Where did I just eat? A ghost restaurant?

Shen Le was quite satisfied with the performance skills of the waitress, Xiao Yu. With this level of craftsmanship, she would certainly not ruin the Little Puppet.

Even so, he still had to negotiate the terms:

"I'm renting this puppet to you, but you are not allowed to break her!"

"Of course! We're using her for performances, not giving her to unruly children to play with!"

"If you discover anything strange about her, notify me to come and pick her up. You are not allowed to throw her away casually, nor are you allowed to toss her into a soup pot, a stove, or take a Hammer or axe to chop her!"

"We would never do such a thing! Rest assured!"

"What time will you send her over in the morning? What time will I pick her up at night?"

"How about eight to five?"

"That works! Oh, by the way, there is only one puppet, which makes many puppet plays inconvenient to perform. Would you like to order another one?"

"Sure!"

The Landlady's eyes danced as she cast a smiling glance at Shen Le:

"Then let's order another one, a male role, a young scholar, just right to act alongside this one. Two thousand yuan, including makeup and clothing. Shall I pay you a one-thousand-yuan deposit first?"

A pleasant cooperation.

Buying cheap, ready-made clothing would keep costs under two hundred; he had wood and silk thread already in stock.

Ten days to deliver, a net profit of eighteen hundred—oh yeah!

Shen Le happily signed the contract with the Landlady and walked out, cradling the puppet.

He was halfway to the door when he was suddenly called out by the diner sitting in the corner of the lobby, the one who had previously said, "Give him a bowl."

"Wait a moment."

The man, with a cigarette dangling from his lips, shuffled over to him. Shen Le frowned, intending to quicken his pace to avoid the secondhand smoke, but unexpectedly, the diner took a deep drag and blew it directly into his face:

"Hoo..."

Before Shen Le could react, his entire body was enveloped in a pale white mist. Hey! What kind of manners are these, blowing secondhand smoke in someone's face!

Just as he was about to jump in anger, he suddenly felt a wave of warmth wash over him, as if something cold, gloomy, and long-clinging to his body had been driven out by that puff of smoke:

"Huh?"

He rolled his shoulders and twisted his neck, looking at the man in confusion. The diner had already smiled and walked away, returning to the corner to speak to his girlfriend:

"Would you like another serving of ice cream?"

Uh... that's it?

What on earth was in that puff of smoke?

Shen Le watched the man from afar for a while, but seeing that the person ignored him completely, he could only walk away feeling bewildered.

No sooner had he stepped away than the sound of hurried footsteps erupted behind him. Seven or eight waitresses emerged from the corner of the lobby, the kitchen, and the doorway, scrambling to rush toward his back:

What are they doing?

Looking for me?

Shen Le turned around quickly and saw the girls flitting back and forth like colorful butterflies through the lingering wisps of white smoke.

What does this mean?

Is this white smoke actually something good?

Since no one paid him any mind, Shen Le shrugged and decided to just leave. After walking a few dozen steps away from the restaurant, he looked back—

Huh?

It's closed?

The neon sign for the shop was off, and every single light in the lobby had been extinguished.

Furthermore, the side of the restaurant facing the Old Street had already been boarded up with shutters; the main entrance was tightly sealed, and there was not a soul to be seen.

Wait, then where was I eating just now?

What did I just eat?!

Shen Le stood on the Old Street in a daze, a thousand thoughts swirling in his mind. Stories of traveling at midnight, staying in a grand mansion, and waking up to find it was a desolate grave;

Stories of walking into a tavern at midnight, eating a grand feast, and waking up to find the meat was mud, the rice was maggots, and the wine was yellow sludge;

Stories of seeking lodging at midnight, stumbling upon the host's wedding, eating a meal, and waking up to find the delicacies on the plates were human blood, brains, livers, and fingers...

No, wait!

If it were truly such a terrifying scene, my Copper Fragment would have warned me, and the Little Puppet would have warned me too!

