"Consumables? Herbs?"
Lili stared at the panel, expression unreadable.
"Just for her?"
"For a woman I just met?"
Questions echoed one after another inside his mind, piling up like an endless chain.
"Was it worth helping her?"
"She'll be powerful in the future anyway."
"So why would I even bother?"
"She's weak right now, sure—but that won't last."
"She doesn't really need my help."
"She's just another woman."
"Her fate is already written."
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"So why help this woman?"
"The truth is, even if I do nothing, she'll be fine."
"She'll get those herbs the main character steals."
"She'll survive."
"She'll reconcile with her fiancé."
"She'll be fine without me."
"So why would I interfere?"
"She's just another character playing her role in this world."
"I'm not needed."
"Everything will fall into place anyway."
Silence stretched.
Then—
"But I have promised to give you a hand."
Not hesitation. Not doubt.
Decision.
"Not because I'm into you or anything."
"Not because I care."
"But because you're pitiful."
"And that's what I hate the most."
"People who beg for pity."
"People who belittle themselves."
"Just this once," he muttered quietly. "Like I told you earlier… I'll help you."
His gaze hardened.
"Shakky."
"How much for an Immortal Herb?"
"The one she ate in the donghua."
♤
Ding—
□ Notification
Searching the host's memories…
1%…
35%…
53%…
68%…
71%…
85%…
94%…
98%…
99%…
100%
Information successfully obtained.
---
Ding—
□ D.D.W. SHOP
Item: Immortal Herb — Daffodil Jade Flesh Bone
Price: 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 System Points / piece
♤
Ding—
□ ALLOWANCE SYSTEM
Conversion Rate:
10 Gold Coins = 1 System Point
Do you wish to convert?
♤
Lili stared at the numbers.
"…Ten gold for one system point."
A pause.
"A fair deal," he muttered flatly.
"…For a rip-off system."
His eyes flicked toward the floating panel.
"Just like you, Shakky."
No anger. No surprise.
Just quiet acceptance—as if he'd expected nothing less from this world.
♤
"Then please do," Lili said, not caring about anything anymore.
---
Ding—
□ Notification
Successfully converted.
---
Ding—
□ Confirmation
Do you wish to purchase the Immortal Herb: Daffodil Jade Flesh Bone?
---
"Hmmm…"
"What's with that question, Shakky?" Lili muttered flatly.
"Why would I even convert gold if I wasn't going to buy it?"
"And if you really want to question my actions, you're free to doubt."
"I can't even believe it myself."
"That I'm helping someone right now."
"A useless help."
"And unneeded one at that."
♤
Ding—
□ D.D.W. SHOP
Immortal Herb: Daffodil Jade Flesh Bone
STATUS: SUCCESSFULLY PURCHASED
PAYMENT: FULLY PAID
♤
"Give it to me, Shakky," Lili said, his voice as deep and hoarse as ever.
"I don't want to waste my time here."
In front of him, a green flower with a long stem slowly materialized.
Soft light pulsed from its center.
Lili grabbed it by the stem, not caring in the slightest how important an Immortal Herb was in this world—
how consuming one was basically a ticket to becoming a kami.
But for him, this world was just a another illusion inside his head.he wasnt new to this.things Maybe his symptoms like the Maladaptive Daydreaming
or his Psychotic Delusions and Cotard's Delusion just kicked in again.
And why would he give a fuck about a dream?
He placed the herb gently on the table beside her bed.
Then he spoke again.
"Shakky. The knife."
"The one that killed Thatch."
The knife appeared—exactly the same as in the One Piece anime.
Lili picked it up and carved words onto the surface of the table.
The system assisted by displaying the text for him to copy, but he was terrible at it.
The carving looked like it had been scratched by beast claws—messy, uneven—but still readable.
After leaving the Immortal Herb behind, Lili stood up.
No hesitation.
No lingering glances.
No dramatic pause like some cheap K-drama.
No bullshit.
He simply turned around, walked out of the room, closed the door—
—and locked it.
Lili made his way down to the first floor, where he rented a room for himself.
Zhu Zhuqing remained on the fifth floor.
Alone.
Sleeping peacefully.
Unaware of what had just been placed beside her bed.
Morning came.
Zhu Zhuqing had already consumed the gift.
The moment she stabilized her cultivation, she rushed toward the door.
The door was locked.
She didn't hesitate.
Her fist struck forward—
Boom.
The wooden door crumbled instantly, shattered into pieces as if it were made of paper. Splinters scattered across the hallway.
Zhu Zhuqing rushed out without looking back. Her footsteps echoed as she ran down the corridor, her heart pounding violently.
She reached the stairs and hurried down, grabbing the attention of people around her.
"Did you see her?"
"Have you seen the woman with purple hair?"
"Where did she go?"
Her voice was urgent, desperate. She asked everyone she passed, her eyes scanning every face, every corner, every shadow.
But there was no answer.
No trace.
No sign.
♤
Meanwhile—
Lili wasn't bothered at all.
He was sound asleep in one of the rooms on the first floor, lying comfortably, breathing evenly. His expression was calm, devoid, as if nothing in the world concerned him.
The chaos above meant nothing to him.
The broken door.
The frantic search.
The woman tearing through the hotel in desperation.
None of it reached him.
Not even a little.