I'm quitting!

Chapter 36 Let me put it this way, I'd dare spend ten thousand on a light bulb.

As the setting sun dips behind the mountains, its afterglow bathes the mountain gate in a dazzling halo.

Lin Xiaofan lifted the privacy curtain, and as soon as her toes touched the ground, she caught a glimpse of a familiar figure standing by the door.

Dan Xuanzi.

"Welcome back, senior, from seclusion."

Lin Xiaofan was slightly taken aback.

Clearing customs?

Before I could react, Lao Xian's teasing, mature female voice echoed in my mind:

[This was most likely Ji Ying's way of covering for you before she left, telling everyone that you were in seclusion in your tent, meditating on the Dao, and that no one should disturb you.]

Lin Xiaofan suddenly realized, concealing the strange look in his eyes and adopting a profound expression, he nodded calmly: "Thank you for your protection, Master Dan."

"Senior, you flatter me!" Dan Xuanzi waved his hands repeatedly, his expression full of self-righteousness. "Senior has been teaching and imparting knowledge to the sect, so it is only natural for me to protect you! Besides, I have good news to report... The milk tea promotion has been successfully completed!"

"Oh?" Lin Xiaofan raised an eyebrow slightly. "How was the outcome?"

"Unprecedented!" Dan Xuanzi exclaimed, his beard trembling with excitement. "The total revenue is approximately 300,000 low-grade spirit stones!"

"How many?!"

Lin Xiaofan's eyes widened: "Each cup is priced at only three low-grade spirit stones. Even if ten thousand cups are sold, the total would be at most thirty thousand... How could the price increase tenfold?!"

Dan Xuanzi stroked his beard and laughed heartily: "Senior, you may not know this, but the effects of this milk tea far exceed what our guests expect! It unblocks meridians and harmonizes yin and yang, truly a divine substance! More importantly, everyone here has an extremely strong desire to curry favor with you, Senior."

He paused, lowering his voice slightly: "In particular, the Tian Zhou royal family, the Tian Dao Palace, and the Hundred Flowers Valley have all offered far more than the agreed price to show their sincerity."

Lin Xiaofan's lips twitched slightly.

Good heavens, wouldn't you say this is like... harvesting the entire cultivation world's worth of crops?

[Tsk tsk tsk... This is all thanks to Master Lin! He sells milk tea, but you're selling the "Great Way"!]

Lin Xiaofan remained expressionless, a wisp of cold air quietly condensing at his fingertips, which he precisely flicked onto Lao Xian's crystal forehead.

【Ouch!】

It hurts to eat salty food.

The world... has become quiet.

At this moment, Dan Xuanzi took out a bulging storage bag from his sleeve and presented it with both hands: "Senior, the profits from this time will be split 20/80 as agreed. This is your share."

Lin Xiaofan accepted the money, secretly delighted: 20% of 300,000, 60,000 spirit stones... Good heavens, 60,000 spirit stones in the time it takes to sleep, even more efficient than robbing a road.

however--

The moment his spiritual sense entered the bag, he was struck dumb, frozen in place.

The spirit stones were piled up like mountains, their spiritual energy rising and radiating a dazzling light.

This number... is definitely not limited to 60,000. A rough estimate puts it at least over 200,000!

His mind raced for a split second before he suddenly realized—

Holy crap! It's 20/80, and I'm the 80?!

Seeing him silently holding the storage bag, Dan Xuanzi's heart sank, and beads of sweat appeared on his forehead: "If Senior feels the distribution is inappropriate, this junior will dare to add another ten percent! No—twenty percent!"

"No, no, no!" Lin Xiaofan suddenly snapped back to reality, shoving the storage bag into his robes. His face was stern, and his words were righteous and indignant. "Elder Dan, what's agreed upon is 28. Even one extra spirit stone is a trampling on my dignity!"

After clearing his throat twice, he abruptly changed the subject: "Now that I'm out of seclusion, I need to return to the bamboo hut behind the mountain to solidify my foundation and digest what I've gained. I'll leave the rest to you."

"Senior, your noble character is truly admirable!" Dan Xuanzi's eyes reddened slightly as he bowed deeply.

Lin Xiaofan turned to leave, but then stopped and turned to instruct, "By the way, if Valley Master Mi of Hundred Flowers Valley comes to visit, lead her to the bamboo shed behind the mountain."

"I will remember this!"

After bidding farewell to Dan Xuanzi, Lin Xiaofan went straight back to his beloved little home.

