Chapter 83: The bounty on Lin Fang’s head
First scene: the Yuber tested the tonic on an injured Lightning Rodent. Within seconds, the monster’s wounds closed up, and it jumped around full of vitality.
Cut to the next scene: a massive Stone Serpent, elderly and frail, its power degraded from Commander Tier down to Normal. After feeding it the Jade Spirit Tonic, its aura suddenly surged—it broke back into Commander Tier. The serpent’s scales regained some of their luster, its body moving as if years had been shaved off its age.
The Yuber’s voice echoed in the background:
"This is not a potion—it’s a miracle. If this spreads, the monster industry will change forever."
The manager’s hands shook with barely contained rage. He clenched his fists so tightly that his knuckles turned white.
"Damn it," he hissed. "If Fang Fang Pets continues like this... We’ll lose everything."
He suddenly stopped pacing and turned sharply to the assistant.
"Check with the Northern Yan Monster Food and Drug Administration. See if those products have approval. If they don’t, file a complaint immediately. Push it up to the ministry level, and then start a campaign against them on social media."
The assistant nodded rapidly, jotting notes.
"And if they do have approval..." the manager’s eyes narrowed dangerously, "I want to know when they got it, and who patented those elixirs."
"Yes, Sir."
"Also—hire some people to make trouble at the store. I don’t care how. Riots, fake customers, complaints, anything. And most importantly—" His voice dropped to a growl.
"I want to know everything there is to know about this Lin Fang."
The assistant bowed his head. "Understood, Sir. I’ll get to work immediately."
As the assistant left, the manager stood alone in the office, fists trembling. His face twisted into a grim mask.
"Lin Fang..." he muttered under his breath. "You’ve just declared war."
Seven hours later, as the sun dipped low on the horizon, the glowing "Open" sign at Fang Fang Pets finally flickered off. A "Closed" board was placed at the entrance.
Inside, Lin Fang gathered the staff at the reception hall on the first floor. He held a tablet in his hand, his expression serious—but his voice carried excitement.
"Our opening day target," he announced, "was one million credits."
The employees leaned forward in anticipation.
Lin Fang tapped the screen. "Our actual sales today—2,712,520 credits."
A moment of stunned silence—then an explosion of cheers.
"And," he raised his hand to quiet them, "we also secured another 270,000 credits worth of training services that will be fulfilled in the coming days. So... we can say this was a grand success."
"Woo!" The staff erupted, clapping, cheering, and exchanging high-fives.
Zhi Yan and Li Liu both wore wide smiles, their eyes glimmering with pride. Nebula was smiling as well, but still looked uncomfortable, wearing the bodyguard suit and tie, like the other two. Her hand constantly reached the shirt, tugging it slowly before returning to normal.
Meanwhile, Lin Fang raised his voice again, smiling in excitement. "Alright. As tomorrow is Sunday, it’ll be busy again. Go home, rest well, and recharge. Thank you all for your hard work and professionalism today."
He gave a slight bow, and the applause grew louder.
One by one, the employees left the store in high spirits, chatting among themselves about their lucky break of working here.
Soon, only four figures remained: Nebula, Lin Fang, Zhi Yan, and Li Liu.
"Let’s go home?" Li Liu asked with a small smile.
Lin Fang hesitated, glancing at Zhi Yan. "Actually... Zhi Yan, I need to talk to you about something."
Li Liu paused, then chuckled softly. "I’ll leave you two alone, then—"
"No, it’s nothing private," Lin Fang said quickly, shaking his head.
Zhi Yan tilted her head. "What is it, then?"
Lin Fang let out a breath, scratching his cheek. "I know I technically have a place on the top floor to live alone now... but... if you don’t mind, I..."
Before he could finish, Zhi Yan interrupted with a warm smile. "It’s not a problem. Stay with us as long as you like. And we are working together anyway. Coming together for work and leaving together is much more convenient for us, too."
Relief washed over Lin Fang’s face. "Thank you."
From the side, Li Liu’s lips curved into a subtle smile as she watched both of them. But it only lasted a moment, and she averted her gaze in discomfort.
Soon, leaving Nebula and Black to guard the store and the inventory, the three of them exited the store together and got into the car.
As the vehicle pulled away into the night, from the penthouse terrace above, Xuenyi leaned against the railing, her gaze sharp and calculating as she watched them leave.
Once they were out of her sight, she picked up her phone, speaking in a low, cold tone. "Suzy, they’ve left. The Northern Sky group spies were already spotted during the ceremony. Zhi Yan isn’t enough to face them alone. won’t attack is confirmed, but we don’t know when it will happen. Stay alert."
A sweet yet tough voice crackled back through the receiver:
"Yes, Ma’am."
Xuenyi ended the call, her expression unreadable under the city lights.
Meanwhile, at Peking City;
In the backstreets, far into the suburbs, a shabby-looking pub stood half-hidden between old tenement buildings. Muffled laughter and drunken chatter filled the inside.
As the pub door creaked open, a man in a dark coat stepped in, his gaze sweeping the room before he made his way toward the counter. The bartender, a stout fellow with a scar across his cheek, wiped his hands on a rag and asked casually, "What’ll you drink?"
Instead of answering, the man slid a sleek black metallic card across the table. The card gleamed faintly under the dim yellow bulbs, fitted with a chip like a credit card. "I come from the Xiao Estate of Huaxi City," the man said in a low, clipped tone. "And I’m here to give a job. One million credits—paid in full, upfront."
The bartender’s brow furrowed. He picked up the card, weighing its authenticity, and after a pause, gestured to another worker to cover his post. Without a word, he motioned the man toward a side door that led into the employee-only section.
They stopped at the foot of a staircase. The bartender crossed his arms. "What’s the job?"
The man pulled out his phone, tapped it, and handed it over. On the screen was a dossier:
Name: Lin Fang
Age: 24
Height: 1.79m
Background: High school graduate, recently opened Fang Fang Pets in Huaxi City, and living in a shared rental home.
The bartender scrolled, frowning. "This profile looks...normal. Why the hell would a job like this be worth a million?"
The man’s voice turned colder. "Because this man is suspected of owning a Lord-Tier Wolf Monster, called the Luminous direwolf, which could not only tear down the enemies but also heal him."
The bartender’s eyes widened. "Luminous direwolf? The newly discovered species? Don’t tell me, he actually has one?"
The man nodded firmly. "Yes. And not just that. It is suspected that he is the main seller who brought those direwolf eggs into the market and used Hello World to promote them."
That made the bartender’s frown deepen. For a moment, silence stretched between them, filled only by the dull hum of the lights.
"So," the bartender muttered eventually, "Even if this fellow has a monster stronger than a Lord-tier beast, I don’t think your Xiao Estate would resort to such a method."
The man’s gaze hardened at that. "It’s because the one who is protecting him is Master Li Chengfeng. We can’t act against him publicly. Your job is simple—kill him and bring back his dead body to us. If you bring it to us without damaging it much, we will provide you with an additional amount."
The bartender finally let out a slow exhale. "Alright. We will take the risk. The job will be done in a week."
The man retrieved nothing, leaving only the phone behind. "That device will be your line of contact with us. Complete this, and there will be more jobs."
With that, he turned and walked away, his footsteps echoing down the empty corridor.
The bartender stared after him, then glanced back at the dossier still glowing on the phone screen. He muttered under his breath, looking at the image interestingly, "Lin Fang... who are you, that even the Xiao Estate doesn’t dare dirty their hands directly?"