Literary Girl

"Senior, please accept my kneel."

The girl bowed her head in worship, nearly causing her bath towel to come undone.

"No need for that."

Liu Zheng reached out as if to help her up.

If he actually touched her, he might get chopped into mince.

"Just like you said yesterday, I revised it and it passed review right away. The editor thinks highly of it too and said they'll arrange promotion for me."

The girl spoke excitedly.

"Congratulations."

"It's all thanks to your excellent teaching, Senior. By the way, what gift do you like? I'll go buy it right away."

The girl asked.

"Put it on my tab for now. I'll tell you when I think of something."

Liu Zheng thought for a moment before replying.

There was nothing in particular he wanted at the moment, so he might as well save the opportunity.

This woman looked pretty formidable. She might come in handy at a crucial moment.

"Okay, then write down my number."

The girl recited a string of digits.

Liu Zheng memorized them after hearing them once.

His mental attribute apparently had something to do with memory. He could now be considered to have a photographic memory.

"By the way, what's your name?"

he asked.

Even if he could not save the number, he needed something to call her.

He could not exactly call her Dead Flop.

At his words, the girl seemed somewhat conflicted.

"What is it?"

Liu Zheng asked in confusion.

"Um, sorry, but I don't think we're that familiar yet."

The girl said hesitantly.

How familiar did they have to be just to exchange names? Even Japanese people were not this fussy.

He was rather speechless.

But considering how strange this world was, perhaps names had some other significance.

"Fine, then I'll call you Novelist."

Liu Zheng shrugged.

"I'm truly very sorry."

The girl gave him a deep bow.

Very large, very deep.

When she raised her head, she naturally found Liu Zheng's gaze had become even deeper.

"How about I show you my breasts?"

An idea struck her, and she started to untie her bath towel.

"I'm in a hurry. Next time for sure."

He waved a tentacle.

"Okay. If you need anything, come by anytime. Other parts are fine too."

The girl said seriously.

Looking into her sincere eyes, Liu Zheng did not know whether to call her conservative or bold.

All he could say was that she only looked human.

"I'm leaving."

Liu Zheng left Building 3A and arrived at Building 1.

There was no doorbell at 201, so he could only slap the door a few times with his tentacles.

It did not hurt. His tentacles were tough, with a texture much like rubber.

Their surfaces were covered in a layer of chitin-like scales, though, and they made a screeching sound against the metal door that set his teeth on edge.

Fortunately, the door opened after only a few slaps.

"What is it?"

A little boy in a panda onesie stared at him expressionlessly.

"Food delivery."

Liu Zheng raised the takeout bag.

"Oh."

Panda took the takeout bag.

"Huh? That's it?"

Liu Zheng said in surprise.

"What else?"

Panda asked in return.

"Aren't you supposed to refuse delivery?"

Liu Zheng said.

So far, not a single person had honestly accepted a delivery.

Mr. Li had signed for one, but he had not eaten it himself.

"Do you think I'm one of those trash mobs?"

Panda said coldly.

In an instant, Liu Zheng sensed a deep malice.

He instinctively wanted to leap backward, only to discover he could not move.

Panda glanced at him, then opened the takeout box.

He used his chopsticks to pick through the intestines, then lifted one and put it into his mouth to chew.

Yellow-green stuffing dribbled from the corner of his mouth, making Liu Zheng feel a little sick.

"Very fresh."

Panda smiled in satisfaction.

"Thank you for recognizing the quality of our Restaurant's food."

Liu Zheng said politely.

"Hmm?"

Panda's gaze suddenly focused on Liu Zheng's abdomen.

"Your intestines look pretty good too."

He revealed an innocent smile.

"Sorry, those aren't within the delivery range."

Liu Zheng said calmly.

"Come find me when you want to sell them. Remember to eat your fill first."

Panda patted his belly, then shut the door.

"Whew!"

Liu Zheng let out a heavy breath.

If he had not noticed the loophole in that first plate of intestine sashimi, he would probably be dead by now.

Before Panda, Liu Zheng had not even had a chance to run.

That guy was terrifying.

Liu Zheng raised a tentacle and wiped away the bodily fluid seeping from his scalp.

He took a deep breath, and the familiar smell of decaying vegetation gradually calmed him down.

"I've gotten a little full of myself."

