I Cultivated Too Long and Got Isekai'd Into a Game-Chapter 52: No Need, I’ll Handle It

"P-Please, wait... Master...!" Uriel cried as her breath hitched. "This... I don’t know if we should be doing this..."

"What? You said you’d do anything earlier, right?" But Xu Tao only smiled at her, seemingly amused—teasing, even. "Or what? Are you telling me you lied?"

"T-That... But there should be limits... Laws we can’t break..."

"What about laws? I’m your master, I’m the law to you... Don’t you want to make your master happy?"

"...!"

Uriel squirmed, her eyes swimming around. She seemed reluctant to do it, even for Xu Tao. As a last-ditch effort, she clenched her fists and raised her voice, trying to sound persuasive.

"B-But as expected, stealing isn’t good, master!"

Xu Tao sighed, shrugging. "What stealing?" he said, leaning against the VR Pod as he slapped its lid lightly. "I’m just borrowing it."

"But still...!"

Just as Uriel’s view of right and wrong was about to get rewritten, another voice interrupted them.

"Master, you don’t need to limit yourself to one pod," she said, full of confidence—though the traces of tears were still left on her face. "Just say the word, and I’ll buy this whole VR Café for you!"

"Hmm... That sounds enticing," Xu Tao nodded, before pausing, and shaking his head. "But as expected, I’m not depraved enough to rob the little ones of access to this place for cultivation."

"...Huh?"

Both Uriel and Henrietta tilted their heads, confused at his words.

After all, this wasn’t a place for "training." Not even close. It was a location for people to enjoy playing games, release steam—and other things at times—not a place where they cultivate.

But Xu Tao was convinced about this fact already. He did see others back then and now using the pods and cultivating internal energy. Though... it wasn’t the pods that were actually helping them, but something else. He didn’t know this, of course.

"If you can get this specific Vee Arr pod for me, I’ll be satisfied already," he smiled toward Henrietta, clarifying his intent.

"...I understand, Master." Henrietta nodded respectfully, cupping her fist. "Then, Uriel, go grab the manager, or anyone at all, and bring them here. I want to talk to them."

"Yes, Milady!"

And without a second of delay, Uriel bowed and followed Henrietta’s command. She responded even faster and without hesitation compared to when it was Xu Tao’s command.

"..."

Although he felt a little "underestimated" by Uriel, he decided to let it go. He hadn’t done anything master-like for her right now, anyway—at least in his perspective. A bit of disrespect should be pardonable.

The room went silent with only Xu Tao and Henrietta left. One was unsure of what to talk about, while the other wasn’t bothered by the silence in particular.

"T-That... Master..." But still, Henrietta broke the ice, asking, "Earlier, you said you cured me of my Qi Deviation... But what is that? Is that why my senses were filled with pain in every move?"

"Oh? You don’t even know what Qi Deviation is...?" But the question itself was a shock to Xu Tao.

To cultivators, Qi Deviation was common knowledge, and a not-so-farfetched ending for most. As such, hearing that she didn’t even know the term made Xu Tao wonder if they truly were cultivators.

It’s true he could feel Qi in her body. He could detect it from both her Lower and Middle Dantians. Her upper dantian weirdly was untouched—no, it was unopened. Even the meridians connecting to it were untouched.

’This... Looks like I’ll have a lot of things to teach them.’

Xu Tao felt disappointed and hopeful at the same time.

He could tell how great Henrietta’s potential was at a glance, and although older, Uriel too couldn’t be ignored. But it must be noted that both of them, although at extreme ends of both sides, were still in the Body Refinement stage.

Henrietta was at the 1st stage—barely, at that. While Uriel was at the border of breaking through to the ninth stage. Though she did weirdly have too little Qi compared to her cultivation level, almost as if she "cheated" her way there.

"Master?"

As he was getting lost in thought, Henrietta’s soft voice called him back.

"Ah, right..." he whispered. "Qi Deviation, is it? This is also called the Chaos State, and..."

Since he could tell that Uriel was still far from coming back, he decided to do a brief introduction about some simple concepts. Qi Deviation, Qi Gathering, and even on Evil Spirits themselves.

It was brief, a skin-and-bones explanation, but to Henrietta, it was a flood of enlightenment.

"I’m back, Milady. I’ve brought the owner’s nephew, since the owner isn’t here at the moment." Uriel burst in just as Xu Tao finished speaking—perfect pacing and timing.

"Uh... My arms hurt, Miss Uriel... And what’s the emergenc—"

The man whom Uriel dragged was a familiar face. The man who’s usually manning the front desk of the establishment. One that, at a glance, recalled Xu Tao immediately.

"Oh, Mr. Customer! When did you come back? I didn’t see you coming through the entrance!" he chatted immediately, seemingly excited. "Are you here to use the Pods again? But wait, what happened last time anyway...? You just disappeared before our eyes and..."

"...?"

As the man droned on, speaking almost as if he was talking to a closer friend, Xu Tao tilted his head.

He was a man of fortitude, of great memory—but as expected, he couldn’t recognize anyone and everyone he met from their faces alone. "Hmm?" But his gaze picked up on a familiar artifact on the man’s fingers. A Power Ring. A simple treasure that he gave out before.

"Ah, I recall you now." Xu Tao nodded. "That ring... You’re the one who led me the first time."

"Yes, yes sir! It was me!" The man looked excited as he was recognized. "And by the sound of it, you have something to request, is it? Tell me, I can act in lieu of my uncle most of the cases!"

"Ah, that’d be me." Henrietta stepped forward, snapping out of her daze. "Master wants to get this VR Pod, so I’ll buy it."

"Oh, that’s all? I’d even let you, Miss Henrietta, buy this entire place!"

"No need. Master said he doesn’t need all of it, just this one."

"Oh... Then, alright! This gentleman here already gave more than enough, anyway, so no need for payments!" Although disappointed, he nodded. "Let me call a day-mover and deliver it to the Campbell’s residence—"

"Ah, there’s no need to bother you for that. I can handle it myself."

But before the man could even appeal, Xu Tao had already moved. He placed a hand over the VR Pod, and using his SSR Ring—not even his pouch with nearly infinite capacity—he pulled the entire pod inside.

To the other three’s eyes, the pod simply disappeared, as if sucked into Xu Tao’s hands.

"...He’s real."

Uriel gulped, shocked at this display.

There was no more room for doubt. Xu Tao was absolutely a true "Master"!

"Well then, shall we get going?"

Xu Tao smiled, casually placing both hands within his sleeves, and walking out of the VVIP VR Pod Room. Henrietta and Uriel, who had already seen some "impossible" scenes earlier, snapped back to reality quick. fɾeeweɓnѳveɭ.com

"T-The fuck... happened?"

But the poor clerk guy was left with his mouth agape, eyes almost popping out of their sockets.

"T-The pod... Vanished?! EHHH?!"

Visit freewe𝑏(n)ovel.𝘤ℴ𝑚 for the best novel reading exp𝒆rience