Mist surged in through the doorway, surrounding Li Ping'an and Old Ox in an instant.
The mist obscured their vision, keeping the surrounding ghosts and monsters from seeing the pair.
The many diners in the restaurant watched the scene with grave expressions. Those Mist Ghosts had certainly acted fast... but...
Before they could think further, "Bang!!"
A tremendous crash rang out in the dining hall, and the owner looked over in astonishment.
A cloud of Five-Colored Fire Smoke billowed out, giving off a foul, fishy stench. Then a gentle breeze scattered the thick mist.
The foul stench vanished without a trace along with it.
All anyone felt was a gentle breeze against their face, neither hurried nor slow, just right.
The owner snapped out of his daze, rubbed his eyes, and took a closer look.
The Mist Ghosts had scattered and fled. The man in blue robes and the ox were unharmed.
Li Ping'an picked up his chopsticks and ate at an unhurried pace.
Just then, a pale-faced scholar in proper attire walked in through the door, his gaze fixed on Li Ping'an.
His perfume was strong, meant to mask the fox musk on his body.
With his keen nose, Li Ping'an immediately identified what the visitor was and frowned slightly.
He meant no discrimination; the smell simply made him very uncomfortable.
The pale-faced scholar approached and bowed respectfully.
"Sir, my master requests your presence."
Li Ping'an cupped his hands in return. "Might you wait a moment?"
"Please, take your time, sir."
Li Ping'an walked over to the restaurant owner.
The owner was a large, pitch-black rat, and the restaurant's servers and cooks were all rats too.
Perhaps the only difference was their size.
To be honest, Li Ping'an had felt some resistance at first, but the food was simply