"This is Qingyuan Town, the closest place to the Alternate Dimension."
Xu Xiaoyu suddenly remembered something and warned carefully, "Whatever you do, don't cause trouble. The soldiers here will kill you on sight if they are even the slightest bit suspicious of you."
Alternate Dimensions were the nation's most heavily monitored areas. Nobody was allowed to break the rules.
Chen Shu nodded, looking around at the town's architecture.
Unlike the city, the town's buildings were extremely rustic, even shabby and rundown, as if they only existed to provide basic shelter.
Most were storefronts that looked completely unremarkable, but any business that managed to establish itself in Qingyuan Town was definitely a top-tier domestic enterprise.
The 666 Potion Company had spent countless fortunes trying to secure operating rights for a single shop in town, without success.
Plenty of Beast Taming Corps struck it rich in Alternate Dimensions, but the materials were first purchased by the government, then by the town's shops. By the time resources reached the general market, they'd become extremely scarce.
"Let's find a hotel for the night and head to Qingyuan Forest tomorrow morning!"
As the corps leader, Zhou Shi made the decision, and the group headed to a small hotel in town.
Despite the town's simple facilities, the foot traffic was surprisingly high.
Everyone looked hurried and travel-worn compared to city residents, carrying an air of hard journeys.
Zhou Shi asked, "Little Chen, you're okay sharing a room with someone, right?"
"Sharing a room?"
Chen Shu looked startled, then nodded. "Absolutely no problem."
After checking in—hotels in Qingyuan Town were both scarce and expensive, so there was no need for individual rooms—they dropped off their luggage. It was only 3 PM, and after the long drive, everyone's stomachs were grumbling from hunger.
Except Chen Shu, of course. That guy had been stuffing his face the entire trip.
The group found their way to a restaurant specializing in fierce beast cuisine.
Zhou Shi looked at the menu and generously ordered several signature dishes. "Boss, we'll have the Braised Ice Hare, Steamed Spirit-tail Fish, Crispy Fried Four-winged Locust..."
"Huh? What the hell are those?" Chen Shu looked completely bewildered, then asked in shock, "Are all the ingredients here made from fierce beasts?"
Old Deng explained, "Of course! The town's close to Qingyuan Forest, so fierce beast ingredients aren't expensive. It's kind of the local specialty."
In Alternate Dimensions, the most precious items were naturally various medicinal materials, ores, and such. Special parts of fierce beasts were also quite valuable, but fierce beast meat generally wasn't worth much.
Only Beast Taming Corps with poor harvests would bother bringing back fierce beast meat. Since it didn't preserve well, they'd sell it to the town's restaurants.
"Well, well, if it isn't the famous Beast Tamer Zhou Shi?"
A group entered the restaurant, led by a large man in black whose vicious eyes made it clear he wasn't someone to mess with. The others with him radiated similar hostility, making it obvious the two Beast Taming Corps had history.
In Alternate Dimensions, without legal constraints, Contract Spirits could unleash their full power. Competition for resources inevitably led to conflicts.
Zhou Shi swirled the tea in his cup and sneered, "Yellow Weasel, didn't get beaten enough last time? Still not convinced?"
"That mutated Ice Hare really helped my Beast's power grow nicely."
At these words, Huang Wei glared furiously, his companions equally angry. The tension in the room instantly skyrocketed.
Zhou Shi looked mockingly amused, full of provocation. "What, want to fight? Come on baby! Don't hold back!"
"You fucking looking for death!"
Instantly, a young man's rage erupted, and he rushed forward.
"Little Xu, get back here!"
Corps leader Huang Wei barked the order. No matter how angry he was, he had to control himself.
This was Qingyuan Town. If you broke the law, soldiers had the right to shoot you on sight. No matter how strong a Beast Tamer was, they couldn't defy the law.
Fighting the military? That was just asking to get fried.
Huang Wei glared viciously at everyone, then found a table and sat down.
Just then, options appeared before Chen Shu's eyes again.
[Option 1: Summon your golden slime and start fighting!]
Completion reward: Advancement to Black Iron rank Beast Tamer.
Bonus reward: One international plane ticket
[Option 2: Keep your head down and eat quietly.]
Completion reward: Contract Spirit's appetite increased by 5%
[Option 3: Show Huang Wei and his crew some colors.]
Completion reward: Slime's defense increased by 10%
Chen Shu's heart jumped. He almost instinctively wanted to choose the first option.
Advancing directly from Level 5 Beast Tamer to Black Iron rank—that was a qualitative leap!
Not only could he awaken a second Contract Spirit, but his golden slime would undergo a bloodline evolution.
If he became a Black Iron rank Beast Tamer, China Academy would let him enroll immediately.
The gap between Level 9 Beast Tamer and Black Iron rank was enormous. Very few people could break through before starting university.
But the system's bonus reward poured cold water on his enthusiasm.
An international plane ticket—clearly telling him to prepare to flee the country!
The price for becoming a Black Iron rank Beast Tamer was way too steep.
Chen Shu asked quietly, "Uncle Zhou, if I used my Contract Spirit to beat them up right now, what would happen?"
Zhou Shi's body jolted. He gripped Chen Shu's hand tightly. "Brother, my dear brother, don't be impulsive!"
Old Deng explained seriously from the side, "We'd be sentenced to prison. As for you, you'd become a mosaic on tomorrow's news channel."
