Chapter Four: I Absolutely Didn't Intend to Freeload
“Ah—” Chen Miaomiao recoiled in fright, nearly falling to the ground.
“Miaomiao, you’ve gotten me into such trouble!” Qian Qi closed in on her, his expression growing darker by the second. “Because of your wrong answer, I almost died!”
“I didn’t even know you were going to steal the Fire Qilin Fruit!” Chen Miaomiao screamed, utterly unwilling to take responsibility for Qian Qi’s injury. She knew all too well that with Qian Qi’s temper, he wouldn’t let this go easily—he might even beat her to death!
Qian Qi narrowed his eyes and sneered coldly, “I don’t recall saying it was the Fire Qilin Fruit I stole?”
Chen Miaomiao: !!!
Her heart sank—she’d let something slip!
“No, I mean, you said you stole a fruit, and then I remembered the question you asked yesterday, so I just connected the dots!” Chen Miaomiao flailed, trying to explain hastily. “Yes, that’s why I guessed it was the Fire Qilin Fruit!”
“Is that so…” Qian Qi’s expression softened little by little, as though he hadn’t just been scowling fiercely. His tone turned gentle, “Miaomiao, you’re so smart. You definitely didn’t mean to give me the wrong answer on purpose.”
“Of course not!” Chen Miaomiao patted her racing heart. She was genuinely scared out of her wits, having truly thought Qian Qi was about to take revenge on her.
“Don’t overthink it. Anyway, I have to go out for a while.” She said this, quickly putting on her coat and leaving the dormitory.
Qian Qi hung her clothes on the drying line and wiped her damp hands before moving to the windowsill.
When she reviewed the memories of the original owner, she had already noticed that Chen Miaomiao was suspicious.
The old Chen Miaomiao never dared to act so boldly in front of her; usually, she kept her head down and was meek. Even making eye contact with Qian Qi would make her tremble.
But now, she actually dared to shout at her…
Clearly, someone was backing her up.
Watching from the window as Chen Miaomiao hurriedly fled downstairs, Qian Qi’s eyes narrowed dangerously.
Who was supporting Chen Miaomiao behind the scenes?
And why had the original owner stolen the Fire Qilin Fruit?
[Are you curious? Are you itching to know the answer? For just 97 yuan, all mysteries can be unraveled~]
Suddenly, the system panel appeared before Qian Qi.
Qian Qi: …
Qian Qi: ???
“I only have 97 yuan on me, and it’s borrowed—do you really want to strip me clean?” Qian Qi was shocked.
[Shouldn’t you be admiring how awesome I am instead?]
“Right!” Qian Qi suddenly brightened, rubbing her hands together in flattery. “Oh great System Master, you’re so impressive~ When you first appeared, I sensed your noble and fresh aura, unmatched by any other golden finger. You must be the strongest system in all the worlds!”
[Hmph, not at all.]
“So… can it be free this time?”
[Scram. No haggling.]
“Tch.” Qian Qi’s expression darkened instantly. “I can investigate on my own.”
Right now, those 97 yuan were her lifeline; she would never hand them over to the system.
Besides, solving the mystery wasn’t urgent. She was dirt poor and still needed help from classmate Miaomiao~
“Let me check my skills first.”
She took the Fire Qilin Fruit from her pocket and used “Analysis Technique” to scan it.
[Name: Fire Qilin Fruit
Affiliated Magical Plant: Fire Qilin Lotus
Rank: E
Effect: Slightly boosts the flame power of Flame Hounds; no other special effects
Market Price: 20,000 yuan per fruit]
“Twenty thousand?” Qian Qi’s eyes widened. Weren’t magical plants supposed to be worthless? Why was this Fire Qilin Fruit so valuable?
And what about this Flame Hound…?
Qian Qi opened her light-brain to search and soon found the answer.
The Flame Hound was a common E-rank magical beast. Because low-level dog-type beasts were easier to contract with and had less backlash, they were the preferred choice for most novice beast tamers.
The Fire Qilin Fruit happened to enhance the Flame Hound’s power.
This was why the Magical Plant Research Institute hadn’t been shut down. Although magical plants were useless to humans, they provided some benefit to magical beasts. Even though there were few known beneficial magical plants, they still offered tangible advantages.
Thus, the Fire Qilin Fruit was a special case.
“Hm, growing magical plants requires a planting permit, huh.”
Qian Qi nodded in approval. After all, magical plants were dangerous. If anyone could plant them, who knew how many people might get hurt.
However, students in the Magical Plant Department of the Awakened University did have the privilege to grow magical plants on campus.