Liu Zheng laughed at himself.

He had thought that as long as he did not court death, keeping himself safe should not be much of a problem.

Now, it seemed he still had a long way to go.

When he returned to the entrance of the residential complex, the security guard was still smoking in the guard booth.

When he saw Liu Zheng emerge, he merely gave him a cold look and ignored him.

Liu Zheng did not go over to make small talk either, instead walking straight outside.

As he passed the decorative stone at the entrance, a tangled mass of hair suddenly shot out from the shadows.

I've been waiting for you.

He sneered inwardly.

Even as a non-smoker, he knew that three cigarettes were for the dead.

Without hesitation, Liu Zheng activated Skate Shoes. His body instantly turned into a blur and appeared a hundred meters away.

A bloody road stretched from the entrance of Green Osmanthus Garden to beneath him, countless scraps of flesh scattered across the pavement.

"Hiss!"

Liu Zheng sucked in a sharp breath as he looked at the lower half of his body, which had been severed at the waist.

The cut was clean and neat, even cleaner than one made by an amputation saw.

It was a pity the ground had worn it down too badly, or it could have served as surgical teaching material.

Not only was his lower body gone, all his tentacles had been severed as well.

Clearly, the security guard had learned his lesson and intended to first destroy Liu Zheng's ability to move before slowly dealing with him.

Unfortunately, Liu Zheng had Skate Shoes.

He turned to look at Green Osmanthus Garden. A humanoid figure made of black and white hair was staring at him desperately, yet it did not take another step forward.

"See you around!"

Liu Zheng shouted.

If conditions had allowed, he would have given it a farewell wave too.

The humanoid opened its mouth and let out a piercing shriek before collapsing and dispersing.

"Yeah, yeah. I'll bring you some cigarettes next time."

Liu Zheng said solemnly.

"Rubbing, rubbing, on the smooth ground."

He hummed as he wriggled forward on his stomach.

His tentacles and hooves still needed some time to grow back. Since he had nothing better to do, he could treat it as abdominal training.

He wriggled all the way back to Bloodstained Restaurant, where Cow-Horse was cooking something.

A stainless-steel pot sat atop a large alcohol burner, bubbling away.

More than what was in the pot, Liu Zheng was curious about how Cow-Horse had lit the burner.

It did not even have tentacles.

"You got beaten up again, didn't you, kid?"

Cow-Horse glanced at him and said gleefully.

Compared to before he had gone out, Liu Zheng had gotten noticeably thinner again.

"When you're out in the world, how can you avoid getting cut?"

He waved it off.

"I don't get cut."

Cow-Horse said proudly.

"Look, freshly slaughtered."

It pointed into the pot.

Heads with split skin and exposed flesh floated atop the thick green liquid.

Judging from their facial features, they looked a lot like humans.

But judging from their size, they probably were not human.

After all, even a dwarf's head would not be only half the size of a palm.

And if they were babies, their hair should not have been so lush.

Besides, they were far too ugly—old and ugly.

"What the hell are those?"

Liu Zheng asked in disgust.

"Underworld Ratfolk. They tried to steal takeout, so I wiped out their whole nest."

Cow-Horse replied.

"People actually dare steal takeout?"

He was a little surprised.

So far, the Restaurant's reputation seemed rather solid.

Those who had come looking for trouble had all relied on coaxing and deception. Even a street tyrant like French Plane Tree had not dared attack directly.

The Green Osmanthus Garden security guard had probably dared ambush him because Liu Zheng had struck first before.

"There are always people who want money more than life. Oh, they're done."

Cow-Horse said cheerfully.

Cow-Horse lifted the stainless steel pot and was just about to pour it into his mouth when he suddenly noticed Liu Zheng's gaze.

"Want some?"

Cow-Horse asked reluctantly.

"I'll pass."

Liu Zheng politely declined.

"You brat don't know what's good. This is rare stuff."

Cow-Horse scoffed at his fussiness.

"I can't tell."

Liu Zheng summoned the system at the pot of soup, but no item description appeared.

"That's why I said you don't know what's good. Rat-Skin Man is the finest aphrodisiac. I wouldn't tell just anyone."

Cow-Horse said mysteriously.

"What are you trying to do?"

He watched Cow-Horse warily.

There were only the two of them in this lounge.