Small Market

A great river lay right across the path ahead, its surging waves faintly visible.

If the waves could be seen even through a Crude Telescope, one could only imagine their sheer scale!

Yet, there were things moving back and forth on the water—boats, it seemed.

Zhu Jiusi stood stunned; his three years of experience had never prepared him for this!

This was the first time he had ever seen such a thing.

But this road was his, and sooner or later, he had to cross it. The river that blocked his path had to be traversed.

Zhu Jiusi pondered for a long while, glancing at it every so often, but the great river remained.

It was no illusion, nor was it a mirage.

Zhu Jiusi hardened his heart, clamped a Dao Discussion Card in his teeth, and prepared to bolt at any moment. He approached the great river with extreme caution.

The closer he got, the more his heart raced.

He was less than a mile from the river, close enough to see it with the naked eye, yet he still could not hear the sound of rushing water.

Instead, a cacophony of noise rose and fell, just like a vegetable market.

A scent of blood drifted over, but it wasn't the smell of fresh carnage; there were no signs of battle.

Zhu Jiusi continued to walk forward. Finally, as he stepped within ten meters, he could see clearly.

A great river surged out from the mist on the left and flowed toward the mist on the right, cutting across Zhu Jiusi's path.

The river flowed with great force, yet it was deathly silent. Along the banks, small boats laden with fruits, vegetables, meat, and fine wine were being sold in a chaotic scramble.

Seeing Zhu Jiusi approach, the merchants immediately began to shout: "Customer, we have food, clothing, general goods, Dharma Treasures, materials... everything you could possibly need! We have it all! Prices are cheap here!"

They were actually selling goods!

Before Zhu Jiusi had even reached them, a waiter dressed in short, rugged clothes bowed and scurried over.

"Greetings, customer. The Journey Market has been waiting for you for a long time!"

Zhu Jiusi looked left and right. There were dozens of small cargo boats, but he was the only customer. Everyone stared at him with eager eyes, wanting to show off their wares but seeming somewhat hesitant.

"What kind of market is this?" Zhu Jiusi asked, puzzled.

In his previous three-year cycle, he hadn't even heard of such a place, let alone seen one!

The waiter chuckled, "This is the Journey Market, serving the top-ranked players of each district."

The waiter was not human, but a Red-Skinned Fox. It wore human clothes and walked on two legs, but it had a fox's head and a thick tail dragging behind it.

Divine!

An NPC for Path Seekers who chose the Divine Path upon entering Journey Survival!

Zhu Jiusi realized it instantly.

He took a casual glance at a nearby food boat: shredded pork with garlic sauce, sweet and sour pork, salt-water pig head, and shredded pig heart.

Zhu Jiusi: "..."

Although he didn't have any psychological hang-ups, eating pork right now felt a bit... inappropriate?

Zhu Jiusi walked around; everything he wanted was here.

He turned to the Fox Waiter and asked, "How do you sell things here? Do you want money?"

The Fox Waiter smiled obsequiously, "If the customer has gold or silver coins from Journey Survival, we naturally accept them. If you don't, trading with gourds is also fine."

Zhu Jiusi had a sudden epiphany!

No wonder that in his past life, after the novice period, a group of big shots had frantically hoarded empty gourds, not even sparing the Wood Gourd.

So this thing was a hard currency!

"How do you trade? How much can one Wood Gourd get me?" Zhu Jiusi asked.

The Fox Waiter smiled, "That depends. If you're trading for common resources, one Wood Gourd can get you two sets. For other supplies, it depends on the specific item."

Zhu Jiusi: "!!!"

A bunch of bloodsuckers!

In his past life, those guys would trade one set of supplies for one Wood Gourd. That was a tenfold profit! A normal set of supplies only contained five items.

A Wood Gourd could usually open one set of basic supplies, yet the gourd itself was worth two sets. "Buying the casket and returning the pearl" was actually a compliment in this context.

They kept their mouths shut tight! He had spent three years in Journey Survival and never knew the market existed, nor that gourds had such great utility.

Zhu Jiusi gritted his teeth, and the Fox Waiter smiled as he reminded him, "A word of caution, customer: you must not disclose the existence of the market to the outside world. You cannot mention the word 'market' to anyone. This is the law."

No wonder!

Zhu Jiusi understood. He scanned all the merchandise; every item was marked with the wealth value one would gain upon acquiring it.

It was the wealth value for the monthly rankings!

Zhu Jiusi asked suspiciously, "If I collect all the gourds in the entire district and trade them for your goods, wouldn't the wealth value of District 66 skyrocket?"

