Spiritual qi surged. Ash-gray aura twisted up Mo Xixi’s arm like a snake and flared across Dou Xinshi’s stomach.
“Entrails Locking Cursed Palm.” Mo Xixi’s voice was cold, like reading a spell from an ancient text.
It sounded intimidating!
It looked terrifying!
But all it really did was stop a man from pooping.
This was a secret technique from the Ashen Curse Cult.
Once cast, it began to seal off the intestinal meridians in slow increments – spreading from the gut like tightening chains of cursed qi.
For one hour, the target would be safe.
But after that… the seal would break.
The built-up waste would erupt explosively.
Forget resistance. It bypassed willpower, muscle control, and dignity.
Legend said one elder once blasted ten feet into the air, pants-first, shattering a roof tile.
Dou Xinshi staggered back, clutching his stomach.
“…”
The pain was… gone?
The pressure? Erased.
Even the sweat on his back started to dry.
“What?!”
He looked down at the little girl still standing there with her palm forward.
“…You…” Dou Xinshi muttered, eyes wide.
Mo Xixi crossed her arms and turned away with a little huff.
“That’ll hold you for one hour, mister.”
Hao smiled and shook his head, watching the scene.
’Definitely the right call hiring Little Xixi.’
He didn’t even want to imagine what unspeakable horrors would’ve befallen the floor if Mo Xixi hadn’t been here.
Blood could be cleaned.
Explosive diarrhea? That was a different battlefield.
Mo Xixi wasn’t really surprised by the larger space inside the store anymore.
After all, she’d already seen weirder things.
Like the time she first got hired and woke up to find the second floor had magically transformed into the third floor, pushed up by a second floor that hadn’t even existed the day before.
How could something such as that even happen?
She was sure that even the best workers in the lower realm couldn’t manage to make a building change so fast.
“Boss, did you expand the store?” Mo Xixi asked.
Hao turned. “Yeah. Like it, Little Xixi?”
Technically, the system did all the heavy lifting.
But hey, he completed the task that made it happen.
So it counted.
Mo Xixi slowly looked around.
The extra aisles. The new chairs and tables. The higher ceiling.
The air even smelled fresher.
There was a flicker of something behind her eyes.
Pride, maybe.
She had watched the place grow.
Maybe one day…
’If this keeps going – this place might turn into a holy land.’
She caught herself and quickly turned away.
“Hmph. Still not better than my bed, though.”
On the other hand, Dou Xinshi stared blankly into the air, one hand still rubbing his stomach as if it were a precious heirloom rescued from the brink of ruin.
Mo Xixi’s words lingered in his mind.
Hold what? What did she mean? What exactly was going to happen after an hour?
He didn’t know.
But for now… he felt great!
The terrifying gurgles inside his belly had quieted down like rowdy children finally scolded into silence.
That kid…
That little girl was his savior!
He walked over to the counter.
“Little Miss!” Dou Xinshi said, bowing low to Mo Xixi.
“You are a divine blessing! A guardian spirit! A saint in human form!”
Mo Xixi blinked.
Then gave a quiet, “Hmph,” and looked away like it was nothing.
Though her ears turned a little pink.
Behind her, Hao leaned on the counter, hiding a grin.
Bro, the one you’re calling a saint used to be the heir of one of the most terrifying demonic cults in history. What do you mean saint?
But… Hao had to admit. Little Xixi was a blessing!
Dou Xinshi looked around at the store for the first time – really looked.
Bright lights. Strange shelves. Walls that stretched wider than they should.
He knew he entered the right outhouse in Scorching Soul City. He knew that wood panel door. So what was this place?
Another dimension?
A secret realm?
Or maybe… a heavenly store?
He furrowed his brows. No matter. He had to show gratitude somehow.
The girl’s clothes and vibe said she was part of this place, and the young man behind the counter seemed to be the boss.
Should he… buy something?
Yes! That was it!
He would repay their kindness with coin.
He strode over to the shelves.
And then he saw the prices.
’Three crystals? For drink?’
His legs wobbled.
His heart clenched. Not his stomach – his pouch!
He only had two crystals left. And that was for the month!
Only one item fell within his meager budget.
Instant Noodles – 1 Crystal.
He picked one up with trembling fingers. The Chicken-Flavored one.
There was no way in all the heavens he was picking the spicy version.
He had to stay far, far away from that cursed – no, damned demon-possessed ghost-fire-bellied word.
Besides, he wasn’t the kind of man who left favors unpaid.
’Still worth it.’ Dou Xinshi thought solemnly, clutching the cup of instant noodles.
’I, Dou Xinshi, am not a man who forgets kindness.’
Even if that kindness came with mysterious qi technique and a looming one-hour curse clock.
Dou Xinshi followed the storekeeper’s instructions.
After paying a crystal at the counter and getting a nod of approval from the little girl, he slinked to the corner with his hot meal in hand.
Steam rose gently from the Chicken-Flavored Instant Noodles.
He took a bite.
The broth was warm and savory!
The noodles? Perfect springy! Every slurp felt like a hug from a long-lost ancestor.
One crystal very well spent.
The entire cup vanished in minutes.
And then it hit.
The world tilted.
His body locked up. His eyes closed.
A warm current surged through his spiritual veins.
He froze in place, cup in hand, as a golden light flickered faintly in his eyes.
Dou Xinshi had entered enlightenment state.
For half an hour, he didn’t move.
Then –
“Huff!”
Dou Xinshi jolted awake, the empty noodle cup rolling from his lap.
His eyes darted around as he touched his chest.
The pressure inside his dantian was unmistakable.
The whirl of spiritual qi still swirled deep inside.
He focused and felt it.
He… broke through?
Him?
Spirit Awakening Realm. Stage Four.
“I… I did it?!” Dou Xinshi whispered hoarsely.
“After all these years…!”
He wasn’t talented. He knew that.
He was the type who trained thrice as hard just to go half as far.
His clan had laughed when he said he’d become a cultivator.
Then came that tyrant sect – cloaked in robes, drunk on power, deaf to begging voices.