Chapter 10

Chapter 10

The decor of Fulu Residence was predominantly Chinese-style, with redwood palace lanterns, pavilions and towers, spanning three floors, magnificent and imposing.

Although it was past mealtime, the restaurant was still packed with customers. Seeing Jiang Lin and his two companions approaching the shop, the greeter at the door warmly approached: "Welcome to Fulu Residence, please come in, the three of you."

Lin Xiaoyang: "So many people! At this hour, still so many. Do we need to line up?"

Bai Zhizhi also sighed inwardly, so many people, even more than during the day.

The hostess smiled and said: "No line needed now. There are seats on both the first and second floors. Where would you three like to sit?"

Lin Xiaoyang: "No seats on the third floor?"

The hostess: "The third floor has private rooms with a minimum charge, and they were all booked in advance. They're fully occupied now."

Lin Xiaoyang glanced at Jiang Lin and said: "Let’s go to the second floor and pick a cool, comfortable spot."

The hostess escorted them to the staircase on the first floor, buzzed the upstairs staff to let them know three guests were arriving, and then returned to the front of the shop.

Lin Xiaoyang looked back: "The staff are still so enthusiastic this late. Looks like they pay well."

Wages? Guess that means pay, Bai Zhizhi perked up his ears, hoping to hear what ordinary people earn here. Before finding a way home, he needed to figure out how this world works to survive better. Income and prices show you everything about a world.

Jiang Lin, walking behind the two, said: "Eyes front, stop gawking."

Bai Zhizhi, who was about to glance around, immediately snapped his head back.

Seeing his reaction, Jiang Lin couldn’t help but laugh.

This little fox demon was different from any demon he had caught before. You could tell those other demons were raised wild, even when transformed into human form, they retained their animal nature.

Bai Zhizhi was different—clearly educated, polite, and refined. Although he was unfamiliar with the mortal world's rules, it only made him seem even more well-behaved, almost made you forget he was a demon.

The server on the second floor guided them to a seat by the window with a good view and ventilation. Lin Xiaoyang took out his phone, scanned a QR code, and then looked at Jiang Lin: "Brother Jiang, are we actually eating, or just ordering something to nibble?"

Jiang Lin: "Order whatever you want, my treat."

Lin Xiaoyang leaned over to Bai Zhizhi: "Zhizhi, see what you want—there are pictures."

Bai Zhizhi flipped through the pictures for a while, then pushed the phone back: "You look for yourself. I've never eaten any of this, no clue what's good."

Lin Xiaoyang grinned: "Brother Jiang is treating, so I'm not holding back."

He ordered a ton—salty, sweet, everything. The server for their section saw the order and came over to ask if they wanted to cut back. Even for three guys, this was way too much—enough for ten.

Lin Xiaoyang: "No, no, we've got big appetites. By the way, a friend told me your place has this amazing fish. He tried it and can't stop raving—it's called Phoenix Tail Fish. I didn't see it on the menu. Do you still have it? If so, we’d like a serving too."

Server: "Phoenix Tail Fish? We don't seem to have that dish. Our specialty is Qiaojiao Beef, not fish."

Lin Xiaoyang: "Oh, maybe I misremembered."

The server confirmed again: "Do you still want all these dishes?"

Lin Xiaoyang nodded: "Yes, please. Hurry up, we’re starving."

Once the server left, Lin Xiaoyang whispered to Jiang Lin: "When I mentioned Phoenix Tail Fish, the server looked confused, like they really didn’t know."

Jiang Lin slowly poured himself a cup of tea: "If it's really wild game, regular staff wouldn't know about it. The more people know, the easier it is for problems to arise. This stuff is probably only served in the private rooms upstairs, and only to regulars. Zhizhi, do you smell any fishy odor?"

Bai Zhizhi shook his head: "No."

Lin Xiaoyang: "Zhou Yan said they only came when the boss invited them. Maybe the boss didn't get any. Brother Jiang, should I keep watch here or just tip off the authorities to raid this place?"

Eating wild game wasn't their business—that was for the proper authorities. But they still weren't sure if Zhou Yan got sick from eating that stuff. Since they took the Zhou case, they had to get to the bottom of it and give the family an answer.

