Chapter 115: Departure! Solitude Lane!

Yan Jing looked at the group volunteering to tag along and blinked in confusion. "I have business in Solitude Lane this time. Why are you all coming?"

"We... well, obviously we have business too. As for what..."

Old Master Liu trailed off, elbowing Chen Nian beside him and winking furiously.

"Yeah. I've decided to become a Ward Chief," Chen Nian said.

Terrible at making excuses, Chen Nian never rested until his words startled someone. He added, "This old guy insisted on tagging along. I couldn't shake him off no matter how hard I tried."

"Then what about Mantou?"

Yan Jing turned to look at the completely bewildered Mantou.

Judging by her expression, she had absolutely no idea what was going on.

It was as if she had just been notified on the spot.

But Old Master Liu smoothly covered for her.

"It's Nizi, don't you know? Wherever you go, she's bound to follow."

"Right, Nizi?"

Hearing this, Mantou's blank eyes instantly cleared.

"Y-Yes! Mantou also... also wants to go!"

She nodded forcefully.

No matter where it was, as long as she could spend a little more time with Yi Ji, she would go.

Yan Jing blinked. After a moment of thought, he nodded. "Then let's go together."

And so, the group skipped work for the day, sitting in the bar to wait for the negotiation results.

Before long, An Ze dragged a large burlap sack through the bar doors.

In his other hand, he clutched something resembling an advertisement flyer.

The moment he entered, he raised his hand and waved it in the air.

"The negotiation results are out!"

Everyone in the bar stopped what they were doing and turned to look at him.

An Ze dropped the burlap sack.

Holding the flyer with both hands, he cleared his throat and announced:

"This marriage alliance has been a complete success."

"After three-party deliberations, it has been decided: if the child born to Yu Xiran and Meng Qianqiu possesses a single Pathway, they will be raised by either Sleepland or Dandelion Manor, depending on the nature of their Pathway."

"If the child possesses dual Pathways, they will be jointly raised by all three parties. The child will be taken in by Mr. Giant Mouth as an adopted child. Furthermore, during their development, their primary education and living environment from ages 0 to 15 will be provided by Sun-Swallowing Tower. From ages 15 to 25, their primary education and living environment will be provided by Sleepland, while financial support and marriage arrangements will be handled by Dandelion Manor."

"Once the child turns 18, they will obtain complete autonomy. Past the age of 25, the three parties are obligated to help secure their position as the Lord of Old Sin City."

"Prior to the child's birth, all matters will be handled by Yu Xiran and Meng Qianqiu, located in the 18th Ward of Solitude Lane."

"That is all."

Everyone understood the implications upon hearing this.

It was obvious from these results that Dandelion Manor was the absolute loser of the negotiations.

Originally, this marriage alliance should have left the power dynamic as Dandelion Manor equaling Sleepland, with both greater than Sun-Swallowing Tower. But after everything that had happened, Sun-Swallowing Tower had come from behind, forcing Dandelion Manor to the bottom.

"Did it say when Yu Xiran and the others will depart?" Yan Jing asked.

"It should be tonight," An Ze recalled after a moment's thought.

"Good." Yan Jing nodded, then turned to Rose and One-Eye. "Xiao Mei, Xiao Yan, I'll leave this place in your hands."

Points couldn't be traded, but a storefront could.

Yan Jing didn't know how long it would be before he returned. Even if he kept the shop under his name, the Tower would automatically reclaim it after two days of unexcused absence. He figured he might as well transfer the place to Rose and One-Eye.

By the same logic, meals couldn't be stolen, but they could be gifted. Yan Jing used his remaining Points to buy a meal card—enough to provide One-Eye and Rose with a luxury meal every day for the next six months.

As for what would happen after those six months, he figured Old Sin City would have undergone massive changes by then, and it wouldn't be his problem to manage anyway.

"Boss— sob —"

Rose wept, her face covered in snot and tears. Her language faculties had suffered severe damage while she was under control, yet to everyone's surprise, the first word she managed to articulate during her steady recovery was "Boss."

This orphaned girl had rarely eaten a full meal since the day she was born.

All she remembered was that if she ate too much at the foster care center, the staff would beat her palms.

But ever since Yan Jing arrived, the luxury meals had never stopped. He let her eat as much as she wanted, never scolding her once, only smiling and telling her to eat slower.

Coupled with yesterday's fried rice, her reluctance to part with Yan Jing now was entirely understandable.

