472. Short on Money

Inside Bai Jing Restaurant.

Sulu sat in the chair, staring at the Attribute Panel.

"True spirits can only appear in Wisdom beings; they involve the mysteries of the soul... and are also the source of experience points in the Attribute Panel."

"In the past, I defeated ordinary opponents, so I also had experience."

"But those two..."

Sulu sighed, "Does this mean that Bai Jing's 'bottom line' is really too low?"

He had already discovered that the experience points gained in the Attribute Panel were closely related to the strength of himself compared to his opponent.

In reality, it's a comparison of the strength of the true spirits.

"The way things are now... it means that all my abilities have really been weakened to the limit, making me even weaker than an ordinary person. That's how I was able to gain experience from those two."

Sulu's expression was solemn.

Of course, in order to gain experience points, he used some rather rudimentary hypnotic techniques to severely damage the psychology of the two men.

This is also a kind of harm to the true spirit.

At the very least, every time they think of themselves from now on, they will be filled with fear, and their mood will be depressed for a long time.

"That's certainly a source of experience points, but... can you really find a way to beat people up every day in this society? I'm afraid you'd end up in jail after just a few times, right?"

"Those two in the floral shirts today, they're neither entirely innocent nor entirely innocent, and they won't make a scene until they've been clearly harmed... Am I supposed to keep borrowing money and dealing with all sorts of thugs? Forget it..."

Sulu rolled her eyes and opened her phone to search.

Isn't it just about fighting openly and honestly? There are plenty of opportunities on the internet!

Before long, a whole bunch of search results appeared:

"Blue Sky International Karate Training Class: Don't let your child lose at the starting line!"

"Inheriting ancient martial arts and promoting traditional virtues."

"A Hao Boxing Gym, professional boxing coaches!"

"Forget about karate, signing up seven or eight-year-olds is just for fun."

Sulu looked at several combat sports training gyms for adults and checked some forums, finding that they had good reviews.

It's just a bit pricey.

He doesn't lack that small amount; he lacks everything!

"The feeling of being short of money is really frustrating, and I can't do anything illegal or disorderly... at least not until I can protect myself."

Sulu reached into his pocket, feeling like he was about to cry but had no tears left to shed.

Actually, he still had a few hundred yuan on his card, barely enough for a few trial lessons, but what about after that?

Not to mention rent, utilities...

It's almost the end of the month, and if I can't come up with any money, I'll be sleeping on the streets!

Are you suggesting using your fighting skills to rob someone? That's a joke!

"The key to development right now... is to survive! Voldemort must survive until the first Spirit Tide arrives... No... with the technology and military strength of this world, the improvements after the first Spirit Tide may not bring much change. We still have to survive."

Sulu looked at the restaurant and sighed, "It seems this is the only way."

He needed a way to make a living in this city so he wouldn't starve.

With a thought, Sulu brought up the Attribute Panel:

[Consume 5 experience points to upgrade cooking skill level? Yes/No?]

"Yes!"

Purely a life skill, the cost of upgrading Sulu was unbelievably small.

[Bite!]

[Cooking Skill LV1→LV2!]

In an instant, a flood of cooking memories rushed into Sulu's mind; these were memories of his previous body's arduous training.

But now it seems there are still many areas for improvement; even the way you flip the wok doesn't feel quite right.

It's like someone suddenly 'gets an epiphany'.

Sulu looked at his hands and felt that they had become incredibly stable, without trembling at all, something even professional surgeons would envy.

"If cooking skill LV1 is the 'beginner' level, then I'd barely qualify as 'proficient' now, right?"

Sulu pondered to himself, thinking that this was probably about the same level of skill as an average housewife—good enough for personal consumption, but not quite enough to open a shop and make money.

[Ding! 10 experience points consumed, Cooking Skill LV2 → LV3!]

"Level 3 is roughly equivalent to the skill level of a professional chef... Sigh... From this perspective, Bai Jing's previous studies were all just a waste of time."

Sulu shook his head and began preparing for the next day's work.

That's life; you can't fight it, you can only enjoy it.

He calmly adjusted the water and kneaded the dough... his mind had become incredibly calm.

Going from a once high-ranking sixth-level professional to the lowest rung of society is quite an interesting experience.

While other mythical professions might have suffered a mental breakdown.

But his spirit was already incredibly resilient, unafraid of any storm.

The next day, early morning.

Li Weiwei rubbed her sleepy face, walked across the street in her high heels, and glanced around casually.

"Huh? Bai Jing Restaurant is open again. Humph! They don't even open on time, do they expect me to go a second time?"

She thought to herself, holding her chin high with arrogance as she walked past the restaurant.

"Um?"

A delicious aroma wafted over.

That's the smell of steamed buns, a blend of meat and dough aromas, Expansion outwards in the steam of the steamer.

"Xiaolongbao? When did they release a new product? Were they preparing for this yesterday?"

Li Weiwei glanced at it curiously and noticed that business in the store seemed... to have improved quite a bit?

Although the one who's always busy with everything is indeed the same Bai Jing.

"Fine, I'll give you one last chance, since it's my favorite kind of soup dumplings."

She walked into the shop and skillfully took out her phone. "Boss, a basket of xiaolongbao, please."

"Okay, ten yuan."

Sulu handed over the steamer.

"Huh?"

Li Weiwei looked up and down. "Where's the QR code?"

Sorry, we only accept cash!

Sulu spread his hands and pointed to the sign on the wall.

"Bai Jing, you've gone too far!" Li Weiwei stared frantically at the newly posted notice: "So... so that's not how it is."

"Sorry, I just changed it yesterday."

Sulu's smile remained unchanged.

As someone in debt, it's essential to have cash flow reserves; otherwise, your bank account might get frozen one day.

"I..."

Li Weiwei turned to leave, but seeing the steamed buns already on the table, she couldn't bring herself to do something as rude as returning them.

"Good."

She rummaged through her wallet, finally finding the cash. After paying, she was furious, gritting her teeth, "This lousy shop, I'm never coming back!"

After Sulu left, she stared at Sulu retreating figure, took a vicious bite of the xiaolongbao, and suddenly her brows relaxed.

"Wow! It smells delicious!"

"In the catering industry, if you do it well, you can make a fortune."

After selling breakfast, Sulu counted the money while skillfully finding a piece of white paper to write a 'Closed at noon' notice, and strolled out onto the street.

He's planning to go to a few gyms he's already selected to learn and practice fighting... oh no, I mean, combat sports!