The Season of Harvest

The Season of Harvest

No need to ask—who else could be such a savvy businessman besides that money-grubbing Jiao Tailang?

Seeing Ye Weiming running toward him, Jiao Tailang chuckled. "I wasted nearly ten precious minutes on this island for this deal. Charging you an extra fifty silver isn't too much, is it?"

Ye Weiming had no time to waste on him. He opened the stall window, confirmed that the items and prices were correct, then directly clicked buy all.

One gold and fifty silver vanished in an instant, while a Fine Steel Sword appeared in Ye Weiming's hand—the same trash weapon as before, with twenty extra Attack Power.

But no matter how trashy a sword was, it was still a sword!

For a swordsman, having a sword in hand and having no sword in hand were two entirely different concepts.

Seeing Zang Yue catch up once more, Ye Weiming said nothing and immediately swung his sword, greeting him with a move of Sheep Nibbling Peony.

Meanwhile, the businessman Jiao Tailang had already retreated far away.

In truth, he still had some self-awareness about what he had done. Selling a sword to Ye Weiming had ruined Zang Yue's plans, naturally offending him. At the same time, he had gouged Ye Weiming hard during the transaction, so he certainly did not expect Ye Weiming to be grateful for it.

Once the battle ended, no matter who survived, he probably would not have a good time.

But Jiao Tailang did not care. Pursuing profit was a noble quality that an outstanding merchant ought to possess. Watching the two fight to a standstill, he had no intention of staying behind to scavenge bargains. His role in Eternal Chivalry was a merchant, not a scavenger.

So, he chose to slip away!

Before leaving, however, he did not forget to call out to them. "You two are both experts in the game. If you have any unwanted equipment to sell in the future, come to the Blue Fatty Equipment Shop in Luoyang. White equipment starts at ten silver, blue equipment starts at one gold, and the exact price depends on the item's attributes. My shop has professional appraisers, and I'm sure we can offer you a satisfactory price."

After finishing his advertisement, he did not wait for their reply and dashed toward the docks.

Yet before he could reach them, a sword suddenly flashed out from behind a tree and pierced his throat, catching him off guard with a critical hit!

Then Yin Bukui emerged from behind the tree. Before the other man could react, he struck again and again, turning the unscrupulous merchant into a streak of white light.

On the mountainside, Ye Weiming, still locked in a fierce battle with Zang Yue, could not help shaking his head and sighing inwardly at the sight.

In fact, though Jiao Tailang's price gouging was hateful, without that Fine Steel Sword, Ye Weiming truly would not have found a way to break the deadlock so quickly. So he did not really bear the man much resentment.

As for Yin Bukui's method of saying nothing and simply PKing him, Ye Weiming only wanted to say...

Well done!

The facts proved that Ye Weiming was far from the only expert in the world, and this Zang Yue before him was no less formidable. As soon as they clashed, they traded over thirty moves. They exchanged blows and lost HP several times, yet neither gained the slightest advantage.

Dodging Ye Weiming's sword slash aimed at his throat, Zang Yue finally took the initiative to speak. "With a lousy sword like that, it won't be easy for you to beat me either. How about we call it quits for today?"

Ye Weiming did not pause his attacks in the slightest, answering disdainfully, "Do you really think you can drag me down with you?"

Zang Yue calmly retorted, "Isn't that the case?"

Poor child. Because of his position during the fight, he had not seen Yin Bukui ambush and kill Jiao Tailang, nor had he seen Yin Bukui charge toward them after killing him.

Thus, from behind Zang Yue, Yin Bukui answered the question for Ye Weiming. "Of course not. Do you think I don't exist?"

As he spoke, Yin Bukui thrust out his sword, joining Ye Weiming in a pincer attack on Zang Yue!

So what if their weapons were bad?

They had teammates!

With only Ye Weiming to deal with, Zang Yue had barely been able to fight him evenly. But with Yin Bukui added to the mix, he immediately began to flounder.

