Embark on the Road

by Tai Baiyang

Now that he had a goal, Zhang Mu’s fighting spirit was lited up. Before this, he was lost. Being lost was the scariest thing. Once the haze was cleared, no matter how hard the goal was, he had a target to achieve.

  Chapter 106: Pick Bones In An Egg

  “Let’s start.” Zhang Mu shook his head and stopped thinking. His eyes were filled with the obsession for no. 37’s items again. Other people might not know this but he knows that these additional rewards were not just about exchanging for these items.

  No. 37’s heart hurt when he saw Zhang Mu’s expression. Why did he meet such a monster?

  “Forget it, the gold leaves in your hand exceeded the limit of an era merchant on probation. I will make an exception for you and activate the basic level of authority a merchant can have. By right, you will only get the basic level merchant authority after you completed five missions but since you have almost 90 gold leaves now, it is already enough.”

  He didn’t say any more nonsense and with a change of his thought, the golden shining stars that were jumping around him started banging into each other. Even their way of forming the list was so unique. Zhang Mu looked at them in amazement.

  He had experienced accumulating more than 10 gold leaves after completing more than 10 missions but that was just at the start. As time goes by, Zhang Mu, who only had normal abilities, started to struggle to complete the missions. In the end, Zhang Mu only wanted to complete his mission and nothing else. Anything is fine as long as he could complete his mission within the given period of time. The gold leaves that he accumulated could only buy a normal second-rank item. At that time when third-rank items were everywhere and second-rank were worthless, a second-rank item was dispensable.

  However, the situation is different now. Zhang recalled the items that he never managed to see and felt his heart burning.

  Under the eyes of anticipation, the additional rewards list formed in front of Zhang Mu’s eyes. The golden words made the price of the items seemed extra honourable.

  “Second-rank evolving potions can increase the chance of a human achieving level 2 when he or she got stuck at level 1. The price: five gold leaves.”

  The cheapest thing on the list was the one that Zhang Mu bought with all his savings - the second-rank evolving potion. This showed how rich no. 37 is.

  Zhang Mu quickly looked down. Even if he had prepared himself, he was still amazed and shocked by what he saw. There were too many things. ‘“Second-rank body potion. Combining agility and strength, it will be able to increase the agility and strength of the evolver. These components will increase by ten times. Note before use: Need to be a level 2 evolver. Price: eight gold leaves.”

  Zhang Mu just ignored this. Although he was rich, he didn’t want to take things that would just stay in his warehouse because he knew that he could just reach level 2 all by himself. Evolvers that had no special abilities might be on the losing end in a battle, but in terms of leveling up, they had it the easiest.

  Hence, there was no need for him to use the second-rank evolving potion to pave the way for him. It would be such a waste. If he couldn’t reach level 2 quickly, the potions that require the user to be a level 2 evolver was not important to him. Zhang Mu ignored the temptation of ten times agility and strength and continued reading.

  “Second-rank recovery potion. Can heal lethal wounds. A good potion that will draw you back from the gate of Hell. There is no one for one. Price: five gold leaves.”

  He could consider this one. The first-rank recovery potion could heal his serious injury and, the second-rank potion could immediately heal a person that was on the brink of death. Although they couldn't bring a dead person back to life, as long as he was still alive, this could be something that would give him another life. Of course, only level 2 evolvers could use it. The effect would not be as great for level 3 evolvers and above.

  Last time, Zhang Mu didn’t have the money to buy one of this. This was because the recovery potions would always be bought by the first era sub-merchant. The second sub-merchant might not even get a chance to buy it too, much less him.

  Zhang Mu had a feeling that these introductions weren’t written by no. 37. He glanced at no.37’s face.

  No. 37 noticed Zhang Mu’s gaze and remembered the casual introductions of the items. His old face turned red and he coughed before saying, “that, it is written by the system. I don’t know which merchant changed it because it is a universal system so everything just happens like that.

  Don’t look at me, I cannot handle this style too. I have to explain it every time.”

