Chapter 12: The Spirit Beast Stable

By noon the next day, Lin Yuan had learned three things.

The first was that replacing support posts was easier when Su Mei checked whether they were straight.

The second was that repairing a roof while standing on it was considerably less enjoyable than it looked from below.

The third was that Qi Refining eighth-layer cultivation was extremely useful when carrying timber.

Unfortunately, none of those things made him a carpenter.

Lin Yuan secured the final section of roofing and climbed down.

The old stable looked completely different.

It was still simple.

Stone formed the lower walls, while thick wooden posts supported the repaired roof. A new feeding trough ran along one side, and a large water trough stood near the entrance.

There was enough room for several Ironhoof Beasts to rest comfortably.

More importantly, nothing looked ready to collapse.

Su Mei walked slowly around the structure.

Lin Yuan waited.

She examined the roof.

Then the posts.

Finally, she pushed against the support he’d installed yesterday.

It didn’t move.

"Well?"

Su Mei nodded.

"It looks like a stable."

"It was always a stable."

"Yesterday it looked like firewood."

Lin Yuan decided not to argue.

He placed his hand against one of the new wooden posts.

The Territory Core responded immediately.

Roadside Stable

Condition: Usable

Quality: Ordinary

Enhancement Available

Cost: 15 Low-Grade Spirit Stones

Fifteen.

More than the well or stove had required, but still within what Lin Yuan could afford.

Business had improved considerably over the past week.

His expenses had also increased.

Food.

Wine.

Construction materials.

Su Mei’s wages.

Every improvement seemed to find a new way to consume spirit stones.

Still, he’d repaired the stable for a reason.

Lin Yuan selected the enhancement.

Fifteen low-grade spirit stones disappeared.

Spiritual Qi stirred around the structure.

The repaired wood became smoother and firmer. Small imperfections along the stonework faded.

Lin Yuan stepped inside.

The air felt different.

Quiet.

Calm.

A new interface appeared.

Spirit Beast Resting Stable

Quality: Low Spirit Grade

Effects:

Restful Environment — Low-level spirit beasts recover ordinary fatigue faster while resting within the stable.

Calming — Reduces ordinary agitation and restlessness.

Next Enhancement: Unavailable

Requires Core Level 2

Lin Yuan read the effects twice.

Useful.

Nothing extraordinary, but useful was exactly what he needed.

Su Mei stepped inside behind him.

She remained quiet for a moment.

"It feels different."

"Better?"

"Quieter."

Lin Yuan looked at the empty stalls.

The stable hadn’t been enhanced for humans.

He needed something with four legs to properly test it.

Fortunately, Blackstone’s trade road rarely made him wait long anymore.

That afternoon, three wagons appeared from the east.

Lin Yuan recognized the broad-faced caravan leader as the group approached.

They had stopped at Wandering Cloud Tavern shortly after it reopened.

The merchant recognized him as well.

Then his attention shifted toward the repaired stable.

He stopped.

"Was that there before?"

"Technically."

The merchant stared at him.

"It didn’t look like that."

"It was broken."

That answer seemed to satisfy him.

The caravan entered the courtyard.

Six Ironhoof Beasts had made the journey with them.

Instead of tying the animals beside the courtyard wall, Lin Yuan directed the handlers toward the stable.

The first Ironhoof Beast hesitated at the entrance.

Then it walked inside.

The others followed.

Within a short time, their movements became noticeably calmer.

One of the more exhausted beasts lowered itself to rest.

The caravan leader watched it.

"That’s unusual."

"What is?"

"They normally take longer to settle after traveling."

He examined the stable for a moment, then looked at Lin Yuan.

"How much?"

"One low-grade spirit stone for up to four beasts for the day."

The merchant glanced at his six Ironhoof Beasts.

"Two stones, then?"

"Two."

"Fine."

No bargaining.

Lin Yuan immediately wondered if he’d priced it too cheaply.

Probably.

He could think about that later.

For now, Wandering Cloud Tavern had officially gained another service.

The caravan remained through the afternoon.

The cultivators ate while their Ironhoof Beasts rested.

By the time they prepared to leave, the animals were noticeably less restless than when they’d arrived.

Their exhaustion hadn’t disappeared, but the difference was enough for an experienced merchant to notice.

The caravan leader ran a hand along the neck of one of the beasts.

"This place really does help them rest."

"A little."

"A little matters."

The merchant looked toward the road.

"Tired beasts slow a caravan. If they recover faster, we travel farther before the next stop."

