Chapter 202
Hearing Tang Yu’an’s words, Zhou Qi froze for a moment.
Driving the RV to the center of Desolate City to rescue Old Xie? It seemed… feasible?
As long as the store was in its closed state, the RV’s protective barrier would remain active 24/7. If they could deal with obstacles along the way, it would actually be safer than building a pathway with fences.
“You have a point. Let’s give it a try,” Zhou Qi nodded.
Tang Yu’an grinned, rubbing his hands together in excitement. Finally, they’d be able to bring Old Xie back!
“Let’s go, let’s go!”
Of course, they needed to plan things out before they set off.
The main priorities were finding a suitable route and figuring out an efficient way to clear obstacles.
Currently, they were simply piling debris behind the RV as they moved forward. But after rescuing Old Xie, they would need to take the same path back, so it was necessary to clear a proper road.
To make things easier, Tang Yu’an extended the RV’s protective barrier outward by an additional 10 meters.
This extension cost 10,000 points and 1,000 store popular points. Since Hai Jing was still at the Peace Grocery Store, the main store’s popularity level was not an issue for now.
After finalizing the route, they officially set off.
Tang Yu’an used the Item List function to gather all the debris within 10 meters of the RV and pile it to the left side.
Zhou Qi then drove the RV slightly to the right to avoid the towering pile of debris from collapsing onto the vehicle.
Once the path was relatively clear, Zhou Qi got out of the RV and used his earth-based abilities to remove any immovable obstacles, like building debris or fallen trees, from the road ahead.
After clearing the road, Tang Yu’an laid down concrete pavement.
The process wasn’t particularly difficult or dangerous, but it was tedious and time-consuming.
Every 10 meters, they had to stop and repeat the entire procedure.
Zhou Qi treated the task as practice for honing his earth-based abilities, while Tang Yu’an, after his initial excitement, gradually calmed down.
Whenever Zhou Qi was busy clearing debris, Tang Yu’an took out his study materials and worked on his assignments.
Since returning from his three-month seclusion in the alternate dimension, he hadn’t focused much on his studies. Having rested long enough, he decided it was time to catch up on his learning progress.
His goal was to finish the remaining middle school curriculum within six months.
The RV inched its way toward the center of Desolate City. Behind them, the cleared road segments were gradually submerged under water again.
Tang Yu’an used the map’s waypoint feature to mark the sections of road they had completed.
He couldn’t help but wish he could print out the system’s map or somehow upload it into the RV’s dashboard. That would make navigation so much easier!
But that would probably have to wait until his merchant level reached Lv25 and he unlocked the RV’s driving system upgrade.
Before they knew it, evening had arrived.
With the protective barrier extended by 10 meters, the RV was now encased in a dome that also included the space above it.
This caused the water above the RV to part, revealing the sky.
As the orange-yellow glow of sunset poured down through the circular opening, the shimmering water walls around them swayed gently, with various aquatic creatures swimming inside.
The two teenagers sat on the roof of the RV, a picnic blanket spread out as they ate dinner.
Tang Yu’an savored a piece of grilled meat, washing it down with freshly squeezed fruit juice while admiring the orange sky tinged by the setting sun. He felt completely at peace.
Perhaps it was the knowledge that he now had a way to contact his parents. Every time he thought about the Drift Bottle filled with supplies making its way back to their world, he felt an unparalleled sense of relief.
It had been so long since he’d felt this happy!
He turned to look at Zhou Qi, only to find Zhou Qi already watching him.
Their eyes met for a brief moment before Zhou Qi looked away awkwardly, pretending to busy himself by picking up another piece of grilled meat.
Tang Yu’an didn’t notice anything unusual. He chuckled and said, “Brother Qi, thank you!”
He raised his glass of juice and added, “Let’s toast!”
Zhou Qi glanced back at him, and seeing the boy’s bright, cheerful smile, he couldn’t help but smile himself. “I told you, there’s no need to thank me.”
Even so, Zhou Qi raised his glass of Star-chain fruit Juice and clinked it against Tang Yu’an’s.
Tang Yu’an grinned widely, downed his juice in one gulp, and let out a satisfied sigh before flopping onto the roof of the RV.
