The surroundings changed once again, and a musty smell flooded his nose.
It was called a thatched hut, but the layout inside was more like a dilapidated little shop.
The room was about twenty square meters. An old, meter-wide counter took up a third of the space.
Behind the counter, to the left, was a dilapidated cabinet with three compartments, and to the right was a vertical blackboard.
Words were on it, but they didn't look like they had been written.
He knew from his memories that this thatched hut was a functional building called the Marketplace Hut.
It was a place for transactions and posting quests.
On his side of the counter, to the left, was a long bench missing a leg.
To the right was a single wooden bed that looked ready to collapse at any moment.
The wooden bench restored stamina.
The wooden bed healed injuries.
He knew the place was so run-down because the Stone Ring hadn't had a master for who knew how many years. Naturally, everything inside the hut had fallen into disrepair.
Of course, using anything here required Points.
Points could be earned in two ways: hunting prey and completing quests.
All this information came from the Stone Ring.
Cheng Zongyang looked at the old cabinet. Something was faintly shimmering in its three compartments.
He focused his gaze, and information appeared for each of the three compartments—
Ironwood Bow
Description: Crafted from hundred-year-old ironwood from the Wilderness World and the sinew of a Horn Python aged over ten years.
Grade: White
Durability: 300
Weight: 2.3 kg
Maximum Range: 300 meters
Effective Range: 150 meters
Cost: 100 Points
[Bonus: Includes fifty Ironwood Arrows]
——
Cheng Zongyang's eyes lit up as he read the details of the bow.
'What a treasure!'
As a Hunter, he had always wanted a good bow to drastically improve his hunting efficiency.
It wasn't that they weren't for sale in the county, but the better ones easily cost twenty or thirty taels of silver. For an ordinary farming family, that was an unimaginable sum.
Even if he had that kind of money, which he didn't, he could never pay it all at once.
As his father always said, hunting was pointless without prey, even if you had perfect Archery.
So, a trip into the mountains didn't guarantee a catch.
Especially in the last two years, with everyone short on food, the mountains had naturally become the go-to place for many nearby villages.
Since he couldn't guarantee a catch every day, he certainly couldn't afford to spend lavishly.
The Bow and Arrow he currently used was a family heirloom. It was reliable, but it lacked power.
'I need Points. Looks like I'll have to go hunting,' Cheng Zongyang thought, then turned his attention to the next item.
Medicated Bandage
Description: Soaked in medicinal herbs. Can be used to quickly stop bleeding.
Quantity: 10 (rolls)
Cost: 10 Points
——
Apple
Description: A sweet, juicy fruit. Satisfies hunger and quenches thirst.
Quantity: 10
Cost: 1 Point
——
Cheng Zongyang shook his head slightly.
These three items were all that was available in the 'For Sale' section.
The 'Buyback' section listed the names of ten different animals.
The only thing in the 'For Sale' section that interested him was the Ironwood Bow and Arrow.
'As for the Apple... Come to think of it, the last time I ate an apple was in my past life.'
'The wild apples in the mountains outside taste awful. I wonder if I could grow these instead.'
Cheng Zongyang's mind wandered.
He didn't have any Points right now. The only way to get them was to go out and hunt.
According to the information he'd received, killing a creature awarded Points based on the Energy contained within a unit of its mass. For example, if a unit of regular chicken meat and a unit of regular beef provided similar amounts of Energy, killing them would yield the same number of Points.
Points weren't awarded based on the creature's size.
'That's kind of a rip-off. How can killing a chicken be as difficult as killing a cow?'
Additionally, he could earn Points by selling prey, provided it was one of the specific types the marketplace was buying.
However, the 'For Sale' and 'Buyback' lists weren't permanent. Unsold items and uncompleted requests would refresh every three days.
Next, he shifted his gaze to the vertical blackboard on the right.
