Chapter 9
The peaches in the car looked incredibly appealing, plump and rosy, promising a delightful taste. Shao Zi Jue, used to getting his way, didn’t mind the onlookers. “Well, I’m buying them today.” A few peaches were nothing to him. He should have brought his driver and a bigger car.
As he started loading the peaches, Lin Ran stopped him. “Excuse me, I appreciate you wanting to buy them, but these peaches are already sold to Mr. Lei Hong.”
“Huh? You’d rather sell to him than me?” Shao Zi Jue, stopped mid-action, looked at the hand on his arm, then up at Lin Ran. He couldn’t bring himself to be angry. A handsome face did have its advantages; it was hard to stay mad at someone so pleasing to the eye. He felt inexplicably wronged. Why wouldn’t he sell to him?
Lin Ran: …Eh?
If Shao Zi Jue had continued being arrogant, Lin Ran would have been less polite. Despite his quiet demeanor, he was surprisingly strong. He hadn’t expected this man to act so childishly, leaving him at a loss. It was just a cart of peaches. His family’s orchard had plenty.
“Breaking a promise, even for a short-term profit, isn’t good for business. What if another customer offered a higher price?” Lin Ran reasoned calmly, his hand still resting on Shao Zi Jue’s arm in a gesture that resembled petting.
“How about I bring another cart tomorrow? You can personally choose the size and quality. We’ll have other varieties available soon.”
Lin Ran’s calm, earnest tone, coupled with his handsome face, had a disarming effect. Shao Zi Jue found himself nodding unconsciously, only realizing what had happened after Lin Ran finished loading the peaches onto Mr. Lei Hong’s tricycle.
Crap, he didn’t get the peaches!
He glanced towards a small flame sprite discreetly observing the scene. Abyss, worried about scaring the human, had instructed Shao Zi Jue to buy the peaches for him. This way, he would have fresh peaches and compensate the human for the ones he had taken earlier. He hadn’t expected it to fail!
“Thanks, young man. About the partnership, could I come back tomorrow? I’ll take these back to the school now. The teachers and students will have them for lunch.” Mr. Lei Hong, after securing the peaches, quickly paid and looked at Shao Zi Jue, his tone more serious now about the partnership.
Initially, he had only casually inquired, not expecting much. Although the peaches were delicious, other suppliers offered lower prices. But this young man had refused a higher offer and sold the peaches to him, saving him from embarrassment. He found this young man trustworthy and didn’t want to disappoint him.
“Sure, Uncle. I should be here tomorrow,” Lin Ran waved him off.
“Woof~” Louis, the Doberman, was quicker than his owner, approaching Lin Ran and wagging his tail enthusiastically. The usually fierce dog was now incredibly friendly, wanting to play.
“Good boy, you’re so handsome! Too bad I don’t have anything for you to eat,” Lin Ran, a lover of fluffy creatures, couldn’t resist petting the dog. Louis wagged his tail even harder. Despite its size and imposing appearance, it seemed young and playful.
“Hey, you won’t sell me peaches, and you’re petting my dog…” Louis never let him pet him this freely at home! Shao Zi Jue felt like he had lost both the peaches and his dog to this captivating human. Was this his nemesis?!
“I saw you driving with him before, so I overheard his name,” Lin Ran explained with a smile, still petting Louis.
“If you still want peaches, I can bring another cart tomorrow. How does that sound?”
Shao Zi Jue had no choice but to agree. “Here’s my card. Call me when you arrive tomorrow. Louis, come back!” Annoyed with his overly friendly dog, he dragged the reluctant Doberman away, putting on his sunglasses to hide his embarrassment as he quickly drove off.
With Shao Zi Jue gone, the disappointed onlookers dispersed, some stopping to ask Lin Ran about his peaches. He took the opportunity to promote his business. It seemed the incident had inadvertently created some publicity.
“Hey, Lin-zai, so we’re done for the day? And we even sold tomorrow’s stock!” Jiang Jie blinked, still in disbelief. They had a successful day despite the rain, and they even secured a large order!
“Yeah, everything went smoothly!” As Lin Ran smiled and gathered the empty bags, he felt something heavy inside one of them.
“A-Jie, did you put something in the bag?” he asked, then froze as he opened it.
“No! What the heck is this?!” Jiang Jie peered inside, equally stunned.
Inside was a fist-sized, dark red gem, so large it looked like a toy. Even a fake wouldn’t be this big. But the gem’s brilliance was undeniable, far exceeding anything he had seen in TV commercials.
Back in his car, Shao Zi Jue was in a state of shock: “You’re telling me you gave a high-quality Abyssal Fire Diamond to a human in exchange for those few peaches?!”
“Yeah, you know, I don’t have anything else. There’s only this stuff in the volcanic magma for bartering,” Abyss replied, slightly disappointed about not getting any peaches.
