Chapter 580: How Can There Still Be This Kind of Easterner?

"It is a rather displeasing sight, isn't it?" remarked a man standing beside the flowerbeds outside the shop, watching several youths walk inside. A greatsword as tall as a man was slung across his back, his armor was polished to a bright gleam, and his short golden hair was slicked back into a meticulously styled pompadour.

"What's wrong? Could it be that someone has actually offended you, the greatsword Krat?" whistled a lean, short fellow beside him, carelessly flipping a compact dagger in his hand.

Boss Fang's shop happened to be situated in a bustling district of the city, with the Mercenary Guild nearby and the Alchemist Guild just a stone's throw away.

The blonde warrior pointed toward the shop entrance, speaking with profound dissatisfaction, "This Easterner, appearing out of nowhere."

"Ah—!" the short man dragged out the syllable with a frivolous, teasing laugh. "An Easterner, you say? The one from the Alchemist Guild this morning? The fellow hasn't crossed paths with you, has he?"

"The fellow lacks any sense of propriety... breaking several records in the low-level trial realms consecutively," the blonde man carrying the greatsword muttered, staring toward the shop entrance with a darkened expression. "Who knows what pampered young master he is, coming all the way here to open some trial realm. Utterly absurd."

"His superficial forms seem fancy enough. Word has it that the 'Crimson Rose' of the guild was quite taken with him, wasn't she? I recall you were the one who held some of those records, Krat. Doesn't he know to respect his seniors? It is indeed rather infuriating."

"Tch, flaunting himself everywhere just because he has a modicum of combat technique."

"Should we..." the short fellow lowered his voice, "teach this outsider a proper lesson about the rules?"

"Customers just arrived. Let's find a few people... and scare them all away!"

"Ruined his reputation!"

"Splendid idea! Let them experience the might of our Golden Sunshine Mercenary Group!"

...

Meanwhile, inside Fang Qi's shop.

"What exactly is this 'Resident Evil 2' trial realm?!" a brown-haired youth with freckles asked, looking around the shop with bewilderment. "This place... is so strange..."

"So expensive!" exclaimed a green-haired, green-eyed girl beside him, gasping as she looked at the prices of the items. "It actually costs two magic crystal stones per hour..."

What was a magic crystal stone? It was the condensed energy crystal from within a magical beast. Even for the lowest tier, only a second-rank magical beast had an extremely low probability of forming one. Such items were always highly valuable, and because their inherent energy was relatively pure, a single stone was worth as much as ten unrefined magic ores.

This was visibly far more expensive than ordinary trial realms!

In this kingdom where combat technique was considered paramount, trial realms had already become commonplace among most apprentices. These realms were mostly of a very low tier, and as the technology matured, their creation became simpler, allowing at least the majority of apprentices capable of becoming warriors or mages to access them.

Yet this newly opened shop was even more expensive than the low-tier trial realm that had been established in the city for years—one said to have been constructed with the personal involvement of the Vice Chairman of the Blue Mist City branch of the Morning Light Empire Alchemist Association.

"How can it be this expensive?!" The group had originally intended to try it out, but seeing such a price, dissatisfaction immediately arose.

"Let us just leave," the green-haired girl spoke up. "At this price, let the owner live out his days with his magic crystal stones!"

Curling her lip, the girl took the lead and walked toward the exit.

"Could the trial realm here truly be superior to the 'Dusk Forest'?" The freckled youth followed her out.

Looking outside, they noticed that a sizeable crowd had gathered before the shop at some unknown point.

This area was already a bustling sector, with all manner of travelers walking the streets.

"I heard this shop offended the 'Golden Sunshine' Mercenary Group?" A few casters draped in black cloaks gathered outside.

"This newly arrived outsider certainly knows how to offend people, doesn't he?"

"Of all the people to offend, why pick them?"

"He is but a young lad, is there truly a need to play such tricks on him?" Behind the blonde man named Krat, a woman wearing a black mage cloak let out a playful, amused chuckle.

