Third-Round Knockout

"It's like this… Wait, do you know what 'marketing' is? You do, right?"

"N-no."

"Oh…"

Apparently, the term had yet to be coined in this world. Or maybe they called it by a different name.

"What about 'ads'? Advertisement?"

"Ads? Advertisement? Uh… I feel like I've heard that before." Chen scratched his cheek.

"Let me teach you then. This is something very basic, but it's the foundation of any seller, be it of products or services."

"…"

Chen silently listened, while Sai tried to figure out if he was understanding everything.

"Marketing, or advertising, is the ability of drawing buyers."

"Oh, okay."

"I believe it's the key for an easy success in your business! It's something extremely important that serves as the basis for any business you might conduct. Having a strong brand image, for example, might allow you to charge exorbitant prices buyers would otherwise never consider."

"But for you, it might not be a good idea to focus on brand image. Instead, maybe if you focused on product penetration… depending on the wares of your supplier… would allow for a 'pricing', or maybe even 'premiumtization'…"

"Mister Sai… what is 'brand image'?"

…

After dinner, Sai went to rest early due to his exhaustion, while on his mind raced ideas to help Chen's business. Although he had taught him a lot, Chen probably didn't absorb too well, so he would have to repeat a lot of things, and help whenever he could. Otherwise, this investment might end up worth it.

The next day, Sai woke up alone. Feeling rested and a lot better, he ate moderately and left. There was someone he absolutely had to meet. He represented the last hope for achieving supernatural powers for Sai.

Sai made sure to memorize where Chen's hut was located after he left. After near an hour walking through the streets of Liyue, Sai finally found the Adventurers' Guild branch.

As was expected, Katheryne was there, looking the same… Wait, this was his first time seeing her.

'Well, she is literally the same as in the game.'

There was something odd, though. Besides the board announcing quests and missions, there was a place that looked like a tavern, serving drinks and meals to a bunch of tough-looking people.

It was like it was owned by the guild itself. In fact, Sai could see the traditional green uniform of the Adventurers' Guild on the waiters and servers there. The man at the balcony wore it, too. In contrast, the customers wore armour, carried weapons and dragged overflowing bags of bounties.

"Interesting… this was not in the game…" It looked like only the staff wore the uniform. "Anyways, I wonder where it is… I should be able to find it nearby…"

"Hey friend, do you know where the bar called 'Something Something Knockout' is?"

"Hmpf, who is your friend? You are not worthy!"

Sai had stopped a young man randomly in front of the guild tavern, but he was angry for some reason.

"No, I just want to know where—"

"You are still here? Do you believe I will feed you to the dogs if you don't get out of my sight?! SCRAM!"

"Oh, chill…" Sai was very confused by what had happened, but chose to not bother him anymore.

The young man stormed down the street like he had just found who killed his parents.

"Haha, it seems you are new here, to address Lu Wang like that."

A burly young man carrying a sheathed greatsword approached Sai from the tavern. He was smiling in a delighted manner and looked very charismatic.

"Who is he? Should I know who he is? Why is he so angry?" Sai naturally wouldn't reproach him without a reason.

"It's just common knowledge in this area that Lu Wang looks down on everyone below the heavens and that he is difficult to interact with. As to why he shouted like that… Hahahah… you were quite unfortunate. This guy just proposed to sister Xu Zixin and got rejected… Tsk tsk. Frog wishing for swan meat…"

"Uh…"

'Did I enter a xianxia by mistake? Could this be how they actually interact in China? This sounds so fun… but I can't afford it right now.'

"Hahahah, you should have seen his face when she didn't even look at him… It was hilarious! Served him well! HAHAhaha!"

"Hahah… friend… do you know where the place called 'Something Knockout' is?" Sai forced a laugh and got to the point.

"Something Knockout? Oh, you mean Third-Round Knockout? Yeah, I know the place, just go straight this way and turn right when you see a plaza. It's going to be to your right."

"Thanks! I'll be going now."

"Yep, no problem. Brother Jun, don't laugh so much, you aren't giving the young master any face… Buhahahah!"

""HAhahaah!""

…

Third-Round Knockout looked a bit bigger than the game, but the storyteller was still there in the corner. And for once, Sai felt in luck.

Among the few people seated listening to the stories was a young man in his late twenties with tied long dark hair. He wore clothes that were luxurious no matter how you saw them, in shades of grey, black and mainly brown.

Zhongli was leisurely enjoying a cup of tea alone in a table near the storyteller. His movements were calm but graceful, like they were calculated and practiced countless times. Unlike the other Vision-holders Sai had met, Zhongli did not give him any feeling of power or danger. Only tranquility. For this, he was quite thankful.

As it was getting close to lunch-time, some people had started taking seats, but the majority sat far away from the storyteller. That was good for Sai, who took the chance to approach Zhongli's table unfettered.

"…so that mountain dragon who rose from the dirt and now stood at the pinnacle of the world, when meeting Havria, had no option but to take a step back, due to fear of implications from Rex Lapis who…"

Sai stopped right behind Zhongli, hesitating about how to approach. He noticed that it would be uneducated to interrupt the storyteller, so he waited for a moment of silence. After a couple of minutes, Sai made up his mind and stood beside him.

"Ahem, may I ask if you are Mister Zhongli? From the funeral parlor?"