Dimensional Storekeeper - Chapter 164

Chapter 164: Little Sneak’s Broken Leap
What made it even cooler was his ability to use Shadow Vein Leap, which let him teleport instantly to Kurome’s shadow as long as he could maintain the connection.

Little Sneak was confident it would work. Confident – until he activated the ability outside the store.

The moment he tried, a staggering 99% of his qi drained away like water through a cracked jar, and the link vanished. No trace of Kurome’s shadow could be found within the city.

The reason was simple, but brutal. Shadow Vein Link functioned by stretching his spiritual thread through the natural shadow network around him.

The farther the target’s shadow was, the more qi it demanded to create and stabilize that invisible thread.

And if the target was no longer within a local web of connected shadows, the technique would start forcefully digging through space with sheer spiritual energy, attempting to locate even the faintest trace. The process was like tunneling through a mountain using only a spoon, and the cost was absurd.

Worse, attempting to trigger Shadow Vein Leap before a stable link was confirmed only multiplied the backlash. The technique tried to latch on with everything it had, overloading the connection and nearly frying his internal veins in the process.

All Little Sneak sensed was a faint spiritual thread, far beyond Sovereign City’s bounds.

‘Is Big Sister really out there in that Scorching Soul City she mentioned?’ Little Sneak thought, eyes poorly wide and whiskers drooping.

Luckily, Little Sneak wasn’t just any common rat spiritual beast.

As a rare Pumbral Void Rat, his bloodline came with a strange but incredibly useful survival trait.

Once a month, if he suffered a massive qi depletion or spiritual backlash, his body would instinctively activate something called Void-Shadow Shedding.

It was like leaving behind a hollow echo of himself – a phantom shadow cast from his very essence. The real him would slip just a breath out of sync with the world for a few seconds, letting the backlash slam into the shed shadow instead. The result wasn’t perfect, but it was lifesaving.

Instead of being crippled or coughing blood all over the alley, he merely collapsed face-first.

His qi was completely drained, yes, but his body remained intact. Not even his fur ruffled.

“…Huff… huff… still alive…” Little Sneak wheezed to himself, lying flat on the stone steps.

For a full minute, he just lay there like a rag tossed from heaven, twitching occasionally.

Eventually, he weakly rolled onto his paws, eyes dead and tail limp. With all the dignity of a sock puppet, he dragged himself back into the store without saying a word.

Yoru, from his perch, gave a small “mrrp” and tilted his head.

Hao looked down at Little Sneak. “…You good?”

Little Sneak lifted one paw, wobbled, then dramatically flopped again as if a Final Fantasy boss had just cast Doom on him.

“…Shadow Vein Leap… is a fraud…”

And with that, he passed out right in front of Hao.

At first, Hao simply blinked.

He almost muttered, “Drama queen” under his breath.

But then he noticed something that made his expression turn serious.

Little Sneak, despite all his usual antics and bluster, was barely emanating any qi.

There was only the faintest spiritual presence coming off his tiny body, like a candle flickering at the end of its wick. His normally shiny dark fur looked muted, almost grayed out, and his limbs hung a little too loosely.

That wasn’t just a performance.

Did he… get into a fight with someone in the Sovereign City?

‘System.’ Hao asked mentally, brows furrowin. ‘What’s the current condition of Chibisuke?’

“I don’t care about the cost. Just answer my question.”

[That’ll be one crystal to scan, host.]

[Scan complete. Based on current observations, there are no critical injuries or signs of spiritual trauma, host.]

[No internal damage detected. No curse activity. However, his qi is nearly fully depleted.]

[Residual traces in his meridians suggest a high-output technique was triggered without proper anchoring. That would explain the sudden and severe drain.]

[His body appears to have absorbed the backlash without lasting harm. Most likely due to innate traits from his bloodline. Condition is stable, but he’s fully exhausted. Recovery through natural means will likely take a week or more.]

“…Tch.”

Hao clicked his tongue softly and bent down.

He gently scooped the little rat off the ground, careful not to jostle him too much, and placed him on the table beside Yoru and Tsuki, who immediately shifted to give him room.

Although he often bantered with this troublemaker, Hao didn’t actually dislike him.

If anything, having Little Sneak around had turned out to be unexpectedly… useful.

And entertaining.

His abilities was honestly kind of busted.

If he were looking for a store guardian, this guy might’ve even made the list.

But right now, what Hao needed was a store crew. Someone who could help keep the shelves stocked and the customers in check.

Still…

What the hell drained all this guy’s qi?

He was scuttling around just fine a few minutes ago.

‘What in the world did he get up to outside?’ Hao frowned.

He shook his head, then turned his attention to the two kittens nearby.

“Yoru, Tsuki, you two get each a can of Wing Blast – the one with the silver and blue design in the glass-door fridge.” Hao said, pointing toward the glass door fridges.

The kittens responded with a perfectly synchronized “Meow!” Then they leapt down from the table, tails flicking in excitement, and dashed toward the fridge.

Though still kittens, now roughly the size of basketballs, they moved with surprising skill. Each carefully pressed their paws against the fridge handle – the technique their mother had taught them to open doors – and nudged it open just enough to slip inside.

Moments later, Yoru and Tsuki emerged, each carrying a can of Wing Blast gently between their teeth. Their fangs didn’t sink into the metal, thanks to careful practice and innate gentleness.

They trotted back to Hao, tails flicking proudly as they delivered the cans without a scratch.