Free Web NovelUsing the price of three bottles of calamity water to regain the lost mingwang statue, this reliable old friend, Lu Yibei felt it was not a loss, and Gu Qianqian also felt it was a great gain, so a transaction was successfully completed.
"Is that all? We've settled the accounts." Lu Yibei stuffed the three bottles of calamity water into Gu Qianqian's hand, adding, "Oh, right, be careful when storing them!"
"This stuff is flammable, explosive, and poisonous. If you're not careful, it'll... boom!"
As he spoke, he made an exaggerated explosion gesture with both hands.
A Miss like Gu Qianqian always makes people want to harmlessly tease her when helping her.
Gu Qianqian was clearly frightened by Lu Yibei's words. Her brows furrowed, her little nose wrinkled, and she nodded very solemnly.
"Mm-hmm!"
As if afraid the glass bottles in her hands would slip, she held them with her small hands and turned to walk towards the pushcart parked by the roadside.
While Gu Qianqian was carefully putting away the calamity water, Lu Yibei stood up and examined the mingwang statue, contemplating how to take it away. His gaze inevitably swept across the stall, and he slightly furrowed his brows.
Aren't these the Alchemy potions that appeared in the Great Serpent God's knowledge?
Did Gu Qianqian make all of these?
As Lu Yibei was thinking, a predictive thought suddenly flashed in his mind, interrupting his train of thought.
【She picked up the pig trotters from the ground】
She really can't forget about those pig trotters... Lu Yibei muttered to himself, turning around. Indeed, he saw Gu Qianqian squatting by the puddle, about to reach out and pick up that dirty pig trotter.
"Gu Qianqian."
"Huh!?"
Gu Qianqian startled when Lu Yibei called her name. The pig trotter she had just picked up fell back into the puddle, flipping over and getting even more evenly coated in muddy water.
"..."
In that instant, her face was filled with heartache and despair.
Lu Yibei walked over to Gu Qianqian, patted her shoulder, and said earnestly, "Forget it, it's beyond saving. Let the deceased rest in peace?"
"At least in its final moments, it didn't suffer any pain. Come, say goodbye to it?"
"But..."
Gu Qianqian looked at the pig trotter, then at Lu Yibei, hesitating to speak.
"Alright, worst case, I'll treat you another day."
"Promise, no lying!"
Gu Qianqian blurted it out before the system could stop her.
"Embarrassing! Gu Qianqian, you are truly the worst host I've ever guided!" The system roared in Gu Qianqian's mind, heartbroken.
"This is definitely a sugar-coated bullet! Accepting his food means you'll owe him. He definitely wants something from you, that's why he's treating you to food!"
Listening to the system's reminder, Gu Qianqian felt a little scared. She pouted and looked at Lu Yibei, hesitantly saying, "Sh-should we just forget about it? The braised pig trotters at the night market are really expensive!"
"It's fine, I actually wanted to ask you something, and if possible, I'd like you to do me a small favor. Consider this a pre-emptive bribe," Lu Yibei said frankly.
A Miss like Gu Qianqian is simply not on the same wavelength as normal people, like a runaway silly deer. All the probing and speculation are less effective than just telling her directly; she might understand it a bit easier.
What's more...
She's already pitiful enough, how could anyone bear to deceive her?
Lu Yibei muttered to himself, pointing at the Alchemy potions on the stall, "Did you make those?"
"Yes, I did."
"Amazing!" Lu Yibei praised.
Gu Qianqian's cheeks flushed slightly, and she scratched the back of her head, "Ehehe, it's nothing! You're making me shy."
"That's already very impressive!" Lu Yibei praised again, then changed the subject, "Since you're so capable and we're so familiar, I want to ask you to help me make some potions. That should be okay, right?"
Gu Qianqian was about to agree when the system suddenly started shouting in her mind.
"What did I say, what did I say? There's a trap, just as I suspected! Absolutely do not agree!"
"System, he..."
"Gu Qianqian, don't you know? Getting things for free is one of this psychologically twisted woman's ultimate pleasures, alongside backstabbing."
