Chapter 344 - 341: Houhuiyao’s Mission

Chapter 344: Chapter 341: Houhuiyao’s Mission

After paying for his purchase, the seedy youth was completely satisfied. "Don’t worry, Boss. As long as it’s stimulating enough, I’ll be back for more."

With that, he put on the air of a respectable gentleman and swaggered out of the general store.

After the seedy youth left, Feng Hao went back to serving other customers. Using a combination of coaxing, trickery, and all-out hype, his one rule was that no one who walked in was allowed to leave empty-handed.

After a chaotic flurry of sales, peace returned to the general store, and Feng Hao had raked in a large pile of Magic Crystals.

Looking at the empty shelves all around, Feng Hao was extremely satisfied. He cheerfully restocked them and turned the player outside the door on again.

"At this rate, the Crystal Cards I have on hand won’t last much longer. I need to talk to Old Qian tomorrow and have him rush-produce a batch," Feng Hao muttered to himself from behind the counter.

A few minutes later, a slender young man in a mage’s robe walked in. It was Houhuiyao, whom Feng Hao hadn’t seen in ages.

Houhuiyao was intrigued by the player outside. He studied it for a long time before finally stepping inside and asking, "Boss, what is this thing? It looks pretty interesting."

"Just a new product. If you like it, I’ll give you one." Feng Hao grinned and tossed a player to him. "Pick out whatever you want to watch."

"Haha, you’re the best, Boss! So generous!" Houhuiyao expertly laid on the flattery and began browsing the shelves.

Feng Hao watched quietly. Once it looked like Houhuiyao was about done choosing, he asked, "Alright, spit it out. What brings you here, kid?"

"Oh, it’s nothing much. I mostly came to see you, Boss, and to say goodbye," Houhuiyao said with a grin.

"Say goodbye?" Feng Hao was taken aback. "Didn’t the semester just start? Where are you going?"

"Sigh!" Houhuiyao gave a wry, weary smile. "Ever since we started promoting the Healing Mage profession, I haven’t had a moment’s rest. And now, get this—a few days ago, Dean Xu inexplicably agreed to the Student Federation’s request to have me give lectures at all the major Advanced Academies. I didn’t even get a damn chance to refuse."

Feng Hao couldn’t help but laugh. "So that’s what’s going on. Sounds like you’re doing pretty well for yourself, kid!"

"Oh, stop pulling my leg," Houhuiyao said, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. "Aren’t all of my accomplishments thanks to you, Boss?"

Feng Hao smirked and asked in surprise, "So just go. What’s with the long face?"

"Boss, are you genuinely clueless or just pretending to be?" Houhuiyao said, his face a mask of misery. "There are hundreds of Advanced Academies in the Ancient Cang Realm, spread across various nations. This whole tour will take a year or two, minimum."

"Okay, yeah, that does sound like a pain in the ass." Feng Hao gave a stunned laugh, then tried to console him. "But this is incredibly important. Whether or not we can make the Healing Mage profession widespread depends entirely on your performance."

"Fine. Since you put it that way, Boss, I guess I have no choice but to go," Houhuiyao said, nodding with a sigh.

Feng Hao said good-naturedly, "Look at your pathetic state. Pull yourself together and don’t bring shame on the Healing Mage name."

"Don’t worry, Boss." Houhuiyao’s expression turned serious, and he nodded solemnly. "I won’t let you down. Trust me, the next time we meet, the Healing Mage profession will have blossomed all over the Ancient Cang Realm!"

"Go on, then. Just remember what you said," Feng Hao nodded, pleased.

"Understood!" Houhuiyao nodded respectfully and left the general store with newfound resolve.

Watching Houhuiyao depart, Feng Hao felt a wave of emotion. ’I wonder if that kid will be able to complete his mission.’

Outside the store, the comedy playing on the media player continued to run, attracting a steady stream of passersby.

Feng Hao didn’t turn off the player outside until noon, when he prepared to take a lunch break.

