Chapter 24 Trial of Blood
The next day, just as the sky was beginning to lighten, Lan Chi yawned as he stepped out of the space and sat back inside the wagon.
Nightshade looked at his dark circles and asked, "Busy all night? Didn't sleep?"
Lan Chi nodded, unconsciously patting a bulging pouch at his waist, and said happily, "Very productive! Made a lot of good stuff."
Nightshade glanced at him skeptically and said, "I'm going to buy some food and some supplies we'll need for the road. Do you need anything?"
Lan Chi thought for a moment. "Buy some clothes. The clothes Little Hut makes are too plain. Also, some materials for making Flash Bottles. Oh, and are there any spatial storage items for sale here? Like storage rings? I noticed that Firn guy seemed to have a wrist guard with storage function." If he could buy one, he'd have a place to put the ammunition he made.
"Storage rings are hard to come by. The materials here are incomplete, so they can't be made. I'll see if there are any cheap spatial materials available. Maybe Little Hut can generate something else." Nightshade considered for a moment before replying.
"Alright, that works." Lan Chi nodded. Spatial materials were becoming more and more expensive now. Getting that lucky find before was already a stroke of luck. He yawned. "I'm not setting up the stall today. I'm going to sleep first."
"Fine. I'm off. Get some sleep." Nightshade left the wagon and sealed the door behind him.
By the time Nightshade returned from shopping, the sun was already high in the sky. The two ate a quick meal and began packing up the stall.
Lan Chi carried a bucket full of Wheat Berry Fruits and fed them to the Flame Hoof pulling the wagon. Nightshade organized the items inside the wagon.
"Young sir, are you leaving?" Barak, the short figure who had just sobered up, sat slumped in front of his stall. Seeing Lan Chi and Nightshade packing up, he immediately asked.
"Yes, leaving today." Lan Chi smiled and greeted him.
Barak's face showed disappointment. He had originally planned to go find some novelty trinkets from his peers today and try to sell them to this generous young master. "Is that so? I really enjoyed chatting with you, young sir. I hate to see you go."
He hated to see the money go, more like. Lan Chi smiled, not taking Barak's words seriously. "Yeah, I enjoyed our chat too. Maybe we'll meet again sometime."
He climbed onto the wagon and waved goodbye to Barak. Nightshade flicked the whip, and the wagon started moving, leaving the market behind.
...
"It'll take about twenty days to reach our destination from here. The Elf territory borders the Racial Alliance. It'll take about five days to leave Elf lands. Through the Racial Alliance, it'll be about ten days to reach Dwarf territory."
"Huh? And the remaining five days?" Lan Chi asked curiously.
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"The Dwarf territory is quite large. If we want to buy good stuff, we have to go to their main city camp." Nightshade explained.
"I see." Lan Chi nodded in understanding.
Suddenly, a voice sounded in Lan Chi's mind. It was the scorpion-tailed bee scouting ahead. "Master, master, there's trouble ahead."
Lan Chi immediately became alert. "What kind of trouble?"
"There's a group of green-skinned people hiding in the bushes ahead. About ten or so minutes from where you are." The scorpion-tailed bee reported.
"Got it." Lan Chi replied. He stood up, ducked back into the wagon compartment, took out the weapon he had assembled last night, removed the ammunition, and loaded it.
Nightshade glanced sideways at Lan Chi's weapon and asked, "Is that a projectile weapon?"
"Huh? You know about these?" Lan Chi was slightly surprised.
"Yes. There are similar things outside. Different shape, same function." Nightshade explained.
"Then why aren't they here?" Lan Chi felt a chill in his heart.
"This is Elf territory. They don't really like this type of weapon, so few people use them here. Besides, this is a dimensional world—not as developed as the main world. Once we reach the next territory, similar weapons will be available for sale." Nightshade explained patiently.
"Damn, why aren't they sold on the trading channel on the light screen?" Lan Chi felt completely off-balance. He thought he had arrived in an underdeveloped region, but now there were supernatural abilities, monsters, and now thermal weapons appearing. He didn't even have a profession! How was he supposed to survive!?
"The trial ground has only been open for a little over a month. The Gods' Trial doesn't allow outside material support. The only thing you can bring in is your own strength. Everything must be started from scratch. Weapons must be made here." Nightshade curled his lip in a mocking smile. "Actually, this is just a variation of blood sacrifice. Watch the various races slaughter each other, and the race that wins in the end gets this dimensional world."
Lan Chi swallowed hard. Good thing he had been careful all along, or he would have died without even knowing how.
Nightshade glanced at him and chuckled softly. "No need to be so nervous. As long as you don't expose your identity, this doesn't concern commoners like us. Not everyone here is a trial participant. Many people followed through teleportation positioning. These people aren't counted as part of the trial. Under normal circumstances, the strong won't lay a hand on commoners. After all, they wouldn't build their own camps or do their own laundry and cooking. The lords need attendants."
The wagon quickly arrived at the ambush location. Lan Chi sat steadily in the compartment, gripping his homemade shotgun in his hand. The ammunition was already loaded. He stared outside through a crack in the window.
"Get ready. They're coming." The scorpion-tailed bee's real-time report sounded in his mind.
No sooner had the message arrived than a volley of arrows shot out from the bushes, flying straight toward the moving wagon.
Nightshade raised his hand, and a formation materialized before him. The formation expanded, and the incoming arrows turned to dust the moment they touched it.
A group of green-skinned people burst out from the bushes, charging toward the wagon with raised machetes. Lan Chi recognized them—that group of Thornskin Half-breeds.
The group charged to about ten meters from the wagon. Lan Chi raised his shotgun.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
After three consecutive shots, the Thornskin Half-breeds at the front fell to the ground. They weren't dead, but all lay on the ground groaning.
"Damn, rich indeed. Got thermal weapons just over a month into the trial." The Thornskin Half-breed at the back stepped forward. He glanced at his fallen companions, spat, and charged toward the wagon.
Lan Chi fired again, but this time, the shot had no effect on the man.
"Ha!" A powerful energy erupted from the Thornskin Half-breed, deflecting all the pellets.
Seeing the opponent's erupted power, Nightshade frowned. "Tier 1 warrior class. Your gun is useless. I'll handle him."
"Huh? This guy is Tier 1?" Lan Chi was secretly shocked. Different from the one he encountered before. Well, he couldn't defeat that one either. In the end, he had only managed to cripple him with his talent.
"Yes." Nightshade stopped the wagon and stepped down.
"Oh? Not using your toy against me? Coming at me directly? Pretty brave." The Thornskin Half-breed twisted his neck, producing a series of crisp cracks from his bones. He grinned, revealing a ferocious smile.