The system had always speculated about the Disaster's actions with the worst possible malice.
What couldn't she do?
Getting free labor and then silencing someone is already the gentlest method!
"System!"
"Hmm? Speak."
"She said she won't make me work for free. If I do well, there'll be payment!"
System, "..."
"She said one potion for one bottle of black water, and these two bottles are the deposit."
Gu Qianqian held the glass bottles Lu Yibei handed her again, looking at him blankly, waiting for the system's response.
"What should I do, System? How do I refuse her?"
"Refuse what?! Agree to her!"
Gu Qianqian, I see you don't understand at all! With a little processing, calamity water can become a sharp weapon for hunting urban legend. The system thought.
"That's not right, System. You didn't say that just now. You just said there's a trap and I absolutely shouldn't agree."
"..." The system was silent for a moment, then said earnestly, "Gu Qianqian, that's not how you look at it. We need to view this matter with dialectical thinking."
"He has these things. Even if we don't help him make them, he can find someone else to help him. If we help him, we can still profit from him. This is a win-win situation, the future is promising!"
"Furthermore, we can add something extra when we're making it for her! Whether it's poison, a Spell, or anything else, whatever works? Chitter, chitter, chitter!"
"System..."
"Hmm?"
"Aren't we righteous partners? You're laughing like a big villain!"
System, "..."
----
Two bottles as a deposit, one bottle for the final payment.
Lu Yibei reached a second agreement with Gu Qianqian, using a total of three bottles of calamity water as the processing fee. The cost was not insignificant.
However, he didn't feel any heartache at all.
Anyway, he had plenty of this calamity water stuff, and there was a certain amount produced every day. He wasn't afraid of others charging a high price, only afraid that no one would want it.
In fact, when he was wandering around the Ghost Market earlier, looking for buyers, he found that besides Fat Er Ye and Gu Qianqian, others didn't seem very willing to buy calamity water, and even if they did, the price was very unreasonable.
"This is the potion I want you to help me make. Take a look first?" Lu Yibei used the paper and pen Gu Qianqian gave him, wrote down the potion formula, and handed it to her.
"Blazing Fire..." Gu Qianqian looked at the formula Lu Yibei gave her, slightly furrowed her brows, and communicated with the system in her mind.
"System, what is his potion for?"
"It looks like it's used to temporarily enhance the power of fire-attribute Spells. Hmph, it matches her Spiritual Energy attribute very well. It should be a consumable item for herself. This is a good opportunity to poison it."
Seeing that Gu Qianqian hadn't spoken for a long time, Lu Yibei pressed, "What's wrong? Is it difficult?"
If Gu Qianqian had difficulty making this formula, she probably wouldn't be able to help with the formula to complete the defect. Lu Yibei thought with some worry. fɾeewebnoveℓ.co๓
Completing the defect is a big deal and shouldn't be rushed.
He always felt that before asking Gu Qianqian to help make the potion to complete the defect, it would be safer to find a random potion first and test her skill level.
"Of course not!" Gu Qianqian said proudly, "This is much simpler than lieyang bronze orb! But, I can only give it to you in three days!"
Although she could make seven or eight bottles of this potion in a day, the system said it would take two days to prepare the poison. Gu Qianqian thought.
Three days? It seems the defect cannot be completed before going to Happiness Community, but with the assistance of Blazing Fire, it counts as an extra layer of security, Lu Yibei muttered to himself, casually asking a follow-up question.
"lieyang bronze orb? What's that?"
"Ah? That's..." Gu Qianqian realized she had said the wrong thing. A trace of panic flashed in her eyes, and she quickly corrected herself, "That's for lighting, like, like a light bulb."
Lighting? Lu Yibei remembered Gu Qianqian's dark shack and the light switch that leaked electricity on average once every three times it was turned on, and nodded.
"That's good. You can't always steal electricity from streetlights. You'll get detained if you're caught!"
As he spoke, he took out two huo shan jing (volcanic crystal) to be used as the main ingredient and handed them to Gu Qianqian.
