Only Viewing, Not for Sale

In the end, Ma Feifei still could not figure out what exactly distinguished his books from the system's books. Zhou Guanyu, on the other hand, eagerly paid the Spirit Crystals and took the copy of Thirty Poems from Ma Feifei's hand.

"Does this count as something I wrote?"

"It should, right?"

"It says 'Written by Ma Feifei.'"

"Becoming self-reliant?" Ma Feifei murmured softly, rubbing the Spirit Crystals in his hand.

Watching Zhou Guanyu hand the book to Zhou Zhuling, Ma Feifei saw her open Thirty Poems with a curious expression. For some reason, he felt a sense of accomplishment.

That feeling of accomplishment was far more real than copying books for the system.

However, Ma Feifei still needed to confirm one very important thing: whether the reading count would increase after someone finished his book. That was the key.

If Thirty Poems could increase the reading count, completing the system's tasks would become much easier. Ma Feifei would also have more enthusiasm for continuing to write. But if it could not increase the count, why write at all? To earn Spirit Crystals? Aside from exchanging one Spirit Crystal for a thousand gold coins, he had simply kept all his remaining Spirit Crystals in a cabinet, never using them.

Other people used Spirit Crystals to cultivate, but Ma Feifei did not know how to cultivate! He could increase his cultivation just by completing tasks! What did he need Spirit Crystals for? They really were of no use to him.

Thus, a peculiar scene formed in the Bookstore.

Zhou Zhuling held the book and read. Zhou Guanyu stood behind her, sneaking glances at it as well. Ma Feifei lay sprawled over the table, secretly watching Zhou Zhuling. In the corner, Beautiful Woman read her book, occasionally looking up at Ma Feifei. Zhao Xiaodao was comparatively busy, glancing at her book, then at Beautiful Woman, then at Ma Feifei, and then at the Zhou siblings.

Thirty Poems itself did not contain many words. Although Zhou Zhuling read slowly, she still finished the collection by noon.

At the same time, the reading count Ma Feifei had been watching finally changed. The reading count on the main quest issued by the system had become 2/10.

That was because both Zhou Zhuling and Zhou Guanyu had read it.

"So it really works." Having confirmed that his idea was correct, Ma Feifei was rather pleased. This way, he only needed to keep creating and write more books. He would not have to stare helplessly while waiting for Andersen's Fairy Tales and Half a Mu of Flower Fields to fulfill the reading requirement. After all, the former had several million words, while the latter had over five hundred thousand. Finishing them would be exhausting.

Wasn't Thirty Poems much better? It had fewer words, took less time to read, and could still fulfill the reading count. Its cost-effectiveness far surpassed those first two books.

Moreover, Ma Feifei discovered something very interesting. Zhou Zhuling and Zhou Guanyu had shared one book, yet the system had counted both of their reading totals. Did that mean one book could be read by multiple people?

If three people read one copy of Andersen's Fairy Tales together, would it count as three reading points after they finished? What if thirty people read it? Would that make thirty points?

Judging from the current situation, it was entirely possible!

After Zhou Zhuling finished Thirty Poems, she gently closed the book, stared at the cover for a while, and said, "Is this Ma Feifei the owner?"

Zhou Guanyu glanced at Ma Feifei and said, "One of the poems in this collection, Qing Ping Diao, contains the line, 'Clouds evoke thoughts of her robe, flowers evoke thoughts of her face.' This book was written by the owner, so this signature should be the owner's name."

"Ma Feifei?" Zhou Zhuling softly repeated it, then could not help laughing.

Zhou Guanyu smiled as well. Then, seeming to remember something, he sat beside Zhou Zhuling and asked, "Sister, do you feel any discomfort?"

It had already been a full three hours since Zhou Zhuling's last episode. During those three hours, she had not suffered another attack. Under normal circumstances, once Zhou Zhuling's illness acted up, it did so once every hour.

Zhou Zhuling nodded, stroking the book's cover as she said, "I can already feel it. While reading, the energy inside my body stops raging and becomes calm. It seems our earlier guess was correct. There truly is some mysterious power in these books that can suppress my illness."

