Ch 177: Guide to Running a Shop in Another World II

Lu Yao parked her scooter by the roadside but didn’t get off immediately.

The Dream Fulfillment System warned her, “A group of zombies on the right-side Jinzhou Street is moving in this direction, likely attracted by the noise.”

Lu Yao tilted her head to look up at the department store. “How many people are there?”

The system responded, “Two. The girl calling for help has a scent of blood on her.”

The ones pleading for help were a young man and woman. The darkness made it hard to see clearly through the wind visor of Lu Yao’s helmet, but their overly animated gestures and voices suggested they were young.

Lu Yao frowned. “Were they bitten?”

The system replied, “No visible external wounds detected.”

Lu Yao got off her scooter and began walking toward the department store.

The system asked, “I thought you weren’t planning to help them.”

Without stopping, Lu Yao tightened her gloves and said, “Do I really seem that cold and heartless to you?”

The system responded, “I wouldn’t recommend saving them. The building is full of wandering zombies. They seem to be former mall workers and shoppers. Every floor has them, and the stairs and elevators from the first to the second floor are completely occupied. Without using your abilities, it’s too dangerous to go up there.”

“Who said anything about going upstairs?” Lu Yao reached the department store’s entrance and coldly called out to the two excited figures on the second floor, who looked like they thought rescue had arrived. “Decide your jumping order within 30 seconds. Jump one at a time.”

Tang Anqi and Song Xu, feeling like they’d been doused with cold water, hesitated. While it was technically only the second floor, department store levels were higher than standard residential floors.

If they had the courage to jump, they wouldn’t have waited this long, lingering until Lu Yao appeared.

Jumping could mean injuries, possibly fatal in such an open area, especially at night. Zombies would quickly surround them, and they still wouldn’t escape.

Tang Anqi crouched by the shattered edge of the floor-to-ceiling window and spoke softly to Lu Yao. “We’ve got two big bags of supplies—food, toilet paper, soap, and other essentials. We’ll give it all to you if you can save us.”

Lu Yao, wearing her helmet and casual hoodie from earlier in the day, gave no outward sign of her identity.

Song Xu, hearing Lu Yao’s voice, realized she was a woman. He gently pulled Tang Anqi and shook his head. “Forget it. Let’s not make this harder for her.”

Tang Anqi was on the verge of tears. “It’s all my fault. If I hadn’t forced you to come out, we wouldn’t be in this mess.”

The system reminded, “The zombies on that road will reach this area in five minutes.”

Lu Yao closed her eyes briefly, then opened her arms and said in a steady voice, “Jump down. I’ll catch you.”

Tang Anqi froze mid-sob, hesitant. “How could you possibly catch me?”

Lu Yao replied, “Hurry. We don’t have time. In a few minutes, this square will be surrounded by zombies.”

Tang Anqi looked at Song Xu as if seeking reassurance or courage. “Alright, I’ll jump.”

She stood up, took a deep breath, bent her legs, and jumped with her eyes tightly shut.

Lu Yao removed her helmet and placed it on the ground. She stepped forward, adjusted her position as Tang Anqi fell, and caught her securely. Without delay, she set the girl down and called up to the remaining person. “Your turn. Jump. I’ll catch you.”

Tang Anqi sat on the ground, stunned. She opened her eyes, only to find herself safe and sound, already on the ground.

Song Xu, trying to mask his surprise, hadn’t expected the girl to actually catch someone falling from such a height.

A year ago, Lu Yao wouldn’t have been able to handle catching someone falling from several meters. But intentional training and exercise over the past year had drastically improved her physical abilities. Even without using magic, superpowers, or her wish energy, her body was far more agile, resilient, and strong than an ordinary human’s.

Song Xu dragged two large backpacks to the edge of the window and called down, “These are our supplies. They’re heavy. Please take care of them.”

The supplies they had risked their lives to gather were too valuable to leave behind.

The two bags landed safely on the ground. Taking a deep breath like Tang Anqi, Song Xu closed his eyes and jumped. Within moments, he landed securely in Lu Yao’s strong arms.

Lu Yao caught Song Xu and quickly set him down, then bent to pick up her helmet, turning to leave without hesitation.

Tang Anqi called out, “Wait a minute.”

Lu Yao paused.

Dragging one of the supply bags, Tang Anqi said, “We agreed—the supplies are yours.”

Song Xu looked reluctant but didn’t argue, silently agreeing to Tang Anqi’s decision.

Lu Yao glanced back at them and waved impatiently. “Hurry up and grab your stuff. The zombie horde is almost here. I’ll give you a ride.”

Tang Anqi and Song Xu were overjoyed and quickly shouldered their bags to follow her. The supplies they had gathered were substantial; the two backpacks were heavy and bulky.

