The Wooden Box

No matter how hard life in the game had been, Youyou had never smelled anything like this.

With her boyfriend Wang Guangfei handling all the housework, her only job was to make herself look pretty every day.

Then she just had to sit down on time and wait for her meal, and afterward comment on the seasoning and flavor of each dish.

Having never washed dishes or taken out food waste, she could not stand the smell at all.

The slightest breath left her dizzy and her vision darkening. Forgetting all about finding Black Sheep, she held her breath and charged headlong toward the warehouse exit.

Zuo Cheng'an had only just stepped through the warehouse doors when Youyou crashed into him, catching him off guard.

Youyou felt as though she had slammed into an incredibly hard city wall. Her nose ached, and even the implant inside it seemed to have been knocked crooked.

But she had no time to argue with Zuo Cheng'an. She was almost at the limit of how long she could hold her breath and was busy finding somewhere with fresh air to gulp down.

Wearing his night-vision glasses, Zuo Cheng'an spotted Black Sheep in a corner of the warehouse at once.

Its forelegs were pressed to the ground as it dug incessantly at the dirt in the corner, its short tail wagging nonstop behind it.

This unusual behavior had never appeared before. Perhaps it was because he had accepted the Special Mission.

As an NPC that formed an important part of the Special Mission, it needed to display unusual behavior to give the player a hint.

When Zuo Cheng'an approached, he discovered that one corner of a wooden box was already exposed in the pit.

Black Sheep was so absorbed in digging that it paid no attention even to Zuo Cheng'an's approach.

Zuo Cheng'an could therefore finally feel carefully around Black Sheep's neck as he had wanted. Searching where he remembered touching the foreign object, he found a collar beneath the layers of curly wool.

The collar had probably once been decorated with a bell, but after Wang Guangfei removed the bell, all that remained was a bare leather collar.

Zuo Cheng'an found the collar's buckle and easily took it off.

The name "Mo Dou" was written on the inside.

"Mo Dou?"

The instant Zuo Cheng'an spoke the name,

Black Sheep stopped digging, then let out a pained "Awoo-baa!"

Its limbs convulsed until they could no longer support its body, and it fell to the ground with a thud, kicking and struggling.

The horns on its head shrank back, its four hooves shifted toward the shape of paws, an invisible force straightened its fluffy, curly coat, and its tail grew considerably longer.

In just a few breaths,

Black Sheep turned into a large, imposing black dog.

Zuo Cheng'an had seen this dog before, in the photograph on the cottage's second floor.

Seeing that its body had returned to normal, Mo Dou wagged its tail excitedly. Its thick, long tail struck a nearby shelf with muffled thumps.

Two excited, restrained "Awoo-woof!" sounds came from its throat.

After that brief release of emotion, Mo Dou did not forget its mission. It tugged at the hem of Zuo Cheng'an's clothes to stop him from leaving while continuing to dig out the wooden box.

Now that its hooves had become paws, it could dig more efficiently, and with Zuo Cheng'an helping,

the wooden box was unearthed in just a few strokes.

Zuo Cheng'an was about to open it when he caught sight of the dimming light outside the warehouse doors out of the corner of his eye.

The sun was about to set. He did not have much time left.

With the live comments watching, Zuo Cheng'an forcibly tore the clasp off the wooden box and opened it.

There were no items or treasures inside.

There was only a tin of "tomato sauce."

Having been buried in the soil for so long, the tin had inevitably rusted a little despite the wooden box's protection. Fortunately, the writing on it was still legible.

Unlike the packaging Red-Eyes had shown the players, which read "Red-Eye Farm Tomato Sauce,"

the label on this tin read "Mu Zhou Farm Tomato Ketchup."

Not only was the farm's name different, but the product was also named using "fanqie," the word for tomato that Red-Eyes hated most.

So this farm should actually have been called "Uncle Muchou's Farm"?

At that thought, Zuo Cheng'an brought up the mission interface, preparing to fill in "Muchou" on the line.

Suddenly, an angry shout came from the warehouse entrance. "What are you holding?! Hand it over!"

"Awoo-woof! Awoo-woof!"

Accompanied by Mo Dou's furious barking, "Red-Eyes" stepped into the warehouse in the last sliver of sunset.

It no longer looked like the refined gentleman it had been that morning. It was in a sorry state, as though it had just been through a great battle.

Its tailored tailcoat had been beaten to shreds, its cane was bent in the middle, its hat had long since flown who knew where, and even one of its ears had been severed.

Zuo Cheng'an narrowed his eyes and looked above "Red-Eyes's" head.

[HP: 42.77%]

A pity. It was not on the verge of death.

Now, "Red-Eyes" stared viciously at the tin in Zuo Cheng'an's hand. "Dear player, give that to me."

Although it was doing its best to control its tone, Zuo Cheng'an still heard the anxiety and unease buried within it.

"Dear player, you like rare items, don't you? I happen to have several dozen right here. Just give me the tin in your hand, and they're all yours."

[Just came over from the "Nowhere to Escape" instance. I was wondering what "Red-Eyes" was rushing off to do halfway through the fight. Turns out it has a second job in this instance.]

[Working two jobs really isn't easy. You don't see many game bosses this hardworking.]

[Thanks for pointing the way. Finally found Red-Eyes again.]

[Aren't you all missing the point? What's that kid holding? It can be traded for every item "Red-Eyes" just stole?!]

[Exactly! Those were all just stripped off Third-Tier Ladder Players!]

Those who had followed it here from the "Nowhere to Escape" instance

had personally watched "Red-Eyes" lash out under the combined assault of a hundred Third-Tier Ladder Players, kill half of them, and then escape unscathed.

And now it was actually offering its hard-won spoils for a rusty tin?

"Red-Eyes" wore a broad smile and coaxed the player with sweet words, but in truth, it already wanted nothing more than to stomp Zuo Cheng'an to death!

It had clearly destroyed all the tomato sauce in the old packaging, so how had one still slipped through?!

"Awoo-woof! Awoo-woof!"

Mo Dou faced off against "Red-Eyes" without the slightest fear.

The sight of Mo Dou jogged "Red-Eyes's" memory. "You stubborn thing, it's you again. Couldn't you just keep hiding with your head tucked in? Why did you have to come out and ruin my business?!"

"Awoo-woof!" Mo Dou barked again.

There was no way Zuo Cheng'an would hand over the tin. His right hand moved rapidly through the air, adding "Muchou" before "Uncle" on the line.

[Uncle Muchou's Farm]

[Mission objective: correctly fill in the text represented by "???" (Completed!)]

[Mission reward 1: the tomato sauce recipe that has taken all of Ladder City by storm]

[Mission reward 2: congratulations on earning "Red-Eyes's" hostility.]

The moment Zuo Cheng'an wrote the words, a sudden change occurred. Without any warning, the world inside the instance began to shake!

Chickens scattered, sheep leaped, and cattle stampeded through the farm. The tomato fields outside fared no better, with countless Wailing Tomatoes bawling uncontrollably amid the tremors.