Chapter 190
Chapter 190: Luck Returns
【Soul-Return Town, Town 3rd Ring.】
Following the route in his memory, Jiang Nan arrived before the shop bearing the【Tu's Rabbit Meat】signboard.
He stepped inside, sweeping a quick glance across the 1st and 2nd floors.
There was no sign of Guo Shuai or the others.
"Oh my! It's you, honored guest!"
The proprietor, Tu Xiaogang, spotted Jiang Nan and immediately set down what he was doing, rushing over with a warm welcome.
Jiang Nan's face remained expressionless as he fished a slip of notepad paper from his pocket, gave it a stroke of his pen, and held it out.
【Have you seen my companions?】
Tu Xiaogang slapped his forehead, the realization hitting him.
"Right! You were resting somewhere else last night and never came by."
"Before your companions left, they made a point of asking me to pass along a message—said they headed out to work first thing this morning."
"The rules here in town are strict. Those who don't work get hauled away by the Ghost Constables for punishment."
"They should be back by afternoon, roughly!"
"As for my daughter Xiaowu and my son-in-law Sirui, they tagged along to help boost their performance numbers."
Jiang Nan gave a slight nod, acknowledging the information.
Since no one was around, there was no point in him staying here.
Just as he turned to head out and take a stroll—
Tu Xiaogang enthusiastically stepped forward and blocked his path.
"Honored guest, please stay! You've been rushing around since the crack of dawn—you must be starving, yes?"
"It's nearly noon already. Have a bite before you go!"
Without waiting for a reply, Tu Xiaogang ushered Jiang Nan to a table and sat him down.
He turned and came back carrying a large platter of rabbit meat.
The rabbit meat was cut into even pieces, garnished with segments of chili pepper, interspersed with a few leaves of a peculiar blue herb.
The moment it was set on the table, a fragrance swept over—a blend of fresh herbal coolness and numbing spice.
"Honored guest, this is our family's generations-old signature dish—【Blue Grass White-Cut Rabbit】!"
"The greatest tonic among tonics! Give it a try?"
Jiang Nan looked at the platter before him, its color, aroma, and flavor all in perfect harmony.
From the moment he had entered Eerie Island yesterday until now, it was fair to say he had not consumed so much as a drop of water.
To claim he had no appetite would be an outright lie.
And so he did not refuse the kind gesture. He wrote【Many thanks】on a notepad slip and picked up his chopsticks.
The first bite of meat reached his soul.
Jiang Nan's eyes brightened ever so slightly.
The clean fragrance of the blue grass perfectly neutralized the gamey edge of the rabbit meat, while the chili's sharp bite awakened the palate.
Though his pace of eating remained as unhurried and refined as ever, the frequency was astonishing.
Like a sweeping gale clearing the last traces of clouds, the entire platter was empty in an instant.
Jiang Nan was not yet satisfied. He pointed at the empty dish.
Tu Xiaogang was an honest man—seeing that his honored guest was pleased, he immediately brought out another platter.
And another after that, generous without the slightest hesitation.
Time slipped by, minute by minute, and before long it was 11 in the morning.
Diners gradually filled the shop.
When the townspeople made their way up to the 2nd floor—
and caught sight of the young man seated by the window—every last one of them sucked in a sharp breath.
The white porcelain dishes on Jiang Nan's table, each wider than a man's face, had been stacked into a small mountain half a meter tall.
"Good heavens… is this young fellow a starving wraith reborn?"
"This guy's stomach must be a bottomless pit—he's got to be past 30 platters already!"
"Lord almighty! Tu's Blue Grass White-Cut Rabbit runs 5 taels of silver banknotes a platter!"
"That tower of plates… how much does that come to?!"
Several townspeople cried out in shock.
At the word money—
Jiang Nan, who had just lifted a piece of rabbit meat with his chopsticks and was about to bring it to his mouth, froze.
He slowly set down his chopsticks. His left hand drifted naturally toward his trouser pocket.
Empty.
He reached toward the outer coat pocket.
Still empty.
It was over.
Jiang Nan's heart skipped half a beat.
He had just entered town and hadn't worked a single day yet—where was he supposed to get silver banknotes?!
At the thought of this, even Jiang Nan—who had never once panicked when facing countless battles—
felt a faint cold sweat beading at his brow.
Was he really going to dine and dash here today?!
Jiang Nan swept the surroundings with the corner of his eye.
Dozens of pairs of eyes were fixed on his mountain of plates, clicking their tongues in amazement.
