Chapter Seventy-Seven: Seeking a Mentor?

Thank you, Sorr the Madman, for your generous reward, and thanks to all the brothers for your likes. Half-Immortal will keep working hard!

Alisa sent Qiu Fengyu a video—clips from her university’s Halloween party, nearly twenty in total, along with over three hundred photos. Judging by the footage, she was having the time of her life.

“I’ve organized all the videos and photos for you. Take your time looking through them. If you’d come, it would have been even more fun. By the way, you promised to visit Los Angeles, so why haven’t I seen you yet?” She complained to Qiu Fengyu during their video call.

“I’ll definitely visit someday, just not right now!” Qiu Fengyu replied. “I still have the noodle shop—”

“Oh, please. The noodle shop? Kevin told me you haven’t managed it for over a month. Who knows what you’ve been up to? Eloping? Abducted by aliens? Don’t tell me you’ve seen God!” She couldn’t resist teasing him.

“The aliens said they’d abduct a girlfriend for me next time, so you’d better watch out!” Qiu Fengyu joked, without any restraint.

Such lines always managed to charm young women.

Sure enough, Alisa burst out laughing.

“You need to come to Los Angeles soon, otherwise life is just so dull…”

Is this girl treating herself as the life of the party?

Qiu Fengyu was speechless. After ending the video chat, he opened the files she’d sent. Honestly, watching all this on his phone was exhausting. He decided he needed to buy a laptop.

He thought about it, but left the videos for later. Then he called Davis, who happened to be home alone, idly punching a sandbag. After being provoked by Tim, Davis had secretly asked Qiu Fengyu to teach him a few moves and now was practicing fiercely. But even if he faced Tim again, the outcome would likely be no better.

Davis was in his element; upon hearing Qiu Fengyu wanted to buy a computer, he was thrilled—finally, a chance to showcase his expertise. This was his happiest moment.

“Don’t we need to go to a physical store?” Qiu Fengyu watched him operate online and felt a bit uncertain.

“No, no, why bother going so far?” Davis boasted like a showman. “First, we find the right model online, then call their customer service.”

As he spoke, Davis showed Qiu Fengyu the computer models on the screen.

“This brand is pretty good. What do you need? If it’s just for simple browsing and video chats, this one will do!” Davis pointed at one model.

“Yes, that’s fine. It’s all yours, buddy—use my credit card!” Qiu Fengyu wasn’t very knowledgeable, so he just let Davis handle it.

Just as Davis was about to place the order, Qiu Fengyu suddenly shouted.

“What’s wrong?” Davis was startled.

“Why not buy from a shopping mall? We’re free anyway. Where’s the nearest mall? We could go and have some fun too.” Qiu Fengyu stared at Davis.

“If we want to go to a mall, we’d have to head to Austin or Houston… Not a problem, but the round trip would take more than half a day—we’d need to stay overnight.” Davis analyzed the situation for him.

Hearing how troublesome it was, Qiu Fengyu lost interest and waved his hand. “Just order it.”

So Davis took out his phone, called customer service, and managed to negotiate the price of a twelve-hundred-dollar computer down to eleven hundred and ten dollars. He even secured next-day free delivery.

After everything was settled, Davis voluntarily asked for a beating. Qiu Fengyu obliged, teaching him two moves to reinforce his memory. The result: Davis ended up with a bruised face, seeing Qiu Fengyu out the door.

Having bought the computer, Qiu Fengyu returned home, only to receive another call—this time from the insurance company. They needed to investigate the incident, since compensation differed between deliberate destruction and natural damage.

The insurance company and police had inspected the scene right after the fire. Now, the main task was determining the final compensation amount. If both parties agreed, they would sign off and proceed with payment.

Having moved back into his attic, Qiu Fengyu felt no need to build a new house. Living there alone suited him just fine.

The next day, the computer was indeed delivered—straight to the noodle shop. Davis came over to install necessary software, all purchased online.

Afterwards, Qiu Fengyu transferred the videos from his phone to the computer.

