Ten Thousand Ways To Eliminate Players
Chapter 41 - 041 Education Mixed with Entertainment

Chapter 41: 041 Education Mixed with Entertainment

The trap laid in the City Lord’s Mansion had been triggered.

Lin Bai quickly reviewed his current strength. In the afternoon, he had completed the task of making three thousand people appreciate the beauty of imperfection. His Inner Strength value was now as high as 12.69 years, theoretically allowing him to execute two full sets of Descending Dragon Slaps. His Qinggong technique, Morning Flight, would likely be usable again in another six to eight hours. At noon, he had eaten a Spirit Fruit; he still felt full of energy, without the slightest hint of drowsiness. After an afternoon of nurturing it, a second Spirit Fruit had already sprouted on the Tree of Negative Emotions, and he estimated it would be ready for harvest sometime after tomorrow. With the Spirit Fruit, Lin Bai felt as if he possessed double the lifespan of others—a truly fantastic feeling. His only concern was whether prolonged sleep deprivation might have side effects, but he couldn’t afford to worry about that now. Grinding his level was more important! As the influence of his Chef’s Divine Food Stall grew, Lin Bai had mastered fifteen knife techniques rewarded by the Cooking God System. With these fifteen techniques, he could essentially work wonders with ingredients...

These were all the abilities Lin Bai currently possessed.

The next task given by the Cooking God System was still to expand the fame of Chef’s Divine Food Stall. The reward was still knife techniques.

Lin Bai wasn’t sure how many knife techniques a chef could possibly master, but since the rewards from the Cooking God System were of little help to his survival, he didn’t pay them much mind.

Despite having opened his Chef’s Restaurant, Lin Bai hadn’t actually cooked a single meal there himself.

His Chef’s Restaurant was currently more like an entertainment venue.

As for the Incomplete System, its current task was: [Let three thousand people experience the nature of flaws... Reward: Seven Injury Hands - Incomplete].

It sounded like the Seven Injury Fist, but Lin Bai had no idea what kind of technique it actually was. The System had too many tricks and gimmicks; he couldn’t figure them out. However, even if it was the Seven Injury Fist, it wasn’t a particularly good martial art—one that inflicted a thousand injuries on the enemy at the cost of eight hundred to oneself. He most likely wouldn’t use it even if he learned it. Lin Bai possessed no Sacred Medicine for healing. If he ended up incapacitating himself after a fight, what would be the point? Still, he had the Good Teacher System, which he could use to teach disciples and, in the process, harvest negative emotions... In short, he was not burdened by having too many skills. Moreover, the systems could interact with each other. Even the most useless rewards could eventually find their appropriate place.

...

His Martial Power seemed a bit insufficient.

Lin Bai sighed. It couldn’t be helped; he would have to adapt to the situation as it unfolded. The City Lord hadn’t tried to eliminate him directly but had instead sent a Hidden Guard to ’invite’ him. This undoubtedly meant there was room for negotiation. Living in this world, dealing with the powerful and influential was unavoidable.

"Officer Hidden Guard, please wait a moment. I have a few friends inside, and I need to go in and calm them down." Lin Bai offered a polite smile to the Hidden Guard named Zhou Jiang. "There’s no rush, is there?"

Friends?

Zhou Jiang had witnessed Lin Bai’s entire performance. Despite his rigorous training, an eyebrow twitched involuntarily. He said impassively, "Be my guest."

He could even stall for time. It seemed the City Lord didn’t intend to make things difficult, or perhaps was wary of him for some reason. Lin Bai’s heart relaxed a fraction more. He pressed on with his invitation, "Officer Hidden Guard, are you sure you don’t want to come in for a cup of tea and experience the phantom’s service?"

"I have no money," Zhou Jiang stated coldly. The Hidden Guard’s primary rule: never place oneself in a dangerous situation.

"What a shame," Lin Bai said with a smile, pushing open the door.

Several pairs of eyes instantly shot towards him.

"Lin Bai!"

Zhu Huan’s eyes were bloodshot as he glared at Lin Bai, looking as if he wanted to devour him alive.

Song Qing was holding a chipped bowl, sipping water mouthful by mouthful. Sera Wade’s hand gently patted his back, calming him. When Lin Bai entered, Song Qing glanced up at him, then quickly looked away, still dazed and clearly not yet recovered from the earlier shock.

"Brother Lin, you..." Luo Congwen looked at Lin Bai, hesitating, clearly at a loss for words.

"Well, gentlemen, how was the experience?" Lin Bai said with a beaming smile, his gaze sweeping over them, feigning ignorance of their sorry states.

[Resentment from Luo Congwen, Song Qing, Zhu Huan; +1+1+1]

[Joy from Jimmy Navada, Sera Wade, Song Ling; +1+1+1]

"Such an ingenious arrangement, Storekeeper Lin," Song Qing said, looking up at Lin Bai with a cold stare. "From this day forward, let us go our separate ways. A friend like Storekeeper Lin is someone I, Song Qing, am not worthy of."

"If word of this ever gets out," Zhu Huan hissed, "I, Zhu Huan, will become your mortal enemy!"

"And you, Brother Luo?" Lin Bai turned to Luo Congwen with a grin. "Don’t you have anything to say?"

