Chapter 57: Settling Revenue
Returning to 【Happy Home】, Lu Rang spread his arms wide, collapsed backward onto the ground, tears welling up as he shouted: “Ah…! Finally safe. I survived!”
Suddenly, with a ‘clang!’, a brilliantly golden, eight-armed, extremely twisted double-headed Bodhisattva statue smashed abruptly onto the ground behind Yuan Zhu, rolling twice and drawing numerous gazes.
The space rules of 【Happy Home】 were far stricter than those of the Bubble World. The foreign object in his shadow suffered space compression and rejection, getting ejected.
“Holy crap! Such a huge chunk of gold!” Lu Rang ignored his weakness and pain, sitting up in shock from his near-death state, staring in astonishment at the area behind Yuan Zhu.
Meng Xiyue also widened her eyes, shouting jealously and unwillingly: “Yuan guy, where did you get that Golden Bodhisattva from? Why did we sweep through an entire temple and have no such luck?! No, Brother Yuan, please give me a little. My university tuition for this year isn’t settled yet!”
“Brother Zhuzi, should I kowtow to you too?” Lu Rang followed suit with a face full of envy.
Yuan Zhu made a gesture of pressing down with both hands, smiling broadly, showing off in front of everyone: “Calm down, everyone, calm down! We’re all teammates, don’t forget each other in wealth and honor. One Bodhisattva arm per person, share the good fortune.”
After Grandma Yu passed away, he could divide at most seven arms, which he had planned for long ago. Now he could save at least one golden arm and win hearts, shaping an image of a generous and charitable figure—worth it!
Meng Xiyue had said it casually, not expecting real gains. She was overjoyed, giving him a thumbs up: “Zhuzi, generous!”
Lu Rang: “Brother Zhuzi, you’re my big brother from now on! Once I recover, I’ll follow you. Ah! Captain, does our 【Happy Home】 have the kind of repair function from novels? I feel like I’m about to die.”
The Captain shook his head with a smile: “No repair function. But the exchange list in 【Space of Gods】 has pills and items for healing injuries. Now settling revenue: 10 coins and 400 points per person, this is the basic remuneration I’m distributing to you on behalf of 【Mao Mao King】. Additionally, your harvests from the Bubble World can be sold to 【Happy Home】 or to 【Space of Gods】. Finally, based on your behavioral performance in the Bubble World and the subsequent influence it triggered, 【Space of Gods】 will pay an additional variable reward.”
“In other words, to have gains, either work hard to complete 【Happy Home】’s KPI targets and earn commission from me. Or act independently, like Yuan Zhu plundering natives, for big rewards. But I must remind you: not every Bubble World is like this one, letting you take whatever you want. Once you cross the line, you’ll face counterattacks and retaliation. Finally, everyone performed well in this trial, so I’m additionally giving you two 【Blood Bodhi】 each. Just consume one to heal most injuries, greatly replenishing vitality and stamina. It can fully serve as a ‘life-saving divine medicine’.”
With that, he distributed the string of weeping Buddha Head fruits in his hand, two per person. Then he took out seven small black cloth bags and divided the 10 coins among everyone.
Yuan Zhu accepted the remuneration while quibbling: “Captain, this wasn’t plundering; it was protecting precious cultural relics!”
The Captain nodded perfunctorily: “Right, protecting until the Bodhisattva statue was unrecognizable, all eight arms broken, and it was dismembered.”
【Beep beep beep…】
Taking the blood-red Blood Bodhi that carried a bit of warmth, the 【Immortal Scripture】 issued a pollution peak value warning far exceeding the green Skeleton Cocoon and red Blood Tomato, fully proving that this fruit’s value was incomparable to ordinary pollutants from the Bubble World.
After this wondrous adventure in the Bubble World, Yuan Zhu was no longer too wary of the 【Immortal Scripture】’s pollution warnings.
Before being kidnapped by 【Mao Mao King】, he had some psychological cleanliness obsession. He was particularly averse to objects flagged by the 【Immortal Scripture】’s pollution alerts, always carefully avoiding various pollutions, fearing he’d pollute and dirty himself.
But now.
Having personally witnessed Na Ye Buddhist Kingdom residents either wrapped in Buddha Cocoons or Skeleton Demon Cocoons; or with Tomato Heads, deformed arms, linked exploding heads… his mental threshold had greatly improved.
