Chapter 211
Near Flame Dragon Fortress.
After the two gang leaders left, not only did they refrain from betraying the Merchant God Church, but they also helped spread the word, ultimately rallying over a hundred people to follow them back.
As a result, under Old Mo’s leadership, the “Merchant God Church Branch” saw its congregation grow to nearly three hundred members.
Although this added some pressure, the existence of the System Marketplace and the Forum Trading Zone ensured a stable supply of food and water.
With the two most pressing concerns resolved, managing the church became much easier.
Of course, with the growing number of people, available living space quickly ran out, prompting the believers to launch a large-scale housing construction effort.
Scarface Liang and Scorpion originally tried to convince Old Mo to return and seize gang territory, but he refused.
Gang territories had their advantages, but they also came with many drawbacks.
In comparison, a settlement built entirely by the believers themselves would foster a stronger sense of unity and belonging.
Yes, a home.
When Old Mo came across Eastern Sweet Tang’s concept of the “Era of Homesteads” on the forum, he was utterly amazed.
At first, it seemed like an overly ambitious idea, but then he thought…
He had already established the Merchant God Church—what was stopping him from taking things even further?
The homestead concept was perfect for both the Merchant God Church and the Peace Commerce Association. If it worked, then why not adopt it?
Only by living within a homestead could the believers truly unite and wholeheartedly protect their community.
Old Mo knew the truth all too well—most of the followers surrounding him and Gan Lin were only there for food and water. If one day, those resources disappeared…
He would likely be the first to be torn apart.
That situation was inevitable, but it could still be improved and guided in a better direction. The homestead concept was the perfect solution.
If they could build a self-sustaining community that didn’t overly rely on mysterious merchants, only using them to perform miraculous feats on occasion, then even if he one day lost the “blessing of the gods”, the branch could still continue to operate.
Sitting upright in his room, Old Mo quietly pondered.
On the nearby bed, Gan Lin slept soundly, his eyes closed.
Old Mo glanced at the young boy, then pulled a temperature-resistant cloth blanket over his stomach.
Gan Lin was not only the “Holy Son” of the Merchant God Church but also the only person in the world whom Old Mo could truly trust.
At the very least, before the end of his life, he had to erase the hidden dangers for Gan Lin…
Suddenly, he noticed that beneath Gan Lin’s closed eyelids, his eyeballs were rapidly moving, and his eyelashes were trembling violently.
Old Mo immediately straightened his posture.
He was all too familiar with this reaction.
Clearly, Gan Lin was meeting the Divine Envoy in his dream again—though Old Mo already knew that the being appearing in Gan Lin’s dreams wasn’t the Merchant God but the two mysterious merchants, Silver Light and Dark Moon.
Even though the Trading Zone now provided them with pure ice blocks, Old Mo would never dare to take these two divine figures lightly.
In fact, he stayed up late every night just to witness these moments.
Before long, Gan Lin’s eyes fluttered open as he awoke from his dream.
There were no new items in the room, but Old Mo was not disappointed. As Gan Lin regained his senses, Old Mo handed him a glass of water and asked, “The Divine Envoy appeared again?”
Gan Lin took a sip of water, steadied his emotions, and nodded enthusiastically. “Yes!”
“Old Mo, guess what the Divine Envoy bestowed upon us this time?” The boy’s face was filled with excitement.
“Let me guess…” Old Mo pondered for a moment. “Is it new food?”
“Haha, yes!” Gan Lin’s eyes sparkled. “The Divine Envoy said he would gift us a tree that can grow in dry and scorching environments.”
“This tree has an extremely high yield—it bears fruit every four months, and the fruit tastes and feels just like creamy bread…”
“Old Mo, have you ever had creamy bread before?”
Old Mo’s eyes lit up as well. He grabbed Gan Lin’s hand and asked excitedly, “A fruit tree that can grow in hot, arid lands?”
He had previously tried planting soybeans and wheat, but both had failed.
“Yes, that’s right.” Gan Lin nodded. “But the Divine Envoy said that this tree is extremely precious, so we will need to offer more Flame Stones in return.”
Old Mo nodded without hesitation. “That’s only fair.”
