Now that she thought about it more carefully, her boss could probably flatten the entire city if he intended to.
Maybe he just wanted to run his store in peace.
Yes. That must be it.
A supreme expert who had reached the peak, choosing to live a normal life, selling products fairly and squarely.
’Boss… you’re amazing.’
“Let me go, you crazy woman!” Gong Shaoyan tried to break free, but Mo Xixi held on tight.
“I haven’t even done anything wrong! I can walk out myself!” He tried to sound dignified, as if being dragged out wasn’t a complete humiliation.
“You think you can treat me like this?!” His face twisted in rage.
“Do you know who I am?! Do you think my Azure Mist Pavilion will allow this store to exist in Sovereign City after this insult?!”
Mo Xixi ignored Gong Shaoyan’s every word. She yanked the door open, swung her arm, and sent Gong Shaoyan flying out along with his sword.
Thud!
Gong Shaoyan crashed onto the ground. Before he could even process what happened, the store’s door automatically slammed shut behind him.
Inside, Mo Xixi dusted her hands off.
“Good job tossing out the trash, Little Xixi.” Hao gave her a thumbs-up.
He let out a small smile, stretching lazily. ’What an ending to today. I thought it was going to be boring.’
’First day with an employee, first person blacklisted. Not bad.’
He glanced at the board on the wall.
Rule No. 5: The Store Does Not Welcome Troublemakers. Raising your voice is one thing. Raising your hand is another. The moment you cross the line, you’re out.
This was the rule Hao had just exercised on Gong Shaoyan.
On second thought, the rule seemed a little vague. The system never specified what counted as crossing the line. Only that once a customer was deemed a troublemaker, Hao could enforce control over them.
No matter how strong they were, how powerful their background was, or what kind of reputation they held, if Hao wanted them out, they were out.
That meant he was practically invincible inside the store.
One example? What he did to Gong Shaoyan earlier. In an instant, he had stripped him of every ounce of strength, turning an arrogant young master into a weak, helpless mortal.
It was kind of fun. And honestly, acting like some powerful, mysterious expert had its own charm.
Hao replayed the scene in his head.
“That’s enough.”
A simple sentence. Two words. That’s all it took.
’What do you mean “that’s enough”?’
He held back a laugh. ’Damn, I sounded pretty cringe.’
Still groaning on the ground, Gong Shaoyan suddenly felt a rush of power. His cultivation had returned and flooded his body with strength!
He scrambled to his feet, dusting himself off in a hurry. He adjusted his robes, straightened his sleeves, and ran a hand through his hair.
“Hmph, as expected. Whatever that storekeeper did was only temporary.”
“That bastard must’ve used some cheap trick.”
’Thought he could suppress me forever?’
His eyes burned with rage as he turned toward the shop.
“This time, I’ll destroy that damn door!”
With fury driving him, Gong Shaoyan stormed toward the entrance, his palm aimed straight for the glass door. Not to push it open, but to shatter it into pieces!
Womp.
It felt like he had just slammed into an unmovable mountain. The door didn’t budge. Not even an inch.
Gong Shaoyan stood frozen, hand still pressed against the glass.
“H-Huh?”
He took a step back, shaking off the numbness in his palm. His brows furrowed. Maybe he just didn’t use enough force?
He shook out his hand, cracked his knuckles, and tried again.
Nothing.
His eye twitched. His palm hurt!
“The hell?!” He glared at the glass door. It looked normal enough! Was it some kind of high-grade treasure? Impossible!
Frustrated, Gong Shaoyan widened his stance, bent his knees, and focused his spiritual qi into his right fist. A faint glow enveloped his knuckles as he took a deep breath.
’Let’s see if you can withstand this!’
He threw his punch. “Heavy Iron Fist!”
This martial technique was designed to break through fortified defenses. By focusing qi into a single point, it created an impact powerful enough to shatter massive boulders.
It was a favorite of Gong Shaoyan’s because of its sheer destructive force.
His fist connected with the glass.
Crack!
Not the door. His knuckles.
A sharp, bone-rattling shock traveled up his arm.
“Awooohh!”
Gong Shaoyan yelped like a beaten dog, stumbling back and clutching his puffy red throbbing fist. The door? Completely fine. Not even a single scratch.
His breathing turned erratic. “No way…”
He had just broken through recently! He was at his strongest! Yet a mere door had absorbed his punch without the slightest damage?
Refusing to accept reality, Gong Shaoyan turned to the glass wall beside it. Maybe the door was special, but the walls couldn’t be identical, right?
Bang! Bang! Bang!
He unleashed a flurry of punches, as if hitting the wall over and over would somehow make it weaker, just like a League player thinking flaming his jungle would make them play better.
The result was the same.
Gong Shaoyan hissed, shaking his hand violently. His knuckles were already swelling.
“This is impossible.”
Gritting his teeth, he reached for the sword on his back. Fine. If fists wouldn’t work, then –
Clang! Krrk!
His precious sword. A weapon crafted by master blacksmiths, sharp enough to cut through steel.
A crack had appeared along the blade!
Gong Shaoyan stood trembling as realization dawned on him.
This store… was a nightmare.
His breath quickened. His eyes darted around. Thank the heavens this was a hidden alley. If anyone had seen him punching walls and nearly breaking his own sword, he would be a laughingstock!
A bead of sweat dripped down his forehead.
…He needed to leave.
Now.
With one last furious glare at the store, Gong Shaoyan turned on his heel and fled into the night.
But as he ran, he swore in his heart that he would return.
How dare that storekeeper and that brat treat him like this?
Next time, he’d make them pay!
But no matter how much Gong Shaoyan vowed to come back, fate had already decided otherwise.
The moment he was thrown out, Hao had marked him as blacklisted.