Ch 69: Guide to Running a Shop in Another World II

The Demon Lord: “So you tried sneaking into the human world, got beaten up by some human, and scurried back in disgrace?”

The Demon Treasure suddenly realized something was off.

It had been trying to act spoiled, forgetting that its master was unfeeling and indifferent, as he had always been for millennia.

The Demon Lord casually tossed the Demon Treasure back into the attendant’s arms. “Send it to the human world. It’s not coming back until it wins.”

His philosophy on “raising” companions was simple: Fighting is fine, but losing is unacceptable.

The attendant met the Demon Treasure’s gaze, both looking utterly miserable.

This was far from the outcome they had hoped for.

The attendant carried the Demon Treasure away, only to encounter a female official mid-journey.

Before ascending to his position, the current Demon Lord had spent years traveling in the human world. After sealing the gateways, he commanded the Demon Realm to mimic human architecture for its palaces and streets and introduced laws inspired by human systems.

In the Demon Palace, roles were assigned based on competence, not gender. Both male and female officials held positions of authority.

The female official bowed to the attendant and the Demon Treasure before asking, “Xuanfeng, have you seen His Excellency?”

Xuanfeng nodded. “His Excellency instructed me to take the Demon Treasure to the human world.”

The gateway between the Demon Realm and the human world had been sealed for 500 years. This marked the first time a demon had been granted permission to cross over.

The female official, puzzled, asked, “Has something significant occurred?”

To spare the Demon Treasure’s pride, Xuanfeng gave a vague response. “Not exactly.”

The Demon Treasure, anxious that Xuanfeng might spill its embarrassing story, squirmed wildly in his arms, accidentally tumbling to the ground with a “thud.”

A young female official in the group of newcomers trailing behind the lead female official instinctively reached out to catch it but missed. She quickly crouched down and cradled the Demon Treasure in her hands. “Are you okay?”

Mortified by the public humiliation, the Demon Treasure bristled with anger. It opened its mouth, ready to bite the young woman, but froze upon seeing her face.

The young official blinked, gently holding the Demon Treasure up. “Your Highness, Demon Treasure?”

The Demon Treasure ignored her, hopping back into Xuanfeng’s arms. It turned to the leading female official and demanded, “Where did this girl come from?”

Why did she look so much like that woman?

The young official replied politely, “Subordinate Lu Yao, hailing from the Abyss of the Demon Realm.”

Lu Yao?

The Demon Treasure blinked in confusion.

Xuanfeng glanced at the sky. Seeing the sun nearing its zenith, he hastily bid farewell. “His Excellency didn’t open the gateway, so I need to prepare a rift. We’ll be going now.”

As Xuanfeng carried the Demon Treasure away, Lu Yao looked back, puzzled. The little demon’s gaze had been oddly intense.

…

At the roots of the Bodhi tree in Baixian Mountain, a narrow rift quietly opened, releasing two streams of demonic energy.

The energy coalesced into human form. Xuanfeng stood beneath the withered Bodhi tree, asking, “Are you certain this is the place?”

The Demon Treasure blinked, scanning the surroundings. “This is it.”

Xuanfeng sighed. “How did you end up in such a desolate mountain? How are we supposed to find the person who beat you here?”

The Demon Treasure bristled like it had been stepped on, clawing at Xuanfeng’s arm. “I wasn’t prepared! If I see them again, I’ll beat them so badly they’ll beg for mercy!”

Xuanfeng humored it. “Sure, sure. Let’s find them quickly. Finish your fight and get back soon.”

The Demon Realm was dull, and the human world nowadays wasn’t much better.

Xuanfeng had no desire to linger for long.

Carrying the Demon Treasure, he circled halfway around the withered Bodhi tree and noticed a peculiar signboard hanging above the tree hollow: Lu Yao’s Interdimensional Internet Café.

Xuanfeng: “What kind of place is this?”

Demon Treasure: “Lu Yao—that’s the woman!”

Xuanfeng: “The one who beat you?”

Demon Treasure shook its head. “The one who hit me was her companion. I heard the other demons call her Lu Yao, or ‘boss.’ She even had the nerve to pinch my face!”

Xuanfeng, who hadn’t been to the human world in ages, now had the impression that humans had become fearless of demons, even bold enough to provoke them.

