Chapter 16: Fox Borrowing the Tiger's Might

Collecting emotions requires technique.

You can roast people as you please, provided you can beat them or aren't afraid of getting a beating.

But you can't just dish out "poisonous chicken soup" randomly; not everyone experiences an effect after drinking it.

Feeding chicken soup to a waiter can inspire hope for his life, even if only temporarily.

The same chicken soup, if fed to a shopkeeper, will only make him wonder if you are trying to default on your room rent...

If you reward a waiter with copper coins, he will be happy for an entire day.

Yet, if you give the same copper coins to a beggar on the side of the road, he will take it for granted, and even the smile he returns to you or the flattering words he says will be devoid of emotion, full of a cheap, hypocritical sense of professionalism...

Therefore.

Even when collecting emotions, you must target the right people; this can avoid a lot of wasted effort.

Constantly summarize, constantly learn.

This is the experience that leads Lin Bai to success.

After giving the beggar money, Lin Bai did not leave. He looked at the beggar squatting lazily on the side of the road and asked, "Who is in charge of this area for your Beggar Sect?"

"What Beggar Sect?" The beggar lifted his head and reached out to pick his nose.

"None?" Lin Bai smiled. "Perhaps I was mistaken. Is there really no one covering for you beggars?"

The beggar immediately became alert and said, "Of course there is."

"Who?" Lin Bai asked.

"The City Lord allows us to beg within the city. He is wise, martial, and has a heart of a Bodhisattva; naturally, he is the one covering for us..." The beggar cupped his hands toward the direction of the City Lord's Mansion with a look of gratitude.

Show-off!

That was the end of that conversation!

This guy suddenly erupted with such a strong desire to survive; he must have misunderstood something!

Lin Bai looked at the beggar with a half-smile and played along: "You certainly have a sharp eye!"

"Look at what you're saying! In this line of work, if you don't have a sharp eye, you can't beg for money! Besides, usually, no one comes to us stinking beggars to sniff out information!" The beggar looked at Lin Bai, gave a silly grin, reached into his bowl, grabbed the copper coins Lin Bai had just given him, and said with a fawning face, "My lord, your money just fell into my bowl..."

Damn it!

Lin Bai held his breath; even the beggar was this clever.

Is this really a game?

Seeing that Lin Bai didn't move, the beggar, looking pained, grabbed another handful of copper coins from his bosom and offered them up with both hands: "My lord, it was this little one who took the wrong ones; these are the coins you dropped."

Looking at the full handful of copper coins in the beggar's hands, Lin Bai hesitated. If only those hands hadn't just been picking a nose.

Is being a beggar this profitable?

Perhaps letting his big brother run the Beggar Sect isn't without a future...

"Ahem!" Lin Bai coughed, straightened his face, and scolded, "Take it back! Who do you take this lord—take me for? When have I ever taken back money I've scattered?"

【Relaxation from Li Ergou; +1】

【Collected ten portions of Positive Emotion (Completed), Reward: Temperament +3 (Issued)】

【Congratulations, you have initially grasped the mysteries of Negative Emotion and Positive Emotion. Next, please choose your mission direction independently: 1. Positive Emotion; 2. Negative Emotion;】

I can choose the mission direction myself now?

Lin Bai thought for a moment and chose Negative Emotion without hesitation. It was just fooling a little beggar; he didn't need to be fully focused.

【Congratulations, you have planted a Negative Emotion Tree. Given that you have initially understood the mysteries of using emotions.

Unless there are special circumstances, the system will no longer issue targeted missions.

Please actively collect Negative Emotion. Ten portions of Negative Emotion can water the growth tree once.

Watering promotes the growth of the tree. Each time it grows to a certain stage, it will automatically increase your Mental Power.

When the tree bears fruit, you can unlock the Positive Emotion Tree.】

Great!

It even changed its tricks!

Lin Bai complained to himself: accumulating emotions, watering the tree—is it going to mail a box of oranges when the tree blossoms and bears fruit?

Being so dawdling, it's really not satisfying. Can't we just issue all the rewards at once?

My ability to manipulate other people's emotions has clearly reached perfection, hasn't it?

Not user-friendly at all!

The reward was issued directly.

With Temperament increased by three, in the beggar's eyes, after Lin Bai finished that sentence, his entire aura changed, inexplicably gaining a hint of majesty.

Originally, he still held a hint of suspicion regarding Lin Bai's identity as a Government secret agent.

But when Lin Bai's Temperament changed, this bit of suspicion vanished completely, turning into firm belief.

How could an ordinary person have such a Temperament?

"My lord, I see your face is unfamiliar. You aren't from Jiamu City, are you?" the beggar asked cautiously.

"Mm, I'm here to investigate some matters," Lin Bai said dismissively. "Ask less about things you shouldn't."

"Sigh!" The beggar retracted his neck sheepishly. "My lord, the person in charge of this area in the south of the city is Liu Quan. Do you want me to help you call him over?"

"No need," Lin Bai shook his head. "Do you know about the matter of the great bandit planning to break out of prison yesterday?"

"Naturally I know; the wanted posters are already up," the beggar said.

