Chapter 673

The shrine is located on the mountain, and because it is far from the Village of Human Habitation, with yōkai roaming the path, it generally has no business.

Especially after a fellow practitioner arrived in Gensokyo, the shrine's business plummeted straight down.

There were no customers at all for exorcism or blessing services, nor any worshippers.

"Please, have some tea."

A brazier stood in the center of the room, a necessity for enduring Gensokyo's winters, but now it had been placed beside Su Lin by Hui Liye.

"A small token," Su Lin said, slapping a stack of ancient banknotes onto the table.

The large red bow tied behind the black-haired miko's head swayed as her owner recoiled in shock.

Even Hui Liye, whose concept of money was bizarre and who did not understand the actual value of wealth, recognized that the dull thud signified "a lot."

Hui Liye's innocent, adorable face showed a hint of emotion as she sincerely said:

"If I'd known you were coming today to offer incense money, I'd have gone easier on you yesterday. But you and the kappa also did something wrong—you should fight with spell cards in Gensokyo."

"." Su Lin fell silent for a moment with a smile, then pulled out a gold bar: "Indeed. This is my apology."

He throws money at the slightest provocation.

Where did this rich bastard come from?!

Hui Liye decided to treat this major client with the oranges and mushrooms Marisa had brought yesterday.

Watching the miko happily walk deeper into the shrine, some faces shifted constantly, others twitched their lips, seeming to want to say something but holding back.

Huai Shi: "Shouldn't we find an excuse to head down the mountain early?"

He wasn't worried about the safety of the big shots—he was afraid he'd accidentally get dragged in and lose the resurrection artifact he'd just received as a livestream gift yesterday.

The Hui Liye miko is invincible within Gensokyo's Great Barrier.

"Your historical projection has a time limit and a usage cap. Let me be clear—I won't help you deceive a naive girl," Kleen said, sipping a white liquid called "tea."

"If she comes after you for reckoning, you'll have to cheat."

"Why come to me?" Su Lin propped his chin up and yawned. "Shouldn't something like vanished wealth be taken up with Yūgure Shiki?"

Lu Mingfei: "."

He'd thought this guy would behave more reasonably in Gensokyo—he'd clearly overestimated him.

From the moment he walked in, he'd already planned to frame someone, making the red-and-white miko go all out to entertain him, only to end up with empty joy—this was outright monstrous. Too Chū Shàngdì.

"The otaku who love Hui Liye will fight you to the death."

"This dark, twisted, tragic Gensokyo has shattered my old otaku soul."

Su Lin sat on the edge of the brazier, gradually relaxing into the heated table, his upper body slumped onto it: "My precious unicorn died at the hands of the Hui Liye miko. It's too dark."

He's still brooding over that mecha's loss—this petty, penny-pinching bastard.

"Still want that lump of scrap?" Meng Qi asked.

Su Lin lifted his eyelids: "What for?"

"There's still a Bagua Furnace in the Immortal Realm's Dōulì Palace. Take it back and smelt it again."

"You'll fix it for me?"

"Remove the impurities. Refine out the heavenly treasures and earthly gems you wasted on that overpowered toy."

White snowflakes drifted down, blanketing the world in a spectacle unique to Gensokyo; during this time, the unicorn's remains turned into a snowball of the same hue.

Hui Liye did not know that the metals inside that scrap held a value equal to the total sales of a small auction in the Celestial City.

Of course, that assumes you have a flame capable of separating and refining the mixed materials.

Can you salvage and depreciate a scrapped fixed asset?

"What's that smell?" Lu Mingfei sniffed.

The answer came quickly: Hui Liye, wearing her distinctive miko attire—with wide white sleeves and a top that separated at the shoulders—carried a massive clay pot.

The pot emitted a rich aroma of rice, mingled with the scent of mushrooms.

"Heh," Liye set the rice pot on the table, lifted the lid, and the entire room filled with fragrance.

It was a large pot of mushroom rice, topped with a sprinkle of green onion as garnish.

"Special Hui Liye disaster-quelling mushroom rice. Consider it lunch."

Liye brought out several worn, aged bowls and chopsticks, then served herself a bowl without asking:

"You're not ordinary people anyway—just head down the mountain later. I'm going to the village to buy grain."

"Don't be polite—it's just this little rice."

"Use the oranges over there for side dishes."

Ordinary outsiders who wandered into Gensokyo were instantly sent back by the barrier the moment they entered the Hui Liye Shrine—but these people had claimed yesterday to be guests of Eternity Pavilion, and the wealthy worshipper needn't fear attacks from minor yōkai.

