Free Web NovelChapter 115: Chapter 112: Fourth-level Thief
Half a month went by in a flash.
Five Provinces Academy gradually returned to peace. Although Feng Hao had left the academy, there were still plenty of rumors about him.
Feng Hao’s strength, in particular, became a hot topic of discussion among the students. After all, Cao Heng was a master ranked seventy-ninth on the Strength Division’s Crystal Stele, while Feng Hao was only level twenty-eight—the difference in power was immense.
In fact, many students who hadn’t been there still refused to believe that Feng Hao could have taken down Cao Heng.
...
On an inconspicuous street in the commercial district of Five States City, a peculiar new potion shop had opened. The shop had no sign and no name—only an unremarkable banner hanging outside that read: Professional Potion Refining.
The interior was even more pathetic; it barely looked like a potion shop at all. A group of young people were busy arranging counters and shelves.
"Just one over there is enough. Why are you putting up so many shelves?" Feng Hao asked, directing Houhuiyao with a look of resignation.
He had originally opened the shop just to have a place to live, but Houhuiyao had insisted on helping him get organized. One thing led to another, and now he’d acquired a huge pile of furniture—enough to nearly cram the small storefront full.
What made him even more exasperated was that Xu Zhenzhen and her two friends had also joined in on the chaos. They were in the process of turning a perfectly fine potion shop into what looked like a luxury boutique.
Houhuiyao finished setting up a shelf on his own and said to Feng Hao with a serious expression, "Brother Feng, if you’re going to open a shop, it has to look the part! Look at this place—you don’t even have any decent furniture. That’s just not going to work."
"I’m the one opening this shop, and you’re more worked up about it than I am," Feng Hao said, exasperated.
"Heh heh. You’re my brother, Brother Feng. Of course I can’t just stand by and do nothing while you’re opening a shop," Houhuiyao said with a grin.
Xu Zhenzhen, who was cleaning up nearby, chimed in, nodding in agreement. "Houhuiyao’s right. If you’re going to open a shop, you might as well do it properly. Look, isn’t this much better? It’s not the least bit inferior to those high-end potion shops."
"Alright, alright. Do whatever you want. Just try not to completely wreck the place," Feng Hao said, shaking his head in resignation.
At his words, Houhuiyao and the trio with Xu Zhenzhen threw themselves back into their work with renewed vigor.
"Brother Feng, are you sure you don’t want to hang a proper sign outside?" Once they had more or less finished wrangling the interior, Houhuiyao turned his attention to the shop’s facade.
"Who says I don’t have a sign?" Feng Hao replied, speechless. "Isn’t that a banner right there?"
"..." Houhuiyao’s face darkened. "Brother Feng, I’m not trying to criticize you, but who opens a shop like this? I’ll get you a fancy, deluxe sign tomorrow. It’ll be a real attention-grabber."
"No, don’t," Feng Hao said, waving him off. "I think this is fine. Anyone who comes in is someone who was meant to find this place."
Houhuiyao had no choice but to give up. He and Xu Zhenzhen’s group went back to organizing the shop.
Just then, the icy-faced Xiyue Frost walked in. Seeing so many people in the shop, she looked a bit flustered, but her voice was as cold as ever. "The paperwork is all taken care of. The shop is yours now."
"Thanks," Feng Hao said with a light chuckle, accepting the shop’s documents.
When Xu Zhenzhen and her friends saw Xiyue Frost, they all crowded around her enthusiastically. After all, they were all former classmates from Rongcheng Academy, so there was a natural sense of camaraderie.
Faced with the bubbly trio, Xiyue Frost actually managed a rare, faint smile. She didn’t say much, but it was still a huge improvement from before.
The rest of the day passed quickly amidst laughter. That evening, after treating everyone to dinner, Feng Hao saw them off as they returned to Five Provinces Academy.
Returning to the small shop alone, Feng Hao began his daily training.
The recent incident had made him truly understand the importance of strength. If he were powerful enough, those ridiculous school rules would be completely unable to hold him back.
Lately, Feng Hao had been busy with jobs for the Thief God Hall. He had now successfully been promoted to a Fourth-level Thief:
Name: Feng Hao
Origin: Jinzhou-Rongcheng
Title: Fourth-level Thief
Points: 1275
Job Permissions: Intermediate
Current Job: None
With Intermediate Job Permissions, his efficiency at earning points had increased dramatically. At this rate, it wouldn’t be long before he could trade them for the Thief God Hall’s inheritance.