"These are the main ingredients needed for Blazing Fire. Two pieces can make about ten portions of the potion. Considering the loss, just give me eight portions then."
"I don't have the other ingredients here, but they are all very cheap and easy to buy. You can buy them yourself, right?"
Although, compared to the earnings from this processing job, the price of a few common medicinal materials used as auxiliary ingredients was just a drop in the bucket.
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However, Gu Qianqian was still reluctant to part with such a small amount of money. Only after the system's earnest persuasion did she hesitantly and reluctantly agree.
"Okay, okay..."
"Okay, then it's settled. I'll come find you three nights from now to pick up the goods."
Saying this, Lu Yibei got up, hugged the mingwang statue, and left. Before leaving, he was also very considerate, quietly picking up the trotters for Gu Qianqian and throwing them into the distant trash can.
The light of righteousness shines upon me, and the red scarf on my chest becomes even brighter!
【She shed wronged tears】
Lu Yibei, "..."
----
Gu Qianqian carefully packed the calamity water and huo shan jing (volcanic crystal) Lu Yibei gave her into the handcart. Turning back to pick up the trotters to wash and continue eating, she found the puddle was empty at some point.
She gazed at the muddy water illuminated by the dim yellow light for a long time, as if unable to accept the cruel reality that the trotters had completely left her.
Until an enticing aroma drifted into her nostrils.
Huh?
This is...
The aroma of trotters?
Gu Qianqian was stunned for a moment, then suddenly turned around and saw the meal box placed on her small stool. She hurried forward to open it, and two invitingly colored braised trotters came into view.
A sticky note was also attached to the meal box, with a few lines of small text written on it.
【The night market next door is closed. I knocked for a long time to buy these. They might be a bit cold, please don't mind.
Actually, braised trotters taste even better grilled with various spices. I don't have time today, but I'll make them for you myself sometime if I get the chance.
Left by Lu Yibei.】
----
On the old street outside the Ghost Market.
Cigarettes one after another, drinks one after another.
Zhang Dexian leaned against the corner of the wall, looking at the street lamp above his head, like a salted fish who had lost his dreams.
He couldn't understand why fate was so cruel.
He had clearly only taken just over two hours to hunt a urban legend core, gathering the three urban legend cores needed to purchase the holy object, but at this moment, he received a heartbreaking little tip from the Monster Story Chat Group.
Netizen Old Pervert 001: "Lao Zhang! What you wanted has been bought by someone else. It's Wang Bu Liu Xing, who was reviewed with you last time. You can complete more bounties to exchange for her information, and then go find her yourself to discuss."
Netizen Old Pervert 001: "You can also initiate a designated user transaction on the Website, but she hasn't registered a Website account yet, so you'll have to wait. As for when she'll register, I can't be sure."
Netizen Old Pervert 001: "My condolences! Want some suggestive pictures to relax? 【Image】【Image】...【Image】"
Zhang Dexian looked at the message again, put down his phone, and finally couldn't help but let out a long howl.
"I haven't lost yet, the moment I lose is the moment I die. Before I admit defeat, I will never be defeated! Wait and see, woman, I will find you!"
"Gulps—Gulps—!"
----
That night, in the suburbs of Hua City, at the Amber House.
Jiang Li, wearing a black lace Sleeping Dress, leaned by the bed, her back against the pillow, and picked up the tablet beside the pillow, once again studying the bounty she hadn't had time to look at carefully during the day.
The bounty was posted a week ago. Many people had viewed it, but no one had accepted it, and there were even very few users who left comments.
Defend Chaldea: "Ho! Someone actually posted this bounty? I'm afraid no one would dare to take it?"
Assassinate Happy Sheep: "Top floor."
Master Mi from Qingcheng: "The commission is too low."
...
"These few people seem to know something..."
Jiang Li briefly looked at the comments below the bounty and gently shook her head.
From the comments, apart from seeing that those people were somewhat wary of Happiness Community, there wasn't much other information.
She clicked to confirm accepting the bounty, then continued to scroll down the screen, focusing on the detailed description left by the bounty poster.
