Ch 72: My Multiverse Supermarket

When Duan Jing found the eerie Zhang Xiaozhi, all the malice in the girl’s eyes faded into confusion. Her expression became blank, as if to say, What are you talking about?

Duan Jing felt uneasy.

But An Yixiao’s words echoed in her mind: “Zhang Xiaozhi is an NPC from the dungeon ‘Dawn Village,’ and the existence of the supermarket membership card proves that different dungeons are actually interconnected. Even if the Zhang Xiaozhi from Dawn Village and the one in Mingde School aren’t the same entity, they come from the same origin.”

Among S-class players, there had long been a theory: that dungeon worlds were projections of real locations and real points in time.

Not necessarily from their world—it might be from the world of The Game and the anomalies themselves.

Thus, players believed that by continually clearing dungeons and uncovering clues about the truth of The Game, they could one day drive it—and the anomalies—back to their own realm.

Yet that theory had never been proven.

Until An Yixiao, while in Dawn Village, heard Zhou Li mention Mingde School, and later here saw the buzz-cut instructor holding Zhang Xiaozhi’s supermarket card. That was the moment the theory was confirmed.

If not for the supermarket’s existence, no one would have ever noticed.

In Dawn Village, Zhang Xiaozhi had been an unremarkable anomaly—she never even appeared before players.

And in Mingde School, she was just another faceless student among thousands.

Only a genius with photographic memory who could recall every anomaly in a dungeon might have noticed.

But both dungeons—Dawn Village and Mingde School—were S-class. Only the luckiest, most powerful players could ever piece the link together.

And since no one had ever cleared either dungeon, that danger remained a mystery—one that only An Yixiao, who had crossed between them through the supermarket, had discovered by chance.

She’d said, “Chronologically, the projection of Mingde School must occur after Dawn Village. That means some events are bound to become public scandals. If Zhang Xiaozhi cooperates with you, the Principal and Director of Discipline will be overwhelmed trying to contain the fallout. Then, control of the school will fall to the teachers and instructors. As long as you earn their official stamps approving you as an ‘excellent student,’ you’ll have a path to clear the dungeon.”

Duan Jing didn’t know what had happened in Dawn Village, but An Yixiao—the stowaway from there—knew all too well.

She hadn’t realized how deep that pit went.

An Yixiao continued, “Now’s not the time to chase the truth of Dawn Village.”

“I know,” Duan Jing said.

She returned to school, found Zhang Xiaozhi’s class, and gave her back the reissued membership card.

Zhang Xiaozhi’s malice faded once she regained her lost card.

But the moment she remembered her role and purpose, the malice came flooding back.

Then Duan Jing asked if she wanted to leave this hellish place, and again, the malice disappeared.

A second later, Zhang Xiaozhi said, “I’m not human.”

Duan Jing asked, “Can’t you at least pretend to be?”

Finding the logic sound, Zhang Xiaozhi tucked her malice away again.

Duan Jing: …

Is that malice a light switch? On, off, on, off—you’re going to burn the filament out!

Soon, Zhang Xiaozhi wavered again. “The instructors and the Director are terrifying. I won’t do what you’re asking.”

Before she could flee, Duan Jing said, “What a pity. This was a perfect chance. With enough public pressure, this crooked school could be forced to shut down. All those students suffering under pollution could finally be freed.”

Zhang Xiaozhi sneered. “Humans are so naïve. You think shutting down Mingde School will change anything? There will just be Shangde School, Mingde Academy, or the National Studies Society after it. They’ll always come back because there’s demand.”

She knew this too well—after all, it was her parents who’d sent her here.

Even if Mingde shut down, they’d just send her to another like it.

Unless her parents changed their minds, she wouldn’t risk defying the Director or the Principal to help.

Her refusal didn’t surprise Duan Jing.

She went back to An Yixiao.

Zhou Li, who overheard, suddenly said, “Maybe it’s because Dawn Village hasn’t been cleared yet. From Zhang Xiaozhi’s perspective, there’s not enough public pressure—no reason for her parents’ attitudes to change.”

Both An Yixiao and Duan Jing fell silent.

“But…” Duan Jing started to argue—then realized it made perfect sense.

Sure, in normal logic Dawn Village happened first and Mingde later. But that was thinking in real-world terms.

Dungeons didn’t follow normal time.

Players might spend ten days inside, yet in the dungeon’s timeline, only a day or two passed—constantly looping and resetting, almost impossible to notice.

If Dawn Village corresponded to the 1st and 2nd of a month, and Mingde School to the 3rd and 4th, The Game could simply extract and project those periods separately.

