Ch 71: Guide to Running a Shop in Another World II

Jizhuang left.

When he departed, his expression was grim, as if he were furious. Strangely, though, some of the gloom weighing on him seemed to have lifted.

Lu Yao couldn’t be bothered to care and turned back to handle the mess in her store.

The fight between the demons and the devils had trashed the place.

Her attempts to take control of the situation had only caused further damage.

Then, when Budu clashed with the Demon Emperor, the major fixtures in the store were completely wrecked after just a few exchanges.

Budu’s emotions eventually calmed, and the wind and snow that had appeared out of nowhere vanished.

With a slightly guilty look, Budu lowered his head and said softly, “Mother, I’m sorry.”

Zhong Lianjia, crouched behind the counter, clearly heard the word “Mother” and felt a strange sense of vindication—he’d guessed right!

But then, something about it felt odd.

Why did Budu call the shopkeeper “Mother” instead of “Mom”?

While “Mother” was formal and proper, “Mom” was more colloquial and intimate.

Using “Mother” in everyday speech seemed oddly stiff.

Lu Yao noticed Budu’s legs and the hand that had gripped the blade earlier were turning semi-transparent, with a pool of water forming beneath him. She forgot everything else, crouched down, and scooped him up in her arms to head toward the door.

A trace of urgency tinged her voice as she said, “You’re starting to melt again. Let’s get back to the ice chamber.”

Zhong Lianjia was baffled. Melt? What does that even mean?

The demons, having paid their “ransom,” were released and quickly fled, but Xuanfeng and the demon treasure were still trapped in the cage.

The demon treasure blinked its blood-red eyes, staring straight at Budu, who was being carried away by Lu Yao. A flicker of envy appeared in its gaze.

Meanwhile, a thoughtful look passed through Xuanfeng’s eyes. Where was that woman planning to take that creature?

Wasn’t the area outside just a desolate forest?

Lu Yao carried Budu to the hot spring inn. Once inside his room, she took out her magic wand again and etched forced cooling magic circles into the four corners.

Although Lu Yao only possessed light and dark magic attributes herself, her coworkers from the little pet café had helped her gather materials to craft the Nine-Treasure Wand.

The Nine-Treasure Wand was constructed with nine god-tier magical gemstones as its base, with the shaft made from a rare mineral found in the deepest magma fissures. Exceptionally durable, it was highly compatible with dark magic.

This wand not only greatly amplified the wielder’s power but also temporarily allowed them to use other magical attributes with its assistance.

Since opening a new shop in the cultivation world, Lu Yao had naturally prepared herself, focusing on practicing several offensive spells.

As it turned out, she hadn’t even been open for a few days before she had to use them.

She thought of the thick stack of magic theory books in her storage space—she needed to make time to study them.

She also had to explore the local spells, alchemy, and artifact refining techniques in the cultivation world.

While she might never cultivate herself, she couldn’t afford to remain ignorant.

Lu Yao sat down next to Budu. “You came at just the right time today. But will your body be okay?”

Budu, who had been quietly basking in the joy of being carried back and watching her move about, smiled brightly and shook his head without care. “Protecting Mother is the meaning of my existence.”

Lu Yao patted his silver hair and sighed silently. “I know.”

As the room’s temperature dropped, Budu’s limbs returned to their solid state.

Lu Yao sat with him for a while longer before heading back to the café.

Zhong Lianjia was hard at work cleaning up the store. With the machines and tables completely wrecked, all he could do was sweep away the debris.

The store had no option but to be completely rebuilt.

Lu Yao walked in from the entrance and motioned to Zhong not to bother cleaning for now. She then stepped into the center of the hall. “And what are you two planning to do?”

Xuanfeng had been in the Demon Realm for far too long. Leaving in a rush, he hadn’t thought to bring extra spirit stones.

How much time could a demon treasure possibly spend fighting a human?

At most, it’d take some effort to track the person down, and the fight itself would be over in minutes.

Devils rely on demonic energy to cultivate. In the human realm, they prefer to feed on the negative energies of humans—their emotions, desires, and sins.

Unlike humans or demon cultivators, they don’t require grains or sustenance, nor do they enjoy lodging in the human realm.

Xuanfeng had thought that lacking spirit stones wouldn’t be an issue. Who would’ve expected such a predicament?

The other demons had paid their compensation in spirit stones and were released, but Xuanfeng and the demon treasure had empty pockets and no way to escape. It was a complete humiliation.

Ashamed, Xuanfeng couldn’t find the words to respond.

