Chapter 5 Forced to Subdue the Banyan Tree Spirit

With a 'bang,' the unsealed mineral water bottle fell to the ground, spilling all the precious drinking water onto the ground and seeping into the sand.

Lin Nanxing stared at the enormous thing in front of her, not caring about the wasted water. She was so frightened that she fell off the folding chair and onto the ground.

A gigantic banyan tree appeared outside the barrier, estimated to be ten stories tall. The banyan tree seemed to have gained the ability to move on its own, and its writhing trunk, like a spider web, was gradually covering the barrier.

Lin Nanxing stared at the tree trunk looming in the sky. The light was gradually disappearing, and she felt a suffocating sensation as if she were being enveloped by a giant object. Her combat level was only level three, and she probably wouldn't even be a match for this banyan tree.

The second wave of guests has arrived, go and greet them!

Lin Nanxing stared at the words on the transparent window, his neck stiffened, and he swallowed hard, inwardly complaining, "System, why do I have to entertain guests like this??"

Is this a guest? Or is this a monster?

What's alarming is that the system, which is usually quick to respond to questions, is now completely silent.

The towering trees outside seemed to have grown impatient and began to bang on the barrier with their cracked, dry trunks.

Lin Nanxing felt the tremors emanating from the barrier and nervously opened it to let the banyan tree in.

【Name: Banyan Tree Spirit】

[Level: Lv.50]

[Emotion: Numbness]

Hmm? Lin Nanxing noticed the last item in the customer information introduction: Emotions? What kind of setting is that?

As soon as the barrier opened, the banyan tree spirit rushed straight to the swimming pool, trying to plunge its branches into the water, but an invisible membrane blocked it, preventing it from going deep.

When receiving Mao Qindong and others, Lin Nanxing realized that she was the master inside the barrier and no one could harm her, which was why she dared to put the banyan tree in.

Seeing that the banyan tree spirit's mood changed from 'numbness' to 'anxiety', and thinking about the habits of trees, she tentatively asked, "Do you want a drink of water? This is a swimming pool, and you need to pay to use it."

The banyan tree spirit suddenly stopped moving, and the two stared at each other for a long time. For the first time ever, Lin Nanxing understood its meaning and asked incredulously, "You're not broke, are you?"

Perhaps Lin Nanxing's tone was too shocked, because the banyan tree spirit shrank back in a very human way. Of course, for such a towering creature, the slight shrank back was seen by Lin Nanxing as the already dry and dehydrated bark beginning to fall off in a rustling sound, making it look particularly pitiful.

Lin Nanxing pretended to be troubled: "If you don't have money, it's also difficult for me. How can a customer not pay? How can my swimming pool continue to operate?"

If guests have to pay, what about hosts?

The banyan tree spirit, whose brain was already malfunctioning due to lack of water, suddenly had a brilliant idea.

[The banyan tree spirit requests to become your summoned creature. Do you agree?]

【whether】

"Huh?!... " Lin Nanxing was stunned. No, this isn't going in the right direction, is it?

Seeing that she didn't react, the banyan tree spirit seemed afraid that she, the owner of the swimming pool, would disagree, so it anxiously shook its branches and sent the request again.

Lin Nanxing, in a daze, chose to agree.

Congratulations to the player for successfully taming the Banyan Tree Spirit!

[Banyan Tree Spirit: Lv.50, created at the start of the game, skilled in strangulation and binding]

Looking at the system notification window, Lin Nanxing finally came to her senses and realized what she had just experienced, and her heart started pounding again.

The highest level of the first group of guests we encountered today was only level 40, but her summoned creatures were all level 50!! What kind of treasure did she get? Does this mean she can ignore monsters below level 50?

However, Lin Nanxing's heartbeat quickly returned to normal, and he even became somewhat calm.

Looking at the swimming pool that had been drained for the tenth time, Lin Nanxing saw the operating cost jump to 300 points and hurriedly stopped the banyan tree spirit with a pained expression: "Alright, alright, stop drinking, we're about to exceed the operating cost."

The banyan tree spirit couldn't understand what operating costs were, but it still obediently stopped what it was doing and became exceptionally docile after drinking its fill of water.

At this moment, the banyan tree spirit was no longer withered and dejected as it had been when they first met. After drinking all ten pools of water, its bark cracked much less under the nourishment of the water, and its trunk became elastic again. Even its originally crooked posture became upright.

Looking at the new buds sprouting anew on the top of the banyan tree spirit, Lin Nanxing's heartache finally eased somewhat. After using up so much of her water, it was somewhat effective.

However... Lin Nanxing looked up at the newly summoned creature and suddenly had an idea: "Da Rong, now that you have your own consciousness, can you shrink a little?"

Its size is so large that even the barrier can't contain it, which is really affecting her business.

Water is like mother, and the banyan tree spirit was exceptionally obedient. As soon as Lin Nanxing finished speaking, it began to shrink inwards with a whoosh, until it stopped when it was the same height as its master.

Lin Nanxing was very satisfied with its current appearance. It was short and small, like a seedling, and could be considered an ornamental green plant when placed next to the cashier.

Lin Nanxing directed the banyan tree spirit to move, while he himself lay down on a folding chair, adopting the air of a boss. "From now on, if anyone comes, Da Rong, you stay by the cashier and keep an eye on the customers for me."

"As for drinking water, I'm not exactly flush right now, so you'll have to make do for now. You can drink ten pools of water every evening. But when I make a lot of money in the future, I'll make sure you can drink your fill every day!"

