Ch 157: Guide to Running a Shop in Another World II

Song Wen navigated the crowd with his grandmother, inching toward DIY Workshop. The distance of just a few hundred meters took over half an hour.

At the entrance, two long lines had formed. Someone ran out from the store, shouting: “Sold out, sold out! All three machines are sold out!”

Groans erupted from the line:

“That fast? Has it even been half an hour since the store opened?”
“It’s already 7:30. I heard people started lining up right after 6. There’s way more people today, but the stock is still so limited.”
“Why don’t they prepare more? Obviously, so many people want to buy one.”
“I was just three spots away from getting one! Talk about bad luck.”
“Tomorrow will definitely be worse, even more people will come, and it’ll get harder to buy!”

The complaints and exasperated voices of customers filled the air. Some even pushed to the front, shouting for the staff to increase the stock.

Lu Yao, standing in the lobby, merely smiled and said nothing.

Earlier that morning, Lei Lei had sent her a video call, showing off their chubby flippers and whining about how exhausting it was to make the bracelets. As divine messengers and protectors of the Deep Sea Goddess of Eden Sea, the waterdrop seals had unparalleled divine strength and combat prowess, so crafting the bracelets wouldn’t harm them physically—but they enjoyed using their exhaustion as an excuse to demand treats from Lu Yao.

Lu Yao had messaged Ji Feichen first thing after waking up, asking him to stop by the city center to pick up desserts and milk tea to reward the hardworking seals.

Meanwhile, Lu Yao herself was nearly worn out from making the Wish Boxes. With a daily workload of 300 units, it was no small feat. Last night, after some strong-arming by the nail salon’s non-human staff, she had offloaded half of the task to them. While the store staff could bless users compatible with their own abilities, it still required Lu Yao’s power to link the blessings to the Ghost Bracelets.

Balancing preparing some users’ Wish Boxes and packaging the staff’s blessings into the bracelets, Lu Yao was nearing her limit. She had no plans to increase production and even intended to gradually decrease supply once the initial hype wore off. From her observations, the Ghost Street market couldn’t sustain the sales volume of 300 bracelets per day long-term.

…

Song Wen finally squeezed into the store with his grandmother and immediately approached Lu Yao. “Boss, could you take a look at my grandmother’s battle system?”

The Ghost Bracelet manual had explicitly warned users not to reveal the details of their battle systems to others, but given Grandma Xu’s unique circumstances, Song Wen trusted only Lu Yao.

Lu Yao scanned the description of Fairy’s Blessing and nodded. “It’s a great ability.”

Song Wen asked, “‘Fairy Wings’ isn’t explained.”

Lu Yao replied, “Fairies have wings on their backs—they can fly. This means your grandmother will grow wings and gain the ability to fly when she activates her ability.”

Song Wen had suspected as much. Yet, imagining his elderly grandmother sprouting wings and attempting to fly left him with indescribable feelings.

Lu Yao examined the skill description further. “The brewing skill, on the other hand, could benefit from a matching tool. Since fairies love plants, maybe a watering can could be used to hold the Will-Power Mead.”

Song Wen was stunned. “Why a watering can?”

Lu Yao explained, “Will-Power Mead can be used two ways. When consumed by someone showing aberration symptoms, it can dispel their confusion. In battle, it accelerates purification speed and enhances purification effects. Essentially, your grandmother’s ability can enhance offensive skills. And since fairies like watering cans, it would match her ability while also increasing its range.”

With augmentative skills paired with flight, Grandma Xu’s battle system was a support-type. Song Wen’s own high-damage, high-burst battle system made for a perfect complement to hers.

Accepting Lu Yao’s suggestion, Song Wen planned to craft a custom watering can for his grandmother. After registering the project at the front desk, he helped Grandma Xu over to the Mobile Workshop.

…

The past few days, the Mobile Workshop had only seen sporadic visits from crafting enthusiasts. Since yesterday, however, traffic had increased significantly. Song Wen and Grandma Xu were lucky to find a vacant workstation in Mobile Workshop 2 during registration.

That morning, with the first batch of Wish Boxes distributed, many customers flocked to the workshops to craft Wish-Power weapons. Some had prior experience and began crafting immediately upon receiving materials. Others, less skilled or lacking any prior crafting knowledge, opted to participate in DIY Workshop’s regular activities first to familiarize themselves with the process before attempting weapon creation.

Wishpower weapons are categorized into two types:

1. Integrated Wishpower Weapons: These are crafted using ordinary materials, with willpower infused during the crafting process.
2. Pure Wishpower Weapons: These are made entirely from willpower as the sole material, requiring no physical components.

The second type, pure wishpower weapons, are most compatible with the battle system according to the handbook included with the bracelet. However, they are incredibly costly to produce. The willpower value needed as a material alone starts in the five-digit range, with additional willpower required throughout the crafting process.

For the average person, generating willpower is a slow endeavor—producing only 2–8 points per hour. Accumulating enough willpower to craft such weapons is a long-term process.

Currently, Ghost Bracelet users are like the first wave of pioneers in a new game, still exploring various playstyles. For those uninterested in DIY or crafting their weapons, hidden services are available at the DIY Workshop. Lu Yao, the shopkeeper, offers personalized weapon crafting tailored to the user’s battle system—for a steep fee. Many visitors inquire but remain hesitant due to the high cost.