Jiang Lin: "Not yet. Let's scope the place out first. Later, have the Zhou family send over the list of Zhou Yan's classmates. They all ate that fish together. If something's wrong, Zhou Yan won't be the only one."

Lin Xiaoyang nodded. Bai Zhizhi picked at the fruit platter that had come out first. It was bland and gross, so he set it down after one bite: "Are you looking for the fish or for someone?"

Lin Xiaoyang: "Of course we’re looking for the fish. If Zhou Yan's condition is really from wild fish, then either the fish or the shop selling it is a huge issue."

Bai Zhizhi: "If you want to find the fish, just head downstairs."

Lin Xiaoyang: "Downstairs? What downstairs?"

Bai Zhizhi pointed down: "Downstairs, in one of the rooms. There's a Xian fish."

Lin Xiaoyang said: "Ah, but you just said you didn't smell any fish?"

Bai Zhizhi: "Live fish don't have a fishy smell. Only something that's caught the Xian fish poison has that smell."

Jiang Lin: "Are you sure the fish is in the shop?"

Bai Zhizhi nodded. Sure. Such an ordinary shop had no formations. With a sweep of his spiritual sense, he could see everything hidden in there.

Lin Xiaoyang looked at Jiang Lin: "Brother Jiang, what now?"

Jiang Lin glanced at the server approaching with food: "Let's eat first. We'll handle business after we've eaten."

For a place to be this packed when it's neither dinner nor late-night hours, this shop obviously had something special.

When the dishes came, the air was thick with spicy, fragrant smells. Bai Zhizhi couldn’t help but sneeze, making Lin Xiaoyang laugh out loud: "Did you ever eat chili up in the mountains? Can you handle spicy food?"

Jiang Lin dropped a piece of boiled meat into Bai Zhizhi's bowl: "This shouldn't be too spicy. Give it a try. If it's too much, eat something else."

Bai Zhizhi sniffed the harsh spicy smell and wondered if this stuff could actually be good.

The first bite of meat hit him with salt.

In Qingqiu, there were divine-chefs whose cooking was nothing short of heavenly. For them, seasonings were aids, and ingredients were the foundation. Almost no spirit chef would use seasonings to mask the ingredient’s original flavor; they only enhanced the freshness and fragrance.

But here, before he could even taste the meat, his mouth was already full of spiciness. It wasn’t mind-blowingly delicious, but the unique cooking style certainly stimulated the taste buds. Once his appetite was opened, he wanted to take another bite after the first one.

Seeing that he could handle the spiciness reasonably well, Jiang Lin let him eat on his own.

Lin Xiaoyang kept recommending dishes while eating: "This grilled oil-wrapped meat is so tender. Try it. And this Qiaojiao Beef—it really lives up to its reputation. Looks light, but tastes surprisingly good."

Bai Zhizhi: "The names in your world are so strange. Why does beef make people 'qiaojiao'?"

Lin Xiaoyang: "Of course, because it’s so delicious it makes you curl your toes."

Bai Zhizhi: "But it’s not so delicious that it makes you want to curl your toes."

This comment reminded Lin Xiaoyang of what happened at the Zhou family’s place earlier, so he lowered his voice: "Zhizhi, let me tell you, sometimes in life you can't be too 'blunt.' Even if it’s the truth, you have to be a little tactful."

Bai Zhizhi: "Why be tactful if it's the truth? Can you humans not handle the truth?"

Lin Xiaoyang: "And another thing, don't say the phrase 'you humans.' Ordinary people will just think you're joking, but cultivators will know you're a demon."

Bai Zhizhi watched Lin Xiaoyang get the hang of eating skewers, then said with a hint of disdain, "You humans are so troublesome."

Lin Xiaoyang: "See! You said it again!"

Jiang Lin smiled as he watched them bicker. He had tasted a bit of every dish on the table, leaving the rest for Lin Xiaoyang and Bai Zhizhi. A cultivator and a demon cultivator—finishing this amount was easy for them to handle.

Seeing they were almost done, Jiang Lin said, "Pack up. We're going downstairs."

Lin Xiaoyang exclaimed, "Huh? We're leaving just like that? No investigation?"

As soon as he spoke, they saw several police cars pull up outside the window on the second floor, and a group of uniformed officers got out, heading into the restaurant.

