"Ten-year Frost-Condensing Apples?!"
"Those are Soul Beast fruits unique to the Star Dou Great Forest!"
"My goodness, they even have century-old Jade Dew Golden Oranges?!"
"Those are high-age Soul Beast fruits!"
"Seriously?"
"..."
"The prices seem reasonable. I'll buy a cup and give it a try. Those two Soul Beasts don't look fake, after all..."
A young man in his early twenties stepped forward.
"Hello, one Jade Dew Golden Orange juice, please."
He took out two Gold Soul Coins and set them on the counter. They gave off a crisp, faint hum.
It was the sound of the Gold Soul Coins striking the wooden counter.
Lu Ran smiled and nodded.
"Thank you for your patronage."
One Cloud Cluster Ground Rat picked an orange sign from a pile of colorful ones.
It carried it to the kitchen.
At the sight of the sign, the waiting Cloud Cluster Ground Rats sprang into action. They vigorously squeezed fresh Jade Dew Golden Oranges, added the juice to the tea base, and before long,
a delicious cup of freshly squeezed Jade Dew Golden Orange juice was ready.
The young man stared in astonishment at the wooden walkway on the wall.
A Cloud Cluster Ground Rat came along, carrying his milk tea.
The walkway stood two meters above the floor, seemingly built especially for the Cloud Cluster Ground Rats to move around on.
"Squeak!"
The Cloud Cluster Ground Rat set the milk tea in front of the young man,
then gave two proud squeaks.
The whole crowd gaped in shock.
Were these really Soul Beasts?!
The young man tentatively reached out and picked up the milk tea. It felt cool to the touch.
"Sniff, sniff~"
He sniffed and caught the scent of fresh oranges and milk.
It seemed like it might taste pretty good?
He took a small sip.
His eyes lit up at once.
"Delicious!"
The sweet tartness of the Jade Dew Golden Orange blended perfectly with the milky fragrance, accompanied by faint Soul Skill fluctuations.
It really was a ten-year Jade Dew Golden Orange!
It was real!
He immediately waved his hand grandly.
Twenty gleaming Gold Soul Coins piled up on the counter like a little mountain.
"Ten more cups!"
Then he drained his milk tea in one go, his boldness on full display.
The crowd immediately grew restless.
"It's that good?"
"I'll have a cup too!"
"I want century-old Jade Marrow Lychee milk tea!"
In an instant,
a crowd pressed around the ordering counter. The inexperienced Cloud Cluster Ground Rats were so busy they were at their wits' end.
"Squeak, squeak, squeak!"
"Squeak, squeak, squeak..."
Don't push, squeak! Don't push, squeak...
"Sorry, everyone. It's our grand opening, so each customer is limited to five cups."
"Why the limit?!"
But their voices were quickly drowned out by those behind them. The young man could only put away his extra coins helplessly.
Four cups it was.
If that wasn't enough, he'd come earlier tomorrow!
"Thank you for your patronage. Please wait over here."
Lu Ran gestured, guiding the customers who had paid to the waiting area.
After that, he got busy too.
At the same time,
nearly ten Cloud Cluster Ground Rats were hard at work in the kitchen.
"Squeak, squeak, squeak, squeak!"
"Squeak, squeak, squeak, squeak..."
"Squeak, squeak!"
Three ten-year mangoes, squeak!
Coconuts are so hard to crack, squeak...
Strawberry milk tea, done, squeak!
As word spread,
more and more people visited the Milk Tea Shop. The first floor was packed so tightly that not even water could pass through, and many people headed to the second and third floors. Cloud Cluster Ground Rats worked there too. They only had to sit in place and occasionally move around.
A little breathing was enough to captivate the customers.
Their methods were truly impressive.
The Cloud Cluster Ground Rats rotated through these positions, ensuring that each one had a chance to show off its skills.
Soul Power really could change a lot of things.
For example, from the storefront, it looked as if more people entered the Milk Tea Shop than left it.
It seemed like a great many customers were staying inside.
But that wasn't the case.
The second and third floors both had exits that led directly outside, greatly easing the crowding on the first floor.
The upper-floor exits didn't even need stairs.
All they had to do was build a door. Beyond it was a drop of about ten meters, and three or four footholds would do. Those who were strong could go straight down, while those who weren't could use the intermediate footholds as resting platforms.
People could enter and leave from every direction.