At this point, he played with the Buddha Head Blood Bodhi barehanded without any mental pressure. Wasn’t it just a ‘super blood bottle’ with a unique art style? Worth a life—eat it when needed.
Sure enough, Lu Rang, whose nerves had also been grossly stimulated, unhesitatingly popped one into his mouth to test the poison for everyone. His mouth chewed with ‘smacking’ sounds.
His originally pale cheeks quickly regained color, and he scrambled up from the ground, flexing his limbs in surprise, exclaiming: “Eh? It’s better, I’m really healed. Captain, it’s amazing! I feel full of power inside.”
He clenched his fist tightly, knuckles crackling. Then he glared unkindly at that Little Goat, tempted to pounce and beat it up, but he held back.
The Captain then reminded: “This Blood Bodhi is good, but consume it cautiously. Within a short time, don’t take two or more consecutively, or it will cause mild mental pollution, greatly reducing resistance to starlight and Buddhist Dharma. You’ll easily be converted into Buddhism or assimilated by starlight. If anyone’s interested, you can exchange and buy it in 【Mao Mao King】’s exclusive area.”
After all that fuss, these two were trial products to cultivate clients, right? 【Mao Mao King】 would sell children’s wear and moonlight as a side gig selling healing little tomatoes?!
Meng Xiyue asked: “Captain, what is this Blood Bodhi? It looks a lot like those Blood Tomatoes. One has independent nose and mouth ears tongue, the other has full facial features—could they be relatives?”
Captain: “Surely you all saw that Buddha giant too? These 【Blood Bodhi】 are Buddha Fruits personally nurtured by Abbot Duowen. Similar to the Buddha Cocoons naturally growing near the temple. Bathed in Abbot Duowen’s Buddhist Dharma and nourished by Buddha Blood, absorbing stellar power, they grow perfect fruits—rare and precious, the most valuable local specialty of this Bubble World. The Blood Tomatoes you got before are the degraded low-end version of Blood Bodhi, nurtured by temple monks irrigating with their own flesh and blood. After all, at that time, Duowen hadn’t become a Buddha yet.”
“What? Duowen became a Buddha? That massive 【Buddha Tomato】?!” Lu Rang was startled upon hearing this. “Wait, something so evil can count as a Buddha?”
Meng Xiyue agreed: “I heard that Abbot Duowen say back then: won’t become a Buddha until converting all of Na Ye Buddhist Kingdom. Now Na Ye City is swarming with demons, and that 【Buddha Tomato】 counts as a true Buddha?”
Seeing everyone’s strong discussion desire, the Captain added a few words: “Abbot Duowen hasn’t become a Buddha, and the 【Buddha Tomato】 isn’t Duowen either. Moreover, it does possess some characteristics of gods and demons. It can be seen as a native god or demon bred by the Bubble World; calling it a Buddha works too.”
At this point, Zhou Chu joined in, asking: “Captain, do you know what exactly happened in Na Ye Buddhist Kingdom? What are the causes and effects of everything tonight? I really want to know the truth.”
As a Security Bureau investigator, she had an obsessive-compulsive urge to investigate things thoroughly or feel uncomfortable all over.
This brief mission trial, from the perspective of 【Mao Mao King】’s product sales, could be called exceptionally failed and full of difficulties.
From getting lost in the deep mountains at the start, to slaughtering Filthy Bone Demonic Creatures and Yellow Springs Corpse Ghosts all the way… then participating in a bizarre and grotesque Tomato Buddha Ascension Ceremony in Na Ye Buddhist Kingdom, and killing their way out of the city— the whole process was utterly baffling.
Although they harvested a super Golden Bodhisattva, leaving Yuan Zhu unable to feel any anger, his mouth corners involuntarily curving up. But that didn’t mean he was truly happy! That sense of confusion from not knowing the true face of Lushan Mountain also made him unhappy, his thoughts obstructed.
If he could figure out the causes and effects of tonight’s ceremony, he’d be completely satisfied.
As if sensing everyone’s resentment, the Captain nodded: “Alright, then I’ll explain to you. While you were acting freely, I secretly investigated the mystery of Na Ye Buddhist Kingdom and made some discoveries.”