After saying that, Zhou Zhuling glanced in Zhao Xiaodao's direction—more precisely, at the book in her hand.

"If I am not mistaken, every book here has this effect."

Following Zhou Zhuling's gaze, Zhou Guanyu said thoughtfully, "Then this Bookstore truly deserves the word 'Mysterious.'"

"Sister, do you think we could buy this book?" Zhou Guanyu suddenly came up with an idea. Whether the book could cure Zhou Zhuling's illness aside, its ability to suppress it was undeniable. If they bought a copy and let Zhou Zhuling read for a while every day, would that not keep her condition suppressed?

Zhou Zhuling shook her head and pointed with her delicate finger at the sign in the middle of the hall. It read: Mysterious Bookstore. Viewing only, not for sale. One Spirit Crystal per hour of reading.

"How will we know if we do not try?" Zhou Guanyu did not think much of it. He believed that everything in the world had some connection. For example, if someone opened a shop, they naturally wanted to make money. In that case, this so-called "viewing only, not for sale" was merely for show. He firmly believed that as long as the price was right, rules could be bent.

So Zhou Guanyu approached Ma Feifei and explained what he wanted.

Ma Feifei was stunned at first, then glanced at the sign in the center of the room. The system had automatically put it there after the shop opened, and the words "viewing only, not for sale" were even underlined. Right, the system had emphasized them!

"System! I wrote Thirty Poems myself. Shouldn't I have the authority to decide what happens to this kind of book?" Ma Feifei muttered in his mind.

But the system still gave him no response.

Ma Feifei curled his lips. This system simply would not communicate with people. How boring.

Still, Ma Feifei truly had no intention of selling books. To be honest, after arriving in this world, he felt that he had nothing much left to pursue.

With the system, he had everything!

What did he need? Nothing! Cultivation? He only needed to complete tasks, and his cultivation would soar. There was nothing to worry about.

Spirit Crystals? That was even less worth mentioning. Since he did not need Spirit Crystals for cultivation, their greatest use besides exchanging them for a bit of gold was basically being rocks.

After thinking it over, Ma Feifei realized that there was nothing in this world that could tempt him anymore.

Yes, all he needed to do was watch this world with cold detachment!

"I'm sorry, but all books in this shop are for viewing only and not for sale." Ma Feifei could only refuse.

Zhou Guanyu produced another bag out of thin air and said, "There are five thousand Spirit Crystals in here. I want to buy one book."

Looking at the palm-sized bag, Ma Feifei was a little suspicious whether it truly contained five thousand Spirit Crystals.

"This isn't about the money. It really isn't for sale."

Though Ma Feifei still spoke politely, his tone was exceedingly firm.

What a joke. He still needed the books for his reading-count quests. Setting aside whether the book could be sold, even if it could, where would he complete his reading-count quest after selling it? By relying on that Andersen's Fairy Tales with over seven million words?

Obviously not.

However, Ma Feifei knew why Zhou Guanyu wanted to buy the book, so he added, "If reading really is effective, you can bring your sister to the Bookstore every day. Don't worry about running out of books to read. I can save them for you."

In the end, Zhou Guanyu failed to knock Ma Feifei senseless with money, and his wish to buy the book came to nothing.

Yet Zhou Guanyu and Zhou Zhuling did not leave after finishing the book. Instead, they remained in the Bookstore, holding Thirty Poems and continuing to read.

Naturally, Ma Feifei had no objection. They had paid, after all. As long as they had enough Spirit Crystals, they could read for as long as they wanted.

Huh, paid? Something seemed off.

After pondering for a while, Ma Feifei still could not figure out what was wrong. He could only shake his head and begin a new work.

"What should I write next?"

"How about Overbearing CEO Loves Me?"

"Or perhaps Thirty-Six Stratagems for a Princess to Capture Love?"

The Legend of Bai Jie? Pah, what kind of book is that? I've never read it.