C6 CHAPTER6

The shop had fallen silent, with only genuine laughter and Cyril's constant praise occasionally breaking the quiet.

In old Ollie's mind, the scene they had just witnessed kept replaying: a man had taken a pill and leveled up twice in a row.

"Boss, I... I also want to buy an experience pill."

"Sure, it's 10,000 coins," Sam said, anticipating a domino effect.

"The thing is, I only have 8,000 coins... do you accept Level-1 Zombie Crystal Cores?"

"Ding! Crystal Cores are a higher-level currency. A Level-1 Zombie Crystal Core is worth 100 coins!"

At the system notification, Sam replied immediately, "Of course, we accept Crystal Cores, each core is equal to 100 coins."

With trembling hands, old Ollie took out the crystal cores to complete the pill payment. When he finally got his hands on it, everyone in the store could feel his anxiety.

Since he woke up, 40 years had passed, and he had only advanced to six stars awakened. With his talent, it was likely he wouldn't level up again in this lifetime.

As he watched the old man's nervousness, Sam could imagine how the news about the effects of his merchandise would spread. He could almost hear the jingle of the coming rain of coins.

Without further ado, old Ollie swallowed the pill, and in a short time, he began to sweat profusely, his face turning red. Cyril's story was repeating itself.

They all had their eyes fixed on the man.

"Pop!" Old Ollie felt the barrier that had trapped him at six stars for so long break.

"Hahaha. I have finally crossed the barrier. Seven stars awakened! One step away from eight stars."

Tears ran down his face and mixed with sweat, but this didn't matter to him. Leveling up again at this age was an achievement for someone like him.

"Cough... the last two level-2 experience pills are still left..."

"This is a divine pill, I have to buy it."

"Lend me your coins, I will pay you double..."

"Lend me your coins and I will pay you triple."

The commotion broke out again in the store. However, this time it wasn't about the customers criticizing the prices; they had begun to fight over who would buy the last pills.

Although 10,000 spiritual coins seemed like an exorbitant amount to everyone, leveling up was worth it, even if it meant selling everything they owned. Those who couldn't get the experience pill had to accept reality and buy any of the level-1 pills, starting to save up for another chance.

When the commotion finally died down and the last customer left, Sam let out a sigh of relief. He had managed to sell all the level-2 pills, but he still had the system mission pending.

"Dear customer, there's still a remarkable item in this store, something only a few can afford, but it's absolutely worth it," Sam said, placing a walnut in Cyril's eager hands.

"This walnut is a treasure that boosts your genetic talent... the price is just 100,000 spiritual coins."

Despite the enormous temptation, the price was steep. Cyril had received a generous reward after surviving in the coliseum, and his original plan was to buy a small house in the city center. Yet, this opportunity was too good to pass up.

"I... I want to buy this walnut, Boss," he said, his hands trembling as he handed over 1,000 Crystal Cores, equivalent to 100,000 spiritual coins.

He examined the walnut closely, noting every detail, then clenched his fist and cracked the shell, ensuring not a single crumb was wasted as he swallowed its contents.

"Ahhh!" A growl escaped his throat as he winced from the sudden pain. After a few minutes, Cyril stood up shakily, his eyes reddened and his lips trembling as he tried to speak.

"Here, try to measure your genetic talent," Sam said, offering a small genetic measurement device he had purchased a few days ago for just a few spiritual coins.

"C-"

That was the level displayed on the device. Cyril's emotions were so intense and obvious that he dropped the device. Originally, he only had an E+ talent, but now it had increased to C-!

Seeing Sam's concerned expression as he noticed the device on the ground, Cyril grabbed Sam by the shoulders, looked him in the eyes, and with a serious, broken voice, said, "Boss, I love you!"

Sam felt goosebumps prickling his skin. He wanted to retreat, but the towering man, who was a six-star awakened, didn't let him. Instead, the man gave him a smile that was more terrifying than reassuring.

"I... I don't play for that team, sir, please..."

After managing to break free and wiping the sweat from his brow, Sam remembered he'd just won $100,000, all of it straight into his pocket, not just a cut, since the walnuts were his own.

"Ding! Mission [Increase profit tenfold] completed. Reward: Lottery ticket."

"Start the lottery."

"Divine beast, divine beast, divine beast, divine beast... divine artifact, divine artifact..."

Sam prayed to every deity he could think of, crossing all his fingers, hoping for a big win. As the roulette wheel slowed, it hovered dangerously close to the dreaded "try again" option. Sam's heart shrank to the size of a raisin; it wasn't fair to put in so much effort for...

"Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining a level-1 War Pet Supply Channel."

"War pet?"

This was something new. Without much thought, he opened the level-1 war pet supply channel.

"Ding! Obtained a black iron wolf."

"Species: Earth Wolf."

"Level: Five stars."

"Grade: Black Iron."

"Master: Not Bound."

"Note: This is the war pet/good for nothing. It can barely survive against a five-star zombie."

This was incredible. Despite the system's low evaluation, such a pet was rarely seen around here.

"Open the supply channel for level-1 battle pets ten times!" he decided. It was better to act quickly, not only to stock the store with new products but also to earn rewards.

"Ding! Obtained:"

"Antwolf: Dark Iron grade / Five stars."

"Fire-eating Rabbit: Dark Iron grade / Five stars."

...

"Fierce Wind Lion: Bronze grade / Ten stars."

Indeed, by stocking up ten times, he had obtained a level-2 item. A black iron grade battle pet was equivalent to a level-1 item, while a bronze grade battle pet was equivalent to a level-2 item.

"I want to buy this Wind Lion."

Sam couldn't resist. Although he'd just won a significant amount of money, he wasn't sure if it would be enough, and his heart raced at the thought of a ten-star war pet...

"A level-1 item, a black iron grade battle pet, sells for 5,000 crystals!"

"A level-2 item, a bronze grade battle pet, sells for 50,000 crystals!"

"Host, you can buy it at a 10% discount!... Deducting 45,000 spiritual coins, getting a bronze grade Fierce Wind Lion summon-card."

"Roar! Roar! Roar!"

A Ferocious Lion appeared suddenly next to Sam. As soon as Cyril saw this creature heading toward what he considered his source of miracles, he tried to rush to save the Boss. However, he was too late. The lion had already leaped at Sam's legs and was happily rubbing its huge, hairy head against him.

"Is this a battle pet?" Cyril wondered.