That would mean the Zhang Xiaozhi inside Mingde had no awareness of events from outside.

Only if Dawn Village were cleared could its ripple effect reach Mingde School.

“Boss, you’re a genius!” Duan Jing said without hesitation.

Then she frowned. “Problem is—how do we clear Dawn Village?”

She shot An Yixiao a look that said, You seriously didn’t clear it? Useless much?

An Yixiao’s answering glare said, You looking for a beating?

“Boss, can you send her back to Dawn Village?” Duan Jing pointed at An Yixiao.

Zhou Li said nothing.

Silence meant no.

“Don’t push it,” said An Yixiao.

“Oh.” Duan Jing dropped the matter.

Then An Yixiao dropped a bombshell. “I can go back myself.”

“What?” Duan Jing shouted. “Then why didn’t you? You said you knew how to clear it!”

“Because I’m not in a rush,” An Yixiao said calmly.

She’d just crawled out of hell. Her wounds had mostly healed, but why rush back to die?

Besides, she’d lost too many tools—she needed time to prepare before re-entering.

Duan Jing jabbed a finger at her.

An Yixiao gave her a sidelong look. “Got a problem?”

“Dear sister, please, I’m begging you to go clear it!” Duan Jing was one step short of kneeling.

“And where’s your dignity, Miss Duan?”

“Times change! The wise adapt!”

“…So your S-class upgrade came with a thicker skin?” An Yixiao said dryly.

Duan Jing grimaced. Reality had beaten every ounce of pride out of her.

Even Zhou Li was curious whether An Yixiao would actually go back.

But An Yixiao tossed the decision to her. “I’m a supermarket employee now. I can’t just skip work. I’ve already taken two and a half days off—another half day and I’ll be fired.”

Zhou Li: …

That wasn’t even a hint—it was a full-blown demand.

“I’m not a slave driver,” Zhou Li said. “You can take official leave.”

An Yixiao asked, “And how will I get back to work afterward?”

Normal people had fixed workplaces. She could go on a ‘business trip’ and come back to find the store had moved dimensions.

Usually, Zhou Li couldn’t guarantee finding someone again—but in this case, it was simple.

“You’re a full-time employee,” she said. “I’ll always know where you are.”

Duan Jing immediately jumped in, “Boss, do you need more staff? I can work here too!”

“Not hiring right now.”

Duan Jing sighed.

Zhou Li turned back to An Yixiao. “Perfect timing. While you’re on leave, I’ll restock.”

“Restock?” both women asked. The shelves looked well-stocked to them.

“Yes,” Zhou Li said. “Mingde School just ordered study materials. The store doesn’t have that many in stock—I need to replenish.”

In truth, it was simply time for her to return to the interstellar plane for business.

This world’s recent order wasn’t large enough—she needed to recharge energy in both the interstellar and ancient planes.

“When will you be back?” asked Duan Jing.

Zhou Li looked at An Yixiao. “That depends on my employee.”

A bad feeling crept up Duan Jing’s spine.

An Yixiao, catching on to the idea, said, “You’re waiting for me to clear Dawn Village so you can re-enter this dungeon, right?”

She was the anchor—the beacon that allowed the supermarket to locate her dungeon and return to it.

“That’s one way to put it,” Zhou Li said.

Since dungeon timelines didn’t change, even if the supermarket traveled through thousands of worlds and took years to return, nothing inside would be affected.

Only the players would perceive the passage of time.

So if An Yixiao used herself as an anchor, Zhou Li could find her again faster.

Duan Jing realized that if An Yixiao failed to clear Dawn Village, they’d all die here in Mingde School.

Joking aside, she was smart enough to see the stakes.

She declared immediately, “Then take me and Song Ganlan into the Blue Owl Guild.”

Duan Jing was the face and trump card of the third-ranked guild, Dali.

Her resources were unmatched.

Talent, power, and strategy—she couldn’t compare to An Yixiao. But she’d reached quasi-S rank, even S-class here, purely through her immense resources.

If she joined Blue Owl, most of Dali’s assets would go with her.

Her guild would be downgraded to a subsidiary—like a CEO selling her company and becoming an employee of the rival.

Unthinkable in the business world, but perfectly legal under The Game’s rules.

She’d be branded a traitor and dragged into controversy, but she’d made her choice.

An Yixiao smiled. “Gladly.”

[Author’s Note]Players: Such a small supermarket, yet dragons lie hidden within—its “security guard” is secretly a domineering guild leader who controls the storm!

Zhou Li’s “Supermarket Management Diary”: Three years as a shopkeeper, and when I return, the top ten guild leaders kneel—‘Welcome back, boss!’

[noob][noob][noob]

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