Shen Le struggled to maintain his sanity, neither bending over to gag himself nor sprinting to the hospital to demand an emergency stomach pump.

He steadied himself, took out his phone, and opened Alipay:

"Hmm, 8:52 PM, paid 54 yuan. 9:03 PM, received a transfer of 1000 yuan..."

It shouldn't be fake, right?

Even if these stories and the magic of the Desolate Grave Demon Mansion were real, they were confined to the mansion itself and would not extend beyond its walls.

Furthermore, Shen Le truly did not believe that any demon's magic could affect Alipay—

Alipay's main server was located thousands of miles away!

Thinking this, Shen Le temporarily set aside his worries and headed home, clutching the Little Puppet.

Lying on his bed, he pulled out the Copper Fragment, pinching, pressing, and poking it, then traced the two raised strokes—a dot and a horizontal line, a dot and a horizontal line—over and over again.

"Hey, do you have any cultivation techniques to share?

Last time it was the Five Animal Frolics; is there anything more powerful this time?

Something that would let me refine Qi, build a foundation, or form a golden core?

Or maybe just let me run faster or have more strength?

At the very least, could you let me communicate with that Great Camphor Tree in the mansion so he can help me watch over the place?"

The Copper Fragment remained silent, neither vibrating nor making a sound.

However, Shen Le suddenly felt himself pulled into a dark space. Before him sat a translucent humanoid figure, and a red line rose straight up from the figure's lower abdomen.

A surge of heat rose in Shen Le's own lower abdomen, guided by that red line, traveling up from his back through the Mingmen, Dazhui, and Yuzhen points, all the way to the Baihui point atop his head.

He instinctively pressed his tongue against his upper palate, and the heat flowed down through his brow and chest, finally settling into his Dantian.

Wherever it passed, his whole body felt warm, as if infinite strength had been born out of thin air, and his mind felt a hundred times sharper.

Yet, after the heat completed only one and a half cycles, he felt a sense of hollow exhaustion, as if half his blood had been drained or he had just finished running five thousand meters.

Right! Refining essence into Qi, refining essence into Qi—it requires the body's essence to be transformed into internal energy. My body's reserves aren't enough; if I can't generate internal breath, I certainly shouldn't force it...

Just as he thought this, a warmth suddenly rose from his stomach, spreading continuously throughout his entire body. The warmth gathered, pushing that heat to complete another half-cycle, followed by seven more consecutive cycles.

After nine full cycles, the warmth surged violently, enveloping his eyes and ears. Shen Le sat up and opened his eyes, stunned to find that he could clearly see every table, cabinet, small table, and stool in the room without even turning on the light.

He could even see a ball of red light on the roof across the way, and a green cloud hovering far off in the neighboring courtyard...

"Huh! It really works! Though, what was that warmth afterward? Could it be the Lamb Noodle Soup I had for dinner?"

It clearly wasn't worth running back to the Heavenly Fragrance Restaurant in the middle of the night for the sake of this question. Besides, they were already closed; if he went back now, he didn't know if he would find a human shop or a ghost shop...

Shen Le had to find another target. He stepped out of his courtyard, crossed the alley, entered the third courtyard on the East Road, and headed straight for the Great Camphor Tree in the southeast corner.

"Sister Ah Lu? Sister Ah Lu, can you hear me? Can you talk to me?"

He asked three times, but the Great Camphor Tree stood in silence. Only the wind rustled through the leaves, making it sound exactly like any other normal, ordinary tree.

Helpless, Shen Le raised his hand and patted the trunk, then patted it again.

"Sister Ah Lu? Sister Ah Lu?"

"So noisy!"

A branch suddenly flew down and swept across Shen Le's shoulder. The force was gentle but definitely not light; like a broom sweeping the floor, it sent Shen Le stumbling out from under the tree's canopy.

"I'm sleeping!"

"Uh... sorry to disturb you, Sister Ah Lu. I'll come find you in the morning then..."

"I. Am. Not. A. Sister!"

"Then... Brother Ah Lu?"

"Not that either!"