The planetree’s cold laughter was pregnant with very human-like emotion.

“Your human birth carries the ancestral hopes, disdain, or even debts of your forebears—meanwhile, we are lives entirely without attachments!“

“What are you driving at?“

“Our new life is far more pure! In this comparison of the character of a brand-new beginning, you humans have already lost!“

The scoreboard began shifting!

The second pillar on the ceiling flared up with a concussion.

“My seeds spread all across the hillside, and most of them gave birth to new life. Meanwhile, huh, you don’t have a girlfriend yet, do you? How can you measure up to me?“

The corners of Yang Zicang’s eyes were trembling slightly.

11V4！

The third pillar, jutting horizontally from the wall, began to ignite with flames as well.

“Our roots and branches—any single segment—could also… “

“Enough! ” Yang Zicang seemed just as struck by something from that tree stump. “Who told you that without a girlfriend, I have no descendants?! “

“？“

Crack…! As if anticipating that Yang Zicang was about to recount an experience capable of counterattacking, the poker card paused mid-flip, hovering in hesitation.

Yang Zicang pressed the Gardening Scissors—a tool clearly imbued with a special energy—against the tree-like branches and snarled:

“I have one son and one daughter! And they each gave birth to two descendants! “

“What nonsense are you spouting?! “

Click! The card registry leaped, reading 11V5!

“What? This is actually true! “

“What’s more, I’ve also been through unemployment and bankruptcy! “

Click-click-clack! 11V7!

“Impossible! You’re making this up! “

Slap! Yang Zicang struck the wooden bump that served as its face with a firm pull of the scissors.

“Well, then, you make up an experience that gets certified by the Divine Rank and see how it goes! “

“How can this be? ” Fengxi Wood marveled in shock. “I saw no traces of prolonged lifespan on you! How could this be true?! “

“I used to suspect it was fake too, but now I know the truth. “

It wasn’t false—it was a fact certified by the inn. The moment Yang Zicang so much as recalled it, the events contained in that ordinary person’s memoir surged into his mind with the clarity of retrieved files, precise down to the very second!

“I once went through the failure of a marriage, but that was not the end of love. “

Click! 11V8!

“No! You can’t possibly challenge my right to stay in Room 201! I am the most dazzling new life! A true phoenix was reborn within my life! “

The scoreboard did not change with the Phoenix-Perching Tree’s words, evidently this experience was included within that indivisible “5 points. “

“Yeah, you witnessed the phoenix’s nirvana. “

Yang Zicang glared at it, his aura becoming moist, as if surrounded by an ocean of nothingness.

The gnarled, tree-stump-like eyes of the Phoenix-Perching Tree stared shockedly at the white figure emerging behind Yang Zicang, a totem of dragons, serpents, and centipedes seemingly forged from flame.

“I’ve also witnessed the rebirth of fire, twice! “

Crack! A sound like something breaking echoed from the dry fissures of the Phoenix-Perching Tree.

12V9！

On the dry, cracked surface of the table by the wall, the guest room key developed a web of fractures, as if it might shatter from within at any moment.

“Even then, you’re still two points short! I cannot leave, I… I need to enter the Divine Gate… my roots have sprouted new life! “

The Phoenix-Perching Tree frantically searched its memory for any other experience of rebirth. As a piece of wood once perched upon by a phoenix, it didn’t want to leave the feilü Travel Hotel like this.

Yang Zicang stared fiercely at the panic-stricken, magnificent wood, and said in a low, deliberate tone: “I myself have also returned from true death! “

The tree’s eyes fixed upon him.

“Three times! “

“Ahhh! How is that possible?! You’re insane! There’s no human like you! “

“I’ve eaten more salt than you’ve walked on roads! “

Cra-ack! 12V12!

“This is all thanks to this world. You lost. “

“How could I lose? ” Phoenix-Perching Tree said in terror. “The score is only tied now! “

Crack! In the midst of the tied score, the gardening scissors snipped off one of the three remaining branches of the Phoenix-Perching Tree.

“This is the final turning point. You’ve lost your branch again. “

“You son of a bitch—aaaaaargh! “

Pages flipped, 12V13!

“We’re even now, aren’t we? ” Yang Zicang chuckled coldly. “Even considering our shared experiences, this time the score should go to me. Besides, I still have plenty of stories to tell—do you want to hear more? “

A look of terror emerged in the eye of the Phoenix-Perching Tree, for behind it, an energy vortex had begun to spin faintly. This meant the hostel had already weighed the chips of this Phoenix-Perching Tree…the experiences it could bid with were probably running thin…

The guest key was already completely shattered.

“Still want to continue? ” Yang Zicang fixed his gaze on the Phoenix-Perching Tree before him.

