Chapter 954: Items That Can Be Sold (Final Three Days—Requesting Monthly Votes)

Lu Mi saw this and didn’t press further; after all, Xu Xinyang still had to pay, and he couldn’t cover for him.

He hadn’t even received his first month’s salary yet!

Lu Mi then called over colleagues who had collapsed during the initial phase but had now recovered, assigning them to escort different drunkards home nearby; if no one was heading their way, he had them call the families to come pick them up.

After finishing this task, Lu Mi pulled up a chair, sat down, and drank two sips of strong liquor as if it were a beverage, making the few colleagues who remained somewhat sober twitch their temples.

Is this guy reincarnated from a wine vat?

Glancing at the still-bustling lobby outside, Lu Mi idly pulled out his phone, replied to messages, and scrolled through trending topics.

As he watched, he noticed the content pushed to him had grown significantly more focused on “alcohol,” including but not limited to: “Which brand of baijiu tastes best?” “Beer tasting,” “Legal liability for forcing someone to drink and causing an accident,” “Civil compensation from fellow drinkers to the family of someone who died suddenly from alcohol poisoning,” “Alcohol is a carcinogen”…

Is this a form of surveillance? Lu Mi pondered, sliding his thumb across the screen.

When the last drunkard was taken away, he stood up, left the hotpot restaurant, and searched for the location of Xinhong Community—discovering it was just over two kilometers away.

Lu Mi decided to walk back.

It was already past eight; the sky was fully dark, the hot wind carrying a touch of coolness, streetlights bright on both sides, pedestrians numerous, brushing past each other without disturbing one another.

Lu Mi savored this state of being immersed in the crowd yet detached from it, his spirit gradually relaxing and easing.

He passed stores playing old songs, passed crowds dancing to upbeat rhythms, passed the bustling bar street, hearing a “thump-thump” sound emanating from within.

Back in his rented room, Lu Mi saw Ludwig in the kitchen, standing on a folding stool, busily preparing food, while Anthony sat beside the dining table, writing down his observations from the day.

His task was to continue observing Zhou Mingrui and those near him, watching for any anomalies or subtle changes after they interacted with Lu Mi, Fu Lan Ka, or Jian Na.

Seeing Lu Mi return, Anthony looked up and said:

“He insists on doing it himself.”

“He finds preparing his own breakfast or late-night snack more enjoyable than reading textbooks or doing homework.”

“More human,” Lu Mi chuckled.

He had barely sat down when the door opened and Fu Lan Ka and Jian Na appeared at the threshold.

“There’s an urgent matter—we need to gather and exchange insights, learn from each other,” Fu Lan Ka stated succinctly.

Her contact with Zhou Mingrui today was only of a superficial nature, and since there were already experimental results, it wouldn’t cause her to be expelled from the dream or restricted.

So, before taking further action, they could secretly meet up with Lu Mi and the others.

—She and Jian Na had taken a taxi to a stop one station away, then slipped over via shadows.

“What’s it about?” Lu Mi sat up slightly.

“I’m having dinner alone with Zhou Mingrui tomorrow night—thanks to Rosan!” Fu Lan Ka pulled out a chair and sat down, excited yet nervous as she asked Lu Mi, “Does this interfere with your experiment setup?”

“A little, but not significantly. Start with bold attempts, then circle back, eliminating possibilities one by one—that’s also a valid experimental method,” Lu Mi said after a few seconds of thought.

Fu Lan Ka exhaled in relief:

“Then let’s discuss how to subtly hint to Zhou Mingrui—there must be some progress compared to before, but not too much, or we won’t be able to eliminate options, and we’ll have to risk a second attempt later.”

Lu Mi grunted, offering multiple strategies from the perspective of a “conspirator,” evaluating Fu Lan Ka’s plans and phrasing, while Jian Na assisted in spotting gaps and filling holes as the “instigator.”

Anthony focused on Chuaimo Zhou Mingrui’s possible psychological responses and instinctive reactions, even role-playing Zhou Mingrui during rehearsals.

After twenty to thirty minutes of discussion, Fu Lan Ka finally had two feasible plans, highly likely to achieve her goal.

“Truly, collective wisdom is essential!” she remarked sincerely.

Jian Na then recounted her experience selling paintings at Star Dream Grocery, leaving no detail unmentioned.

Upon hearing the end, Fu Lan Ka, lost in thought, pulled from her “Traveler’s Satchel” the supernatural trait obtained from the resurrected corpse, Pan Na.

She showed it briefly, then quickly tucked it away:

“Can this be sold to Star Dream Grocery?”

“We don’t need it for now—better to turn it into cash, rent useful items, and regardless of whether the mission succeeds, the Major Arcana cards should reimburse or help redeem them.”

“We can try, but I think that one likely won’t accept it,” Lu Mi said, pulling an item from his own “Traveler’s Satchel.”

It was the corpse-oil candle from the “Azure Avenger.”

