"Today is a great day for ranking up..."
Chen Shu whistled as he walked, his entire body bathed in the sweet air of freedom.
"Yes! Hell yes! This is AMAZING!"
He couldn't help shouting at the top of his lungs. His bizarre expressions and strange poses drew stares from every passerby.
Another case of Social Brazenness Disorder!
"Let me swing by the black market shop first."
Chen Shu hailed a cab. Half an hour later, he arrived at the entrance to the black market.
The black market was as bustling as ever — people coming and going, with even heavier foot traffic after dark.
"Tianbao, my man!"
Inside the Strength Potion Shop, Wang Tianbao and his crew were huddled together... playing marbles.
The moment they spotted Chen Shu, everyone shot to their feet.
"Boss Chen!"
"Boss Chen!"
Gratitude shone in every pair of eyes. A cushy, well-paying job like this was a dream come true.
Business at the Strength Potion Shop had stabilized nicely — ten bottles of High-Grade Strength Potion sold daily, usually gone by noon.
Come afternoon and evening, the crew's only job was picking up raw materials and delivering them to Nanjiang Second High.
"This is what you guys do all day..."
A bunch of grown men squatting in a circle playing marbles was, admittedly, a bit much.
Wang Tianbao laughed sheepishly. "Reliving childhood, reliving childhood..."
"Is there something you need, Boss Chen?"
Chen Shu nodded. "I'll be staying at the shop for the next two months."
With that, he produced a wooden sign. On it was written:
"PUBLIC TOILET POTION MASTER — Free potion compounding! 100% success rate! Think you deserve it?!
Available: Endurance Potion! Defense Potion! Body-type Potion! Intelligence Potion! Jump Potion! Burst Speed Potion!"
Wang Tianbao and the others stared at the sign, momentarily stunned.
"Take these signs to the main entrances of the black market and start hawking," Chen Shu instructed.
He had no plans to cause trouble for the next two months. Instead, he was going to grind his potion recipe proficiency.
His highest proficiency was in Strength Potion, which had reached Grandmaster Level — granting the special effect of allowing contract spirits to absorb an extra 25% dosage, putting them a cut above everyone else's.
But above Grandmaster lay one more tier: Sage Level. New effects were sure to follow.
All his other potion recipes were still stuck at Beginner Level, with no bonus effects whatsoever.
The potential of potion enhancement was nothing to scoff at. He wanted to make his F-rank Slime stronger — devastatingly, despair-inducingly stronger.
Chen Shu then headed to the shop's toilet.
He changed into that long-sealed alpaca t-shirt...
Back in the day, the title of Public Toilet Potion Master had gone viral across all of Nanjiang City.
To maintain a low profile, he had chosen to hide among the common folk.
Now the time had come. He could finally reveal his hand...
Before long, a young man walked in holding up his phone.
"Holy crap! It really IS you! I can't believe the advertising at the market entrance was legit!"
He'd clearly been drawn in by Wang Tianbao and the boys' hawking.
Chen Shu blinked, then instantly recognized who it was.
This was the very first person who'd ever witnessed him brewing potions in a public toilet.
If the guy's sphincter hadn't been on the verge of exploding that day, he never would've stumbled upon the legendary scene inside that stall.
"Oh, it's you?"
Chen Shu grinned. "What, interested in getting some potions made? Free! Everything's free!"
He hadn't chosen the route of buying ingredients at high prices and selling finished potions at a discount. That approach didn't generate much profit, required time to recoup capital, and risked destabilizing the market.
But compounding potions for free? That eliminated the cost problem entirely.
Because with the System's Automaton Mode, any surplus production went straight to him. Pure profit, zero loss.
And it'd build up a good reputation in the process.
Even if he accidentally blew up Nanjiang City someday, surely people would forgive him...
Wang Yu shook his head. "I don't need any! But I can help promote you!"
"Promote? How?"
Chen Shu looked confused.
Wang Yu turned to his phone. "Hey everyone, I've finally found the Public Toilet Potion Master you've all been dying to see — can you believe he's actually back?!"
Chen Shu raised an eyebrow. "You're a streamer?"
"Do you mind showing your face, boss?"
Chen Shu shrugged. He was a man who'd been featured on Nanjiang TV. He couldn't care less.
"No way — Miracle Bro, you actually found the Toilet Potion Master?"
"I've got the matching alpaca t-shirt at home and everything. I pray to it every night at midnight..."
"Hurry! Hurry! I need to see that man's face!"
Bullet comments flooded the chat. Wang Yu immediately swung the camera to Chen Shu.
He hadn't always been "Miracle Bro." He'd earned the nickname after having the good fortune to witness Chen Shu's toilet alchemy, which had briefly made him internet famous. Netizens had dubbed him "the Miracle Witness"...
"Hello everyone! I am the Public Toilet Potion Master! I've opened up shop in Nanjiang's black market and I'm compounding potions for free — guaranteed fresh!"
Chen Shu wore a sunny smile that put people in a good mood.
"Holy shit — isn't that the NANJIANG BANDIT?!"
"Hubby, scold me! I wanna hear the telegram!"
"Miracle Bro, RUN! You have no idea what you've gotten yourself into!"
...
Wang Yu's eyes went wide. The chat was exploding — the bullet comment count had skyrocketed.
Most of them were telling him to flee before he caught a beating. They were practically calling Chen Shu a criminal.
"Boss, I think I need a moment to collect myself..."
Wang Yu swallowed hard and subtly took a step backward.
He was about to leave the shop when Chen Shu placed a hand on his shoulder, smiling pleasantly.
"What about that promotion you promised? I don't like people who break their word."
Staring at that "friendly" smile, Wang Yu felt an involuntary shiver run through his body.
And with that, Chen Shu snatched the phone and started promoting himself.
"I'm sure you all know my reputation by now! To give back to your support, I'm offering free potion compounding at the black market — just bring your own materials, 100% success rate!"
The chat erupted with bullet comments.
Chen Shu sat down and scrolled through the phone with keen interest, while Wang Yu stood off to the side like an uninvited bystander.
Despite his fear, a part of him was thrilled — the stream's viewership had doubled.
"Bandit bro, you're so hot! Marry me!"
Chen Shu read the comment and replied: "Please don't focus on my looks. I'd much rather you appreciate my inner substance. Thank you!"
Then he seemed to start reading more bullet comments aloud:
"'I absolutely HAVE to support the Bandit's business — anyone who tries to stop me can catch these hands!'"
"'With the Bandit's power level, his shop's credibility is guaranteed — plus it's FREE! I'm in love, so in love!'"
"'Bros, hurry hurry hurry!'"
Wang Yu watched the utterly composed Chen Shu, his mouth twitching involuntarily. He had to ask:
"Bro... are you sure you're reading the chat? There's nothing up there..."
"..."