Frustrated, Jin came out of the dungeon maker room after trying to design the remote portal based on what he had seen and what he knew. Turns out, it was not as easy as making the Gearbox device mainly because the blueprints and information had already been provided to Jin and the System. Through analysing the product, the System could simply replace inefficient circuit routes and increase the output.
Unfortunately Invention was another thing altogether. Theoretically, Jin could use the System’s portal ability and call it the prototype to impress Ke Loong. However such a method would pose a drastic problem when it was time to mass produce it. Sure, Jin could say that because of the patent, he could solely produce the item and not let others touching it all.
Even if Jin tried his utmost to try and hide the inner workings of the portal, he was aware, that there was no way to stop some pesky busybodies, who wished to try and copy the prototype design by reverse engineering it. (Because as an engineering student, he did that plenty of times with products that he liked. Tinkering such items was the only way to curb his curiosity.)
Jin could place anti tampering steps into the Remote Portal Device, but should only be a matter of time until people would start to get suspicious of Jin’s anti tampering methods. As long as nobody was able to break through such an iron defense, eventually they would believe he was using some sort of magic unknown to the world. Yet even worse… if someone really does manage to break through the anti tampering methods he or she would gain access to the System’s knowledge about portal making. Ultimately, this was without a doubt a double edged sword situation and repercussions were dire if not handled properly.
“This time around, I think I may have shot myself in the foot…” Jin scratched his head as he went out to get a bit of fresh air. Surprisingly at this late hour, when it was already to to close his shop, he saw Yun sitting there, together with Hou Fei.
“Ah Young Master, you are finally free. I was starting to worry that I had to wait the whole night.” Hou Fei addressed him as he sipped his cup of Black Ivory Coffee. “Good thing Yun was so nice to keep this old man company. I’ve heard the basics from Yun about your adventures so far as well as your goal and the System’s. Indeed, your actions are quite admirable… To become a dungeon supplier is a good way to achieve it, and also provides a very good cover to gain comrades on the sly.”
“…How would he react, if he knew that it had nothing to do with the revival of the Panda Clan?” Jin thought to himself, but he just smiled at Hou Fei. There was no reason to correct him, he only hoped Yun left out the part about his relationship with the System. “So, what brings you here? It must be pretty urgent, if someone of your standing would even be willing to wait the whole night for me?” Jin asked Hou Fei with sheer curiosity.
“Of course, in fact it is very important. I am here to renew my Oath to the Young Master. The last Oath I took was with Ming. If you recall, he was my commander when I was merely a recruit in the army. I had no idea I was even a Panda Remnant, until a few years later.” Hou Fei told him while they walked towards the the Restaurant Train of Delicacy for a late meal. It just so happened that Lynn was assisting the penguins to clean the train interior a little, although her peggies demanded her to have a rest.
“Lynn, this is Hou Fei. Remember what I told you about the Panda Clan? Turns out he’s one of the remnants. I was hoping to have a chat with him here since there is some food…plus I am famished.” Jin rubbed his stomach only to produce sounds which were indicative of hunger.
“Hahaha, What do you two wish to eat? I can prepare it for you guys!” Lynn asked with a gentle smile.
“Lynn, we will simply take the leftovers. Honestly you can go back home and rest. You have worked really hard for the past few days ever since this restaurant instance was opened.” Jin said with a bit of concern in his voice, but Lynn refused as she lifted her arms and flexed it a little.
“After I got the Penguin cultivation, I never feel as tired as before. For some reason, my work in the kitchen seems to even boost my cultivation, too. Haha!” Lynn giggled as three penguins silhouettes were shown right above her head dancing around happily.
“Wow, in less than a few days you jumped grade?” Jin exclaimed and even Hou Fei was impressed by Lynn’s dedication after hearing Jin’s explanation. “If that is the case, I shall not be humble and get the most expensive dish on the menu.” Hou Fei said as a show of support for Lynn’s hard work.
“I will get erm…the curry rice.” Jin just wanted some hot quick food. However, Jin was in for a pleasant surprise, as he had been unaware that Lynn even modified the Tonkatsu curry rice which enriched the flavour of the curry. Lynn noted down their orders and told them to give her a bit of time to prepare the dishes. In the meantime, they decided to talk some more.
“For your oath thing, is there a ceremony or just reciting?” Jin asked since he did not know how the Remnants worked. Not too long ago, he was oblivious to “Panda Clan”, “Remnants”, “Sub-System” and things of that nature.
“Yea, just reciting the oath will be fine. Back then Ming asked me to do it during the mission. I was super shocked when I got in contact with the System for the first time. The pain was excruciating and worse still because we were in a mission, I had to tolerate it with the utmost silence. I would love to tell you that I valiantly endured it, but as a rookie you can probably imagine, that instead I screamed. This lead to the enemies finding us but we managed to annihilate them.” Despite Hou Fei being rather old, him talking about the memories of the past made him smile like a young kid again.
“Oh, then erm feel free to just recite it then. Or do you need me to ask for your allegiance first? Maybe some clarification of what I need you to do?” Jin asked to which Hou Fei shook his head yet again.
“After what I heard from Yun and the limited interaction I had with your customers while waiting, you are likeable enough. Plus I have seen what you did in the assassination attempt against Yang Ling’s dad. Your power considering your age and your time with the System is remarkable.” Hou Fei picked up his hand and the insignia Jin saw previously appeared and glowed.
What Hou Fei recited was rather long and to a point, quite cryptic too. Jin managed to decipher the first part since he understood how the Pandas swore to secrecy back then while preparing to fight against the Banned Emperor and his retainers. When the oath was done Jin suddenly felt his hand burn and looking down, he found the same particular insignia now glowing on him.
It was a Panda Head which at the same time looked like a black and white magical ritual circle. Yun informed Jin in his head that only when someone swore allegiance to his lord, would the insignia emerge again.
“So does that mean, Lynn does not count? Even though she was granted a Sub-System?” Jin asked Yun in his thoughts. Yun clarified that Lynn was not part of the Panda Clan at the moment, but rather more of a collaborator. Jin had to officiate her into the clan through a proper ceremony unlike Hou Fei who was merely renewing his oath. After all since he was a Panda Remnant, he was already part of the clan.
“So do you need me to tell you more about me and what I do? If not, what are your current plans and how should I fit into them? Oh? The food is here!” Hou Fei smiled as he suddenly whiffed a salty fragrance in the air which nearly made him start to drool.
“For now, I’d love to have more information about the Banned Emperor since you guys have custody of him. I plan to get myself to a higher grade so that I can protect myself. I can’t always be so lucky, to have my friends around protecting me. Short term goal wise, I guess it’s to get this store up and running, maybe make it more famous so I have more money to plan for bigger things and have a better cover. They always say ‘Famous people get away with stuff’, right?” Jin listed his plans, as he munched on his curry rice and Hou Fei nodded.
“Indeed, famous people always get away with stuff. After all the victor gets to change history.” Hou Fei added before he slurped his noodles.
“But yeah, I would also like to know about your abilities and what you do in detail. Perhaps I can achieve more with your help.” Jin tried to keep it short in order to enjoy Lynn’s food Lynn. The flavour was indeed enriched. He even felt some chi circulating in his body, even though he was not cultivating it.
“Yes. Let me get to that- *slurps* After I- *Slurps* Mmmmm Finish this bowl of noodles.” Hou Fei face showed immense delight while chewing on his food.
