This Spiritual Energy is Lethal!
Chapter 444: The Beggar’s Nest

Chapter 444: Chapter 444: The Beggar’s Nest

Chen Ke followed Jacob through the streets and alleys, avoiding the curfew patrol getting ready to end their shift, heading towards Big Ben.

Constructed in 1858, Big Ben was a landmark in Chen Ke’s world, located in London, England, standing at 95 meters tall, and ringing every 15 minutes. In 2012, it was renamed Elizabeth Tower.

However, in Langdon, whether the tower was built in 1858 was still debatable, and it seemed that the tower did not chime every 15 minutes but rather on the hour, serving as a time signal for the entire city.

Since the invention of the pocket watch, Langdon people used minutes to keep time, constantly pulling out their watches to check the time, much like how people looked down at their phones in the 21st century, except pocket watches couldn’t play Snake nor could they be used to log onto QQ.

"Do you like children?" Jacob suddenly asked.

"Why do you ask?" Chen Ke was startled.

"My place is full of street orphans," Jacob said with a smile.

"Why don’t you send them to the orphanage? Can you afford to provide for so many children on your own?" Chen Ke asked.

"The orphanage isn’t a good place for them, otherwise, there wouldn’t be so many who ran away from there," Jacob shook his head.

"How many children do you have there?" Chen Ke asked again.

"Forty-two, the youngest is five, the oldest is twelve," Jacob replied.

"It must not be easy to provide for them... You don’t seem like someone with a high-income job... Sorry," Chen Ke said.

"That’s okay, Chen Ke. They take care of themselves; that’s how I grew up too," Jacob smiled.

The two men crossed the street and slipped into another alley, looking up to see the sky squeezed into a thin line by the buildings on either side.

"It must be really tough," Chen Ke continued.

He wasn’t an orphan and had no siblings. As a single child in the 21st century, his family was neither rich nor poor, with a moderate income, and even if he didn’t pay up, his parents, retired from a state-owned enterprise, could manage the mortgage.

Chen Ke hadn’t experienced great wealth or tasted the vast array of human miseries; he was an extraordinarily average 21st-century corporate drone.

He had never imagined that one day he would sleep with a Latina beauty, deal with corporation executives, Administration Bureau agents, and Foundation agents.

Nor had he thought that he could jump through different times, witness the destruction of a world, travel to history’s pivotal moments, and now, find himself in the midst of the Industrial Revolution.

This unreal feeling once puzzled Chen Ke, his choices, his thoughts, and his reflections on matters, all immature, but as an ordinary person facing this crazy situation, he felt he was doing well enough.

After all, what could a 21st-century man with a moderate income do in another world? Become the ruler of the universe?

Surviving up to this point after crossing over was quite an achievement for Chen Ke.

"Indeed, it’s not easy," Jacob nodded. Turning to Chen Ke, he added, "This great city has no place for orphans."

"You can’t change that situation," Chen Ke shook his head.

"You said the same last time. But I don’t understand all this talk about eras; as long as I’m alive, I will continue doing this, and the kids will find their own way," Jacob said.

"So... how do you all survive?" Chen Ke spread his hands.

"Our wealth is in other people’s pockets; we just take it back when we need it," Jacob said with a laugh.

"I should have guessed... but I won’t blame you, this damned social system, the rich are legally robbing everyone," Chen Ke said.

"I’m glad you can see it that way, nothing in this world is absolute, so there’s nothing that can’t be done, that’s my creed," Jacob nodded.

"All is illusion, everything is permitted, right?" Chen Ke said.

"Yeah, you summed it up nicely," Jacob laughed.

During their conversation, they arrived at the foot of Big Ben, across the street from the clock tower was a five-story unfinished building, with the Thames River slowly flowing past one side, and a big bridge stretching across to the other bank.

"Do you live here?" Chen Ke asked.

"Yes, this was originally intended to be a dormitory for workers, but construction was abandoned halfway through. I don’t know why no one took over this piece of land, so I and the kids just moved in," Jacob explained.

Chen Ke looked through the windows of the first floor; it was pitch-black inside. Using his Spiritual Vision, he scanned upwards, spotting a group of children all gathered in one corner of the fifth floor.

"We can’t live on the lower floors; being seen would get us kicked out. So... Chen Ke, can you climb walls?" Jacob asked.

"No, can’t we just use the stairs?" Chen Ke looked at Jacob.

"There are no stairs to use; to prevent the homeless from staying here, the security team dismantled all the stairs," Jacob explained, spreading his hands.

"What do we do now?" Chen Ke had no ideas.

Jacob shrugged and put two fingers in his mouth, whistling a sound similar to a bird’s call. After a while, Chen Ke saw several children run to a window on the fifth floor and drop a rope down.

"Shall we see who’s faster, Chen Ke?" Jacob smiled.

Chen Ke and Jacob looked at each other, and then both started running. Jacob nimbly leaped, latching onto various bumps on the building’s wall. His ten fingers worked like hooks, pulling his body upward, continuously jumping from the wall to the window sills. Chen Ke grabbed the rope, stepping on the wall, and climbed up using all his strength, but Jacob left him far behind.

"Huff huff huff..."

By the time Jacob dashed into a window on the fifth floor, Chen Ke only managed to arrive after a great struggle. As his head appeared at the window, he saw over ten children pointing little daggers and slingshots at him.

"+1s"

"+1s"

"+1s"

"+1s"

"+1s"

...

"Calm down, kids..." Jacob stood behind the children and stepped forward to pull Chen Ke inside.

He jumped off the platform, looked around the interior; since it was an unfinished building, there were no partitions, just a few load-bearing columns.

Over forty children were spread out, lying on thin blankets in the corners of the room, with the older ones sleeping on the outer perimeter, surrounding the younger ones.

Most of the children were on the floor, with the few folding beds occupied by girls and very young children.

"Jacob... who is he?" asked a child holding a slingshot, looking wary. He appeared to be just over six, frail, with a burn scar on his left arm.

"He’s a guest, Big Yage, no need to be so tense, go to bed," Jacob crouched in front of the children, gently patting his hands. Hearing Jacob’s words, the children put down their weapons and slowly dispersed.

Chen Ke looked around and walked toward the staircase, but Jacob stopped him.

"That way... is the toilet," Jacob said apologetically.