Lin Xiaoyang's eyes widened. "What's going on? Are there others investigating the Phoenix Tail Fish besides us? What a coincidence."

Police cars and uniforms—it couldn't be that they were just having a team-building event without changing clothes.

Jiang Lin said, "Zhizhi, go with Lin Xiaoyang to find the fish. Once you do, make some noise."

Whether the Phoenix Tail Fish was truly problematic or not, the fact that the restaurant operated on a secretive reservation system meant it wasn't clean.

When the police officers walked in, the restaurant manager immediately greeted them, asking what was going on.

Captain Luo, who was leading the inspection, looked up and met Jiang Lin's gaze, then nodded at him before saying to the manager, "We've received a report that your restaurant sells wild game. Where is the kitchen? Take us there."

Hearing this, the manager's expression relaxed, and he cooperated fully, leading the way: "The kitchen is inside. This way, please. We operate legally and compliantly—absolutely no misconduct, and certainly no wild game."

Seeing the manager's relaxed demeanor without a hint of panic, Captain Luo glanced at Jiang Lin again. Jiang Lin gave a slight nod, and Captain Luo headed toward the kitchen. "We'll see for ourselves whether there's anything illegal."

Lin Xiaoyang led Bai Zhizhi down the other staircase. With everyone's attention on the police, he whispered to Bai Zhizhi, "Where's the Phoenix Tail Fish?"

Bai Zhizhi: "In the back."

Lin Xiaoyang followed Bai Zhizhi to the rear, running into two servers who said the back was off-limits to diners.

Before Lin Xiaoyang could act, Bai Zhizhi waved his hand, and the two servers walked right past them as if they were blind.

Lin Xiaoyang looked at Bai Zhizhi in surprise.

Bai Zhizhi: "Illusion."

Lin Xiaoyang's surprise faded. "Alright, no need to explain." It was a technique he didn't possess.

After passing a stack of drink crates, the two arrived at a wall.

Lin Xiaoyang: "The fish is here?"

Bai Zhizhi: "Inside."

Bai Zhizhi had secretly released a sliver of spiritual sense to probe and sensed many large stoves and cauldrons. The uniformed officers were gathered around the entrance, but it was crowded, so they couldn't squeeze in. Instead, they would enter from somewhere else.

Lin Xiaoyang: "Are you sure it's behind this wall? If we damage the restaurant's property without reason, we'll get fined."

Bai Zhizhi snorted. "It's right behind. Believe it or not."

Lin Xiaoyang quickly said, "I believe, I believe! I never said I didn't believe."

As soon as he spoke, a flash of white light flashed before his eyes. Before he could react, a deafening boom rang out. Not only did the brick wall shatter, but a powerful torrent of water burst through the breach.

Lin Xiaoyang was a cultivator, so although caught off guard, the moment he sensed the impact, he instinctively stomped the ground and channeled spiritual energy to leap away.

With the wall broken, water gushed out, and along with it came a giant red monstrous fish at least seven or eight meters long. The fish was slender but looked thick because of its enormous size. It had fins on its sides and a tail split into three lobes, making the tail look massive.

As it rode the water through the shattered wall, it flicked its tail, smashing restaurant pillars, tables, and chairs into pieces.

The tremendous noise from the collapsing wall startled the diners. Their first instinct was to locate the source of the sound, not to flee. But then the huge flood of water surged out of the restaurant.

By then, it was too late to flee. Some people floundered in the water, unable to stand, swept outside by the current. Others managed to get up and run, but were still knocked down by the surging waves.

The scene looked perilous, but every time the giant fish was about to crash into an ordinary person, a flash of spiritual light appeared to block it. Even those struggling in the water were lifted up by some unseen force.

Shattered walls, rushing water, broken furniture, panicked screams from diners, and the monstrous fish wreaking havoc in Fuluju.

Lin Xiaoyang clung tightly to the second-floor railing, staring at the chaotic mess below. Then he looked at Bai Zhizhi, who was sitting leisurely on the railing watching the scene. Lin Xiaoyang wiped the water off his face. "Zhizhi, we're doomed."

Bai Zhizhi: "Doomed? Jiang Lin said to make some noise."

Lin Xiaoyang: "..." That's one 'make some noise'—not demolish the entire Fuluju!

Author's note: