Lin Li screamed while 'quietly' moving toward the door.
Although his banner was still in Xue Jian's hands, Lin Li really didn't plan to take it anymore.
Getting the banner but losing his life wouldn't be a good trade. Right now, running away quickly was more appropriate.
He was very close to the door now. The dawn of victory was right before him. Come on, work hard!
"Stop."
When Lin Li had already run to the doorway, he heard Death's whisper from behind him, and in a trance saw the ox-headed and horse-faced demons showing him kind smiles.
Done for.
Bad news: he'd never see Xiao Jing again from now on.
Good news: he could go visit Lao Da.
"Hey, the illness is over! I'm cured!" Lin Li ended his performance, mechanically and slowly turning around, standing obediently in place, looking at Xue Jian, "Teacher, I really was blind just now. Trust me, I never lie."
Lin Li didn't see Xue Jian's gaze.
Because Xue Jian was now sitting at his desk, pressing his forehead with his fingers, his palm covering his eyes, not responding to Lin Li's words.
"Come here." After a few seconds, Xue Jian suddenly said.
How should an obituary be written?
Could someone watch a thirty-second ad to revive me?
Hello hello, waiting online, very very urgent.
At least all his browsers used incognito mode... wait, no good! He hadn't deleted his banned manga, which would show his bookmarked comics! 363848, go forth, all my legacy is left there.
With the determination to face death, Lin Li walked toward Xue Jian with a drooping face.
However, Xue Jian still didn't look up, as if he also didn't dare face Lin Li's gaze.
He extended a trembling hand, unlocked his phone with his fingerprint again, then said in a trembling voice, "Take the phone, scroll up and look at more chat history."
After a pause, he tremblingly added, "Please."
This was the first time Lin Li had seen Xue Jian show such a 'fragile' side, like an elderly person in their twilight years. Who could bear to refuse such a request?
Lin Li could.
—Though actually Lin Li was just somewhat scared and didn't dare pick up the phone.
At this moment he was like a bomb disposal expert, maintaining distance and using his finger to scroll the screen from far away.
"..."
"Xue Jian: Where are all my banners? Can't find any of them?"
"Wife: Haven't seen them. Probably when we moved last time, since they were hidden in those boxes, we didn't bring them over. I've searched everywhere. What do you want this stuff for?"
"Xue Jian: It's about my dignity. Look again, look again."
"Wife: Really can't find them."
"Xue Jian: Do you have any photos saved? I changed phones and didn't transfer the old photos."
"Wife: Why would I keep photos of your banners? Am I sick?"
"Xue Jian: ...Then help me make one, quickly. I still remember the content of one banner..."
"..."
OK, Lin Li already understood what Xue Jian wanted to express to him.
Although not bringing homework was always considered as not having done it, Xue Jian really had done it.
It's just that the homework was lost, so he had no choice but to copy it again. Then Lin Li only saw this scene of him copying homework—it was indeed a misunderstanding.
Xue Jian was a good student.
Really, Lin Li was moved to tears.
Come to think of it, someone who could be a homeroom teacher at a key middle school, with his age and experience, could indeed have banners.
"Teacher, I've finished reading. I understand. You really do have them." Lin Li spoke carefully, afraid that being too loud would trigger Xue Jian's stress response.
"Thank you." It was rare to hear words like "thank you" from Xue Jian's mouth. Xue Jian again extended a trembling hand, passing Lin Li his banner. "Take it home. Be careful on the road."
From beginning to end, Xue Jian never looked up at Lin Li, but Lin Li didn't feel disrespected at all.
"Thank you, teacher." He carefully received it and expressed his gratitude.
"Go quickly." Xue Jian waved his hand.
Lin Li turned and left without a moment's hesitation, because he suspected Xue Jian was currently suppressing his second personality, or the beast sleeping within his body. If he didn't leave now, he wouldn't have another chance.
...
Getting on his bicycle.
Lin Li didn't immediately ride toward home. He first went to an ATM to deposit most of the money into his bank card, then began what seemed like aimless wandering around Xiling Town.
Where are the dead rats? Come on, just one.
However, after riding around for half an hour like this, the system Lin Li expected didn't give any reaction.
It didn't tell him whether there were any chicken farms nearby.
Could it be that his luck was too bad, and he just hadn't ridden to places where chicken farms were hidden?
Because it was only half an hour, and he was basically going in circles, Lin Li had been wandering around Xiling's central area the whole time.
Could these places be too urbanized, which was the fundamental reason for not triggering anything?
It was already too late today. He'd wasted too much time in the office. Tomorrow night he'd ride to more distant and remote places to try. If this continued for a week without triggering anything, Lin Li could basically confirm that the system wouldn't actively notify him, and the mission to find chicken farms would have to rely on finding new methods himself.
Lin Li rode his bike home.
Without hesitation, he materialized the Spirit Stones.
The Spirit Stones weren't as large as he'd imagined. Actually, each Spirit Stone was even a bit smaller than an egg. Five Spirit Stones could barely be held in one hand, but they were very light—the total weight was less than an egg.
Lin Li had originally thought they would be quite large, the size where one hand could only hold one, and heavy. It seemed he'd overthought it.
And they didn't trigger any celestial phenomena either.
They had a crystal-like luster, with something crystalline flowing inside, their shape somewhere between regular and irregular.
Lin Li leaned close to smell them—there was even a slight fragrance, quite appetizing.
This time they were really good stuff. Even if he sold them, collectors would definitely be interested.
But Lin Li would never do that.
"Yay, this is totally worth dying for!" Lin Li showed an excited smile. He could finally see what this spiritual energy was all about!
But then Lin Li encountered another problem.
These Spirit Stones were like products without any labels—no production date or expiration date, which was fine, but they also didn't come with user instructions.
This was basic knowledge in the cultivation world.
But he wasn't from there.
How was this spiritual energy supposed to be extracted?
As the saying goes, even a clever housewife can't cook without rice.
The Eight-Stage Body Forging Technique did indeed describe how to use and absorb spiritual energy into the body, but it didn't explain Spirit Stone processing.
Lin Li experimentally bit one—it was very hard, making his teeth ache.
"This thing can't be like the golden pills in novels that can be swallowed and refined in the stomach, right?"
Lin Li looked at its size—he could indeed swallow it. He put it in his mouth but hesitated to swallow.
Forget it, Lin Li spat it out again.
This thing did smell appetizing, but if he swallowed it, he might literally need his stomach opened in the physical sense.
If he ate it and couldn't digest it, he definitely couldn't pass it—he hadn't made it onto Chengdu's must-eat list.
"A person can't be killed by holding in urine!"
Lin Li gritted his teeth and decided to treat a dead horse as if it were alive. He materialized the Eight-Stage Body Forging Technique, turned to the second chapter, put the Spirit Stone in his mouth, then began practicing.
As he assumed the posture, the technique began actively guiding his body.
"Oh~~~~"
Lin Li couldn't help but hum softly.
It worked!
(End of Chapter)
Chengdu's must-eat list - Famous food guide reference