Over the past few weeks, he had traded many ice blocks with Qing Xue, but he had also saved up a stockpile of Flame Stones, precisely for moments like these.
Offering Flame Stones to the gods was their sacred duty.
One must never forget their roots.
Old Mo never questioned the exact amount needed—every time, he simply offered as much as possible, ensuring that their devotion would be recognized by the divine.
He gently stroked Gan Lin’s hair and said, “Tomorrow, let’s send the believers out to gather more Flame Stones. We will perform a divine miracle for our new followers tomorrow night.”
“Okay!”
Gan Lin nodded and soon lay down to sleep again.
Only then did Old Mo finally lie down beside him, ready to rest.
Yet, because of his excitement, Gan Lin struggled with insomnia. After a while, he spoke up again, “Old Mo, are you asleep?”
“What is it?” Old Mo replied.
“Everything feels like a dream…” Gan Lin whispered.
“That is why you must always remain grateful to the Merchant God and faithfully uphold His teachings. Only then can you continue receiving his divine favor.”
Listening to the old man’s wise teachings, Gan Lin placed a hand over his chest.
“Mm, I understand.” He said, “I will always keep it in my heart and act accordingly.”
*
Peace Grocery Store, Attic.
After tossing Gan Lin’s bottle back into the Sea of Dreams, Tang Yu’an reached for the remaining ones.
Once again, he had fished out Little Risheng’s bottle today and successfully traded for 2,000 Lan Hu Leaves—
This was, of course, something Lan Yunqing had left with Xiao Risheng, so that when the mysterious merchant appeared in his dreams again, he wouldn’t be empty-handed like last time.
“The Lord said to give this to you… You are a deity, bless us…”
Hearing Xiao Risheng’s words, Tang Yu’an was momentarily speechless.
It seemed that Brother Yunqing had accepted this whole idea and was even promoting it among his people. Judging from Xiao Risheng’s words, his family now knew that he could communicate with a “deity” in his dreams.
The God of Commerce detested unearned rewards, so naturally, he wouldn’t take offerings from his followers for nothing.
This time, Tang Yu’an exchanged canned meat and candies for 2,000 pieces of Blue Hu leaves and earned over 30,000 points.
Once he was done fishing for drift bottles, he moved on to today’s lottery draw.
“I feel like I haven’t won anything good recently,” Tang Yu’an muttered. “Hopefully, I can get a special item or skill today!”
Zhou Qi simply smiled in response.
At least in his opinion, Tang Yu’an had won quite a few useful things lately…
Tang Yu’an clicked to start the draw, and the pointer spun around before finally landing on—
[Congratulations! You have won the rare material “Heavenly Silk.”]
[Heavenly Silk]
[Description: A rare material used for crafting sewn items, upgrading enchanted furniture, and more.]
Tang Yu’an was momentarily stunned. Heavenly Silk? That sounds familiar…
He opened the furniture upgrade list and quickly found what he was looking for.
“It’s the upgrade material for the Crimson Comfort Pillow!” he exclaimed. “Brother Zhou, I just won the upgrade material for my Crimson Comfort Pillow!”
Zhou Qi was also taken aback. “Is that the pillow that reduces damage when you sleep on it?”
“Yes! That’s the one!”
Tang Yu’an grinned. “Once it’s upgraded to Level 2, it will reduce 90% of physical damage and 60% of psionic damage while sleeping!”
Perhaps when it reaches Level 3, it might even provide 100% physical damage immunity.
Zhou Qi took a deep breath.
“So… the ‘just lie down and sleep to avoid battle’ strategy might actually work?”
Tang Yu’an chuckled and quickly checked the other upgrade materials. Since he had everything needed, he immediately took out the Purple-Red Comfort Pillow to begin the upgrade process.
One of the required materials was Oolong tea.
It seemed that this was the favorite food of the Furniture Sprite. Fortunately, his parents were tea lovers, so they had various kinds of tea at home—including Oolong.
Last time, the deity had taken all the food in the house, but the tea leaves had been stored in his personal warehouse, so they were still available.
