"Delivery!"
Seeing Yang Genshuo sitting in the chair and unwilling to move, Lin Yue went to the door to receive it.
"Boss, are you hungry?"
"Yeah, I can't cook for myself."
"Alright, then eat up. Lin Yue is leaving."
"Mm-mm, you head back first. Take a few days off if you don't feel like working. Another day when I start a new venture, I'll definitely call you, I promise!"
"Mm, goodbye boss. Remember to eat more bananas; they cure constipation."
A warm feeling washed over Yang Genshuo's heart. His constipation was an old ailment, and Lin Yue kept bananas on her desk year-round, always peeling one for him whenever he walked over.
He was used to it.
Only after Lin Yue closed the front door did Yang Genshuo dare to lift the small blanket, Yang Genshuo large.
Still need to train!
Just as he was about to resume his intense workout.
Ding-dong~
Lin Yue: Boss, eating delivery isn't good. Lin Yue will come tomorrow and cook for you!
Yang Genshuo subconsciously typed a reply to refuse, but the thought of Lin Yue's situation made him delete it all.
Forget it, give her something to do so she stops letting her mind wander.
After working out for another half-hour to vent the internal heat, Yang Genshuo finally started eating his delivery.
Following multiple cycles of his body's blood flow, the ferocious medicinal strength mostly stored itself in his two kidneys, while a portion was absorbed by his body. His entire person's essence and vigor grew full, carrying a feeling of being able to move at a moment's notice.
"The kidney-strengthening effect is truly good, living up to its name as the chief of the five viscera!"
Even Yang Shi, a martial artist at the Body Tempering Fourth Stage, prioritized kidney reinforcement first.
"The remaining medicinal strength will be slowly absorbed, and the more I exercise, the faster the absorption."
"It seems I need to work out every day, which just happens to fulfill my five-year fitness dream."
"After absorbing the medicinal strength, I'll try the Blood-Replenishing Qi-Boosting Powder."
After a flurry of tossing about, Yang Genshuo returned to the computer once more. Yang Shi was in the backyard warehouse studying the five large boxes he had given him, and quite a few opened packaging bags already surrounded him.
He was tasting them one by one.
"Such a small, hard chunk, how can it have such a delicious sweet taste?"
"These white powders can simultaneously taste like milk powder, tea leaves, and orange juice. How magical!"
"The chocolate packed in this colorful bag... tastes even better than the chocolate canned cake. The silky smoothness is indescribable!"
"And this one."
Yang Genshuo had not sped up the game before taking his medicine.
He hadn't expected that over two hours would pass in a flurry of activity. Having gone a day and a night without sleep, combined with taking medicine and high-intensity workouts, he now felt a wave of exhaustion.
These supplies are the last major support I can give Yang Shi.
Giving a man a fish is worse than teaching him how to fish. Yang Shi, you should also go and utilize the startup resources I gave you today to develop the Yang Family on your own.
And you must find a way to help me make money! I have to repay the 200,000 loan in six days!
The Blood-Replenishing Qi-Boosting Powder and Essence-Sealing Rejuvenation Pill were fine, but they were hard to sell. In this day and age, gaining others' trust was too difficult, and if things went wrong, Uncle Police might lock him up inside again.
Next time during a sacrifice, I need to get some items that are easy for me to unload.
Manifestation
Incense Value -1, remaining Incense Value: 32
In the backyard ancestral hall, a golden hand appeared, and Yang Shi bowed respectfully.
"Please, Old Ancestor, give your instructions~"
Rows of golden characters appeared before the spirit tablet.
"The Yang Family must cultivate its own sphere of influence and accumulate the lineage's foundation. Based on the supplies I bestowed upon you today, rationally utilize the remaining items in the safe house. Amidst your martial arts practice, you must also study knowledge more and walk a sustainable development path."
"You must form more good affinities and reap no evil fruits."
"Among the beggars, that Huzi can be recruited under your command. I see he possesses considerable martial arts aptitude and is loyal by nature; he will become a great pillar of strength for you."
"Take good care of Jiang Xiaobai."
"I am going into seclusion for a spell. If you encounter difficulties, come to the ancestral hall and summon me."
The golden characters dissipated, and Yang Shi bowed toward the tablet:
"I strictly obey the teachings of the Old Ancestor."
Yang Genshuo sped up the game time and went off to sleep.
Yang Shi is still quite reliable; he shouldn't run into any problems.
If he kept the game speed and real-world speed synchronized, he would only receive offerings once a year, which was obviously extremely foolish.
Receiving offerings once a day best served his own interests. In six days, he could obtain six sets of offerings and would surely find a way to earn money to repay the bank.
"Sleep, sleep."
The Old Ancestor wants to go into seclusion?
Yang Shi quietly pondered every single word the Old Ancestor had spoken in the backyard.
"Develop the Yang Family's influence? Indeed, it should be so. I am ultimately weak and isolated on my own."
"Only, how should the sustainable development mentioned by the Old Ancestor be achieved?"
Originally, he had planned to sell all these items to the Treasury Pavilion in exchange for money to cultivate, but now it seemed...
"The Old Ancestor must have profound intent. This batch of supplies cannot be so simple."
