Chapter 23: The Opening of the Produce Shop

In the blink of an eye, the fourteen-day sale at the mall concluded, and the real world ushered in National Day. These past few days, no guests had visited the island. Qin Yueran spent her time planting crops, harvesting, and cultivating—her life remained fulfilling.

The items sold in the mall were expensive, but they were worth it: the instructions were detailed, and the variety was vast. It was a good deal. As for the gacha pulls, she had performed five hundred in total, resulting in a pile of strange and curious items. Of course, there were plenty of treasures among them, too. Considering she lacked a movement technique, she had purchased "Thousand Shadow Movement." This technique allowed the user to manifest multiple lifelike afterimages to confuse opponents while maintaining high speed.

At the first light of dawn, Qin Yueran returned to the entrance of her home in the real world and hung up a banner: "Grand Opening Special: 20% Off from Oct 1st to Oct 3rd."

"There," she said, hands on her hips with a smile. "Hopefully, the opening goes smoothly."

Since she was already out, she went for a run before heading back to the island. By ten o'clock, no one had arrived on the island yet. Qin Yueran looked at the post claiming guests would arrive at the "Youjian Inn" that morning, and she slowly typed out a question mark.

[Gu Yuanyuan: Found some survivors, they seem to have martial arts skills. They appear luckier than us; they encounter monsters less frequently, and the ones they do face are weaker. I'm bringing them to the Youjian Inn to register now. They should arrive tomorrow morning. I hope Boss Qin sees this.]

Qin Yueran pondered this. Isn't this just monsters refreshing based on levels? She looked at the comments and saw they had already discussed it for over thirty floors.

[35L. Boss Qin: Noted.]

Qin Yueran scratched her head. Was something delayed? But she was opening today! Forget it. She left a new comment on the thread.

[66L. Boss Qin: Away for personal business. Please make yourselves at home if you arrive.]

After thinking it over, she posted another update.

[Boss Qin: I will be away during the day for the next seven days. Please make yourselves at home upon arrival.]

That should do it. Huhu would monitor the situation on the island anyway. As long as the guests didn't violate the rules, everything would be fine. With someone leading the new guests and the information automatically appearing in their minds, they should be able to get the hang of it easily.

Qin Yueran pinched Huhu's ears. "Huhu, I'll leave the island to you."

"Don't worry, Xiaoran." Huhu patted its chest, standing tall and proud. "I'll look after the Immortal Island."

"Mm!"

Qin Yueran replied, said goodbye to Huhu, and returned to the real world. She opened the shop door and declared, "Formally open for business!"

Oh, she almost forgot to take the fruit to Grandma Li.

Qin Yueran selected a few of every type of small fruit, put them in a bag, and then carried a large watermelon over to the neighbor’s house. She knocked on the door. "Grandma Li, are you home?"

"Coming," a voice replied from inside.

Before long, the door opened. Seeing who it was, Qin Yueran greeted her with a smile: "Good morning, Grandma Li. I brought you some fruit." She held up the bag.

"You child, why bring fruit? It’s enough that you come to chat with me every now and then," Grandma Li complained, though she was clearly delighted.

"Oh, it was promised!" Qin Yueran slipped into the house and set the items down. "I'll leave these here. They’re delicious; you’ll definitely love them."

She was so quick that she slipped back out before Grandma Li could even react.

Grandma Li was bewildered: "?" How did Xiaoran just slip in? Looking at Qin Yueran, who had already headed back, and then at the fruit on the table, she sighed with a smile: "This child really is..."

Qin Yueran skipped back to her shop. She sat behind the counter and took out her tablet; since there was no military parade this year, she would watch variety shows instead. Having made some progress in her cultivation recently, she could run her inner energy circulation while doing other things.

However... Qin Yueran sighed and muttered, "It’s a pity the spiritual energy here is so thin."

According to Huhu, this world was not suitable for immortal cultivation. Even in places with more spiritual energy, one would only reach the first level of Qi Refining at best. Ancient martial arts were possible, but only limited to low-to-mid levels.

Qin Yueran wondered, if everyone practiced martial arts, wouldn't people be using light-body techniques to commute? When she was a child, she had wanted to leap over walls after watching martial arts films... Now, her wish had been granted beyond expectations; she could fly directly!

Qin Yueran laughed out loud, then looked around like a thief. Seeing no one, she breathed a sigh of relief: it was a good thing no one saw her suddenly giggling like a fool.

The foot traffic brought by the National Day holiday was quite obvious. Qin Yueran could see that the streets were much busier, with more cars and people. The room was filled with the fragrance of fruit, which made her crave some. Taking advantage of the lack of customers, she made herself a fruit bowl.

She sat back behind the counter, satisfied: "As expected, variety shows are best enjoyed with snacks."

Qin Yueran took a bite, the delicious flavor hitting her like a bolt of lightning. Still, something was missing. She looked around again and used a newly learned spell to chill the fruit bowl. She took another bite: "Perfect, now that’s the stuff."

People passed by outside, and even after walking a dozen meters away, the scent kept luring them back.

"Welcome." Qin Yueran looked up as she heard the chime.

"We’re having a 20% off sale for the first three days. Feel free to look around."

"Alright," the customer replied with a nod.

"Welcome." More people entered, and Qin Yueran told them to feel free to look around. She knew how expensive her produce was and didn't expect anyone to buy anything so quickly. As expected, some people’s eyes widened at the prices, and they left in silence. The shop had clear price tags; even though it was expensive, they were too embarrassed to say anything.

Grandma Li came over to check on things after seeing people leave empty-handed. Upon reaching the door, she smelled the rich, distinct fragrance of various fruits. Once inside, she saw the prices on the shelves and fell silent.

Qin Yueran glanced at the newcomer and realized it was Grandma Li. "Grandma Li, why are you here?" She stood up to fetch a chair. "Please, sit."

Grandma Li looked at Qin Yueran, hesitating to speak. Qin Yueran asked directly, "Is something wrong?"

Grandma Li whispered in her ear, "Xiaoran, don't you think your prices are set too high?"

"Not at all! These are new fruits and vegetables developed by my friend. Their nutrition and size are better than average." Qin Yueran took Grandma Li to the shelf and pointed at the fruit. "Hmm..." She looked at her again. "Have you not eaten the fruit I brought you yet?"

Grandma Li shook her head. "Not yet."

Qin Yueran took some lychees and longans and handed them to her. "Try some."

Looking at Qin Yueran's expectant gaze, Grandma Li ate a lychee. A clear, sweet fragrance—that was her first thought, and it tasted better than any she had ever had before. Grandma Li's eyes lit up instantly. Qin Yueran smiled. "Delicious, right?"

"It is! But it's so expensive, won't there be no one to buy it?" Grandma Li felt the price was justified but worried about the lack of sales.

"It's fine. My friend said this batch was a gift to me, so I won't lose anything even if they don't sell." Qin Yueran winked playfully to reassure her. "If they don't sell, I'll just eat them myself."

Just as they were whispering, new guests entered—a mother and her daughter. The lingering scent of lychee made their mouths water, and upon entering, they also caught a faint aroma of yogurt.