Chapter 33

Chapter 33

Despite her lingering, the distance between school and home remained fixed, and staying out too late wasn't safe. Shen Yan eventually stepped into the old building.

The amber glow of the setting sun slanted across the floorboards. The old building's poor soundproofing meant she could hear the coughing of elderly residents, the shrill voices of children, and the sounds of furniture scraping, along with the chopping of vegetables and meat. The noises, sometimes loud, sometimes soft, a fragmented cacophony, frayed her nerves.

Shen Yan put on her headphones and opened the livestream. From the other end came the crisp, rhythmic sound of chopping wood, which helped soothe her irritation.

After a quick dinner, Shen Yan returned to her room to do homework, of course, keeping the stream running as background noise. Occasionally, she glanced at the chat to relieve some mental stress.

When she finally finished her homework, it was late at night. Ying Yuanxing had already gone to rest. Shen Yan opened the JoyBuy app—her grandpa's farm still hadn't sold anything, while the dried fish product now had a sample pack option. For just ten Weird coins, she could buy a hundred grams of dried fish.

Clearly, Ying Yuanxing had introduced this option because the product wasn’t selling well, and the app offered free shipping.

But even though the price was now one-fifth of the original, Shen Yan was completely broke when it came to Weird coins. She still couldn’t afford it.

Sighing, Shen Yan prepared to turn off her phone and rest—she had to wake up early the next day. But her finger slipped, accidentally tapping the purchase button, and the page jumped to the payment screen.

A prompt appeared, detecting that her current balance was insufficient:

[Customer’s current negative emotional energy can be exchanged for twenty Weird coins. Confirm exchange?]

Her fingers acted before her brain could, tapping the confirmation. Only afterward did she realize what she’d done, a sudden wave of fear hitting her.

But then she remembered that the JoyBuy app was created by Salvation Game, so no Weird entity could mess with it. She told herself it was probably safe.

Still, she was afraid to spend the Weird coins. She immediately searched online and, sure enough, found others who had experienced the same thing. Some had even openly hawked Weird coins—one Weird coin for a hundred Xia State dollars—and they were quickly bought up.

Shen Yan felt tempted. After all, her twenty Weird coins could be exchanged for two thousand Xia State dollars. Two thousand wasn’t life-changing money, but getting it with just a click seemed too good to be true.

But she wasn’t sure what this so-called "emotional energy" actually was. After hesitating for a long time, she chickened out at the last moment.

Still, with twenty Weird coins, she could buy two packs of dried fish. Even if she didn’t spend them all, grabbing one pack couldn’t hurt!

She remembered Ying Yuanxing’s online store, which still hadn't made a single sale. After watching his livestream for so long, using it to cope with her stress, she had never been able to do anything before. But now, spending just ten Weird coins—if the government confirmed it was safe, she’d buy one pack.

Meanwhile, the Dawn Bureau was scrambling.

The moment the first person who discovered emotional energy could be exchanged for Weird coins posted about it online, the Dawn Bureau was on high alert. Before they could figure out the exchange mechanism, they tried to contain the leak.

But the JoyBuy app was installed on practically every phone. Even if only one in a million people accidentally triggered the exchange, the numbers would still be significant. The cat was out of the bag.

Now, they were racing to clamp down on people trading Weird coins for Xia State dollars while also urgently researching the implications of emotional energy exchange—whether there were any side effects.

While Xia State was still investigating, other countries had already gone wild.

On present-day Earth, Weird coins were a kind of hard currency. Upon discovering that emotional energy could be exchanged for them, many people jumped at the chance to convert.

Even though these Weird coins weren't physical objects and existed only in JoyBuy app accounts—usable only for purchasing goods—there were still people willing to buy them. Those who exchanged their emotional energy immediately traded the Weird coins for real-world currency.

Some overseas even treated the emotional exchange like manna from heaven, with people competing over who could convert more emotional energy into Weird coins.

