The Toilet Transaction

Shortly after Li Chunsheng’s defiant exit from the CEO’s office, a pang of regret began to settle in.

His earlier outburst, he realized, had merely been the righteous indignation of a “pure love warrior,” or, more accurately, a fit of pure rage.

Once the initial surge of anger had subsided, Li Chunsheng found himself worrying whether the job he had worked so hard to secure would now simply vanish.

Surprisingly, however, Mu Shengling offered no reaction to his offense, even as Li Chunsheng’s workday drew to a close.

‘Could it be that… even after all that, she isn’t angry?’ Li Chunsheng wondered, genuinely bewildered, having never imagined his furious outburst might actually prove effective.

Still pondering, Li Chunsheng clocked out, left the company, and, following the address Mu Shengling had provided, took a bus for over an hour, eventually arriving at the outskirts of District 13.

Stepping off the bus, he was greeted by a sprawling shantytown, seamlessly blending into the distant, boundless fields that stretched out before him.

At this juncture, a brief introduction to the oft-mentioned District 13 seems appropriate.

The so-called District 13 was, in fact, officially known as the [13th Diocese].

The entire Holy Tower Church comprised thirteen dioceses.

Aside from the Central Diocese, the others were numbered from 2 to 13, each governed by a Saintess specializing in a different field.

These thirteen dioceses, as proclaimed by the Holy Tower Church, represented humanity’s last remaining havens.

Beyond their towering walls lay vast, desolate deathlands where human life had long ceased to exist.

These deathlands teemed with billions of demonic creatures, primarily wild goblins of various species; for ordinary humans, venturing beyond the protective embrace of the dioceses into the wilderness was a certain path to destruction.

The dioceses themselves were not interconnected; instead, they were separated by these expansive deathlands.

Consequently, every three years, the War Temple was tasked with organizing and deploying large armies to clear the demonic creatures near the pathways between dioceses, ensuring that communication and logistical supplies could be maintained.

This geographical isolation had fostered distinct cultures across the different dioceses; for instance, the predominant culture of the 13th Diocese bore a striking resemblance to the Huaxia civilization Li Chunsheng had known in his previous life.

Returning to District 13, despite its numerical placement at the end, it boasted the largest land area among all dioceses, spanning over a million square kilometers.

However, beyond a single large urban area, the rest of District 13 consisted of vast rural agricultural zones, accounting for over 90% of its total area.

This was precisely because the 13th Diocese had been assigned the crucial task of producing various agricultural and biological products for the human world, making it a diocese directly under the Life Temple.

Despite its immense territory, the 13th Diocese’s population was restricted to a number comparable to other dioceses; consequently, to maintain order within the urban areas and along the border walls, the control over the rural agricultural zones was selectively relaxed, creating a power vacuum where the Church typically turned a blind eye, so long as the countryside delivered its required quotas.

This leniency had also resulted in District 13 possessing a more extensive “grey area” than any other diocese.

It was against this very backdrop that Li Chunsheng found himself in this urban-rural fringe, where he could tap into the grey market.

The boundary between urban and rural areas was, invariably, fertile ground for illicit activities.

Criminals who committed offenses in the city often fled to the endless countryside, and these individuals, after lying low, frequently sought new identities to re-enter urban life.

While human traffic here was exceptionally high, outsiders were met with extreme hostility.

Had Li Chunsheng ventured into this area without an introduction, he would have accomplished nothing.

Standing at the edge of the shantytown, Li Chunsheng hesitated only for a moment before stepping inside, navigating through rows of makeshift dwellings, constantly moving along the narrow, winding paths under the wary or curious gazes of the local residents.

After numerous twists and turns, he unexpectedly found himself exiting the shantytown, confronted by a vast expanse of newly sown fields.

“Ugh…” Li Chunsheng rubbed his eyes, then pulled out the slip of paper and scrutinized it.

Yes, this was indeed the place.

‘Mu Shengling’s address leads to… this place?’

‘There’s nothing here, is there?’

The note instructed him to come to this area and search for a small house with a red roof.

‘Where’s any small house? Other than that public latrine…’ Li Chunsheng scanned his surroundings, and as his gaze landed on the public toilet, his expression grew increasingly serious.

A public toilet? A red roof?

An incredulous look spread across Li Chunsheng’s face.

“Could it be… this public toilet?”

‘Mu Shengling, you can’t be serious, are you?’

‘Or are you mocking me, telling me to go eat shit?’ Veins pulsed visibly on Li Chunsheng’s forehead.

Spending over an hour just to find a public toilet? What kind of absurd joke was this?

‘Calm down, calm down.

At least I already vented my frustrations on her…’

‘Perhaps this is a case of “the greatest hermit hides in the market,”‘

Li Chunsheng mused, comforting himself.

‘Since I’m already here, I might as well go in and see.’