“Hey Qiu, now I’m taking you to our school’s Halloween dance. It’s practically hell on earth—demons everywhere, but plenty of superheroes too… Here’s my costume…” Alisa said to the camera, holding up a zombie nurse outfit.

She began preparing to change.

Davis’s eyes nearly popped out, but Alisa didn’t change in front of the camera, leaving him disappointed and sighing. Qiu Fengyu slapped him on the back of the head.

“Aha—this is me, all made up. Do I look like the kind of zombie that eats brains? Okay, I admit it’s pretty gross…” Alisa said, miming a dry heave.

“I think she’s sexier without makeup!” Davis commented.

“Get lost!” Qiu Fengyu kicked him.

Davis left reluctantly, surprised at how sexy Alisa looked in the nurse outfit. As he walked out, he muttered, “Hey, boss, who do you really like? Alisa or our Sheriff?”

“Get lost, or I won’t mind kicking you out!” Qiu Fengyu shouted angrily.

Davis dashed off in terror.

Who did he prefer, Alisa or Sheriff Koffin? Qiu Fengyu froze, realizing he’d never considered it. Now that the question was out in the open, who did he really like? For a simple relationship, he wouldn’t mind sleeping with either, but when it came to genuine feelings, he had no such plans.

The issue was, neither woman would sleep with him unless he pursued a real relationship.

Frustrated, Qiu Fengyu rubbed the back of his head.

He mulled it over, found no answer, and casually clicked through a few more videos—shots of the party, with Alisa filming herself on her phone.

The lighting was dim, but Alisa’s sexy nurse outfit attracted plenty of enthusiastic greetings from the guys, all of whom she turned down, claiming she had a boyfriend. Throughout, Alisa was mostly alone, occasionally hanging out with her best friend, a chubby girl, drinking and dancing.

After watching a few videos, Qiu Fengyu lost interest and logged off. But now, with his computer, he no longer felt so isolated from the world. Browsing the internet and searching for news was much easier, so he was finally able to keep up with the outside world.

Qiu Fengyu’s days were peaceful, but Masato Mikura’s were not. He’d been sitting in the noodle shop for a long time. After finishing a bowl of noodles, he remained at his seat.

“Boss, that guy definitely has a screw loose,” Davis whispered to Qiu Fengyu, shooting a sidelong glance at Masato Mikura.

“Have you switched careers to psychology?” Qiu Fengyu glared at him.

Davis chuckled and left him alone.

When the noodles were sold out, Davis approached Masato Mikura. “Hey, buddy, we’re closing now. Want me to drive you home? Don’t worry, the gangs are gone—the Russians are finished.”

“No… no, it’s not that. I know Mr. Qiu handled things very well for me. I just have a request…” Mikura spoke, glancing sideways at Qiu Fengyu.

Qiu Fengyu walked over, pulled up a chair, and sat in front of him.

“Go ahead, then get lost!” Qiu Fengyu had little affection for the man.

Masato Mikura blushed, seeming embarrassed, but under Qiu Fengyu’s cold stare, he gathered his courage, suddenly stood up, and knelt before Qiu Fengyu with a thud.

The abrupt gesture startled Qiu Fengyu, who leapt to his feet. Davis was dumbfounded, staring at the Japanese man and muttering, “See, I told you, the guy’s nuts. My God, I was right…”

“Are you crazy?”

That was also Qiu Fengyu’s first reaction.

“No, no, I’m sorry, Mr. Qiu, I’m not… I just want to become your apprentice. Please!” Masato Mikura bowed low before him.

“Is this your idea or your father’s?” Qiu Fengyu suspected Mikura wouldn’t act like this unless his father, Masato Kenzo—much shrewder—had put him up to it.

Sure enough, Mikura’s face reddened. He admitted honestly, “Yes, my father told me to do this, but I myself also wish to learn the art of making ramen from you. Please, accept me!”

“You’re crazy, and your father is crazy too!” Qiu Fengyu shook his head. “Impossible.”