Chapter 21

After enjoying a pleasant dinner, the two of them parted ways at the entrance of Wanmin Restaurant.

Xia Zhi watched Liu retreating figure, noticing that the Iron-grade progress bar above him had completely disappeared.

An Iron-grade treasure chest now lay quietly in his inventory.

Liu was truly a good person.

He treated him to dinner, answered all his questions, and even gave him a treasure chest.

Xia Zhi recalled how earlier, when there was still half a bottle of wine left during dinner, Liu firmly refused to drink it, saying he was worried about getting drunk and affecting tomorrow's fishing.

It was a shame that such a straightforward, hospitable, and self-disciplined man hadn't found a wife yet.

Though perhaps Liu desire to buy a house in Yujing Terrace meant he was hoping to find a wealthy lady there.

Xia Zhi glanced at Wanmin Restaurant's kitchen, where the little red panda was still diligently helping to tend the stove.

The Gold-grade progress bar above it showed no progress at all.

It remained at [0%].

No rush.

Although Xia Zhi hadn't interacted with it at all tonight, he had learned from Liu that its name was Guoba, and that it was Xiangling's little follower.

This information was enough for now.

He decided to eat at Wanmin Restaurant every day from now on.

Xia Zhi turned and left, slowly walking back to the inn along the street.

His biggest gain tonight was still that Iron-grade treasure chest.

Opening the system panel, a row of item information appeared.

[Iron-grade Treasure Chest]

Quality: Iron

Type: Consumable

Properties: None

Effect: Opening will randomly yield one Iron-grade item

Hidden Effect: None

Recyclable: 2 points

The recycling price of the Iron-grade chest was exactly one-tenth of a Silver chest.

As Xia Zhi had guessed before, the difference between chest tiers was indeed tenfold.

But this was just the chest's recycling price, which was different from item prices.

Xia Zhi had spent considerable time browsing the [Shop] these past few days and had gained some understanding.

Common items from the original world mostly cost 1 point.

Iron-grade items cost between 1 and 9 points.

Silver-grade items cost between 10 and 99 points.

And so on up the tiers.

From a certain perspective, the chest was essentially like drawing a lottery.

Take this Iron-grade chest he now possessed—direct recycling would only give 2 points, but opening it had a high chance of yielding an Iron-grade item worth 3 to 9 points.

If only considering value, recycling directly would be a huge loss.

Because as long as the item he got wasn't worth 1 point, it would be profitable.

However, there were far too many items in the [Shop], and for Xia Zhi right now, many items were either unusable or useless.

For example, something like [Mobile Suit Piloting Basics], though it seemed impressive and cost 5 points, was useless to him since he had no mobile suit to pilot!

If he got such a useless item and recycled it, he'd only get 1 point.

In that case, it would have been better to recycle the chest directly.

After all, points were the most flexible, and what he needed most right now was development.

"I still have 3 points left. Although I'm short on points, an Iron chest only risks a 1-point loss, which I can afford."

After some thought, Xia Zhi chose to open the Iron-grade chest in his inventory.

A new item appeared on the panel.

[Rainbow Fruit Concentrate]

Quality: Iron

Type: Consumable

Properties: None

Effect: Its fragrance forms a seven-colored rainbow in the air, and its taste transforms into seven dreamlike variations depending on the surrounding temperature and humidity. A single drop can turn an entire swimming pool of water into rich, mellow fruit juice. Must be heavily diluted before becoming suitable for normal human consumption.

Hidden Effect: None

Recyclable: 1 point

"Oh? This? I think I saw it in the shop the day before yesterday..."

Xia Zhi searched and found that it sold for 3 points in the [Shop].

This was a small profit.

There was also an item called [Rainbow Fruit] next to it, Gold quality, priced at 300 points, which was the complete version of this item.

Too expensive to afford for now.

Considering he was on a busy street with many tourists, Xia Zhi didn't take out this supernatural item to avoid causing a commotion.

After walking alone for a while, Xia Zhi returned to the Seaview Inn and used his quill to record all the information he'd collected today.

He specifically circled Qiqi, Yun Jin, and Guoba.

All three had progress bars, making them targets he needed to find ways to interact with.

Xia Zhi thought for a moment, then slowly crossed out Yun Jin's name.

The famous star would have to wait for now.

He then put a check mark next to Guoba's name.

By eating there more often and becoming a regular at Wanmin Restaurant, he'd naturally build a relationship with Xiangling, making it easier to raise the progress bar with it.

Only Qiqi's name remained on the paper.

She was Bubu Pharmacy's herb-gathering apprentice, and also an immortal zombie.

Liu didn't have a strong impression of Qiqi, only knowing that Baizhu had brought her back from the mountains, and that she rarely appeared in public and didn't talk much.

"Looks like I'll need to go to Bubu Pharmacy to meet Qiqi in person after all."

Xia Zhi sighed softly, organized the papers on the table and stored them in his inventory, then took out the Rainbow Fruit Concentrate.

What appeared in his palm was a tiny glass bottle.

Inside was a single drop of rainbow-colored liquid that sparkled brilliantly under the light of the oil lamp.

What beautiful colors.

Xia Zhi carefully opened the cap, and a dreamlike fragrance wafted out from the bottle's mouth, forming a rainbow bridge in the air.

What an intense fragrance.

Xia Zhi recapped the bottle.

This was just one drop of concentrate that needed extensive dilution and mixing before it could be consumed.

Xia Zhi put the bottle back in his inventory, a vague idea forming in his mind.

But it wasn't fully formed yet and would need careful investigation tomorrow.

Xia Zhi took a bath, changed into his sleepwear, wrote for a while longer, and went to bed when he started feeling sleepy.

The next morning, Xia Zhi finished washing up, put on his glasses, and left his room.

In the hallway, he encountered other guests who appeared to be sisters traveling in Liyue.

Xia Zhi slowed his pace slightly, walking behind them and overhearing their excited conversation.

"Last night I smelled such an enticing fruit fragrance!"

"I smelled it too! It was like many different fruits mixed together!"

"I wonder where it came from."

"Maybe someone was drinking some new kind of mixed fruit juice."

"Is there such a juice? I really want to try it!"

"Me too! Let's ask at the beverage shops outside."

"Yes!"

Xia Zhi listened to their conversation, his expression becoming somewhat strange.

Could what they were talking about be... that trace of fragrance released when he took out the Rainbow Fruit Concentrate last night?