8. Arrival of Lord!

It was a normal day for Zeng Bo. Today, too, his business was dull. Barely a few people came to his shop. His family had been in the skewer-selling business for two generations. The income was barely enough to raise two kids and a wife. Any more, and everyone would have to starve on alternate days.

Growing up, Zeng Bo had many dreams of becoming a cultivator who could shake the whole Black Cloud City. But as he grew up, he continued with shaking skewers over the fire—his family business.

However, he wasn't as backward as his father. He exercised restraint and had only one daughter. With more than enough to eat, he expanded into making Freshwater Fish Skewers, specially cultivating freshwater fish at home for that purpose.

Business was booming at first. Black Cloud City barely had any freshwater, so his skewers were a rare delicacy. Even the famous Masters who guarded the gate of the Cheng Family came to eat his skewers. He was sure that the name "Zeng Bo" would be written in golden letters in the history of the Zeng family.

But everything came crashing down when someone spread rumors that he was tricking everyone by using seawater fish instead of freshwater fish. His customers trusted the rumors more than his words. In the last month, he had barely gotten any customers, and his family was now on the verge of starving. If this continued for a few more days, he would have to sell everything and start anew.

So he was overjoyed when he saw a young mistress leading a bony old man toward his shop. All his life, he knew that old people were respected only when they had money and power. And by the look of this old fossil, he surely must be a tycoon to allow such a young mistress to lead him. He hurriedly fanned his hot skewers to spread a good aroma. Before he could squeeze out any promotional speech, the young mistress barked,

"Old swindler, why are you selling seawater fish in Freshwater Fish Skewers?"

She looked proud and frequently glanced at the old man, her eyes asking for praise.

At that moment, Zeng Bo knew his days were over. The two customers were wearing brown garbs that looked expensive. He saw their faces clearly, and the hood was not enough to hide anything. Their weird dressing sense made them stand out from the crowd. From the attitude of the young mistress leading, he was sure they had huge backing.

They are people nobody would want to mess with, he thought. Maybe my name will not be written anywhere, and I will die today. But when he thought of his baby daughter, he mustered the courage and replied,

"Great Mistress, this humble one does not dare to trick anyone. My fish are all freshwater fish. I swear upon my life."

Lan was really frustrated with the current situation. He, The Great Ancestor, solving a freshwater vs. seawater fish case? Fuck! If anyone hears this, won't my reputation take a hit? Still, with the situation already in front of him, he couldn't back out now. He had to face it. Looking at the proud Rin, he scolded,

"Lad Rin, we must be tolerant in front of weak people."

Seeing Rin's pitiful look, he added,

"But you did well. I will question him now."

Rin hurriedly bowed and stood by Lan's side. I will now get to experience the Ancestor's teachings. I must not be negligent.

Lan dropped his hood and put his hand behind his back. He observed the poor vendor for a minute in silence. When he was sure that any more pressure would make the shopkeeper pass out from stress, he asked,

"May I check your professional details?"

Zeng Bo was confused but still nodded when faced with the mysterious senior's dominant gaze.

Lan activated his free skill, which was gifted by the system: "Status."

< Name: Zeng Bo 

Profession: Skewer Maker (Freshwater Fish Skewer Specialty) >

Lan was a little angry seeing how little information was given, but he couldn't do anything to the system, so he chose to overlook it. This skill is so restricted that I have to ask every time I need to see status, and even then, the info shown will be limited to what the target agrees to reveal. Is there any point in using this skill? Well, beggars can't be choosers.

Now that the system showed the specialty as Freshwater Fish Skewers, the case was solved. He pushed his invisible glasses up and replied to his awaiting audience of two,

"I believe you. You used freshwater fish."

Looking at the delicious skewers, he secretly gulped and added,

"Give one for each of us."

Zeng Bo started crying happily. After waiting for a month, someone had finally accepted his truth. Now he was determined to continue this business. He thanked the good old senior,

"Great Senior, this humble one is not worthy, not worthy." He pushed a broken stool forward. "Senior, rest here. I will warm the skewers for you."

Rin was not sure what had happened, but she corrected the old shopkeeper when she saw the ancestor's furtive glance at her,

"This is Great Ancestor. You must refer to him as such, ol... Shopkeeper."

Zeng Bo did not mind and corrected himself. He started warming up the skewers while shedding tears of happiness.

Lan observed his skewer. He was half sure that it would be salty due to all the tears of the middle-aged man. But alas, it's hard not to respect his fans.

The skewer was tasty. Lan was happy with his quick decision to order it. My whole trip was worthwhile just because of this skewer.

Looking at the young girl secretly licking her fingers, he chuckled. Rin was mumbling about how she would not trust Aunt Chen's words anymore.

