Chapter 51: Blackstone on the Map

Lin Yuan woke early.

Green River City was already moving by the time he stepped outside.

Shopkeepers opened shutters. Wagons rolled toward the markets. Cultivators entered restaurants for breakfast while merchants argued over prices as though they’d never gone to sleep.

Lin Yuan found a small noodle shop near his inn.

He ate slowly while deciding what to do with his remaining day.

Chen Wei’s caravan wouldn’t leave for Blackstone until tomorrow morning.

Returning to Thousand Treasures Pavilion was pointless. He already had the information he needed.

He could spend the day buying supplies.

Or simply wander around Green River.

When Lin Yuan left the noodle shop, he noticed a familiar name across the street.

Green River Western Trade Association

He stopped.

The Association had organized Blackstone’s first gathering.

Shen Lihua had visited personally before approving the trial.

Lin Yuan had never actually entered one of their offices.

He crossed the street.

The building was simple compared with Thousand Treasures Pavilion.

Two floors.

Gray walls.

Wide doors.

No expensive decorations.

Inside, however, it was busy.

Several clerks worked behind a long counter while merchants came and went carrying documents.

One wall held maps of the surrounding region.

Another was covered in notices.

Escort requests.

Cargo listings.

Road warnings.

Trade gatherings.

Lin Yuan walked closer.

His attention moved down the board.

Then stopped.

Western Route — Blackstone Gathering

Next Gathering: Eight Days

For several seconds, Lin Yuan simply looked at it.

Blackstone.

Written on a notice board in Green River City.

Not as a warning.

Not as an abandoned stretch of wasteland.

As a destination.

A pair of merchants stopped nearby.

One pointed toward the same notice.

"You’re going?"

"If the road stays clear."

"I heard the first one was decent."

"Fourteen wagons."

"That many?"

The two continued toward the counter.

Neither noticed Lin Yuan.

He looked at the notice again.

That somehow made it better.

They weren’t talking about Blackstone because he was standing there.

They were talking about going there because it was useful.

"You’re from Blackstone?"

Lin Yuan turned.

A middle-aged man stood nearby with several rolled documents beneath one arm.

"Yes."

"Merchant?"

"Owner."

"Of what?"

"Most of the land."

The man paused.

"Ah."

"You’re Lin Yuan?"

"Depends."

"On?"

"Whether I owe you money."

The man laughed.

"No. Shen Lihua mentioned you."

That explained it.

"Wu Jian. I handle some of the western route records."

They exchanged greetings.

Wu Jian glanced toward the notice board.

"The first gathering did better than we expected."

"So did I."

"We’ve already had merchants asking whether the next one is confirmed."

"It is."

"Good."

Wu Jian motioned toward a nearby table.

"Come look at something."

Lin Yuan followed.

Wu Jian unrolled a map.

Green River City occupied the eastern side.

Roads spread outward from it toward smaller settlements, hunting areas and distant trade routes.

Lin Yuan quickly found Blackstone.

The mark wasn’t large.

But it was there.

He leaned closer.

"When was that added?"

"Recently."

"That’s very specific."

"Shen Lihua came back with records."

Lin Yuan looked at the small mark again.

Wandering Cloud Tavern didn’t appear.

Neither did Qiao’s shop or the inn.

This wasn’t that detailed.

But Blackstone itself had a place on the Association’s route map.

Wu Jian tapped several roads west of Green River.

"Most merchants used to treat this entire section as one long journey. Stop wherever possible, camp when necessary."

His finger reached Blackstone.

"Now there’s a reliable stopping point here."

Lin Yuan studied the routes.

Some continued west.

Another split north farther along.

A smaller route bent southwest.

Blackstone sat close enough to several of them to matter.

"After the next gathering," Wu Jian said, "Shen Lihua will submit the location for regular listing."

Lin Yuan looked up.

"What changes?"

"Mostly visibility."

Wu Jian nodded toward the notice board.

"Regular schedule. Updated road information. Merchants planning western trips know there’s a gathering point before they leave Green River."

That was simple enough.

"And you want something from me."

Wu Jian smiled.

"Why does everyone assume that?"

"Because you brought out a map."

"Fair."

He pointed toward Blackstone again.

"Keep the gathering area available. Keep basic order. If the western road becomes too dangerous for normal travel, send word."

"We already do that."

"Then don’t stop."

Lin Yuan waited.

Wu Jian started rolling the map.

"That’s it?"

"That’s it."

"No fee?"

"No."

"Now I’m suspicious."

Wu Jian laughed.

"The Association wants merchants to trade. A useful stop on the western route makes that easier."

That made sense.

Lin Yuan stood.

Then Wu Jian added, "There was one complaint."

There it was.

"What?"

"Water."

Lin Yuan frowned.

"We have water."

"For travelers, yes."

Wu Jian shook his head.

"For the draft beasts."

Lin Yuan understood.

Fourteen wagons had attended the first gathering, most pulled by draft beasts.

Filling troughs with Spirit-Touched Water for all of them would be wasteful.

"Some merchants bring enough," Wu Jian said. "Some don’t. It wasn’t a serious problem during the first gathering, but if the next one is larger..."

"It becomes one."

"Exactly."

Lin Yuan nodded.

"I’ll deal with it."

Wu Jian seemed satisfied.

No complicated project was needed.

Just an ordinary source of water near the wagon area.

A trough could be built in Blackstone.

Maybe several eventually.

He didn’t need to drag one all the way from Green River City.

Lin Yuan glanced once more at the map before Wu Jian rolled it completely.

