Chapter 36: Chapter 31 Make a Friend
“Glad she hasn’t been nagging about marriage or anything…”
Tao Yu, relying on his current physique, took a good cold shower, scrubbed himself clean, then lay on his wooden bed, watching the gradually dimming night sky through the cardboard window, and lit the Lamp of Will by his bed.
He pricked his fingertip with a needle and dropped two drops of blood into the lamp oil.
Although it was only a dim glow the size of a soybean, it gave the room a warm and cozy feeling.
“Speaking of which, since I have ‘Mental Immunity,’ I guess I don’t actually need to light it at night, do I?”
Tao Yu pondered at the bottom of his heart but did not act out of the ordinary.
This kind of low-level Lamp of Will only had a certain protective effect in the city area, guarding against the invisible demons that emerged from the grey fog. It is said that some powerful Lamps of Will, ignited by the Flame of Civilization, could lead people through the grey fog to other cities.
However, due to the danger of the grey fog, this kind of connection had become less and less frequent. Tao Yu remembered seeing a few dust-covered visiting caravans arriving, bringing with them specialty Yuan Force items from other city gathering places…
Having no previous experience, Tao Yu hadn’t tried venturing out at night and quietly passed his first night back home.
Compared to the Abyss where he had to sleep with one eye open, home, despite also being in terrible condition, unexpectedly made Tao Yu feel secure.
Even though the sounds of automatic cannons from other areas occasionally broke the night, they somehow helped Tao Yu fall asleep and recover his tense mind.
Indeed, humans are social animals after all…
Too bad his talent meant he’d probably have to act alone most of the time…
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Early the next morning, Tao Yu went out.
Tao Long wanted to follow him, but Tao Yu persuaded him to stay at home.
The nearest fortress city to Tao Yu’s home was not far, less than a kilometer away.
The produce harvested from the farm was also transported to this fortress city for processing.
There were over a dozen such fortress cities for Outsiders.
Although Tao Yu had risen early, by the time he arrived at the city’s entrance, a queue had already formed. It seemed they were all Outsiders going to work or set up stalls in the city, with many carrying various goods on shoulder poles.
The fortress city itself was quite rudimentary, with discarded oil drums and wire netting on wooden frames at the entrance, and city guards with various weapons conducting checks.
The perimeter of the city was piecemeal, with wood planks, wire netting, and oil drums cobbling together a defensive barrier for the area.
Beyond that were tall stands fitted with automatic cannons to fend off fog demons.
With direct coverage by crossfire, these automatic cannons could cover a larger area with fewer units, ensuring the safety of the fortress.
This was the most stable environment in the Outsider area, second only to the Public Security Team’s family quarters. Many Outsiders’ lifelong goals might be to move into a fortress, but only a few could achieve it.
“The fortress has a radio station, a quest hall, and partnership quests can also be accepted here. Plus, there’s a Skill dojo in Hound Fortress City recommended by Uncle Hu…”
Tao Yu’s main goal this time was to sell stuff, and once he had starting capital, he planned to begin using his free learning privilege.
Since it was free to learn two Skills, naturally, he had to pick the expensive ones!
Unfortunately, there were no Breathing Techniques available in the Outsiders’ area besides the Basic Breathing Technique. Only a few people had this or similar abilities that could enhance human potential, and they were not shared.
“Even if someone were willing to teach it for a price, the cost would probably not be worth another Deification of my Breathing Technique.”
If he could stumble upon such a thing for free, Tao Yu would certainly take it, but with his talent as a safety net, he was not so desperate.
Learning the Skills he could learn and then using the first, relatively cheap opportunity to -Deify them— that was the most cost-effective choice…
While Tao Yu was mulling over these thoughts, it was his turn in line. As soon as he showed his ‘Partnership’ certificate for a brief moment, he was quickly let in without any trouble or questioning.
Even as just a ‘Junior Partner,’ one must have at least an LV5 Basic Skill to back that up.
In the Outsiders’ area, that was already considered a respectable status.
Moreover, seeing that Tao Yu looked so young, nobody was going to cause him unnecessary trouble.
Although the oil drums and wire netting on the outside of Hound Fortress City seemed pretty crude, the interior was much cleaner than the rest of the Outsiders’ area. At least, you wouldn’t see anything that needed to be pixelated on the road, like in OLE.
Inside, the buildings were tightly packed, resembling a refugee camp with makeshift structures forming rows, revealing narrow streets and alleys. Since there were no vehicles, it was still possible to navigate normally, though complex layouts made this not-so-expansive fortress seem like a maze, and it was common for first-timers to get lost.
Tao Yu had lived in the area for eighteen years, and this was the city closest to his home, so he was fairly familiar with it.
When selling, he didn’t choose to set up a stall or shop around for prices, instead he headed straight for the ‘Starshine Recycle Station,’ which nominally belonged to the company.
This saved a lot of trouble and conserved energy since there weren’t many in the Outsiders’ area who could fork out so much cash all at once for Skills.
Compared to the neighboring camp, this ‘Starshine Recycle Station’ still decently passed as a normal three-story wooden building. Since Tao Yu arrived early, it seemed they had just opened— there weren’t many customers around.
After all, most Outsiders were penny-pinchers who would try to sell for more elsewhere rather than come here.
“Yo, is that a customer I see? What can I do for you?”
A man in his thirties, looking much cleaner and more cheerful than the average Outsider, greeted Tao Yu with a chuckle when he saw him coming in.
Judging by the slightly more refined clothes compared to the average Outsider, this must be the manager, probably out early for a breath of fresh air.