With the meal finished, he decided to conclude his adventure. He noticed the shopkeeper was still looking at them hopefully. I wonder what it is now? Then it clicked. Ahh... he needs money, right? He turned to his gang member,

"Lad Rin, pay him for two skewers."

After thinking, he added,

"Pay double the price. His skewers are good!"

When Rin heard it, she was startled. When they started the adventure, she hadn't brought any money, assuming the Ancestor would foot all the bills. But now that she thought about it, The Ancestor still hasn't collected his funds from the coffin. The family head hadn't given him his funds because he was scared away by the Ancestor.

Now I can't shame the Ancestor. I have to take the blame on myself; otherwise, the Ancestor will be embarrassed.

"Ancestor, forgive this ignorant one. I misplaced my money bag somewhere. I will bring it back quickly."

Lan was seriously embarrassed. He had bragged about paying double but now couldn't even pay the original price. If Rin went to get the money, it would take at least hours for her to return. He was in a bind. He looked at the shopkeeper, prepared to give some excuse when he was interrupted,

"Great Ancestor, this humble one does not dare to charge you anything. Your acknowledgment of my skewer is more than enough."

Zeng Bo was unsure whether the people in front of him were scammers or not, but he was still grateful that they praised his skewers. They gave him hope when he was hopeless. So he decided to let them off and chalked it up as a life lesson.

Lan saw some mistrust in the shopkeeper's eyes, which quickly vanished. But as great as he was, Lan would not let even a little suspicion exist about his character. He did not blame Rin; she was as clueless as he was.

Both of us were staying in the tomb, after all. The difference was I was inside the coffin, and she was outside. So he decided to give the shopkeeper something from his system, which he had purchased before sleeping yesterday.

< 

Summon Card: 30 FP.

When registered user's blood is dropped on the registered card, the host will be summoned to the card after three seconds.

Restrictions: Consumes user's lifespan (half lifespan x distance between registered user and host in meters) for every use. Three Uses Only.

> 

This was something Lan found in the shady system shop when looking for cheap things. The card was cheap but very deadly—a surefire way to die early. But Lan was smart. Since his system store items did not allow harm to any living being, he was practically able to use this card as a business card and distribute it everywhere. But he never planned any use for it. Now that the situation had arisen, he decided to gift it.

Lan pulled out the card from the system store. It was a 5cm x 8cm rectangle with a white background and a picture of a clenched fist with the middle finger outstretched. When he saw the picture, Lan cursed the system. I'm sure the system is angry because I outsmarted it. Still, he kept a poker face and said,

"This is my personal lifesaving treasure. This occasion can be considered a fortuitous encounter for you. Put a drop of blood on the middle of the card to register yourself. Whenever you are in a life-and-death situation, put one drop again on this treasure. It will save your life three times. Use it wisely. Even a demi-god cannot match it. Again, use it only when you are in danger—remember, only three uses."

When he saw the shopkeeper trying to reject

He added, "Don't decline. That treasure has power equal to a Demi-God, so you have the backing of a Demi-God. I will leave now. Remember, three uses! Drop a single drop of blood on it to activate."

With that said, he put on his hood and hurried away with Rin. Being mysterious and in a hurry always looks cool, he thought.

Zeng Bo was still dazed, looking alternately at the old skeleton hurrying away and the white card in his hand. Should I trust these scammers or not? But Zeng Bo was a pioneer—he introduced Freshwater Fish Skewers to Black Cloud City.

 He wasn't afraid of trying out new things. He was also a little amazed when he saw the old skeleton pull the card out of thin air. At the very least, this must be something magical.

After thinking for half a day, he pricked his finger and dropped a single drop of blood on the white card. When the blood made contact, the card began to shine with a bright white light. His vision blurred, and he saw mountains as big as the sky, then ancient creatures walking on the mountains, crushing them with every step. He saw a gigantic tree roots devouring those creatures, long worms devouring the tree, big birds eating the worms, and much more.

Zeng Bo could feel the massive aura from a small insect on the mountain. That small insect alone could destroy everyone in Black Cloud City, yet many such insects were crushed by a single step from the lowest being here. I can't fathom the power of these other beings.

As he was thinking such thoughts, suddenly a massive hand came down and slapped everything. Everything became quiet, devoid of life. All life was extinguished by a single slap. He watched in horror as the fingers on the palm slowly curled into a fist, with the lone middle finger extended.

Then Zeng Bo saw his skewers in front of him. He hurriedly looked at the card. There it was—the outstretched middle finger. He kneeled down and shouted,

"All Hail LORD MIDDLE FINGER!!!"