Universe Infinite Canteen

Ma Lu got home at 9 PM and then slept straight through until 9 AM the next morning. When he got up, his head still felt a bit groggy.

He remembered when he first started university, he and his dorm mates would stay up all night watching movies at the cinema, and the next day they'd still manage to run back to school to check in. Just an afternoon nap was enough, and by evening, they would be full of vigor again.

He had thought that was just the beginning, but it turned out to be the peak. After that, his physical condition declined year by year, and by the time he graduated, even a small stretch of staying up could take a whole day to recover from.

He really needed to exercise more.

The rowing machine had arrived, and Ma Lu had followed the video tutorials for two days, and then... the novelty started to wear off quickly, and the pain set in.

Although his rational mind told him he should start exercising now, Ma Lu decided to water the plants first.

The spider plant he'd brought home had been growing for over two months now. Ma Lu hadn't really taken much care of it, only watering it when he remembered, but surprisingly, it was thriving; even the previously yellowing leaves had turned green.

After watering the plant, he checked the desktop farm.

A day had passed, and the total weight of the farm had increased from 203 to 214. It was clear that the combination of alien technology and Beast Herding Frogs was quite fierce.

In just 24 hours, the weight had increased by 5%. Ma Lu did a quick calculation: if he filled the Level 1 desktop farm to its capacity, he could gain an additional 100 pounds of meat a day, which would amount to 700 pounds a week.

That was as much as he could bring back with a Level 4 Collection Bag. The key point was that the meat from the farm was essentially free; he didn't have to go out hunting anymore.

Moreover, if the animals in the farm could breed, the yield should increase even more than 5%.

This was just one ecosystem from the desert. Once he filled the other ecosystems and upgraded the farm's level, he could become a hands-off owner later on.

While Ma Lu was figuring out what level of farm would make him self-sufficient, he received a message from the internet café owner.

She said those young guys had come back and asked Ma Lu to pick up Zhen Ye.

Great, that was enough exercise for today. He would row again tomorrow.

It wasn't that he was being lazy; it was just that there were more pressing matters at hand. Ma Lu stood up and poked his head into the kitchen to ask Old Wang, who was preparing a meal, "How are you in a fight?"

"I'm a pacifist. I don't fight," Old Wang answered seriously.

"Alright, I almost forgot. Nevermind then, I'll find someone else."

Ma Lu took out his phone, scrolled through the contact list, and dialed a number.

"Hello, Boss Yan? It's me, Ma Lu. I remember you offer a home service. Are you available right now? The faucet in my kitchen isn't running very smoothly...

"Mhm, mhm, I don't know how long it's been used since I'm just a tenant... but it must be quite old... Yeah, alright, I'll wait for you."

About twenty minutes after hanging up, Yan Wu's van arrived downstairs, and soon after, the Werewolf Boss came upstairs carrying his tool bag.

Upon entering, he took a couple of sniffs, "Seven-Toothed Giant Horn Viper? You guys have got some good stuff again."

"Do you want to eat?"

"Let's finish the job first."

Yan Wu strode into the kitchen and began inspecting the faucet.

"How is it, do we need a new one?" Ma Lu asked from the side.

"No need. The aerator is clogged. The water in the north is hard, so it tends to build up lime scale and block the aerator," Yan Wu explained while unscrewing a metal spout at the bottom of the faucet.

He turned on the faucet to test it and, sure enough, the water flow increased significantly.

Yan Wu rinsed off the aerator, then stuck his fingers in to poke around a bit, and screwed it back on.

"There, that should do it. If it clogs up again, just clean it like I showed you. If you want it even cleaner, you can soak it in citric acid."

"Thanks, how much do I owe you?"

"Since we didn't replace any pipes, I'll just charge you a 50 yuan home visit fee."

Although this werewolf was a bit pushy when it came to food, I have to say he's quite fair with hardware repairs—charging exactly what's due and not a penny more or less.

Having lived on this planet for over two thousand years, Ma Lu reckoned this guy wasn't short on cash. Never mind anything else, if he had just buried some porcelain or gold and silverware back in the day, digging those up now would yield national treasures.

Worst comes to worst, he probably knew where a fair number of emperor and noble tombs were buried. If he switched trades to treasure hunting, Hu Ba Yi and Wu Xie would be out of business.

So Ma Lu could only understand his earnest sale of screw caps and collection of a 50 yuan service fee as some sort of novel role-play.

Or perhaps the werewolf was truly cultivating his so-called "Craft Trade Way" through this method.

Though Ma Lu was quite skeptical whether such a trifling thing actually existed.

The ultimate goal of Zen is enlightenment, of the Daoist practice is to become an immortal; Ma Lu knew about these, but what's the ultimate goal of hardware practice? Become a doorknob or a U-lock?

By now, Yan Wu had already plopped down on the sofa, waiting for dinner.

In the meantime, he scanned Ma Lu's rental apartment, his gaze lingering on the number 6 on the balcony for a moment.

Ma Lu thought he might have noticed something, but Yan Wu just remarked, "You've got such an old model still, huh? I used to have a washing machine of this brand. I was one of their first customers."

After saying this, his gaze moved elsewhere, looking around curiously.

"Where's your tabletop farm, have you put it in the restaurant already?"

"I've moved it into the Mirror Space."

Ma Lu didn't want the werewolf to know the tabletop farm was fixed; he was counting on leeching off Yan Wu in the future, so he had stored it away early on.

Old Wang had finished making the Giant Horn Viper stir-fried noodles, and this time, it even triggered a 50% star upgrade effect, turning into a four-star Deliciousness Index dish.

Yan Wu ate nodding repeatedly, "Not bad, not bad, just the flavor I haven't tasted for over two thousand years. The snake bones of the Seven-Toothed Giant Horn Viper are also perfect for making stock."

"I'm glad you like it, Boss Yan." Continue your saga on M-V-L

After finishing his meal, Yan Wu wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, then looked at Ma Lu with a smirk.

"So, tell me, what do you need my help with?"

"Seems like Boss Yan's not just sharp with his nose," Ma Lu commended.

"After so many deals we've done, if I didn't know what kind of person you are, crafty as hell, would you have invited me to eat if you didn't have anything up your sleeve?"

While saying this, Yan Wu wasn't actually put off by Ma Lu's approach. It actually touches on an issue of order: if Ma Lu had asked for a favor first and then offered food, Yan Wu would feel like he was being bribed with food and might agree but would probably be somewhat disgruntled.

On the other hand, if Ma Lu waited until after Yan Wu had eaten to ask for a favor, it implied that regardless of whether Yan Wu was willing to help, it wouldn't affect the meal, which put Yan Wu at ease.

However, Ma Lu's next words caught him off guard.

"Um... would you be interested in unleashing your wild side again?"