“I…I… ” The Phoenix-Perching Tree’s eye rolled in panic. “I took on a human as my servant—one who could take care of me. This should also count as an experience full of the meaning of ‘a new beginning’. “

“When I faced death again as my body shattered, I was reborn anew. This was my experience in the Demon Hero Hall. And I also became the victor of the Demon Hero Hall—another life node worth recounting.“

12V14!

“No—Ah!“

The rotating energy cluster suddenly grew larger, as if trying to engulf the parasol tree and drag it out of this room.

Yang Zicang suddenly raised the scissors and aimed them at one of its branches and leaves.

“Stay.“

The rapidly spinning energy instantly froze.

“What are you trying to do?!“

Yang Zicang stared at it, “Don’t you want to keep living here? Become my attendant. From now on, as long as I am here, you can reside in this room forever!“

The White Shadow Mind Dragon burst forth instantly, winding around that piece of wood like a dragon or serpent, glaring at it with predatory intent.

｛I, the Great Quadrilateral, can perceive it.｝

｛Phoenix-Perching Tree has expressed surface-level loyalty to me.｝

The swirling vortex of energy calmed down. This creature was just like the nightmare demons—even more decisive in its betrayal than they were.

“First, let’s be clear—take that thing away from me.“

“Fine, but we need to sign an agreement.“

Yang Zicang frowned and looked at it. It had no hands, so naturally it couldn’t hold a pen, yet it wasn’t a mindless object—it was always capable of betrayal. If, three months after he left the inn, this accursed thing bolted out of the room, withdrew from the Travelers’ Guild Association, and challenged this room anew, it would become very dangerous.

Man and tree trunk locked eyes in this bizarre, silent mutual stare.

……

“Aaaah!“

Bang, crash! The cabin echoed with the sound of things being smashed and shattered.

“How could that piece of junk be so useless! It’s Phoenix-Perching Tree, marked with a phoenix brand, and it lost in a room bid like Room 201 of all places! “

In the cabin, the few people sitting on chairs that creaked with every slight movement wore grim expressions.

Ian spoke, his voice thick with disbelief. “That guy called Buchen, where the hell did he come from? How did he get the Phoenix-Perching Tree to turn traitor? “

Their gazes shifted to the woman beside Wager.

“If we wait for that group to leave the inn, Monika, you could go see the Phoenix-Perching Tree again. It should change its mind, for your modeling skills’ sake, right? “

“I… ” Monika shook her head slowly. “Although my ability happens to be precious to the Phoenix-Perching Tree, producing liquid essence spray isn’t exactly unheard of or unique. “

“At least your fertilizer’s precision is invaluable to it. It’ll welcome you back. “

“Our focus should be on dealing with Yang Buchen himself. “

“Only Room 204 is left. ” Wager, who had just smashed everything in front of him, exhaled. “That group might have married couples or father-and-son families, but when it comes to conditions like dining with a home tutor, no one fits better than us. “

Everyone looked towards Monika and Wager—because this couple was originally teacher and student!

Back when they were still on Earth, they had transitioned from a teacher-student relationship into lovers.

Monika stared out at the sea beyond the cabin window.

Somewhere amidst the war-torn continents, another woman who had been hiding there had lost in this round of bidding. Judging by her husband’s furious state nearby, something had likely befallen the woman she had only met once.

However, this was rather good news for her.

“Get ready, ” Wager said, looking at the people around him. “The bidding for Room 204 should happen within the next two days. “

“Forget the teacher; no matter what you teach, it counts. But will they have a family on their side? “

Though it’s not unheard of for an entire family to enter this world together, it’s rare. Especially the probability of them being fished up simultaneously in the same zone on this vast misty sea—well, it’s infinitesimal.

“To leave Fee Travel Hotel, someone on their side will definitely pull off some ‘marriage hustle,’ hmph. “

Wager thought of those people who entered the room near the lighthouse earlier. Without a doubt, there would be someone among them willing to resort to such means to escape the inn.

“What are you planning to teach this time, Monika? “

“I… ” Before Monika could finish, her expression shifted slightly. The others looked over.

“I just received their bidding offer! Do we agree now or wait it out within these three days? “

An icy chill ran down Wager’s spine! Not only because the other party had come to challenge this hard-to-match housing combination with “Trait ” requirements so soon, but also because, from their attitude, he sensed that their goal likely extended far beyond just challenging the ten rooms on the second floor!

If they successfully challenge another third-floor room, then… we will completely lose the “Synch Right ” to the three rooms of the Fee Travel Hotel!

He somewhat regretted not delving deeper before he dragged this guy into the hotel!