As night fell, Zhou Qi fetched a blanket and draped it over him.
The blanket, made of plush fabric combined with ambient-temperature material, was soft and comfortable yet warm enough to fend off the chill.
Tang Yu’an smiled, then suddenly pointed at the sky. “Look, there are stars tonight!”
Zhou Qi looked up as well.
Sure enough, the dark night sky was dotted with countless twinkling stars.
They had seen starry skies before, especially during their camping trips in the wilderness, but somehow, the view tonight felt different—special, even.
Perhaps it was because this RV felt like home, and the protective barrier gave them a sense of security.
Zhou Qi gazed at the stars for a while before lowering his head, unconsciously letting his eyes drift back to Tang Yu’an.
The boy was lying on his back, hands behind his head, one leg crossed over the other, looking completely relaxed.
After some time, Zhou Qi lay down beside him.
“Brother Qi,” Tang Yu’an’s voice suddenly broke the quiet.
“Hmm?”
“It’s so great to have you around.”
Zhou Qi’s heart skipped a beat. He turned his head to look at Tang Yu’an, only to see the boy gazing at him with bright, clear eyes. His slightly curved gaze carried a light more dazzling than the stars.
“You have to stay with me forever. Let’s never, ever part ways.”
Zhou Qi stared at him, feeling his heart tremble. He knew, though, that the emotions in Tang Yu’an’s heart were not the same as his own.
Before his feelings could be noticed, he turned his head back toward the starry sky and softly replied, “Alright.”
“Never apart…”
Hearing Zhou Qi murmur these words, Tang Yu’an broke into a happy laugh. He scooted closer to Zhou Qi and leaned against him, happily counting the stars in the sky together.
For this moment, they forgot all their worries, as if they had returned to the innocence of childhood—where even the simplest things were full of joy.
When they had had their fill of stargazing, they returned to the alternate dimension to rest, ensuring they were fully recharged before returning to the main world to continue building the road with their RV.
After a simple calculation, they realized they were already more than 20 kilometers away from Old Xie’s location in a straight line.
However, there were unavoidable obstacles along the way that required detours, meaning the entire road would likely end up exceeding 25 kilometers.
Considering the time they also needed to dedicate to building the waterwheel, developing the grasslands, and handling the affairs of their various branch stores, it was impossible to focus solely on the road construction.
Even using all their spare time for roadwork, they could only cover five or six hundred meters per day at most.
This wasn’t a project that could be completed in the short term. Old Xie would have to stay underwater a little longer.
Thankfully, Old Xie could now attend classes and browse the forums, which likely made his days much easier.
He had already completed the primary school curriculum and unlocked the middle school courses. From middle school onward, the speed of unlocking lessons had slowed significantly.
This gave Tang Yu’an a sense of urgency, prompting him to push his own studies back on track.
On the second evening of their road-building efforts, Lan Yunqing completed the “New Employee Assessment” and successfully earned the right to operate the 5th branch store.
Yes, it took him less than three days to max out the required 2,000 store popularity points!
He had been completing a staggering 700 transactions daily with a stability that left others in awe.
The Lanhu Lord was truly formidable.
*
Lanhu Town, Store No. 5
After receiving the system notification confirming his completed task, Lan Yunqing decisively ended the day’s transactions. Under the watchful eyes of the townsfolk, he walked to the location where the 5th branch store was supposed to appear.
However, to his surprise, even though he had completed the task, he couldn’t see the so-called “Lanhu Grocery Store.”
Luckily, Mo Ke had not left yet and was still nearby to explain. “I can’t see it either. Just walk forward, and you’ll see it.”
Following Mo Ke’s guidance, Lan Yunqing carefully moved forward.
This time, the transparent barrier that had previously blocked him was gone, and he easily entered. He once again saw the small shop.
It still appeared as ordinary as ever, yet in Lan Yunqing’s eyes, it now carried a mysterious allure.
Since he hadn’t hidden his movements, many townspeople saw him enter the shop and gathered curiously outside.
People began whispering among themselves, but Lan Yunqing didn’t rush to explain.
He stepped into the Grocery Store, scanning the interior and exterior with his spiritual sense. He found nothing out of the ordinary until his spiritual sense probed underground and detected a blind spot.
