Rule Rewards

The man had opened a Silver Gourd before. It was something he'd been dreaming about.

Heart Without Darkness wanted to click on Master of Cloud Stack Cave's avatar, but shook his head.

He couldn't make it too obvious!

"@Orchid Pavilion Scholar: You've opened several steamed buns, right? Lend them to your hungry, exhausted friends first, so they'll have the strength to keep going."

"@Monkey Has Iron Rod, I remember you opened three beginner healing pills. Spare one for Sparrow first, so he can heal his injury."

"@Master of Cloud Stack Cave, reveal what you got from your Silver Gourd. If it can save everyone's life, we'll all owe you a favor!"

He made his arrangements one by one. Plenty of people had shown off what they'd gotten that day, and he'd somehow remembered every last thing.

Most of those he called out said nothing. Aside from basic supplies, what wasn't a matter of life and death right now?

What if they gave something away today and needed it themselves tomorrow?

Still, some honest people really did start trading.

Heart Without Darkness: "@Orchid Pavilion Scholar, you opened a few bottles of water too, right? Share those as well!"

Orchid Pavilion Scholar: "Dumbass!"

Heart Without Darkness: "? I'm not asking you to give them away for nothing. You'd be saving someone's life!"

Orchid Pavilion Scholar: "Dumbass! The Scroll warned us ages ago that failing the mission would bring down a Heavenly Tribulation. Even a carp can leap its way to the finish line, and you people didn't hurry. Now you're panicking and trying to mooch off everyone else? You deserve to die!"

Heart Without Darkness: "We all came here together, and we're all trying to survive together. We should be helping each other!"

Funny how people always called for what they lacked. A lack of decency called for a scholar.

He ignored Orchid Pavilion Scholar and tagged Zhu Jiusi instead.

Master of Cloud Stack Cave had already blocked him, so he had even less reason to worry about offending him.

"@Master of Cloud Stack Cave, don't hoard your supplies now. Share anything that could save a life. I'll owe you a favor, and I'll repay you someday!"

Zhu Jiusi: "?"

Master of Cloud Stack Cave: A video of lightning and thunder.

Unlike the others who hadn't completed their missions, Zhu Jiusi had doubled back. The Heavenly Tribulation he faced looked much more ferocious than theirs, as if it would strike him dead at any moment.

Master of Cloud Stack Cave: "You want to share my Heavenly Tribulation? I've got no objections!"

"P.S. The supplies from Gourd openings come in groups of five. @Heart Without Darkness, you don't have five pieces of metal or stone. Did you upgrade your vehicle? Share how you did it so we can all get through this together!"

What a self-righteous hypocrite!

He wasn't stupid, just plain rotten! He hid his own supplies while trying to stand on the moral high ground and make everyone else share theirs.

Except for special items, ordinary supplies came in groups of five. He'd only shown two pieces of stone and one piece of metal. Wasn't that just because he was afraid people would ask him for the rest?!

On the narrow path, Heart Without Darkness was directing and coordinating everyone with great flair. When he saw Zhu Jiusi's message, his face slowly stiffened.

...Groups of five?

Before he could say anything, someone in the chat had already spoken up.

"Darkness, you've already upgraded your vehicle? Share how you did it! I've got a carrying pole and can barely move. I'd be happy even if I could upgrade to a wheelbarrow!"

Journey Survival was absurdly unfair. Some people had ox carts, some rode donkeys, and some even had two horses and a carriage. Yet he'd been stuck with nothing but a carrying pole!

He wasn't the only one. As soon as Zhu Jiusi spoke, the entire chat filled with messages.

"Darkness, save us!"

"Please share!"

"Let's help each other and survive together!"

The words he'd spoken from the moral high ground turned around and came rushing back at him.

Only after a long while did Heart Without Darkness reply: "@Master of Cloud Stack Cave, don't make things up! Who said all supplies from Gourds come in groups of five? Haven't you seen that plenty of people posted quantities that weren't five?"

"@Monkey Has Iron Rod, @Rain Seeker, weren't your pills and talismans not in groups of five? Explain that."

Monkey Has Iron Rod: "They were five. I used two myself, so only three were left to post."

Rain Seeker: "Mine were five too. I used one of the protective talismans, so I posted fewer. Otherwise, how would the fish have a tail and a skateboard?"

The chat room fell silent for a moment. Then someone spoke up.

Orchid Pavilion Scholar: "You lying piece of shit! You urged everyone else to share their resources while hoarding your own. You won't even show your basic materials."

Who was really a fool these days? In an instant, everyone understood what was going on.

In the blink of an eye, the chat was filled with curses.

On the narrow, rocky path, Heart Without Darkness stared at the Scroll without saying a word, grinding his teeth so hard they clacked.

He looked at the screen full of insults and gave a few cold snorts. A bunch of idiots! That guy had opened a Silver Gourd right at the start. Everyone else had probably fallen far behind. If they couldn't catch up, why not drag him down instead? They deserved to fail, deserved to die!

Orchid Pavilion Scholar: "You little brat, I called you out and now you've gone quiet? If you can't talk, you can still fart, can't you? Open your mouth!"

Heart Without Darkness put the Scroll away. Out of sight, out of mind.

Snorting coldly, he opened a Bronze Gourd. It was the reward for being the first to finish today's distance.

But why hadn't there been a region-wide announcement?

He opened the Gourd, then jumped up and cursed. "Why is it only basic supplies?"

There were more than in the Wood Gourd: the Wood Gourd had ×5 basic supplies, and the Bronze Gourd had ×25.

But what good was that?!

That Silver Gourd was definitely special. Even the lightning around Master of Cloud Stack Cave was different. It had to be connected to his Gourd!

Once Zhu Jiusi had drawn the fire away, he put the Scroll away and bolted.

Lightning flashed and thunder rumbled overhead, bolts striking down on either side of him.

The mileage warnings most people got came with ordinary lightning. Zhu Jiusi had gone against the direction of travel, so his warnings came with black lightning. It was like divine punishment, with bolts raining down.

He ran the full fifty li, but the lightning still hung over his head, as if it could strike at any moment.

Now that was more like it!

Journey Survival forbade traveling backward. Any distance retraced had to be covered ten times over. Aside from the original three rules of Journey Survival, this was the most important one.

And after they'd figured it out, it had also earned them the richest reward.

Crack!

Mountain Boar charged through the thunderstorm beneath a bolt of lightning.

As long as the time was still running, the lightning wouldn't actually strike Path Seekers. It only urged them on and warned them.

He charged forward, and the dark clouds scattered in an instant.

Zhu Jiusi panted heavily and collapsed by the roadside, his whole body trembling.

He'd given everything he had to those twenty li.

His body was burning hot, yet he wasn't sweating. It felt as if a furnace had been lit inside him.

He really wanted to roll around in a mud pit.

It was a pig's instinct.

But he didn't have time to indulge it. After a few breaths, he immediately unrolled the Scroll.

The number of people on the Scroll had suddenly dropped to 9,823.

At the instant the sun had set just moments ago, everyone who hadn't covered today's distance had already died beneath the Heavenly Tribulation.

Messages kept scrolling up through the chat hall.

The earlier argument had vanished. Everyone was terrified by the sudden drop in numbers.

Zhu Jiusi's thoughts stirred, and he posted a message in the chat hall.

Master of Cloud Stack Cave: "Don't double back! Don't double back! Any distance you retrace has to be covered ten times over. Otherwise, the Heavenly Tribulation grows twice as powerful! Black lightning is divine punishment. It's a penalty!"

This rule was his now!