But just as he was about to go upstairs and wake Yao Girl, he heard a sharp cry from the bedroom: "Halt, foul beast! How dare you bully my Little Miaomiao!"

"HOLY SHIT, don’t hit me! Friendly! Friendly!" Three-second Fire yelped in alarm.

"Oh-ho, trying to act familiar, are we?" Xi Yueyao sneered. "Cut the crap! Take this—!"

"No, no, no! I’m really one of you!"

"Eat my whip!" Clearly not believing a word Three-second Fire said, Xi Yueyao swung her whip and began lashing him mercilessly.

Poor Three-second Fire was whipped until he was scurrying about covering his head, not daring to fight back. "Ow, ow, that hurts! It’s killing me! My lady, I’m really on your side!"

"Little Miaomiao, bite him!" Xi Yueyao yelled, completely ignoring his pleas.

Three-second Fire let out a tragic wail and continued to run for his life.

Thankfully, Feng Hao arrived just in time. He grabbed the young girl by the collar, lifting her into the air and putting a stop to the farce. "Girl, stop messing around. He’s one of us."

"Really? How come I’ve never seen him before?" Xi Yueyao asked, blinking in confusion.

Feng Hao explained with a sigh, "His name is Three-second Fire. He’s a Fire Seed I subdued a few days ago."

"A Fire Seed?" Xi Yueyao’s eyes lit up. She squirmed out of Feng Hao’s grip and sized up Three-second Fire from head to toe. "Well, well. So this is what a Fire Seed looks like. I thought you’d be more impressive!"

"Why you..." Three-second Fire started to curse, but then he remembered Feng Hao was standing right there. He could only nod resentfully and let Xi Yueyao scrutinize him.

"Hey, medicine-seller, can I take him to the academy to have some fun?" Xi Yueyao asked, her eyes darting about as she hatched a plan.

Feng Hao stared at her blankly. "You have a Frost Bloodline, don’t you? Why would you bring him along?"

"No reason. I just want to show off a bit," the young girl said, her eyes glinting mischievously.

"Are you sure?" Feng Hao asked, skeptical.

"Uh-huh," the young girl nodded obediently.

"Alright then. Xiao San’Er, you’ll follow Yaoyao for the next few days. And remember—do not cause any trouble!" Feng Hao warned, his brow furrowed.

But Three-second Fire’s eyes were wide with terror. "Boss, you can’t do this! I’d like to live a few more days!"

"Look at you, scared stiff," Feng Hao said, rolling his eyes. "Relax. Yaoyao is nice to her own people. She won’t bully you."

"Is that so?" Three-second Fire asked, his eyes full of doubt.

Just then, Xi Yueyao impatiently brandished her whip and threatened menacingly, "Little Fireman, are you questioning my character?"

"No, no, absolutely not," Three-second Fire said, shaking his head frantically.

"That’s more like it." Xi Yueyao nodded, satisfied. She scooped Xiaohai into her arms and swaggered downstairs. "Keep up! Your big sis is taking you to the academy to make some waves!"

Three-second Fire wiped away his tears and followed with a look of utter despair on his face.

Feng Hao didn’t know whether to laugh or cry as he watched them go. He called out, "Hey, don’t you have the day off from class today?"

"Who cares about classes! Showing off is the priority!" Xi Yueyao shot back impatiently.

"Fine, I’ll give you a ride," Feng Hao said, shaking his head in resignation.

"No need! I recently got a new car. It’s super cool and super fast." Xi Yueyao waved dismissively and swaggered out of the shop with the air of a mob boss, looking as brazen as could be.

When Feng Hao followed her downstairs, he was just in time to see a top-of-the-line Bumblebee pull up outside. He was completely dumbfounded. "What the—where did you get that kind of money? Don’t tell me you broke into that Level 9 Magic Crystal?"

"Tch." Xi Yueyao popped her head out of the car window, looking smug. "You think I need to pay for my own car? A few days ago, some clueless senior was picking on a first-year, so I taught him a lesson. This was his ransom payment."

"..." Feng Hao’s mouth twitched. He didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.