"Sigh, isnât this a bit too much? How could there be such a thing?"
Monk smelled the heavy aroma, suddenly woke up, and saw two not-too-big-or-small pots placed in front of Su Changxing, looking like some kind of self-heating hotpot.
This was the stuff refreshed from the shop yesterday, seemingly a level up from the self-heating rice.
Su Changxing said irritably, "Hmm? Isnât it good to have something to eat?"
Monk chuckled and said, "Of course, of course, this kind of thing is extremely expensive on forums, and you might not even be able to buy it."
Before they started eating, they noticed a few people standing outside the door peeking in through the gap, all with looks of shock on their faces.
"Why is there such a thing?"
"It must be fake. Iâve never seen this brand before, but the packaging is very new and well-preserved."
"I canât take it anymore, Iâm leaving."
· · · · · ·
Unknowingly, more and more people were standing outside, drawn by the aroma, all looking eager yet restrained by the rules, teetering between reason and impulse.
Even Su Changxing was starting to feel a bit uneasy; after all, itâs strange to be watched by so many people while eating.
Suddenly, someone pushed the door open and barged in, but was promptly kicked out by Monk, crashing into the hallway wall.
Monk stepped out, shouting, "What are you looking at? Donât blame me for being rude if you keep standing around here."
This intimidated quite a few people, seeing Monk looking fierce, they immediately left. A few others just reluctantly took two steps back, still eyeing Monk without leaving.
An old man hurriedly approached, holding a machete, thinking something had happened, and shouted, "Donât move, whatâs going on?"
Then, he saw Su Changxing sitting casually on the mattress, slowly eating the hotpot, and couldnât help but twitch his stiff old face.
Su Changxing nodded at the old man and said, "Elder Chen, donât worry, we wonât dirty the mattress."
Is that what Iâm worried about?
The old manâs words faltered, watching Su Changxing with a changed expression, and shouted to the surrounding people, "Disperse now, donât disturb other guests, or Iâll be rude next time."
The old man held high authority. After he spoke, the rest of the people also left.
He looked at Su Changxing and said, "Be mindful of your status when eating this kind of stuff; this place isnât exactly safe."
Su Changxing paused, licked his lips, and said, "If you want a taste, I can invite you."
The old man waved his hand and said, "Forget it, Iâm not worthy to eat such stuff."
After the old man left, Monk came in and asked, "Whatâs wrong? Is there a problem?"
Su Changxing pondered a moment and said, "You almost kicked that person to death; you seemed impulsive."
Monk reflected and said, "It seems so, I shouldnât have done that."
He felt a sudden surge of anger, instinctively kicked, fortunately restrained his strength at the critical moment, otherwise the person would have died without a doubt.
Ordinary people couldnât withstand the full force attack of an Extraordinary.
Yesterday, when they arrived here, Monk also seemed impulsive, directly starting a fight with that fatty.
Su Changxing took a deep breath, pushed hard with both feet, and staggered up from the ground, saying:
"Letâs go out for a walk, I want to trade for some useful items."
Monk looked surprised and said, "You can stand up now."
Su Changxing nodded and said, "Barely, but I canât run fast."
He hobbled towards the outside like a real cripple, mainly due to some muscles still being numb.
Upon reaching the lobby on the first floor, he heard a commotion.
"My friend died here, shouldnât you be responsible? At least give an explanation."
"Explanation? People die here every day in large numbers, have you seen anyone else getting an explanation? We truly donât know how he died, and you didnât hear any disturbance either?"
"Just days ago you claimed this was the safest place in the gathering spot."
The two men glared at each other, looking ready to fight.
Just when Su Changxing thought they wouldnât fight, the two suddenly started brawling.
The short-haired, fair-skinned man stabbed the other in the stomach with a knife, saying viciously:
"Youâre just a shady shop, utterly untrustworthy, and Iâm going to expose you."
This instantly caused an uproar in the lobby, no one expected the man to suddenly pull a knife. Several people immediately surrounded him.
The man was quite strong, evidently had some combat experience, and had physical strength, perhaps enhanced twice at least.
But even with two fists, he couldnât fight off so many, and eventually lost, getting slashed twice on the back before calming down and begging for mercy:
"Donât kill me, itâs all my fault, but my friend did die here."
The man who got stabbed before said darkly, "We wonât kill you, someone will deal with you later, but first hand over your stuff as compensation."
A shady shop indeed... Su Changxing couldnât help but mutter silently but didnât want to interfere, and walked past quietly with Monk.
The old man saw them and smiled politely, "I heard the Mysterious Shop had some good stuff yesterday; you should take a look."
He was like a wily old fox, observing everyone thoroughly, immediately seeing what Su Changxing and Monk intended to do.
Su Changxing paused and asked, "Oh, tell me more, whatâs there specifically?"
The old man seemed in good spirits and said, "Itâs all kinds of stuff. Apparently, a team got hold of a candle that can burn continuously, thinking itâs useless and is selling it, but the price is high, so no oneâs bought it yet."
A candle that burns continuously?
Su Changxing reckoned it was probably a Mysterious Item, perhaps with limited functions, and said, "Alright, weâll go take a look."
The old man nodded, speaking to himself, "Sigh, you can stand now, recovered quickly from your injuries, but you might have lingering ailments."
Su Changxing said calmly, "Itâs good to be alive, who cares about that."
"True, true," the old man agreed.
The entire gathering was composed of more than a dozen teams of various sizes, for ordinary people to survive, they had to join one, or else be like those half-dead people waiting for death.
Of course, it depended on whether others would accept you, if truly impotent in combat and lacking practical skills, then indeed youâd still be a "waste person."
Reaching the center of the market.
Su Changxing saw the candle, displayed prominently in front of a large store, giving off a showy impression, seemingly not intended to be sold.
One could imagine that unless someone was not in their right mind, they probably wouldnât buy such a flashy, impractical, and expensive item.