Maqiu, familiar with the way, climbed onto the stone table, squeezed its cheeks to pull out half a roasted sweet potato, and began to gnaw on it with its two front paws.

Are you that hungry?

"Go ahead and eat it. You think 'cuteness' doesn't burn calories?"

Lin Xiaofan affectionately rubbed Maqiu's soft belly, then sat cross-legged, closed his eyes, and concentrated.

In his mind, the "fish feed" promoted by the milk tea shop continued to generate rebellion points, and the system notification sound kept ringing incessantly. Taking advantage of this break, he decided to break through the second level of the "Star Shadow Military Manual" in one fell swoop.

Starlight illuminates the path we take, while shadows bear witness to the path we came from.

As he silently recited the proverb, his entire body instantly boiled and surged upwards, enveloping him completely.

Open your eyes again—

The world has changed.

Dark clouds loomed overhead, and a fierce wind howled.

Thousands of soldiers stood in formation, completely silent.

Black Cavalry.

The two leading generals were both dressed in star-studded armor, their scarlet cloaks billowing in the wind.

The left general held a heavy spear horizontally, his shadow horse as majestic as a mountain, its four hooves shattering mountains and rivers; the right general held a javelin, his shadow horse as graceful as an immortal, its silver mane swirling like stars.

Behind the two generals, each led three hundred cavalry. The six hundred black-clad riders stood motionless like mountains, their overwhelming killing intent almost tearing Lin Xiaofan's mind to dust.

wow——

The two black-clad riders simultaneously dismounted, strode forward, and knelt on one knee.

This kneeling was like a burst dam. Countless afterimages of slaughter surged from his knees, flooding his mind.

Lin Xiaofan's eyes turned bloodshot, and all he could hear were the sounds of clashing weapons and mournful screams. His reason was repeatedly tested on the verge of collapse.

But he suddenly bit his tongue, using the sharp pain to force himself to wake up.

To serve one's master, one must first receive his worship!

He doesn't even dare to accept the kowtows of his own generals; what kind of sovereign is he?

Lin Xiaofan, enduring the terrifying pressure that threatened to drive him mad, took stiff steps, one step, two steps...

He gritted his teeth and walked to the place where the two generals kowtowed.

He looked down at him and spoke in a deep voice:

"Heavy spears slay the earth, bestowed with the title of Earth Cavalry General—'Formation'!"

"His spear pierces the sky, and he is bestowed the title of Heavenly Cavalry General—'Former'!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the red mist that had been emanating from the eyes of "Zhen" and "Qian" suddenly intensified.

The six hundred black riders instantly transformed into a sky full of shadows, like rivers flowing into the sea, all disappearing into Lin Xiaofan's body.

My mind returned to normal.

Lin Xiaofan slowly opened his eyes, clearly sensing that his mental will was becoming increasingly refined.

Oh? You came out pretty quickly.

It seems you've fully adapted to the true essence of killing; congratulations... another pair of fierce tigers have joined our Lin clan warlords!

Lin Xiaofan curled his lip and retorted irritably, "What Lin warlord? They make it sound like we're some kind of heinous criminal... This is a regular army! Don't you know what a king's army is?"

Yes, yes, yes, the regular army~

【Then may I ask, Commander of the regular army, have you finished harvesting your rebellion points?】

Lin Xiaofan was startled, only then realizing that the ringing notification sounds in his mind had quietly stopped at some point.

With a slight thought, the panel appeared.

[Rebelliousness Value: 117623]

Lin Xiaofan's breath caught in her throat as she saw the six-figure balance.

He went through the transaction records one by one, silently calculating in his mind—after deducting the expenses of exchanging materials, this milk tea promotion had netted him at least 70,000 rebellion points!

While browsing, a [Rebellion Value +300] value lurking among a dense cluster of [Rebellion Value +50] values ​​suddenly came into view.

"Old Xian, where did these 'three hundred' come from? A reward for full awakening?"

Oh, it probably originated from Ji Ying.

That girl already carried memories of her past life, and also had a fragment of your soul attached to her. The resonance during your dual cultivation likely broke through her final barrier of cognition, allowing her to fully enter the realm of awakening.

Lin Xiaofan seemed to be deep in thought, and slowly nodded.

[By the way, you've already triggered the awakening of six "characters" in the story. You only need four more slots to advance to the intermediate level of "Eye of Truth"... Keep up the good work!]

"I already have a plan for the remaining spots." Lin Xiaofan rubbed his hands together, his eyes gleaming with extravagance. "Let's get down to business! Old Xian, get ready to upgrade!"

