Chapter 304
In the end, Lan Yunqing did not agree to stay for October. His trip to the Desolate City Haven was never meant to be long—he planned to return in three days.
Although Desolate City Haven had opened his eyes in many ways, his main purpose this time was to explore the future development path for Lanhu Town.
The recent crisis had been a wake-up call, and everything he had seen since joining the Church of the Merchant God made him believe this was an opportunity they couldn’t afford to miss.
The times had changed, and Lanhu Town could no longer remain closed and hostile to outsiders.
When he brought up this idea, Tang Yu’an naturally praised it and invited him to continue touring Desolate City Haven.
After seeing more of what the settlement had to offer, Lan Yunqing couldn’t help but speak up.
“Actually, I have another purpose for coming this time…” he said. “I wonder if the settlement has any extra enchanted furniture?”
This was part of a task Lan Yunqing had received.
Only by equipping enough enchanted furniture could he upgrade the Lanhu Grocery Store, expand the overnight accommodation list, and ensure that all Lanhu residents were protected by the barrier.
That included not just the townspeople, but also the guards. Even the entire Lanhu Forest could then be fully covered, eliminating the need for night patrols.
However, the task required multiple pieces of enchanted furniture, and so far, he had only obtained one, as a reward for completing a performance milestone.
The next milestone was still far off.
So Lan Yunqing thought, if the settlement had any extras, he would be willing to buy them. After all, things in the wasteland could change at any moment, and he hoped to protect Lanhu Town as soon as possible.
“If there are any extras, could you sell them to Lanhu Town?”
Upon hearing this, Tang Yu’an looked over at Zhou Qi.
Zhou Qi nodded. “We can.”
They had been too busy lately, and since Lanhu Town hadn’t had any urgent problems, they hadn’t pushed forward with the store upgrade.
Originally, they planned to release tasks and give enchanted furniture to Lan Yunqing as rewards. But now that he had come to them seeking a trade, there was no reason to refuse.
“How do you want to trade?” Zhou Qi asked.
Lan Yunqing replied, “I originally intended to trade with Lanhu Leaves, but…”
He glanced at the lush Lanhu Forest within the settlement. “I’m guessing you don’t need them much?”
“No, no—there’s no such thing as too much!” Tang Yu’an said quickly.
Seeing Lan Yunqing’s puzzled look, he explained, “Lanhu Leaves are valuable—they can be exchanged for Peace Coins.”
“Speaking of which, I also wanted to ask—does the settlement have extra Peace Coins to sell? Or could you tell me how to get them?”
Lanhu Town had over ten thousand residents. With the growing popularity of Peace Coins, people had come to appreciate their convenience, and demand had risen sharply.
Many were asking Lan Yunqing to get more, so he had to find a way to increase their supply.
In response to his inquiry, Tang Yu’an already had a prepared answer.
“Peace Coins can only be exchanged by higher-level employees. Your rank might not be high enough yet,” Tang Yu’an said.
“I see.”
Lan Yunqing looked a bit disappointed. “Looks like I still need to work harder.”
“I can give you another one million Peace Coins,” Tang Yu’an offered. “Just have someone bring the Lanhu Leaves to Grandpa Li—they can exchange them anytime.”
Since Peace Coins were still in their early rollout phase, demand was high, so issuing more wasn’t a problem.
And since Peace Coins had actual value—employees could trade them for profit points, and points could be used to redeem supplies—there was no immediate risk of inflation from over-issuance.
“That’s great news.”
Lan Yunqing breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. “Thank you both very much.”
Tang Yu’an was momentarily dazed, and the Lanhu tree beside them began to rustle its leaves.
Carried on Zhou Qi’s back, Kang Kang quickly translated: “October says, Brother Yun is smiling—you look nice!”
It seemed October really liked the Lanhu Lord! A true Mother Tree’s chosen?
After that, Lan Yunqing went to Building 1 to register, while Tang Yu’an and Zhou Qi returned to Room 901.
“Brother Qi, do you think… we should open the teleportation array to Lanhu Town?”
Currently, the road connecting Desolate City Garden to Lanhu Town was still under construction and wouldn’t be finished for months.
It was still too troublesome—and risky—for Lanhu residents to travel back and forth.
Tang Yu’an had noticed that several people who came with Lan Yunqing were visibly injured. Though not seriously, those injuries could have been avoided.
If anything happened to them on the return trip, Tang Yu’an knew he’d feel terrible.
“Grandpa also said he really values the talent from Lanhu Town and hopes we can help them stay.”
With the rapid expansion of the settlement, the talent shortage was becoming more and more pressing. Although they were working on training people, education takes time—just literacy and math alone could take ages.
Zhou Qi thought for a moment and said, “We can, but only for a few people at first.”
They couldn’t be sure what kind of impact revealing the teleportation array would have—or what kind of trouble it might attract.
The settlement was still in a critical phase of development, and it would be best to avoid any unnecessary risks.
Besides, if teleportation became fully available, their hard-earned public transportation system might become obsolete overnight.
Until the transit infrastructure was complete, widespread teleportation wouldn’t be wise.
On the other side, Lan Yunqing and his delegation moved into the dormitory Old Li had arranged for them.
This new dorm building was similar to Building 1—apartment-style housing with private suites that could be shared. Naturally, the rent was higher than for communal housing.
Since occupancy was still low, Lan Yunqing’s group was able to take over an entire floor.