Their understanding of architecture had shifted from flat to three-dimensional.
It was incredibly convenient.
Late at night, the commercial street was still brightly lit and bustling with people.
Or rather, Shrek City was still awake.
The most prosperous city on the continent was a city that never slept.
The Milk Tea Shop.
"Squeak..."
"Squeak..."
"..."
The exhausted Cloud Cluster Ground Rats lay sprawled on the floor. Their fluffy bodies made them look like cotton candy scattered on the ground.
They didn't even have the strength to speak.
Lu Ran placed several cups of prepared Century-Old Fruit Milk Tea beside them.
"Thanks for all your hard work~"
He casually picked one up and stroked its fur.
Its soft fur was warm and very pleasant to touch.
"Purr, purr..."
The Cloud Cluster Ground Rat in his arms closed its eyes and gave a contented purr.
Lu Ran went to the ordering counter, sat on a high stool, and tallied the day's earnings.
"Two hundred and twenty cups of Jade Dew Golden Orange juice..."
"One hundred cups of Jade Marrow Lychee juice..."
"Strawberry milk tea..."
Keeping track of these numbers would reveal what customers in Shrek City liked, making it easier to develop new milk tea flavors later.
Of all the milk teas,
even the most ordinary kind, made with freshly squeezed Jade Dew Golden Oranges alone, cost one Gold Soul Coin per cup.
Ten-year Jade Dew Golden Oranges cost three Gold Soul Coins.
The higher the age, the higher the price.
It looked expensive, but people shouldn't forget this was Shrek City.
Those who could afford to spend money here, especially around the commercial street near Shrek Academy,
weren't ordinary people.
To them, one Gold Soul Coin wasn't even enough to cover a meal.
"Hmm..."
"Revenue... seven thousand one hundred and fifteen Gold Soul Coins..."
"..."
Seven thousand Gold Soul Coins in one day!
That much!
Lu Ran felt reassured at once. Even without factoring in the costs, it was already a considerable income!
And the profit wouldn't be small even after costs.
After all, an orange cost only a few copper coins, and high-age fruits were still cheap compared with what they sold for.
Lu Ran believed
that aside from the Cloud Cluster Ground Rats and the Rock Crystal Dragon drawing attention,
a considerable part of his success came from occupying a unique niche.
He believed
he had carved out a new niche between ordinary drinks and expensive Soul Beast fruits—
Soul Beast fruit milk tea!
It was more nutritious and prestigious than ordinary drinks, and more novel than eating a ten-year fruit.
After all, people might not eat Soul Beast fruits worth a hundred, a thousand, or even ten thousand Gold Soul Coins every day, but they could drink a ten-Gold-Soul-Coin beverage every day.
Holding it in their hands also made them look more affluent.
Expensive Soul Beast fruits had long been regarded by the public as costly.
Eating one in front of others certainly showed off one's status,
but it also felt like deliberate bragging.
That was unsuitable.
The highest form of flaunting wealth was doing it without a hint of intention.
Like discussing the weather and sighing that a shipment of yours had been delayed, costing you at least a hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins.
Or, while dining, casually raising your hand to reveal a storage Soul Tool bracelet worth over a million Gold Soul Coins...
Drinks, on the other hand, could be carried around in your hand, on the street, in the classroom, or in the dormitory. Everyone knew drinks were cheap, so one Gold Soul Coin served as the price anchor. The markup and luxury were plain to see, making it easier to provoke amazement and comparisons and show off a certain fact:
I can casually spend a few Gold Soul Coins on a cup of milk tea.
It wasn't expensive, yet it still showed off your status!
This was the delightful surprise a transmigrator, seasoned by consumerism, had brought to the people of this era.
As for why he didn't go for low profit and high volume,
the answer was simple.
It couldn't work.
Not to mention the poor, even ordinary people couldn't spend too much on drinks.
The spending power of a hundred ordinary people couldn't compare to that of one low-rank Soul Master.
There was nothing he could do about it.
Maybe it would work in the future, but it definitely wouldn't work now.
"Squeak..."
The Cloud Cluster Ground Rat in his arms suddenly stirred.
He looked down.
It had already fallen asleep,
curled up against his chest, its large ears twitching gently.
"..."
Lu Ran's heart stirred faintly. He suddenly remembered that they liked nuts, grains, and fruit.
He'd go buy them some later.
Before you continue