Lan Yunqing opened his eyes, observed his surroundings briefly, and quickly made his way to the entrance of the basement.
Unfortunately, when he lifted the trapdoor to the basement, all he saw was pitch black. When he reached out, his hand was stopped by an invisible barrier.
[You do not have the necessary permissions to enter.]
Lan Yunqing turned to Mo Ke, who had followed him inside, and asked, “What’s down there? Can you go in?”
“You can’t enter?” Mork tilted his head in thought before responding, “Maybe you haven’t gained full recognition yet.”
“So you can go in?”
“Yes.”
Lan Yunqing pressed his lips into a thin line. Though he was somewhat annoyed, he understood there was nothing he could do about it. He nodded without saying anything more.
He stared at the basement entrance for a long moment before withdrawing his gaze. He was about to step outside to address the gathered townsfolk when another system notification popped up.
[Congratulations! You’ve triggered the Elite Task: “Branch Manager Assessment.”]
[Description: Due to your excellent performance in the New Employee Assessment, the Mysterious Merchant has decided to conduct a Branch Manager Assessment to evaluate your qualifications to become the manager of the 5th branch store.]
[Task Objective: Upgrade the Store No. 5 to Lv1 (Upgrade Requirements: 3,000 store popularity points, 10,000 points).]
[Reward: Promotion to Branch No. 5 Store Manager.]
After reading the new notification, Lan Yunqing was momentarily stunned.
Manager of the branch store No. 5?
Did this mean he would gain full authority over the entire 5th store? He frowned slightly, pondering the implications. Somehow, it didn’t seem that simple.
After all, the task itself wasn’t particularly difficult.
He glanced at the current store heat points: 2,120. Then he looked at his personal points balance: 9,625.
Since accepting the recruitment offer, Lan Yunqing had consistently completed at least 500 transactions daily. Although he had slacked off for a few days after the Mother Tree’s revival, he had recently increased his daily transactions to 700.
Each profitable transaction earned him 1 point. After deducting the points he had spent, he still had nearly 10,000 points saved up.
At this rate, he would need at most two more days to complete the task.
So Lan Yunqing thought the task was rather simple.
He temporarily closed the interface and stepped out of the Grocery Store, coming to a stop under the awning at the front entrance.
Even though he was only two steps away from the outside, those standing beyond the protective barrier couldn’t see him. They also couldn’t enter or attack him. It was a truly astonishing power.
If he could extend this barrier to encompass the entire town and protect all his people, Lan Yunqing felt absolutely confident that he could lead them to survive indefinitely on this wasteland!
Of course, he didn’t make any public announcements about this yet.
Lan Yunqing stepped outside the barrier and reappeared before the townspeople. He then made a bold declaration—he had joined the Church of the God of Commerce.
The crowd erupted into murmurs and exclamations.
This was likely the first time the Church of Commerce had made an official appearance on the wasteland.
“This is a very ethical religion,” Lan Yunqing said to the crowd. “The Church of Commerce worships the God of Commerce. They use trade and commerce as their means to bring blessings to the impoverished and weak, so that more people can survive on this wasteland.”
As the people began to chatter among themselves, Lan Yunqing spoke again, his tone solemn.
“It is thanks to the Church of Commerce that Lanhu Town survived this crisis, and the Mother Tree was saved during the mutant insect outbreak.”
Nothing carried more weight than this. Upon hearing Lan Yunqing’s explanation, any doubts from the crowd quickly disappeared.
“Wait, does that mean those two young men and Lord Kang Kang are also part of the Church of Commerce?”
“Yes!” Lan Yunqing declared firmly. “They are emissaries of the Church, specifically sent to save the Mother Tree.”
After a brief pause, he added, “In fact, the Mother Tree’s decline started over a year ago. I sought help from Qingmu Fortress back then, but after they took our Lanhu leaves, they never responded.”
The townsfolk naturally knew that Lanhu Town was under the jurisdiction of Qingmu Fortress, a relationship established by the previous lord.
Over the years, the town had received some supplies from the fortress, but they had also paid a hefty tribute of Lanhu leaves. Upon hearing that Qingmu Fortress had taken their goods and then turned a blind eye, the people’s indignation boiled over.
