Upside Down Grocery Shop - Chapter 16

The black bear roared, charging forward like a tank, shoving aside everyone in its way as it rushed at Su Ran. Its body shimmered with golden light, fierce and fearless.

Su Ran’s expression remained calm. He held his long blade tightly, and with a single slash, a narrow gash appeared on the bear’s body. Blood splattered instantly, revealing bone beneath.

The black bear howled in pain, staring in disbelief at the rusty blade in Su Ran’s hand, exclaiming in terror.

“Impossible!”

Su Ran ignored it, bringing down his blade once more.

This time, the black bear was scared and tried to escape, but Su Ran caught it, lifted it high, and slammed it onto the ground.

The bear’s bones and organs were severely injured. Only now did it realize how laughable its previous arrogance was, thinking it could easily devour Su Ran with its skills.

But now, it was clear: Su Ran’s strength was unimaginable.

Su Ran stomped on the bear, pressing his blade against its neck. “I’ll give you one last chance. Hand over Xiao Ling, and I’ll make it quick.”

The black bear struggled desperately, but Su Ran’s foot felt like a mountain, unmovable and unwavering.

“Su Ran, you can’t kill me, and you won’t find Xiao Ling either. If you know what’s good for you, let me go, or else—”

The bear’s arrogant voice was cut off as Su Ran’s blade swung down, sending the bear’s head flying.

“Too much nonsense.”

Su Ran looked at the bear’s corpse, smirking coldly. “Trying to hide from me? This is your second chance. Come out!”

From the headless bear, a dark soul floated up. It wasn’t a bear; it was a person’s soul, staring icily at Su Ran and roaring in fury.

“Su Ran, do you have to drive me to extinction?!”

Su Ran ignored the soul and pulled out a piece of paper. “This here is your list of crimes.” Then he burned it. “Now everyone below knows. Do you think you have any choice left?”

“Su Ran! We have no grudge! Why are you doing this to me?!”

“Doing this?” Su Ran laughed, looking at the soul with amusement. “Remember Zhang Haisheng and his family? What did they ever do to you?”

“You’re doing this… for them?”

“Yes!”

The dark soul fell silent, realizing Su Ran wouldn’t relent. “I know I can’t escape today, but, Su Ran, as long as I wish, I can return below anytime. You can’t kill me!”

“You can try!” Su Ran pointed his blade at the soul.

“Haha! For over two thousand years, I’ve seen all kinds of people, even a few from Upside Down Grocery Shop. None of them could do anything to me!”

“I’ll say it again. You can try.”

The soul shrieked like a ghost before vanishing in an instant.

Su Ran reached out and grasped it firmly, holding the struggling soul in his hand. “Su Ran, how is this possible? What have you done?”

“Did you really think consuming human souls was so simple?” Su Ran’s face was cold as frost. “Didn’t you realize that Zhang Haisheng’s soul entered your body while you were feeding?”

At that, the soul screamed in terror. “Su Ran! How dare you? Aren’t you afraid of death?”

“Zhang Haisheng wasn’t afraid, so why should I be?” Su Ran raised his blade. “Two thousand years of evil—you should be satisfied. Time to send you off!”

“No!”

Blade rose, blade fell, and the soul dissipated, human spirits scattering back to their rightful places across the earth.

After killing the dark soul, Su Ran felt no joy. He took a deep breath. “Come out. Your puppet is dead, and it’s time for us to settle things.”

Footsteps approached as Fang Yuan entered.

“Su Ran is still Su Ran,” Fang Yuan, now without his previous servile attitude, looked down on everything with arrogance. “This shop truly is fascinating. I like it. Why don’t you hand it over?”

“Sure, that works. There’s no salary, and I don’t want to run it anyway.” Su Ran looked at Fang Yuan. “But I worry you’d ruin its reputation.”

“And you care about that?”

“To be honest, no. But watching it fall into the hands of someone like you—that would hurt, even for me.”

Fang Yuan kicked the black bear’s corpse dismissively. “Worthless.”

