Chapter 1303: Ready-Made Experience
"I'm willing to believe you mean us no harm, but we really don't have what you're looking for." Zhuang Shanbai said to Xu Huo again. "The longer you stay here, the more attention you'll draw from outsiders. The Zhuang family left Fresh Flower City a long time ago, and we don't want any trouble right now."
"If you don't leave, we'll have to ask you to leave." Zhuang Shanyu's tone was much tougher than his cousin's.
Xu Huo didn't want to fight the Zhuang family members. He said, "Isn't the Zhuang family known for being hospitable? A short stay for a traveler from afar shouldn't be a problem. Wouldn't leaving in the middle of the night draw even more attention?"
"So you're determined to stay?" Zhuang Shanyu laughed in anger.
Xu Huo smiled at the little bald-headed boy, clearly not planning to leave. The two Zhuang brothers were full of concerns, but after much deliberation, they still didn't make a move. Still, with two against one, they felt more confident.
Xu Huo successfully settled into the Zhuang residence.
Night fell quickly. He deliberately went to the courtyard, released his spiritual realm, and sensed the entire Zhuang household. Like Xiangshan City during the day, he could detect spiritual power, but this power was distributed in points, like connection points on a spider web. Only when the entire web needed to hunt would these points activate simultaneously, just like when Zhuang Shanbai had controlled the house earlier.
The spiritual power felt scattered, as if it were installed in fixed containers, only triggered when needed.
In Xu Huo's understanding, spiritual power couldn't be used this way. If his earlier deduction about the instance site was correct, then Old Master Zhuang, as a super player, must have drastically modified the instance site to maintain a certain state without generating a new instance—could it be that the instance site had been dismantled?
Fresh Flower City over there was clearly a larger instance site. If the directly administered district was the entrance, then the instance might cover the entire city... Of course, this was just his speculation. Even if the instance site had been dismantled, there was no clue where to start.
After sitting in the courtyard for two hours, he simply rested there. If he went back to his room, the two Zhuang brothers probably wouldn't dare close their eyes all night.
The night passed quickly. The two Zhuang brothers clearly hadn't slept well, looking somewhat lethargic.
Understandably, they weren't players and weren't used to maintaining high alert for long periods. Staying alert all night had drained their energy.
Xu Huo hadn't slept much either, but his constitution was different, and he recovered quickly.
"How about I make breakfast?" he offered proactively.
The Zhuang brothers couldn't figure out what he was trying to do and remained silent, just staring at him.
Because of the unpleasantness the previous night, the little bald-headed boy had stopped playing with his robot and followed his father into the orchard.
Zhuang Shanyu leaned against the kitchen doorway, watching Xu Huo's every move without blinking.
After breakfast was ready, Xu Huo invited the three of them to eat together. "I can only make simple home-style dishes. Don't expect too much."
The Zhuang brothers wouldn't dare eat anything he made. The little bald-headed boy, unaware of the dangers of the world, found the food different from what he usually ate. He quickly scooped a spoonful into his mouth, his face twisting, but he still didn't spit it out.
Zhuang Shanbai's expression changed, and he was about to reach out, but the little boy had already swallowed the food and grimaced, saying, "It's terrible!"
The Zhuang brothers looked at the dishes on the table with an "I knew it" expression.
Xu Huo had seen the Zhuang family's complete dietary arrangements in the materials yesterday. They were especially particular about health, so their tastes were very light. They often replaced staple meals with fruit soup, which was vastly different from District 014 and the restaurants catering to players from different districts.
Zhuang Shanyu got up to cook fruit soup.
"This is a dish from my hometown," Xu Huo said. "You'll move to other districts in the future. Each district's tastes are a bit different."
"Don't test me," Zhuang Shanbai said flatly.
Xu Huo smiled, ate all the breakfast himself, and washed the dishes. Then he offered to buy fruit from the orchard with money. The Zhuang brothers couldn't stop him, and under his insistence, they accepted a small amount of money and gave him two portable movers.
Xu Huo entered the orchard. Before long, the little bald-headed boy sneaked in too. From a distance, he said, "Uncle, you're picking the wrong ones. The green ones next to them taste better."
"Is that so?" Xu Huo immediately switched targets. "Don't red ones usually taste better?"
"The red ones are overripe and bitter." The little boy shuffled closer hesitantly. "Uncle, are you a bad person? Dad and the others don't like you."
"Not really a bad person," Xu Huo said naturally. "But it's normal not to be liked. When you go out to play with other kids, not everyone likes you either."
The little boy nodded in agreement. "I don't like people who don't like me either."
"Do you know your way around this orchard?" Xu Huo asked. "I got lost when I came in yesterday. I might not be able to find my way out later."
The little boy looked at him in surprise. "Uncle, do adults get lost too? This orchard isn't that big."
"Maybe the orchard doesn't welcome outsiders, just like your dad and them." Xu Huo pointed to the two baskets beside him. "Once they're full, I'll sell the fruit. If you help, I'll split the money with you, half and half. How about that?"
"I don't want money," the little boy said. "Uncle, can you lend me the robot to play with again? I want to show it to the others."
Xu Huo agreed readily, and then the two of them started picking fruit together.
The little boy directed, and Xu Huo did the work.
Just as the two baskets were almost full, Zhuang Shanyu appeared behind them and called the little boy back.
Xu Huo put down the fruit in his hand and said, "If you're worried, you can come along too."
Compared to Zhuang Shanbai, Zhuang Shanyu was more impatient. He said directly, "You can go wherever you want. Don't even think about anything else."
Xu Huo adjusted the mover, scooped up the little boy, and in a flash, they were at the orchard exit.
Zhuang Shanyu's face changed drastically, and he immediately ran out of the orchard. But by the time he got out, Xu Huo had already taken the little boy to the main street and was preparing to make their first sale.
There were surveillance cameras in the city, and quite a few people around. Zhuang Shanyu didn't dare rush forward recklessly, afraid of causing even more trouble for the Zhuang family. He could only swallow his anger and follow behind them.
Xu Huo didn't stay in one spot to sell. Instead, he walked through the streets and alleys, selling fruit as the opportunity arose. Along the way, he also bought a few things, mostly for the little boy. The little boy reciprocated by shouting enthusiastically, resting on the mover when he got tired.
After some time, the two of them had circled the entire small city.
Xu Huo had initially suspected that the entire city might be within the instance site, but after walking the whole circuit, he found that the instruments in the city were separate from those in the orchard. In other words, the instance site set up by the Zhuang family only covered the residential area and the outer orchard.
There was no formal entrance there. He wondered if the "Gate of the Mind" could reach the core of the instance site.
(Chapter End)