My starting summon is a small skeleton

The night deepened, silence enveloped the surroundings, and it was once again time to stealthily scribble in my diary.

In Lu Wu's room, his Little Skeleton donned headphones and held a phone, leaning against Lu Wu's bedside engrossed in anime, while Lu Wu sprawled over his desk, penning his diary.

"December 29th.

In the blink of an eye, it's been 10 days since I returned home.

I've been very busy these past 10 days and haven't found the time to write in my diary, but today I can finally sit down to write properly.

A lot has happened in these 10 days.

Firstly, there's the matter concerning Hao Zhijian—the verdict from the Professional Center is in.

They've ordered compensation for mine and Uncle Li's reputational damage and various other sundry expenses, totaling over 8 million yuan.

They delivered the money on the same day!

Well, I'm not interested in money, and I don't even know what 8,113,521 yuan actually looks like—I just know that this dodgy old man in my house exclaimed he was saving it for my future wife and swiftly fleeced me.

Of course, I didn't let him get away with it smoothly. As soon as the money came in one hand, I told my mom with the other, claiming that I handed over 8.2 million to my dad.

Then, my mom cheerfully and oh-so-gently invited the old man into the room.

Hmm, when I saw the old man again, he was limping along, who knows what he went through.

Then there's the matter with Granny Li.

Despite being busy, I managed to visit her a few times over these 10 days.

However, I couldn't shake the feeling—it might be an illusion—that each visit, she seemed to have aged considerably.

Also, my mom mentioned that Lin Jianying was quietly trying to sell the house to pay for Granny Li's treatment.

I knew why she told me this; she has a kind heart and wanted to help out Lin Jianying.

I didn't stop her.

Just a few days later, I heard that Lin Jianying stubbornly signed an IOU and even offered the house as collateral to my mom.

I felt a complex mix of emotions, a bit saddened.

But what can one do with the inevitability of birth, old age, sickness, and death?

Never mind that, let's talk about something cheerful—like Dudu.

Hey, why would I think that talking about Dudu would be a happy thing? She's been nothing but troublesome!

Sigh, it's been so long and she's still not triggered her Bonds Skill.

Dudu's already secretly cried several times. Damn it, I'm really hoping the old man will come out and lay it all on the line with me!

He's a big shot!

The last batch of apples was from him, and he even presented me with a whole box of them.

That way, Dudu wouldn't have to cry, and I could see her in all her... (scratched out)

Whatever, I, Lu Wu, am face-blind; I truly don't crave Dudu!

Also, the old man at home is no hidden powerhouse.

So, the matter with Dudu still falls on me, but that will have to wait. First, I need to get Little Skeleton trained up.

Speaking of Little Skeleton.

This little fella's teenage angst seems to be getting worse; when I ask it to practice its Skill, it sneaks in music when I'm not looking.

What's it going for here? Aspiring to be a Skeleton complete with its own BGM?

In future, if it enters a competition or something, do I need to carry a speaker for it?

Though, when it sneakily plays its BGM, the efficiency of its Skill practice seems to improve significantly. Alright then, let it be; at worst, I'll just strap a couple of speakers to it in the future.

I've almost finalized Little Skeleton's Evolution scheme, too.

We're currently at version 2.0, and I've got the general idea for utilizing a 3.0 version with add-ons. If nothing unexpected happens, I should be able to work it out in a few days.

But, I'm not planning to hole up and work on this 3.0 version for several days; I'm planning to leave tomorrow for the Big Cemetery.

The Evolution of Little Skeleton requires a location rich in Undead Type energy, and the Big Cemetery is ideal; I need to go early to pick an appropriate spot.

Also, for this trip, I've decided not to take Dudu with me.

The Secret Realm at the Big Cemetery is different from the one we've visited before; it carries certain risks, and the atmosphere there is quite morbid and scary. Considering Dudu is timid, it's better not to bring her along.

However, I'm also not too brave myself, so I don't plan on going alone either. I've arranged to go with Uncle Li.

Having a professional-level powerhouse like Uncle Li around should ensure my safety.

Alright, that should do it for today.

Tomorrow I have to head to the Big Cemetery, so I'd better get ready for the trip and hit the hay early!"

Having written the last word, Lu Wu closed his diary with a satisfying clap, tossed his pen aside, stretched contentedly, and then stood to busily prepare the things he would take tomorrow.

In fact, Lu Wu had already made some preparations before starting his diary, so now all he needed to do was to check everything over quickly.

In a few minutes, after inspecting everything he intended to bring, Lu Wu's gaze lingered on the Divine Origin Fruit.

"This thing has been in my possession for almost a month now. I was saving it just in case I needed to use it to help Dudu lose weight, but since Dudu refuses to eat it, there seems to be no point in holding onto it. Why not just eat it first?

Imagine if I could find some skeleton horses or Bone Dragons in the Big Cemetery this time, I could even contract one to bring back. Who knows, after some research, it might even be able to fuse with Little Skeleton and come up with something like a Skeleton Knight."

Lu Wu was just blabbering that last part.

Yet, he actually took out the Divine Origin Fruit, examined it for a moment, and then popped it into his mouth and swallowed.

"Mmm, it's crispy and a bit sweet, almost like a plum."

Aside from Lu Wu's evaluation of the taste, it seemed like nothing else happened after he ate the Divine Origin Fruit.

But Lu Wu knew that wasn't because the Divine Origin Fruit was fake or expired or anything like that.

He had checked the information on the fruit and knew its medicinal power was mild. After eating it, it would gradually increase mental and Soul Power over the following few days.

"It's just too slow, isn't it? I don't feel anything at all. Forget it, time to sleep!"

Lu Wu went to bed, somewhat disappointed.

But as soon as he lay down, he realized something was wrong.

Lu Wu usually spent every day in high-intensity brainwork, so he used to fall asleep very easily, typically within three minutes of hitting the bed.

But today was an exception. He tossed and turned for over half an hour and still couldn't sleep.

It was evident that the Divine Origin Fruit was giving him a taste of insomnia.

This made Lu Wu even more frustrated.

Just when Lu Wu thought he would have to pull an all-nighter, an inexplicable wave of drowsiness came over him, and he fell asleep straight away.

Not only did Lu Wu fall asleep, but even Little Skeleton, who was leaning next to him, watching his phone and never slept at night, also nodded off.

After Lu Wu and the rest had fallen asleep, a sneaky figure quietly climbed through Lu Wu's window.

Under the moonlight, this shifty individual was exposed – it was none other than the old man of Lu Wu's house.

"Sneaking into my own son's room, what sort of father am I?" Lu Haikong muttered self-deprecatingly to himself while taking a look around Lu Wu's room.

It had been a while since he last entered Lu Wu's room. Looking around now, he noticed it was quite tidy, especially Lu Wu's desk with its neatly stacked notebooks. The only thing out of place was Lu Wu's diary.

Lu Haikong instinctively picked it up and flipped through, but was immediately bamboozled.

"What's all this? Why can't I understand it?"

Well, of course, Lu Haikong couldn't understand it. Lu Wu knew that a diary could be very dangerous – a careless entry could be a deadly weapon leading to social ruin.

So, it was best not to keep a diary at all, but if you must, then make it unreadable.

Lu Wu didn't have many hobbies, except occasionally writing in his diary. He couldn't change that, so he had to find a way to make it incomprehensible.

Coincidentally, the language in Lu Wu's current world was very different from his previous life, providing him with an advantage.

So he used the language from his previous life for his current diary entries.

Under such circumstances, it would be strange indeed if Lu Haikong could understand it.

Unable to understand his son's diary, Lu Haikong didn't think much of it – if one book didn't make sense, he would just move on to another.

Sure enough, he understood the words in a different notebook, but the impact was even greater.

This time, he could make out the words on the pages, each one he recognized. But when put together into sentences, into paragraphs, Lu Haikong was completely baffled.

"What is this? Am I illiterate? Is this what the world of Cultivation Masters is like?"

Lu Haikong began questioning his life choices. With no other option, he stopped his meaningless activity, which only served to torment himself, and went over to Lu Wu's bedside.

Looking at Lu Wu, fast asleep on the bed, completely defenseless and at anyone's mercy, Lu Haikong's expression grew complex.

"For some reason, I keep feeling that I won't be able to stay with you for much longer.

I might be found out soon. If I am discovered, there probably won't even be a chance to say goodbye.

So, I thought about it and decided to secretly leave you something. After all, you're my only son - I might have to rely on you to take care of me in my old age."

As he spoke, Lu Haikong took out Little Skeleton's Electric Bat and fiddled with it, putting something inside it.

Then he pulled out an egg and placed it in Lu Wu's arms but upon second thoughts, he took the egg back.

"Is this too obvious? I should find a more hidden spot."

Saying this, Lu Haikong's gaze swept around Lu Wu's room, finally resting on Lu Wu's wardrobe.

"This will do!"

Lu Haikong said this, then turned around and pricked Lu Wu to draw a drop of Blood and dripped it onto the egg,

then he pulled out a modest-looking wooden box, placed the egg inside, and tucked the box away in the wardrobe.

After completing these tasks, Lu Haikong left Lu Wu's room through the window the way he came.

Throughout all this, Lu Wu remained unaware that someone had secretly visited his room and engaged in some clandestine activities.