’I should grind some more potion-refining jobs for a while and manage the shop on the side.’
Feng Hao’s current plan was simple: train, grind jobs, and exchange his points for the Thief God Hall’s [Inheritance Demon Pattern] as quickly as possible. He also needed to gather as many materials as he could for Tier-3 equipment.
As for the potion shop, it was mainly a place to lay low and earn some extra money.
When he opened his eyes the next day, the night of training had left him feeling refreshed and clear-headed. He pushed open the shop door and gazed at the bustling crowds on the street, unconsciously stretching his back.
The shop to his left was an Artifact Refining Shop, and the rhythmic CLANG of a hammer on iron could be heard early in the morning.
His neighbor to the right was much more familiar: the [Treasure Pavilion], owned by the Holy Hall. With West Moon Ridge no longer around, he probably wouldn’t get a discount, but Feng Hao decided to go in and have a look anyway.
He stepped into the [Treasure Pavilion]. The interior was as magnificent as ever, with a dazzling array of goods on display. A clerk quickly came over to greet him.
"Hello, sir. Is there anything I can help you with?" a young woman in a professional uniform asked, walking up to Feng Hao with a smile.
"I’m looking for a pair of Crystal Eyes with a cosmetic lens feature," Feng Hao stated directly. Ever since Instructor Yang had given him the tip, he’d wanted to get a new pair to hide the effect of his [Black Pupils].
The uniformed young woman paused for a second, then broke into a charming smile. "Are you buying them for your girlfriend, sir? We just got two pairs of the new Fruit 7s in yesterday. They make a perfect gift for a girlfriend."
"COUGH COUGH. They’re for me," Feng Hao said, embarrassed.
"My apologies. Please follow me." The young woman gave him an apologetic smile, but the look she gave Feng Hao turned a bit strange. Plenty of men bought the Fruit 7, but this was the first time she’d ever met one who wanted it specifically for the cosmetic lens feature.
Feeling utterly speechless, Feng Hao followed the young woman to the Crystal Eye counter. He spotted the Fruit 7s immediately. "Uh, besides the Fruit 7, do you have any other models of Crystal Eye with the cosmetic lens feature?"
"How about this model?" The clerk’s expression grew even stranger, as if she were looking at some kind of pervert.
"Fine, I’ll take this one. How much is it?" Feng Hao agreed without even looking at it. Faced with the young woman’s weird stare, all he wanted to do was get out of there as quickly as possible.
The clerk smiled. "This model, the Cyan Jade Crystal Eye, costs 18 million Magic Crystals."
"Alright."
Feng Hao paid and completed the transaction with almost no hesitation, then promptly fled under the clerk’s peculiar gaze.
Watching Feng Hao’s retreating figure, the young clerk couldn’t help but purse her lips in a small smile. ’He already has such charming black eyes, why would he want to mess around with cosmetic lenses? I’ll never understand men’s tastes these days.’
Meanwhile, Feng Hao had already sprinted back to his potion shop. He collapsed onto his bed, panting, his face bright red. ’Damn it,’ he thought. ’I should’ve just asked Xiyue Frost or one of the others to buy it for me.’
After catching his breath, Feng Hao expertly swapped in his newly purchased Cyan Jade Crystal Eyes.
He used his Divine Sense to quickly familiarize himself with the controls and soon mastered the cosmetic lens feature. He had to admit, compared to the Crystal Eye’s capabilities, the cosmetic contacts back on Earth were absolute garbage.
He could control them with his Divine Sense, allowing for perfect customization. He could change them to any color or shape he wanted. Feng Hao had a blast playing around with the settings.
However, to avoid being seen as a weirdo, Feng Hao opted to simply replicate the shape of his own pupils.
Once the replication was successful, Feng Hao immediately activated his [Black Pupils] to test it. Sure enough, there was no visible change in his eyes. Now he no longer had to worry about exposing his bloodline talent.
Just as Feng Hao was amusing himself in front of the mirror, a woman’s voice drifted up from downstairs.
"Excuse me, is anyone here?"