Lin Bai suddenly realized. No wonder his big brother went to be a beggar; it turns out the reason was here. The incident was quite big!

Being wanted makes things even easier to handle!

Lin Bai said, "I received news that two master thieves disguised themselves as Beggars yesterday, scouting locations in the city to commit crimes. Go tell Liu Quan to find them."

"That's outrageous!" Li Ergou bristled immediately. "Isn't that trying to frame us poor folks? Sir, rest assured, I will find them for you within an hour."

"Once you find them, send them straight to the Government; consider it your own merit," Lin Bai said. "I am investigating a major case. Do not mention that you came to find me. If word leaks out and ruins my big plan, you won't be able to bear the consequences..."

"..." Li Ergou understood perfectly. "I understand!"

"Go!" Lin Bai waved his hand.

Li Ergou packed up his broken bowl and left like the wind.

Players cannot log off while detained by the Government.

If he can still persist without deleting his account after having such a huge scapegoat dumped on his head, then he is truly worth cultivating!

Watching the Beggar's retreating back, Lin Bai observed a minute of silence for his big brother Lao Mi, then turned and walked toward the Carpenter Shop.

The task progress of the Wanwu Youque System is stagnant; I must urge them to hurry up and install the sign. Relying on manually making people feel the Flaw, when will I ever gather fifty people?

In just two short days, I haven't made many friends, but I've provoked quite a few enemies. I just chose the Negative Emotion Tree, and without any self-preservation strength, who knows when I might get beaten up by someone...

"Second brother, is that guy sick? It's a perfectly good table, yet he insists on smashing a hole in it..."

"If he weren't sick, would he take over a Haunted House? Brother, Dad said to use scrap materials whenever possible. If we can delay that fool's work, we should. Maybe by today, that person will have heard about the shop's situation. If we finish the work by then, we'll be the ones losing out. Nobody wants a table with a hole in it, and finishing it would just waste labor and materials."

At the entrance of the Carpenter Shop.

Listening to the conversation inside, Lin Bai was speechless; the reason for the task stagnation had been found.

It's a good thing I came; otherwise, these guys might have dragged it out for who knows how long!

Currently, among the natives he has encountered, except for the three simple ghosts, each one is more cunning than the last. This world is becoming less and less like a game.

"Carpenter Zhang, is this how you swindle your customers?" Lin Bai coughed and questioned loudly.

The two brothers working stopped their movements abruptly.

The older one put down the saw in his hand and straightened up: "Who are you?"

Lin Bai said: "I am the sick fool you were talking about."

The two brothers' faces turned red, and they stood there sheepishly; neither knew how to respond. It was so awkward.

"Shopkeeper, what brings you here?" Carpenter Zhang hurried out from the room, glared fiercely at the two brothers, and then plastered a smile on his face. "The furniture is being made right now; I'll be sure to deliver it to you as soon as it's done."

"Don't try to fool me. I heard everything they said. Aren't you just waiting for me to withdraw so you can pocket my deposit?" Lin Bai said with Zhaofeng. "Carpenter Zhang, you look like an honest man, so I thought you were a decent person. I didn't expect you to do such sordid things behind my back!"

Zhang Achun's old face turned red: "Customer, you've misunderstood. I just didn't want the shopkeeper to suffer a loss. To tell you the truth, inside the shop you bought..."

"They agreed," Lin Bai interrupted him.

"..." Carpenter Zhang seemed not to have heard clearly. "What?"

"I saw them last night. They agreed to let me open a shop there," Lin Bai said solemnly. "Shopkeeper, my business is waiting to open, and you're still trying to trick me like this. I wouldn't mind letting them come over tonight to talk to you..."

"Customer, you're joking, right!" Carpenter Zhang's teeth were chattering.

"Husband Song Jinnan, wife Wu Xiuxiu, daughter Song Ling—do you think I look like I'm joking?" Lin Bai raised an eyebrow and hummed lightly.

Clang!

The plane in Zhang Lao Er's hand fell to the ground.

【Fear from Zhang Achun, Zhang Hu, Zhang Bao +3】.

Lin Bai looked at them with a smile: "I'll give you one day and one night. Tomorrow morning, the sign must be hung up for me, and the tables and chairs must be placed in the shop. Master Zhang, no problem, right?"

Carpenter Zhang's face turned deathly pale, his teeth chattering: "No... no problem."

"If you don't have the Vajra diamond, don't take on the porcelain work. Since I dared to buy a Haunted House, I naturally have my own skills. Did you really think I was a fool?" Lin Bai smiled. "Master Zhang, hurry up and get to work! I still have to go urge the Blacksmith. Also, don't let word of the situation with Song Jinnan spread; I'm still counting on opening the shop to make money!"

Opening a shop to make money!

Shouldn't you be spreading the news that you subdued the ghosts?

What's the point of keeping it a secret?

You really are sick, aren't you!

Are you planning to entertain people or ghosts at your restaurant?

When this thought popped into Carpenter Zhang's head, he couldn't help but swallow his saliva. Watching Lin Bai's retreating back, he felt he had guessed the truth of the matter.

(End of this chapter)