The fox maintained its professional, humble smile, "That would be the customer's own method. We only do business; we cannot concern ourselves with such things!"

Zhu Jiusi's eyes lit up: "What if I am in the middle of a Dao Discussion with an outsider when you all appear?"

The Fox gave Zhu Jiusi a meaningful look: "That would simply be that Path Seeker's fortuitous encounter. Since it wasn't proactively revealed by the guest, it does not violate the rules."

Zhu Jiusi's pair of pig-like eyes brightened instantly.

He suddenly understood!

In his previous life, after the first merger, the District 66 designation was abolished, and for a very long time afterward, it remained District 33.

Before the merger, Zhu Jiusi had never heard of anyone collecting Gourds or anything else.

That was because on the very day the leaderboard appeared, Filial Respect to Mother had directly killed the person in first place.

That idiot had used Destiny Breaker: Life Hunter to instantly kill the rank-one player, whose life and destiny stats were both less than three times his own! He simply couldn't stand anyone riding above his head.

District 66 had missed out on that massive boost, so it was no wonder they couldn't compete with District 33!

Sure enough, killing that idiot right at the start this time had been a wise move.

Zhu Jiusi opened his Scroll and, right in front of Fox Waiter, sent a message in the chat area.

"@Everyone, those with a Dao Discussion Card, lock onto my location and come here!"

Zhu Jiusi sent it three times in a row, nearly flooding the screen at this point in time.

Orchid Pavilion Scholar: "A fight? I'll be there immediately. @Sword Seven Doesn't Learn Sword, lend me a Dao Discussion Card."

Sword Seven Doesn't Learn Sword: "Fine."

Almost as the screen was being flooded, the mountain forests on both sides of Zhu Jiusi began to change.

Deserts, swamps, woodlands, grasslands—all sorts of terrains appeared.

In an instant, vehicle after vehicle emerged.

The first to appear was a black panther, and atop it sat a woman in white carrying a precious sword, her gaze sharp.

Then came the cursing Orchid Pavilion Scholar.

"I've owed several favors, and I can finally pay one back so I can sleep soundly. Who are we fighting?"

He roared as he emerged, only to see the bustling market ahead.

Orchid Pavilion Scholar: "?"

Having just left the novice period, not many people possessed a Dao Discussion Card. Even those who had them wouldn't necessarily come.

Only eight or nine people had arrived.

White Beard's Fist gazed at the small boats fully loaded with food: "Fellow Daoist Cave Master, how did you manage to create a river? Are we going to rob these merchants?"

He rubbed his palms together, eager for action.

Fox Waiter: "..."

"I advise the guest not to harbor such thoughts; people will die!"

"So, what is this about?" Orchid Pavilion Scholar asked, sitting on his vehicle while wiping his broadsword.

A red glow rose on Fox Waiter's face, his eyes filled with excitement. Fellow Daoist Cave Master was truly sensible; he had only dropped a hint, and yet he had already brought nearly ten people here.

The rules belonged to Journey Survival, but the business was their own; naturally, all the merchants were happy to have business.

He said with a flushed face: "Since you all happened to arrive at this time, you have the right to know."

"This is the Journey Market, opened exclusively for the rank-one players of each district. You can use useless Gourds or gold, silver, and copper coins to purchase various supplies. Since you have arrived, the market is open to you. However, the intelligence of this place must not be leaked to the outside."

Monkey Has Iron Rod, who had just entered, blinked and immediately put on a mournful face: "Then can I choose not to buy?"

The wealth value of the goods here was so high; he was afraid that if he kept buying, he would end up as rank-one next month...

"I'm afraid not!" a voice came from behind, accompanied by the sound of popping bubbles.

The Monkey turned his head to see a fish with dried-out scales on a skateboard, staring longingly at the river ahead.

"Didn't your nest turn into a water vat?" Monkey Has Iron Rod asked in confusion.

Rain Seeker replied listlessly: "Only the vat, no water."

She flicked her tail: "That's not important. Cave Master Boss summoned us here, it's about the district merger, right?"

Retaining the district name after a merger and increasing Gourd production by 10%—it seemed trivial, but it was actually terrifying.

"Look at the top left corner of your Scroll," Rain Seeker said in a hoarse voice.

Monkey Has Iron Rod looked at his own Scroll.

He saw that, at some point, a "District Comprehensive Strength" stat had appeared.

District 66 Path Seeker Zone: 3120301

District 33 Path Seeker Zone: 3490034

So this was the district that was going to merge with District 66? District 66 was lagging behind by a huge margin!