Tang Yu’an brewed a pot of Oolong tea, placed it beside the Crimson Comfort Pillow, and added a small dish of matcha-flavored candies. He then carefully arranged the required element stones, Heavenly Silk, and other materials on the pillow.
After confirming everything was in order, he clicked Upgrade.
[Upgrade requirements met.]
[Deduct 1,000 points to upgrade the furniture “Crimson Comfort Pillow” now?]
Tang Yu’an clicked Yes.
[1,000 points deducted successfully!]
[Furniture Sprite Fufu is reviewing the order…]
[Fufu has accepted the order!]
[Fufu: “Crimson Comfort Pillow” upgrade in progress. Estimated completion time: 48 hours. Please be patient.]
As the system messages popped up, all the upgrade materials vanished from the pillow—except for the Oolong tea and candies beside it.
Then, a purple-red figure suddenly appeared above the pillow.
This was Tang Yu’an’s first time seeing Furniture Sprite Fufu. Compared to Bobo and Yaya, this tiny fairy in a purple-red dress exuded a charm that was both adorable and elegant—perhaps due to her makeup and bright red lips.
Fufu extended a tiny silk-gloved hand and sprinkled crimson furniture stardust onto the pillow. Then, she flapped her wings and flew toward the Oolong tea pot.
She hovered around the tea pot, took in the fragrance, and nodded in satisfaction. Then, with a flick of her tiny hand, a miniature, exquisite tea table and chairs appeared next to the Crimson Comfort Pillow.
Next, Fufu pulled out a fine tea set, poured herself a cup of Oolong tea, and gracefully took a seat to savor it.
However, she didn’t even glance at the matcha-flavored candies.
Watching her, Tang Yu’an guessed that she probably didn’t like them. Although the candies were from the System Shop, they might not contain real matcha.
Next time, I should ask Round Head to make some authentic tea pastries…
The tiny fairy was absolutely adorable—barely palm-sized, holding a mini teacup, sitting at a delicate little round table—like something straight out of a fairy tale.
As she sipped her tea, Tang Yu’an had an idea. He pulled out his light-brain device, selected some elegant light music, and played it softly.
Fufu immediately perked up, turning to look at him.
Tang Yu’an smiled at her.
Fufu hesitated for a moment, then subtly curved her lips in the faintest smile.
But before Tang Yu’an could see her expression clearly, she had already turned back around, continuing to drink tea and enjoy the music.
After observing her for a while, Tang Yu’an and Zhou Qi quietly left, leaving the attic to the little sprite, so they wouldn’t disturb her “work.”
Through the RV’s teleportation array, they left for the alternate dimension cabin to let the housekeeping robots continue crafting Peace Coins—preparing for their upcoming trip to Lan Hu Town.
The two boys resumed their studies and training.
However, this time, they didn’t stay for 15 days—because…
It was Zhou Qi’s birthday.
“Brother Zhou, happy birthday!”
After today, Zhou Qi would be 17 years old.
They decided to return to the Desolate City Haven and celebrate with Granny Guo and the others.
Since they often traveled to the alternate dimension, time flowed differently for them compared to everyone else. To avoid confusion, Zhou Qi chose not to tell anyone it was his birthday.
Instead, he and Tang Yu’an simply returned home, prepared a lavish dinner, and invited all their close friends to gather and celebrate.
“I will always love the meals made by the shopkeeper!”
Lin Zhen raised a glass of fruit juice and declared boldly, “A toast to the shopkeeper!”
Shi Tou and Mo Ke joined in the commotion.
Xiao Cao raised her juice and followed suit, lifting her cup. Seeing this, the others also imitated her.
Even little Kang Kang, who was sitting beside Granny Guo, tried to hold up his tiny cup. Jin Lili, looking confused, reached out to grab hers as well. With A’Lian’s help, she successfully raised it.
“To the store manager!”
The crisp, childish voices of the two little ones rang out, making everyone laugh.
It was the first time Zhou Qi had faced such a scene, and he couldn’t help but feel a little awkward. But he quickly composed himself.
“Everyone has worked hard during this time.”
He raised his glass of juice and clinked it with everyone else’s. “When the floodwaters recede, we may face new challenges. I hope we can all unite and build our home even better.”
“Yes!”