Though most of them were likely soulless NPC mannequins.
But the deep-seated logic and self-respect that defined Jiang Nan
would absolutely never permit him to do something this shameless.
Still, staying here and dragging this out was no solution either.
Jiang Nan let out a quiet sigh in his heart.
Fine. Even heroes are stumped by a single coin—he'd write a note and put it on credit.
He had forgotten himself again, but this was the pressure of circumstances. It was not his fault.
However, just as he reached into his other pocket to pull out a notepad slip—
The unexpected struck again.
His fingers searched the bottom of the pocket and came up with nothing.
The notepad slips—
had run out.
Jiang Nan broke into a cold sweat!
The worst possible situation had arrived.
He had originally planned to leave a note and slip away. That was done for now.
Jiang Nan closed his eyes and drew a slow breath.
Today's luck was exceptionally rotten!
But it did not matter. As a powerhouse with countless trump cards, when reality failed him, he still had the occult!
In the fleeting moment when the diners around him and Tu Xiaogang were distracted attending to other customers—
Jiang Nan raised a single finger toward the sky, then spoke.
"Fortune born from the heart, believe and the heavens will follow—Strong Luck!"
Word Spirit·Strong Luck triggered!
Jiang Nan resumed that unrivaled, stone-faced expression, folded his arms across his chest, and sat in his chair.
Waiting.
But 10 minutes passed.
20 minutes passed.
Half an hour passed—
and still there was not a single sign of anything happening.
With time now at 11:30, only the final half-hour remained before the Forest of the Middle Grove's groom selection.
Jiang Nan stared at the mountain of plates on the table, and a dangerous glint crept into his eyes.
Had the occult hit a bug?
Just as he clenched his fist and seriously considered abandoning all principle—
throwing away every last shred of his dignity to dine and dash in earnest—
all of a sudden!
From the street below, a furious roar rang out!
"Get down here! You lawless female thief!"
"That was every last drop of blood and sweat I earned selling rabbit meat!"
"That was the money I was saving so my daughter and son-in-law could buy a place in the 2nd ring!"
Tu Xiaogang had bolted out into the street, head craned back, shouting toward the sky in tears.
Roused by the commotion, diners leaned out to look. Jiang Nan raised an eyebrow and walked to the window.
There, against the pale, washed-out sky of Soul-Return Town, a figure in ragged beggar's clothes—
with a few vegetable leaves perched on her head—
stood atop a flying sword, clutching a large burlap sack, swaggering through loops in the air!
It was Liu Ruyan!
"Hahahaha!"
Liu Ruyan rode her flying sword, laughing until she swayed back and forth.
"I, Liu Ruyan, truly am a peerless genius!"
"Worthy of a true Sword Emperor—using the Sword Emperor technique as a flying thief is an absolute dimensional downgrade strike!"
"In any industry, this young lady can effortlessly reach the top!"
She smugly patted the burlap sack in her arms and announced at the top of her lungs—
"Second day on the job and I've already racked up 1,000 taels of silver banknotes in performance!"
"Even got enough for the house deposit!"
"Being a thief beats hard labor by a mile. This is absolutely wonderful!"
With that, she flicked the tip of her foot against the sword and soared off into the distance.
All that remained on the street below was Tu Xiaogang, hand reaching for his cleaver, ready to give chase.
"Let me go! Let me go hack her to pieces!"
Tu Xiaogang's eyes had gone crimson as he thrashed and struggled.
Several townspeople grabbed him around the waist, desperately holding him back.
"Gangzi! Don't go! That female thief is terrifyingly strong!"
"Last night, over a dozen shops on East Street were robbed. The Ghost Constables went to catch her and she cut 3 of them with sword energy!"
"You'll just be throwing your life away if you go!"
"No! That money has to be recovered!"
"That's my daughter's dowry! Let me go!"
Tu Xiaogang had gone into a frenzy, grappling with several townspeople in the street.
In the midst of that chaos—
a hand came down on Tu Xiaogang's shoulder.
Tu Xiaogang jolted, and turned his head.
There was Jiang Nan, standing behind him.
Jiang Nan looked at Tu Xiaogang and spoke.
"Leave it to me."
At that moment—
the noon sun broke through the clouds and fell upon Jiang Nan.
In the stunned and frozen gazes of every townsperson around them and Tu Xiaogang—
it seemed as though they could see a goddess standing behind this young man, smiling at them.
A fortunate wind, by the name of a free meal—
drifted down the entire length of the street, blowing in from behind Jiang Nan…
Bunny-bunny~