IMC Chapter 69

To head to the Thick Soil Gobi, the first and foremost priority is to prepare enough food and water. Once inside, reaching the nearest oasis would take about ten days, assuming no getting lost and relatively good weather conditions.

After their recent raid, Shu Bao and his companions had more than enough of these supplies. Shu Bao even adhered to the principle of sustainable development, starting to engage in planting and farming within the space of the jade bracelet.

If the wearer wants to enter the bracelet’s space, they need to place the bracelet somewhere, and Jinzi’s head is a good choice—it’s large enough. Unlike Yinzi, Jinzi flies steadily without much movement.

The three initially thought that with their flying advantage, they could quickly reach the Thick Soil Gobi. However, as they got closer, they found that not only did the environment become increasingly desolate, but the wind also grew stronger. Once inside the Thick Soil Gobi, tornadoes and storms became common.

In the Chaotic World, tornadoes and storms are even more dangerous than in the real world because you can never be sure what’s inside. It could be various sharp metals from the Thick Soil Gobi or fierce wind attribute magical beasts that dwell within.

Eventually, the three had to give up on flying and land on the ground. Although the wind was still strong, it was much weaker than at high altitudes, making walking feasible.

Once on the ground, various limitations appeared. The maximum visibility was greatly reduced, especially with the sandstorms. With the combined effect of night and yellow sand, even Shu Bao, who wore the Cat Eyes Necklace, couldn’t see the surroundings clearly. The three could only stumble forward as if blind.

In these difficult conditions, the three inevitably got lost. The legendary first oasis seemed distant, and they could only be accompanied by yellow earth each day.

The dragonlings, who weren’t fond of the bracelet’s space, had stopped coming out. With a full space of snacks that they couldn’t eat, the three cubs could only divert their attention by growing vegetables. Shu Bao also gave them a piece of space to mess around in.

As for Lan Qing, he seriously noted that the wind and sand outside, along with the temperature fluctuations between day and night, were unsuitable for hatching ducks, so he also moved to the bracelet’s space.

Finally, Shu Bao and Fu Qing were left to brave the wind outside, or rather, Fu Qing, who carried the fluffy mouse on his shoulders, continued the journey. Shu Bao was quite comfortable as Fu Qing could use his spiritual power to create a small protected area, shielding them from the wind and sand.

The mouse even managed to snack on a grasshopper leg while traveling, though the scenery was less than ideal. Otherwise, it would have been a pleasant trip.

After traveling for two days in such harsh conditions, the lost duo finally found a tavern. From the outside, it looked much larger than Lan Qing’s tavern. But once inside, they found the facilities and decoration were quite shabby. Even so, the place was crowded with people.

This sudden encounter with people after three days of isolation made Shu Bao and Fu Qing feel a sense of time distortion. As Fu Qing, who was impeccably clean, stepped into the tavern, a brief silence fell over the place. In a world where most people looked grimy and dusty, Fu Qing’s overly clean appearance was quite striking.

Moreover, the fact that this person was wearing a mask and had a mouse on his shoulder made his appearance even more familiar.

The patrons’ gazes lingered on Fu Qing for a moment before shifting to the announcement board by the entrance, where two imperial knights were posting a wanted notice.

The imperial knights were loudly discussing the contents of the notice, completely oblivious to the new arrivals. They were extolling the crimes of the wanted individual and the substantial reward for capturing them.

The patrons compared the description on the wanted notice with Fu Qing’s appearance and kept glancing back at him with suspicion.

As they were starting to doubt, they saw their suspect walking directly towards the announcement board and initiating a conversation with the imperial knights. “Is this person really worth 100 Thick Earth Crystals?”

“Of course!” The imperial knights, annoyed by the interruption, turned to look at Fu Qing and his mouse. They glanced back at the notice and saw that the wanted person also wore a mask and had a mouse and a snake as pets.

As the imperial knights grew wary, the man in front of them spoke with a hint of lamentation, “So valuable! How come the difference is so big between someone who wears a mask and raises a mouse?”

Such a nonchalant attitude made the onlookers hesitate. They began to think it was merely a coincidence, considering no one would be so foolish as to deliver themselves to the imperial knights and even engage in conversation with them.

The imperial knights seemed to share this view, but they still scrutinized Fu Qing carefully. Fu Qing remained calm under their scrutiny and inquired, “Is it because the other person’s mouse can talk that it’s more valuable? Mine can even crack sunflower seeds!”

At that moment, Shu Bao cracked open a sunflower seed, and upon noticing the surrounding gazes, pretended not to understand and continued eating the seeds.