Carrying the Demon Treasure, he stepped forward. “Let’s take a look.”

Demon Treasure, however, felt it would be undignified to be carried in while seeking trouble. It transformed into a humanoid child, appearing to be about ten years old, with black hair and robes. Only its bright red eyes, vivid as the rising sun, betrayed its demonic nature.

The morning rush for the demon-friendly keyboard had subsided. The demons were back to their usual habits: some eating breakfast, others gaming, binge-watching shows, or listening to music. No one seemed to be bored.

Xuanfeng and Demon Treasure entered the café, observing rows of computers. Most displayed games: an old man mining gold, pixelated characters planting bombs, a red-capped figure stomping on mushrooms, and one screen showing a player engaged in a PK match, surrounded by a crowd of demons.

Momentarily forgetting their purpose, Xuanfeng and Demon Treasure joined the spectators.

The demon playing the PK match lost, drawing jeers from the smaller demons around them. Embarrassed, the player got up and called for a staff member to log them out.

Just as the player left, the chair magically transformed, revealing a small black-haired, red-eyed figure sitting there: Demon Treasure.

Demon Treasure proclaimed loudly, “Xuanfeng, pay for me!”

The room fell silent.

The demons stared.

Where had this little demon come from?

The defeated player bristled. The café had always been their territory—first populated by demons, with most of the customers being their kin.

Now, not only had this demonling from the Demon Realm dared to show itself, but it did so arrogantly, in full view on their turf.

A demon reached out to shove Demon Treasure.

But as the Demon Lord’s companion, Demon Treasure wasn’t one to be bullied. It lashed out, escalating the situation.

Within moments, demon techniques and magic surged chaotically across the room.

The café was in ruins within two minutes.

Zhong Lianjia didn’t even have the courage to shout for them to stop.

This was the cultivation world, after all.

Here, strength ruled, and demons and devils ran rampant.

For ordinary humans like himself, getting involved was a surefire way to get obliterated.

While demons and devils fought fiercely, other spectators—remaining demons—shielded their computers with spells. Occasionally, someone would get too caught up in watching and forget, resulting in their machine being half-destroyed.

Zhong Lianjia ducked under a desk and stretched out a hand to pull Lu Yao.

“Boss, wake up!”

Lu Yao stirred groggily. “What time is it?”

Zhong Lianjia: “We’ve got two Demon Realm guests fighting the demons in the café.”

Lu Yao’s eyes shot open, taking in the sight of the shattered ceiling.

Lu Yao: “…”

She brushed off the sparrows nesting on her and grabbed a megaphone from the shelf near the counter. Turning it on, she spoke into it firmly:

“Stop fighting! If you want to fight, take it outside!”

The room briefly fell silent. Demons and devils alike turned to glance at her before resuming their battle with renewed vigor.

Once they started, neither demons nor devils could be easily stopped. Unless someone powerful intervened, there was no halting them.

To them, Lu Yao was nothing more than an ordinary human, weak and powerless—a creature as insignificant as an ant.

The demons, who had been fairly well-behaved in the café so far, only respected her because of Harold’s occasional presence. But today, the dragon-like teenager wasn’t around, so no one paid her any mind.

Taking a deep breath, Lu Yao set down the megaphone and stepped out from behind the counter.

The sparrows fluttered around her in a panic, trying to block her path.

This was madness. She was a mortal. If she stepped into the chaos, she’d lose her life in seconds.

High-ranking demons and devils fought with immense power, leaving no room for weaker beings to intervene.

Meanwhile, Zhong Lianjia frantically messaged the staff group chat for help.

[Interdimensional Internet Café Zhong Lianjia]: @Harold Where are you? The café is under attack. Demons and devils are fighting. We can’t handle this!**

Zhong Lianjia, knowing Harold often frequented the café, directly tagged him.

However, the typically chatty teenager didn’t respond.

Seconds passed—

[Nail Salon Edward]: Harold and Tina went to Dragon Valley for school. They’re not in town.

[Interdimensional Internet Café Zhong Lianjia]: What should we do??? The shop is almost completely trashed, and the demons won’t listen to the boss!

Zhong Lianjia was panicked and helpless.

He was just an ordinary person, completely incapable of handling the current chaos. Surely, Lu Yao was just as frightened and powerless as he was.

