Chapter 14

The places where Cricket often frequents are avoided by ordinary monsters unless ordered otherwise.

On both streets in front of and behind Cricket’s Candy Shop, at this hour, there wasn’t a single monster around—only humans hiding in the shadows.

A wandering monster tracking prey had fallen far away, waiting for Cricket and You Xing to pass by.

Cricket felt that You Xing was pushing too hard, as if eager to give up control, and was a bit dissatisfied. “You’re recruiting staff just one day after opening? Aren’t you rushing things too much?”

Having only herself and You Xing at the shop was good enough; Cricket disliked working with strangers.

You Xing yawned, feeling the weight on her shoulders and back. She spoke earnestly, “I’m not like you. You can regenerate your lost hand. Look at me—I’ve only stayed up two nights and I’m falling apart. If I keep pushing like this every day, I won’t last a month.”

Cricket fixed her gaze on You Xing. “When you’re gone, come to my domain. I’ll give you a special role and permissions to look after the candy shop for me.”

You Xing sighed inwardly, realizing she had miscalculated. There was no peace even in death, and judging by Cricket’s tone, she almost expected her to be gone.

Still, recruiting staff and expanding the shop had to be considered now.

Standing before Cricket’s Candy Shop sign, You Xing’s eyes landed on the abandoned clothing store next door, which occupied a spacious lot. She said seriously, “There are three things that must be arranged quickly. First, expanding the shop—mainly a candy workshop. I think it’s better to set it up within the domain.”

She couldn’t keep working in the tiny kitchen of her dorm every day—it would blur the line between work and rest.

You Xing couldn’t tolerate such a boundary-less existence.

Cricket asked, “You want to build a candy workshop inside the domain? Do you realize how many rules would have to be changed?”

You Xing replied, “Even if I can only change one rule a day, it would only take dozens or hundreds of days to build it.”

Cricket said, “Not all rules can be changed. The ones you can break or modify now are trivial. The candy shop is only four square meters. Once expanded, its existence will conflict with the domain’s rules and it will vanish.”

You Xing said, “If the shop disappears due to rules, we’ll keep searching for new rule boundaries and rebuild. Failing once or twice is normal; after all, there’s no precedent for what we’re doing. Even if this project ultimately fails, it’s on me. I might lose this job or even become part of a monster legend. You, Cricket, just trusted a human and tried what we could. What are you afraid of?”

Cricket seemed to see You Xing in a new light. She opened her mouth but closed it again.

After a long pause, she said softly, “You always say you’re old and can’t handle the strain. But from where I stand, you sure love to push yourself.”

As they spoke, they walked into the shop.

Cricket asked, “What are the other two things?”

You Xing said, “Recruit apprentices willing to learn candy making as soon as possible. The apprentice should ideally be your subordinate. As for clerks, we can try hiring ordinary humans.”

Cricket had lost count of how many times she thought You Xing, a human, was crazier than any monster.

She took a long moment before speaking, “You want to hire ordinary humans as clerks in the candy shop?”

You Xing said, “Humans aren’t bound by domain rules. Compared to monsters within the domain, they’re a better choice.”

Cricket asked, “Do you intend to treat clerks as expendable?”

You Xing chuckled, “Why would you think that? The monster domain exists by rules. Even domain lords can’t kill at will. If we find the right people and set reasonable rules, this job isn’t as terrifying as you imagine.”

Cricket circled You Xing, appraising her from head to toe. “What makes you think my domain isn’t dangerous?”

You Xing gently patted Cricket’s shoulder. “It’s not that you’re not powerful. Maybe some people can adapt to the domain’s rules; those people qualify as prospective clerks. Hiring humans isn’t that scary. Monster hunters survive by dealing with monster legends. Besides, if we don’t employ humans as clerks, where else can we find suitable wandering monsters to manage the shop?”

Cricket thought about it and had to admit You Xing’s reasoning was sound.

After some inner struggle, Cricket realized she couldn’t figure it out or argue further, so she entrusted You Xing to handle all these matters.

Tonight, You Xing brought cleaning agents and a soft brush, attempting to remove grime from the glass.

There was no competition here; otherwise, such a small, dirty shop would deter customers.

She sprayed some cleaner on the glass, waited a few minutes, then scrubbed with the soft brush, easily cleaning a small patch.

Physical cleaning was possible, so You Xing called Cricket over to help clean the glass.

---

Back inside the shop, Cricket found an inconspicuous spot, cut away a segment of the rules, and used a magic pen to inscribe the code for the Mute Candy. This enabled the shop to stock two kinds of candy.

You Xing had a stabilizer pill clenched between her lips, taking one immediately whenever her hands faltered, barely maintaining her ability to function.

After adjusting the rules, she placed the candy jars behind the glass, set the packaging bags in an easily accessible spot, then took out a pre-written recruitment notice from her bag and stuck it on the freshly cleaned glass.

Cricket floated over quietly, “You wrote it with the magic pen?”

Not human script, but the script of the rules.

You Xing said, “I had some free time this afternoon, so I tried writing one. The pen and scissors drain too much energy, so I had to calculate and use every opportunity carefully.”

The recruitment notice targeted only domain creatures, seeking candy-making apprentices.

Cricket shook her head, “How can I make you understand? They’re mindless, driven by instinct, bound by rules—just the dregs abandoned here.”

