The doorbell rang repeatedly—ting-ting-ting-ting-ting-ting
Several burly men wearing grayish-purple uniforms entered the place—their steps orderly and structured. The wooden floor of the entertainment shop creaked heavily beneath the weight of the guards' footsteps—krek.... Krek... Krekk... — creating a loud echo throughout the room.
They lowered their heads, making way for someone influential. "Please come in, Young Master Wang." The guards greeted.
Young Master Wang walked into the place arrogantly and confidently—his silk boots striking the wooden floor—duk... duk... duk... heavily and slowly as though every step marked the arrival of a ruler.
Ting-ting
The sound of the bell rang once again, revealing someone dressed in traditional hanfu dominated by white and purple.
The entertainment shop suddenly felt heavy and suffocating—Young Master Wang became the center of gravity pressing down on the entire room around him.
They all observed and looked at an arcade machine; an entertainment rumored among the townspeople lately.
"So this is it? The entertainment people keep calling unique and enjoyable? Even from its appearance, this looks different from other entertainments." Young Master Wang exclaimed with a cynical smile while realizing the place was empty—there were only brooms, mops, animal hides, and unique rectangular metallic game machines.
Young Master Wang slowly walked toward the middle-right section that contained three arcade machines—behind him, six guards stomped their military boots simultaneously, slowly yet heavily—brak! brak! brak! brak! —dust rose from the gaps in the wooden floorboards.
People outside, especially merchants and passersby, whispered to one another while avoiding the place—their voices resembled the faint buzzing of bees.
"Is that the rumored place? Young Master Wang actually came there!" The people whispered.
"After Young Master Wang comes out of there... the owner will surely get beaten up if he doesn't make everything free. Or his business will close down immediately if he gets threatened with destruction!" A young man exclaimed without realizing how loud his voice had become, echoing through the street.
"Idiot!! Lower your voice! Do you want to die by his hands!?" A middle-aged merchant snapped at him.
At the same time; just as Young Master Wang was about to touch the Cap Man arcade machine. His steps halted when he noticed another presence standing merely an arm's reach away from him.
"That game is called Cap Man, Young Master Wang." He spoke with a small polite smile—there was not the slightest sign of danger or intimidation.
Young Master Wang was startled, his eyes narrowing in disbelief at what he was witnessing right now. "Wait... You... don't have any Qi flow?" His eyes narrowed in confusion and suspicion—his senses could not detect Mo Fanglei's existence at all.
Young Master Wang's guards tensed up and prepared to draw their weapons, thinking the stranger was threatening their young master, but they were stopped by Young Master Wang. His hand moved behind his back, palm facing backward with fingers pressed tightly together like a signal—forming an invisible barrier commanding them to stop and remain calm.
Mo Fanglei stood there with a polite smile. To a cultivator accustomed to detecting enemies through fluctuations of energy or Qi, Mo Fanglei's existence could not be sensed because he was 'empty' without Qi, which instead rendered him invisible to their enhanced senses, he was a good in their spiritual perception—like trying to see a sheet of white paper on top of snow.
Mo Fanglei smiled faintly. "What do you mean, Young Master Wang? Your purpose for coming here is none other than to enjoy my entertainment. Isn't that right?" Mo Fanglei asked.
"I seriously have no idea what he's talking about. And he mentioned Qi flow?! Was I really reincarnated into a cultivation world!?" Mo Fanglei thought inwardly, questioning it once again as though terrified that scenes from xianxia novels were truly happening to him.
Young Master Wang fell silent for a moment, his expression changing within a split second—then returning to normal. "Very well, show me the game and teach me how to play it."
"Please have a seat first, Young Master." Mo Fanglei replied.
"You may enjoy my entertainment for free for fifteen minutes, anything beyond that will cost one small spirit stone."
Young Master Wang chuckled softly. "If it is worth it."
"In short, we play as Cap Man who is chased by colorful ghosts while running around, and while being chased we must eat small yellow dots and fruits to reach a certain score and win the game." He answered calmly, although inwardly he remained wary of the existence of those muscular guards.
Young Master Wang continued staring blankly—lost in thought as he watched his own reflection that looked utterly devoid of hope for living, completely missing several parts of Mo Fanglei's explanation.
"Do you understand how to play the game?" Mo Fanglei asked Young Master Wang who remained silent.
Young Master Wang did not immediately respond. His eyes were empty and devoid of light, fixed upon his own reflection on the dark screen—a reflection of an arrogant young master on the outside, yet merely a man who had no hope left in life. He had not heard a single word from Mo Fanglei's explanation.
His expression returned to normal once more. "Yes.. I understand, shop owner."
Mo Fanglei then turned on the Cap Man arcade machine with INSERT COIN and started the game.
