Chapter 88: Handmade

Compared to recording on paper, a direct oral account is obviously much faster.

Lu Yu even mused that if the old man were willing, he could sit down and listen to him talk from now until the afternoon.

Hearing these words from Lu Yu, a flicker of evasion instantly flashed in the old man's eyes, and he hurriedly said, "B-better next time. My old bones have a poor memory; I really can't recall it all at once. I need to spend a few days sorting it out. Come back in a few days, and this old man definitely won't let you down."

"Alright then." A look of slight disappointment appeared on Lu Yu's face. "Old man, take care of your health. I hope I can still see you when I come back next time."

"Hm? Why does that sound a bit off? Why are you cursing me?" The old man widened his eyes.

"Old man, please don't misunderstand. I really didn't mean anything else; I just genuinely hope to see you again next time," Lu Yu hurriedly explained.

"Rest assured." The old man waved his hand. "It'll be the same place next time; you'll definitely be able to find me when you come."

Watching Lu Yu gradually walk away, the old man couldn't help but sigh softly.

This silly kid is truly a rarity. He only intended to scam him once, yet he insisted on giving himself a second chance, so he can't blame anyone else.

He only hopes that when the kid finds out the truth later, he won't be too angry; after all, anger is useless.

Of course, if this kid hasn't had enough after being scammed twice and wants to be scammed a third or fourth time, then he will really give him a powerful Secret Manual.

However... a trace of confusion flashed in the old man's eyes. Can anyone actually master the things in these Secret Manuals?

"Lu Yu, are you sure there's really good stuff in these Secret Manuals?" Qin Hai asked with a face full of doubt.

Although Lu Guohao and the others didn't speak, their gazes turned toward Lu Yu in unison.

"There is indeed real stuff in here." Lu Yu's tone was firm and calm.

"Ah?!" Everyone was startled.

Qin Hai widened his eyes even further, seemingly wanting to ask more.

"Don't worry, I will prove it to you all later," Lu Yu said.

As far as the current situation goes, the 【Shadowless Great Fast Blade】 is the easiest to unlock, as long as one has a few levels of Basic Blade Technique.

And the difficulty of the 【Water-Pointing Swimming Dragon Skill】 is likely greater; it requires mastering Basic Movement Technique, and Lu Yu has no clue about that—it seems he will have to go back and ask Wang Shu.

As for the 【Vajra Indestructible Divine Skill】, there is no need to consider it in the short term; the difficulty of completing this martial art is extremely high.

But once mastered, one's survival ability will be greatly enhanced! After all, who wouldn't get a headache encountering a sharpshooter who is both durable and deals high damage?

"Since Xiao Yu says so, then it definitely can't be fake," Zhao Shan laughed heartily.

"That's right, Xiao Yu is a Martial Artist, his judgment is much better than ours."

"Exactly, exactly." The others didn't pay much mind to it.

After all, the prey caught on this trip mostly relied on Lu Yu's efforts, so naturally, he could spend his money however he wanted.

Qin Hai had no choice but to accept it, thinking to himself that since you are so confident, then I'll wait to see you prove it.

The group walked along the street toward the grain store. As they walked, Lu Yu suddenly stopped and stood in front of a small stall selling masks.

"What's wrong?" Lu Guohao looked over, looking puzzled.

Behind the stall, a thin man with slender fingers looked at Lu Yu with great enthusiasm and said, "Big brother, want to look at some masks? The masks I have here are all handmade, and the quality is absolutely guaranteed."

Lu Yu's gaze landed on the several rows of masks displayed in front of the man.

These masks were quite varied in type, with cartoon characters and zodiac signs, each one made to look lifelike.

"Masks? This stuff doesn't seem to have any use, does it?" someone muttered softly.

"Yeah, besides children, I guess no one would like them, right? And they can't be used to fill your stomach."

"And the price seems quite high; a mask actually costs two yuan." Everyone looked at the masks with disdain in their eyes.