The demon treasure jumped down from Xuanfeng’s arms, landing on the floor, and transformed into a black-haired, red-eyed child. “Where’s that blue-eyed guy?”

Lu Yao: “You mean Harold?”

The demon treasure: “That’s his name? Fine. Call him out. I’ll settle the score.”

Xuanfeng thought to himself that the demon treasure still had some wit. Once they got out of this cage, there would be no stopping them—this little human wouldn’t even have the chance to speak.

Lu Yao: “Harold’s gone to school. He’ll be back tonight. Don’t you have school at your age?”

The demon treasure lifted his chin. “You think demons are as stupid as humans?”

Lu Yao: “I don’t know if demons are stupid, but the two of you aren’t getting out of here without paying up.”

Xuanfeng & the demon treasure: “…”

This human was truly unyielding.

Xuanfeng said, “We left in a hurry and forgot to bring spirit stones. Let us out first, and we’ll return to the Demon Realm to retrieve them. We won’t go back on our word.”

Lu Yao tapped a finger against the cage bars, unmoved. “And if you run away? Where would I find you? This whole mess started because of you two, and now you have no spirit stones to pay. I’m not unreasonable—how about this? Sign a 14-day short-term labor contract to work off your debt.”

Xuanfeng: “…You mean you want us to work in your store?”

Lu Yao nodded. “Exactly. After 14 days, the debt will be cleared.”

She dared to make even demons work for her. Was there anything she wouldn’t dare to do?

Forced by the circumstances, after much deliberation, Xuanfeng realized they had no choice but to agree to her terms.

Reluctantly, Xuanfeng and the demon treasure signed the contract with Lu Yao.

Once the contract was secured, Lu Yao dispelled the magic cage. “If you try to escape, I’ll take these contracts to the Demon Realm myself. Harold’s abilities should be familiar to you, little demon.”

The demon treasure, seething with anger, yelled, “My name is Mo Bao, not ‘little demon’! It’s just 14 days—who would run?”

Xuanfeng sighed. A contract between demons, demon cultivators (the likes of Wuling), spirits, or magical beasts and humans was always binding and troublesome. Breaking it would lead to severe backlash.

Enduring this humiliation for 14 days to void the contract was their best option.

With the compensation matter finally resolved, Lu Yao now had a pile of spirit stones and two free short-term employees.

She opened the system interface’s real-time map. The compensation didn’t count as part of the café’s revenue—it was considered incidental earnings and wouldn’t progress her mission.

Zhong Lianjia patiently waited for Lu Yao to finish negotiating. Seeing two new coworkers arrive, he was somewhat relieved.

With the café in this state, having two more people to help clean would speed things up.

But between clearing debris, renovating the store, and buying new machines, the restoration would take at least half a month.

Because of the brawl, the shopkeeper had reprimanded both the demon and demon cultivator factions. By the time they reopened, they’d likely lost customers on both sides.

For the café, the losses from this incident were severe.

Lu Yao pulled out her wand again from her portable storage and stood in the center of the wreckage. “The three of you and the sparrows, step back a bit.”

They weren’t sure what the shopkeeper was planning to do, but they obediently retreated behind the counter—the only area still relatively intact.

Lu Yao raised her wand and drew a pattern in midair. The golden gemstone at the wand’s tip began to glow.

A light magic array hovered in the air, its circular pattern slowly expanding. The debris and shattered stones on the ground floated up, returning to their original places.

In less than two minutes, the small shop that had been smashed to ruins by the brawl between the demons and demon cultivators, ravaged by wind and snow, and invaded by magic, was gradually restored.

The ceiling, walls, and floor were as good as new. The broken computers and furniture returned to their original state, and the screens even displayed the pre-damage pages.

Lu Yao: “Xiao Zhong, contact Zhixin and order twenty more computers to be delivered by tomorrow afternoon. This afternoon, I’ll be expanding the café. No need to have anyone guard it during maintenance. You can finish early today. Also, notify Cheng Ye and Qingya—let’s have a short meeting in the office later to discuss upgrades for the new keyboard.”

Zhong Lianjia: “…Okay.”

He didn’t even want to ask questions anymore.

Losses? Customer retention? Clearly, none of that was his concern as a lowly network administrator.

Lu Yao had originally planned to wait until the new keyboards were ready before expanding the café, but given its current state, she decided to proceed with the expansion now and deal with customer retention later.

This incident might have temporarily cost her the demon cultivators market, but now she had two new demon customers.

The demons hadn’t been exposed to the café yet—wasn’t that an untapped market?