"Why is it so noisy outside? Did someone get into a fight? Or... did Young Master Wang come here? I couldn't hear it clearly." He muttered—watching through the gaps between the burly guards before turning his gaze back toward Young Master Wang, who was struggling.
"What the hell is this?! These four weak little ghosts are disturbing me while I'm eating those fruits!?" Young Master Wang thought—his hand-eye coordination completely unsynchronized. The ghosts approached him.
This was the first time Young Master Wang, famous for oppressing others with delight while enjoying their fear, personally experienced the terror of being chased by something he could not attack—running aimlessly while avoiding the pursuing ghosts.
Fifteen minutes had already passed
Young Master Wang spun the joystick around to escape the ghosts while globbing up the remaining yellow dots and fruits. Mo Fanglei observed him—realizing that Young Master Wang was merely playing without understanding how to clear the stage. Only a few yellow dots remained, but the red ghost was already chasing him.
Wah-wah-wah-wah-wah-wah
GAME OVER.
The sound of defeat from Cap Man rang clearly in Young Master Wang's ears after only fifteen minutes of playing—his grip tightened, veins bulging from his hand as though preparing to destroy the machine.
One of the guards noticed it immediately. "Young Master Wang, we beg your permission to destroy this thing until nothing remains!" One guard pleaded, already prepared to act, yet Young Master Wang gave no response.
Mo Fanglei asked again, "Would you like to continue playing for one small spirit stone? Or would you like me to teach you how to play?" He maintained his polite smile.
"W-wait! He wants to destroy my arcade?! My life is over just like that? Is this where my fate ends!?" Mo Fanglei panicked inwardly until his head began spinning, unconsciously biting his fingernails in anxiety—hoping Young Master Wang would not destroy it.
Without sound, without words, only action—Young Master Wang directly handed over one hundred small spirit stones inside a small pouch. "Hey, my guards." He pointed at all of them with his index finger. "Now come play with me."
The guards were confused and exchanged glances. Their muscular bodies were clearly visible beneath their uniforms, yet now they stood before an arcade machine.
"Y-young Master Wang, we do not know how to—"
"Learn. I do not wish to be the only person here who looks ridiculous."
Mo Fanglei smiled faintly. "Relax, this machine is beginner-friendly."
---
Fifteen minutes later, the guards screamed hysterically as the ghosts in Cap Man caught them.
One guard's face turned pale with fear while playing. "Why is this pink ghost so fast!? It even predicts my movements!?" He shouted while spinning the joystick—click-click-click-click
"Hurry! It's chasing you! Don't get caught!" Another guard watching from behind yelled.
The Cap Man defeat sound echoed once more—wah-wah-wah-wah-wah-wah
GAME OVER
"Damn it.. I lost again." He said with a resigned face despite already reaching level 2.
"Move aside! Let me play instead! You just suck at the game!" Another mocked him while forcing him to switch turns.
On the other side, Young Master Wang had already reached level 4; his hand-eye coordination was beginning to synchronize as he finally understood the role of each movement.
Young Master Wang rapidly spun his joystick while dodging every ghost around him. For the first time, someone highly skilled in swordsmanship and famous for his fast reflexes and reactions felt overwhelmed by these tiny ghosts—his fingers became slightly stiff and unable to react properly.
"Young Master Wang, you are supposedly a cultivator highly skilled in wielding swords, so why do you seem a little stiff?" Mo Fanglei asked while challenging the ego of the young master.
Inside Young Master Wang's mind, he was still overwhelmed by the annoying ghosts. "Damn it! Damn it! They're getting faster, I can't even fight back and can only run away!" He fumed like a master who had lost after underestimating someone he considered insignificant, his ego stung by the shop owner's words.
His focus, hand-eye coordination, cognitive ability, decision-making speed, and reactions sharply improved. Young Master Wang predicted every movement of the ghosts for the sake of the few remaining yellow dots—click-click-click-click
The sound of eating yellow dots echoed—waka-waka-waka-waka-waka-waka.
di-di-di-di-dut, da-da-da-da-daaa
LEVEL COMPLETED
The iconic Cap Man victory sound rang loudly—the guards watching Young Master Wang clear level 4, something they considered impossible, were stunned—their eyes widened and pupils shrank.
"Young Master.. succeeded? Yes!!! Congratulations on your victory, Young Master Wang!" The guards cheered joyfully—clenching their fists tightly.
DING!
Effects applied to customer:
+0.1% reaction speed
-0.1% stress fatigue
+0.1% cognitive and focus
+0.1% hand-eye coordination
System evaluation: Wang Jingyun, Young Master Wang has the potential to become a regular customer to the host
Congratulations to Wang Jingyun, Young Master Wang! Because he experienced the rare permanent enchancement effect of increased reaction, cognition, focus, and hand-eye coordination with a ratio of 1 in 1000!