Wait—why does this guy look familiar?

"Eternity Pavilion—you're that Su…"

"Su Lin."

"The guy from the newspaper—the love triangle protagonist."

Liye paused, slapped the table, and burst into laughter:

"Come to think of it, you were chasing that crow tengu yesterday."

"'Penglai Hui Liye'—what a ridiculous fake name? And that diary entry 'Su Lin is the best'? A naive girl and a fickle, heartless lover? Cough—sorry."

Seeing Su Lin pull out another bag of copper coins, Hui Liye snapped into serious mode.

Don't misunderstand—it was just that beside him, a Lu-named male escort was about to lose it.

"Don't worry—that crow tengu's newspaper story had zero truth to it. I casually smashed her back to Youkai Mountain with my Yin-Yang Jade," Liye changed the subject.

I also accidentally smashed Mr. Su Lin into Mist Lake—he nearly had to wait for that fisherman to fish him out.

But perhaps out of guilt—or because Su Lin gave too much—this shameless miko brought over a small bowl of something pitch-black.

"The last little dish from the shrine will serve as my apology."

"."

Su Lin stared at the bowl—it looked like the old salted vegetables hung from rafters in his hometown's countryside—while the opposite shrine maiden hummed a tune reminiscent of "The Most Stunning Ethnic Style," then wolfed down her rice after adding more.

For some reason, he suddenly felt the surrounding gazes prickling his skin.

As if questioning him: Do you really have the heart to deceive an innocent girl with a historical projection?

She's already offered her most precious food as an apology.

"I was just worried there've been too few visitors lately—even no outsiders willing to pay offerings to return to the outside world."

Reimu said cheerfully: "The mushroom rice I made last night was meant to last three days, but since you've come, let's finish it all in one meal."

Not really

In this Gensokyo, is your standard of living serious?

Huai Shi, with his extensive experience in frugality, analyzed her appetite: "Nine meals in three days? This rice couldn't possibly last three days."

"Nine meals? What nonsense—of course we eat only one meal per day." Reimu served herself another bowl:

"Except during feasts—if there's a feast, we can't waste the leftovers, and then we eat five meals a day."

There were six people present; two bowls each would be about right.

"."

Su Lin lifted his chopsticks and slipped a cluster of glistening, translucent rice grains into his mouth—the flavor was bland, only the aroma remained.

Honestly, don't look at me like that—is it Su Lin's fault that Hongbai looks like this? Isn't it the Great Yokai Sage, Yuyuan Zi, who's truly guilty?!

"Don't shrine maidens get paid for exorcising demons and purifying evil?"

"That's my duty—why would I get paid?"

Good heavens

Even the most ruthless sweatshop in Ye Fan's Shangcheng wouldn't do something like this—after all, overtime is overtime, but Ye Zhetian's Shangcheng actually pays overtime wages, and triple pay on statutory holidays.

Reimu didn't know any of this; after finishing her second bowl, she noticed Su Lin hadn't touched the side dish, and her eyes darted toward it several times.

Huai Shi understood—he'd once been so poor he nearly starved to death, and when he walked past a Golden Arches, staring through the glass at others' plates, he'd looked exactly like that.

He patted his pants pockets and jacket pockets, but pulled out only a Black Card issued by the Giant Goose Corporation.

"."

Clearly, Gensokyo doesn't support card payments.

"Open my acupoints—there's some gold and silver inside." Meng Qi sent a message in the group to Lu Mingfei.

'Stare.'

Kleen stared at Su Lin with a blank expression, not activating his psychic authority—but Su Lin still felt beaten by this bastard.

【Open System Shangcheng】

【Mr. Points -10】

【Exchange: Ten-Piece Set of Exorcising Golden Leaves】

"Take it—this is your incense offering." Su Lin covered his eyes as if exhausted, then grabbed a handful and handed them over:

"Bless me with ten consecutive golden pulls, endless good fortune—I have a twin brother who's gone missing; wish him safe passage, may his knife always be white in winter, like the season of White Album."

"."

Reimu's eyes widened; the glittering golden leaves, illuminated by the hearth's glow, reflected their light onto her face.

"I'll pray for you right away! The gods will surely protect you and your brother!"

Hearing this, though he held no real hope, Su Lin felt a flicker of comfort.

Consider it spending for emotional value.

"By the way, what deity does your shrine worship—Ryujin or ZUN?"

"Who's that?"

Reimu pondered deeply: "The deity worshipped is just the deity."