  As expected. Zhang Mu knew someone as gloomy as no. 37 would not be able to write such a lively introduction. He continued looking at the items.

  “Second-rank strength potion? No way, this one only works for a level 2 evolver too and the timing is too short. It only allows the strength to increase for 15 minutes.”

  “First-rank eternal strengthening potion. This seems okay but I don’t have any ability yet. However, the price is too expensive. Ten gold leaves. It is just a first-rank item. No. 37, your price is a bit odd.”

  “And this weapon, why is it different from the weapons I have? I can’t even choose the style too. Does that mean that only a certain kind of person can use it? There are so many weapons but you chose to put an axe. Not good. I don’t want it.”

  “Look at this necklace that said to have a calming effect. It doesn’t seem good at all. Is it as powerful as what was written...”

  The entire galaxy was filled with Zhang Mu’s complain. Even a person as elegant as no. 37 felt irritated. Although his items were only for a basic level merchant, they were classics. When he heard Zhang Mu complaining about them, he said irritatedly, “why are you so troublesome. You don’t like first-rank items and can’t use second-rank items. Then you pick bones in an egg for the other items. No matter how much you complain, I will not lower the price for you. You need to know that everything in the era merchant’s shop cannot be bargained.”

  Zhang Mu smiled and told no. 37 that he understood it. He continued looking for the things he wanted.

  Very quickly, he saw something that interests him. His eyes lit up.

  “One pet egg. The species is random. Level 1 animal. You just need to drip your blood and you will be able to get a pet that could fight alongside with you. Being an Eragon is no longer a dream. Of course, you could get a husky too. Price: 33 gold leaves.”

  Chapter 107: Remaking the Weapon

  Although the introduction was tempting, Zhang Mu was not tempted at all. He was not a newbie. He wouldn’t be attracted by just an introduction.

  Which young man had never dreamt of becoming an Eragon before? Who had never dreamt of ruling over the world? However, he knew that the last sentence was the main point. What if it is a husky?

  Actually, a husky was not a bad option. It was a dog type mutated animals at the very least. If they give you some ugly pet, wouldn't the 33 gold leaves that the era sub-merchant saved up go to waste?

  Zhang Mu was not tempted because he knew that no matter how lucky he was, he was restricted by his status as a basic level merchant. They must remember the rule that they would get what they paid for.

  This is the era merchant shop. There must be a reason why certain things are expensive.

  Although 33 gold leaves were almost half of what Zhang Mu had, it was nothing. Hence, the pet that came out would not be anything ideal too.

  Also, Zhang Mu already had his Obsidian Beetle, mutated Wolfdog and the Bloodvine Lotus on his left arm. He couldn’t even afford to feed them so if he added one more to the collection, Zhang Mu felt that he might have to run around every day to find food for them.

  Hence, Zhang Mu decided to give up this item and used another safer way to get a more powerful mutated animal. For example, take a look at it again after he activated his middle level or top level era sub-merchant authority.

  After scanning through the list, Zhang Mu felt that he couldn’t afford those things further down
so he focused his attention on those items in the middle of the list.

  After comparing them for a long time, Zhang Mu finally made a decision. He looked up at no. 37.

  He kept quiet but no. 37 couldn’t keep waiting for him. Thus, he asked him impatiently, “have you decided? I thought that you would continue complaining about my item.”

  Obviously, no. 37 still bore a grudge against Zhang Mu due to his complaints last time. Most of his sub-merchants craved for the things in his private collection but when it comes to Zhang Mu, this was the reaction he gave.

  “I want that weapon strengthening chance.”

  Zhang Mu told no. 37 her decision firmly. No. 37 looked at the list with a confused look. Not many people chose this option so he had forgotten that such a thing existed too.

  “Second rank weapon strengthening chance. The era sub-merchant would provide the materials and style. They will tell the era merchant whether they want additional materials to be added in and if there are any other requests. The price is not fixed. It is dependable on the request of the era sub-merchant.