Quests
1. Acquire two front bear paws.
Reward: 100 Points
Time Limit: 36 hours
2. Collect ten Wolf Hides.
Reward: 100 Points
Time Limit: None
3. Collect Red Ore
Quantity: 100 kg
Reward: 20 Points
Time Limit: None
4. Collect Snake Galls
Quantity: Unlimited
Reward: 1 Point per gall
Time Limit: 72 hours
——
'These quests aren't exactly difficult, but they aren't simple either.'
Cheng Zongyang frowned.
Hunting a bear wouldn't be too hard with enough preparation.
Wolves, however, were another story.
They were pack animals. Kill one, and you'd have the whole pack on you. It was easy to get into trouble.
Just like the item list, the quest board also refreshed every three days.
He tightened his grip on his Firewood Knife and glanced outside the hut.
It was pitch black, with no moonlight.
The time was the same as the outside world.
'Hunting at night is a huge risk. Better to come back tomorrow.' He decided not to go hunting right away.
The Stone Ring had given him a simple introduction to the Wilderness World, which initially consisted of an area of only five square kilometers.
It had focused on the functions of the Marketplace Hut; he would have to figure out any other features on his own.
What left him speechless was that expanding the world's territory required silver! And increasing the number of item slots required Gold!
But after reading the annotations in the upper-right corner for silver and Gold, he understood why.
Silver could dispel the influence of this world's unknown Energy!
In other words, the territory within the barrier was a normal part of the Wilderness World, while the area outside it was filled with an Energy lethal to humans.
The consumed silver would also replenish the world's underground silver mines at a thousand-to-one ratio.
Gold, similarly, could restore various mineral deposits and supplement its own reserves.
As for Points, they could be used to purchase items, restore stamina, heal injuries, and so on.
Again, this was all just the initial introduction. He would have to discover more functions over time.
Having gained a rough overview, Cheng Zongyang finally let out a sigh of relief.
'I'll prepare well tonight and check things out tomorrow.'
After leaving the Wilderness World, Cheng Zongyang looked around before heading home. Only Father Cheng was still sitting in the main hall.
Mrs. Zhou of the Cheng Family had already taken their young daughter to bed.
As for Cheng Zongliang, who shared a room with Cheng Zongyang, he was already asleep as well.
Rural folk had no entertainment, so they went to bed early. With times being as hard as they were, sleeping early was also a way to endure the hunger.
Cheng Zongyang placed the Firewood Knife on the woodpile in the corner of the courtyard and walked toward the main hall.
The faint candlelight flickered in the draft, making their shadows dance on the wall, growing and shrinking.
Seeing his father sitting silently, Cheng Zongyang sat down across from him and asked in a low voice,
"Dad, what's wrong?"
Cheng Guanghai was silent for a moment before replying in a hushed voice,
"Your mother still doesn't want us going into the Inner Mountain. A lot of villagers have gone in lately, but most of them have come back either dead or injured. It's only natural for her to be worried."
Cheng Zongyang thought for a moment after hearing this, then replied in an equally low voice,
"Golden Bridge Village is right by the mountains. Even with the severe drought, we can still hunt, which means the villagers can survive. It hasn't gotten so bad that people are starving to death yet.
Our family is doing okay for now, but with the way things are this year, once we repay Second Uncle the silver coins we owe him next month, our savings will be completely gone.
Dad, I understand Mom's concerns. So, listen to me: I'll go by myself tomorrow. Just tell her I'll stick to the Outer Mountain."
"No..."
"Dad!"
Cheng Zongyang cut his father off. He looked at the older man's deeply furrowed brow, his own gaze intense, and spoke slowly,
"Someone has to stay home. We can't both go.
To be blunt, if something happened to both of us during these hard times, this family would be finished. That's why one of us has to stay behind.
Dad, I learned my Archery from you. You yourself have admitted my skill.
I'm younger, faster, and stronger. If there's danger, not even a wolf can outrun me. You've seen it with your own eyes.
Besides, I'm just going to scout things out. I won't go in too deep.
And, forgive me for saying something so unlucky, but if there really is an accident, you're the head of this family. You're the one who needs to make the decisions. I'm just a green boy; anyone could try to take advantage of us.
So please, listen to me. Let me be the one to go."