As if unable to avoid the question, she pulled out her Yin-Yang Jade, talismans, and other equipment, searching for any clue.

It always felt like Gensokyo had many abstract elements—for instance, this red-and-white girl is clearly a Shendao Sect shrine maiden, yet her techniques draw from Daoist power; for all these years, no one knows which deity the shrine truly worships.

"In any case, the deity will protect you."

"Mm, amen."

Su Lin clasped his hands together in understanding.

"Amen protects you."

Reimu imitated him.

Su Lin suddenly felt a force on his shoulder—he turned and saw Lu Mingfei's right hand gripping him tightly, his eyes filled with despair.

"Leave the last shred of purity in Chewanren's world alone."

What do you mean by that?

"Then…" Meng Qi suddenly narrowed his eyes and asked: "Can your shrine worship other deities?"

"Hah?" Reimu looked troubled.

But as Meng Qi snatched another handful of golden leaves from Su Lin's hand and placed them on the table, Reimu's expression softened.

At Meng Qi's signal, Kleen pulled out three simple, ancient statues of the Three Pure Ones and their plaques.

"Definitely not heretical or wild deities—you can verify them. These are three well-known Tianzun from the outside world; just place them anywhere, no need to care for them daily."

So you're renaming it "The Eastern Three Pure Ones Chronicles," are you?!

"Fine, put them there."

Reimu didn't even hesitate—she pointed to the spot to the right of the offering box.

Are you this casual too?!

Su Lin's eyebrow twitched; his pupils widened slightly before he pulled out a silver crucifix half his height.

"Find somewhere to hang this as decoration."

The two vampires in the Fantasy Realm aren't afraid of such things—their only weakness can't cross flowing water, so hanging it here won't matter.

Anyway, I already spent the money.

"Fine." Bōlí Língmèng thought that if she ever needed cash, she could just sell it to Xianglin for money.

"The Eastern Primordial Record" is officially serialized.

Of course, Lu Mingfei had already given up trying to convince these two, silently grumbling in his mind that this bizarre shrine aesthetic would appear at his future wedding.

"Stop adding more elements."

Especially when he saw Su Lin hanging a traditional folk-style portrait of Lord Haotian on the crucifix.

Don't you two find this utterly incongruous?

But the witch over there truly didn't care at all that her shrine's offering spot had been occupied by two incense thieves.

She's completely lost all sense of decency and integrity.

"I'll come back another day for tea—I'm going to buy some tea leaves at Xianglin Hall today."

【Prompt: Bōlí Língmèng's favor increased】

With her prize-filled offering box, its weight reassuring, Língmèng bid farewell to everyone—apparently, the key character's favor had also been raised.

In a certain sense,

It was simply too easy.

Only after everyone had left and Língmèng had flown off to the Village of Mortals did a figure wearing a top hat and a vest step out from a crack in history.

Kleine sighed at the approaching expiration of those "historical projections," snapped his fingers, and wielded the powers of "Deception" and "Error" to twist them into real things.

He turned to leave but instinctively glanced at the pile of "symbols."

Kleine blinked, pulled out a seal of the Fool's Church, and tossed it over.

Anyway, I already paid.

As he left, he glanced momentarily along the guidance of his spiritual sense toward a certain spot.

Not long after, a gap opened beneath the offering box; the box fell into it and then dropped from a new gap in the sky.

But now the box was much lighter.

"My staff or my firegun—which one do you choose?"

Back at Everlasting Pavilion, Su Lin was blocked in the corridor by Xing.

Probably wandered into the wrong scene—how else could a Star Core Essence be restarting her life?

"Calm down, let me explain first," Su Lin said, raising a hand.

"The Expansion Journey is about exploring the unknown—if you bypass everything with prior knowledge, what's the point of exploration?"

Xing put down her baseball bat and the Flame Gun, frowning as she began to think.

Suddenly, a flash of insight struck her—she found a loophole and raised an objection:

"I'm talking about you raising the difficulty of the Pinoconny dungeon!"

Tsk.

Hard to fool.

"Su Lin, come try this potion," Xiao Yan called out.

So fast? Amazing healing, Physician!

"The dungeon difficulty's been raised—can't you level up?"

Su Lin pulled out a cultivation manual and shoved it into the other's hands: "Go, go, there's a trash bin behind you."

Xing's pupils shrank; she turned around—but found nothing there. She turned back.

He was gone.

She looked down—clutched in her hand was a scroll: "Daozang Foundation Establishment."

"I haven't been at Foundation Establishment for a long time."