Shao Zi Jue was speechless. “Do you know what that is in the human world? Do you have any idea how much a ruby that size is worth?!” It could buy several peach orchards.
“And why don’t you ever give me any?” His real concern was the missed opportunity to gain favor with his female relatives and increase his allowance.
“Hmph, I’ll give it to whoever I want. Don’t tell me what to do,” Abyss retorted, offended.
Shao Zi Jue decided not to dwell on it. It was too frustrating.
“That guy is really lucky,” he muttered. Why was he so popular with demons?
Lin Ran and Jiang Jie didn’t dare touch the seemingly valuable gem. Back home, Lin Ran examined it carefully, unsure if it was glass or a real gem, and wondering who had put it in his bag.
As he lifted his phone to take a picture for online identification, the “Demon World” app popped up a message:
[Beep—Detected high-quality energy source that can significantly reduce Immersive Mode cooldown. Activate?]
Lin Ran: ?
Could this energy source be the gem? But he didn’t know who it belonged to; using it felt wrong.
Before he could refuse, the app, seemingly impatient, displayed: [No response within 3 seconds, activating by default!] It seemed desperate for the gem, absorbing it before he could react.
[Immersive Mode activated!]
Before he could respond, the familiar feeling of weightlessness returned.
[Detected high-quality energy source. Immersive Mode duration and stability doubled. Bonus: Wardrobe and Sewing Workshop added to your homestead. Enjoy the game~]
“This feels like a microtransaction,” Lin Ran, a staunch advocate of free-to-play gaming, stared at the enthusiastic message, even more suspicious of the gem. How many peaches would he have to sell to repay this debt?
“Cheep cheep cheep!” Sootball, having woken up, chirped, holding the remaining two golden fruits out to Lin Ran, wondering why he hadn’t taken them all.
“I already used one. Why don’t you keep the rest? You can use them if you get hurt again,” Lin Ran picked up the cub, wanting it to keep the fruits.
“Cheep…” Sootball shook its head, insisting on giving them to him. Only after Lin Ran accepted did it chirp contentedly.
Lin Ran’s heart melted. What a sweet little creature! It would definitely grow up to be a kind and caring individual!
He decided to keep the fruits for now, just in case Sootball needed them later.
Speaking of which, could he use the sewing workshop to make a bib for Sootball? He entered the newly added workshop and found a complete set of sewing tools. His clothes were also in the wardrobe.
Having learned some basic sewing from his grandmother, making a bib was easy. He chose some fabric and quickly finished it.
“Sootball, come here,” he called, waving to the cub who had been watching him work. “Cheep?” Sootball looked up, then hopped over.
“A gift for Sootball,” Lin Ran smiled, tying the moon-patterned bib around its neck. Now, it was a fluffy sootball with a cute little bow tie! It looked incredibly adorable.
Sootball looked down at the bib, stunned, only reacting after Lin Ran held it up to the mirror.
A new system notification appeared:
[Affection +30! Current affection: 80. All cub quests unlocked. Max species affection reward unlocked: Moon Brooch (unclaimed)]
30 points!? Although he had expected Sootball to like the bib, he hadn’t anticipated such a significant increase. There was also a new reward, a beautiful brooch.
Focusing on the icon, he saw a description:
[The Moon Brooch is the highest symbol of the Luna Clan. Legend says it grants the wearer the moon’s protection and symbolizes the friendship of the Luna Clan. (Demon World Token Collection Progress 0/5)]
Looking at the greyed-out icon, Lin Ran felt a strange sense of familiarity. But that was impossible. He would definitely remember seeing such an exquisite piece of jewelry.
[New Two-Worlds Interaction Reward incoming…] There was another new reward. Last time, it was Immersive Mode. What would it be this time?
As he pondered, Sootball, wearing the bib, finally chirped.
“Cheep—”
“LING…ZAI!” Having practiced silently for a long time, it finally said it aloud, trying to get Lin Ran’s attention.
Lin Ran, watching Sootball wag its tail happily, thought he had heard his nickname. LING…ZAI? Lin-zai?
The pronunciation was slightly off, with a childish slur, but it was close.
“Are you trying to say my name?” he asked hesitantly.
He didn’t know that if Sootball’s parents, the Oni couple, knew about this small progress, they would be overjoyed. Before this, Sootball had refused to learn the common language, no matter how hard they tried.
“Cheep,” Sootball nodded, nervously watching Lin Ran’s reaction.
Lin Ran, however, felt his face flush. “Ahem, don’t call me Lin-zai. Call me A-Ran.” It was fine for his grandma to call him that, which had led to Jiang Jie and the others following suit. But Sootball was a cub itself; why would it call him Lin-zai, a nickname usually reserved for children? Where did it even learn that?
He was touched but also slightly embarrassed. If it called him Lin-zai now, what would it call him when it grew up?
