"This. . ."
"Huh?"
"What the fuck?" An Bai was the first to shout out. He staggered, almost falling down, listening to Shou explain the cultivation manual.
"Sir Bai, please be careful," the bodyguard shouted as he grabbed his employer. "Also, I am Wan Gu by the way. Please don't forget my presence, even if it's really thin."
". . .Who cares about your presence right now," the beefy merchant commented. His eyes fell on the book in Li Yinyis' hands and he quickly glanced away in fear. He almost felt his heart bleed, seeing the item. It was simply too heaven-defying.
Li Yangyi slapped his face twice. "Stop joking please, Shou." The boy said it with an utmost stiff smile, and he felt himself grow tumultuous simply listening to the description. "I know, I know, you are testing the waters and see if I really have changed my distrustful nature, but to come with something this outlandish is a bit cruel, don't you think?"
Ran Wei and Lin Zhuyue whispered with each other.
"Hey, if what he said was true, how much would that thing cost," the younger one said.
The other woman answered. "Forget about price! You wouldn't be able to buy it with all the money in the world! Even if you sold your body lacking in sex appeal, for the rest of your life, you wouldn't be able to afford a letter within!"
"Do you have to be so rude about it?"
The crowd felt themselves grow insane, simply from hearing Shous' words. "Brother, are you serious? Forget about the sects, if this book goes out, the whole continent may come invading this store," Zhang Yong spoke, his breathing heavy. It was as if a big stone lay on his chest, and he felt the whole place stuffy. His pupils shook, and sweat rolled down his forehead. If anyone saw his pale face, they'd think he'd gotten some kind of life-threatening sickness and avoided him with a big step.
But none of them felt his behavior exaggerated. In fact, Fatty Liang the coward was so scared, he almost fainted. Still, if what Shou said had been true, what did it mean? Even the greatest body refining manual gave one the strength of ten oxes. The Samsaras Road sect, who specialized in body refinement techniques and boasted about being pioneers within that topic only strengthened themselves to withstand hammer, sword, and arrow. They were grounded to the world, and though impressive, still believable.
Yet, here we had, surviving death, reattaching lost limbs, removing the restraints of the world. . . this stuff went beyond dark arts! It was the fantasy of some naive child! No, actually, even a child would spit at you hearing such implausible lies!
"Hmm, but it seems plausible?" Oh, but Li Yinyi believed it. She read through the first few pages. "Every petal follows the process of rebirth. The first time it is born, it has taken the nourishment of its predecessors, and when it inevitably falls once more, new life will be born. While the individual flowers within may change over the years, the field will always be the same field. As such, everything— be it flowers or humans—is different yet the same, and if not everything dies at once, it will never die."
Zhang Yong paused, his brows knitting. He thought about the words, his arms crossed. "Fuck, why does the stuff seem to make sense?" He rubbed his beard so hard, he ripped a few hair strands out.
"I was wrong! I was wrong!" Li Yangyi shouted. "Yinyi, for the love of all things Dao, this book is an heirloom, do not let go of it." He grabbed the body refinement technique, a crazed expression on him. His mind was in shambles, he did not know what to believe, so he simply went with the flow.
Li Yinyi was unfazed by everything. "Aww, but I wanted the mystical arts of that witch. . ."
Her brother almost spat blood, hearing these words. "Don't be like that, I will make sure father accepts your visits here from now on, so just listen okay? Okay?"
Mei Xue watched everything unfold. She was also shocked, yet her reaction was much more controlled. All she let out was a cute gasp. What the young lady did not understand though were the words that came before. "What did you guys mean with Li Yinyi dying?"
The veterans of the shop glanced at her and then explained, "I suppose you have never seen it? Well, since everything in this world is a game, even if you die, you will simply return to life."
"Wait, what do y—"
"I still cannot accept it," An Bai yelled, "Even if such a technique, supposedly, was possible, what rank would it be?"
Shou realized that the man was talking to him. He hadn't been able to get a single word out, so the sudden attention on him caught him unprepared. In the first place, there wasn't anything special about the manual, so why did they have to react in such a way? He counted on his finger. "Hmm, it's been a while since I've recounted the different grades. If I remember, they were based on how much destruction or change a single cultivation manual could cause, right? There's the most basic one, the fighter-grade that can beat a single person. Then comes the squad-grade, the platoon-grade, city-grade, province-grade. Afterward, there's the nation-grade, then the—"
"Hold up, there's more?" Zhang Yong did not know what to say. He thought about it, then, only half-hearted laughter left his mouth. That Shou had counted the mythical nation-grade was already way too much. It was just a random invention based on the natural sequence that came from the grading system. No one actually believed in it. But some madmen dreamed of what may come even beyond. Surely, the youth wasn't one of them, correct?
"The continental-grade, oh and the world-grade." Shou stopped counting. Actually, there were two or three more grades, but he had reached his destination for this time. "I suppose this would make it the world-grade."
The crowd fell to the floor.
...
The customers left the Store of Fates one after another, and they were immediately greeted by the biting wind of the night. It was only now that they've come to appreciate the wonderful heating and cooling system within Shou's miraculous shop. That place really had it all.
An Bai and Ah Liang walked together. Ran Wei and Lin Zhuyue returned home after bidding their boss farewell, and even the easily-forgettable Wan Gu did not accompany them. They were alone, just like the old times, when they had been nobodies who settled in this city without any belongings.
". . .I've reached a change of perspective," Ah Liang spoke first.
"I don't have to guess what you mean by that. I agree."
The big guy turned to his friend. "Always straightforward, huh? Are you sure you have thought it through?"
"Just like you described, I am an arrow that never curves. I always stand by my decisions." The man stared into the sky, appreciating the beauty of the moon. Warm vapor left his mouth. "Yet, in my life, I think I have never been so wrong while choosing my side." The man shook his head. After these words, he felt a great burden leave his shoulders. "The City Lord wishes to take over the Extended Delight, while the Store of Fates begets harmony and hopes to thrive in peace. One day, they will clash. There's no doubt about it."
"That is true," Ah Liang spoke.
". . .And," An Bai continued, "and I think the Store of Fates will win."
"Is it because of that cultivation manual? They say it is world-grade, but is it true? If so, why would he give it away? Just like that? And even then, can it truly be cultivated," his partner asked skeptically. "What if it is a ploy of the families?"
"Fatty Liang. I may have been wrong once, but that does not mean I have gone blind. It's true, the grade only outlines the potential, not the actual might, but do you think a store like this has shown all their cards? I wonder, have we even seen a percentage of what they are capable of?" An Bai sighed. "And you know it too, right?"
"I do." Ah Liang smiled. "Truthfully speaking, I've realized it a few days before already. I just waited for you to understand." He also faced the moon. "Tomorrow morning, we shall talk with the Golden Circle. Circumstances have changed. I will not die together with the City Lord."
...
The siblings from the Li family were last to leave, as they were still bickering about how to hide the incredible treasure in their hands. Shou wondered, even a mother wouldn't hold their first-born this gently.
When everything was quiet, the cores also shut their operations. But Shou did not close the doors. Instead, he walked out, just like his customers.
"Oh, are you going on an adventure," Si asked. "Don't forget you still have to find one more person for the shop. There's not much time left, okay?"
"Relax, I am simply taking a stroll." Shou stretched himself. Staying at the same place for several days was indeed boring. And he feared, if he didn't do something noteworthy the next few days, won't the people forget about him? To live like the protagonist, that's what he himself preached. "I think it is about time that we should take a look at what exactly is going on within or outside this city."