Worried that placing all the weight at the back would tilt the scooter, Lu Yao moved one of the bags to the footrest in front.

Tang Anqi sat behind her, and Song Xu perched on the rear rack.

The small scooter, now carrying three adults and two heavy bags, started up sluggishly.

The zombie horde had already reached the street corner, marching relentlessly toward the department store.

Song Xu kept glancing back nervously.

The engine noise caught the zombies’ attention, and they began to turn in their direction, but their slow pace meant they were quickly left behind.

…

Tang Anqi and Song Xu were a couple, both university students.

When the zombie virus first broke out, they were studying in their campus library.

Their school was halfway up a mountain, a relatively secluded environment. Initially, there were no signs of zombies on campus, but news reports confirmed how rapidly the virus was spreading.

Within half a day, the first victims appeared at the base of their mountain. Panic quickly engulfed the students and faculty.

Tang Anqi and Song Xu stayed together throughout the chaos. They even managed to return to their dorms to retrieve essential belongings before starting their escape.

As out-of-province students attending university in Gaosheng City, they had no safe haven outside campus. The journey back home was a near-impossible dream, riddled with dangers.

For now, their survival depended on finding an uninhabited house where they could take refuge.

This time, they ventured out searching for basic necessities because Tang Anqi’s menstrual period was approaching. Water and personal hygiene products were scarce, with water being especially precious.

Hoping to make their limited supplies last, Tang Anqi decided to look for sanitary pads and other essentials.

They did manage to find several packs of sanitary pads in the department store. Though they initially avoided the wandering zombies to get inside, they were trapped when trying to leave. That was when Lu Yao came to their rescue.

On the way back, Tang Anqi chatted with Lu Yao incessantly, sharing bits and pieces about their situation. Whether it was entirely true or only partially so, Lu Yao didn’t care much.

At an intersection, Lu Yao stopped and dropped them off.

As Tang Anqi and Song Xu got off the scooter and prepared to leave, Lu Yao called after them. “Take your stuff, too.”

Tang Anqi replied, “No, it’s yours now.”

Lu Yao grabbed the backpack and set it down at their feet. Then she pulled out two business cards for her courier shop from her pocket. “I don’t need your supplies. Here’s my shop’s card. The shop is just up ahead in Guanyin Community. If you need anything, you can use this card.”

Tang Anqi and Song Xu blinked in confusion, unsure of her intent.

They had genuinely struggled to convince themselves to give the supplies to Lu Yao. After all, she had saved them and given them a ride, taking them a considerable distance.

The zombie virus outbreak had led to the collapse of the transportation system early on, making such a ride an extraordinary favor.

The two of them were used to walking everywhere, so this ride felt like an incredible luxury.

The night breeze brushed against their faces, cool and ticklish, giving them a rare sense of freedom.

Tang Anqi crouched down and unzipped her backpack, revealing the stuffed contents. “We really found so many good things. Look.”

Lu Yao waved her hand dismissively. “I really don’t need it. If you feel you must thank me, just give me gold if we ever meet again.”

With that, she rode off.

Tang Anqi and Song Xu stood by the roadside, watching until Lu Yao’s figure disappeared into the distance. Tang Anqi then turned to Song Xu and muttered, “Isn’t there something wrong with her? Everyone knows you should stockpile food, water, and daily necessities. What’s the use of gold?”

Song Xu shook his head. “That scooter of hers is brand new. She dares to wander around alone and acted so decisively when saving us. Maybe she really doesn’t need these supplies. It’s getting late; we should head back.”

Tang Anqi snatched the business card from Song Xu’s hand and tucked it into her inner pocket. “Yeah, let’s go.”

…

The engine’s hum broke the stillness of the night as Lu Yao arrived at the courier shop’s entrance.

The surroundings were pitch dark and eerily silent, as if she were the only living person in this world.

Lu Yao got off the scooter, planning to push it into the shop. She was no longer willing to leave it outside.

After a few steps, she stopped, her nose twitching.

A foul stench hung in the air, one she found unpleasantly familiar—the putrid odor of decaying protein.

A shadow butterfly fluttered down like a leaf, landing ahead of her. Its glowing wings blinked faintly in the darkness, like a tiny guiding star.

The Dream Fulfillment System said, “Follow it, but watch your step. Leave the scooter for now.”

Realizing the situation, Lu Yao’s brows knitted together, and a sense of irritation crept into her heart, as if something filthy had latched onto her.

She backed up, parked the scooter on the roadside, and affixed a gravity magic array sticker and a temporary barrier sticker to its base before moving forward.

She hadn’t gone far when a beam of light shone directly into her eyes, forcing her to lower her head and squint against the glare.