Lin Yuan hadn’t considered it from that perspective.

To a merchant, saving time could easily be worth more than a spirit stone or two.

The man looked back at the stable.

"Black River didn’t mention this."

"It wasn’t usable when they visited."

"Then I’ll mention it."

Lin Yuan smiled.

He was beginning to appreciate merchants who advertised for free.

The stable quickly proved more valuable than its fee.

Caravans stayed longer while their spirit beasts rested.

And cultivators waiting for their beasts rarely spent those hours doing nothing.

They ate.

They ordered tea and wine.

Some rented rooms when evening approached.

The stable itself earned little.

The time it kept customers at Wandering Cloud Tavern earned considerably more.

Lin Yuan liked that kind of business.

Three days after completing the stable, Wandering Cloud Tavern had another busy afternoon.

Seven travelers stopped in the morning.

A small caravan arrived around noon.

Three more cultivators appeared shortly before sunset and decided to stay overnight.

By evening, the courtyard had finally become quiet.

Four Ironhoof Beasts remained inside the stable.

Su Mei carried the last stack of bowls into the kitchen.

Lin Yuan sat near the counter and summoned the Territory Core.

Territory Core

Owner: Lin Yuan

Territory: Blackstone Wasteland

Core State: Awakened

Core Level: 1

Spiritual Environment: Barren

Territory Revenue: 71 / 100 Low-Grade Spirit Stones

Seventy-one.

Lin Yuan’s gaze shifted toward the newly repaired stable.

Another enhancement had reached the same barrier.

Requires Core Level 2.

Twenty-nine more.

He was finally getting close.

"Lin Yuan."

Su Mei’s voice pulled him from his thoughts.

He dismissed the interface.

"What?"

She stood near the kitchen holding a folded piece of paper.

"A customer left this for you."

Lin Yuan took it.

"Who?"

"The merchant with the blue wagon."

Lin Yuan remembered him.

The man had eaten lunch before leaving westward earlier that day.

He unfolded the paper.

The message was short.

The merchant regularly traveled between Green River City and several settlements farther west.

He’d heard that Wandering Cloud Tavern was purchasing supplies from passing caravans.

If Lin Yuan needed regular deliveries of food, wine, timber, or other ordinary goods, the merchant was willing to arrange them whenever his caravan passed through Blackstone.

Lin Yuan read the note again.

Until recently, running short of supplies meant closing the tavern and spending days traveling to Green River City.

Now merchants were offering to bring goods directly to him.

Su Mei looked at the paper.

"Useful?"

"Very."

Lin Yuan folded it carefully.

At first, Wandering Cloud Tavern had depended entirely on the trade road.

Now the people traveling that road were beginning to find Wandering Cloud Tavern useful too.

The next morning, Lin Yuan was preparing to open when one of the overnight guests came downstairs.

The merchant had arrived late the previous evening with two companions.

He looked tired despite having slept through the night.

Lin Yuan poured tea.

"Long journey?"

"Longer than usual."

The merchant accepted the cup.

"Road busy?"

The man gave him a strange look.

"You haven’t heard?"

Lin Yuan paused.

"Heard what?"

"About the western hills."

Lin Yuan shook his head.

The merchant drank before continuing.

"More cultivators have been traveling west for the past several days."

That explained something.

Lin Yuan had noticed more independent cultivators passing through Blackstone, but he’d assumed word of the tavern was spreading.

"Why?"

"Nobody seems completely sure."

The merchant lowered his cup.

"Some say a group of wandering cultivators found traces of a spiritual herb growing in one of the valleys."

Lin Yuan waited.

"Others say someone found the remains of an old cultivator’s cave."

Those were two very different rumors.

"Which one do you believe?"

"Neither."

The merchant took another drink.

"But enough people believe something happened that they’re going to look."

Lin Yuan glanced toward the road.

Maybe both rumors were nonsense.

That didn’t matter much.

Cultivators were heading west.

And the fastest road there passed through Blackstone.

The merchant finished his tea and stood.

"If you’re staying here, you’ll probably see plenty of them."

Lin Yuan looked outside.

Several figures were already moving along the road in the distance.

No wagons.

No Ironhoof Beasts.

Just cultivators.

Su Mei came to stand near the entrance.

"More customers?"

"Probably."

Lin Yuan watched the approaching figures.

For the past several weeks, most of the people arriving at Wandering Cloud Tavern had been merchants and ordinary travelers.

That was beginning to change.

Something was happening in the west.

And whatever it was, the road to it passed directly by his tavern.