A New Goal

The weather has never seemed to be sunny since dawn.

The pale gray sky looked quite uncomfortable.

After seeing Chen Xi and the others off, Li Yao returned to the tavern and sat down again. The tavern was not yet open for business, and the lights were off, making it very dim. The darkness in the corners seemed to lead to infinite distances, making the tavern feel both vast and empty in a sensory sense.

Especially in front of the fireplace.

The place seemed to lose its soul and vitality after some people left.

Li Yao did not return to the fireplace.

He walked around the tavern, leaving behind many traces.

The drinks at the bar were neatly arranged, and the bar counter itself was spotless.

Maeve hasn't returned yet either.

The things at the fortune-telling altar remained exactly as they were when she left.

On the innermost wall,

There's also a "Confession Note" that Wei Dadong just put up.

In some corners of the pub, there are still graffiti left by Lin Xiaoxi.

Lin Xiaoxi, Maeve...

They haven't come back yet.

As for Chen Xi and Wei Dadong...

They probably won't be back for a long time.

Li Yao walked around and hung up a "Closed for Business" sign at the door. Then he sat back down in front of the fireplace. The shadows covering him were like a soft blanket. He sat there motionless, like a statue.

He didn't want to do anything; his mind was blank, and he didn't want to think about anything.

Time slips away quietly.

It was getting dark outside.

As dusk fell, Lin Xiaoxi's loud voice rang out from outside. "What's going on, Li Da Yao! Why are you temporarily closed when the store is open? Have you gotten too big for your britches? You've only made so much money and you're already acting like this? You're not going to live anymore?"

Upon hearing that voice, Li Yao, who had been sitting in front of the fireplace, finally stirred, and the tavern, which had been in a state of stagnation, seemed to come alive all at once.

He looked towards the door and saw Lin Xiaoxi, carrying a small bag, jump in. She looked around and asked curiously, "Why haven't you turned on the light yet? Where's my sister Chen Xi?"

While speaking,

As she walked to the switch, she turned on all the ambient lights in the pub.

The tavern suddenly lit up.

Li Yao squinted because of the blinding light.

Lin Xiaoxi glanced around and sensed something was off. Seeing Li Yao's expression, she frowned even more. "What's wrong? Where's my sister Chen Xi?"

Li Yao: "She's gone."

Lin Xiaoxi was immediately terrified. "(Д) What the hell???"

Li Yao nodded sadly. "Yes, I'm leaving."

Upon receiving confirmation, Lin Xiaoxi became distraught, her face contorted with grief as she cried out, "(╥╥) I... how could my sister Chen Xi have left? Who did it!"

Li Yao: "???"

Who did it?

He asked in surprise, "She wanted to leave on her own..."

Lin Xiaoxi was shocked. "Σ(;`Д) Impossible! How could someone like Sister Chen Xi be so despondent as to commit suicide!"

suicide???

Li Yao was immediately captivated...

He shook his head and asked, "Didn't someone tell you she committed suicide? She had something to do, what the hell are you thinking?"

Lin Xiaoxi: "..."

Oh, I see.

Lin Xiaoxi immediately breathed a sigh of relief, "Li Da Yao! Can't you talk properly?! Huh?!"

Li Yao was completely dumbfounded...

Is there something wrong with what I said, or is there something wrong with your brain?

This is blatant attempt to shift the blame!

Lin Xiaoxi didn't care about any of that. She went to the bar, poured herself a glass of water, and gulped it down. Then she wiped her mouth and asked, "Where did Sister Chen Xi go? When are you coming back?"

Li Yao said guiltily, "It might be a long time before I come back..."

Lin Xiaoxi was puzzled. "What exactly happened?"

Li Yao told Lin Xiaoxi about Chen Xi's trip, and after listening, Lin Xiaoxi was extremely conflicted. "(ー`ー) Seriously! Why didn't she wait for me to come back!"

She muttered complaints under her breath.

After a while, she looked at Li Yao and said, "Sister Chen Xi isn't here anymore, so I'm going back to school too."

Li Yao: "..."

Now there are hardly any people left in the tavern.

He nodded. "Okay."

Lin Xiaoxi should have been at school too.

With Li Yao's permission, Lin Xiaoxi ran upstairs and came running back down shortly after. "Sister Chen Xi, you haven't touched anything?"

Li Yao: "Mm."

Lin Xiaoxi nodded. "Then I'll leave my things here too."

Anyway, Lin Qianwan rich!

Lin Xiaoxi jumped to the doorway and said goodbye to Li Yao inside, "See you later~ Take good care of the shop~"

After saying that,

She left the tavern with light steps...

Li Yao stared blankly at the now silent tavern. He sat back down in front of the fireplace, as still as a statue.

Not long after,

There was another noise at the door. Big Sis Feng Li's dog was furtively scratching at the door frame. Li Yao felt the noise and looked towards the door. "What's wrong?"

Big Sis Feng Li then walked out confidently and said with a smile, "Brother, what's wrong with this place? It feels rather eerie."

Li Yao took a deep breath, held it for seven or eight seconds, and then slowly exhaled. He asked, "Where's Old Man Lu? Tell him to call me!"

Feng Li: "Antarctica."

Without a signal, you can't make or receive calls!

Li Yao: "..."

It seems that guy had been preparing to avoid me for a long time! No wonder that old man hasn't shown up much in the provincial capital since taking over as "Deterrent," he was already on guard against me! Li Yao sneered inwardly, then looked at Feng Li and asked seriously, "When do you think I can beat Old Man Lu?"

Feng Li leaned back in his chair, rolled his eyes, and said, "Save your breath!"

The gap between the fourth, fifth, Tier 6, and seventh tiers is enormous! Judging from Li Yao's combat strength in Sierra Leone last time, he can wear down a peak fifth-tier alien through various means.

But he definitely can't handle Tier 6 opponent.

Not to mention that Old Lu is already a seventh-tier deterrent! Even now, there are no more than a handful of seventh-tier experts in the entire world! Out of nearly seven billion people, there are fewer than ten seventh-tier individuals...

The difficulty of promotion is directly proportional to the strength of their combat power.

So, Big Sis Feng Li advised, "I think you should just give up on this idea. No, I actually hope you can go and beat up Old Lu."

If even Old Lu can't defeat Li Yao, what does that mean? It means that China will have three seventh-tier "Deterrents"! Just thinking about that scene is a bit terrifying, but it's also enough to make people yearn for it.

Li Yao nodded after listening. "Okay, now I have a goal!"

He needed to improve himself as quickly as possible so he could go and beat that old bastard surnamed Lu to a pulp! He set his goal.

Li Yao regained his vitality and asked the person next to him, "By the way, how's Maeve and the others' mission going? When will they be back?"

Big Sis Feng Li replied, "Based on the props you provided, Ye Yu and his team have indeed pinpointed the direction. They reported back three hours ago and have already begun gathering manpower to prepare for the operation." She raised her hand and looked at it, "They should be moving out around this time."

Li Yao frowned and asked, "Is the operation difficult?"

First update. My whole body aches after yesterday's workout... Hope you enjoy reading!