“Liang Yuting,” Qian Qi turned to ask, “how can I get magical plant seeds?”
“Ah?” Liang Yuting, lying on her bed, was momentarily stunned before responding, “You can apply for ten magical plant seeds free of charge every semester, right?”
Qian Qi had never planted any, so her application quota was still full.
“Can I apply for Fire Qilin Lotus seeds for free too?” Qian Qi’s eyes lit up, her hands rubbing together secretly.
Ten Fire Qilin Lotus seeds—if even one plant bore a single Fire Qilin Fruit, that would be worth two hundred thousand yuan!
“That’s definitely not possible.” Liang Yuting shook her head. “Valuable magical plants require extra payment. One Fire Qilin Lotus seed costs 1,000 yuan.”
Though the cost-performance ratio seemed good, magical plants had a low success rate and were difficult to cultivate. Even if you planted a Fire Qilin Lotus, it might not bear fruit.
If it didn’t, all the time and money would be wasted.
“Hm, although magical plants are hard to cultivate with low yields, my second skill, Divine Hand, might increase the yield?”
Qian Qi pondered for a moment and decided to try planting a Fire Qilin Lotus seed.
…
Most magical plants on the hill behind the school had their owners’ names marked. Qian Qi clearly remembered that the Fire Qilin Lotus belonged to a sophomore named Li Shuyun.
She found the dormitory and knocked on the door. Hearing a “come in” from inside, she opened the door and entered.
“Is Li Shuyun here?”
Upon hearing her voice, a beautiful girl turned her head but was so startled her hand shook and her eyebrow pencil fell to the floor. “Qian… Qian Qi?”
It seemed her reputation was indeed widespread, as even a sophomore knew her.
Under Li Shuyun’s terrified gaze, Qian Qi pulled out the Fire Qilin Fruit and sincerely said, “Sorry, senior, I was so hungry and out of it that I picked your homework fruit.”
Li Shuyun’s gaze shifted awkwardly to her roommates, who were all hiding under their blankets, too scared to move. She could only look back at the Fire Qilin Fruit in Qian Qi’s hand with difficulty. “It’s… it’s fine. If you want it, you can take it.”
This Fire Qilin Fruit wasn’t of the highest quality, worth only a few thousand yuan. Her family wasn’t short of money; she was here just to earn her degree.
“No way!”
Qian Qi never accepted charity. She strode over, placed the Fire Qilin Fruit in Li Shuyun’s hand, and clasped her hand tightly.
She said earnestly, “Senior, your Fire Qilin Lotus was partly chopped by my hoe. It probably won’t bear fruit anymore. Let me help you plant a new one.”
“T-That’s not necessary.” Li Shuyun trembled as Qian Qi held her hands. “I can replant it myself. Besides, Fire Qilin Lotus seeds are expensive, you might…”
Li Shuyun hesitated, recalling how poor Qian Qi was. She practically wanted to slap herself.
Fearing that Qian Qi’s prideful spirit might lash out, she hurriedly added, “Fire Qilin Fruits are very difficult to cultivate. I’m the only one in the entire program who’s gotten lucky enough to grow one.”
“Oh my!” Qian Qi exclaimed dramatically, “Only senior has managed to grow one? That’s amazing!”
“Damn it!” She then put on a self-reproachful expression, “You worked so hard to grow it, and I chopped it down—what a terrible sin! Looks like I have to help you grow a Fire Qilin Fruit again!”
Qian Qi’s eyes sparkled as she looked at Li Shuyun, gently holding her hands in hopeful anticipation. “So, senior, you’ll definitely buy the Fire Qilin Lotus seeds, right?”
Li Shuyun: …
Li Shuyun: ???
So she wasn’t really interested in planting the Fire Qilin Lotus herself; she just wanted to freeload the seeds!
“How about it?” Qian Qi pressed her mischievous face close to Li Shuyun.
Li Shuyun: …
“Alright…” Li Shuyun leaned back reluctantly and said with difficulty.
For her, getting a Fire Qilin Lotus seed was no big deal—as long as Qian Qi didn’t hit her, everything was negotiable.
Satisfied, Qian Qi left her light-brain number and reminded her before leaving, “Senior, don’t forget—I’ll be reminding you.”
To Li Shuyun’s ears, this was clearly a warning and threat: I’m watching you. If you don’t buy the Fire Qilin Lotus seeds, I won’t let you off.
After the dorm door closed, Li Shuyun wanted to cry but had no tears.
“Damn it, why did I ever decide to plant Fire Qilin Lotus!”