After a thorough examination, the crowd concluded that the man in front of them was not the wanted individual. It was not uncommon to encounter people wearing masks lately, given the audacity of plundering imperial resource points, which implied both madness and strength. In this chaotic world, strength always attracts admirers.

The imperial knights eventually concluded their discourse on imperial dignity and threats before leaving. Meanwhile, Fu Qing had seamlessly blended into the tavern and gathered information from other patrons about the route to the oasis. He also inquired with the tavern owner about channels for purchasing Thick Earth Crystals.

Unexpectedly, this question aroused the owner’s suspicion. He scrutinized Fu Qing carefully before speaking, “Thick Earth Crystals are not for commoners to buy or use; only nobles are qualified to handle them. Buying Thick Earth Crystals? Are you seeking death?” The owner was clearly displeased and wary of any connection to Thick Earth Crystals.

Fu Qing realized that this question had been a bit careless, but this rule about noble transactions likely only applied to the Thick Soil Gobi. According to the information Shu Bao had, Thick Earth Crystals could be freely bought and sold outside, though they were scarce and extremely expensive. So, the small tavern they were in wouldn’t have any.

After two days of traveling, Fu Qing had initially planned to rest in a room at the tavern. However, after this incident, the looks he received from those around him had turned suspicious. After a brief consideration, Fu Qing decided to leave the tavern.

As soon as he stepped out, several people followed him, clearly intrigued by his appearance and lack of local knowledge. If he were indeed the wanted individual, the wealth he possessed would be unimaginable. Such a vast resource was a temptation many were willing to test.

Not far from the tavern, Fu Qing was unsurprisingly intercepted. The leader of the group bluntly asked, “May I ask if you come from the Lan of Gold Sources and if you are the one who raided the imperial resource points?”

Fu Qing did not answer directly but countered with a question, “How do you think the imperial resource points were raided?”

This casual remark made the crowd break into a cold sweat. Indeed, the empire was well-equipped and had many powerful knights and mages. To think that one person could raid them suggested that this person’s strength must be terrifying.

The two imperial knights had not mentioned the reasons for the empire’s defeat or the danger level of the masked person. Whether they genuinely did not know or feared that revealing the truth might deter people from pursuing the bounty was unclear.

“Stop listening to him scare us. The empire only breeds useless people, unlike those of us who have survived in the Thick Soil Gobi. To put it bluntly, anyone who has lived here has blood on their hands!” One of the members of the intercepting group suddenly spoke up, trying to rally the spirits of the team.

This voice was quite familiar, causing Shu Bao, who was eating sunflower seeds, to lift his head in surprise and point with his paw. “Ah! It’s the tavern owner!”

Prompted by Shu Bao’s reminder, Fu Qing recognized the person as well—the owner of the tavern near the Chaotic Swamp.

Shu Bao immediately stood up and quickly called out to Lan Qing, who was busy both incubating eggs and flipping through pages of a potion manual inside the bracelet space, “Lan Qing, Lan Qing, it’s your boss!”

Lan Qing instantly threw away the potion manual and craned his little head around, “Where? Where?”

“Right outside!” Shu Bao communicated through the bracelet, asking if Lan Qing wanted to come out.

Lan Qing eagerly nodded but then quickly shook his head, “Wait a moment, I need to wash my neck!”

Shu Bao: “…”

During the wait, Fu Qing calmly spoke, “There is more than one tavern owner.”

This confused Shu Bao immediately. Could tavern owners split into two? Looking up, he discovered there were indeed two owners, not split, but one was the previous tavern owner from the Chaotic Swamp, and the other was the owner from the recent tavern.

It was clear that Fu Qing’s question had made the owners suspicious of his background, prompting them to consider intercepting him. It seemed that the owner from the Chaotic Swamp knew the owner from the Thick Soil Gobi, as they stood together and occasionally exchanged words.

Shu Bao blinked and asked Lan Qing through the bracelet, “Lan Qing, would you mind managing an additional tavern? It’s quite large, but a bit run-down.”

Lan Qing: ???

After thoroughly washing his neck, Lan Qing didn’t quite understand the fuzzy teammate’s meaning, but as a diligent snake, he nodded affirmatively, “Sure.”

Shu Bao was relieved. Both he and Fu Qing had bases to build and manage in the real world, so they couldn’t stay in the chaotic world for long. They needed a reliable teammate to develop a foundation in the chaotic world. With Lan Qing’s awakened apothecary talent and boss-like qualities, he was undoubtedly the best choice.

“I’m ready. Let me out,” Lan Qing said, adjusting the butterfly knot he had just tied around his neck, ensuring it was properly in place, then puffing out his chest and striking a dignified pose.

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