Finding a Shopfront

"Of course, Judgment!"

Before Ivy could speak, the impatient Ailey blurted out the answer.

Li Ziran smiled, as if everything was within his expectations. "Ailey, then let me ask you, how did you determine that this Demon was alone? It's very possible that because of your rash actions, we could be kicked out and not earn a single penny."

"But Demon deserve Judgment, are we just going to let them roam freely on the Red Soil Continent?" Ailey retorted, unconvinced.

Li Ziran did not refute the other party, but simply smiled quietly, "Of course Demon should Judgment, that's undeniable, but we are in business, operating on a small scale, and cannot withstand risks. Moreover, this is the Hippo Ancient City, you should know how many cultists there are. This kind of open attack is absolutely suicidal."

"But Father taught us that any cultist should Judgment," Amel interjected, seemingly somewhat displeased with Li Ziran.

"You're right, the cultists have completely fallen and must Judgment. But Judgment require proper methods. Why don't we use our brains to investigate the Demon's background? Perhaps there's a deeper organization behind him. We can also notify the hidden Inquisition. I believe that with our abilities, we can bring this Demon to Judgment quietly."

Li Ziran looked at the three of them, pointed to his head, and said, "This is business. The biggest difference between business and the Judgment Spell is that you use your brain, instead of going up like a brute and exchanging a couple of punches. Not only will you perish, but you won't generate much value either."

Ailey's eyes lit up as she nodded repeatedly. "Yes, we need to make money and also Judgment the Demon." Her eyes were fixed on Li Ziran, seemingly filled with admiration. Her little brain, combining this novel survival theory, began to make its own connections.

"You didn't give us an answer at all!" Ivy said indignantly.

"That's right!" Li Ziran nodded. "Who said I could give you the answer? Ivy, use your brain. You should understand that many things don't have definite answers. Business is much harder than Judgment. You have to keep thinking. Now let me ask you another question: If a member of the Justice Alliance ran into our shop, would we immediately come to their rescue, or would we just leave them be?"

The three girls frowned immediately. Ailey spoke first, "Of course, immediately... no... you haven't given us an answer yet, that's terrible... I need to think about it."

"Observation, right?" Ivy said calmly.

"Oh, tell me more about it," Li Ziran asked curiously.

"I think the identities of this Justice Alliance are uncertain, and we can't judge them based on appearances alone. This could impact our business. Of course, we can't ignore it either. It's best to observe under controlled conditions, clarify their identities, and then make a decision."

The other two women nodded repeatedly, especially Ailey, who kept saying, "Yes! Yes! That's it!"

Li Ziran was speechless. So innocent. If only the world were this innocent.

Determine their identity?

That's not as easy as it seems.

However, Li Ziran's focus was on a win-win situation, so he wanted them to know that they could not only make money but also have Judgment.

The premise is that we cannot act immediately; we must observe first.

"Then let me ask you another question: if a shop is suddenly besieged one day, then..."

"Observe!" Ailey said first. "This could be a false alarm. We need to assess the situation before making any further decisions."

The question-and-answer process went smoothly, Li Ziran very satisfied. He asked dozens of questions in a row, and Li was able to think through almost all of them.

Li Ziran shared 350 ways to make money, 168 Survival Law, and 1052 observations.

He understood the value of this repetition better than anyone else.

"Alright, you've pretty much grasped some business skills now. However, just talking about knowing is meaningless. The key is whether you can actually apply what you know, understand?"

Ailey spoke first, "I understand. My mother told me that knowing only the Judgment Spell is useless. Its true value lies in the souls of cultists. That's called putting your knowledge to good use."

This kind of insightful application of knowledge to new situations was quite unexpected for Old Li.

"Alright, let's begin, Ailey. What do you think we should do first?" Li Ziran asked with a smile.

In an instant, the confident Ailey was speechless, her mind going completely blank.

"Of course we need to find a shop," Emily chimed in. "Didn't Li just say we're going to do business?"