The steady sound of footsteps approached. A group of people, armed with steel pipes and wooden clubs, surrounded her. Behind them stood three men wrapped in bandages.

Lu Yao recognized them at a glance—the same three she had beaten up earlier that morning when they tried to loot the shop.

So this is how things have changed in this world, she thought. Without order, bullying the weak has become the norm, and violence is the only means of resolving conflicts.

The system commented dryly, “You went too easy on them this morning. They didn’t learn their lesson.”

This group came prepared—not just with numbers, but with equipment. They were armed with weapons and wore helmets fitted with headlamps.

As the lights swept across the area, Lu Yao’s peripheral vision caught sight of a revolting pile on the ground.

Chunks of red and white rotting flesh were strewn across the area, sticky liquids bubbling with noxious fumes. The stench was overpowering, and Lu Yao turned away, retching.

No wonder the system had warned her to watch her step. The small open space outside the courier shop was littered with decaying, unidentifiable flesh. Thick, dark red pus mixed with yellowish slime splattered everywhere, and among the mess were scraps of stiff, dirty fabric—clearly not from any ordinary animal.

Lu Yao’s stomach churned violently with nausea. Her face turned pale and icy as she struggled to compose herself, but the foul smell lingered, making her want to gag all over again.

The man who had held the wrench earlier that morning now had his right arm in a sling and was swinging a steel pipe with his left hand. With a smug grin, he swaggered through the crowd toward Lu Yao. “Kneel down, call me Daddy twice, and hand over your shop. Since you’re a woman, I’ll let you off today.”

The men surrounding Lu Yao clinked their sticks and pipes together, laughing uproariously.

Lu Yao, her hand hidden behind her back, palm turned upward, prepared to summon the Regulation Rod. “I won’t forgive these guys this time.”

Boom—

Suddenly, the emergency light above the courier shop’s door lit up. The incandescent beam pierced through the darkness, flooding the area in front of the shop with bright white light as if it were midday.

Startled, everyone turned to look. A door had appeared on the shop’s facade, cleverly placed so it seemed to an outsider as though it had opened from within the shop.

Harold stepped out from the door, scanning the group before spotting Lu Yao. “What’s going on here?”

Lu Yao relaxed her hand and exhaled slowly, her tone indifferent. “They came to smash up the shop.”

Harold frowned, his nostrils flaring slightly as he caught a whiff of the stench. Taking in the mess outside the shop, he instantly understood the situation.

Without saying another word, Harold strode forward and punched the nearest man square in the face.

The little black dragon moved with swift precision. He restrained his strength just enough to avoid killing anyone, though it took effort.

In just a few minutes, the ground was littered with discarded steel rods and wooden clubs, and the group of men lay groaning on the ground, bruised and unable to stand.

Harold glanced at Lu Yao, noticing her pale face. “What now?”

Lu Yao said calmly, “They tried to steal from the shop this morning, and I already gave them a warning. Now they’ve come back again. Clearly, they don’t learn.”

She surveyed the street for a moment before pointing at the bare streetlight poles on either side of the road. “Can we hang them up there?”

Harold hesitated. “It’s doable, but will that really teach them a lesson?”

Lu Yao’s expression remained steady. “Don’t hang them too high—or too low.”

Although Harold didn’t fully understand her intentions, he said nothing.

To avoid revealing his abilities, Harold pretended to fetch a ladder from the shop. He also carried out a roll of thick hemp rope and worked with Lu Yao to tie up the dozen men and hang them from the streetlight poles.

At Lu Yao’s instruction, Harold also removed the lights from their helmets and taped them to the poles, illuminating the area.

For the first time in ages, Guanyin Road was bathed in light. Every streetlight pole held a suspended figure, hanging at a very particular height—just within arm’s reach for someone standing below to touch their toes if they stretched.

That night, the bright lights attracted zombies to Guanyin Road. The undead wandered aimlessly around the area while the suspended men screamed in terror, their cries and pleas for mercy echoing into the night.

By dawn, their voices had grown hoarse, dwindling to faint sobs.

The men weren’t released until the following morning. When they were finally let down, they were pale as ghosts, their limbs trembling so much they could barely stand.

At that exact moment, Lu Yao stepped out of the shop. In full view of everyone, she pointed at the disgusting mess near the courier shop’s entrance. “Before you leave, clean up the mess you made.”

Terrified, the men nodded furiously, their faces ashen, not daring to utter a single word in protest.

Years later, when people spoke of how the courier shop managed to establish itself on Guanyin Road, they often recounted that oppressive night. It all began with the young shop owner and the handsome high-ponytail boy hanging the local troublemakers from the streetlights.

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