Leisure

Although it was still a guess to say that, the idea of "pure water" immediately felt like "that's exactly how it is."

Next came the verification phase.

Chen Miemie once again transformed into the "Yellow Garb" and stepped out of the shop.

But no miracle occurred.

The streets remained unchanged, the neighbors stayed the same—it was still the present era and time.

"What's going on? Could Pure Water's deduction be wrong?"

The "Forbidden Fruit Atlas" proposed a new speculation.

"Is it possible that when Rhododendron went out earlier, if you had followed her out in your 'Yellow Garb' state, you would have reached Rhododendron's era? But just now, you left as Chen Miemie, so the world reverted to Chen Miemie's timeline."

After that, the oddities tossed out a variety of guesses and theories.

Finally, Blueflower called for a halt: "Pointless speculation is meaningless. How about we wait until the next Eternal Moon Night, when a guest arrives, and try again?"

With that, the room fell silent.

And with the silence, Chen Miemie began to feel a bit idle.

Back in Sixiang City, every Eternal Moon Night had his schedule packed, as if he couldn't afford to waste a single minute.

Since coming to Sealed Letters Hall, assassination puzzles were gone, city crises were nonexistent, and the only thing that counted as work was simply minding the shop.

In this world, once you lacked a goal, having free time was actually quite boring.

Imagine it: no TV, computer, or phone, and the room was dimly lit. Spending an entire night indoors—how could that not be dull?

Bored, Chen Miemie began observing the oddities at home one by one, curious to see what they did when they had nothing to do.

Blueflower was playing with her porcelain.

She stood by her two large porcelain vases, casually painting landscapes, birds, and animals on their surfaces, entering an artistic creative trance.

Loop appeared to be sitting on the sofa, resting with her eyes closed.

If you watched closely, every few minutes she would suddenly open her eyes, a murderous intent flashing within them as if she might devour someone, then she would close her eyes again.

Chen Miemie guessed she was organizing simulated battles in her mind.

The kitchen was Bō Bō's territory.

That roast chicken, using its own roasted wings to grip a spatula, was stirring various seasonings in a massive iron pot, muttering to itself: "The spice inequality will succeed today." After that, it leaped into the pile of seasonings.

There was no sign of Pure Water.

The water in its fish tank was perfectly flat, without a single ripple—it was hard to tell if it was even in there.

Origami, the paper person, was acting a bit improper.

It had somehow gotten hold of some rouge and powder and was applying makeup to its papery face.

Without makeup, it was a decent paper person; with makeup, the rosy cheeks and pale white sheen were simply horrifying.

Red was hanging upside down from the ceiling.

It had been spinning a web originally, but when it saw Chen Miemie look its way, its red eyes brimmed with curiosity, as if inviting Chen Miemie to come up and be a guest in its web.

Lost didn't like to move and shrank into its snail shell for a deep sleep.

Dāi Dāi was the busiest. If anyone in the house called, it would hurry over to help with small tasks. Even if no one called, it took the initiative to flutter around, the little sprite flying back and forth inside the room.

After observing everyone, Chen Miemie realized that each oddity had something to do.

Before they met him, they had long been accustomed to solitude—each one had mastered the art of being alone.

Chen Miemie didn't disturb them.

"A bit of leisure is fine. There's no ghost breathing down my neck, so there's no need to rush around all the time."

He began thinking about what he could do.

Actually, aside from matters involving store guests, he wasn't completely without things to do. He had two things.

One was his old trade—using the "Loom of Fate" to weave Moonlight Wings. In the Silver Moon Court, aside from Tide, everyone had placed orders with him, and he still owed several pairs.

The other was related to increasing his strength.

After contracting the "Forbidden Fruit Atlas," his "Mystery" had reached 3.6. After contracting three more, he would hit 3.99, and then face the promotion issue from Mystery 3 to 4.

The promotion from Mystery 3.99 to 4 required an oddity material highly compatible with oneself.

The problem now was that he had no idea what material would count as "highly compatible."

Forget ordinary oddity materials—even searching for high-risk oddities related to "light" or "moon," he had a vague feeling that they would not be nearly enough.

Because this issue remained unsolved, he had felt no urgency recently about improving his Mystery level.

