[Name: Claire Charlotte]
[Race: Witch]
[Level: Unknown]
[Alignment: Unknown]
[Evaluation: A rare existence in the hell world. She possesses breathtaking beauty yet is also the most mysterious thief. If you encounter her, flee as quickly as possible. Otherwise she will steal everything from you — your identity, your memories, your very existence, and even your responsibilities!]
[Additional Information: She officially became the new shopkeeper of the general store at No. 111 Undead Street two minutes ago and is currently dissatisfied with the unpalatable food her student ‘Bai Tang’ prepared for her.]
“Teacher, are you not satisfied with the dinner your student prepared?” Bai Tang sat on the floor, tilting her head upward. Her large eyes blinked innocently, and her calm face showed just the right hint of puzzled confusion.
“But isn’t this your favorite food, Teacher?”
Unlike the time she had been caught peeking, Bai Tang managed to keep her expression perfectly composed on the surface. Inside, however, a storm had already erupted.
She was shocked that her original teacher had been completely replaced by someone else. More importantly, she instinctively felt no sense of wrongness about it at all.
It was as if her teacher had always been the girl standing before her, never the unfamiliar Night Demon uncle.
Memory tampering? Or cognitive correction?
This world was far too dangerous!
Claire looked down at Bai Tang sitting on the floor, her face expressionless. She had no intention of answering. Barefoot, she walked past the girl and headed straight for the shelves.
She seemed to already know exactly where everything was kept. With practiced ease she rummaged through the depths of a shelf and pulled out a sealed can of dried frog-leg jerky.
Crunch.
She chewed the jerky, producing crisp cracking sounds.
When she turned around again, Bai Tang had already stood up. The girl gripped a broom and began cleaning the mess on the floor without being told.
It was not for any noble reason. Bai Tang simply knew that in this hell world, Earth’s rules no longer applied.
Even as a mere shop clerk, if she disobeyed the previous store owner she would have been eaten.
That fact would not change just because the new shopkeeper was a beautiful young woman.
Every bit of caution was only for the sake of staying alive. That was the reality for humans — creatures even lower than Wandering Soul Level monsters, the true bottom rung of existence in the hell world.
“Before opening for business, remember to wipe the floor as well. Do not approach my room unless it is important.”
“Yes, Teacher.”
Just before stepping into her room, Claire paused for a moment. From the corner of her eye she glanced at Bai Tang.
Bang—!
Only after the door had closed again did Bai Tang loosen her grip on the broom. She looked down at her palms, which were covered in a thin layer of nervous sweat.
Her entire arm was trembling slightly.
She was not mistaken. The new girl teacher was far more dangerous than the previous uncle teacher!
But there was good news too!
Bai Tang closed her eyes tightly and opened them again. The corners of her mouth curled upward uncontrollably. It was not an illusion. Just now the Eye of Breaking Delusions had displayed brand-new information she had never seen before.
[Congratulations on surviving 30 days. As a human born weak, your caution has earned you the right to continue surviving in the hell world. From today onward, the Eye of Breaking Delusions will unlock all its functions!]
[Host: Bai Tang]
[Race: Human]
[Age: 18]
[Level: LV2 (Wandering Soul Level 1~10)]
[Strength: 3 (Human average 5, max 10)]
[Agility: 4 (Human average 5, max 10)]
[Constitution: 2 (Human average 5, max 10)]
[Intelligence: 8 (Human average 5, max 10)]
[Charm: 9 (Human average 5, max 10)]
Bai Tang was momentarily dazed. Before this, her right eye’s Eye of Breaking Delusions had never been able to display her own information.
It had been nothing more than an illustrated handbook that only drained her mental energy, made her tire faster, and offered no practical value.
Before she could fully process the new information, another message appeared.
[Your teacher ‘Witch’ has issued you the quest ‘Clean the General Store’.]
[Quest Requirement: Please finish cleaning the floor before the first customer of the night arrives at the general store.]
[Quest Completion Reward: +5 EXP, 25 Ghost Coins.]
To survive, she could not let even a trace of fear show. Huddled inside this tiny general store, she lived every day in constant anxiety.
Finally! Finally she had the capital to survive in this constructed hell!
Bai Tang clenched her fists excitedly and punched the air a few times. She bit her lower lip with her snow-white teeth, forcing herself not to make a sound in case she disturbed the teacher inside the room.
For the rest of the time, even mopping the floor was filled with energy.
[Congratulations on completing the quest. Reward received: +5 EXP, 25 Ghost Coins.]
After finishing everything and putting the bucket and cloth back in their original places, Bai Tang felt the weight of the newly appeared Ghost Coins in her pocket. Only then did the quest completion feel truly real.
She glanced at the wall clock.
0:05.
Only then did she remember that the old clock ran five minutes fast.
Realizing it was exactly midnight, the girl climbed back onto the stool, rested her hands on the counter, and quietly waited for tonight’s customer to arrive.
She did not have to wait long. The first customer soon appeared.
A sudden strong wind rose outside the general store. The open shop door slammed repeatedly against the wall, producing irregular bang bang sounds.
Just as Bai Tang was wondering whether the noise would disturb the teacher resting inside the room and thinking about finding something heavy to prop the door open, the human-skin lantern on the iron hook outside suddenly went out.
The area beyond the door fell back into darkness.
A two-and-a-half-meter-tall figure hunched its neck, gripped the doorframe, and stepped into the general store with heavy footsteps.
Its clothes looked like ragged denim pulled from a trash heap. The exposed skin on the backs of its hands was loose and wrinkled in layer upon layer, like dried tree bark.
Its hair was unkempt and filthy. Tangled black strands that resembled rusted iron wires covered half its face. The only visible right eye had no sclera — just a pitch-black pupil that looked utterly hollow.
When it opened its mouth, a foul stench washed over her.
“Are you still open? I want to buy something.”
At the same time, the figure’s information appeared completely before Bai Tang through the Eye of Breaking Delusions.
[Name: Nicholas Bowie]
[Race: Thousand-Handed Demon]
[Level: Fierce Ghost Level]
[Alignment: Chaotic Evil]
[Description: A local resident living at No. 1670 Undead Street. Cunning, bullies the weak while fearing the strong, and loves taking small advantages.]
Facing the bizarre-looking Thousand-Handed Demon, Bai Tang kept her expression perfectly calm. Not a trace of panic showed on the outside.
“Of course!” As a service worker, Bai Tang would never look down on a customer. “It is currently business hours for the general store. Sir, feel free to look around. What would you like to buy?”
The Thousand-Handed Demon stepped closer to the counter, leaving two rows of black shoe prints on the freshly polished floor. He stopped extremely close. His tall body cast a shadow that completely swallowed Bai Tang behind the counter.
Seemingly surprised that the one greeting him was such a frail-looking human girl, the Thousand-Handed Demon used his withered left hand to brush aside the black hair covering his left eye. With the eye socket crawling with dense black veins, he examined Bai Tang carefully.
Swallowing the saliva pooling in his mouth, the Thousand-Handed Demon did not hide the malice in his smile.
Humans… I need to find a way to eat her~
“I want to buy… time!”
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