Seeing this, the man became a bit nervous and hurriedly said, "If you buy a lot, I can give you a cheaper price."

As a craftsman, before the mutation occurred, his life could barely maintain food and clothing.

But after the mutation, these small items simply couldn't be sold.

Lu Yu naturally understood the man's situation. He was thinking that those horse bandits outside must be watching the exit at all times; even if he went out alone, if they recognized him, the situation could become very bad.

Although this possibility was small, it's better to be safe than sorry. Anyway, he wasn't short on this bit of money.

His gaze swept past the cartoon and animal masks in the front one by one.

It wasn't that these masks were bad, but just imagine, a person wearing a rabbit smiley mask killing someone as if nothing happened—no matter how you look at it, it's like a pervert.

Finally, his gaze stopped on the last row of masks. These were three masks painted with Yaksha patterns, looking like evil ghosts.

The Yaksha on the masks had two long horns on top of their heads, and in their blood-red mouths, two rows of snow-white, sharp teeth were particularly striking, especially the two teeth on both sides of the upper row, which, like the fangs of a saber-toothed tiger, extended all the way to the chin, looking chilling to anyone who saw them.

These three masks were of different colors: black, red, and cyan.

"Boss, how much for these three masks?" Lu Yu asked.

"You mean these three?" The man's tone carried a hint of nervousness. "These Asura masks are much more complicated to make, so the price is a bit higher, five yuan each."

"Five yuan! Are you crazy for money?"

"Boss, these masks were probably made several years ago and have been stuck in your hands, unable to sell, right?" Everyone criticized him one after another.

The man's face turned red from being talked to.

"Ten yuan for three; if you're willing, I'll take them all," Lu Yu said calmly.

The man hesitated for a moment before agreeing immediately.

Qin Hai watched silently from the side; although he felt Lu Yu was wasting money, he had to admit that these ghost-face masks were actually quite cool.

Next, Lu Yu passed by several more stalls and bought some odds and ends, like soap and toilet paper, and also bought two decks of playing cards and a set of Chinese chess.

Since he had come all this way, he thought about bringing some small gifts back for his mother and younger brother.

He also spent nearly one hundred yuan to buy a Telescope; with this, the money he had on him was almost all spent.

Lu Guohao seemed to be influenced by Lu Yu; he gritted his teeth, bought a bottle of skincare product, and stuffed it into his pocket.

After the others had also finished purchasing their items, the group arrived at the entrance of the grain store.

The grain store was not quite like other places; several big men holding Rifles stood at the entrance, their eyes vigilant, watching everyone who entered the store.

Behind the counter inside the store stood a bald, middle-aged man.

He kept his head lowered, as if reading a novel, occasionally letting out a laugh or two.

"Boss, how do you sell rice here? And salt?" Lu Guohao walked into the shop and asked first.

"Rice, huh? The most ordinary rice is one yuan per jin. If you want to buy something better, there's also three yuan per jin and ten yuan per jin; it depends on your own choice."

The bald man stood behind the counter and said without even lifting his head, "As for salt, it's five yuan per jin."

"What! Five yuan per jin!" someone couldn't help but exclaim, "Wasn't it four yuan per jin when we came last time?"

"Yeah, Boss, isn't your price hike a bit too fast?"

The bald man raised his head, swept a contemptuous glance over the crowd, and said, "Let me be clear with you all: salt will only get more expensive from here on out. When the seawater freezes, it won't be strange for it to sell for ten-something or even several tens of yuan per jin."

"Do you know how many Fierce Beasts are at the seaside now? It's much more dangerous than on land. Buy it if you want, or don't if you don't." After finishing, he lowered his head again and continued reading the book in front of him.

Lu Guohao and the others looked at each other in dismay; what could they do? There was no choice but to buy it. But this way, they could only buy less rice.

"Boss," just at this moment, Lu Yu asked with a puzzled look on his face, "I heard you just say that there is also rice for three yuan per jin and ten yuan per jin. Since they are sold so expensively, what is better about them compared to the one-yuan-per-jin kind?"