The small mark remained in his mind.

Blackstone had made it onto someone else’s map.

That alone made entering the Association worthwhile.

Lin Yuan spent the rest of the morning walking through the commercial district.

This time, he wasn’t searching for cultivation techniques.

He watched.

Green River had dozens of businesses Blackstone didn’t need yet.

Artifact shops.

Large medicine halls.

Specialized formation stores.

Warehouses with more goods than every shop in Blackstone combined.

Trying to imitate the city would be pointless.

Blackstone wasn’t Green River.

It didn’t need to become Green River either.

Blackstone didn’t need Green River’s artifact shops and medicine halls. What travelers needed from a roadside settlement was simpler: a place to stop, resupply, trade, and continue their journey.

Lin Yuan entered the southern market.

He bought replacement kitchen tools.

Lamp oil.

Rope.

Several stacks of inexpensive writing boards for the notice area.

A few other supplies that were running low.

Nothing rare.

Nothing particularly interesting.

All of it would be used.

A merchant tried to sell him an ornate lantern carved with cloud patterns.

Lin Yuan asked the price.

Then placed it back.

The merchant immediately lowered the price.

Lin Yuan kept walking.

Behind him, the price dropped again.

He didn’t turn around.

Owning a tavern had taught him many things.

One of them was that a discount on something unnecessary was still unnecessary spending.

Near midday, he reached an equipment market.

Large barrels stood outside one warehouse.

Beside them were wooden troughs meant for horses and spirit beasts.

Lin Yuan stopped.

He examined one.

Simple timber.

Reinforced edges.

Nothing special.

A worker approached.

"Need one?"

"Maybe."

"Good timber. Lasts years."

Lin Yuan knocked against the side.

Solid enough.

"How much?"

The worker named a price.

Lin Yuan considered it.

Then shook his head.

"I’ll build one."

The worker stared at him.

"You came here, asked the price, and decided to build it yourself?"

"I needed to know whether I was being lazy."

"And?"

"I was."

Lin Yuan walked away.

He could buy timber in Blackstone or have someone bring it with normal supplies.

There was no reason to transport a finished trough across several days of road.

More importantly, it was an easy problem.

Blackstone should be capable of solving easy problems.

Lin Yuan found Chen Wei in the afternoon.

The merchant stood beside a warehouse while workers loaded sacks onto one of his wagons.

Chen Wei spotted him approaching.

"Done spending money?"

"For today."

"How bad?"

"Not bad."

Chen Wei looked behind him.

"No sword?"

"No."

"No mysterious treasure?"

"No."

"No cultivation technique?"

"Not yet."

Chen Wei nodded.

"Probably smarter than buying one after a single afternoon."

"That’s what I’m telling myself."

A worker carried another sack past them.

Chen Wei checked the marking before waving him toward the second wagon.

"Your supplies are already loaded."

"Good."

"You bought more writing boards?"

"We’re using them."

"For what?"

"Notices."

Chen Wei gave him a strange look.

"Your wasteland has a notice board now."

"It also has traffic."

"Terrifying."

Lin Yuan ignored him.

"Have you eaten?" Chen Wei asked.

"Not recently."

"Good."

"Why is that good?"

"You’re paying."

"No."

Chen Wei stared at him.

Lin Yuan stared back.

"Fine," Chen Wei said. "Half."

"Why am I paying half of your meal?"

"Because I carried you to Green River."

"You were already coming here."

"I carried your emotional burden."

Lin Yuan started walking.

"Eat alone."

Chen Wei laughed and followed.

They found a restaurant near the warehouse district.

The food wasn’t exceptional, but the portions were large.

That was enough.

Halfway through the meal, two merchants entered.

Lin Yuan recognized one of them from the Trade Association office that morning.

The man didn’t recognize him.

They took a nearby table.

"Next Blackstone gathering is in eight days."

"I saw."

"You going?"

"Probably. Duan He bought Ironback Boar material from someone I know."

"What about rooms?"

"There’s an inn now."

Lin Yuan continued eating.

Chen Wei slowly looked toward him.

Lin Yuan ignored that too.

The merchants continued discussing their route.

Neither knew the owner of Blackstone was sitting only a few tables away.

Chen Wei lowered his voice.

"You look pleased."

"The food is good."

"The food is average."

Lin Yuan took another bite.

"Then I’m easily satisfied."

Chen Wei glanced toward the other table.

He understood anyway.

Blackstone’s name had traveled farther than Lin Yuan expected.

First on the Association notice board.

Then on its map.

Now in ordinary conversation between merchants planning their next trip.

Lin Yuan didn’t need to advertise it himself.

That was new.

Evening had arrived by the time Lin Yuan returned to his room.

His purchases were already with Chen Wei’s caravan.

There was nothing else he needed to do.

He sat beside the window for a while.

Green River City’s streets remained busy below.

Lanterns appeared one by one along the road.

People entered restaurants.

Merchants closed shops.

Cultivators disappeared into inns.

Somewhere among all of them, a few people were already planning to travel west.

And now Blackstone was part of those plans.

Lin Yuan had come to Green River thinking mostly about his own cultivation.

Instead, the most surprising thing he’d found today was a small mark on a merchant map.

Blackstone was no longer only the place he was trying to build.

Other people had begun deciding it was worth visiting.

That mattered.

Tomorrow, he would go home.

Before the next gathering, Blackstone needed a proper water trough for the caravan beasts.

Lin Yuan smiled slightly.

Getting onto the map, apparently, came with more work.