Zang Yue knew that he was no match for the two of them together. Worse, his movement technique was inferior to Ye Weiming's, so he could not escape even if he wanted to. Left with no choice, he spoke again. "Gentlemen, killing someone only takes a nod of the head. If I die here, my quest will fail, and my efforts from the past two days will all be wasted. Do you really want to make an irreconcilable enemy of me?"

Ye Weiming paid him no heed. "So you know that, huh? Then what were you thinking when you chased us down earlier?"

As he spoke, Ye Weiming and Yin Bukui not only did not stop, but intensified their assault.

A minute later, Zang Yue's HP was finally ground down to zero. Ye Weiming finished him with a Xi Shi Holding Heart, turning him into white light.

He dropped a longsword, a jade pendant, and... a basket of buns?

Quickly gathering all of Zang Yue's dropped items, Ye Weiming sent several item links to Yin Bukui. He was not trying to keep them all for himself; player drops differed from BOSS drops, as there was no Looting corpse distribution process. The items had to be picked up before their attributes could be viewed.

Green Bamboo Sword (Gold): A treasured sword forged using the Poison Scripture Secret Method of Miao Territory. Attack Power +150, Agility +5, Poison Damage +5.

Hetian Jade Pendant (Blue): A jade pendant made from Hetian jade, capable of nourishing one's vitality. Vitality Limit +100, Internal Energy Limit +50.

Steamed Buns with Meat and Vegetables: Famous meat-and-vegetable buns from Yangzhou City, delicious in flavor. Hunger -20.

"Damn, there's no justice! A disciple from a famous righteous sect like me still has to gnaw on steamed bread all the time, yet that morally bankrupt bastard actually gets to eat buns!?" Of all things, this was what Yin Bukui cared about after seeing the attributes of the three drops?

Yin Bukui did not mention dividing the loot at all, but Ye Weiming could not pretend to be oblivious. He got straight to the point. "The Green Bamboo Sword is currently worth around fifty gold on the market. The Hetian Jade Pendant is only blue equipment, but accessories are rare, so it should be worth around twenty gold. We'll split them equally based on that ratio. Whoever takes the sword pays the difference. Which one do you want?"

Yet upon hearing Ye Weiming's suggestion, Yin Bukui decisively said, "I want the pendant."

Just as expected. Ye Weiming directly sent Yin Bukui a trade request, then placed the Hetian Jade Pendant and fifteen gold on it.

Based on their earlier estimate, the two pieces of equipment were worth seventy gold in total, meaning each person should receive items worth thirty-five gold. Since Ye Weiming was keeping the Green Bamboo Sword, he naturally had to pay the other fifteen gold.

However, after glancing at the trade window, Yin Bukui directly canceled the trade. "The game has only just started. I imagine fifteen gold is probably your entire fortune, even for an expert like Brother Ye. I don't want your money. Just give me that basket of buns, and promise to help me once if I run into trouble while doing quests in the future."

Ye Weiming shook his head. "We're friends now. Just call for me whenever you need help, and your brother here won't refuse. Brothers settle accounts clearly. You have to take this money."

Under Ye Weiming's firm and righteous insistence, Yin Bukui could only accept the jade pendant and gold, along with the basket of buns he cared so much about. Then, without hesitation, he pulled one out and began devouring it. While eating, he mumbled, "Ever since entering the game, I've been too reluctant to spend money. I haven't tasted meat for days. Today, I finally get to eat something with filling. It wasn't easy!"

"Brother Ye, want two?"

Watching him focus solely on stuffing his face, Ye Weiming revealed a gentle smile and said sincerely, "Thank you."

"What are you thanking me for?"

Ye Weiming only smiled without answering. He pointed at the spot where Jiao Tailang had been killed and said, "You know, as a constable, there are some things that aren't convenient for me to do."

"You hypocrite!"

After laughing and cursing, Yin Bukui immediately clasped his fists in farewell and boarded a boat back to Wudang Mountain to turn in his quest.

As for Ye Weiming, he turned around and looked over the corpses scattered across the mountainside, excitement gleaming in his eyes.

It was another season of harvest!