“When I was at my most desperate, it was the emissaries of the Church of Commerce who extended a helping hand to Lanhu Town,” Lan Yunqing continued.
He speculated that the mysterious merchant who appeared in Little Sun’s dream was probably one of the Church’s emissaries—perhaps Dark Moon or Silver Light.
“The Church first provided us with coarse rice. Then they sent two emissaries to investigate the situation. After discovering the problem, they invited Master Kang Kang to help.”
“And so, I joined the Church of Commerce.”
Lan Yunqing concluded, “For now, this is a personal decision of mine. But I can guarantee that I will never do anything to harm Lanhu Town because of it. I stake my life on this promise.”
After learning of the Church of Commerce’s role in helping Lanhu Town, none of the townsfolk opposed Lan Yunqing’s decision.
On the contrary, they expressed understanding and even approval.
“So this invisible wall that hides the shop and blocks outsiders—is that also a power of the Church of Commerce?”
Lan Yunqing nodded.
“Can we join the Church too? If we become members, will we be able to pass through this invisible wall like you, Lord Lan?”
Lan Yunqing shook his head. “You would need the God’s approval.”
He didn’t explain further. After bidding the townsfolk farewell, he disappeared from their view, leaving them to digest the information on their own.
Before long, Lan Maolin and others came looking for him.
Lan Yunqing reassured them and calmed everyone’s concerns before finally returning, exhausted, to his residence.
Completing 700 transactions daily was no small feat. Even though he didn’t need to recruit customers himself, the repetitive, mechanical nature of the work was incredibly draining.
Lying on his bed, he found himself unable to sleep.
So, Lan Yunqing opened the employee forum. After glancing at the message board, he navigated skillfully to the discussion area and entered a pay-to-access thread he had purchased.
The thread’s author? None other than “Greenish Blue.”
Yes, after Lan Yunqing was reassigned to another store and their small group lost their private chat space, Chi Hao came up with a clever workaround—using a pay-to-access thread for private messaging.
First, Chi Hao created a thread in the discussion area titled “Boredom Test Thread, Don’t Enter.” After posting a few meaningless symbols in the first few replies, he locked the thread behind a paywall and set an exorbitant price of 1,000 points.
All subsequent replies in the thread became locked and accessible only to those who paid the fee.
Thus, their private chat environment was established.
When Chi Hao found out that Lan Yunqing’s employee rank had already reached Level 16, he nearly fell apart in despair.
Of course, he quickly pulled himself together and set the thread to require a minimum rank of Level 16 for access, adding another layer of security.
This allowed them to freely exchange messages within the thread without worry.
Naturally, Tang Yu’an and Zhou Qi had never considered using this method for private chats—they had the admin channel, so they’d never faced such an inconvenience.
[Unread Message Alert]
Lan Yunqing noticed a notification for a new reply in the thread before he even opened it.
Raising an eyebrow, he clicked into the thread with a sense of expectation. Scrolling to his last-read comment, he found the latest reply from Chi Hao.
[Greenish Blue]: Caught a mutant boar today. Tons of meat, definitely a few hundred pounds! It’s a bit charred, but if you cut off the burned skin, the meat inside is still edible.
[Greenish Blue]: I can’t finish it all by myself. I’ll list it in the trade section at a super-low price for you. You can eat it yourself or share it with others.
[Greenish Blue]: You have to eat meat! People can’t survive on leaves alone!
[Greenish Blue]: When are you online? Leave a message on the board, and I’ll post it in the trade section before anyone else snatches it.
Lan Yunqing read Chi Hao’s messages, and before he realized it, the corners of his lips had curved upward into a faint smile.
He followed the suggestion and opened the message board.
*
Out in the wilderness, Chi Hao had lit a bonfire.
Next to him was a mutant boar missing its two hind legs. One leg had been sold to Yun Ying, and the other had been sent via his portable storage to Tang Yuan and Zhou Qi.
As he listened to his third-grade natural science class, he glanced at the message board from time to time.
Without a clock, he had no sense of the time, so he kept checking the message board repeatedly, afraid of missing the moment when Lan Yunqing came online.
The message board was unusually quiet today—probably because it was Pan Shi’s group movie night again.