"Boss— Waaaaah! (No one's ever treated me this well before!)— sob, sob, sob! "

Accepting the meal card, Rose cried even harder, her face a mess of snot and tears as she gasped for breath.

"Alright now, it's not like I'm dead," Yan Jing chuckled, patting Rose's head.

At this, Rose completely lost control of her tears. She hugged Mantou beside her, begging Mantou to make sure she called her over to work for them in the future.

Meanwhile, One-Eye had been acting unnatural ever since he learned that Yan Jing and the others were leaving.

He had just run out, and upon returning, he held a lunchbox in his hands. Stepping forward, he spoke with a hint of embarrassment.

"Boss, this... this is fried rice made by my mom."

"It's not as good as the one you make, Boss, but please accept it."

"You can eat it on the road if you get hungry."

"Alright." Yan Jing nodded, putting the lunchbox away.

Just as they turned to leave, An Ze handed the burlap sack to Yan Jing.

"Mr. Yi Ji, the boss asked me to give this to you."

"She said it's to pay for yesterday's meal."

Yan Jing took the sack and peeked inside.

Inside lay a dense pile of small, black stones—they were none other than Fear Hearts.

"Give Officer Lu my thanks," Yan Jing said, accepting the burlap sack.

He absorbed over a dozen of them on the spot.

He had long since used up the ones he got from the Amusement Park.

These items were indeed incredibly helpful for the advancement of existences on the Fear Pathway, but there was a daily limit to how many could be absorbed.

Yan Jing estimated that if he could fully absorb this entire sack, this body wouldn't be far from the Second Tier.

Rose and One-Eye walked them all the way to the entrance of Sun-Swallowing Tower.

Only then did they reluctantly part ways.

Just as the group was waiting at the Fear Station to catch the bus, a rather shady-looking figure sprinted desperately from the doors of Sun-Swallowing Tower.

"Mr. Tiger?" Yan Jing looked at the panting man in surprise. "Why are you here?"

"I-I'm here to deliver something to you, Mr. Yi Ji."

Breathing heavily, Tiger handed a scroll to Yan Jing.

"This is the portrait of 'Mr. San' you wanted to see."

"Thanks." Yan Jing truly hadn't expected this. Even he had temporarily shelved the matter of the portrait, yet Tiger had actually remembered.

Seeing Tiger hemming and hawing after handing over the portrait, and noticing Old Master Liu winking frantically at him from the side, Yan Jing smiled helplessly.

"Are you planning to go to Solitude Lane too?"

"Huh? ...Ah, oh, right! Yes, yes I am!" Tiger snapped back to reality, nodding happily.

Yan Jing smiled and shook his head. He shifted his gaze from Tiger toward the Unstable Domain in the distance.

"Mr. Tiger, I don't know what Old Master Liu promised you, but I have to make things clear right now."

"Sometimes, the things I do aren't because I want to do them, but because I have to."

"The Old Man and Old Chen tag along because they have the strength to do so. Mantou tags along because she wants to—and whatever she wants to do, I'll support her."

"But you're different, Mr. Tiger."

"Everyone's situation is unique."

"Mr. Tiger, the road ahead is long and rough. If you haven't thought this through, you'd best not get on this bus."

Just as Yan Jing finished speaking, that familiar, practically scrapped bus rattled out of the distant Unstable Domain and pulled to a steady stop in front of them.

Yan Jing and the others boarded the bus one by one. Old Master Liu was the last. He looked at the dazed Tiger, reached out, and patted his shoulder without urging him on like he had before.

Then, he too climbed aboard.

The bus doors were just about to slide shut.

In Tiger's mind, the words Old Master Liu had spoken to him earlier echoed:

"From the moment a person is born, their fate is set. Some people are naturally born above the rest. Others have to beg the heavens just to live like a decent human being. If you want to change your fate, you have to risk everything."

"Right now, the chance to change your fate is right in front of you. If you want to defy the heavens and change your fate, you have to let go of some things and take a gamble."

"And whether or not you place that bet depends entirely on how much you trust this kid."

Thinking back to the Amusement Park that day, Tiger finally gritted his teeth and hopped onto the bus at the very last second before the doors closed.

Damn it, it was just one rotten life.

He, Tiger, no longer wanted to be the guy sent out to test if there was a bomb.

He wanted to be the guy sitting safely at home, lightly tossing out the line, "Good thing I didn't go, or I would've been blown up."