Lu Yao doesn’t focus much on custom commissions. Whether people commission her or not, the Ghost Bracelet has already boosted business. Every day, customers flood into the shop to buy bracelets, craft weapons, or participate in the activities.

…

Three Days Before the Task Deadline

DIY Workshop had far surpassed the required 666 visitors long ago. Lu Yao, preoccupied with bracelet production and store operations, only belatedly remembered to check the shop guide. By the time she opened it, a new rule had already appeared in the Shopkeeper’s Code:

Shopkeeper’s Code, Rule 3:
“Six days later, the faithful of the Great All Knowing God will visit. The faithful are His eyes, His ears, and His agents among mortals. Please prepare a grand reception for the visit. The experiences and observations of these faithful will constitute the impressions of the Great All Knowing God.”

Faithful’s Arrival Countdown: 3 Days

The rule appeared three days ago, leaving only three days until the faithful’s visit to the DIY Workshop.

Lu Yao, having been fully occupied with selling bracelets, had no preparations in place. With the remaining days still dominated by bracelet-related tasks, her time for planning was limited.

After closing the shop guide, she went to the main server office to discuss the matter with Song Qingshan, Zhang Shu, and the team.

…

Thirty Minutes Later

All Ghost Bracelet users who had purchased and activated their bracelets received a system task email:

Dear [Name]:
In three days, the faithful of the Great All Knowing God will visit the 13th shop in Ghost Street’s northern district. A bounty task is now issued—
Task: Purify the Faithful of the Divine.
Rewards: 10 real willpower points, 1 million Ghost Coins!

That day, over a thousand users received the bounty task notification.

For many, this was the first time they realized the bracelets could issue missions. They were both intrigued by the novelty and excited about the task itself.

“Purify the Faithful of the Divine”—what a cool task!

And the task rewards? Now, THIS is what a game should feel like.

Forget Ghost Coins for a moment—real willpower is a highly coveted resource. Aside from spending money, there’s no other way to obtain it, and you can only exchange for three points every seven days.

(T/N: gonna start using the term willpower instead of Wishpower from now on. It sounds better.)

Users who’ve redeemed real willpower and shared their experiences in the public discussion forum on the bracelet’s communication network unanimously agree: real willpower is invaluable. Ordinary willpower can’t even compare.

This is the first time in Ghost Street’s history that there’s been a team event to fight a mini-boss. And this mini-boss happens to be the lackey of the big boss they’ve long held grudges against but could never defeat. Players are ecstatic and eagerly looking forward to it.

Those who had previously hesitated to commission weapons from Lu Yao are now taking action.

However, Lu Yao, always busy, limits herself to crafting no more than three weapons per day.

…

The day before the Faithful’s arrival, Chen You approached Lu Yao first thing in the morning.

“Shopkeeper, I’d like to ask for your help in crafting a weapon.”

Lu Yao was slightly surprised.

Chen You had activated her Ghost Bracelet several days ago and had spent her free time sketching designs and gathering materials. Lu Yao had assumed she’d already completed a weapon.

Chen You sighed. “The ability I got doesn’t match me very well. I’ve tried multiple times, but I just can’t make it work.”

Lu Yao found this odd but couldn’t recall the specifics of Chen You’s ability. “Let me see your battle system.”

“Chen You has received the battle system: Demon’s Blessing.”

“Ability: Demon’s Blessing. Current Level: 1.”
“Ability Description: The user is blessed by the great demon Clarissa and gains the skills Battle Instinct and Consciousness Plunder. The user possesses unparalleled battle instincts and combat prowess. It is recommended to equip a powerful willpower weapon. You will dominate the battlefield and become your opponents’ worst nightmare!”

Lu Yao: “…This is an amazing ability!”

Chen You: “I think I’m more suited for support roles. Fighting and killing have never been my thing. I’ve tried to accept this, but after a few days, I’m convinced it’s not right for me. I can’t even imagine an appropriate weapon.”

Chen You indeed seemed like a reserved and gentle person, ill-suited for combat. But Lu Yao trusted the judgment of her shop’s non-human employees.

Clarissa must have seen some yet-untapped potential in Chen You and found her very promising.

Lu Yao reassured her, “It’s not your fault. Don’t worry. I’ll make you a weapon.”

Chen You hesitated. “Even with a weapon, I’m not sure I’ll adapt to this. I really don’t know how to fight.”

Lu Yao comforted her. “Don’t be afraid to try something new. Let’s see how it feels once you have the weapon.”

…

Year 7 of the Ghost Calendar, August 7th.
Mingshi City, Central District, Tech Tower, 13th Floor.

Laughter echoed down the corridor, both male and female voices mingling.

A group of colleagues had just finished work and were preparing to go out to Angel Street for drinks and karaoke.

“Everyone here? We missing anyone?”

“One person’s not here.”

“Xiao Bai’s still missing.”

“That workaholic? If no one drags him out, he won’t even realize it’s time to leave.”

The team leader declared, “Let’s go get him.”

The group headed to He Baiheng’s office, where, sure enough, they found someone still working.

“Xiao Bai, we said no overtime today. Time to go out for drinks!”

He Baiheng looked up from his workstation at the sound of their voices. He greeted them with a wave.

“Perfect timing! Come check this out. It looks like there’s an unknown bug in Ghost Street!”

…

Thingyan: Finally meeting the douchbags hmmph 🤬

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