That first-person narrative text felt like someone telling a story face-to-face.
It was very likely the poster's personal experience, Jiang Li thought.
Such highly detailed bounty descriptions are common on the Monster Story Chat Group Website, probably because they require every bounty poster to describe things as thoroughly as possible, so that those who accept the bounty can learn more details and complete the task better and more safely.
【They say online that Happiness Community is the most livable residential community in Hua City. It took me a lot of effort to buy a house in the last phase.
It took me over half a year to decorate and another month to move in as I wished.
After moving in, I found that what was said online was true.
It's close to the city center, yet it has the tranquility of the suburbs. The air is excellent, and the greenery is also very good. When you open the window in the early morning, you can see many birds.
The neighbors here are very friendly. Occasionally, when you meet someone leading a child learning to walk or walking a pet dog, there is always a warm smile on their face.
In the center of the community is an artificial lake with a circulating water fountain. You can hear the sound of water all day long.
At that time, I felt that living here was happy. After seven or eight years of graduation, although I was still alone, I at least had a home.】
Seeing this, Jiang Li nodded thoughtfully.
The scenes the Night Watch saw when they investigated Happiness Community a few times before were basically consistent with the description in the bounty. The entire community, whether it was the environment or the level of neighborly friendliness, was surprisingly good.
There wasn't the slightest sign of a urban legend being hidden there.
But it was precisely because Happiness Community was too harmonious that it felt wrong.
There are differences between people. With so many people in a community, conflicts are bound to arise.
What's more, Happiness Community also had the bizarre phenomenon of residents over forty dying mysteriously.
Although some people argued that everyone dies, and not living past forty was just slander from competitors.
But...
The data from the Night Watch wouldn't be fake. More than thirty people dying in the same community within a year was already suspicious and warranted observation.
Thinking this, Jiang Li continued to scroll down the screen.
【Then, it was the day all the new owners moved in.
The property management organized a welcome party. I had a bad cold and a low fever, so I didn't go.
That day, I lay in bed, listening to the intermittent music from the welcome party outside. It took a long time before I fell asleep hazily, and not long after, I woke up with a start.
I went to the living room to get some water and subconsciously looked out the window, noticing a problem.
All the buildings in the community were dark, not a single window was lit, as if no one lived there. Only the red aviation obstruction lights on the rooftops were flashing, like pairs of crimson eyes.
Large areas of greenery were dark, and only the street lights in the entire community were dimly lit, eerily quiet.
It was only just past nine o'clock then, and the welcome party should have just ended not long ago. It shouldn't have been that quiet.
However, at the time, my head was groggy, and I didn't think too much before returning to bed. When I woke up the next day, I just thought it was a strange dream I had while having a cold and fever.
Thinking back now, I wish I had noticed something was wrong earlier and left there.
Really!
After that, the property management came to my house a few more times, saying they wanted to hold a few small gatherings to make up for the welcome party I missed.
At the time, I thought it was quite thoughtful, but later, due to various unexpected situations, they couldn't happen.
I don't know when, but I started to have a feeling of unease, which gradually grew stronger in my heart.
I seriously tried to find the source of this feeling but found nothing.
The air in the community was still so fresh, the lake water was still clear to the bottom, and the neighbors were still so friendly, but I just felt that something was wrong.
During that time, I always dreamt that the community was shrouded by some huge and dangerous shadow.
Just like a crocodile hidden beneath the calm surface of the lake, disguised as driftwood.
Its body was motionless, but its malice and sinister eyes were constantly turning, scanning every corner of the community.
Later, I finally realized where the problem was, it was the welcome party!
The frequency with which the property management invited me to participate was too frequent. At first, it was once every half a month, then it became once a week, and finally, it developed to once ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) every three or four days.
It was as if I absolutely had to attend that damned party to continue living there.】
Jiang Li's gaze lingered slightly, and her fingertip gently tapped her chin.
It seems that party has a big problem. If I could find a way to attend it once and figure out the details, that would be great, Jiang Li thought.