Turning his head, however, he saw that the boss had already stepped forward.

[Interdimensional Internet Café Zhong Lianjia]: The boss is trying to mediate!!! Besides Harold, who else can come help???

[Snack Shop Xingzi]: Calm down, newbie. The boss isn’t as weak as you think.

Zhong Lianjia struggled to suppress his frustration.

The other staff members clearly had no idea how absurd this situation was. No matter how good the boss was at running the business, she was still just a regular girl.

Suddenly, the sparrows shrieked in alarm, their wings trembling as they hovered midair, their beady eyes fixed on a spot ahead.

Following their gaze, Zhong Lianjia turned to see—

A black magic staff appeared in Lu Yao’s hand seemingly out of nowhere.

Atop the staff, a coiled, twin-winged black dragon lay with its tail wrapped protectively around a cluster of brilliantly colored gemstones.

Lu Yao held the staff with practiced ease, pointing its tip toward the fighting demons and monsters. With a swift motion, she drew a small-scale attack magic array in the air.

The jet-black gemstone atop the staff glowed, firing five or six beams of blazing light.

Sensing the oncoming attack, Demon Treasure and Xuanfeng deftly dodged backward.

The demons, unable to evade in time, were pierced by the magical blades. Demon blood spilled onto the ground.

The dark flames on the magical blades couldn’t be extinguished by water or dispersed by wind, leaving the injured demons writhing in agony as they screamed and rolled on the floor.

Without batting an eye, Lu Yao drew another array midair.

This time, the purple gemstone on the staff glowed, and countless black pillars erupted from the ground, caging the demons and devils inside.

A demon tried to resist, but purple lightning surged up the pillars, burning them until they collapsed, screaming in pain.

Lightning tribulation?!

The ruckus finally began to subside as the demons cautiously studied the human woman outside the cage.

Lu Yao casually twirled the staff in her hand. “That’s more like it.”

The demons: “…”

Xuanfeng took two steps back, shielding Demon Treasure behind him.

Demon Treasure had already reverted to its original form and was hiding behind Xuanfeng, trying to open a rift to escape.

The sparrows chirped anxiously, frantically reporting to Lu Yao.

Turning around, Lu Yao walked up to Xuanfeng, her gaze landing on the trembling Demon Treasure behind him.

“So, it’s you. Don’t bother wasting your energy. You’re not the only one who knows spatial magic. Until we settle the damages to my shop, no one’s leaving!”

Demon Treasure slumped dejectedly onto Xuanfeng’s back.

She wasn’t bluffing.

This cage was no ordinary one—it could trap both demons and devils. Escape was futile.

Finally, both the demons and devils seemed to realize—they had been subdued by a human without any cultivation.

Zhong Lianjia, witnessing Lu Yao use her abilities for the first time, was so shocked he couldn’t speak.

Hurriedly, he took photos of the café’s current state and shared them in the staff group chat.

[Interdimensional Internet Café Zhong Lianjia]: It seems like the situation is under control… Is the boss secretly a cultivator?

[Little Pet Café Ji zhixin]: The boss was holding a Western fantasy staff. Didn’t you see?

[Interdimensional Internet Café Zhong Lianjia]: I saw! But I still don’t understand. Isn’t she supposed to be just a regular person?!

[Nail Salon Clarissa]: If someone who can wield both light and dark magic counts as “regular,” then sure.

[Nail Salon Ambrose]: A boss wielding the Nine-Treasure Staff could challenge even the Dragon Clan Elders.

[Snack Shop Xingzi]: Lu Yao is a mortal favored by the God of Death.

[Nail Salon Si Jin]: Even the Dragon Clan adores her.

[Little Pet Café Leilei]: The Mother Goddess is always watching over Lu Yao, and we waterdrop seals will protect her, too.

[Childhood Tutoring Center Hui Jiao]: The boss has superpowers, huh?

[Blind Box Shop Lily]: Our god is pretty useless, just hanging out at Lu Yao’s café, freeloading.

[Blind Box Shop Ji Feiming]: …

Ji Feiming couldn’t bring himself to admit that the “useless god” everyone mentioned was actually Lu Yao’s son.

[Interdimensional Cinema Gao Meng]: What about us? Doesn’t our shop have anything special?

🛍️🛍️🛍️🛍️🛍️