Chapter 4: The First Earnings

Morning came quietly to Blackstone Wasteland.

Lin Yuan woke before sunrise.

For a few moments, he remained still.

Then footsteps sounded from the floor above.

He opened his eyes.

Right.

He had guests.

That was still something he wasn’t used to.

Lin Yuan washed quickly and headed downstairs.

The dining room was empty, but faint movements from upstairs told him Zhao Jian’s group had already begun waking.

He entered the kitchen.

The fire from last night had died, leaving only grey ash inside the old stove.

Lin Yuan added several pieces of dry wood and sent a trace of spiritual Qi from his fingertip.

The wood caught fire.

Soon, the familiar crackling of flames filled the kitchen.

Breakfast didn’t need to be complicated.

Rice porridge.

Steamed buns.

A few simple side dishes.

Tea.

Travelers preparing for several more days on the road didn’t need a feast.

They needed something hot and filling.

Lin Yuan placed a large pot over the stove.

Before long, steam began rising from several bamboo baskets.

Footsteps sounded on the stairs.

Zhao Jian was the first to enter.

His hair was slightly messy, and his robes were far less neat than yesterday.

Lin Yuan glanced at him.

"Sleep well?"

Zhao Jian stretched his shoulders.

"Better than I expected."

He looked toward the stairs.

"The rooms are simple, but comfortable."

Lin Yuan nodded.

That was probably the tavern’s Comfort effect.

It couldn’t remove exhaustion instantly, but after several days traveling through the wasteland, even a small improvement made a noticeable difference.

Zhao Jian closed his eyes briefly.

"The spiritual Qi upstairs is also slightly denser."

"You noticed?"

Zhao Jian opened his eyes.

"After spending days outside? Of course."

Blackstone Wasteland’s spiritual Qi was extremely thin.

The Qi inside Wandering Cloud Tavern wasn’t impressive compared with a cultivation city, but the difference from the surrounding wasteland was obvious.

Zhao Jian glanced toward the wooden walls.

"A Qi Gathering Formation?"

"Something like that."

Lin Yuan didn’t explain further.

Zhao Jian understood and stopped asking.

Cultivators had secrets.

Digging too deeply into another person’s affairs was rarely wise.

Lin Yuan gestured toward a table.

"Breakfast?"

Zhao Jian immediately asked,

"How much?"

Lin Yuan smiled.

"You’re asking the important question first today."

"I learned from yesterday."

The others came downstairs one after another.

Soon, all nine members of the caravan were gathered in the dining room.

The young woman who had emptied Lin Yuan’s sample cup yesterday sat near the counter.

She looked toward the kitchen.

"Owner Lin."

"What?"

"Does breakfast include well water?"

"No."

She paused.

"You answered very quickly."

"I expected you to ask."

Several people laughed.

She sighed.

"One jug, then."

A guard beside her raised his hand.

"Make it two."

Zhao Jian frowned.

"We already have water."

The guard looked serious.

"This tastes better."

"That’s not a reason to spend spirit stones."

The young woman nodded thoughtfully.

"We’re merchants."

Zhao Jian looked at her.

"Exactly."

"We should support good businesses."

"You complained for half an hour when Old Chen charged you extra for tea last month."

"His tea was terrible."

Lin Yuan placed a bowl of porridge in front of her.

"I support her reasoning."

Zhao Jian shook his head.

Breakfast continued with considerably more noise than Lin Yuan was used to.

Serving them was easier than the previous evening.

He already knew roughly how much the group ate, and most of the ingredients had been prepared in advance.

Still, one problem quickly became obvious.

The stove.

It was old.

Very old.

The fire on one side burned too strongly while another part struggled to maintain enough heat.

Cooking for himself had never been a problem.

Cooking porridge, steaming buns, heating water, and preparing side dishes for nine people at the same time was different.

Lin Yuan crouched and adjusted the fire again.

A cloud of smoke escaped.

He turned his head and coughed.

"This thing is going to kill me before another cultivator does."

A voice immediately came from the dining room.

"Owner Lin! More tea!"

"Coming."

Lin Yuan looked at the stove.

"We’re discussing your future later."

The stove crackled.

