Chapter 344: Liu Seer

“What? Compensation? Wasn’t it the Cinnabar Pharmacy that caused all the trouble before? Why should I be the one to compensate?”

Lu Yibei looked at Black Peony, who had suddenly appeared in the room, rubbing her thumb and index finger together like a debt collector, and hugged her small bag tightly in alarm.

“I’m just following the rules,” Black Peony said with a helpless smile. “I heard from Hydrangea that you’ve carefully studied the ‘Dream Come True Tourist Safety Manual,’ right?”

“Then you should know there’s a clause stating that if a traveler’s personal belongings cause an accidental safety incident, we reserve the right to claim compensation within a reasonable range, correct?”

Lu Yibei, “…”

She did remember such a clause existed.

It was precisely because of this clause that she dared to detonate the Alchemical Bomb at the Cinnabar Pharmacy station, creating an explosion to confuse the Ambushers.

Now, the side effect of exploiting the loophole in the rules had come back to haunt her.

Seeing Lu Yibei’s eyebrows twisted into a knot, Black Peony shook her head with a bitter smile.

“I’m doing this for your own good. If you pay the compensation here with me, it will be classified as an accidental incident caused by personal belongings, and the other two parties won’t be able to use this against you, right?”

“As for Celestian, I will strongly condemn his actions of exploiting the loophole and will encourage the person from Entertainment City to join me in putting pressure on him.”

Apart from condemning and pressuring, there wasn’t much else they could do. After all, they were still allies on the surface, and it wouldn’t be appropriate to storm into the depths of Cinnabar Pharmacy and drag Celestian out for a beating.

“That’s true…” Lu Yibei said with a grave expression. “But how much compensation would even be enough?”

She vaguely remembered that she had detonated eleven or twelve Alchemical Bombs in succession, creating three large pits on the platform at Cinnabar Pharmacy, breaking the rune steel frames buried underground.

“Not much, not much, just a token amount will do,” Black Peony said with a wave of her hand.

Not much? That’s good… Lu Yibei thought secretly, just about to breathe a sigh of relief, when she saw Black Peony extend five slender fingers towards her.

“Just five hundred chips will be enough.”

Lu Yibei, “???”

I only have over seven hundred chips left, and you’re taking five hundred at once, isn’t that a lot?

Bie Suzhen, do you see this?

You can’t even compare to the three piles of dirt on the Cinnabar Pharmacy platform!

As Lu Yibei was grumbling internally, Black Peony teased, “If you’re reluctant, I do have another way.”

“What?”

“Do you have any special talents? With your looks, plus the King of Hauntings gimmick, a performance here could easily earn you three to five hundred chips.”

Black Peony said, raising an eyebrow at Lu Yibei.

“Special talents…” Lu Yibei thought seriously for a moment, “I could try performing a crosstalk, but I doubt anyone here would want to see that kind of talent.”

“Who says?” Black Peony shrugged. “People here often order mimicry mud monsters to transform into Guo Degang’s likeness, have them perform crosstalk while…”

“Stop! That’s enough!” Lu Yibei interrupted, “I was just speaking casually, not planning to actually earn money that way.”

The main issue is that this way of earning money is too fast; I’m afraid once I start, I won’t be able to stop.

Starting with crosstalk, then moving to welfare performances, and eventually evolving into aid. Lu Yibei thought.

So…

[Money -500 Lanruo Inn Customs Shop Reputation +100]

A moment later.

Lu Yibei followed Black Peony to her office area, obediently paid the fine, and was about to leave when she noticed the bookshelf behind Black Peony filled with books. Suddenly interested, she casually asked, “Big sister, can I borrow a couple of books from you to pass the time on the road?”

“Of course, you can choose whatever you like,” Black Peony said. “I don’t know what type you enjoy reading? I have the missing parts of Cao Xueqin’s original manuscript of ‘Dream of the Red Chamber’ here, would you like to read it?”

“I remember the last person who borrowed books from me was quite interested in this part.”

“This, let’s forget it?” Lu Yibei said dumbfounded.

Goodness!

Such a valuable item, if taken out for Professor Ma to see, might just land him in the ICU. Lu Yibei thought.