Compared to the carefree attitude overseas, the Xia people were far more cautious. Even though JoyBuy was launched by Salvation Game, many didn’t dare exchange their energy, figuring they could always convert later if it proved safe—no need to be the first to take the risk.

Some who had already exchanged didn’t dare use the coins, waiting for an official announcement.

And the government didn’t keep them waiting long. Soon, a statement was released:

Exchanging emotional energy for Weird coins on JoyBuy has no side effects. However, it’s best to do so at intervals, limiting exchanges to no more than a hundred Weird coins per week. Avoid excessively draining emotional energy—whether negative or positive—as both are essential for maintaining mental health.

Truthfully, the government would've liked more time to study the matter thoroughly, confirming no long-term side effects before announcing anything. But with the frenzy overseas, even drastic measures would only curb part of the problem.

More importantly, in a situation where one side’s loss was another’s gain, restricting the exchanges would just put them at a disadvantage. Given the current crisis, if the risks were minor, they had no choice but to overlook them—because the alternative might mean no future at all.

The announcement set the internet ablaze with excitement.

Before, Weird coins had been a hard currency accessible only to the capable or the wealthy. Ordinary people didn’t have a single Weird coin to their names.

Now, they had a way to earn them—apparently risk-free. Even if the earnings were modest, perhaps just a hundred or so per week, saving up might eventually allow them to buy Weird Artifacts or Weird Food.

As for the current high prices, meaning they'd have to save up for ages, the Xia folks kept their chins up. Previously, goods were expensive because contestants could only return to Earth once every three months, carrying limited supplies. With only a few able to buy, prices naturally soared.

But now, with free shipping to Earth, both the people and the contestants lacked Weird Artifacts and Weird Food. The contestants would surely be happy to play middleman, profiting from the price difference.

With free shipping, the more they sold, the more they earned—so there was no reason to inflate prices excessively.

Watching the online frenzy, the director of the Dawn Bureau grew concerned. He turned to the expert beside him. "Mr. Zhou, is exchanging emotional energy for Weird coins truly without side effects?"

"In moderation and spaced out, there are indeed no side effects," Mr. Zhou nodded.

Zhao Zhangyan caught the implication. If small and infrequent exchanges were fine, what about the opposite?

"Director Zhao, as you know, we’ve studied Weird coins before. They are Weird energy in concentrated form. Human emotional energy can also be absorbed by Weird entities and converted into Weird energy—which is why Weird entities are drawn to negative emotions," Mr. Zhou explained.

"Our emergency analysis suggests that JoyBuy—Salvation Game—uses some method to bypass the intermediate step of Weird entities absorbing emotional energy, directly converting it into Weird coins. This process itself has no side effects."

"If we could create machines to generate emotional energy, it would be a world-changing revolution. But humans aren’t machines. Continuously draining emotions—especially at high frequency or in large quantities—would have consequences."

"For instance, emotions might flatline or swing wildly. To counteract this, people might seek stimulation—and most forms of stimulation require money. This could drive them to extract even more emotional energy for cash. Some might even deliberately provoke negative emotions, realizing they yield greater profits." Mr. Zhou didn’t elaborate on the eventual outcome, but it was obvious.

Either people’s spirits would break entirely, or they’d become psychologically damaged.

"What about exchanging positive emotions?" Zhao Zhangyan asked.

"Director Zhao, most people would naturally choose to exchange negative emotions first. After all, we'd been warning people about the harm of excessive negativity. Given the chance to clear it, they’d prioritize that. As for positive emotions, most wouldn’t touch them too much—for now."

After all, negative emotions caused distress, while positive ones brought happiness.

"But if exchanged excessively, and if the environment can’t provide enough joy, people might lose the ability to generate positive emotions. Though this is just my speculation—it hasn’t been proven." Mr. Zhou admitted. After all, they’d only studied this briefly, with limited samples. Figuring out even this much was an an achievement.

For more answers, they’d have to wait for real-world results.

