Chapter 246: 242: Fortune and Misfortune Depend on Each Other

242: Fortune and Misfortune Depend on Each Other

Lounging in his recliner and reading the newspaper with a calm, detached air, Lin Laoban kept a constant watch on world affairs even while inside the Forest Cabin, occasionally sharing his own views on various events with Wei Jiang, who had already read this newspaper from the day before yesterday.

Whenever Chen Xiaolin, dressed in white, passed by and saw that Lin Laoban's teacup was empty, she would immediately step forward and pour him tea.

The tea was a special floral blend made by Lin Laoban; the black cat in the shop was mischievous, and whenever no one was looking, a few petals would go missing from the pot of Stone Leek on the table, and the octopus in the fish tank would likely lose a few legs or eyes.

Relying on Lin Laoban's favor, its own cuteness, and an indescribable sense of intimidation, this little creature ran rampant in the cabin, giving face to almost no one except Lin Laoban.

If the octopus in the fish tank was missing legs or eyes, it was certainly eaten by this little creature, but the missing petals from the Stone Leek were a different matter entirely—it was just the little creature being bored and messing around to pass the time.

Lin Ling was never angry; he would always smile as he collected the fallen petals, which would still twitch on the table like fish that had just been pulled from the water, and store them in a jar.

And so, after collecting them for a while, the entire jar was nearly stuffed with the twisting, writhing Stone Leek petals.

Was this cat just mischievous, or was this Stone Leek truly that alive? Li Duojin watched all of this, often sighing with emotion.

Once the jar was full of Stone Leek petals, Lin Ling announced that he would use them to make his signature floral tea, mixing these petals with the Black Tea he had brought back from outside—though no one knew where it came from—and stir-frying them with some peculiar spices to produce three jars of Amaryllis Flower Tea.

Never mind whether this stuff was harmful or drinkable, and never mind that Stone Leek itself was poisonous; even if this wasn't actually real Stone Leek and might be non-toxic, could tea made through such a process possibly taste good? Every employee in the cabin, except for Li Duojin, had harbored doubts in their hearts.

Whenever they couldn't help but ask, Lin Ling would smile and invite them to come over and have a taste to find out.

Have a taste?

The cabin's employees wouldn't dare touch even a single drop... tasting everything would only lead to their own ruin.

It didn't matter; whether it was drinkable or whether it tasted good was no longer important, as long as the boss liked it.

Li Duojin took a ladle of water from the fish tank, poured it into a spray bottle, and watered the Stone Leek, which shivered every day. While carefully controlling the amount of water sprayed, he asked Lin Laoban, "Boss, where has Miss Yu gone now?"

He was actually quite curious, because every guest who had come to the shop eventually found their own destination.

Whether it was retribution or a peaceful end, he could not see where Yu Lianyun had gone, and this was precisely the question he was most curious about and focused on lately. Taking advantage of this relatively leisurely and comfortable moment, and seeing that Lin Laoban seemed to be in a good mood, he took the opportunity to ask.

Lin Ling replied, "Fortune and misfortune depend on each other; she was enjoying fortune before, so now she naturally has to go and repay that fortune."

"In other words, is she currently being 'enjoyed' by 'fortune'?" Wei Jiang was thoughtful. One could no longer see any concern for his former colleague on his face; to be precise, he was not actually worried about Yu Lianyun's situation.

"That is roughly the case." Lin Ling thought for a moment and did not deny Wei Jiang's assessment.

"That means, wherever the Blessing is, she is there," Chen Xiaolin proposed her own guess.

Lin Ling smiled slightly: "The Blessing is already everywhere..."

Hearing this, Wei Jiang and the others suddenly realized.

That was true; nowadays, the Blessing had long since been scattered across the human world, and it was Yu Lianyun herself who had released it.

He Jia'an ran frantically, finally returning to Kisaragi High School, which resembled a massive graveyard, though the journey back had not been easy.

It was not that he had been attacked or harassed by creatures from the Inner World early on, nor had he encountered Vampire creatures again; rather, there was a massive wind belt in the area near Kisaragi High School. It was the giant storm he had seen last time, which had moved here after some time, enveloping Kisaragi High School within its eye.

Passing through the wind belt to reach the eye was not easy. He had taken the sewers, avoiding the lock-on of various decaying creatures from the Flesh Dimension by a hair's breadth, and emerged from a manhole cover on a street within the eye area, only then being able to return to the Inner World's Kisaragi High School safe and sound.

"This is the source. If the Vampires' plan is about to succeed, they will definitely return to this place to guard the Advent Ritual they have been preparing for so long," He Jia'an thought to himself. He was certain those Vampire vermin were right here.

"How many more are there?" He Jia'an's hand, tucked into his pocket, gripped the Red Envelope inside tightly.

The number of times the New Year Red Envelope could be used was running low. If he continued like this and still couldn't find the Advent Ritual or a way to break it, then he would die, and this Earth might also be destroyed.

If an Alien God as terrifying, greedy, and powerful as the Moon of a Thousand Illusions were to descend upon Earth, it would only be a catastrophe—a horrific disaster that most biological species on Earth would have no chance of surviving.

He Jia'an did not know how many more times his New Year Red Envelope could help him deal with the Vampires; he only knew that once the New Year Red Envelope turned completely black, he would face an unprecedented nightmare.

Everything purchased from the Forest Cabin came with a price. Even though spending the "money" under the cabin's laws was already a price, obtaining the authority to use that super-spec capability meant the debt was settled.

Therefore, he could only bear the adverse consequences of using the New Year Red Envelope and everything he had done himself.

He Jia'an stepped into the grounds of Kisaragi High School. In the hallway, he immediately spotted traces of the Vampires. They were wandering around the campus, disguised as strange humans, strange dogs, and other weird things that were elegant in demeanor and limb posture but lacked any human form. He watched as they unashamedly shed their disguises, playing with the twisted forms they had deliberately created as if they were toys.

Seeing this, He Jia'an would avoid them whenever possible, focusing on infiltrating the campus. This time, he had to successfully reach the site of the Advent Ritual at the Inner World's Kisaragi High School and end it all with his own hands.

Based on his memories from the last time at Kisaragi High School and his current situation, he immediately thought that at least one of the remaining Advent Rituals must be in the Principal's Office.

Swish!

A Vampire flesh-worm lunged at He Jia'an again. He was like a fat pig waiting to be cooked in the hallway, yet before it could get close, the Vampire flesh-worm that had attempted the ambush died completely.