“A toast to our home!”
The lively and harmonious atmosphere made both Tang Yu’an and Zhou Qi feel a little dazed, as if they had returned to their original world.
Unknowingly, so many people had already gathered around them…
Soon, Tang Yu’an lifted his juice and clinked glasses with Zhou Qi alone, whispering, “Happy birthday~”
Zhou Qi smiled and responded with a toast.
After the banquet ended, everyone was still reluctant to part.
“When will we get to eat the store manager’s cooking again? It’s just too delicious! I couldn’t stop eating!”
“Yeah, yeah! If we could have it once a month, that would be amazing…”
Zhou Qi pretended not to hear and urged everyone to rest before leaving with Tang Yu’an, returning to the Peace Grocery Store.
Back at the store, Tang Yu’an still had a grin on his face.
“What’s so funny?” Zhou Qi asked.
“Hehe, I have the best luck—I get to eat your delicious food every day!” Tang Yu’an chuckled happily.
Zhou Qi couldn’t help but reach out and ruffle his hair.
On his wrist was a finely crafted bracelet—Tang Yu’an had carefully selected it from the dimensional store as a birthday gift for him.
The bracelet emitted a subtle fragrance that helped clear the mind and keep thoughts sharp.
Tang Yu’an hoped this bracelet would help Zhou Qi resist the control of the spirit insects.
“As long as you like it,” Zhou Qi said.
Tang Yu’an suddenly jumped onto his back, catching him off guard. “Of course, I like it!”
Zhou Qi’s heart skipped a beat.
Then he heard the boy say, “As long as it’s your cooking, I love it all!”
A hint of disappointment flashed in Zhou Qi’s eyes, but he quickly masked it.
Carrying Tang Yu’an on his back, he weighed him slightly. “You’ve definitely gotten stronger after eating that physique-enhancing egg.”
Tang Yu’an let out a proud hum and rolled up his sleeves. “Look, I even got muscles!”
The boy’s arms were long, slender, and fair, with toned muscles…
Zhou Qi took one glance before quickly looking away. In a low voice, he said, “It’s getting cold, pull down your sleeves so you don’t catch a chill.”
“I don’t feel cold anymore!”
After eating the physique egg, Tang Yu’an’s resistance to temperature had significantly improved. But still, he obediently pulled his sleeves back down.
Then, out of curiosity, he reached out and lifted Zhou Qi’s shirt.
“Brother Qi, do you have eight-pack abs now?” He directly slid his hand under Zhou Qi’s shirt. “Let me check!”
Zhou Qi’s ears instantly turned red.
He hurriedly grabbed the boy’s mischievous hands, his voice flustered. “An’an… Y-You, stop that…”
“Don’t be so stingy.”
Tang Yu’an leaned against his shoulder, speaking close to his ear, his warm breath brushing against Zhou Qi’s ear.
“If I train and get abs in the future, I’ll let you touch them in return.”
Zhou Qi: (//o///o//)
“D-Don’t talk nonsense…” He let go, trying to make the boy climb down from his back.
But Tang Yu’an expertly wrapped his legs around Zhou Qi’s waist, completely unfazed.
He even declared confidently, “I’m not talking nonsense! I’ll definitely train my muscles in the future, and I won’t be as stingy as you—I’ll let you touch all you want!”
Actually, Tang Yu’an had noticed that as they grew older, their closeness wasn’t quite the same as before.
They used to take baths together and splash around, but now, every time they bathed, Brother Qi always found a way to avoid it. Though the small bathroom space was a reasonable excuse, still…
Tang Yu’an couldn’t help but feel a little uneasy.
Zhou Qi opened his mouth slightly but found himself unable to voice his thoughts.
It had been more than a year now, yet his feelings for Tang Yu’an hadn’t lessened at all. Instead, they had only grown stronger. This unfamiliar emotion filled him with anxiety.
He feared that if he confessed, their relationship would never be the same again…
“Let’s go fish for drift bottles,” Zhou Qi changed the subject. “Gan Lin and Old Mo have probably been waiting for a long time.”
“Alright.”
Hearing about business, Tang Yu’an stopped fooling around and finally jumped down from Zhou Qi’s back.