【Oh my, boss! I'm so touched by your sudden generosity!】

Lao Xian instantly switched to an affected, green tea-like voice, and the fish body twisted into an S-shaped arc in mid-air.

【Are you eyeing my new crystal scales? Oh, come on, I haven't even got mine ready yet~】

"Ugh!" Lin Xiaofan got goosebumps all over. "Stop arguing, get it done now!"

[The boss is generous! The boss is in good health! Long live the boss, may he live forever!]

As soon as he finished speaking, Lao Xian's voice lost its liveliness and turned into a cold, mechanical tone.

[Deduct 100000 rebellion points, proceed to the next calculation phase...]

[Upgrade - Evolution!]

A sudden burst of blue light, dazzling and mesmerizing.

Old Xian's palm-sized body suddenly swelled and rose higher and higher.

After about fifteen minutes, the light gradually faded.

A holographic salted fish over a meter long hangs in mid-air, its body shimmering with disco-like colorful light effects, making the entire bamboo shed look like a retro dance hall from the 1980s.

Lin Xiaofan's excitement froze instantly, his emotions plummeting like a plunge into an icy abyss.

"...That's it?"

Yeah, isn't it cool?

The old saltwater fish proudly wiggled its fins, and the dazzling lights instantly turned the surroundings into a kaleidoscope of colors.

This is a high-dimensional holographic projection with RGB lighting effects—a symbol of prestige!

Lin Xiaofan's temples throbbed with veins as he slowly raised his fist, which was shrouded in icy blue and fiery red:

"Refund."

【Oh dear, boss, you're an adult now. Virtual goods are non-refundable and non-exchangeable once sold.】

Old Xian shrank back a little.

The icy and fiery fist wind drew ever closer, and her tone abruptly changed: "Wait! For the sake of the boss being the top figure on the leaderboard..."

The fish plunging its fins among the scales on its abdomen rummaged around for a while, then suddenly pulled out a ball of golden light.

[Ta-da! Fast forward to the script!]

Lin Xiaofan was slightly taken aback, and the ice and fire on his fist quietly faded away.

[This skill can help you skip all the boring "waste time" and get straight to the key point!] Old Xian shook the ball of light as if to take credit.

Lin Xiaofan's face lit up with joy again—time-based skills are highly sought-after assets no matter where they are placed!

Of course, this skill even inherited my love for the boss; you're our one and only!

Lin Xiaofan immediately sensed something was wrong and his face darkened: "Speak like a human being."

"Uh... due to insufficient computing power, the fast-forward effect is currently only applicable to you, boss..." Lao Xian stammered.

Perhaps having been mentally prepared, Lin Xiaofan merely sighed helplessly. However, Old Xian suddenly lowered his voice and added:

[Um... fast-forwarding per hour costs 1 point of Rebellion Points...]

Lin Xiaofan smiled.

I laughed out of anger.

"If one day I die and my soul perishes, it will be thanks to you."

These words clearly implied that he would be driven mad by her sooner or later, but Old Xian was completely oblivious, his holographic body contorting into a coy, girlish (?) pose:

Oh dear, the boss said he'd be willing to die for someone, huh? How annoying!

It's hard.

The fist hardened.

But in the end, Lin Xiaofan slowly loosened his fingers, a very "kind" smile appearing on his face.

He turned his head to look at the stone table, his tone unusually calm:

"Mahjong, lock her up in solitary confinement for ten days."

"squeak!"

Maqiu's eyes lit up, and with a swift movement, its small mouth opened, and its body instantly grew to enormous size, like a furry black hole, swallowing the salted fish whole.

Waaaaah—! Boss, I was wrong…

A muffled whimper came from Maqiu's bulging cheeks, and Lin Xiaofan felt refreshed, even his breathing became easier.

However, just as he stretched out his arms, wanting to enjoy this rare moment of peace—

Pfft!

My heart skipped a beat, and the pleasure came to an abrupt end.

A surge of intense heat exploded in my lower abdomen, as if I had swallowed a red-hot iron, which surged and rampaged along my meridians.

Lin Xiaofan frowned, immediately sat cross-legged, and used his powerful Dao Body to suppress the attack.

In his youth, the intense heat not only did not subside, but intensified, as if it would burn away his remaining rationality.

Lin Xiaofan gritted his teeth, feeling the raging desire within him, and smiled bitterly to himself.

The "debt" owed to the "Secret Techniques of the Ooyang" —

Ultimately, it must be repaid.