"Then we’ll have to observe how things develop overseas," Zhao Zhangyan sighed.

Shen Yan, unaware of these high-level considerations, placed her order as soon as she saw the announcement.

She noticed others had also bought the dried fish. Sales weren’t overwhelming, but in just this short time, inventory was flying off the virtual shelves.

The fish and bird feed, however, remained unsold—likely because their higher prices deterred buyers. Those with money to spare probably aimed for other Weird Food or Weird Artifacts instead.

...

A good night’s sleep later, Ying Yuanxing woke up promptly at six.

This dreamless sleep was restful, but after so long, he found himself missing the experience of dreaming.

His first task after rising was to water the crops outside. Seeing the nearly ripe strawberries, he stared for a long while before reluctantly tearing his gaze away.

Noticing the seeds on the strawberries, he decided to visit Yuan Qing later to craft small tweezers for seed extraction. While drying them first would make seed collection easier, that would mean no strawberries to eat. For the sake of tasting them, Ying Yuanxing was willing to put in extra effort. Returning to the cabin to prepare breakfast, he felt like he’d forgotten something. It wasn’t until after he finished drying the fish that he remembered—where was Xuan Ying this morning? Even Little Black Cat was missing.

Ying Yuanxing put away the dried fish and prepared to go out to look around. When he looked closer, he noticed something new on the farm...

A trash can?!

Xuan Ying and Little Black Cat stood on either side of the trash can, staring fixedly at it.

"Xuan Ying?" Ying Yuanxing called out in confusion. Just as he was about to approach, his phone vibrated. He glanced at it—it was a notification from the JoyBuy app, informing him that the delivery box had arrived at the farm and asking him to confirm the buyer's order for early shipment.

Wait… Was the "delivery box" mentioned by the JoyBuy app this trash can right in front of him?

Ying Yuanxing was silent. So, Xuan Ying and Little Black Cat were gathered around it because they were puzzled about where it came from.

He walked over and examined the trash can—no, the delivery box—only to find it rather old, with years of grime. In short, the dust was caked on.

Moreover, when Ying Yuanxing lifted the lid, he spotted a familiar scratch. It wasn’t a mark on the trash can itself but rather a cut through the patina.

Yes, it was the scratch he had made last time while digging through the trash can and picking up an iron ore.

It was a familiar trash can!

Ying Yuanxing recognized it—it was the trash can in front of an abandoned house he had passed by before. But that didn’t stop him from scavenging.

Out of habit, he reached inside. Having rummaged through trash cans so often, Ying Yuanxing had gotten good at retrieving items without touching the can itself.

Fishing out a piece of amethyst, he felt his luck was still holding up.

In the livestream, early bird viewers witnessed this scene. At first, they didn’t think much of the trash can—after all, trash cans were supposed to be dirty. Clean ones would be weird, right?

But soon, a message from another livestream threw them off.

[That’s not a trash can—it’s a delivery box!!]

[Delivery box?]

[The Salvation Game’s so-called ‘free delivery’ uses the Weird Trash Can to ship goods.]

[Wait, if the Weird Trash Can delivers, won’t it eat the buyers?]

[Probably not. Some people have already received their orders. The entity didn’t attack, but it was surly. Plus, some items looked a bit damaged, like they got banged around too much during transit.]

[No way. This is the first time I’ve been this speechless about a Weird entity.]

[Seems like the Weird Trash Can isn’t delivering willingly—more like it’s being made to.]

[Hold on, that’s not the main issue here. If they’re using trash cans to deliver food… just thinking about it grosses me out.]

[We’ll have to put up with it. It’s the only delivery service available.]

[I really want to try the dried fish, but knowing it came from this kind of trash can… I'm being squeamish. I need a minute.]

[Wait, what’s the host doing?]

Ying Yuanxing stared at the trash can in front of him. Even if customers didn’t know what kind of delivery box he used, he couldn’t stomach it. He was making decent money—why resort to something so nasty?

