Your Mouth Is So Unlucky

In the area in front of the hardware store, there were a few interconnected clothing stores and a colorful handmade candy shop.

The clothing stores were empty, their business quite bleak. The exquisitely decorated candy shop, on the other hand, was packed with people.

Zhu Yan didn't hesitate much and walked directly into the clothing store.

Places with fewer people were easier to operate in.

Five minutes later.

Zhu Yan stuffed three thick pieces of clothing into his spatial storage. Gripping two blister packs of medicine and the sixth metal fragment he had dug out of the clothes' pockets, his heart settled slightly.

At his current speed, he would definitely make it in time!

Zhu Yan stuffed the fragment into his pocket and walked briskly toward the candy shop.

Like all the other food stores, the queue here was very long.

At this moment, however, the front of the line was chaotic, with clusters of dissatisfied complaints exploding into a clamor.

"Idiots can't understand human speech. They said it's free, so what are you causing a scene for?!"

"Get the hell out of here!"

"The Officer is too polite, I'm requesting violent enforcement."

Damn it.

His teammates were inexperienced and must have gotten into a conflict!

Struck by sudden inspiration, Zhu Yan immediately jogged over, struggling to squeeze into the bright lights of the candy shop.

"Excuse me," he said, forcefully pushing through the crowd. "What's the commotion? Let me see."

"Some idiot insists on paying." A student casually explained to Zhu Yan, spraying a mouthful of sickly sweet scent all over his face. "Stop pushing, our Boss is handling it."

"Boss?"

The term was novel enough that Zhu Yan couldn't help but glance at him.

The student's cheeks were bulging like a hamster hoarding food, the corners of his mouth smeared with frosting and chocolate sauce.

"You guys have a Boss?"

"Yeah." Seeing that Zhu Yan still wanted to move forward, the player reluctantly stepped aside. "The Boss has a level three ability, he's the strongest among us here."

Zhu Yan squeezed to the front of the crowd and, sure enough, saw a very tall boy cursing loudly at three people on the other side.

"...Are you guys done or not?!"

"How many times has the Officer said it's free, yet you just insist on not taking it for free!"

"Don't force me to attack my own people!"

The boy's right fist was tightly clenched, unexpectedly the size of a six-inch cake, with a silvery-white metallic luster gleaming at the joints.

Veins bulged on this fist, and Zhu Yan felt the boy must be extremely angry.

On the other side, the three people had gloomy expressions. The Bespectacled Man's ears were flushed red, clearly suppressing the urge to swear.

"Don't you all find it strange?" he directly pointed out the weirdness. "If it's all given away for free, so many people could just take it. What's the need to line up at the counter?"

These words exposed something very dangerous. Zhu Yan's heart skipped a beat, and he hurriedly looked to the side.

A large pile of beautiful, translucent handmade candies was displayed on the candy shop's counter, and the Officer stood behind a cluster of colorful lollipop bouquets.

Its originally calm expression suddenly changed. Its brow ridge pressed down lifelessly, and the corners of its mouth collapsed stiffly.

The boy cursed loudly.

"Conspiracy theory my ass, you're seeking death yourself, who are you spewing shit at..."

With a thought, Zhu Yan activated his ability Bully.

He slipped toward the back of the counter like a fish, silently counting the time in his heart.

This guy had ruined his brain from eating too much candy; arguing with him was a pure waste of effort.

Attacking the Officer directly was much more efficient!

The Bespectacled Man was red with anger: "I—"

"I already said, don't mention buying anything anymore!"

The Officer's voice sharply cut in.

"Students should just go take the free stuff!!"

Seizing the opportunity, Zhu Yan bypassed the counter and fiercely kicked the Officer's calf.

The speaking stopped abruptly. The Officer's body suddenly collapsed, sinking straight down below the counter!

In an instant, a large cluster of gazes projected over like searchlights, aiming at Zhu Yan's calm face.

The Bespectacled Man's ears immediately stopped being red, letting out a sigh of relief as if seeing a backer.

"Holy crap!"

The three exchanged a glance, their bodies subconsciously relaxing a bit.

