Universe Infinite Canteen

"This is the mall's greeter."

Lin Cheng looked at the photo of the creature covered in silver scales and said, "When she smiles, she has two deep dimples on her cheeks."

"Really? You can recognize her like that?" Ma Lu leaned over for a closer look but saw no dimples.

It wasn't until Lin Cheng enlarged the photo that they could barely make them out.

"Hey, this angle makes her look kind of pretty. Is it because of the composition and exposure?"

"Technique is one thing, but the subject itself is truly beautiful, whether before or after becoming a monster."

Lin Cheng hesitated for a moment, "Actually, in my eyes, they haven't changed much; they're still as mysterious and beautiful as ever."

"Don't forget about the danger," Mr. Furball interjected. "The prettier the woman, the more dangerous she is. You should stay away from them."

"Exactly." Flush your Pee added, "Especially when they're in heat. I can't sleep peacefully in the zoo; I have to be on constant alert."

"They also represent the beauty of the Universe." Old Wang gazed at the distant horizon.

"I don't know. Sometimes I think about being with them, other times I just want to be alone," Ma Lu shrugged, "Playing games, watching a movie, like now, taking a walk is nice."

"They are indeed very complicated." The Ragdoll Cat summarized.

"Indeed."

"Indeed*2."

"Indeed*3."

...

"Indeed*6."

"Wait, do we have six people?"

"We have six people, but I didn't join your chain just now," Old Wang said.

Ma Lu turned around and saw a King Kong Parrot perched on a telephone pole by the roadside, tilting its head at them.

Sure enough, it was the last one to speak.

Lin Cheng reached into his pocket and pulled out a package of cookies, smashed it, and tore open the packaging. The King Kong Parrot flew down at the sight, squawking "Congratulations on getting rich! Chairman Li, prosper, prosper!" as it pecked at the cookies.

"This is a parrot raised by Boss Li of Chenghe Real Estate." Lin Cheng said, "Boss Li has always cherished it. Seeing it outside means something bad must have happened to him."

The King Kong Parrot was ravenous, pecking at the cookies with fervor.

While pecking, it didn't forget to shout "Congratulations on getting rich! Chairman Li, prosper, prosper!"

After eating, it calmly perched on Lin Cheng's shoulder, preening its feathers.

"It likes you. You should adopt it." Flush your Pee suggested.

"But I'm going to be eaten soon. I... I can't take it with me."

Lin Cheng waved his hand, shooing the King Kong Parrot away.

However, it didn't fly far and landed on the telephone pole again, following them all the way to the foot of the mountain.

Ma Lu activated the zoom function of his Power Armor and indeed saw a bizarre tree with a salt jar hanging from it on a mountain peak resembling breasts.

He sent the screenshot to Old Wang, "What do you think? Do you know what it is?"

Old Wang looked at it, "It seems related to seasoning, but I don't have this ingredient in my database."

He paused and continued, "However, the number of ingredients in the Multiverse is not static. New ingredients often appear, and some old ones disappear."

"If you discover a new ingredient, you can name it and submit it to the Grand Alliance. Once approved, it will be recorded for future chefs, and you can get a bonus."

Hearing that there was money to be made, Ma Lu immediately perked up.

Under his urging, everyone quickened their pace and arrived at the cliff's edge.

This was also the place where the unfortunate guy in the video was carried away. Ma Lu even found the trekking pole he had left behind.

The trekking pole's position hadn't changed much, but there were other items like a water bottle, cigarette butts, a camera, vehicle registration, a baby bottle…

It seemed the victim wasn't the only one.

"Be careful." Ma Lu had just spoken when a dark shadow quickly flashed by before them. The shadow's movements were swift, disappearing into the valley in a few leaps.

They couldn't make out the shape of that thing.

"Am I drunk?" Mr. Furball burped and asked, "What just flew past?"

"It didn't look human or like an animal. Could it be an alien?" Flush your Pee started getting anxious, moving closer to Yan Wu.

"To the people of this Plane, we are the aliens," Ma Lu said. "Ask Lin Cheng; he's been filming. Maybe he caught something. Hey… where'd Lin Cheng go? He was just here."

Ma Lu turned and found that Lin Cheng was nowhere in sight, his beloved camera left on the ground.

"Damn, was Lin Cheng snatched by a monster?! When?"

"Just now, I guess. The kid didn't even make a sound. Well, now he won't die in the mouth of his beloved girl." Mr. Furball sighed.

"We should leave too. I have a bad feeling about this place." The Black Bear, channeling Zhu Wuneng's spirit, began nagging about distributing their belongings after Sanzang got captured by the monsters.

In contrast, Yan Wu was the most reliable, already flaring his nostrils, using his Werewolf super sense of smell to track Lin Cheng's whereabouts.

Ma Lu had Old Wang and Flush your Pee follow the Hardware Store Owner. As for himself, he activated the flight function of his Power Armor and flew to the strange tree.

Without time to inspect it carefully, he summoned his Chef's Knife and uprooted the strange tree, placing it in his Collection Bag.

He then hurried to catch up with Yan Wu and the others. They followed Lin Cheng's scent to a valley between two peaks, where Yan Wu lost the scent by a small stream.

"Did he go into the water or was he already eaten?" Puffing, Flush your Pee speculated.

Yan Wu was uncertain. Just then, the King Kong Parrot flew to a large tree by the stream, circling it.

It urgently squawked "Congratulations on getting rich! Chairman Li, prosper, prosper!"

Ma Lu drew his assault rifle and circled behind the tree, discovering a tree hole. Trusting the Grand Alliance's technology, he jumped in without much hesitation.

As he fell, he felt something pounce and crash against his armor.

But with his left-hand heat saw activated, a flurry of swings quickly ceased the impacts.

Soon, his feet touched the ground again.

Ma Lu activated the lighting system and saw a creature resembling a fox but larger, with wings on its back, lying lifeless at his feet.

Well, that wasn't much of a threat.

Ma Lu curled his lip, scanning his surroundings.

This seemed to be the creature's nest. Besides countless bones, he also found the missing Lin Cheng, who luckily appeared unharmed.

He seemed dazed, mumbling something.

Following his gaze, Ma Lu saw a pink bear hair clip pinned on the creature's head.

Activating the recording function, he finally heard the repeated three words from the boy's mouth

— Chen Yichen.

This was awkward.

Wasn't Chen Yichen having a piano lesson? Why was she here?

Unfortunately, this question would never be answered. Lin Cheng had once been so close to his dream ending.

But now, he could never reach his heaven anymore.

At this moment, he felt utterly disheartened.

Ma Lu scratched his head, "Actually, there's something I forgot to tell you."

Lin Cheng was unresponsive, as if completely numb.

"You don't necessarily have to die."

"Thanks for comforting me, but you don't understand. I can't survive the apocalypse. The only choice is whose hand I die at." Lin Cheng smiled bitterly.

"No, I mean, I can actually take you with me." Ma Lu said. "There are still many empty spots on my ship. I can drop you off at another Plane nearby. Although you don't have the Grand Alliance's official citizenship, your photography skills are pretty good; finding a job wouldn't be a problem."

"........."

"Is that possible?" Lin Cheng was astonished.

"Yes." Ma Lu nodded, "I'm the captain; I call the shots."

Lin Cheng hesitated for a moment, "Then… can I go out and take a look?"

"Sure," Ma Lu extended his hand, "The world outside is vast and beautiful. There are many places worth photographing and documenting. You'll like it there. You might even find your adventure."

(The End)