Chapter 347 - 14: Suppression from the Client

The spectral creatures on the back mountain couldn’t see Duan Fei. All they saw was the Little Daoist approaching with his sword, and the creatures in his path would just drop dead. For a moment, they couldn’t make heads or tails of the situation.

The Little Daoist’s Cultivation was mediocre at best, yet his attacks were silent and swift. Before the ghosts could even muster a Reaction, the creatures around him would be gone.

The less they understood, the more wary they became.

Especially after several of their brethren had died gruesome deaths under Duan Fei’s Crowbar, the remaining ghosts didn’t dare get close. They could only watch from a distance, hoping to figure out the Little Daoist’s technique.

Now that he knew Duan Fei was on a whole other level, the Little Daoist swallowed his pride. He followed respectfully behind Duan Fei, only occasionally pointing out where a malevolent ghost was hiding so Duan Fei could go give it a whack with his Crowbar.

Seeing Duan Fei dispatch the surrounding enemies with such ease, the Little Daoist couldn’t help but ask, "Duan Someone, how are you able to do that?"

"Simple. I have Divinity in my body, so killing things is easy. I also have an ultimate move, which makes it even easier."

"I see..."

Lifting his head, the Little Daoist noticed the sky had darkened. It wasn’t completely black yet; he could still vaguely make out his surroundings.

But he knew that in this realm, there was no such thing as night. If he saw the sky turning dark, it meant a spectral creature had targeted him.

The darker it got, the deeper the creature’s influence over him. If it became so dark he couldn’t see anything at all, he wouldn’t be far from death.

He gave a wry smile and looked up at the sky. "Duan Someone, do you think it’s dark?"

"Nope. I wouldn’t call it sunny, but it’s still plenty bright."

"Of course. My master once told me that when I finally see a completely bright sky, it will mean I’ve attained Great Success. I asked him what the sky looked like to him, and he was quite smug when he said it was already dusk for him."

Having said this, the Little Daoist looked at Duan Fei and asked seriously, "Duan Someone, who are you, really? Could you be the Ruyi True Immortal, who has descended to the mortal realm specifically to save me?"

"Young man, don’t you think you’re overestimating your own importance?"

"I suppose you’re right..."

Letting out a long sigh, the Little Daoist said with resignation, "I don’t know what it’s like for you people on the outside, but if you were in my shoes, you’d think you were pretty important, too. Back in the day..."

"Skip," Duan Fei said reflexively, then started mashing a non-existent spacebar.

"Huh?"

"I get the feeling this trip down memory lane is going to be a long one, so I’m planning to skip it."

"...Fine, I’ll make it quick."

"Please do."

"The truth is, my master and I are the only two living people in this whole town. Everyone else is a ghost. How would you feel if you found out your childhood sweetheart, the uncle next door, the friends you played with every day—were all ghosts? Anyone would snap. It’s even worse when you realize they all want to eat you and are only holding back because they’re afraid of your master. That’s when your whole worldview really shatters."

Duan Fei put himself in the Little Daoist’s shoes for a moment and nodded in agreement.

’It really would suck to be deceived like that.’

’If he found out one of his bros suddenly wanted to be his wife... he’d also be a little... happy?’

He paused. For some reason, his thoughts turned to Jinghong.

’What if Jinghong came up to him and calmly said, "Duan Fei, I don’t think it’s right for us to just be bros anymore. How about I be your wife? Or you can be my wife, that works too."’

’"Okay! Sounds great!"’

Duan Fei clapped a hand over his mouth, shocked. ’Why would my imaginary self have that kind of Reaction?’

’He’d always told himself something like that was impossible. After all, Jinghong had never shown any feelings for him beyond that of a good friend, and he hadn’t either... or had he?’

’Thinking about it more deeply, Duan Fei realized that ever since he and Jinghong started living together, he would often find himself inexplicably staring at her. When she was in the shower, he’d make a point of hopping into a game for a few rounds. When he saw that she’d kicked off the covers in her sleep and her belly button was showing, he’d watch for a moment before pulling the blanket back over her.’