Yet for a moment, he could not figure out what profound intent lay behind it, so he decided to take a trip to the safe house specifically mentioned by the Old Ancestor.
He took out all the supplies inside to inspect them. There were several items he had only glanced at before because he had no use for them, and thus hadn't paid much attention.
For instance, the box labeled "Books and Entertainment."
After pondering for an entire day, Yang Shi came to a sudden realization.
"So the Old Ancestor meant this."
"Kill!"
"I dodge!"
"Another kill!"
"Ah~"
"I would rather wrong the entire world than let the world wrong me! This lord loves to kill in his dreams!"
"Hand that over!"
"Discard card, pass!"
"Knowing the heavens is easy, defying the heavens is hard. Observing tonight's celestial phenomena, I know the world's great affairs."
Dazed, Yang Genshuo woke up and looked toward the still-lit computer screen in the study, where a crowd of people was playing the Three Kingdoms Kill board game, surrounding the table tightly.
"No, I got up too abruptly; I'm seeing my board game teahouse spring back to life."
He rolled over and prepared to go back to sleep.
Ten seconds later, Yang Genshuo leaped up from the bed in a carp-like bound.
"Ah!?"
On the computer screen, a group of people was still gathered around playing Three Kingdoms Kill, only it was the hyper-speed version, with match after match flashing by in a blur.
He adjusted the game time back to normal and stared blankly at Yang's Teahouse before his eyes.
"No, what is going on here?"
"What are you doing, Yang Shi?"
I just had my failed board game shop, and you went and opened it in the cultivation world?
Upstairs, Yang Shi drank milk tea with Liao Cao, the owner of the Treasured Goods Pavilion, looking utterly leisurely and carefree.
"Boss Yang runs a teahouse, enjoys a prosperous business, and has read countless people. In this Bluestone County, who could be called a hero?"
"This Yang Shi wouldn't know."
"The so-called hero harbors grand ambitions, holds clever strategies within his belly, possesses the ambition to encompass the universe and swallow the qi of heaven and earth. Today, the heroes of Bluestone County are merely Lord Shi and myself."
"Hiss!"
Yang Shi took a sip of Immortal Drifting Milk Tea and, in his panic, sprayed it all over the table.
"Hahaha~ Interesting, interesting."
"A classic re-enactment!"
The two clapped hands and roared with laughter.
Yang Genshuo: "?"
"Are the two of you cosplaying over there?"
Manifestation
"Yang Shi, get your butt out here!"
Seeing the golden characters appear in midair, Yang Shi felt a chill in his heart.
"Boss Liao, I suddenly remembered I have an urgent matter at home. Let's chat another day."
"Alright, alright, go on then. I'll go listen to the storyteller tell another section."
Yang Shi walked to the backyard of the teahouse, where an ancestral hall had actually been erected as well.
"Congratulations to the Old Ancestor on exiting seclusion!"
"Don't congratulate me just yet. How on earth did my Yang Family open a board game shop?"
"Oh! I followed your guidance, Old Ancestor, and came to this realization!"
"My guidance?"
"Yes! From the books you specifically left behind for me, I realized several strategies for managing a lineage!"
"Books?"
Yang Genshuo's gaze drifted downward to see several books placed on the ancestral hall's incense table.
The book on the very top: 100 Draws Upon Logging In.
Seeing this title, he remembered. When he was running his board game shop, he had intended to come up with a new collectible card-style gameplay, so he casually bought some tutorial books online, only to never open them even once.
Later, he tossed a few new books into the safe house on a whim, just in case they needed some entertainment if the power went out.
"You learned from this book?"
"No, no, this one is about farming. Opening the teahouse was mainly based on Romance of the Three Kingdoms and the Three Kingdoms Kill Basic Edition, supplemented by the blessing of your magic artifact—the tablet computer. That was how I realized it. The board game plus beverage model has achieved massive success!"
"Right now, our Yang's Teahouse is the best-running teahouse in all of Bluestone County. Our specialties are Immortal Drifting Milk Tea and Immortal Coffee, and even wealthy households from neighboring counties line up to drink tea at our place!"
Yang Genshuo was shocked.
This Yang Shi... actually had some tricks up his sleeve.
He spent all of last year cooped up practicing martial arts, and when left unattended for the first half of this year, he immediately pulled off something huge.
You have to hand it to him, he really made something impressive out of it.
Just as Yang Genshuo was deep in thought, sounds drifted in from outside.
"Old Master Yang, today three more dark-skins slacked off and wouldn't farm properly! I dragged them over!"
People even farmed for him? He had turned into a landlord?
"Let's go take a look."
Yang Shi thought for a moment, picked up 100 Draws Upon Logging In, and headed out.
At the street corner, Huzi held a whip in his left hand and used a rope in his right to lead three dark-skinned fellows.
Seeing this scene, Yang Genshuo's head buzzed.
"Wait! Something seems very wrong here!"
He looked once more at the book tucked in Yang Shi's arm, where four smaller characters sat beneath the main title.
100 Draws Upon Logging In: Black Manor
A gust of wind blew past, revealing the very first page of the book.
"Question: What do a pillow and a darky have in common?"
Before you continue