You Xing ignored her and grabbed her shoulder bag, heading toward the abandoned clothing store next door. “You watch the shop tonight. If I’m not out by the time the candy sells out, come get me.”

Cricket asked, “Huh? Me? Watch the shop?”

You Xing replied, “Just don’t say anything and you’ll be fine.”

Cricket was speechless.

You Xing entered the abandoned clothing store, and almost immediately, two groups arrived from neighboring streets, observing the Crimson Candy Shop at the three-way intersection from afar.

Zhou Zi was in the third group. Unaware of others nearby, he saw a slender black shadow standing in front of the candy shop and assumed it was open, so he hurried over.

Before reaching the door, he called out loudly, “Hello, I’d like to buy some candy.”

He had been trapped in the monster legend for several days, and only last night had he spoken normally with a candy shop clerk.

After being trapped in that eerie, twisted place so long, he craved normal conversation—even if the other party wasn’t human.

Cricket’s hand paused on the brush handle but she said nothing, drifting into the shop in the blink of an eye.

Only then did Zhou Zi notice this clerk wasn’t the same as last night, and belatedly felt a chill crawling from his feet up his spine, leaving him cold and shivering.

Zhou Zi was caught between retreat and purchase.

He wanted to run but feared pursuit; he braced himself to buy something but sensed the clerk behind the glass was deeply unsettling.

Within seconds, his vision blurred and doubled.

This must be a high-level monster—just standing there made people uncomfortable.

Two teammates with Zhu Jin hid at a street corner, secretly observing the candy shop.

“That shop is bad news. After that person approached, he staggered; clearly suffering a powerful mental attack.”

Zhu Jin had used Mute Candy last night to block the monsters chasing her, then met up with two colleagues.

After borrowing two stabilizer pills from them, Zhu Jin’s condition slightly improved. She told them about her vague experience last night, and the three decided to investigate the suddenly opened candy shop together.

Zhu Jin stood behind a street tree, trying to make out Cricket’s face. “That monster seems... not the clerk from last night.”

Her colleague asked, “You sure?”

Zhu Jin frowned, “I was fuzzy then, but I remember the clerk had clear, beautiful eyes, shorter hair, and a different aura.”

Colleague asked, “What now? Still buy candy?”

Zhu Jin said, “We’re low on stabilizers. Better get some candy.”

Though they said that, the three remained hidden in the shadows, none moving.

Not far from Zhu Jin’s team, Huo Yuandu and Chu Jing also watched the candy shop from a street-side store.

Chu Jing had prepared noise-canceling earplugs, feeling slightly better than the last time they entered the Tongue Blade legend.

That time, Cricket specifically targeted You Xing, and the monsters they encountered were high-level wandering monsters with abilities and corruption levels far beyond ordinary small ones.

Huo Yuandu and Chu Jing entered the legend at the bridge’s end, unlike the first time when Cricket deliberately led them through the safe zone.

Back then, Cricket was also cunning—waiting for her opponents to relax before striking suddenly.

You Xing’s mental stability was exceptional; Chu Jing was more fragile, quickly breaking down under slight verbal provocation.

Huo Yuandu’s mental strength was also very stable, supported by SS-level physical endurance. He and Chu Jing had traversed the domain for days, maintaining good condition.

Huo Yuandu sensed something unusual when he first noticed Cricket’s Candy Shop.

They had detoured to avoid monsters, but upon returning, saw Zhou Zi walking alone toward the candy shop.

Since the shop opened, the number of monsters nearby had dropped significantly, indicating the monster guarding the candy shop was very high-level—at least higher than those chasing them.

In such a dangerous situation, that player was actually approaching the shop. Had he not noticed the monster’s level?

Zhou Zi lowered his gaze, unwilling to look at the monster behind the glass. Fixing his eyes on the candy jars, he quietly said, “Five Mute Candies, three Deafening Candies.”

Price tags were on the jars; Deafening Candy cost triple that of Mute Candy—599 star coins each.

Expensive, but Zhou Zi preferred the effects of the Deafening Candy.

Eating it brought brief peace to his ears and mind.

He had little cash and calculated his purchase carefully.

A slender, delicate finger tapped lightly on the jar with two-minute duration candies, then on the five-minute duration jar.

Zhou Zi was startled but soon understood the meaning. “I want the five-minute Mute Candy and Deafening Candy.”

Cricket fought to contain her excitement and counted out five Mute Candies and three Deafening Candies, bagging them separately.

When she received three thousand-star-coin bills, she suddenly froze.

Five Mute Candies and three Deafening Candies—how much was that? How much change to give?

“...”

Cricket suddenly realized she wasn’t very good at math.

Zhou Zi lifted his gaze slightly but still dared not meet her eyes, voice trembling, “...What’s wrong?”

Bang—

Two blood-red characters appeared on the glass—

“Wait a moment.”

Zhou Zi nodded, “Oh, okay.”

The door opened from inside, and a black shadow exuding a sinister aura floated past Zhou Zi, heading straight into the dilapidated clothing store next door.

The hidden monster hunters all wondered the same: Why did it suddenly leave? What was it going to do?

Soon, the slender black shadow emerged, followed by a person.

Huo Yuandu recognized that familiar figure instantly, his pupils trembling.

“You Xing!” Chu Jing whispered, unable to contain herself. “What is she doing here?”