She had originally just mentioned it casually, thinking that after paying so much in fines, she should at least get some “souvenirs” to make up for the loss. If Black Peony agreed, great; if not, she would…

Beg her with puppy eyes!

But now, seeing Black Peony agree so readily, she felt a bit embarrassed to ask for too much.

“Just… just give me a book about apocalypse legends.”

“Oh?”

Upon hearing this, Black Peony squinted slightly, a meaningful smile appearing on her face.

Three hours later.

At 3:18 AM.

Fifteen minutes before the Giant Train arrived at the Lanruo Inn Customs Shop station, Lu Yibei and Ah-Hua, holding the tickets Black Peony had helped purchase, arrived early at the platform.

Sitting on the long bench in the waiting hall, Ah-Hua looked at Lu Yibei with confusion, “They just let us go like that? Do you think there’s something fishy about this?”

Lu Yibei put down the book in her hand, glanced at Ah-Hua, and said expressionlessly, “Don’t be so suspicious. You’re like this, and your miss is like this too. Can’t you be a bit more optimistic?”

“Sometimes, the Customs Shop owner isn’t necessarily a bad person, a burly man with a fierce face isn’t necessarily a good fighter, and a cold-faced spectator wearing sunglasses might really just be watching.”

After saying this, Lu Yibei picked up the book again and continued reading seriously.

“…”

The first two are understandable, but the last one, are you hinting at something?

Ah-Hua grumbled internally, noticing the book in Lu Yibei’s hand, and frowned.

It was a book as thin as a magazine, but the cover was made of some tanned leather, the pages were old and yellowed, and flipping through them produced a soft rustling sound, as if they might be torn apart with a careless move.

“When did you become so diligent? Even at this time, you’re seizing the opportunity to read,” Ah-Hua asked, puzzled.

“I’ve always been passionate about learning, okay?” Lu Yibei replied earnestly, “Knowledge is power, and learning makes me happy!”

“…” Ah-Hua opened her mouth, wanting to say something but stopped herself.

She had initially wanted to remind Lu Yibei of the time at the Cinnabar Pharmacy station when she was as idle as the cat in the Cafe.

But recalling Jiang Li’s casual mention that Lu Yibei had shown great enthusiasm and efficiency while studying The Midnight Tome, she thought perhaps this person just had bouts of laziness.

Ah-Hua quietly observed Lu Yibei for a moment, then moved closer to her, curiously asking, “What book are you reading?”

“One Hundred Legendary Tales, borrowed from the boss lady before departure, just to pass the time on the train,” Lu Yibei replied nonchalantly.

“What? I thought you were really studying!” Ah-Hua said, losing interest and returning to her seat.

Lu Yibei, “…”

This book indeed contains legendary tales, and the content is very straightforward, almost like a children’s educational book. She had indeed asked Black Peony for it on a whim to pass the time.

After paying such a hefty fine, with Lu Yibei’s thick skin, asking for a book to pass the time was nothing to be embarrassed about.

However.

Black Peony didn’t just give it to her casually.

When Lu Yibei asked Black Peony for a book about apocalyptic legends to pass the time, Black Peony gave her a meaningful smile and handed her this book.

All the tales in the book are apocalyptic legends, and although the descriptions are superficial, there are detailed records of every person or haunting mentioned.

From a certain perspective, this could be considered a partial catalog of Eldritch Destroyers.

A path to becoming a master trainer of all Eldritch Destroyers (×).

After discovering this, Lu Yibei began to take the book seriously. She turned to the book’s title page to check the author, only to find the author’s name had been crudely crossed out.

“…Manu landed and offered butter, milk, whey, and curd to the deity as sacrifices, from which a woman emerged, claiming to be Manu’s daughter, and later reproduced with Manu?”

After reading the story about the “Great Flood” from India, Lu Yibei couldn’t help but frown.

Isn’t this some kind of ghostly fatherhood?

I thought only those deities in Greek mythology liked to do such things.

While she was pondering, a sound like someone mimicking a whistle with a lowered voice echoed, followed by footsteps like thunder, coming closer.

