Chapter 51: I’m just an ordinary shop owner

“What’s wrong?” Ye Lian asked, noticing the change in her expression.

“Master, this potion is incredible!” Bai Xue said excitedly, holding out her system panel.

Ye Lian leaned in for a closer look, and her eyes widened slightly.

Bai Xue’s pollution level had not only dropped to zero, but an additional status had appeared.

[Low-Grade Pollution Immunity 0:59:45]

Including the fifteen seconds they’d already wasted, that meant the immunity would last for a full hour!

“Impressive,” Ye Lian couldn’t help but remark.

Although she already knew her divine-level alchemy had extraordinary effects, the appearance of a bonus status still came as a surprise.

“Too bad my pollution level wasn’t very high, so I couldn’t measure the full effect of the potion,” Bai Xue said with a hint of regret.

Right now, her mind felt crystal clear, and her entire body light and relaxed.

This was what it meant to be in a completely unpolluted, pure state.

“It’s fine. We’ll have plenty of testers soon enough.”

From Ye Lian’s perspective, while this game was dangerous, there were still strong players who managed to survive.

“Master, I think it would be best to dilute the potion before testing it on others,” Bai Xue suggested.

“Yes, I was thinking the same,” Ye Lian nodded.

With a potion this potent, it was impossible to determine the precise effect without dilution.

She decided to dilute it tenfold and wait for players to arrive for testing.

“Besides, we don’t have a lot of ingredients. We should conserve as much as we can,” she added.

Diluting the materials used for one potion into ten bottles while keeping the price the same meant skyrocketing profits.

And looking ahead, conserving resources would become even more crucial.

After all, this closed beta was only the beginning of the game—definitely not the end.

Before long, Ye Lian had crafted ten bottles of entry-level—no, that wasn’t quite right.

The mental restoration potion she’d made clearly exceeded the scope of ordinary potions.

Only the diluted versions could be considered entry-level quality.

After she’d finished diluting a hundred bottles and was preparing to start brewing a health restoration potion, footsteps echoed from outside.

“Sounds like customers are here. Let’s go welcome them.”

Ye Lian smiled calmly.

“Yes, Master.”

Bai Xue put on her mask and stepped out first.

***

“So this is the place?” Boyang followed the mechanical puppet into a shop called [Silver Alchemy Workshop].

The rest of his group waited outside.

Looking around, the shop was fairly empty, with only a few pristine display shelves and counters that showed no signs of use.

It was clear the store hadn’t officially opened yet.

“Welcome,” Bai Xue stepped out of the workshop just then and greeted him in a calm voice.

Hearing her, Boyang quickly turned to get a good look at her, a flash of surprise crossing his face.

‘So this was the robot’s master?’

‘A maid?’

But upon closer inspection, he noticed that she was dressed in an exquisitely tailored maid outfit, with a mask that blended subtlety and luxury perfectly.

That alone suggested she wasn’t ordinary.

Most likely, she was the attendant of some powerful figure!

“Come on in and sit—though there aren’t any chairs.”

Just as Boyang was feeling confused, Ye Lian stepped out of the workshop.

The moment he saw her, his eyes widened involuntarily, and he felt a wave of shock.

She was fully armored from head to toe!

More than that, the aura she exuded was like standing before a mountain that spanned the world—

Unreachable.

Immensely heavy.

With just a glance, Boyang immediately understood the vast difference in their strength.

Compared to her, he was nothing more than an insignificant ant!

“Didn’t you hear the Master speaking to you?” Bai Xue said with a frown.

“S-Sorry! I spaced out!” Boyang’s expression changed as he quickly lowered his head.

Silently, he thought, ‘As expected…’

The fully armored white knight from earlier was her Master!

“I don’t understand Shadowtongue,” Ye Lian said lazily.

Back in her middle school days, Shadowtongue had already been removed from the list of core subjects and made into an elective.

Since she had no interest in foreign countries, she naturally hadn’t taken the class.

At most, her Shadowtongue was at an elementary school level.

Upon hearing this, Boyang quickly switched languages.

Having once worked as a mercenary, the thing he excelled at—besides combat—was language.

Huaxia was one of the thirteen languages Boyang could speak.

“I apologize for the sudden visit.”

“It’s fine. You came to see me—is there something you need?” Ye Lian waved her hand lightly.

It was only then that Boyang noticed the green names floating above Ye Lian and Bai Xue’s heads.

That was the player indicator.

Which meant… the two people in front of him were players!

In an instant, it was like a nuclear bomb went off in his brain.

His scalp tingled from the shock.

‘Why did a player have such an overwhelming aura?’

‘Why were those robots calling her ‘Master’?’

‘What level were they really?’

‘Had he met them before?’

One question after another popped into Boyang’s mind, leaving him deeply shaken.

They were both players too—’so why was there such a huge difference between them?’

“Master is asking you a question,” Bai Xue said, clearly growing irritated.

“You’re players?” Boyang snapped back to attention and asked the dumbest possible question.

“That’s right,” Ye Lian answered truthfully.

“You…” Boyang wanted to ask more, but Bai Xue interrupted him.

“Don’t ask things you shouldn’t. Just state your purpose.”

‘What a forceful maid!’ Boyang gave her a deep look, thinking to himself.

“I—I mean, we’re here to ask for help!” He turned toward Ye Lian and spoke with sincerity.

Even though they were all players, he could tell that Ye Lian and Bai Xue were on a whole different level.

Asking the strong for help wasn’t something to be ashamed of.

“And what kind of help do you want from us?” Ye Lian asked with amusement, her eyes fixed on him.

“Please grant us protection!” Boyang bowed slightly, neither humble nor arrogant.

He sounded sincere—but it wasn’t quite enough.

That was because, deep down, he still looked down on Ye Lian and Bai Xue.

Even if their strength far exceeded his own.

Right now, asking for their protection was just a temporary measure.

Anything that could be used… should be used fully!

***

Outside the shop, several Atlantic Federation players who understood Huaxia had overheard the conversation.

They sneered at first, but then seemed to remember their own situation—and fell silent.

Bai Xue took it all in and let out a cold laugh in her heart.

‘These people are still as ridiculously arrogant as ever. They have no idea how bad their situation really is.’

“Please, White Knight-sama, reconsider! We’re not asking you to protect us for free!” Boyang tried again, even adding the honorific “sama” this time.

“Didn’t you see the sign outside?” Ye Lian said indifferently.

“I’m just an ordinary alchemy shop owner, not some kind of savior.

Don’t get the wrong idea.”

“But the robots in the city—” Boyang started to say, only to be cut off again.

“And what does that have to do with you?” Bai Xue said coldly.

“…” At that moment, Boyang finally realized—these two in front of him were impossible to bargain with!

Such cold, ruthless beings!

“We’re not going to shelter you. That’s simply not an option. We have our own limits too. But…”

Ye Lian’s tone shifted slightly.

“Treating your injuries—we can manage that, barely.”