  The weapons made by the era merchant shop would definitely be in good quality. As long as you have the necessary materials and gold leaves, there is nothing that the era merchant shop can’t make.”

  “Why will you choose this option? This option relies a lot on your own materials. Can you give me so many second-rank materials? Also, if you really strengthen your weapon, your gold leaves might not even be enough and you won’t be able to use the weapons anyway.”

  No. 37 reminded Zhang Mu kindly. He didn’t want Zhang Mu to be tricked by the item description. This opportunity to get the extra rewards was very important to Zhang Mu. He continued telling him, “why not you look at increasing your own abilities first? Most of the era sub-merchants would choose this option. If you didn’t bring up this item, I might have forgotten about it. No one at your level would be able to bring back the materials necessary for such a stringent process.”

  Zhang Mu replied no. 37 confidently, “I chose it because I have the materials. You do not need to worry about that. Also, I have no other things I want. I just lack a good weapon for myself. Normal weapons will not satisfy me and you only sell an ax over here. You don't expect me to pick an ax to kill people right? I can’t afford to play around like this.”

  No. 37 knew that he wouldn’t be able to persuade Zhang Mu so he just reached out his hand and took out a little star from the list. He said to Zhang Mu, “since you chose it, you must not regret it. If your materials do not fulfill the requirements, the system would destroy it. You must be prepared.”

  “What? Destroy? Can’t I take it back?”

  This was the first time Zhang Mu used the system’s weapon-making function. Last time, he could afford the basic weapon-making even if he combined all the gold leaves he earned together. Of course, at that time, he was just trying to keep himself alive so he didn’t really care about all these extra things.

  “No.” No. 37 replied firmly. He looked helplessly at Zhang Mu’s expression and explained, “the system is not under my control. I have no right over it. It is a procedure set by the system. No one can interfere with it. Because of this, it had not been used for a long time.”

  “So evil? If it doesn’t do the strengthening, I would still have to pay for it? Are they robbing money? If nothing can fulfill its requirements, does that means that it would just keep collecting the basic amount of money?”

  Zhang Mu couldn’t help but complain to himself. He didn’t think that there would be so many criteria surround this weapon-making system. He just wanted to strengthen his Obsidian Beetle claw because he felt that it was not catching up with him anymore.

  However, Zhang Mu had the feeling that his Obsidian Beetle claw would definitely meet the requirements of the system. Although the Obsidian Beetle was not a level 2 mutated animal, it was very special. He felt confident.

  Thus, he didn’t say much and took out the Obsidian Beetle claw. He placed it in front of no. 37 and said slowly, “this is it. Help me send it to the system then. I really need a weapon now. I believe it.”

  “Up to you.”

  No. 37 looked at the mundane and normal Obsidian Beetle claw. He knew that it was part of a mutated animal but he couldn’t identify it. Since he couldn’t convince Zhang Mu, he just followed his order. He hoped that Zhang Mu’s luck would work this time too.

  Under no. 37’s control, the Obsidian Beetle claw was sent into the weapon-making system.

  This was a furnace made from illusion. It looked like an ancient nine dragon cauldron. It swallowed the Obsidian Beetle claw and then a mechanical sound rose. It slowly said the sentence that Zhang Mu was anticipating.

  “The material is undergoing evaluation...”

  Chapter 108: Nothing Left

  Zhang Mu felt that a minute lasted for almost a century. However, there was nothing he could do. He needed to take this bet. There were not many ways in which he could increase his abilities now.

  “Di...”

  Finally, the sound that he was waiting for rang and Zhang Mu’s heart was lifted up again.

  “The system has verified that the target material is made of a level 1 mutated animals.”

  Zhang Mu’s heart sank when he heard those words. Is it not possible? Has he lost his bet? The Obsidian Beetle was not up to the standard?

  However, Zhang Mu’s emotions were brought up again because the furnace spoke again.

