C13 Let's Listen to the Story

Lee Yu was genuinely intrigued by the prospect of visitors from beyond the village, seeing it as a prime opportunity to gather more intelligence about the world.

What excited him most was the possibility that the retail merchant might carry items beneficial for cultivating the Divine Dao. Naturally, he was determined to acquire such treasures.

The two days flew by.

In that time, while Lee Yu was back on Blue Star, he made a point to verify his finances at the auction house. A hefty sum of fourteen million yuan had been deposited into his bank account.

He didn't bother with the change; money was hardly an issue for him.

Several ginseng roots consigned to the auction house remained unsold. The blue-robed elder had wisely proposed selling them separately to avoid flooding the market and driving down prices.

Lee Yu saw the sense in this and concurred. There was no point in fighting with money, especially when it could have doubled his balance.

But Lee Yu wasn't idle. He borrowed Mu Yinhua's weapon and stealthily returned to Blue Star to test it against various commercially available knives.

Each one shattered against Mu Yinhua's unscathed weapon, leaving Lee Yu feeling thwarted.

His scheme to arbitrage weapons between the two worlds was a bust. And as for firearms, Lee Yu lacked both the audacity and the courage to pursue that avenue. After several unsuccessful attempts, he pragmatically opted to purchase a batch of sugar and salt instead.

After all, what's commonplace on Blue Star could be considered premium currency in the Otherworld.

"The morning hours are the rudder of the day!"

Lee Yu silenced his fourth alarm clock and stretched lazily.

Today was the day the retail merchant was due to arrive. He grabbed his breakfast, initially planning to go for a morning jog, but then it struck him that a trip to the Otherworld could be just as invigorating. So, breakfast in hand, he crossed over.

"Up with the dawn, I see?" Mu Yinhua expressed surprise as Lee Yu swung open the wooden door.

"The early bird catches the worm, right?" Lee Yu shot Mu Yinhua a knowing look and strode off towards the square with a confident air.

Mu Yinhua bit her lip, watching his retreating figure with a touch of wistfulness. How could someone like him have the gall to say that?

It was her first time catching Lee Yu up and about outside in the early morning! Once they reached the square, a group of young lads quickly gathered, eyes fixed on Lee Yu and the bag he held, filled with ice candies no bigger than fingernails.

Lee Yu had recently adopted this method to curry favor with the villagers: handing out the ice candies he'd brought with him, a tangible token of his presence.

As Lee Yu placed an ice candy into each outstretched hand, he could almost visualize a "+1" popping up above the heads of these indigenous folks.

Soon, the bag was nearly empty. Lee Yu peered inside, then passed the last few candies to a boy who had just savored one and was still looking on hopefully.

The simplicity of these Otherworld natives was a blessing; each person only took their share, with no queue-jumping or dishonest claims of not having received any.

"Ergou, these are all yours," Lee Yu said, handing over the bag.

"Thanks, Yu!" Ergou exclaimed, delightedly grabbing the remaining candies and crunching them down with relish.

Lee Yu watched, unsure what to say. The concept of 'cavities' was alien to the inhabitants of this world, so they had no fear of tooth decay, which was perhaps the most important thing.

Despite the haphazard nature of his name, Ergou's stature was anything but. A year younger than Lee Yu, he towered over him by a head and was thrice as broad. His muscular frame paired with a youthful face made his calls of "Yu" feel overwhelmingly imposing to Lee Yu.

Before long, a boy of about seven or eight came running, shouting at the top of his lungs, "The retail merchant is here! The retail merchant is here!"

"Already?" Lee Yu muttered, his attention snatched away. In the next moment, Ergou had grabbed him by the arm, and they were bolting towards the village entrance.

"Take it easy, you're going to rip my arm off!" Lee Yu protested.

Thankfully, the square wasn't far from the village entrance, and Lee Yu's human-powered cart ride came to a swift conclusion.

"Wow, is that for real?" Lee Yu gasped in amazement. Was he seeing things right?

Lee Yu had always pictured retail merchants as a pair or a small group, maybe five or six at most, trudging through various villages, engaged in backbreaking labor with hefty bundles slung over their shoulders, arriving in a village cloaked in the dust of the road.

Yet what stood before him now was a caravan of over ten massive beasts laden with goods, making their way into the village, followed by a contingent of about twenty individuals clad in thick iron armor, all astride horse-like creatures armored with scales.

Lee Yu couldn't help but smirk, "Does this look anything like a retail merchant?"

Each beast was enormous, somewhat resembling elephants, but instead of long trunks, they were covered in short fur.

The armored riders on the scaled horses glistened with weapons that caught the fierce sunlight. If not for their relaxed demeanor and the mismatched armor styles, they could have passed for ancient warriors.

Elder Mu had quietly joined the scene, greeting a portly middle-aged man who emerged from atop one of the beasts. After a brief exchange, he ushered the scaled horse riders toward the same hall where Lee Yu had dined previously.

Noticing five or six individuals vigilantly guarding the beasts, Lee Yu nudged Ergou and asked with a hint of curiosity, "I thought they were retail merchants? Why are they so heavily armed?"

"Many dangerous beasts roam the mountains, and the paths aren't always safe," Ergou replied, his gaze fixed on the merchants, admiringly whispering, "That armor is so cool. I'd look amazing in it."

Lee Yu nodded, his understanding of the outside world expanding.

"And it's not just the beasts that aren't always safe."

Mu Yinhua's voice reached his ears, prompting a curious glance from Lee Yu, "What do you mean?"

"There are plenty of bandits in the mountains, too, and incidents of murder and robbery are common," Mu Yinhua explained, her elegant brows knitting together as she noticed a long-haired middle-aged man among the guards whose stare unsettled her.

Sensing her awareness, the man averted his gaze and ceased his scrutiny.

"Many retail merchants used to travel alone in the early years, but after frequent robberies, they started banding together," Mu Yinhua elaborated.

She sensed that Lee Yu, being a "scion of a prominent family," was likely unfamiliar with these matters. So, when she noticed his curiosity, she took the time to share what she knew in detail.

"Strength in numbers, right? Getting picked off when you're alone is common everywhere—who doesn't know to go after the low-hanging fruit?" Lee Yu wasn't surprised by this; instead, his attention was fixed on the restless beasts.

Whenever any of the beasts attempted to rise, the guards would mercilessly whip them. The pained whimpers of the creatures were audible to Lee Yu even from a distance.

"This is just barbaric," Lee Yu muttered, feeling a shiver of disgust. He turned and inquired, "Are Elder Mu and the retail merchant dining in the main house? May I join them?"

Where else could one gather intelligence more easily than at the dinner table? With each bite of food and sip of wine, people would naturally spill stories from their ancestors down to their descendants.

Once Mu Yinhua gave her nod of approval, Lee Yu eagerly took her by the arm and headed over.

"Come on, let's go hear some tales."