Looking at the tall building and the suite’s various unfamiliar designs and furniture, everyone’s eyes lit up with amazement.
Lan Jiansen then discussed staying behind in Desolate City Garden to study with Lan Yunqing.
“I think Old Li had a point. If we only scratch the surface and bring back some half-baked ideas, it might do more harm than good to Lanhu Town.”
Lan Yunqing couldn’t help but ponder this as well.
After a long pause, he said, “Then go ahead and tally how many people want to stay and study, and how many want to return with me.”
As he had told October and Tang Yu’an—no matter how amazing the settlement was, he wasn’t planning to stay long.
“They… all want to stay.”
Most of the people who had come with the delegation were young. Only the young had the spirit of adventure and exploration needed to venture out like this.
They had been utterly captivated by Desolate City Haven and couldn’t bear to leave.
Lan Yunqing had suspected as much. He didn’t say much, just nodded. “Then you all stay. I’ll return alone.”
Lan Jianlin quickly said, “Let us escort you back first. Once you’re safely in Lanhu Town, we’ll come back.”
Lan Yunqing frowned.
All this back-and-forth would only increase the risk. On the journey here, they had been attacked by prairie falcons.
Although his abilities were weakened outside Lanhu Forest, he was still the strongest fighter in the group.
Without him, it was uncertain whether they would have made it to Desolate City Garden without casualties.
To be honest, Lan Yunqing didn’t feel comfortable with them making a return trip alone.
Just as Lan Jianlin was about to speak again, a system notification suddenly popped up.
[Congratulations! Elite Mission “Activate Teleportation Array” triggered!]
[Description: Your performance and level have met the requirements, and you’re currently at a branch store where a teleportation array has been activated. You may now establish a two-way teleportation channel with this branch.]
[Mission Objective: Reach an agreement with the manager of “Peace Grocery Store Branch No. 1” and both type ‘1’ in the shop channel message board.]
[Reward: Teleportation Array Activated]
Lan Yunqing was stunned.
Teleportation Array? What does that mean?
Lan Yunqing recalled the legendary stories he had read in books—could such a mystical formation really exist in this world?
The power of the God of Commerce… was truly unfathomable!
For some reason, Lan Yunqing suddenly thought of the basement in the Lanhu Grocery Store—the room he had never been able to enter. Could the secret hidden there be related to this teleportation array?
He frowned in thought.
But he didn’t lose his composure. As a lord, he naturally had to prioritize the interests of Lanhu Town above all else.
The task mentioned a “two-way channel.”
In other words, once the teleportation array was activated, people from Desolate City Haven could freely enter Lanhu Town as well?
Just like Tang Yu’an and Zhou Qi had speculated, Lan Yunqing’s first reaction was resistance.
After all, Lanhu Town had been isolated for decades. Most of its residents were very conservative. Opening their territory to outsiders like this would surely be met with opposition.
Though they had submitted to the Church of the God of Commerce, Desolate City Haven was just a branch store—it couldn’t represent the whole Church.
Maybe… this task should be abandoned?
While he was still hesitating, Old Li came to find him and asked for a private conversation.
“You got the task, right?” Old Li asked.
“Teleportation array?” Lan Yunqing tested.
Old Li nodded. “I’m the branch manager of Store No. 1. I received the task as well, so I came to talk it through with you.”
“I thought the branch manager would be Little Tang or Little Zhou.”
Old Li chuckled and shook his head, not dwelling on the topic. He continued, “What do you think about the teleportation array?”
“If it’s activated, you won’t have to travel back manually anymore. You could go between Lanhu Town and Desolate City Haven instantly.”
Lan Yunqing fell silent.
Seeing his expression, Old Li could guess what he was worried about.
“You’re concerned that the Haven might suddenly send troops through in large numbers, right?” he said. “You don’t need to worry about that.”
“Oh? Why not?”
“Once the teleportation array is opened, you will have the authority to manage the access list. Only people on that list can teleport from Desolate City Haven to Lanhu Town.”
Lan Yunqing gave Old Li a long look. It seemed he had already set up teleportation with other branch stores.
Then again, since this was Store No. 1, it made sense.
“I’ll be the only one managing the teleport list for Store No. 5?” he confirmed.
“No—also the Envoys,” Old Li replied. “We can only manage the people we’ve added ourselves. Anyone added by the Envoys is invisible to us.”
“I see.”
Lan Yunqing nodded. If it was the Envoys, he was willing to comply. Since they had already benefited from the Church of the God of Commerce, it was something they had mentally prepared themselves for—serving when called upon.
After Old Li’s explanation, Lan Yunqing understood the teleportation system’s function and limitations, and he was finally persuaded.
If the teleportation array could be opened, then…
“Can Master Kang Kang use the teleportation array to visit Lanhu Town as well?” Lan Yunqing asked.
“Of course,” Old Li nodded. “But he’ll need someone to accompany him.”
“No problem. Then it’s settled!”
Lan Yunqing couldn’t help thinking: if the Mother Tree found out about this, she would probably be very pleased. And he… he could visit October more often in his spare time, couldn’t he?
So after discussing the initial access list, the two of them posted the number “1” on the message board, completing the task.
On the other side, Tang Yu’an saw the message and immediately granted Lan Yunqing access to Store No. 5’s teleportation array.
With that, the Lanhu Town talent recruitment plan could finally begin!