"Peace, I am merely playing a little game with him," the blonde man replied, an equally amused smile touching his lips.

"Very well, then." A dark red short wand slid from the woman’s sleeve. With a gentle wave of the wand, the water from the nearby fountain, which had been spraying toward the flowerbeds, suddenly reversed direction and dashed toward Fang Qi’s shopfront.

What astonished the onlookers even more was that the water abruptly turned into a vibrant array of colors, like dye. In the blink of an eye, the pure white walls of Fang Qi’s entire shop were stained with multicolored hues, and the beautiful orange-red glazed tiles were drenched in mismatched colors, looking precisely like a drenched, dyed chicken.

A few warriors who had intended to enter the shop to satisfy their curiosity instantly halted their steps.

"Hahaha!" A burst of collective laughter erupted from the crowd.

The woman giggled along, asking, "Whose idea was this?"

"To have the shopfront turned into a drenched chicken on opening day, let’s see who dares to visit in the future!" The blonde warrior roared with laughter as well.

Yet at that exact moment, the laughter of every pedestrian on the street, including the blonde warrior Krat and the woman, came to a sudden, dead halt.

Silence filled the air.

For they witnessed the dye upon the shopfront miraculously sliding down toward both sides, fading rapidly as it turned back into thin streams of clear water.

Even more astonishingly, as the water flowed down, it was as if the small building had been given a thorough bath. The walls, which had previously been slightly yellowed, were now as white as snow, and the residual dust on the roof tiles had vanished completely, leaving them pristine and crystal clear.

"!!??"

"Again! Put more strength into it!"

"I refuse to believe this!"

As the water sprayed down once more, everyone's eyes widened in sheer disbelief. The remaining water droplets seemed to be vaporized by an inexplicable warmth, turning into white mist that floated in mid-air. It enveloped the entire small shop in swirling clouds, making it look for all the world like a fairyland in that moment.

"Incredible..."

"Marvelous!"

The youths who had just been about to leave were now part of the spectating crowd outside, covering their mouths in astonishment, their eyes filled with disbelief.

Not only the blonde man, but even the woman who had cast the spell turned pale with shock: "What is going on?!"

Boss Fang frowned slightly inside: "What is happening outside?"

He strode toward the door.

"He is coming out!"

"Get ready!"

"We must make a fool of him this time!"

"Rest assured! This time I have placed a small spell upon the ground. With so many people watching that fellow make a fool of himself, it will be a fine venting of our anger."

"Oh no, a trap magic has been laid outside the door. When the shop owner steps out, he is bound to suffer!"

Several onlookers in the crowd whispered among themselves: "He doesn't seem to have noticed?"

"He's out, he's out!"

He was about to step on it!

At that moment, the shop doors swung wide open, and a young man flew out from within, treading upon a silver-white flash of sword light.

With the mist swirling outside the shop, everyone beheld the figure flying out, standing atop the sword light, as though they were gazing upon an immortal deity.

"Hello, everyone," Boss Fang greeted them in a thoroughly amiable manner.

"Ah—! This Easterner is far too handsome!"

"Oh—!?"

"This person!!??"

"So cool!"

At this instant, every person of the Upper Realm who witnessed this scene upon the street could not help but stare blankly.

"Joseph," the youths who had deemed it too expensive moments ago whispered, "Cece, shall we go back inside and try it...?"

"Ah—! This shop owner is simply too cool!" The green-haired, green-eyed girl’s eyes were practically filled with stars. "Come, come, come, let’s go in and try this new trial realm!"

"...Very well, should we also go in and take a look at this shop?" A few mages who had been merely spectating hesitated for a moment, then began walking toward the shop.

"Let us go as well..." muttered several warriors laden with heavy weaponry, stepping toward the shop's interior.

"Eh...?"

The blonde man with the greatsword on his back said nothing.

The short man stammered, "Uh..."

The female mage remained utterly silent.

A heavy stillness fell over the air.

For a long time, no one spoke.

"Heh heh..."

"Hahaha..."

"Hehehe..."

.