Ailey's eyes lit up. "Yes, yes, yes, let's find a shop!"

Li Ziran smiled faintly. With that kind of mind, they were guaranteed to lose money, but he really didn't expect them to make any. Keeping the girls calm was the most important thing.

"So, Ailey, could you briefly tell me about some things to consider when looking for a shop?"

"Hmm..." Ailey pouted, her eyes darting around, but she couldn't utter a single word.

Ivy, standing nearby, replied, "First, observe the shop's structure, the surrounding industry patterns, and the nearby transportation network. Ideally, the shop should be located at a crossroads to facilitate connections between customers on two streets. Second, pay attention to the people. This is Hippo Ancient City, a cult stronghold. We need to understand the cult's power structure as much as possible to achieve a win-win situation in Judgment and business. Third..."

"Yes! Yes!" Ailey nodded repeatedly without Ivy saying a word.

Li Ziran chuckled inwardly. Ailey was the easiest to fool, but among the three girls, the Aimer was not very talkative was probably the hardest to deceive.

However, although the other party had doubts, they did not refute them in public, which was already the result Li Ziran wanted most.

Changing their mindset takes time and effort, but once they get started, Li Ziran is confident he can help them gain survival skills.

"That's right. I also want to emphasize one point: when you're unsure, listen to my opinion, understand?"

The four girls nodded in unison.

Li Ziran still had a lot to say, but he knew he had already said too much today. If it weren't for the fact that the three girls' abilities couldn't be obtained through organ transplantation, he would never have wasted so much breath.

The Judgment Art!

This special magic, activated through Mental Vibration and chanting, is Li Ziran's weakness.

There are no magic circles, no runes, and no chains here; it's just a pure feeling.

The difficulty of this spell is not much different from that of Healing Curse.

He could choose not to learn Healing Curse, but the ability of Judgment Art to absorb souls was something Li Ziran absolutely had to master.

Looking at the three Mermaid girls, I really had the urge to open their skulls. Unfortunately, even if I transplanted their heads, I wouldn't be able to inherit their Mental Vibration.

He considered using force, but dared not take the risk. Although such naive girls were easy to fool, they could be incredibly stubborn once they got angry.

Now that they are willing to teach me and guide me through the process of Judgment, it's already a very good start.

I took one last look, and despite all the doubts that still lingered in my mind, I had to step out of the room.

He didn't give any further instructions, gently pushed open the door, looked at the empty corridor, walked out, went straight to the end, and left the basement along the stairs.

On the underground floor, the Dwarf were still packing up the Sea Folk. Just as they emerged, a peculiar spiritual force scanned them—it was the service staff member who had greeted them.

In an instant, Ivy leaned closer and whispered, "Demon?"

Li Ziran smiled wryly, thinking to himself that the girl's intuition was truly sharp.

"Is this a Demon's lair?" Ivy whispered in his ear. "Should we use Judgment now?"

"Shh, observe!" Ailey quickly leaned closer and said, "Ivy, let's mark this place first. This Demon is definitely not alone. After we understand the situation, we'll launch our operation tonight."

Li Ziran breathed a sigh of relief. Thankfully, no reckless fools rushed out. As for the evening, they would be busy.

"Sir, are you done with your work?" The waiter greeted Li Ziran politely. Clearly, he hadn't yet received news of Three-Tail's death.

Li Ziran nodded. "I have to go first. By the way, if you need to contact me, you can just ask Sandrew."

"Sandrew? Who is he?" the waiter asked, puzzled.

Li Ziran patted the other person on the shoulder and whispered in their ear, "Does your superior know who he is and need to report to you?"

"No... no... of course not, please!" the waiter said somewhat fearfully, leading Li Ziran out of the Black-Red Slave Shop with utmost respect.

On the empty street, the overwhelming atmosphere of slavery made Li Ziran feel as if he had come back to life. Compared to the operating room, he felt that he was more suited to this Slave City.

