HPDBC Chapter 291 Principles? Gold coins are the principle!
Chapter 291 Principles? Gold coins are the principle!
The study in the city lord's mansion.
Mengde laid a yellowed sheepskin map flat on the large rosewood desk.
He pointed to a large area on the northwest side of the map that was covered in black ink.
"This is Hidden Star City." Meng De's expression turned serious.
"Based on the energy fluctuations, that ancient entity has awakened deep within the snow-capped mountains outside Hidden Star City."
"Its power is corrupting that land, and if it is not stopped, the entire Source Realm will be affected."
Chen You's gaze fell on the map.
Between Thousand Light City and Hidden Star City lies a vast, unexplored gray area.
Apart from a small, explored area of the snow-covered sacred mountain, the rest of the area is unknown.
"How am I supposed to get there?"
Mengde traced a winding, thin line on the map with his finger.
"The journey to Cangxing City is long and extremely dangerous. You will need to traverse a perilous wilderness and follow an ancient trade route known as '318'."
Chen You was stunned.
He looked up at Mengde: "March 18th?"
Meng De nodded: "Exactly."
Chen You's lips twitched slightly: "Are you sure you don't want to ride a bicycle or hitchhike? And do you want to bring a DSLR camera?"
Meng De was completely bewildered: "What bicycle? The road ahead is treacherous, teeming with bandits and high-level demons, fraught with danger at every turn. You must not let your guard down."
Chen You waved his hand, too lazy to explain the real-world references to the NPCs.
"Got it, a journey to purify the soul that everyone must take at least once in their lifetime, right? Then let's go."
Meng De's expression was solemn. With a wave of his hand, a system notification sounded in Chen You's ear.
[Ding! Main quest triggered: Shadow of the Snowfield]
[Mission Description: Proceed to the northern outpost outside Thousand Light City to find the guide "Mountain Stone Blade" and travel together to Hidden Star City.]
[Task Requirements: Player level 35 or higher (already met).]
[Task Reward: 500,000 Experience Points]
Chen You glanced at the reward and clicked to accept.
All you give me is some experience points, how stingy!
However, being able to go to the next main city and take advantage of the event to participate in another monster siege would be perfect!
"I'll take it." Chen You turned to leave.
"Brother Chen, be careful in everything you do," Meng De reminded him from behind.
"That 318 trade route hasn't been peaceful lately. Besides monsters, there are also some outsiders who call themselves 'pioneers' operating there, and they have no moral bottom line."
Chen You paused in his steps.
Pioneers? Strangers?
That's exactly what gamers are talking about.
"understood."
Chen You walked out of the city lord's mansion, but did not rush to set off.
He stood on the steps and took out a palm-sized compass from his backpack.
Celestial Item: A Dilapidated Astral Guide.
Chen You channeled a wisp of spiritual energy into the compass.
The once lifeless compass surface lit up with a faint blue light, and an illusory pointer appeared, spinning twice before finally coming to a steady stop.
Chen You looked up at the direction the pointer was pointing.
Northwest.
It completely coincides with the direction of Cangxing City.
Chen You was amused.
"This broken system is actually quite sensible." He tossed the astrolabe up and caught it again, then put it back in his pocket.
"It's convenient to be on the way, this is a huge profit."
……
The northern post station is characterized by a fragmented climate.
The wind and snow were howling, and the temperature plummeted.
It was more than ten degrees colder than inside the city.
Chen You stepped into the courtyard of the post station through the snow.
A bonfire was burning in the center of the courtyard.
An old NPC, wrapped in a thick animal hide and wearing a tattered felt hat, was squatting by the fire, puffing on licorice leaves.
Three words floated above his head: Mountain Stone Blame.
Four players were squatting around the campfire.
A short man with green skin, a werewolf covered in hair, a ghost wrapped in bandages, and a skeleton with only half an arm left.
The four people were shivering from the cold, staring longingly at Shan Shijiu.
"Old man, we've been waiting for an hour, how many more people are we missing?" the werewolf player complained, rubbing his hands together.
Shan Shijiu exhaled a smoke ring and slowly tapped his pipe.
"The caravan's rule is that it departs when there are at least ten people. Not a penny less, not a single person less, it won't work."
"This is a principle."
The ghost player sighed, "This lousy game! We have to take a bus to get to the new main city. Can't we just teleport directly?!"
The skeleton player cracked his jaw: "Stop complaining. The 318 trade route is full of high-level monsters. If we don't go with the NPC caravans, we'll just be easy prey at our level."
Shan Shijiu grinned, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth: "Old man, I'll give you a riddle. Whoever guesses it correctly gets half the fare waived."