With that thought, Chen Miemie took out the "Loom of Fate."

Moonlight gathered into threads, converging at the needle's tip, gradually forming part of a wing.

The "Forbidden Fruit Atlas" looked at the circle of oddities around it, including Chen Miemie, and shook its head repeatedly.

"Hmph, wasting time. Not a single one is hitting the books." The bookish oddity sounded like it was scolding with frustration.

Seeing no one pay it any attention, the "Forbidden Fruit Atlas" flew into the study and actually picked up a book to read.

A book reading another book—the scene was slightly novel.

Around 11 p.m., Chen Miemie's watch glowed faintly.

A message had arrived.

Chen Miemie put down the "Loom of Fate" and opened the message.

Time: 11:03 p.m.

Sender: [Bridge Maiden]

Content: Last time you said you wanted to raise a special breed of fish—a merchant happens to have a few. Want to come with me tomorrow to take a look?

Chen Miemie's face lit up with joy.

Just when he was feeling down, someone gave him a pillow. Gongshu Key really was a timely blessing.

He had just been thinking that Pure Water's fish tank was empty, lacking life, and now, finally, a lead on fish.

The next day.

9:30 a.m.

Chen Miemie arrived at the "Exuviae Clinic."

He didn't go inside this time. He stood outside the main gate and contacted Gongshu Key.

Soon, a man and a woman emerged.

The woman was, naturally, [Bridge Maiden] Gongshu Key.

The man was under 30, wearing a straw hat and dressed like a scholar.

He was very enthusiastic. When he noticed Chen Miemie observing his hat, he took the initiative to greet him:

"Hello, Chen Miemie. You like my hat, too? Let me state up front—this is a straw hat. None of us from the 'Exuviae Clinic' would wear a baseball cap. Do you know why?"

Chen Miemie shook his head, signaling he didn't want to know: "Hello. You must be the vice president of the 'Exuviae Clinic,' right?"

The man was startled: "I usually keep a low profile. How did you know my position? Did you investigate me?"

Chen Miemie was taken aback but quickly recovered: "No need for investigation. You and our vice president, Ling Ruxue, have exactly the same vibe."

Joking aside, that old trope of the "Snack Hat" (Ya-she Mao) was something everyone knew—and your level wasn't even as good as Ling Ruxue's.

The man put away his surprised expression and said seriously: "Ling Ruxue, huh. Good, that's my lifelong rival. Let me formally introduce myself—my name is Du Jun, codename [Evolutionary Taxonomist]."

"Honored to meet you. Your codename is the longest one I've ever heard."

"Heh heh, that way, at every meeting, when they call names, I get the finale spot."

Gongshu Key skipped the need to introduce the two of them and directly informed Chen Miemie of the itinerary: "We're going to pick up the fish now. Each of us can pick two or three."

The three of them got into the Exuviae Clinic guild's official car.

Chen Miemie and Gongshu Key sat in the backseat, with the driver and Du Jun in the front. They chatted and laughed all the way.

About ten minutes later, they arrived at their destination.

"We're here," the driver said, parking the car.

It was a small villa.

Chen Miemie was about to open the door and get out when Gongshu Key stopped him. "Let's sit in the car for a while."

Du Jun turned around with a gentle smile. "Just wait a moment. It won't be long."

With that, Du Jun got out of the car alone.

Ten minutes later.

"Let's go down now," Gongshu Key said to Chen Miemie.

The two stepped out of the car.

Chen Miemie followed behind Gongshu Key, watching as she pushed open the villa's front door.

As they entered the villa, Chen Miemie’s pupils constricted slightly.

The villa was stained with blood. Several black-suited bodyguards lay on the hallway floor, blood spilling from their seven orifices, pooling everywhere. Strangely, even in death, their faces still wore faint smiles.

"Follow me," Gongshu Key said, leading the way deeper inside.

They passed no fewer than ten bodies along the path until they reached an artificial pond in the back garden.

Du Jun stood by the pond, wiping his blood-soaked hands with a tissue.

When he saw the two approaching, his refined face once again broke into a gentle smile. He gestured toward the pond.

"You're here. The fish are all right here, Chen Miemie. Pick yours first."