If the demon cultivators market ever dwindled, there was still the human realm, the cultivation world, even the Netherworld and the Celestial Realm.

Opening the café in the vast Floating World had its advantages.

As long as there were people, there would always be business.

After organizing matters on Shopping Street, Lu Yao turned her gaze toward Xuanfeng and Mo Bao. “You two, come over here. Let’s discuss the requirements for your first task.”

Xuanfeng & Mo Bao: “…”

For some reason, when they looked at this human woman now, they couldn’t help but feel a chill down their spines.

With plans to venture into the demon market soon, Lu Yao didn’t want any further delays caused by keyboard issues.

Since the new keyboard was already in development, why not build on the existing demon cultivator keyboard by adding demon and cultivation-world scripts? It seemed easier than developing a brand-new keyboard from scratch.

The café hadn’t completely lost the demon market, but switching out peripherals for each new batch of customers was clearly impractical.

After giving Xuanfeng and Mo Bao a brief training session, Lu Yao began asking questions about the demon world.

The two thought Lu Yao had malicious intentions toward the demons, clamming up tighter than an oyster. No matter how she asked, they wouldn’t spill a thing.

Lu Yao called Zhong Lianjia back and had him teach Xuanfeng and Mo Bao by playing a couple of games together.

Since joining Shopping Street, Zhong had diligently worked as a network admin, rarely revisiting his gaming days or showing off his skills in front of customers.

But after witnessing so many mind-bending events today, Zhong suddenly felt the urge to regain a sense of accomplishment from his job.

When Lu Yao messaged him privately, he immediately came out of the office.

Lu Yao didn’t specify a game, leaving it to Zhong to choose something casual.

After some hesitation, Zhong clicked on a long-forgotten icon.

Xuanfeng and Mo Bao didn’t have accounts, so Zhong borrowed two small accounts from acquaintances.

Since these weren’t new accounts, there was no beginner tutorial.

Zhong searched online for beginner guides, painstakingly explaining frame by frame.

Xuanfeng and Mo Bao, unfamiliar with the concept, stared blankly at the screen, looking utterly lost.

Meanwhile, the sparrows perched behind their chairs, their beady eyes glowing with excitement.

This type of game was completely novel to them—they’d never seen other customers play it before.

Zhong’s mouth was dry from all the explaining, but Xuanfeng and Mo Bao seemed to be zoning out, their minds wandering elsewhere.

Lu Yao suggested from the side, “Why not let them try playing? They might learn faster through practice.”

Zhong didn’t dare throw them into a matchmaking game, so he set up a team game against AI.

This was a currently trending MOBA-style game, with one map and two competing teams.

Each team had five players, divided among the top, mid, bottom, and jungle lanes. The first team to destroy the opposing team’s base crystal would win.

Zhong Lianjia took the jungle, Mo Bao handled mid, and Xuanfeng took the top lane. All three seemed confident.

However, less than five minutes into the match, the top and mid lanes were being flamed relentlessly by their teammates.

These two were absolute beginners—touching electronic devices, playing an online game, and experiencing a MOBA game for the very first time. It was no surprise they got scolded.

At first, Xuanfeng and Mo Bao didn’t take it seriously, but as the game progressed, they got increasingly heated. The more frustrated they became, the worse they played. Eventually, even their teammates gave up yelling at them.

Since it was just against AI opponents, Zhong and the other teammates carried the game, easily clinching a win.

But the stats for the two demon cultivators were abysmal.

Lu Yao didn’t interrupt, watching as they got more and more into the game. She sent a message asking Cheng Ye and Ji Qingyan to come by the café later for a meeting.

When Cheng Ye and Ji Qingyan arrived, the clattering of keyboards echoed across the café.

Lu Yao gestured for them to come over behind the counter. “Let them play for a bit; we’ll discuss business.”

All she wanted from the demons was their written records, so there wasn’t much need to involve them in the keyboard development discussions.

As the three wrapped up their meeting, Zhong finally took a break.

Although Zhong had carried Xuanfeng and Mo Bao to victory, their inability to contribute left them feeling aggrieved.

Meanwhile, the sparrows had been flitting around the gaming area for hours, their little eyes gleaming with curiosity as they absorbed everything. They were itching to jump in, frustrated by their inability to take human form.

Lu Yao approached the two demons. “It’s normal to struggle with the game when you’re new to it. Besides, this keyboard isn’t tailored for demons, so it might not feel intuitive to use.”

