"Mr. Yi, right now I only have the Shapeshifting Sheepskin, but my skills go far beyond that. Give me just one day, and I'll forge the rest of the shapeshifting beast suits," said Grey Wolf respectfully, even with a hint of flattery in his eyes as he looked at Yi Tianxing.
He wanted to eat mutton. Right now, only Yi Tianxing could provide him with it. Catching sheep on the Green Grasslands was too difficult—and even if he caught them, he couldn't eat them! This deal, exchanging a mere shapeshifting beast suit for fresh mutton, was unbelievably profitable in his eyes.
His only concern now was that Yi Tianxing might refuse the trade and deny him the mutton.
He could almost taste the meat already. The aroma of mutton had begun to drift through Wolf Castle—clearly, Red Wolf was already cooking.
"Of course, I'm willing to trade for any shapeshifting beast suit. One suit, one fat sheep," Yi Tianxing said with a smile.
In his view, this was a no-cost transaction: a little bit of mutton in exchange for such valuable items—pure profit. It was the definition of something-for-nothing. But, in truth, both sides were getting what they needed—no one was being cheated.
"Great! Excellent! I want to eat fat sheep every day! From today on, the Gray Wolf who couldn't catch a single sheep will be a thing of the past!" Grey Wolf declared boldly.
"By the way, do you have any other unique treasures? No matter what they are, I'm open to trading. I might have what you want. For instance, a special golden roasted whole sheep, prepared by a top chef."
"Or maybe braised mutton, cumin lamb, scallion stir-fried lamb," Yi Tianxing added, smiling.
He had plenty of lamb-based delicacies. As long as he was willing, he could make as many as needed.
"What?!"
Grey Wolf's mouth began to water uncontrollably.
Yi Tianxing took out a portion of braised mutton and opened the food box. A wave of golden light spilled out, lighting up everything around them. The rich fragrance drilled into their noses and danced across their taste buds. Just the smell alone made one's mouth flood with saliva. Gray Wolf's eyes looked like he was ready to lunge and snatch the meal right there.
Even without tasting it, he could tell it was the most delicious food he had ever encountered.
"Mutton!!"
Red Wolf, who had been cooking lamb, suddenly appeared, staring at the food box. A literal puddle of drool formed at her feet.
"Wife! This lamb is for you!" Grey Wolf shouted earnestly.
"Mr. Yi, let me show you some of my treasures. You'll be amazed!" Grey Wolf excitedly ran into the back room and came out carrying a large pile of items.
"Take a look at this," he said, holding up a food box filled with soft pink candies, seemingly no different from regular sweets. However, there was a strange allure to them, making one want to eat them immediately. Upon closer inspection, images of animals—rabbits, tigers, cheetahs—appeared within the candies.
"What are these?" Yi Tianxing asked. He didn't underestimate them; he could sense unique power flowing within each piece.
"Heh, this is one of my great inventions! I call them Animal Gummies. See these images? Eat the one with a tiger, and you become a tiger. Eat a rabbit, you become a rabbit. Even your scent will change—completely undetectable. I once used one to turn into a sheep and sneak into the Sheep Village," Grey Wolf said, brimming with confidence.
"Very interesting. I'll trade one fat sheep per gummy. What do you say?"
Yi Tianxing nodded approvingly. These had real potential depending on how they were used.
"One fat sheep and a box of that lamb delicacy!" Grey Wolf quickly countered.
"Deal!" Yi Tianxing agreed without hesitation.
Again, pure profit. A hundred animal gummies yielded a hundred slaughtered fat sheep and a hundred boxes of lamb dishes. The trade was done on the spot.
Red Wolf was overjoyed, immediately carting all the mutton into the castle's ice cellar, specially built long ago for storing lamb—though it had never really been used. Now, finally, it had a purpose. The spirit of the ice cellar itself seemed to weep with joy.
"I've got more. This one I invented recently," said Grey Wolf, holding up two pills, one black and one white, both containing unusual energies.
"What are these?"
Grey Wolf grinned. "These are the Size Pills! The white one shrinks you tenfold, the black one enlarges you tenfold. Amazing, right?"
"Size Pills… I'll trade for those too. Same price as the gummies. I'll take as many as you have," said Yi Tianxing.
"And this—Idiot Powder. Even a genius turns into a fool with one dose. Two doses, and they're a total vegetable!" Grey Wolf proclaimed.
"I'll trade for it. As much as you have."
"Now check this out—my greatest invention: Invisibility Potion! Drink it and you're invisible for a full hour. No way to track you!"
"And this—Rapid Growth Elixir! No matter the species, it boosts development speed, hastens bloodline maturity. Saves a massive amount of time—an extraordinary treasure!"
…
To ensure a constant supply of mutton, Grey Wolf frantically showcased invention after invention. The truth was, this guy was a genius inventor—a jack-of-all-trades who could create just about anything.
There were disguise potions, clairvoyance devices...
And the most miraculous—Youth Potion. Drinking it would make you twenty years younger, effectively adding twenty years to your lifespan. Even if only one dose worked, it was priceless. For cultivators on the brink of death, it was a second chance—worth trading anything for.
These were treasures of unimaginable value in the outside world.
But to Grey Wolf, they were just tools to catch sheep. Now that he had real mutton, he didn't care about them anymore.
Yi Tianxing happily completed the transactions and left Wolf Castle.
He began wandering through the Fairy Tale Town world, marveling at its many wonders.
This world was full of surprises. Characters from classic tales walked among the trees and castles. In one forest, there was a tower with a princess rumored to live inside. Elsewhere, a Big Bad Wolf disguised himself as a grandmother to deceive children.
"This Fairy Tale Town… it's home to people who only exist in stories. And these inventions—impossible to categorize, yet strangely effective. I wonder… can I bring these beings out of the Nightmare World?"
Yi Tianxing mulled over this thought as he strolled.
To be honest, he was very intrigued by Grey Wolf. The guy was a one-man workshop—a rare genius. If brought into Great Yi, he might revolutionize it in ways beyond imagination.
Just as he was preparing to explore deeper and gather more information…
Suddenly, the scenery around him shifted.
The sunlit forests and open fields of Fairy Tale Town vanished, replaced by a gray, fog-shrouded realm.
"What…? I've left Fairy Tale Town? How? Why?"
Yi Tianxing's expression turned serious.
Just moments ago, he had been wandering the town. Now, he stood outside it with no sign of how he left. There had been no conscious action on his part. The transition had been seamless—and terrifying.
"The traded items are still with me, so I really was there. But now I'm out. What secrets does that town hold? Or is the Nightmare World's own set of rules even stranger?"
He pondered silently, warily surveying the strange land around him.