Chapter 78: The Price of Security

The Association wagon left Blackstone shortly after breakfast.

Lin Yuan sat near the back with Zhao Wei and Shen Yao while two other investigators rode closer to the front. Their equipment occupied most of the remaining space.

Blackstone slowly disappeared behind them.

For a while, Lin Yuan could still see the first stone posts standing beyond the stable. Then the road curved, and the settlement vanished behind a low stretch of wasteland.

He had prepared for the trip before leaving.

Su Mei would handle the tavern while he was away, with Xiao Lan helping at the front as usual. Qiao Ren and the other merchants would still be nearby, and two Association investigators remained at the excavation.

It was the first time in a long while that Lin Yuan could leave Blackstone for several days without locking the tavern behind him.

That alone showed how much had changed.

Before he boarded the wagon, Xiao Lan had reminded him about the entrance sign.

Lin Yuan had refused to promise anything.

Zhao Wei noticed his expression.

"Already worried?"

"I’m wondering how expensive that entrance is going to become."

Shen Yao opened one eye.

"We haven’t even left Blackstone properly."

"That doesn’t make it cheaper."

Zhao Wei smiled faintly and returned his attention to the road.

The wagon continued east.

The journey took several days.

Traveling with the Association was slower than using Lin Yuan’s flying artifact, but considerably easier.

He did not need to spend spiritual Qi keeping himself in the air for hours at a time or search for somewhere sheltered whenever exhaustion forced him to stop.

The group followed established roads where possible and made camp before nightfall.

The Association had brought enough supplies for the journey, though Lin Yuan still ate from his own storage bag.

During the first evening, Shen Yao spent most of her time examining notes from the excavation.

Measurements, sketches, and rubbings taken from the buried stone covered several sheets beside her.

Lin Yuan sat nearby eating dinner.

"You’re still working?"

"I’m organizing."

"You said that two hours ago."

"I’m still organizing."

Zhao Wei, seated beside the fire, made no effort to hide his amusement.

Lin Yuan decided the investigation could remain Shen Yao’s problem until they returned to Blackstone.

The landscape gradually changed as they traveled east.

Dry wasteland gave way to patches of grass. Low hills appeared in the distance, followed by small streams and stretches of healthier vegetation.

The spiritual Qi in the air also became noticeably denser.

Lin Yuan had experienced the difference before, but after spending so much time in Blackstone, it remained difficult to ignore.

As the journey continued, traffic increased.

Wagons passed in both directions. Cultivators traveled on spirit beasts, and the occasional flying artifact crossed overhead.

When Green River City’s gray walls finally appeared in the distance, Lin Yuan straightened slightly.

He had made this journey before. This time, he had come to learn what keeping Blackstone safer would cost.

Their wagon entered Green River City through the western gate.

The guards checked the Association markings briefly before waving them through.

Noise surrounded Lin Yuan almost immediately.

Merchants called from storefronts. Wagon wheels rattled across stone streets. Cultivators moved between medicine halls, inns, weapon shops, and crowded market lanes.

Compared with Green River City, Blackstone was still small, with a tavern, a market, several businesses, and the beginnings of a perimeter.

That didn’t bother Lin Yuan.

Green River City had taken far longer than a few months to become what it was.

The wagon continued until they reached a busy intersection.

Zhao Wei stood.

"The Association branch is north."

Lin Yuan took Shen Yao’s folded note from his storage bag.

"The formation shop is west."

"The second one," Shen Yao reminded him.

"I remember."

"Good."

Zhao Wei climbed down.

"We’ll probably be in the city for two days."

Lin Yuan looked at him.

"That long?"

"Reports, equipment, meetings."

Shen Yao adjusted the wooden case beside her.

"The meetings are the dangerous part."

Lin Yuan believed her.

"I’ll find somewhere to stay tonight."

Zhao Wei nodded.

"We leave after our business is finished. If that changes, I’ll send word."

That suited Lin Yuan. There was little reason to make the long return journey alone if the Association wagon would be heading back soon.

Shen Yao pointed west.

"Third street after the herb market. There’s a bronze formation disk above the entrance."

"That should be easy enough to find."

"It is."

They separated at the intersection.

Lin Yuan headed west through the afternoon crowds.

He passed through the herb market and counted the streets carefully. Even with Shen Yao’s directions, he nearly walked past the formation shop.

The building was narrow and plain, squeezed between a tool seller and a store dealing in spiritual beast equipment.

The sign above the entrance was much harder to miss.

A bronze disk hung beneath the roof, covered in fine engraved lines. Several markings glowed faintly as Lin Yuan approached before fading again.

He studied it for a moment.

A voice came from inside.

"If you’re interested in the sign, you can inspect it from inside."

Lin Yuan entered.

Shelves covered both walls.

Formation plates of different sizes rested beside engraved stakes, metal disks, jade tokens, bundles of prepared flags, and several objects Lin Yuan could not identify.

An elderly man sat behind the counter working on a palm-sized formation plate.

"What do you need?"

"A detection formation."

The man continued working.

"For a house?"

"A settlement."

His hands stopped.

He finally looked up.

"How large?"

"Only the developed part."

"That still doesn’t tell me much."

Lin Yuan had expected that.

He removed the rough map he had prepared and placed it on the counter.

The old man studied the page.

His eyes moved across the tavern, stable, market, road, and the perimeter Lin Yuan had marked around them.