The three Mermaid were quiet, their eyes darting around as if admiring the prosperity of the city-state.

"That's a Werewolf; his soul is evil," Ivy analyzed calmly. "No wonder it's a cult's lair; too many people need to Judgment."

"Yes, yes, I saw a ghost possessing a body, I want to kill it."

"That's a Black Wizard, isn't it? He has Mental Vibration issues. Good heavens, what did I just see? Is there a possessed demon there?"

The sight of the three women made Li Ziran break out in a cold sweat. What kind of eyes did these three have that they could see into hidden souls?

Why did he see a group of ordinary Holy Spirits?

Thankfully, we received some training beforehand, otherwise, things would have definitely gone terribly wrong.

"Ivy, Ailey, focus. Let's start looking for a shop. We need to settle down. During this time, we must listen to Emily; she's the expert." He had to divert the girls' attention as quickly as possible.

"Okay, come with me, I have something I like." Emily perked up immediately when she heard that she was mentioned, and as they walked, she shared her experience with Ailey, "Independent shops are very expensive to rent, we can rent a stall in some large shops, that will make it easier to start a business."

"Just choose an independent shop!" Li Ziran interrupted Emily's speech.

Putting aside his own secrets, the three unstable factors at hand require him to have his own space. Before he has completely transformed the girl's thinking, he has no plans to interact with outsiders much.

"Independent shops are very expensive, Li. Even the ones on the outermost edge cost several gold coins a year. It's not worth it," Emily dutifully offered her advice.

"Let's go with a standalone shop. We'll be expanding our business in the future and need our own space," Li Ziran smiled. "Ideally, it should have a basement."

Emily nodded helplessly, "Then it can only be on Ninth Street, and the location isn't very good." After saying that, she led the group out of Seventh Slave Street.

The atmosphere changes noticeably as you enter Ninth Street.

Scattered stalls began to appear, with all sorts of slaves laid out on the road, some enclosed, others simply piled up together, accompanied by a cacophony of shouts.

These shouts were a mixture of animal languages, Human Race languages, Elves languages, Sea Folk languages, and all sorts of dialects, creating the effect of a chaotic marketplace.

The Fishman girl clearly disliked this environment, especially the occasional stench of excrement and the mud scattered everywhere on the ground, which disgusted her greatly.

Li Ziran clearly noticed this aversion, and they didn't casually point out who was a cult member as they had done before.

"Are we going to do business here?" Aimer. "This isn't a good location for a shop."

Li Ziran pointed to his head and laughed, "I just taught you, use your brain and think things through. You can't judge a book by its cover. By the way, Aimer, are there any cultists here? I need to do some screening beforehand?"

Aimer shook her head. "There are too many people here, and many of them haven't awakened their Spirit World yet. I can't tell."

Li Ziran was overjoyed; this was exactly the effect he wanted.

However, when Li saw the shop Emily had introduced, Li Ziran frowned.

This is a two-story building. The first floor is a simple slave display platform supported by pillars, and the upper floor has two domed rooms connected by a staircase that allows one person to walk at a time.

The paint on the wall had almost completely peeled off, and the advertisement of the previous shop could be faintly seen on the wall, which seemed to say "Wholesale of Heavy Elephant Man" before it became too blurry to read.

Li Ziran scratched his head. This didn't look like a shop; it was more like a dilapidated building on the verge of bankruptcy. The only unusual thing was that there was a three-story basement behind the booth.

This ridiculous place costs him three gold coins.

"Are you sure this is the best shop?" Li Ziran looked at Emily, highly suspecting that she had taken a large kickback.

The Mermaid girl frowned as well; the location of this shop did not conform to the business principles that Li Ziran had taught them.

Emily laughed, "Li, don't let the dilapidated appearance of this place fool you. Just a short walk south from here is the slave distribution center. Let me tell you, there are plenty of crippled slaves there. And just around the corner is Eighth Street. Unless you're a long-time lover, you can't get such a prime location. Three gold coins? She thinks she's losing money!"