The guards remained busy celebrating Young Master Wang's victory, as though they had just won a great war fought for decades—their cheers still echoed throughout the room.
Mo Fanglei, who was still smiling because of Young Master Wang's victory, became shocked upon hearing the system notification. "So his name is Wang Jingyun? Forget that for now, but how could he obtain such a rare permanent effect with a one in one thousand chance?!" He thought in disbelief.
Wang Jingyun felt his head spinning—yet his focus became sharper, his reactions faster, his cognition improved, his hand-eye coordination synchronized, while his exhaustion and stress faded away—the joy of playing and teasing women could not compare to the entertainment he experienced now.
He stared at both of his trembling palms. Wang Jingyun finally began to realize that 'happiness' did not only come from drinking alcohol or playing with women, but also from the satisfaction and appreciation of what he had obtained right now.
Mo Fanglei noticed Wang Jingyun's dazed expression and momentarily forgot about the permanent effect he had just obtained. "Young Master Wang? Are you perhaps too happy because you managed to clear it?" He spoke softly with a polite smile.
Wang Jingyun did not answer the shop owner's question and instead asked back, "What is your name?"
"M-my name is Mo Fanglei, Young Master Wang.." Mo Fanglei replied while glancing nervously at the guards whose fierce expressions resembled predators ready to tear apart their prey.
"Mo Fanglei? I will remember that." He clenched his fist—standing up from his seat. "My guards, let us return home. I am satisfied with this entertainment." He walked slowly, confidently, yet without arrogance.
"Y-yes, Young Master Wang." Heavy footsteps echoed loudly again and the wooden floor creaked once more—brak! Brak! —making way for Young Master Wang.
The people outside had been observing carefully all this time—Young Master Wang had stayed there for hours. After his departure, they were shocked to discover there was no property damage whatsoever inside the shop, nor was there any sign of violence on the ground. They exchanged glances and whispered among themselves, witnessing something Young Master Wang had never done before.
---
A while later, after Wang Jingyun left. Mo Fanglei immediately closed the shop and let out a deep sigh.
"Ugh... I survived today." He whispered. Glancing toward the pouch filled with spirit stones—holding it tightly and rubbing it lovingly, appreciating the payment that felt worth nearly dying for.
His growling stomach sent a signal of hunger—kruuuk... Kruuk...
"Now I should eat first and then sleep, tomorrow it's time to think about what I should do with this pouch of spirit stones."
The night sky felt calmer, accompanied by Mo Fanglei's relieved breathing. The suffocating tension from earlier had been replaced by silence that carried peace.
Mo Fanglei sat in front of the arcade machine. "This exhaustion is worth it, I want to enjoy tonight by playing arcade games before sleeping even though the food tastes bland without seasoning." He said—spinning the joystick effortlessly, as though he had been playing since childhood—click-click-click-click-click
With a full stomach, the burden on his mind seemed lifted, replacing the anxiety from this morning with tranquility.
A mysterious gaze watched him from afar—Mo Fanglei felt chills run down his spine but ignored his instincts—trying to think positively. "Maybe it's just someone passing by." He glanced toward the door for a moment before continuing to play again—click-click-click
di-di-di-di-dut, da-da-da-da-daaa
LEVEL COMPLETED
He sighed in boredom. "Ugh.. Too easy, I don't feel excited after Young Master Wang left," He muttered.
The sound of footsteps slowly approached step by step—duk... duk... duk... duk... duk... Until they stopped in front of Mo Fanglei's shop.
At first Mo Fanglei tried to think positively, but now that hope vanished because a mysterious man in black robes wearing a straw hat surrounded by transparent rectangular cloth had already fixed his gaze upon him.
"I just finished dealing with trouble and now... an assassin wants to kill me!! Is this the end of my life?" Mo Fanglei cried inwardly like a child begging for a toy—lamenting his terrible fate and miserable life.
Yet he forced himself to ask the mysterious robed man directly, "Hello sir, do you perhaps have some business coming to my small shop?" His body trembled—afraid because the sword on the man's back was clearly visible.
The mysterious robed man removed his straw hat. "I am Zhou Ming. Shop owner, there is no need to be overly polite toward me." He replied with confusion toward the shop owner's strange behavior.
Mo Fanglei felt as though his soul had already left his body before finally breathing in relief after realizing this was not an assassin but merely another customer. "Zhou Ming? Why did you come all the way here? Is there something important?"
Zhou Ming did not answer Mo Fanglei's question for several seconds. "I... want to play your game."
To be continued...