom of his heart.

The 'Determination Defence Strategy' that had been referred to was a multinational union strategy that was led by China, America, and Russia which covered most of the countries around the Pacific.

Tian Chao of the Eastern Sea, the Northern Sea Fleet, the Seventh Fleet of the US, along with the other troops of Japan, Korea, Australia…

Li Rui could never understand this situation. Who was the imaginary enemy that they had?

Aliens?

Looking at the lineup, even if every country remaining were to unite together, their strengths added-up wouldn't even be half the strength of this fleet.

So what was the purpose of this?

Protect the enemies and defeat their teammates?

Or was it just to make the rest of the world tremble in fear?

Li Rui tried to figure it out for a moment, but the peaceful breathing that was coming from his chest pulled him back to reality.

"Li Wei, wake up. You haven't brushed your teeth yet-"

He gently patted Li Wei, but she buried her face into Li Rui's chest and refused to open her eyes.