  “There is a change in the decision. Although the material is made from a level 1 mutated animal, there is a value in strengthening the weapon. The weapon reached the criteria for strengthening. Era sub-merchant no. 001, please choose the level.”

  He took a long breath. Zhang Mu’s emotions were like riding a roller coaster. He felt that he was being tortured by the furnace.

  Seems like his Obsidian Beetle really has a secret. It even managed to fulfill the criteria of something as strict as the weapon-making system.

  “No. 001 chose the remaking of a level 2 weapon. Please choose one of the options below.”

  “Basic remaking, 22 gold leaves. Just the basic remaking of weapons based on the original material.”

  “Intermediate remaking, 33 gold leaves. Use a bit of the special materials from the era merchants shop and combine it with the weapon. There might be an improvement in the weapon but don’t bear too much hope.”

  “Advanced remaking. 66 gold leaves. Combining the weapon with materials from the era merchants shop and remake the weapon based on its abilities and functions. You will get unexpected surprises.”

  “Special remaking. Price is subjective. The weapon-holder would make their own request and the weapon would be customised for them. However, no. 001 doesn’t have this authority yet. You need to be a middle level era sub-merchant in order to select this option.”

  After he heard what the furnace said, Zhang Mu gave a weird expression. He wanted to choose the special remaking option but he was rejected by the furnace just like that? And this happened even after no. 37 helped him to get more authorities.

  Zhang Mu glanced at no. 37 but no. 37 expressed that he could not do anything either. He could only afford to unlock the basic level era sub-merchant status for Zhang Mu now. No matter how well he performed from the mission this time, he had only completed a mission for the sub-merchants on probation. He was still far away from the requirements of being a basic level sub-merchant, which was to complete five missions.

  Since this was the case, Zhang Mu had no choice but to choose the next best option. He said to the furnace directly, “weapon-making system, I choose the advanced remaking option.”

  This was a machine. Hence, it would not ask Zhang Mu how he got so many gold leaves. It would just proceed with this order.

  “No. 001 choose a level 2 weapon advanced remaking option. The cost will be 66 gold leaves. Are you sure?”

  Hearing the cold and mechanical voice of the furnace, Zhang Mu hurriedly said, “Yes.”


  The moment he said that, his gold leaves were taken away. Zhang Mu didn’t have to look at it to know that 66 of his gold leaves were gone. The speed of the era merchant’s shop was amazing.

  “Is there a style that you want for your weapon? Based on the size of your weapon, you can choose between a dagger, cutlass, claw, steel thorn etc. No. 001, please select an option.”

  Zhang Mu replied without any hesitation, “dagger, I want a dagger.”

  “No. 001, your bill has been settle. Your weapon will be undergoing remaking now. Time required: five minutes. Please wait.”

  After that, the system didn’t speak anymore. The nine dragons on the nine dragon furnace suddenly raised their heads as though they were roaring to the sky and white smoke started coming out from their mouth.”

  Zhang Mu could almost see the Obsidian Beetle melting and combining with other materials. However, no matter how much he used his creativity, he could not have guessed what it would look like later.

  Hence, Zhang Mu started planning what he should do with his remaining gold leaves.

  This remaking of weapon cost him most of his fortune so he had no more money to buy most of the things that he put on his secondary list.

  Ruling out most of the options, he was left with two choices that caused him in a dilemma.

  “Psychological talisman, able to guard against level 2 psychological evolvers. The cost is 15 gold leaves.”

  “Advanced insane potion, able to increase your speed and strength two to three times and the effect can last for one hour. Only limited to evolvers level 2 and below. No side effects. The cost is 18 gold leaves.”

  Zhang Mu really wanted the psychological talisman because he lack a protection against this kind of power. However, the insane potion that had no side effects was really tempting too. All the potions that could increase strength had a side effect. The user would feel weak for a period of time after the potion was used. Hence, this potion was really suitable for Zhang Mu. If his strength and speed was increased by three times, that would be a really scary thing. This was the reason he was in a huge dilemma.