Lin Yuan narrowed his eyes.

He chose to interpret that as disrespect.

After breakfast, Zhao Jian’s group began preparing to leave.

The six Ironhoof Beasts were brought from the stable and harnessed to the three carriages.

Goods were checked.

Ropes were tightened.

Several small formation plates attached to the carriages were inspected before departure.

Lin Yuan stood near the courtyard entrance and watched.

Zhao Jian approached him.

"We’ll take another four jugs of water."

Lin Yuan raised an eyebrow.

"Four?"

"The next reliable water source is still several days away."

Before Lin Yuan could respond, the young woman appeared behind Zhao Jian.

"Five."

Zhao Jian turned.

"Four."

"Five."

"We already have enough."

"For emergencies."

"What emergency?"

She answered without hesitation.

"Being thirsty."

Zhao Jian stared at her.

She stared back.

Lin Yuan wisely remained silent.

A short while later, five jugs of Spirit-Touched water were loaded onto the carriages.

Zhao Jian looked slightly annoyed.

The young woman looked satisfied.

Lin Yuan was the most satisfied of all.

He had been open for only a few days, and someone was already arguing to buy more of his water.

That seemed like a good sign.

When everything was ready, Zhao Jian mounted his Ironhoof Beast.

Then he glanced back toward Wandering Cloud Tavern.

"Owner Lin."

"Mm?"

"You’re planning to keep this place open?"

Lin Yuan looked at the tavern behind him.

"I spent enough repairing it. I’d rather not abandon it."

Zhao Jian nodded.

"Good."

He pointed toward the old trade road.

"Black River Trading Company travels this route several times each year."

Lin Yuan’s attention sharpened.

"Only your company?"

"No."

Zhao Jian shook his head.

"There are other merchant groups. Most prefer the northern route because it passes through settlements, but that journey is longer."

"Then why doesn’t everyone use this one?"

Zhao Jian looked around.

Barren earth stretched in every direction.

A few distant rocks broke the empty horizon.

Nothing else.

"Because there’s nothing here."

Lin Yuan followed his gaze.

That was difficult to argue with.

"No settlements. No inns. Few reliable water sources. The spiritual Qi is thin."

Zhao Jian continued.

"If something happens halfway through Blackstone Wasteland, you deal with it yourself."

His gaze returned to the tavern.

"But now there’s at least one place to stop."

Lin Yuan looked toward Wandering Cloud Tavern.

Six tables.

Four usable rooms.

One Spirit-Touched Well.

A small stable.

Compared with the enormous wasteland surrounding it, the tavern seemed insignificant.

But perhaps that was exactly why it mattered.

Zhao Jian continued.

"When we reach Green River City, I’ll mention this place to some merchants I know."

Lin Yuan looked at him.

"Free advertising?"

Zhao Jian smiled.

"Don’t misunderstand. If more merchants become willing to use this road, Black River Trading Company benefits too."

"That’s more believable."

Zhao Jian laughed.

He clasped his fists.

"Until next time, Owner Lin."

Lin Yuan returned the gesture.

"Safe travels."

The caravan began moving.

Ironhoof Beasts pulled the three carriages back onto the old trade road.

The sound of wooden wheels slowly faded.

Eventually, the caravan disappeared into the distance.

Silence returned to Blackstone Wasteland.

Lin Yuan remained outside for a while.

Yesterday, he’d spent hours staring at the empty road, hoping someone would appear.

Now that his first customers had left, Wandering Cloud Tavern suddenly felt strangely quiet.

He turned around.

Nine people’s dirty bowls were waiting for him.

Lin Yuan stared at them.

"...Not quiet enough."

An hour later, the tavern was clean again.

Lin Yuan sat behind the counter.

After yesterday’s business and this morning’s sales, he now had twenty-six low-grade spirit stones.

For once, his savings were moving in the right direction.

More importantly, he wanted to examine the Territory Core.

He focused his thoughts.

The translucent interface appeared.

Territory Core

Owner: Lin Yuan

Territory: Blackstone Wasteland

Core State: Awakened

Core Level: 1

Spiritual Environment: Barren

Territory Revenue: 14 / 100 Low-Grade Spirit Stones

Core Advancement: Requirements Not Met

Lin Yuan’s gaze stopped on the revenue.