He lifted the trash can, didn't want to wash it in his small pond for fear of dirtying the water. Instead, he carried it to a downstream spot by the river.

Setting the trash can aside, he grabbed a large brush and scrubbed it thoroughly inside and out.

Fortunately, while the trash can looked filthy, it was mostly dust with no nasty gunk. As layer after layer of grime was scrubbed away, Ying Yuanxing realized the trash can was actually quite new underneath—shiny and silver. If not for its shape, it could almost pass for a work of art.

This must be made of iron!

Thinking of his shortage of iron ingots, Ying Yuanxing thought about melting the trash can down. But after staring at it for a while, he nixed that idea.

Turning it into ingots would be a one-time resource, but keeping it as a trash can meant he could scavenge from it daily—a sustainable resource. He knew the difference between a one-time windfall and steady income.

Watching Ying Yuanxing clean the trash can-turned-delivery-box, some viewers were impressed.

[The streamer is really serious about running his shop!]

[Other contestants sell expensive goods but just toss them straight into the trash can. Even though I didn’t buy anything, it just feels wrong.]

[Probably because cleaning the trash can is a hassle, and the Weird Trash Can is dangerous. Better to play it safe. At least washing it here is safer than leaving it to the buyers.]

[It’s just cleaning a trash can. Ying Yuanxing has dug through trash cans so many times—it’s not dangerous for him, just tedious. And you’re getting all sentimental over this? Your standards are low.]

[Whatever, An Geluo fans, get lost. An Geluo isn’t afraid of the Weird Trash Can either, but you don’t see him making the effort to clean it. Stop making excuses for laziness by comparing him to other streamers.]

[Don’t mind the trolls. I’m pretty excited for the delivery. Since the supernatural stuff started, deliveries have become rare, and online shopping feels risky. Now that it’s back, I’m nervous but looking forward to it.]

[Same. I bought some dried fish. Watching the streamer grill it every day made me crave it—curious how it tastes.]

[From other livestreams, some deliveries are fast, some slow, but the latest is just a day. Say what you will about the Weird Trash Can, but its speed is unreal. It’s practically born to deliver.]

The chat soon went off on tangents, as usual, but viewers were used to it. Compared to other livestreams, Ying Yuanxing’s had a much more relaxed atmosphere, leading to digressions.

...

Xuan Ying watched as the Weird Trash Can went from fighting it to relaxing and enjoying its bath. After a moment, he remarked, "Little Black needs a bath too."

Truthfully, he wanted Ying Yuanxing to bathe him as well, but judging from other Weird entities’ memories, that probably wouldn't fly—at least not yet, given their current relationship.

But giving a pet a bath? That was acceptable.

"Little Black keeps rolling around in bushes, getting all dirty, and doesn’t clean itself much," Xuan Ying pointed out, emphasizing the necessity of a bath.

If Xuan Ying hadn’t mentioned it, Ying Yuanxing wouldn’t have thought to bathe Little Black. As far as he knew, cats hated baths, and Little Black didn’t look particularly dirty.

But now that it was mentioned, Ying Yuanxing realized Little Black’s fur was too good at hiding dirt—he couldn’t really tell if it was unclean. Maybe he should try giving the cat a bath later.

Of course, if the cat put up a fight, he wouldn’t force it.

After washing the trash can, Ying Yuanxing set it aside to dry. Meanwhile, he opened JoyBuy to check his orders. The product page showed him the glaring words: "Sold Out."

Ying Yuanxing did a double take. Before bed, not a single order had been placed—now everything was gone?

He had listed a hundred pounds of dried fish. Among the orders, only a few were for a full pound—most were small 100-gram trial packs. Yet they had sold out shockingly fast.

Clicking into the order details, Ying Yuanxing noticed each shipment went to a different address under different names. Even if it were fake orders, this was way too thorough.

He checked other shops and found that expensive items had also sold well. If the app owner were faking sales, they wouldn’t go to such lengths.