‘But if it’s really in a public toilet, how exactly is this transaction supposed to happen? A “backdoor deal”?’ A rather nonsensical thought crossed his mind.

Li Chunsheng stepped inside, spotting a small window where an old woman sat, clearly overseeing a pay-per-use public toilet.

The old woman was engrossed in a romance novel, reading with evident relish, paying no mind whatsoever to the man who had just entered.

“…” Li Chunsheng pinched his chin, falling into deep thought.

After a moment, following the instructions on the slip of paper, he tentatively spoke, “Wood of ten spans?”

Upon hearing these words, the old woman’s body stiffened, and her focused gaze finally lifted from the romance novel to meet Li Chunsheng’s eyes.

“Born anew like a sprout,” the old woman replied, her eyes brightening.

“Uh… mm.” Li Chunsheng mumbled, a bead of sweat forming in his mind—he felt as though he could no longer view the character ‘始’ (shi) with ordinary eyes.

The old woman smiled, gesturing towards the men’s restroom.

“Then, go in and squat down.

You will get what you desire.”

Despite finding the situation utterly bizarre, Li Chunsheng obediently complied and entered.

‘Perhaps this is just a professional disguise?’

Li Chunsheng chose a random stall, closed the door, and quietly squatted down, patiently waiting.

‘What exactly is going to happen? How am I supposed to connect with the person who can help me?’

Reality, however, afforded Li Chunsheng little time for further contemplation, as he soon heard a series of hurried footsteps.

The footsteps quickly approached the stall next to Li Chunsheng’s, paused briefly, then leisurely entered.

‘They’re here?’ Li Chunsheng’s nerves instantly tightened.

What transpired next, however, immediately plunged Li Chunsheng into disappointment.

He heard a strained, forceful sound from the adjacent stall, followed by a loud, splattering cacophony.

Subsequently, a truly foul odor wafted from next door.

‘Damn it… so they actually came to use the toilet…’

‘So, when will the person I’m waiting for actually arrive?’

Li Chunsheng could only continue waiting, but then, no one else entered the restroom.

Growing increasingly impatient, he started to believe that Mu Shengling had played a trick on him.

‘Alright, alright, I was almost regretting hurting her feelings… but now I truly think Mu Shengling, that b*tch, deserves it!’

‘I spent all this time just to come to the suburbs to use a toilet?’

During this time, the odor in the restroom grew increasingly potent, and Li Chunsheng, unable to tolerate it any longer, abruptly stood up, intent on leaving.

Perhaps due to squatting for so long, Li Chunsheng’s head swam, and he felt as though he was hallucinating.

He actually thought the smell in the toilet was speaking?

“Brother, brother! If you hear me, respond in your mind!”

Li Chunsheng snapped to attention.

‘No, it really sounds like someone’s speaking!’

This phenomenon was utterly bizarre, unlike anything Li Chunsheng had ever encountered in his life.

‘What’s happening? Is this a power of the Temple?!’ Li Chunsheng’s thoughts raced.

‘I’ve never heard of such a strange ability within the Temple’s classifications.’

It seemed to be using the self-generated stench as a bridge to transmit information.

What principle was this? Could it be pheromones?

“Brother, perhaps it’s better not to think too much about certain things?” Another voice echoed, laden with warning.

Telepathy? Li Chunsheng was instantly horrified, unsure if this was a trick.

“Alright, I don’t need to know anything superfluous.

Just focus in your mind on the appearance of the person whose documents you want me to forge, and the relevant information you wish to process.”

Upon hearing this, Li Chunsheng dared not entertain any extra thoughts, concentrating instead on Liuxia’s appearance and the information he wished to falsify.

As for any other details, Li Chunsheng refrained from thinking about them at all, merely repeating the desired information in his mind, like a mantra.

“Oh, oh… what a pretty little girl,” the voice exclaimed with admiration.

“This woman possesses the bearing of a Saintess!”

“Liuxia, a country girl, coming to the city to rely on a kind online friend… I understand.

I also sense your sincerity… you’re certainly not here to catch me…”

“Shall we set a time then?”

“Fifty thousand black iron coins.

Cash on delivery in one week, no bargaining.

If you can’t pay me, I’ll simply have to sell this information to someone else to recover my losses.”

With that, the person seemingly pulled up their pants and unceremoniously departed.

Hearing that figure, Li Chunsheng involuntarily gasped, a wave of regret washing over him for having offended Mu Shengling so severely.

Up until this point, his entire savings amounted to just over ten thousand black iron coins.

‘Perhaps Mu Shengling would be willing to lend me the money…?’

However, returning to Mu Shengling to borrow money now was simply too humiliating; unable to bring himself to do it, Li Chunsheng had no choice but to find funds elsewhere.

‘Sigh… I never thought someone “like me” would ever face a day of being short on money.’

‘It seems I’ll have to find a way to make some money,’ Li Chunsheng thought, a headache beginning to form.