Wearing Zhu Zeyu's face, Zhu Yan showed an apologetic smile to the crowd.

"Sorry about that, everyone."

He bent down, narrowed his eyes at the Officer, and stretched out his left hand, showing it the metal fragment in his palm.

"Frosted persimmon cakes, candied tangerines, licorice candy. Don't make me say it twice."

Zhu Yan threatened in a low voice, waving the tip of his blade in front of those dark, gloomy eyes.

The moment it saw the metal fragment, the Officer's face completely froze.

Its neck shrank inward like a turtle's, and two fearful syllables popped out of its mouth.

"O-okay..."

Zhu Yan stood up and very politely supported the limp Officer.

The Officer was quickly picking out the three items Zhu Yan wanted from the pile of candy, smiling reluctantly.

"We're just buying something."

Meeting the boy's ferocious gaze, Zhu Yan explained with a smile.

"You see, it's very fast."

Bang!

The boy erupted. That iron fist smashed fiercely into the counter, and the sweet aroma of candy instantly spread out.

"I told you not to make things difficult for the Officer!" he roared, losing control. "Listen to me! Why won't you listen—"

"Enough!" the Officer roared.

The boy glared at Zhu Yan, an expression of disbelief appearing on his face.

He watched the Officer stuff a bag of things into Zhu Yan's arms and still wanted to argue.

"I—"

"Shut up!" The Officer's emotions seemed about to spiral out of control.

"Let's go."

Zhu Yan grabbed the Masked Man closest to him and ran out of the store. The Officer's sharp trailing voice chased behind them.

"Close the door! The bus hasn't arrived yet, who knows when it'll get dark! Close the door first!"

The few of them exchanged a glance, tacitly staying silent.

They hurried toward the narrow gap next to the flower shop. Zhu Yan reached into the bag to dig out the last fragment, feeling his suspended heart settle a bit more.

He had collected all the fragments on his end.

Yang Zhanbai still had two stores over there; there shouldn't be any major problems, right?

"Thanks." A few seconds later, the Bespectacled Man patted Zhu Yan's shoulder. "Why did you suddenly come here?"

Zhu Yan stopped in front of that gap by the flower shop and told the lie he had prepared long ago.

"The situation is a bit different," he said, feigning a solemn expression.

"I finished up at two stores, but when I went to ask at the other one, they said they didn't have what I needed."

He showed the three metal fragments in his hand to the others.

"Just this, they said it had already been transferred away by another Officer. So, I figured I'd just come over to your area and take a look."

The Bespectacled Man looked a bit grave.

Just now, Zhu Yan had demonstrated his strength in front of them; those monsters probably wouldn't dare lie to him.

But...

"Why would the Officer transfer those things away?"

"Because of me." A voice popped up from behind them.

"Holy crap!" The Masked Man was startled.

It was Yang Zhanbai.

Zhu Yan smelled a rich scent of black mud on him. In an instant, a joyful, tingling sensation stirred restlessly.

He bit the tip of his tongue hard to maintain his act.

"You?"

Yang Zhanbai tugged at his hood and smiled triumphantly at Zhu Yan.

"Yes. I triggered the condition, and the Officer gave those things to me."

He spread his palm open to show off.

"I am dead awesome... When you get the rest, you will be dead awesome too."

Zhu Yan glared at him.

Being awesome was one thing, but what was with the "dead"?

His gaze shifted. In the palm of Yang Zhanbai's hand quietly lay the torn, larger half of a golden ticket.

The patterns on it were growing clearer. The arrow had been pieced together, pointing perfectly toward a specific spot.

Zhu Yan quickly attached the three fragments from his own hand onto it.

Yang Zhanbai felt a slight weight in his palm. The eight fragments fit together seamlessly, finally forming a single, cool golden ticket with a delicate embossed texture!

The arrow pointed to a flower, and a line of tiny text was engraved in the center of the blossom.

Yang Zhanbai turned on his phone's flashlight, allowing the group to barely make out the words.

"Please insert the key into the keyhole on the wall to unlock the door to [CC Flower Shop]."

"Note: One key allows only one person to enter the flower shop."

The group stared at the text, falling silent for a moment.

"Players, please hurry."