While the rookie employee Zhong didn’t catch on immediately, Ji Qingyan and Cheng Ye quickly realized that Lu Yao was setting her trap.

What schemes could the boss possibly have?

At most, she wanted to design a demon-specific keyboard and perhaps get her hands on a few books about the demons’ realm.

Demons, naturally powerful and inherently combative, rarely concerned themselves with reading.

But Lu Yao’s luck wasn’t bad.

The current Demon Sovereign, after ascending to power, had commissioned several books, including a dictionary, to be compiled within the demon palace.

Mo Bao, being the Demon Sovereign’s companion, had no oversight from his master but had been left with a few sets of books given to Xuanfeng to read to him at his leisure.

Xuanfeng pulled out a pile of pristine books from his storage bag. “These have been lying around for years. Take them if you need them.”

Satisfied, Lu Yao turned to leave, but Xuanfeng looked at Zhong expectantly. “Come on, let’s play a few more rounds. I feel like I’m getting the hang of it.”

Mo Bao chimed in, his eyes sparkling. “I think I’m getting the feel for it too.”

Zhong Lianjia: “…”

He knew this pattern all too well.

The early signs of gaming addiction were clear as day.

Zhong shot Lu Yao a pleading look, hoping she would intervene.

He wasn’t exhausted from playing a few matches—it was the unpleasant flashbacks to past experiences that haunted him.

Xuanfeng and Mo Bao couldn’t even leave the beginner AI map. Calling them “noobs” was generous; they were utterly clueless.

Lu Yao, having obtained the books, used replication magic to create a duplicate set and fed the originals to Alfred.

She also fed several cultivation-world texts to him for analysis.

Standing up, Lu Yao announced, “The café is going into maintenance for expansion. That’s it for today; come back tomorrow afternoon.”

Meanwhile, Xuanfeng and Mo Bao hadn’t sent any word back to the Demon Realm.

After days of uncharacteristic silence, the Demon Sovereign Zeyuan finally remembered to inquire about Mo Bao.

His attendant, who had been anxiously waiting for this moment, quickly reported the situation.

After listening, Zeyuan remained silent, his gaze contemplative. After a moment, he rose and left the demon palace. “I’ll go to the human world myself.”

The attendants scrambled to prepare for his departure.

Without looking back, Zeyuan said, “No need to follow. I’ll go alone.”

As he stepped out of the palace, an unusual sense of uncertainty washed over him.

That little creature was bound to him by a life contract. If anything had happened to Mo Bao, he would have sensed it.

Currently, there was no news nor any messages. Could it be that Mo Bao was having such a good time in the human world that he forgot to return?

Zeyuan pressed his chest, recalling the sudden unease that struck him that day.

Forget it.

Having been away from the human world for 500 years, he might as well treat this as a nostalgic visit.

Zeyuan stepped out of the demon palace and encountered a female official along the way.

She looked anxious. “Your Majesty, a new junior official in the Diligence Hall was injured by a Nightmare Beast and seeks your grace to bestow Ember Grass to dispel the nightmare poison.”

Such trifling matters were of no concern to Zeyuan. He casually granted her request.

…

Demon Palace, Diligence Hall

Lu Yao lay on the bed, drenched in cold sweat.

She had underestimated the ferocity of the Nightmare Beast and hadn’t expected to suffer so much.

Hearing footsteps outside, she assumed the female official who had gone to seek Zeyuan’s help had returned. She pulled up her blanket and closed her eyes.

The female official entered with a bowl of freshly brewed medicine. Smiling with a hint of surprise, she leaned down to wake Lu Yao. “You were right. I went to seek His Majesty, and he truly bestowed Ember Grass. Let me help you up. Once you drink this, you won’t feel so awful anymore.”

Lu Yao was somewhat different from the typical demons—gentle, kind-hearted, and not fond of conflict.

Whenever her peers faced difficulties, she would do her best to help.

She was injured by the Nightmare Beast this time while aiding another junior official.

The junior official had fallen into the dream cocoon of a Nightmare Beast as a child, trapped for over a month and tormented by endless nightmares. Since then, she had been deeply traumatized by Nightmare Beasts.

Unable to face them herself, Lu Yao stepped in to help subdue and kill the beast but was accidentally injured in the process.

Lu Yao sat up, obediently drank the medicine, and felt a warm current rising in her dantian, dispelling the cold from her body.

She let out a slow breath of relief. “Did His Majesty say anything?”

The female official shook her head. “His Majesty didn’t say much. However, as the Demon treasure and Xuanfeng still haven’t returned, His Majesty has already gone to the human world.”

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