"Brother Lin, you should do fewer pranks like this in the future," Luo Congwen said, shaking his head in admonishment. "If you continue like this, I’m afraid that in a few days, there will be no place left for you in Jiamucheng..."

"Gentlemen, if you had merely had a quiet dinner with Old Song’s family tonight, wouldn’t you have found it rather dull upon returning home? So dull, perhaps, that you’d never come back again!" Lin Bai chuckled, unfazed. "But having walked the edge of life and death, only to land safely—though you might have felt tense, terrified, and regretful at the time—looking back, isn’t there a sense of exhilaration, a poignant wistfulness, and even an inexpressible joy?"

[Excitement from Luo Congwen, Song Qing, Zhu Huan; +1+1+1]

He didn’t need them to speak; the system interface was already clearly displaying their current emotions.

Spot on! Luo Congwen’s mouth fell open, and he nodded subconsciously.

"So, gentlemen, if you had to choose, would you prefer the first kind of experience, or the second?" Lin Bai pressed, striking while the iron was hot.

"If Storekeeper Lin could inform us beforehand, we would naturally choose the second," Song Qing replied after a moment of comparison. He felt like he had fallen into Lin Bai’s trap once again; in just a few sentences, his resentment had vanished.

Luo Congwen glanced at Song Ling, tempted to suggest there was a third option. But the instant he recalled the image of Song Ling’s face, bleeding from all seven orifices, the thought evaporated.

"Of course, there is a third option, which is even more... stimulating," Lin Bai said, having seen through Luo Congwen’s thoughts. He chuckled and explained, "However, firstly, Old Song’s family were all decent people when they were alive. Secondly, humans and ghosts walk different paths; such encounters can easily damage one’s vital essence. I, Lin Bai, am an upright businessman; I naturally wouldn’t do anything so unconscionable."

Luo Congwen blushed.

Jimmy Navada’s face changed slightly.

Sera Wade turned her head away, her face flushing, and she tutted softly in disapproval.

Only Song Ling looked confused. She tugged at Jimmy Navada’s sleeve and asked, "Daddy, what’s this third option Big Brother Lin is talking about?"

"A young lady like yourself shouldn’t be asking so many questions," Jimmy Navada chided, his face dark. "If the Storekeeper says it shouldn’t be done, then it’s certainly something unconscionable."

"Oh." Song Ling responded timidly.

Seeing this, Luo Congwen’s amorous thoughts resurfaced. If Song Ling could always remain this way, then her losing a bit of vital essence wouldn’t be unacceptable...

"Gentlemen, my actions tonight also carry another meaning," Lin Bai said, his gaze sweeping over them before pausing pointedly on Luo Congwen. He continued gravely, "Creatures like ghosts and phantoms excel at shapeshifting, and ordinary mortal eyes cannot see through their illusions. In your future endeavors, never be deceived by mere appearances, or you will suffer greatly. If Old Song’s family hadn’t been part of an arrangement I, Lin Bai, made beforehand, I’m afraid the three of you would have lost your lives here today. What, after all, is more memorable than personal experience?"

The faces of Song Qing and the others turned pale.

The three of them exchanged glances, then stood up in unison and bowed deeply to Lin Bai. "Thank you for your teachings, Storekeeper Lin."

"’Teachings’ is too strong a word," Lin Bai said with a laugh. "At the end of the day, I, Lin Bai, am merely a humble merchant. All I ever think about is earning a little more money."

"Storekeeper Lin, please don’t be so modest," Song Qing said earnestly. "We’ve also heard about the matter of the Heavenly Remnant Collection. We deeply admire your noble deed, Storekeeper Lin."

Harvesting the positive emotions emanating from the trio, Lin Bai smiled and said, "Since Young Master Song puts it that way, it would indeed seem insincere if I, Lin Bai, were to continue being modest."

He paused for a moment, then cupped his fists and said, "Gentlemen, now that you are aware of my methods and intentions, I wonder if you might be interested in investing a share in my Chef’s Divine Food Stall? Together, we can promote this righteous enterprise of ours and let more people experience the thrilling excitement life has to offer! You’ve probably all noticed that since adding the evening hours, the demands on Chef’s Divine Food Stall’s manpower and finances have become more than I, Lin Bai, can handle alone. I can’t make grand promises about other things, but I do possess some knack for making money. I trust I won’t let your investment go to waste."

"Brother Lin, I’m in for a share." Luo Congwen was the first to speak up. He had been fretting about not having an opportunity to become closer to Lin Bai, and he agreed without even asking about the price.

"I’ll take a share too!" Song Qing declared, glancing at Jimmy Navada’s family nearby and sighing as he recalled the experiences of the past two days.

"I’ll take a share." Zhu Huan gritted his teeth, his wet trousers still chilling him. "This kind of business that educates while entertaining, more people should experience it."

"Excellent!" Lin Bai exclaimed, clapping his hands. "Return to Dragon View contributed three thousand taels, as well as manpower and effort, for a ten percent stake. If you three gentlemen invest at that same price, it might appear a bit unfair to Return to Dragon View. In my opinion, how about each of you adds an additional two thousand taels for your respective shares?"

"I have no objection!" Luo Congwen’s eyes lit up as he quickly declared, "We worldly folk can only offer material possessions. Naturally, we cannot compare to the venerable Taoist Masters of Return to Dragon View. It is only proper to contribute more silver."

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