Chen Shu's mouth twitched. Just say I'd be a bloody mess with no intact corpse—why be so euphemistic?
Looked like Option 1 was definitely out.
As for the second option, the reward was too weak.
He was only an Apprentice Beast Tamer now, and his Contract Spirit's level wasn't high either. The Beast Taming Space's energy was enough to sustain the slime.
Only after becoming a Black Iron rank Beast Tamer would Contract Spirits start caring about food variety.
But the third option would clearly cause conflict too. Even without summoning Contract Spirits, they'd probably still fight and attract the soldiers.
He didn't want his days getting more and more prison-like.
Chen Shu's eyes suddenly gleamed as if he'd thought of something.
He said quietly, "Uncle Zhou, I'm going to show them some colors."
The moment the words left his mouth, Chen Shu pulled something 'dangerous' from his pocket, stood up, and walked toward Huang Wei's table.
"Holy crap, this is not cool!"
Zhou Shi tried to stop him but was too late. He could only watch Chen Shu approach the other table.
Huang Wei narrowed his eyes. "Kid, what do you want?"
The others also looked hostile, radiating oppressive pressure.
But Chen Shu just grinned cheerfully. "I came to show you all some colors."
BANG!
Huang Wei slammed his hand on the table angrily. "Hmph! Arrogant little brat! I'd like to see what you're planning to do."
The others stood up as well, looking provocative but not making the first move.
Whoever attacked first would likely be charged with picking quarrels and provoking trouble.
"I knew it, he never lets me relax." Zhou Shi shook his head, preparing to drag Chen Shu back.
But the next moment, Zhou Shi's eyes went wide, staring at Chen Shu in complete bewilderment.
Everyone else was equally dumbfounded, their minds going completely blank.
Chen Shu had produced a stack of cards from his hand. He held up one card to Huang Wei and said, "Look, this is red."
Then he pulled out various other cards.
"This is yellow."
"What color is this? That's right, it's green."
"And this one is blue! Pretty, right?"
"Oh, and here's purple!"
Everyone: "..."
The restaurant fell into dead silence. Even the chopstick sounds from neighboring tables stopped.
Zhou Shi and his buddies were completely stunned.
You really meant you'd literally show them some colors!
Huang Wei's face cycled through several expressions—confusion, anger, bewilderment, and finally settling on a constipated look.
"Are you... are you fucking kidding me?"
Chen Shu maintained his innocent smile. "But you wanted me to show you colors! I have the whole rainbow here if you want to see more!"
Little Xu whispered to his captain, "Boss, I think he might be mentally challenged..."
"Shut up!" Huang Wei snapped, but he was equally confused. Was this kid mocking them or was he actually this literal?
The tension that had been building toward an explosive confrontation deflated like a punctured balloon. Nobody knew how to react to this absurd turn of events.
Chen Shu cheerfully continued his color demonstration. "Oh, I also have orange! And look, this one's pink!"
Xu Xiaoyu buried her face in her hands at their table. "Ahh this is so hard to watch..."
Old Deng was trying not to laugh. "Kid's got guts, I'll give him that."
Wang Yi shook his head in amazement. "In twenty years of Beast Taming, I've never seen someone defuse a situation quite like this."
Finally, Huang Wei couldn't take it anymore. "Enough! Get back to your table, you little freak!"
"But don't you want to see the rest of the colors?" Chen Shu asked earnestly.
"NO!"
"Okay, okay. But if you change your mind, I'll be right over there!" Chen Shu pocketed his cards and strolled back to his table, whistling cheerfully.
As he sat down, the system notification appeared:
[Task completed! Reward obtained: Slime's defense increased by 10%!]
Zhou Shi stared at him. "Kid, that was either the stupidest or most brilliant thing I've ever seen."
"Why not both?" Chen Shu grinned, picking up his chopsticks. "Now can we eat? I'm starving!"
The meal continued in a surreal atmosphere. Huang Wei's crew kept shooting confused glances at their table, clearly unsure whether they'd been insulted or if Chen Shu was just weird.
Every time they made eye contact, Chen Shu would cheerfully wave or hold up a colored napkin, causing them to quickly look away.
By the time they finished eating, the entire restaurant had heard about the "color card incident." Some patrons were hiding smiles, others looked as bewildered as Huang Wei's crew.
As they left, Chen Shu called out one final time, "Remember, if you ever need to see colors again, just ask! I'm always happy to help!"
The sound of a chair falling over echoed behind them as Little Xu lost his balance in frustration.
Outside, Zhou Shi clapped Chen Shu on the shoulder. "Kid, I don't know if you're a genius or insane, but you definitely made an impression."
"That's the goal!" Chen Shu said cheerfully. "Now they'll think twice before messing with us. Nobody wants to deal with the crazy color card guy."
Xu Xiaoyu sighed. "I can't believe that actually worked."
"The best fights are the ones that never happen," Chen Shu said sagely, then ruined it by adding, "Plus, I really did show them colors. Mission accomplished!"
As they walked back to the hotel, the story of the confrontation was already spreading through Qingyuan Town. By morning, every Beast Tamer in the area would know about the rookie who literally showed colors to the Yellow Weasel's crew.
Chen Shu hummed to himself, satisfied with the outcome. He'd completed the system task, avoided a fight, and created a legend all in one go.
Not bad for his first day in a frontier town.