"We sadly don't offer any type of food yet though, hope that is alright."
"That's stereotyping! How the hell do you run a business like this," Ah Liang shouted at him. He cleared his throat. "Wait, yet? What do you mean yet?"
"To be quite honest, I am unsure of what this store will entail," Shou said and shrugged his shoulders. After all, he wasn't really the mastermind behind this thing, even if he stood as the owner. There was that one quest offered by Si to subdue the 'Witch Hunt' memory, but it bugged out, giving no chance to repair it. Even Si was confused about what to do.
"You're really funny, I give you that," Ah Liang shook his head and laughed dryly. Only this boy could be s brazenly uncaring about his own store. If it was one of his employees that said that, he'd have beaten them black and blue. And if he himself had not witnessed the miracle work Shou did yesterday, he'd had hit him with boisterous laughter.
Ran Wei and Lin Zhuyue watched the two guys interact. They whispered to each other. "What do you think their relationship is? They seem rather close, don't you think?"
Ran Wei nodded. "Maybe we really stepped into an incredible place." What an interesting turn of development, she told herself. Was it good or bad? She could not tell. Either way, this was something no one else except her and that horrible vixen, Lin Zhuyue, knew about, for now, so should she see it as an opportunity?
Lin Zhuyue didn't think much. In the first place, she had only gathered here because of that owner Shou; she wanted to see what kind of person he was. Everything else had been a bonus. her thoughts didn't run as deep as Ran Weis'. People may say they were similar in mind, but the distinct difference lay in their experience of life.
Shou looked at the two girls. "So, would you like to enter the world of a witch? Also, Ah Liang, are you gonna join them?"
The big guy shook his head. "I was thinking about it first, but my heart could not handle the stress. . . is it fine if for today I only watch?" He was a coward to boot.
Shou rested his head on his hand. His thoughts seemed to churn for a while. "Eh, sure. You paid for the two of them after all," he then added, "Don't cause any trouble though."
"I would not dare," Ah Liang hastily said. Thinking back about how his bodyguard Hei Er got done in, shivers ran down his spine. He didn't want to be pummeled like that—for no money in the world.
Ran Wei watched her boss behave so meekly. Though she had never met that man before, from the stories she had heard, he was a domineering man, his sheer physical size casting a great shadow over you. His eyes held a hazy glint as if he saw right through you while showing nothing of himself. He was ruthless, cunning, and intelligent. That's how he made his place within the biggest commercial city within the empire.
But now. . . it seemed like rumors were just rumors after all.
Lin Zhuyue watched her dazed co-worker in annoyance. "What are you standing around for, let's go play!"
"Do you have nothing in your head except for pleasure," Ran Wei asked with a sigh. But whatever. Their boss already gave them the OK to goof around. It would be disrespectful not to follow up on that. She grumbled. "In the first place, I don't quite get what the point of this store is. . ."
Shou, even though he heard her mutters, did not say anything. There was only his never-changing enigmatic smile. "Would the two ladies like to follow me then?" He was interested in seeing how the core would work for these two. They seem to hardly care about their cultivation after all.
Lin Zhuyue strolled into the core room with little care. She was intrigued but not overwhelmed by any of these things. Just like Ran Wei, she didn't know what these things entailed. "What do I do now," she grabbed one of these cores and asked.
"They aren't to be picked up," Shou said. "You inject spiritual energy into these things."
"Jeez, spiritual energy? Are you telling me these are some of these artifacts of ancient times? Dear customer, we live in the modern world now. Except for those rich snobs, who here uses spiritual energy to activate something?" She then looked at Ah Liang. "Oh, My dearest apologies, boss."
"No offense taken," the big guy said and smiled. How could he get mad at one of Shou's friends? he wasn't here to seek death.
"There's no helping with you," Ran Wei said and shoved her away. She hovered her hand over the core and injected the spiritual energy needed to run the task. "Is that all I ne—" her words fell short as she fell to the ground.
Lin Zhuyue watched her in silence. Her coworker Ran Wei showed no motion. ". . .aha. My stomachache is acting up again. I've got to leave. You all have fun though." She decisively turned around and dashed for the door.
"Hold up, you're going to spread misunderstandings about the store, I can feel it." Shou grabbed her by the collar. How he was able to get her so fast no one knew.
"Please I swear on my Ran Wei, I have no money! I also don't taste good! She has plenty meat so make due with her," Lin Zhuyue looked at him with teary eyes and begged.
"You two are really funny, has anyone ever told you that?"
A screen appeared on the core, and a voice resounded. It was Ran Wei, who had entered the illusory world. ". . . Lin Zhuyue, mark my words, if I ever get out here, I'll kick your butt."
"No way," Lin Zhuyue muttered. "Am I seeing things?" She rubbed her eyes. "Why do you look so small," she asked, perplexed, at the mini Ran Wei broadcasted on the screen.
Ran Wei, who was currently within the illusory world of the witch hunt, had no nerve to reply to her. She was currently astounded by what she was witnessing—a whole different world, with a seemingly different biosphere and time than the real one. An incredible amount of spiritual energy circulated through her, alas, it was pearl for the swine she thought, as she had never paid much attention to her cultivation road.
Still, even the greatest bum could appreciate the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity this place provided.
"Am I supposed to sit down and cultivate?" She thought about it for a second but then felt a weird cold flash past her, as if someone from the beyond was silently judging her heavily. She mulled silently over these thoughts.
Lin Zhuyue watched flabbergasted at the scene unfolding before her. The screen glowed amicably as if a portal to another world (As Si would put it, this place had near-perfect eye-quality resolution). She had simply could not understand what was going on.
Ah Liang, though already knowing what this place entailed, could not help gasping. He muttered something underneath his breath, for no one else to hear.
Ran Wei felt the breeze wash over her and guided her fingers through the grass. It was as real as it possibly could get. "This is incredible," the woman said in an amazed voice. She looked around, unsure of what to do.
Her thoughts were cut quite abruptly, as a loud roar from the far distance echoed throughout the field, startling her greatly. She almost fell to the ground, as that roar send shivers down her very spine.
The big guy, Ah Liang, immediately knew what was going on. "Run south," he shouted, guiding his employee away. "You have to look for a village, or else the beast will catch you!"
"What kind of horrible setting is that?" Ran Wei felt her face go pale. She didn't question much and instead started running, as if her life depended on it. Though her shoes—which were visually appealing—weren't quite designed for trekking.
"The last time I saw her bolt like that was when I stole her panties," Lin Zhuyue said in amazement. "I remember her frantically chasing after me while pulling down her lowcut dress."
Ah Liang side-eyed that woman. 'This better not have been during work hours,' he said to himself. Ah, whatever. They were Boss Shous' friends after all. He could not make a scene here.
Ran Wei huffed. It didn't take long for her to arrive at the aforementioned village. Thankfully, there had been no beast in sight at all. Arriving there, she was immediately reminded of her old hometown where her parents were. The rustic feeling, with molded wood and the smell of farmland, was nostalgic, almost melancholically so, to her.
Quite a lot of people were walking around, unlike that time with Zhang Yong. Who knew why that was so?
And just like with Li Yangyi, an old man, the chef, candidly approached her. Though her next words changed the scenario quite a bit:
"Ah, sorry, I don't talk to men outside my work. Where's the nearest village post?"