“Su Ran, how did you suspect me?” Fang Yuan asked, unafraid, even though Su Ran had just killed two big bears.

“And you care about that?” Su Ran echoed.

“To be honest, yes,” Fang Yuan said. “The black bear may be worthless, but it’s still my puppet. I’d like to know how it failed.”

“Alright, since you want to hear it, I’ll tell you,” Su Ran said, planting his blade beside him. “When I learned about the bear-raising clan, I began investigating. I discovered that they weren’t stealing candles just to meet someone who’d been dead for two thousand years to learn their bear-raising methods. If that were the case, one candle would suffice. But after stealing the first one, they went for a second. That was suspicious.”

Fang Yuan took a seat.

“So, the reason for repeatedly stealing candles wasn’t for a meeting; it was to bring that long-dead person back. This not only required multiple candles but also assistance from below.”

“Not bad, you’ve analyzed it well.” Fang Yuan crossed his legs, watching Su Ran like a spectator watching a monkey perform.

“And that’s why the bear-raising clan was able to revive after two thousand years—because that two-thousand-year-old person returned,” Su Ran said, taking a seat as well.

They sat facing each other like two negotiating foes, smiling calmly.

It was unclear who would draw first, who would be quicker, and who would shoot more accurately!

“The last time I was here, when I saw the human soul on the black bear, I knew the mastermind was at work. The black bear was merely a puppet; what they wanted was more human souls!”

“Correct,” Fang Yuan admitted. “Being a lowly reaper, I could wait hundreds of years without gaining anything. But if I succeed this time, I’ll be reborn. As a human, nothing can touch me.”

“Smart, much smarter than those idiotic ghost bosses,” Su Ran twirled his blade. “But unfortunately, I just can’t stand to see people suffer. Zhang Haisheng’s plight made me want to stop you.”

“You’re foolish and meddlesome!” Fang Yuan stood up, kicking his chair aside. “If only you minded your own business! Instead, you’ve come looking for me. Well, you’ve found me now. How do you feel?”

His face twisted in madness.

“I do have some feelings,” Su Ran smiled, standing up. “Mainly… that I want to kill you!”

Moments later, Su Ran’s blade rested on Fang Yuan’s neck. “Being a carefree reaper was fine, but you had to come after me. Now you’ve found me—how do you feel?”

“Su Ran, you can’t kill me!”

“Why not?”

“I have Xiao Ling!”

Su Ran chuckled lightly. “If I couldn’t even find a single person, I might as well close my shop. Time to go.”

The blade rose and fell, and silence returned.

Moments later, Su Ran gently placed Xiao Ling on the ground. “I’ve called the police. Your colleagues will be here soon, and you’ll be alright.”

Xiao Ling looked at Su Ran, numb and unable to move. “Su Ran, how do we explain all of this?”

Su Ran smiled. “Don’t worry. With me, there’s nothing to worry about.”

He stood up, opened an umbrella, and walked away.

“Su Ran!”

“Hmm?”

“Thank you!”

Only a light laugh and a wave in response.

Three days later, official news announced that the frightening bear attack case was successfully resolved. Captain Xiao Ling, bravely confronting criminals, had infiltrated a circus-themed gang, taking down two criminals and killing two bears, finally dismantling a Bear-taming Clan!

The victims of the case were also given a proper burial.

Everyone was content!

At the Upside Down Grocery Shop, Su Ran sat leisurely, watching the people passing by outside.

A police car pulled up, and Xiao Ling rolled down the window, glancing curiously at the shop. “What kind of store is that?”

Xiao Liu glanced over casually. “New place. I heard the owner is a pretty laid-back guy.”

“Upside Down Grocery Shop? Why does that sound familiar?”

Xiao Ling looked inside at Su Ran. “What’s his name?”

“No idea.”

Xiao Ling shook her head. “Forget it. Let’s go.”

Su Ran stood up, stretching. “Another day without income. Closing up and going to sleep.”

As the sun set, the Upside Down Grocery Shop closed its doors.