At 3:33 AM.

The massive Giant Train appeared in view, entered the station, and stopped at the platform.

Then the voice of the man wearing a top hat came over the station broadcast.

“Dear passengers, this train will soon stop at Lanruo Inn Customs Shop. The stop time is thirty minutes. Passengers heading to Cinnabar Pharmacy and Dream Come True Entertainment City, please board the train in an orderly manner with your tickets…”

“Wang Buliuxing, let’s go!”

Upon hearing the broadcast, Ah-Hua gently patted Lu Yibei’s shoulder and took the lead towards the train.

After going through such a big ordeal, nearly losing half her life, she was eager to find Jiang Li.

With Ah-Hua’s reminder, Lu Yibei closed the book in her hand, carefully put it away, and followed Ah-Hua onto the Giant Train.

At 5:55 AM.

The Giant Train stopped once again at Cinnabar Pharmacy.

Lu Yibei didn’t get off the train, sitting in the carriage, gazing towards the place where she had once fought.

The station, now even more dilapidated than the previous day, was filled with people whose faces bore “happy” smiles due to the lingering poison gas.

The station, riddled with holes, combined with the cheerful, shabby vagrants, created a bizarre and striking scene.

In the distance, a man in a red uniform stood in the center of the platform, his face covered in blood marks as if whipped, his eyes full of resentment searching for something beneath his lowered hat brim.

Although Lu Yibei didn’t know the man, she could clearly sense that he was looking for her.

Obviously, the Celestian hadn’t given up on the chance to kill her if she dared to get off at Cinnabar Pharmacy.

“…”

In silence, she discreetly put on the hood of her tactical jacket, leaned against the train window, pretending to nap, waiting for the train to depart again.

Thus, at 8:17 AM, the Giant Train reached the end of its journey-Dream Come True Entertainment City.

As the Giant Train traversed the Flesh Tunnel between Cinnabar Pharmacy and Dream Come True Entertainment City, hundreds of sturdy legs once again touched solid ground.

A warm breeze suddenly arrived.

In an instant, the entire carriage seemed to switch from winter to warm spring.

Noticing the change in temperature, Lu Yibei looked out the window in surprise and saw a golden plain bathed in the glow of the setting sun.

On the endless, wave-like grassland, remnants of large mechanical structures resembling steel forests and building ruins with only metal frames flashed by, rusted and abandoned like the bones of giants scattered across the vast wilderness.

Lu Yibei gazed at these metal remnants, feeling as if she were visiting historical ruins.

The development of modern machinery from the mid-eighteenth century to the twentieth century spanned only two or three hundred years.

Yet, these metal remnants felt far older than two or three hundred years.

Five hundred years, a thousand years, even longer.

But…

How could people back then know about modern mechanical craftsmanship and architectural techniques?

Lu Yibei pondered, wanting to observe the metal remnants more closely, when suddenly the light before her eyes dimmed.

It was as if suddenly transported from the warm spring grasslands to a city in the rainy season; outside the window, a torrential downpour began unexpectedly.

A massive shadow appeared at the horizon’s end, a sprawling complex shrouded in rain, seemingly larger than both the Lanruo Inn Customs Shop and the Cinnabar Pharmacy combined.

Soon, the train entered this cluster of buildings, arriving at the station of the Dream Come True Entertainment City.

Unlike the previous two noisy arrivals, the Giant Train was eerily quiet as it entered the Dream Come True Entertainment City station, almost as if it had turned into a toy train.

Even the gentleman in the top hat provided a surprisingly brief introduction over the broadcast.

“Dear passengers, we have reached the final stop of this journey. May your dreams come true.”

The enormous dome, resembling a shell, covered the station above, supported by skeletal iron frameworks and gray granite columns adorned with exquisite reliefs.

In this vast, dimly colored station, Lu Yibei saw none of the abnormal sights akin to those at the Lanruo Inn Customs Shop and Cinnabar Pharmacy.

As the train doors opened, passengers surged out, mingling with those meeting and waiting, exchanging warm greetings and embraces like reunited families or lovers.