The four players' eyes lit up instantly.
"explain!"
"Listen carefully." Shan Shijiu shook his head and said, "Wearing a yellow robe, a green hat, sitting in the mud, looking dull-witted. Guess what it is."
The four players looked at each other in bewilderment.
The goblin scratched his head: "Yellow robe? Green hat? What kind of bizarre aesthetic is this?"
The werewolf tentatively asked, "A frog?"
"wrong."
The skeleton thought for a moment: "A turtle?"
"Not at all."
Chen You walked to the fire, brushed the snowflakes off his clothes, and said calmly, "Carrot."
Shan Shijiu paused, his hand holding the cigarette still.
He raised his head, his cloudy old eyes scanning Chen You up and down, before letting out a cold snort: "You're quite clever, kid. You're also going to Cangxing City?"
Chen You nodded: "How much does it cost to charter a car?"
Upon hearing this, the four players by the fire all turned their heads.
Charter a car?
At this stage, everyone has to spend half a day to scrape together a few silver coins for a ride, and this person is asking to charter a car right off the bat?
The werewolf player stared at Chen You's face for a second, then suddenly jumped up and slammed his head into a wooden pillar at the post station.
"Holy crap! A wandering god?!"
This shout startled the other three players, who jumped up as well.
The short man rushed forward and grabbed Chen You's leg: "Big Boss! The pioneer of immortal cultivation! Alive!"
The skeleton was so excited that its bones cracked and crumbled: "God of Travel, I'm your fan! Yesterday, when you stood on the city wall and said 'I'm very disappointed in you,' that was absolutely awesome!"
The ghost floated around Chen You, saying, "Boss, please help me! I'm incredibly tanky!"
Chen You looked down at the little green skin clinging to his leg, its green skin covered in an unknown slime.
Then look at the skeleton with rotten flesh still stuck in its bones and the werewolf emitting a strong body odor.
His eye twitched violently twice.
If you were to squeeze into a dilapidated wooden cart with these oddly shaped creatures, and then be jostled around in the wind and snow for days and nights...
The scene was too beautiful for him to imagine.
But directly kicking people out would seem too unapproachable.
He's going to follow the mass line.
Chen You calmly pulled his leg out of the goblin's arms and looked at Shan Shijiu.
"Sir, I'm in a hurry. I'll charter this car for you, we'll leave now."
Shan Shijiu tapped his pipe, refilled it with tobacco, and spoke curtly.
"Young adventurer, as I've said before, caravans have their rules. Ten people are required before departure. That's the principle, and the rules cannot be broken."
Chen You expressionlessly pulled out a money pouch and threw it on the snow.
"Ding-dong."
A crisp metallic clanging sound.
One hundred gold coins.
Shan Shijiu's eyelid twitched.
He swallowed hard, his gaze straining to tear away from the money pouch, and declared righteously, "This isn't about the money. The 318 trade route is ravaged by snow and wind; we're doing this to ensure..."
"Smack."
Chen You threw down another money bag.
Five hundred gold coins.
The four players gasped in shock.
Yamashiki's hand, which was holding the pipe, began to tremble slightly.
"Ahem... young hero, rules are rules, but people are flexible..."
Chen You interrupted him: "Do you have a bigger car?"
Shan Shijiu was taken aback: "How big?"
"You can lie down, stretch your legs, and there's no draft."
Shan Shijiu looked troubled: "Young hero, we are a caravan traveling through the wilderness, not the lord's ceremonial guard."
"The only thing we could sit on was this wooden cart used for hauling goods, which was covered with dry grass."
Chen You frowned.
He turned his head and glanced at the dilapidated wooden cart parked in the corner of the yard, which didn't even have a roof.
This piece of junk, and they still want to take the 318 trade route?
"Really not?" Chen You's tone turned cold.
"No, there really isn't." Yamashiki sighed.
Without wasting any words, Chen You directly opened his system inventory and waved his hand.
"Splash—"
Golden coins cascaded down like a waterfall, piling up into a small mountain on the snow.
One thousand gold coins.
The golden light was so dazzling that the four players couldn't open their eyes.
Shan Shijiu's breathing stopped instantly.
The pipe in his hand fell to the ground with a "thud".
Chen You stared at him. "I'll ask one last time, do you have any better cars?"
Shan Shijiu stared intently at the pile of gold coins, his Adam's apple bobbing wildly.
in principle?
Screw principles!
He suddenly ripped off his tattered felt hat, his hunched back straightened instantly, and his cloudy old eyes flashed with an astonishing light.
"have!"
Shan Shijiu roared loudly, his voice as clear as a bell.