Finding Work at a Restaurant

"Lucky Beast, it looks like the person you mentioned is truly incredible. He could fight a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast evenly without even having a Soul Ring, and his Soul Power Level was only around level ten. Now, he is already close to level twenty."

"Lucky Beast, you should stop contacting this person from now on. Let us deal with him instead. After all, this is for your safety. You represent the fortune of our Star Dou Great Forest.

No matter what, you cannot go anywhere dangerous. Even a place that poses the slightest threat to your safety is unacceptable. At least we are still within the Star Dou Great Forest's territory now. Since they have already left the Star Dou Great Forest, let us contact him instead."

"Lucky Beast, be obedient."

"Alright, uncles."

Xiao Changge soon arrived at a small town.

To find a place to stay in town, he needed money.

Looking at... the hundred Gold Soul Coins those bastards from Shrek had given him made Xiao Changge angry. He did not want to spend those hundred Gold Soul Coins.

To him, they were proof of his humiliation.

He had clearly been a top-tier genius. He could clearly have lived the life he wanted. He could clearly have gone to the Sun Moon Empire and lived a better life.

Yet his benefactor had been killed by Shrek, and he himself had been used by Shrek's people to help Ma Xiaotao rid herself of her Evil Fire. Then, after they were done using him, they had simply thrown him away.

These were his humiliations. No matter what, he would never forgive Shrek. No matter what, he had to seek revenge. He had to avenge his benefactor, and he was willing to do many things for that revenge.

As long as he could take revenge on Shrek, everything would be worth it. But with Electrolux around, Electrolux did not want Xiao Changge to abandon his reason for the sake of revenge.

"Changge, I know you do not want to spend those hundred Gold Soul Coins. That is your pride. You do not want to use Gold Soul Coins tainted by humiliation, and I understand. Let us find a job instead. Earning money through work is not shameful. You can join mercenaries, or find a merchant and join his team. It does not really matter. As long as you can earn money without violating your conscience or your principles, anything is acceptable.

"Remember, do not let hatred consume your reason. If you want revenge, you must remain rational. Otherwise, you will only become a monster—a monster that knows nothing but revenge.

"By then, you will only do things you regret even more. So I hope you understand. Do not let hatred blind you. This is a path I have walked before, so I understand it well. I also hope you will not make the same mistakes I did and regret them for the rest of your life."

At this time, Electrolux still reminded Xiao Changge.

Xiao Changge understood, then went looking for work and eventually found a restaurant.

He had learned some cooking skills before and could make several dishes. Working as a chef did not pay too badly. In his previous world, some five-star chefs could earn enough in a single day to buy a car.

It could be said that being a chef was not bad. Since he had some cooking skills, becoming a chef would at least allow him to survive. He was not committing arson, murder, or robbery. Being a chef was a legitimate profession.

Xiao Changge then walked directly into the restaurant. The notice indeed said they were hiring.

"Hello, are you here to apply for a job?" the restaurant owner asked.

"I want to be a chef. I can cook."

"We do not need any chefs here. You could work as an assistant if you want, but the pay would be lower. Also, are you a Soul Master?"

"I am indeed a Soul Master. My Soul Power Level is around level nineteen." Xiao Changge immediately revealed his Martial Soul: the Vermilion Bird, a top-tier beast Martial Soul—or rather, a god-level top-tier divine beast Martial Soul.

"Such an outstanding Martial Soul! Of course we warmly welcome you to join us. But I have to ask, with such an exceptional Martial Soul... I have a beast Martial Soul too, and I could immediately feel the suppression from your Martial Soul's Soul Power. Why did you not join one of those major factions? Why did you choose to come here and work as a chef instead?"

The restaurant owner could not understand it. Someone who had awakened a "top-tier" beast Martial Soul and was already level nineteen should count as a minor genius. Why would he not join a major faction, but instead choose to work at their restaurant as a chef? Was that not a little absurd?

"I hope to rely on my own efforts to take revenge."

"???"

Xiao Changge eventually told him about his experiences, though he removed everything related to Shrek. After all, this was still within Shrek's sphere of influence.

The Douluo Three Kingdoms all greatly revered Shrek. If he spoke of Shrek, it might produce the opposite effect, so he merely described what had happened to him while omitting Shrek's name.

At the same time, he concealed the fact that his Martial Soul was the Vermilion Bird and claimed it was merely a top-tier Martial Soul.

He said that he had awakened a top-tier Martial Soul and had been discovered by a Soul Engineer from the Sun Moon Empire, who intended to take him back to the Sun Moon Empire. He should have been able to live a good life, but he had unexpectedly encountered an unreasonable faction that killed his benefactor. They had also taken him away and made him help a girl with an Evil Fire Martial Soul offset the side effects of her Martial Soul. As a result, the quality of his Martial Soul had declined, and his Soul Power was often drained away.

That was why he had only reached level nineteen now.

"My heavens, what kind of faction is that? That is far too excessive! They chose to harm someone else just to help their own girl, and they even killed his benefactor. That Soul Engineer from the Sun Moon Empire did nothing wrong, did he? Yet they killed him just like that. That is outrageous. The Douluo Three Kingdoms really have people like this? No wonder the Sun Moon Empire could crush the Douluo Three Kingdoms back then. If not for Shrek Academy, the Douluo Three Kingdoms would have been finished long ago. Why does Shrek support such a hopeless Douluo Three Kingdoms?"

By saying this, the restaurant owner had voiced his true thoughts. Although he revered Shrek, he looked down on the Douluo Three Kingdoms.

The Douluo Three Kingdoms had never given him any benefits, so why should he respect them? Besides, the Douluo Three Kingdoms treated commoners terribly. Whether they ran restaurants or did business, they were generally treated poorly. That was why he did not like the Douluo Three Kingdoms very much.

His greatest dream was to move to Shrek City, where Shrek Academy was located. If he could move there, he would be able to live freely and learn advanced Soul Tool technology.

To be honest, he had long wanted to see whether he could use Soul Tool technology to renovate his restaurant. Although there were already some Soul Tools in the restaurant, it was still far from enough.

"We welcome you to join us, but we also hope you can serve as a guard. If anyone tries to dine and dash, we hope you can drive them away."

"After all, we are ordinary people, and none of our Soul Power Levels exceed level ten. We hope you can understand. We are willing to give you additional pay."

"Alright."