So… these were all real purchases?

Ying Yuanxing kinda regretted staying in Taoxi Village instead of visiting the city. He would’ve loved to see how hard JoyBuy was pushing ads.

Once the trash can dried, Ying Yuanxing carried it back to the farm and started packing the dried fish.

With too many orders, Ying Yuanxing's pre-prepared packaging bags weren't enough. Fortunately, when the Weird Trash Can was delivered, it came with some extra packaging bags and a self-service printer for orders. Ying Yuanxing cut them down to size and used them sparingly, managing to pack all over 900 orders of dried fish before cramming them all into the trash can in one go.

Checking the shipping notice, it stated that as long as the packages were placed inside the delivery box, they would be shipped by 6 a.m. at the latest.

"Hope they ship quickly," Ying Yuanxing sighed. The faster the shipping, the sooner he'd get paid.

After saying this, he went to find Little Black Cat, ready to try giving it a bath. He had expected Little Black to hate it, but to his surprise, after heating the water and placing the cat in a large basin, it stayed perfectly still, not resisting at all as he washed it.

"After caring for it all this time, why does its fur still look a bit dry?" Ying Yuanxing stroked Little Black’s back fur. He remembered it had been like this when the cat first arrived, and even after all this time, there seemed to be little change.

Unbeknownst to him, Little Black stiffened slightly upon hearing his words.

Xuan Ying could wear the skins of all the Weird entities he had devoured, even keeping them in their original state without decay, and even use some of their abilities. This was powerful enough already, but he couldn’t improve the condition of these skins.

The cat-entity's pelt he wore now was the same as when he first took it—unchanging, unable to get better.

He kicked himself for not holding out for a better pelt instead of using this already dissipated cat-entity's pelt, but there was no use dwelling on it now.

"Maybe it needs some fish oil?" Ying Yuanxing wasn’t complaining about Little Black’s dry fur, just worried he wasn’t taking good enough care of it.

As far as he knew, fish oil only came from deep-sea cold-water fish. His river fish certainly didn't contain any. He wondered if it was available in stores—and if so, what the quality was like. Otherwise, he might need to head to the coast and try fishing there.

He was confident in his fishing skills, whether for deep-sea or shallow-water fish.

Besides, Ying Yuanxing had another thing on his mind—building a pond required seaweed. Right now, he only had green algae from the river, so he’d need to make a trip to the coast for proper seaweed.

While Ying Yuanxing was preoccupied with these thoughts, the Weird Trash Can was in agony.

Though thoroughly scrubbed by Ying Yuanxing—a strangely satisfying scrub-down—the Weird Trash Can still held a grudge. After all, no one liked having things snatched from them every day.

Even if the items Ying Yuanxing took weren’t technically theirs, passing through their bodies made them feel like they were. Yet, they never stood a chance against him.

Because Ying Yuanxing rummaged through them daily, occasionally taking things, the Weird Trash Cans of Taoxi Village had united to form a resistance group targeting him—but they kept losing.

This time, forced by a Great Weird entity to serve as a delivery box at Ying Yuanxing’s farm, the Weird Trash Can had already decided: even under contract, it would cause trouble right up to the agreement’s limits—like delaying shipments.

However, after just a short while with the dried fish inside, the Weird Trash Can realized this punishment was more self-inflicted than anything.

The dried fish smelled too good. But bound by the contract, it couldn’t eat any—only endure the tormenting aroma, growing hungrier by the second.

After resisting again and again, the Weird Trash Can finally gave in, swiftly transmitting the packages through its internal channels. If it held on any longer, it might risk breaking the contract for a bite—better to pass this temptation to another can.

Within just an hour, several Weird Trash Cans faced the same delicious trial. They had delivered other Weird Food before, but those only made them want to devour, not crave. This dried fish, however, was pure food temptation.

When Shen Yan received her package, she noticed the Weird Trash Can’s attitude was downright hostile. Luckily, the dried fish was securely packaged and intact.