While pondering, I was completely unaware that I had unleashed an extremely strong aura of Evil Qi.
The Evil Qi immediately chilled the entire hall, surrounding the three people present with a murderous atmosphere.
They were shocked to their core, wondering why Grandmaster David would exude such terrifying Evil Qi!
This was an existence they absolutely could not afford to offend!
"Mr. Johnson, you..." Old Diaz couldn't help himself, raspily pulling me back from my memories.
Only then did I notice the people in front of me, my expression changed dramatically, and I quickly withdrew my Evil Qi, apologizing: "Old Diaz, are you alright? I was just thinking about something..."
Old Diaz waved his hand, took a few breaths of fresh air, and said: "Mr. Johnson, the time is about right, and we three won't disturb your rest any longer. For the auction in a few days, I'll send someone to invite you. Farewell."
He genuinely didn't dare stay in the place a minute longer; who knew if the young man in front of him would strike.
I nodded, watching the three leave.
Then, looking at the medicinal herbs before me, I was somewhat unsure of what to do next.
Without an Alchemy Furnace, refining Elixirs was somewhat troublesome; for now, I could only use these herbs to absorb them in water.
The effect was much less compared to Elixirs, but it was better than nothing.
...
By evening, my stomach was a bit hungry, so I left The Celestial Tower and returned to The Grandview Apartments.
I was not fond of staying in that place, such a big house, living alone — it felt too desolate.
Upon opening the apartment's door, I found that Sarah Moore still hadn't returned.
I used the home's landline to make several calls to Sarah, wanting to ask what was going on, but no one answered.
"What on earth is that girl up to, saying nothing about anything? Could something have happened back at home? If I don't hear anything by tomorrow, I'll have to go to town to find her."
Back in school, I had actually been to Sarah's house. Back then, Sarah was harassed by hooligans at the school gate, and whether it was because I was provoked by Samantha Miller calling me a waste, I directly picked up a brick and charged forward.
Those hooligans naturally feared a ruthless person and fled with their heads in their hands, though I also got some injuries during the fight.
To avoid worrying my family, I stayed over at Sarah's house for the night.
Five years have passed, and although I didn't quite remember the exact location, with some effort, I should be able to find it.
Looking back now, Sarah's disregard for everything to bury my parents might have been to repay me for helping her back then.
"Forget it, if I can't eat Sarah's delicious cooking today, I'll just go out and eat. Money's not an issue anyway."
I closed the door and went straight out.
I circled the nearby area, looking at those so-called delicacies with little interest. Originally I wasn't picky, but lately, I had become spoiled by Sarah's cooking, and I found no interest in restaurant food.
Suddenly, I thought of something, hailed a taxi, and headed south.
I vaguely remembered frequently going to a food stall during high school, where the taste even now, made me swallow involuntarily when thinking about it!
Because of frequent visits, I also got to know the son of the couple who owned that food stall, Ronald Bell.
Ronald Bell was in the same school as me back then, and even when everyone in the school knew me as a waste, Ronald was still willing to hang out with me.
He could be counted as one of my few friends back then.
The taxi stopped, and when I saw that the food stall was still there, I couldn't help but let out a long sigh of relief—I was afraid that after five years, everything had changed and the only place I cherished was gone.
At the food stall, I found that Ronald Bell wasn't there, but his parents were sitting instead.
What puzzled me, though, was that there were no customers here, and I remembered how the food stall used to be booming with business.
I sat down and noticed a sign stating that the stall was relocating, and today was its last day here.
What surprised me was that the relocation was planned for an alley in the old street.
How could the foot traffic there compare to this place? It was easily ten times worse!
I didn't think too much and directly said, "Uncle Bob, give me a few skewers of your signature barbecue!"
Five years ago, whenever I said this, Uncle Bob and Aunt Maria would prepare a bunch of skewers for me, along with a bottle of Sprite—those days were my most enjoyable times.
Uncle Bob and Aunt Maria didn't expect any customers at this hour. They glanced at David but didn't recognize him.
Aunt Maria looked around, seeming fearful of something, worriedly approaching me, and said, "Young man, um... we're closing today, we're packing up. How about going to another place to eat?"
I frowned and asked in surprise, "Aunt Maria, it's only 6 PM, business just started, why close so early?"
"Yes... yes, young man, please go to another place. If you really want to try our cooking again, you can come to the new address tomorrow with friends. We're offering a 50% discount for our opening." Aunt Maria pointed to the sign on the wall.
I sensed something amiss and suddenly noticed the bruises on Aunt Maria's face and hands, clearly signs of being beaten.
I glanced at Uncle Bob, who was sitting there smoking; they were always loving, unlikely to have domestic violence.
Uncle Bob sensed David's gaze and hobbled over, advising David, "Young man, times are rough these days, hard to do business. Since you want to eat, I'll make you some, but you must finish in five minutes, because we really need to pack up. Five years... to be honest, if not for being forced, I really wouldn't want to leave this place."
Uncle Bob's tone carried a little sadness.
With that, he turned and headed towards the makeshift stand.
Not long after, Uncle Bob brought over some skewers and small dishes to me, including a drink of my choice.
"You are the last customer of our food stall; we're not charging you, just eat."
Just as I was about to eat, I suddenly sensed something, and my gaze swept over to the end of the road, a trace of coldness forming at the corner of my mouth.
"They've arrived."
(PS: Requesting recommendation votes)