Yesterday it had been eight.

After this morning’s business, it had risen to fourteen.

Simple enough.

Territory Revenue recorded how much business his territory had generated.

It wasn’t a second currency.

The actual spirit stones were already in his storage bag.

Once the number reached one hundred, the Core would meet the revenue requirement for advancement.

Lin Yuan focused on the Spirit-Touched Well.

Spirit-Touched Well

Quality: Low

Next Enhancement: Unavailable

Requirement: Territory Core Level 2

Then he checked the tavern.

Restored Roadside Tavern

Quality: Low Spirit Grade

Next Enhancement: Unavailable

Requirement: Territory Core Level 2

Lin Yuan understood.

Having enough spirit stones wasn’t enough to endlessly enhance everything.

The Core itself had limits.

To unlock stronger enhancements, the territory first had to grow.

And growth required business.

"So I need another eighty-six."

Lin Yuan wasn’t discouraged.

Zhao Jian had already promised to tell other merchants about Wandering Cloud Tavern.

Whether that brought customers was another matter.

For now, there was something much closer that needed his attention.

Lin Yuan looked toward the kitchen.

The stove.

He walked inside.

The old stove sat against the wall as if it had done nothing wrong.

Lin Yuan placed a hand against it.

The Territory Core responded.

Old Kitchen Stove

Condition: Usable

Quality: Ordinary

Enhancement Available

Cost: 5 Low-Grade Spirit Stones

Lin Yuan stared at the price.

Five.

He currently had twenty-six.

It wasn’t cheap for a stove.

But after serving nine customers twice, Lin Yuan knew exactly how troublesome the current one was.

The blackened wall above it spoke for itself.

One side heated too quickly.

The other heated too slowly.

Smoke escaped whenever it felt like it.

If Zhao Jian actually sent more customers his way, things would only get worse.

Lin Yuan sighed.

"Fine."

Five low-grade spirit stones appeared in his hand.

"Enhance."

The stones dimmed.

Pale spiritual light flowed from them and entered the stove.

Small cracks slowly closed.

Layers of soot loosened and fell away.

The cooking surface became smoother.

The fire chamber subtly changed shape.

Even the chimney adjusted itself.

A moment later, the light faded.

The stove still looked simple.

There was no gold.

No jade.

No mysterious symbols covering it.

But it looked solid.

Clean.

Functional.

New information appeared.

Spirit-Assisted Kitchen Stove

Quality: Low Spirit Grade

Effects:

Heat Control — Improves control and distribution of cooking heat

Fuel Efficiency — Reduces ordinary fuel consumption

Clean Flame — Significantly reduces smoke and soot

Next Enhancement: Unavailable

Requirement: Territory Core Level 2

Lin Yuan nodded.

Twenty-one spirit stones remained.

He added several pieces of firewood.

The flame caught quickly.

Lin Yuan placed a pot of water on top.

Within moments, he noticed the difference.

The heat spread evenly across the bottom.

When he reduced the airflow, the flame weakened almost immediately.

When he increased it, the temperature rose smoothly.

Most importantly—

No smoke blew into his face.

Lin Yuan stared at the stove.

"You’ve finally learned manners."

Naturally, the stove didn’t answer.

He tested it several more times.

There were no miraculous effects.

Ordinary rice wouldn’t suddenly become spiritual rice.

Meat wouldn’t transform into some heavenly delicacy.

It was simply a much better stove.

Exactly what he needed.

Lin Yuan extinguished the flame and walked back into the dining room.

Six empty tables stood before him.

Twenty-four seats.

Yesterday, only nine customers had nearly overwhelmed him.

Zhao Jian had promised to tell other merchants about the tavern.

If even a few listened...

Lin Yuan imagined every seat occupied.

Twenty-four people asking for noodles.

Tea.

Water.

Wine.

Rooms.

His gaze slowly dropped toward his two hands.

Then he looked toward the kitchen.

Then back at the twenty-four seats.

Silence filled the tavern.

Perhaps the stove hadn’t been his biggest problem.

Lin Yuan sighed.

"I need help."