Compared to those company employees in ‘The Black House,’ this manager seemed more like a businessman, pleasant and looking to make a profit.
“I have a set of Skills to sell, from the new Development Zone, it’s a set with two Skills.”
Tao Yu got straight to the point, not intending to exchange pleasantries with the other party.
No matter how pleasant their smiles or how good their attitudes, they were still aiming to make money from him.
“A complete set of skills? I’m in luck today, what a great start to the day.”
The store manager seemed somewhat surprised. It was rare for the Outer City to get a complete set of skills; they usually only received scattered Yuan Force items and had to rely on sorting and combining them themselves.
What was most unexpected was that the other party mentioned they came from the Development Zone?
This meant the skills could very well be different from the commonly seen ones. Perhaps the skills themselves were ordinary, but they likely offered the possibility of stacking with what an untrained person already had, making their value significantly higher than normal.
Since the other party explicitly pointed this out, the manager couldn’t try to deceive him on that front, so he gestured for Tao Yu to follow him.
“Please, come with me to the private room, Ah Hua, bring some tea.”
The store manager led the way, instructing the staff to serve tea.
The employee referred to as Ah Hua had the traditional look of an Outsider, and although she was female, she seemed rather robust, with the kind of presence you might expect from a ‘I’m a farmer’ character in a kung fu setting.
It was evident that working here afforded one decent meals.
She was quick on her feet, bringing over the tea just as Tao Yu sat down.
However, neither Tao Yu nor the manager drank the tea immediately, with the manager initiating the conversation.
“It was only yesterday that the first batch returned, and you’ve already come directly here today. You must be aware that very few in the Outer City can afford such skills, and even if they bite the bullet to purchase them, they can’t offer a high price.”
“Of course, I wouldn’t have come to you otherwise. Your business is directly owned by a company, with access to Inner City channels. Five thousand units of Yuan Force and you can flip it in the Inner City for several thousand more.”
Tao Yu knew the other side wanted to haggle, so he straightforwardly threw out a relatively high offer to shut down any attempts at driving the price down.
He had discussed with Uncle Hu before, and because it came from the new Development Zone, those two skills, “Lurking – Python” and “Burst – Python,” would likely interest some people with corresponding talents in the Inner City.
To those with the resources and foundation of the Inner City, if someone truly suitable and interested came along, they might be able to sell for as much as ten thousand.
That being said, if he tried to sell the skills in the Outer City, he could get at most three thousand units of Yuan Force because the vast majority of Outsiders were not like the Inner City inhabitants, who had started to ‘gild the lily’.
For Outsiders, the skills from the Development Zone were no different from ordinary skills found near their own settlements.
And Tao Yu himself lacked the channels to sell in the Inner City, and even Uncle Hu didn’t have them.
Therefore, the markup was something Starshine Company had to earn. Five thousand was an inflated price, but Tao Yu’s bottom line was three thousand five hundred.
“Would it be possible for me to appraise the skill first?”
The manager pondered for a moment and showed no reaction to Tao Yu’s asking price.
“That’s possible, I have a few extra pieces.”
Tao Yu took a Serpent Fang from his backpack and handed it over.
“Haha, there’s no need to absorb it. In our line of work, we must at least master some crafts.”
The manager chuckled, wrapping the Serpent Fang with a cloth before placing it on the table. He then moved his finger over the surface of the fang, following its textures.
After a short while, he nodded and said,
“Indeed, there are two skills, but both are rather common. One should be related to lurking, and the other boosts muscle explosiveness, possibly with side effects.”
Being able to roughly discern the content just from a single Serpent Fang, without absorption, made Tao Yu feel somewhat surprised.
It was clear that one could only enjoy the company’s support if they were not ordinary.
Tao Yu himself would have had to absorb a fang to make a judgment.
“How about this? Five thousand, we’ll take it. The price is a bit high, but let’s consider it making a new friend.”
After a moment of contemplation, the manager readily agreed to Tao Yu’s price.
It even made Tao Yu briefly worry that he had sold it for too little!
Just by looking at the company’s carnivorous pricing, the disparity between their purchase and sale prices was glaring—it was a tremendous markup!
This time, after consulting with Uncle Hu, Tao Yu felt that if they could sell the skills for more than the usual rate, it would be satisfactory. It would save him the time of setting up a stall and would net him a little extra.
Typically, fees for learning a simple skill at a martial arts hall ranged from eight hundred to one thousand, and two to three thousand for more complex ones.
Learning via direct absorption of a Yuan Force item was undoubtedly faster, but it also came with concerns over contamination. Hence, ordinary skills were priced about fifty percent higher.
These two skills couldn’t be counted as excellent. A combined price of three thousand would be about right, with an extra five hundred to a thousand as a premium for being from a new settlement.
But Tao Yu’s initial ‘sky-high’ price was promptly accepted by the manager, catching him off guard.
He even struggled to maintain his composure.
“Do you think I’ve been too agreeable, young man?”
The manager glanced at Tao Yu with a smile,
“Actually, just as I said earlier, it’s about making a friend. There must be no shortage of great items from the Development Zone, and they’re scarce commodities for a short while. I hope you’ll remember to come to me first the next time you come across something good.”
Returning from his first visit to the Development Zone with a complete set of skills, especially as an Outsider, was worth his investment, no matter the reason!
Be it talent, mental fortitude, or just pure luck, he did not mind offering a good deal.
After all, the company could indeed make several thousand by flipping it in the Inner City. Earning a thousand less would still benefit the company, and it might be worth trading for future performance…