Chi Hao was just debating whether to leave a message himself when a new message popped up on the board.
[Red as Fire]: Squeak.
Chi Hao froze, and for some reason, an image of Lan Yunqing’s face and voice flashed through his mind. His heart rate spiked—and suddenly, he felt like his health bar had just emptied!
Chi Hao and Lan Yunqing’s use of the pay-to-access thread for private chats wasn’t exactly a secret to Tang Yu’an and Zhou Qi.
After all, one of them had the highest administrative privileges and the other was the moderator of the discussion area.
At first, they’d thought the idea was brilliant and had taken a peek during the thread’s review process. But after glancing at the replies, they realized the two weren’t discussing anything particularly private—just sharing day-to-day happenings like friends.
So, after sharing this clever idea with Grandpa Li, they stopped monitoring the thread altogether.
Meanwhile, as Tang Yu’an and Zhou Qi diligently worked on road repairs, the newly recruited Wen Qingqing quickly adapted to her new role and discovered an efficient way to earn points and experience.
First, through her guided tasks and some testing with her mother, she realized that one bucket of ice traded for one piece of Flame Stone could yield a profit.
Following this, Wen Qingqing stuck to her original plan and contacted the military. She offered the 300 Flame Stones to the soldiers, but with one condition:
The military must send 300 soldiers, each carrying a block of ice, to trade for the Flame Stones directly from her hands.
In the end, the military agreed to her seemingly outrageous request.
After all, these 300 Flame Stones were essentially a gift to the army. Wen Qingqing and her mother likely wanted to ensure the batch was safely and personally handed over to the soldiers, possibly due to hearing bad rumors about resource mismanagement.
No matter the reasoning, the military had no grounds to refuse 300 of these magical, continuously heating stones.
And so, on her third day as an employee, 300 soldiers formed a line outside Wen Qingqing’s home, each carrying a large block of ice to trade for the Flame Stones.
These soldiers were all young, their noses red and their bodies trembling in the cold. Yet, none of them dared to set down the heavy ice blocks they carried on their backs.
They stared at the pile of Flame Stones in Wen’s courtyard, feeling the warmth radiating from them, their eyes filled with hope.
With these Flame Stones, perhaps they could stand a better chance against the ice beasts that plagued their region.
“Be sure to use metal boxes lined with fireproof fabric to carry them—don’t touch the Flame Stones with your bare hands, or you’ll get burned,” Wen Qingqing repeatedly instructed the soldiers.
The soldiers nodded with sheepish grins, carefully placing the Flame Stones into iron boxes lined with fireproof fabric. They saluted Wen Qingqing before running to the back of the line to wait.
“Sister Qingqing, can these ice blocks really turn into heating stones?”
Wen Qingqing had enlisted a younger boy from a neighboring house to help move the traded ice blocks into her courtyard to avoid melting the Flame Stones.
“Of course! How else do you think these Flame Stones were made?”
Thanks to the military’s involvement, the district administrator no longer dared to trouble Wen Qingqing and her mother. The 300 Flame Stones had sat in her courtyard for two days without anyone attempting to steal them—though many people had come over to share the warmth in her courtyard. Wen Qingqing didn’t turn them away.
By her third day as an employee, Wen Qingqing had already leveled up to Level 6 and successfully unlocked access to the employee forum.
Her first order of business was to post a buy request on the message board:
[Clear Snow]: Buying Flame Stones! Lots and lots of Flame Stones! Price is negotiable!
Before anyone could respond, she immediately followed up with another post:
[Clear Snow]: Selling ice blocks! Big, pure ice blocks! Unlimited supply! Act fast before it’s gone!
Before she could spam the board further, replies started pouring in from other employees.
[Little Troublemaker]: You’re selling ice blocks? Like, the kind that melts into water?
[Clear Snow]: Yes! Exactly that kind of ice block!
[Little Troublemaker]: Is the melted water drinkable?
[Clear Snow]: Pure and pollution-free! It’s safe for drinking directly, but it’s better to boil it first.
[Little Troublemaker]: I’ve got Flame Stones! Sell me your ice blocks!
And thus, the residents of Flame Dragon Fortress and Ice Flame Fortress finally achieved a historic meeting in the employee forum!