"You drew this yourself?"

"Yes."

"I suspected as much."

Lin Yuan decided the map had already received enough criticism.

The formation master tapped the northern section.

"What’s here?"

"A restricted excavation."

The man’s attention sharpened.

"Blackstone?"

Lin Yuan looked at him.

"You’ve heard of it?"

"I hear things."

Apparently, everyone did.

The old man examined the map again.

"You want to know when someone crosses this outer line?"

"Yes."

"Do you need the formation to stop them?"

"Only warn me."

"That simplifies things."

He leaned back slightly.

"A fixed detection array would be cheapest. Once installed, its coverage stays where it is."

"That won’t work."

The man studied the unused land surrounding the buildings.

"You expect the settlement to grow."

"It already has."

"Then you’ll want a modular array."

He opened a drawer beneath the counter and removed a dark metal formation plate.

Several narrow grooves spread outward from its center.

"This type uses a central plate connected to separate boundary markers. If the settlement expands, more markers can be added without replacing the core."

That matched what Shen Yao had recommended.

"Can it tell me where someone crossed?"

"Yes, if you use the linked version."

The formation master placed a small bronze token beside the plate.

"When a section is triggered, the token reacts and shows which part of the array was crossed."

"How many markers?"

"Twelve in the standard set."

Lin Yuan considered the perimeter he had planned.

That should be enough for the current developed area if they were positioned carefully.

"And if I need more later?"

"Additional markers can be added in pairs."

Lin Yuan reached the question that had brought him here.

"How much?"

"Thirty-two lower-grade spirit stones for the formation, twelve markers, and the linked token."

Lin Yuan kept his expression neutral.

"Installation?"

"Six more."

Thirty-eight lower-grade spirit stones in total.

Lin Yuan had expected security to be expensive, but hearing the actual number still hurt.

"Additional markers?"

"Two lower-grade spirit stones each."

Lin Yuan studied the central plate.

The cheaper fixed array would solve the immediate problem, but Blackstone was still expanding.

Buying something he would need to replace later did not sound like saving money.

"How soon could it be installed?"

The old man glanced at the map again.

"Where exactly is Blackstone?"

Lin Yuan explained the route.

The formation master considered it for a moment.

"That far west makes scheduling more troublesome."

Lin Yuan nodded.

"My apprentice can travel with one of the regular western caravans once the order is confirmed. There are usually several heading that way each month."

"Has he installed this type before?"

"Many times."

That was enough experience to satisfy Lin Yuan.

"What does he need prepared?"

"The final route should be marked before he arrives. Your posts don’t need to be finished, but he needs to know exactly where you want the monitored line."

That would be manageable.

The workers could continue establishing the perimeter while Lin Yuan decided whether the formation was worth the cost.

He studied the plate again.

"I need to check my funds before I commit."

The formation master showed no surprise.

"Reasonable."

"How long will you hold this price?"

"Three weeks."

That gave Lin Yuan enough time to return to Blackstone, check his funds, and send payment back if he decided to proceed.

The old man took a small wooden slip from beneath the counter and wrote the formation name, price, and installation cost on it.

"If you decide to purchase it, send the payment through a trusted caravan or return here yourself. Once the order is confirmed, I’ll arrange the installation."

Lin Yuan accepted the slip.

Before putting it away, he asked one more question.

"If someone understands formations, can they bypass it?"

The old man’s expression became more serious.

"A normal cultivator damaging a marker would trigger the array first. Someone skilled in formations might recognize the structure and interfere with it."

"So it can be defeated."

"Every formation can be defeated by someone with enough skill, preparation, or strength."

That matched Zhao Wei’s warning.

The formation could warn Lin Yuan about trouble, but it would never make Blackstone untouchable.

"If you expect enemies capable of quietly dismantling formations," the old man continued, "you need people capable of stopping them. An alarm cannot do that for you."

Lin Yuan nodded.

"That’s all I needed to know."

He picked up his map.

The old man glanced at it.

"Improve that before my apprentice sees it."

Lin Yuan folded the paper.

"The ground is easier to understand."

"I hope so."

Lin Yuan left the shop.

Outside, he moved away from the entrance before taking out the wooden slip.

Thirty-eight lower-grade spirit stones.

The number was high enough that Lin Yuan refused to make a decision before checking his actual funds.

He was already paying for stone, labor, food supplies, maintenance, and the ordinary costs of running the tavern. All of that had to come from his own spirit stones.

Territory Revenue could continue growing, but it could not pay a formation master.

Lin Yuan stored the slip with Shen Yao’s note.

Once he returned to Blackstone, he would count what he actually had and decide whether the expandable formation was worth purchasing immediately or whether it needed to wait.

At least he now knew the price.

The Association would remain in the city until at least the following day, leaving him enough time to handle a few other things before the return journey.

A timber yard stood farther down the street.

Beside it was a tool shop that might have equipment useful for the perimeter work.

Lin Yuan started in that direction.

Halfway there, something across the road caught his attention.

Several carved wooden signboards hung outside a small shop.

Some were plain rectangles, while others had decorative borders or engraved characters painted in dark lacquer.

Xiao Lan’s reminder about Blackstone’s entrance immediately returned to him.

Lin Yuan kept walking.

He had come to Green River City to price a security formation, not to spend spirit stones decorating the road.

After several steps, he glanced back at the signboards.

Checking the prices, at least, should cost nothing.