’So... have my feelings for my bro gone from platonic to romantic?’

Pinching his chin, Duan Fei felt like he’d discovered a new world. He kept dissecting his feelings for Jinghong, growing more and more amazed by his own thoughts.

"Um, Duan Someone? I know you’re thinking, but could you maybe look over here?"

Turning his head, Duan Fei saw the Little Daoist surrounded by paper figures. If he didn’t intervene, the kid was a goner.

Duan Fei went over and took out the paper figures. He felt like he was on a rather annoying escort mission, but there was nothing to be done about it.

The Little Daoist was fairly familiar with the back mountain, and after a short walk, he led Duan Fei to a chicken coop.

Roosters strutted about majestically while hens scurried everywhere. The chickens had eaten their fill of the forest’s insects, and the eggs they laid looked particularly fine.

After rummaging through the undergrowth for a bit, Duan Fei and the Little Daoist quickly found a good number of eggs.

After filling the backpack with eggs, Duan Fei and the Little Daoist headed back the way they came and handed the eggs over to Cuihua.

Seeing the top-quality eggs, Cuihua was instantly thrilled. She began rapidly beating them and preparing the leftover rice. Before long, she had whipped up a pot of egg fried rice that was perfect in color, aroma, and taste.

Since they had brought back plenty of eggs and there was a lot of leftover rice, Cuihua divided the fried rice—in which every grain was distinct yet perfectly coated in egg—into five bowls. One bowl was placed under the paper slip, and the remaining four were given to the four of them.

Bracing himself to counteract any poison, Duan Fei took a huge bite, and tears nearly welled up in his eyes.

You could only eat egg fried rice of this Level in a game.

Every single bite was an unsurpassed delicacy. The aromas of the stir-fried rice and egg blended flawlessly, the amount of salt was just right, and the control over the heat was nothing short of perfect. Each mouthful was a pleasure fit for an emperor.

He had thought the Black Mashed Potatoes from before were the pinnacle of culinary art, but Cuihua had somehow made another breakthrough. It was truly astounding.

For a moment, none of the four people in the room wanted to speak. They just silently shoveled down their food.

Finally, Duan Fei set down his chopsticks and gazed regretfully at his empty bowl, which looked as if it had already been washed clean.

Turning his head, he was about to ask for more when he saw Little Fatty had already sidled up to the stove, picking up fallen grains of rice one by one and popping them into his mouth.

"Little Fatty, you..."

Little Fatty glanced at Duan Fei, then scooted over, making room for him.

But before Duan Fei could move, the Little Daoist had already rushed forward with his empty bowl and started searching alongside Little Fatty.

"...I’m ashamed to have companions like you."

"The guy who wasn’t fast enough to grab a spot should shut up!" Little Fatty retorted.

Still savoring the delicious aftertaste, Duan Fei saw the bowl of food offered to the Evil Corpse fly back. The egg fried rice inside was gone, replaced by a slip of paper.

There was a lot written on the note, but it wasn’t praise. It was dripping with passive-aggressive sarcasm.

It complained that the eggs weren’t ideal and that the rice was subpar. It even spouted bullshit like complaining that there was no beef in the egg fried rice, which thoroughly pissed Duan Fei off.

’First, you use praise to make someone lower their guard, then you slowly raise your standards to put them down.’ This Evil Corpse had perfectly mastered the essence of how toxic managers operate. You could smell the stench of a slimy, middle-management tyrant from a mile away.

’Does it really think it’s the client here?’

Telling Cuihua to ignore the note, Duan Fei glanced at the Divine Spirit that was still advancing up the mountain from below. He gestured for Cuihua to continue her work.

’Once the Evil Corpse’s power has been weakened enough, I’ll go settle the score with that bastard!’