Standing on this platform, if not for the dense psychic energy fluctuations emanating from the crowd, Lu Yibei might have thought she was in a large Victorian-era station, rather than a haunting’s domain.

Ah-Hua approached, stopping beside Lu Yibei, and remarked, “Looks normal, doesn’t it?”

Lu Yibei tilted her head slightly towards Ah-Hua and whispered, “But that’s just how it looks, right?”

“In a place like this, the more normal something appears, the more dangerous it often is. I understand that much.”

“…” Ah-Hua opened her mouth, hesitated, and after a moment of contemplation, said, “I need to go to the notice board to ask the staff about the situation. Are you coming with me or waiting in the waiting hall?”

After a pause, she added, “This place isn’t like the Cinnabar Pharmacy; you can’t post notices freely.”

Lu Yibei tilted her head in thought, “I’ll wait for you in the waiting hall then? I’ll take a look around the station in the meantime.”

Lu Yibei was quite interested in this place, and it seemed much safer than the previous two stations.

Ah-Hua nodded, reminding her before leaving, “If you come across roadside gambling stalls, don’t participate. They’re not banned, but there’s no guarantee from the Entertainment City, and they will definitely cheat.”

“I know, don’t you know me by now?” Lu Yibei pouted.

If there’s not a hundred and twenty percent chance of winning, why would I participate?

With that, Ah-Hua nodded at Lu Yibei and turned to walk towards a corner of the station.

After Ah-Hua left, Lu Yibei walked alone towards the waiting hall, stopping occasionally to observe her surroundings.

Upon closer inspection, she realized that these buildings, seemingly from the Victorian era, exuded an aura similar to the metal remnants on the grassland earlier, distinctly ancient.

It was like visiting a museum of ancient civilizations, a palpable sense of history washing over her.

As Lu Yibei immersed herself in this peculiar experience, a chaotic and hurried sound of footsteps reached her ears, followed by several burly men in floral shirts rushing past her, seemingly in pursuit of someone.

Soon, sounds of a scuffle and cries of pain echoed from afar.

“Damned old swindler, pay up!”

“If you can’t come up with the money today, I’ll chop your hand off!”

The sturdy men shouted angrily.

“Ow, stop hitting me, stop hitting me!”

“I don’t have any money left; what I won from you, I lost it all at the Entertainment City last night!” an elderly voice cried out in pain.

Lu Yibei, “…”

The Dream Come True Journey stations prohibit psychic energy-related conflicts, but physical assaults are not included. Even if you wield a kitchen knife and leave someone bloodied, theoretically, no one will intervene.

Lu Yibei initially had no intention of getting involved in this personal vendetta turned one-sided brawl, but…

“Really can’t come up with it?” a sturdy man asked in a deep voice.

“Can’t come up with it…” the elder replied weakly.

“Then I’ll have to chop your hand off to vent my anger!” the sturdy man threatened harshly.

The elder shouted in panic, “No, no! I have a house in Hua City, Country Z…”

“Shut up, how much can a house be worth? Do you even know how many chips you swindled from us?”

“My house isn’t an ordinary one; it’s a mansion in the old town, Mudan Street in Hua City. You can check it right now! The property prices are sky-high.”

Mudan Street in Hua City? Lu Yibei paused, unable to contain her curiosity, and turned towards the source of the voice, then she saw a familiar face.

Ah? It’s Liu Seer?

Didn’t Dad say he probably starved to death one winter because he couldn’t make money from fortune-telling?

Turns out he ended up here, gambling until he lost touch?

Lu Yibei thought as she stepped forward, calling out softly to the sturdy men about to assault Liu Seer, “Wait a minute!”

The sturdy men turned their heads to look at Lu Yibei, their expressions unfriendly, “What? Are you going to stand up for him?”

“No!” Lu Yibei shook her head, expressionless, “I just want to say, I can attest that a mansion on Mudan Street in Hua City is valuable, valuable enough that he might be bluffing you, so you might want to hit him harder, or he might not actually hand it over.”

Liu Seer, “???”

Footnote:

1. Dream of the Red Chamber(红楼梦): Cao Xueqin’s 18th-century masterpiece and China’s greatest classical novel.