Gazing at the pale yellow, slightly reddish, semi-solid candle, Lu Mi thought aloud:

“We’ve discussed before that the ‘Witch’ may carry symbolic meaning and special function in this dream city. Now I think the ‘Hunter’ might too: I am the ‘Hunter,’ the first person killed was the Divine Envoy, who was also a ‘Hunter,’ and now Anderson, clearly exhibiting anomalies, is also a ‘Hunter.’

“Under this premise, items related to the ‘Witch’ and ‘Hunter’ may prove useful later, but we can’t predict which one—so that one will likely refuse to take them, letting us keep them, waiting for the right moment.

“Hmm, we can try. If He refuses, my hypothesis gets preliminary validation.”

Jian Na, Fu Lan Ka, and Anthony all nodded thoughtfully.

The four then successively pulled out several recent unused items imbued with occult elements, planning to have Jian Na take them to Star Dream Grocery for sale the next day.

Looking at these items, Jian Na paused for a few seconds and said:

“He’s a true god… sending over this messy pile of items, some valuable, some not—isn’t that a bit disrespectful?”

Anthony nodded in agreement with Jian Na’s point.

Fu Lan Ka added:

“Yeah, feels like treating Him like a junk collector…”

As they spoke, Fu Lan Ka fell silent, and Lu Mi and the others followed suit.

In the end, they selected only three items of higher value.

After finalizing all matters, Fu Lan Ka stood up, stretched her arms, and said:

“Just thinking about tomorrow night’s chance to subtly hint at the ‘Fool’s’ dream image… I’m a little excited and a little nervous.”

“What time are you meeting tomorrow night?” Lu Mi asked.

“Seven. Rosan said those tech folks rarely clock out on time—we need buffer time,” Fu Lan Ka added the dinner location as well.

Seven too… Lu Mi raised his right hand, rubbing his chin.

At that moment, Jian Na carefully said:

“You don’t need to be too tense—you might not even get the dinner confirmed. I’ve seen plenty of posts on those apps where couples set a time and place, only for the boyfriend or girlfriend to get stuck with overtime and cancel last minute.”

“That’s possible…” Fu Lan Ka was momentarily stunned.

…………

The next morning, Jian Na returned to Star Dream Grocery.

She took another ride-hailing car, but this time faced no obstruction, no anomaly whatsoever.

Walking to the back counter of Star Dream Grocery, Jian Na politely asked:

“Do you accept this item?”

She placed the supernatural trait of the resurrected corpse, Pan Na, on the counter.

In the dimming environment, the shopkeeper lifted his head, glanced once, and shook his head:

“We don’t take this.”

Not taking it after all… Does it need to be crafted into an item, or—as Lu Mi speculated—is it because items tied to the ‘Witch’ and ‘Hunter’ will play a key role later? Jian Na tucked away Pan Na’s trait and pulled out the corpse-oil candle in a small glass vial:

“What about this one?”

“No,” the shopkeeper’s beautiful face showed no sign of impatience.

Not taking the item either… Jian Na carefully put the corpse-oil candle away.

Then she withdrew another item from her “Traveler’s Satchel.”

It was a full-body suit of silvery-white armor.

“Armor of Pride!”

Jian Na made no effort to conceal the “Traveler’s Satchel”’s unique traits, placing the “Armor of Pride” sideways on the counter.

The next instant, she noticed a faint smile forming on the shopkeeper’s face.

Almost simultaneously, the “Armor of Pride” moved.

Like a crab, it shifted sideways, clanking as its metal plates collided, scuttling swiftly toward the entrance of Star Dream Grocery.

But as it moved, it slowed, gradually turning upright.

Just two or three steps from exiting, it came to a complete stop, utterly motionless.

It had become ordinary armor.

At this moment, Jian Na and the shopkeeper stood directly behind it, facing each other.

It showed no reaction whatsoever.

As Jian Na stared in shock, the shopkeeper spoke with a smile:

“We’ll take this one.”

“Still thirty thousand.”

Items like the “Armor of Pride” can indeed be sold… but why did the “Armor of Pride” react so strongly just now, and why is it now ignoring even those behind it? Jian Na puzzled over it but dared not ask.

…………

Learning he would be switching to the mid-shift next week, Lu Mi returned to his rented room.

He left at six in the evening, arriving half an hour early at the entrance of Sifangjie Jinxiu Dongfang Community.

He wanted to scout the environment firsthand—it might be useful later.

As Lu Mi scanned the area, he suddenly spotted a familiar figure.

It was Anderson Hu, wearing a black T-shirt with abstract patterns.

Anderson also saw Lu Mi and walked over, smiling:

“I’m used to arriving early.”

Lu Mi returned the smile:

“So am I.”

Anderson nodded:

Since you're all here early, let's go visit sooner.

Your friend turns out to be yourself.

"If you think that way, there's nothing I can do." Lu Mi smiled without arguing.

Anderson paid no mind, turned his body, and led him into the Jinxiu Dongfang Community.

PS: Final three days—please vote for monthly tickets~

(End of chapter)