Watching the boy climb up to the attic, Zhou Qi felt both relieved and somewhat disappointed.
But by the time Tang Yu’an turned around to look at him, Zhou Qi had already composed himself, following him up to the attic to fish for today’s drift bottles.
Since the 48 hours weren’t up yet, the Crimson Sleeping Pillow was still upgrading.
Furniture Sprite Fufu was no longer drinking tea. At this moment, she had changed into a delicate silk nightgown, lying above the Sleeping Pillow, covered with a tiny blanket, fast asleep.
Tang Yu’an even noticed that she was wearing an eye mask and earmuffs—it was as if she were a tiny, elegant princess.
What a truly graceful and beautiful little sprite.
At least this way, they didn’t have to worry about waking her up.
So, they began today’s drift bottle fishing in the dream world.
Before starting, Tang Yu’an first checked Gu Qianli’s store window in the dimensional shop. He noticed that Gu Qianli hadn’t put up the agreed-upon signal yet, which likely meant he still hadn’t found the Spirit Storage Bag. Because of this, Tang Yu’an didn’t activate the Drift Accelerator for now.
The first dream drift bottle, as expected, was from Gan Lin.
“Divine Envoy, we have gathered all the Flame Stones!”
As they had agreed the day before, they had prepared all the Flame Stones. To show their dedication, Old Mo even mobilized everyone to search for more.
Since they had been continuously collecting them, Flame Stones had become increasingly scarce near their settlement, forcing the believers to venture farther in search of them.
However, the earth- and fire-ability users seemed to have discovered a Flame Stone mine.
This mine was located underground and required excavation. Due to their lack of advanced tools, Old Mo decided not to start mining just yet, choosing instead to wait until they had collected all the surface-level Flame Stones.
The arrival of over a hundred new believers had made things more difficult to manage, as they now made up almost half of the group.
There was conflict right from the start.
Scarface Liang and Scorpion attempted to use these new followers to seize more power. Initially, Old Mo had intended to give them important roles, but after seeing their greed, he abandoned the idea and taught them a harsh lesson instead.
Gan Lin hadn’t expected Old Mo to be so bold. What surprised him even more was that the newly arrived gang members were completely no match for their believers.
The gang members fought like a scattered mob, whereas the believers were fierce and united.
For the first time, Gan Lin witnessed how powerful people could become when they were truly united.
Of course, their overwhelming victory in this battle was largely due to the fact that the believers had been well-fed over the past month.
Going out daily to collect Flame Stones and receiving ample food and water in return—how could a group of well-fed and hydrated believers possibly lose to a bunch of gang members who were constantly on the brink of starvation?
As a result, the hundred or so newcomers were quickly subdued.
Fighting always leads to injuries, and once again, Old Mo demonstrated his compassion. Not only did he accept the newcomers back into the group, but he also tended to their wounds.
Gan Lin hadn’t mentioned any of this the night before—he had been too excited to meet the mysterious merchant again and subconsciously didn’t want to admit that their believers had traitors and that a fight had broken out.
But now that he was feeling more relaxed, he ended up revealing everything.
“You guys need to protect yourselves,” Tang Yu’an said, taken aback by the events unfolding in Flame Dragon Fort.
“Mm! We will!”
Before long, the transaction was complete.
A clearing near Flame Dragon Fort.
The ritual of the Church of the Commerce God began once more.
Over a thousand Flame Stones were piled on the ground, radiating intense heat. As the night wind blew past, waves of heat rippled into the air.
Holy Son Gan Lin lay beside them, eyes closed, seemingly “asleep.”
Old Mo led the believers in chanting the doctrines and teachings of the Church of the Commerce God over and over again, finally making their plea:
“Great God of Commerce, please take these Flame Stones and grant us crops that can thrive in this arid and scorching land!”
The believers echoed his words.
At that moment, the skeptical new followers witnessed something impossible—
The thousand-plus Flame Stones, still scorching hot, suddenly vanished into thin air.
And in their place, a small tree, planted in a clay pot, appeared on the charred land!
Holy sh*t!
This couldn’t possibly be some cheap trick—this was a real miracle!