She currently needs to save money to buy buildings and upgrade her territory, and doesn't have any spare money to squander.

The banyan tree spirit's initial wish was simply to be able to drink its fill of water once a day. Now that it has heard that it can drink water every day from now on, it excitedly begins to shake its branches again.

"Alright, alright, I know you're excited, stop shaking it, the leaves are almost all gone." There weren't many leaves left to begin with, and you're still not taking care of them.

*

Meanwhile, Mao Qindong and his group, who had already left, could see the town's underground entrance from afar, even before it got dark.

"Have you noticed that we're walking exceptionally fast today?"

"It turns out I'm not the only one who feels this way. Normally, after walking this far, I would be covered in sweat by now, but I haven't sweated at all today."

Li Ziqi suddenly spoke up: "Didn't you guys see the information panel? From the moment we entered the swimming pool, we were given a cooling buff."

Li Ziqi has always been the most meticulous person in the team. Even she said so. Upon hearing this, Mao Qindong immediately pulled up his own panel.

[Cooling Buff: Grants a two-hour buff, reducing stamina consumption by 30%, increasing movement speed by 20%, improving mood, and enhancing mental state.]

If I remember correctly, they spent exactly two hours in the swimming pool.

"This swimming pool is amazing!"

"Who says it isn't? Building a swimming pool with free water deep in the desert is a magical thing in itself, not to mention the instant noodles we ate today." Yellow Hair slurped his saliva. "I regret not pestering the boss to buy a few more buckets of instant noodles."

When Li Ziqi heard what Huang Mao said, she glanced silently at her game backpack, where a bucket of instant noodles was sitting quietly.

Although only three people in the group were talking, it sounded like there were more than a dozen people talking at once. Mao Qindong rubbed his eyebrows helplessly. "Alright, alright, the boss said she'll be there the whole time. She'll be open for business as usual at nine o'clock tomorrow morning. Everyone has worked hard hunting monsters these past few days, so let's give her two days off and everyone can do whatever they want."

"Yes, Captain, no problem, Captain!"

Mao Qindong immediately disbanded the team and sent everyone home, unaware that someone else had overheard their conversation.

＊

After the game's arrival, the underground temperature was much lower than the surface temperature. In order to survive, humans had to relocate to the underground subway space that had been neglected during peacetime.

Over the past decade, humanity has been continuously striving to transform living spaces. These spaces, which were already small and cramped, have now been transformed into densely packed areas, with almost every inch of space being fully utilized.

Countless container-style rooms have emerged, with well-off families able to stay in independent rooms near the exit. These rooms are relatively spacious, well-ventilated, and can enjoy a sliver of natural light.

Residents with average means could only live in communal rooms provided by the city lord. These rooms were small and crowded, with more than a dozen people crammed together, making living conditions extremely difficult.

Li Ziqi walked through countless densely packed container rooms and returned to her own home, just in time to see her mother sitting in a wheelchair, struggling to wash clothes.

Li Ziqi hurried over, took the clothes from her mother's hands, and complained, "Mom, didn't I say that I would do these chores when I got back? Why are you doing them again?"

Although tap water is cheaper than drinking water, it is still expensive. In order to save water, people usually wash their clothes once a month. When this accumulates, washing clothes each time becomes a big project.

Li Suhua obediently let her daughter take over the work from her hands, and smiled kindly, "I'm not really disabled, I can still do these jobs. You've worked hard hunting demons outside all day, I don't want you to come home tired."

Li Ziqi had her back to her mother, her hands still washing clothes, but the corners of her mouth turned down slightly.

Seeing her daughter's silence, Li Suhua sighed silently. In fact, she was not born disabled. When the game came, she became a tank player. She was the one who survived the chaos with her ten-year-old daughter.

Unfortunately, five years ago, she was ambushed by monsters on her way back to the city. Although she survived, her legs were crippled, and she could no longer stand up and walk.

My daughter, who was only fifteen at the time, was forced to grow up and support the family. If it weren't for her, with her current level, she could have lived in a better room and shared an area with her teammates.

After hanging up the clothes, Li Ziqi had composed herself. Looking at her mother who was helping her, she said in a light tone, "Mom, I had a wonderful experience today. Look what this is!"

Li Suhua looked at the instant noodles in her daughter's hand with surprise, but didn't dwell on where they came from. She just disapproved, saying, "Such good stuff, you can keep it for yourself. Why did you bring it back for me?"

“I’ve already eaten one bucket; this one is especially for you.”

When people are extremely eager, they don't care about others, so even if the cost at the swimming pool exceeds expectations, Li Ziqi is willing to pay.

After satisfying her appetite, Li Ziqi immediately thought of her mother.

The families of the other teammates weren't so lucky; they could only imagine how good the swimming pool was by listening to their sons' or brothers' verbal descriptions.

Mao Qindong did not rest after returning home. After a brief conversation with his wife, he went to meet with a friend he knew well.

"You mean someone opened a swimming pool deep in the desert? That's just unbelievable."

“Why not?” Mao Qindong didn’t want to say more and directly showed his friend the spending records at the swimming pool on the panel.

Seeing that the group still had doubts, he quickly changed his approach and said, "Here's what we'll do: tomorrow you and your teams will come with me. After you've seen the swimming pool for what it is, I'll have a business opportunity to discuss with you."

A note from the author:

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