Ever since upgrading the city, Ye Miao has been so busy that he has no time to care about any new copies outside.

Not to mention drifting, even if a big boss spawns outside the territory gate, as long as he doesn't actively attack the territory, she may not have time to fight him in the next few days.

But no matter what game it is, there are always some expert strategy experts. These experts often spend a lot of time and money, and love to compete with each other. Everyone is committed to creating a strategy guide as soon as a new feature is released.

Especially when it comes to dungeons, whoever writes the walkthrough first is the best!

So on the first day the river was opened, several territory strategy enthusiasts keenly discovered that there was a fork in the road. When passing the fork in the road, a prompt would pop up and there was a "Start Rafting" button.

Players quickly flocked to the new land after discovering it. After completing it, what began as a rough guide became increasingly detailed, with gameplay tutorials circulating across the territory. Within a few days, rafting had become the new favorite gameplay in Get Rich Overnight City.

To join the rafting, you need a bamboo raft, which is sold in the system store. Ye Miao had seen them when she was buying merchant ships and fishing boats, but she didn't think they were very practical and didn't expect them to have rafting functions, so she didn't deploy them directly at the dock. She simply bought a few and resold them at the general store, along with a wooden boat.

Now, when she followed Chu Cheng to the dock, she found that the bamboo raft was quite large when placed on the water, and it was no problem for more than a dozen people to stand on it.

After all the team members Chu Cheng had brought arrived, they boarded the bamboo raft and found a place to sit. Chu Cheng reminded them, "Sit evenly and don't crowd on one side."

As you can imagine, if everyone is crowded on one side, the raft will overturn. This kind of small detail is very common in the game.

The team consisted of ten people, eight of whom sat down. Chu Cheng and Yi Hang rowed, one at the bow and one at the stern. The bamboo raft slowly sailed eastward along the river, passing directly through the protective barrier and drifting into the dense forest.

This dense forest, nestled against a mountain range, covers a vast area. Players usually only have access to the shallower section for monster hunting. However, the river runs through the entire forest, and the bamboo raft soon reaches a less-traveled area. The surroundings become quiet, the mist thickens, and the aroma of grass, trees, and soil, brewing in the dampness, becomes rich. The occasional chirp of cicadas and birdsong can be heard, creating a sense of tranquility and peace, yet also forcing one to be wary of monsters suddenly lurking in the dense forest.

Yi Hang, standing at the stern, rowed hard while explaining, "There are quite a few level 70 or 80 monsters in this woods. They'll attack you and are very difficult to deal with, but luckily they won't jump into the river. As long as we don't go ashore, we'll be safe."

After hearing what he said, one of his teammates immediately asked with a smile: "Have you tried it?"

"..." Yi Hang coughed dryly, "Don't ask."

Li Chenqi sat at Yi Hang's feet, eating a box of fried chicken, and lazily revealed his shortcomings: "He didn't just try. He even put his bow in his backpack! He jumped ashore and didn't even have time to breathe before dozens of giant wolves pounced on him. If Chu Cheng and I hadn't intervened in time with our bows and arrows, his grave would be covered in grass three feet high by now."

"Hahahahahaha!" The team members burst into laughter. Yi Hang kicked Li Chenqi angrily, making him grit his teeth.

Someone else asked, "I heard Chu Cheng say you haven't tried rafting before, but now that you've come this far, why don't you just go?"

Seeing the topic being changed, Yi Hang's expression improved a little. He explained, "It's not that we don't want to, but rafting requires at least eight people in a team. There are only three of us in total, and the system won't let us in."

"I see." The questioner nodded to show his understanding.

The bamboo raft continued to move forward. Since the rafting fork was very far away and it would take several hours to reach it, everyone gradually felt a little bored.

At first, everyone was chatting, but then there was nothing to talk about, so it was a good time to have lunch. After lunch, some players jumped onto the shore, took the opportunity to kill monsters and collect, and then caught up with the bamboo raft to rest.

They drifted like this until almost dusk, finally arriving near the drifting dungeon. Yi Hang glanced ahead and exclaimed, "Holy crap! It's rush hour, huh?! Why is there still a traffic jam?"

The team members were really planning to have dinner at this moment. Upon hearing this, they looked forward together. Ye Miao also turned her head and saw that the originally spacious and calm river was suddenly congested. There were dozens of bamboo rafts in front. Some of the people on them looked familiar to her. They were members of the Overnight Rich City, and the other unfamiliar ones might be from the Tiaodeng City.

"Hello, boss!" When they got closer, many members of the Get Rich Overnight City recognized her and greeted her.

Ye Miao smiled and nodded in response, then asked them, "I've never been here before. What's going on? Do I have to queue up for rafting?"

If we have to queue up and enter one by one, how long will it take with so many people?

Fortunately, the other party smiled and replied, "No need! Once you enter the drift, it's just like entering a normal dungeon. Each team has a 'parallel universe', but there are too many people now, and the fork in the road is narrow, so we're squeezed here!"

That's much better.

Everyone waited patiently as the long line of bamboo rafts moved forward slowly but orderly. After waiting for about ten minutes, they reached a bend and a button popped up in front of several people: [Enter Rafting].

Everyone pressed "Yes" at the same time. After a brief pause, the bamboo raft continued to move forward and automatically turned into a fork in the road. The moment it entered the fork in the road, a faint silver light like a veil passed by. It was the transition gate of the copy.

The next second, the current suddenly became turbulent, and the atmosphere suddenly became tense! The team members who had been sitting comfortably on the bamboo raft stood up involuntarily, took out their equipment, and looked around vigilantly.

Five seconds later, the first wave of monsters spawned on the riverbank, with the name "Sheep-Headed Monster" hanging above their heads. The monsters had human-like bodies, wielding various weapons, but with a goat's head, they didn't look too scary.

Almost all the members noticed at the same time that their names were in red font, indicating that each of them was a mini-boss, and that they would be very ferocious if they appeared together.

In a flash, the monsters launched their first wave of attacks, showering them with countless arrows. Ye Miao, the only melee fighter on the team, silently chanted "Shadowless Sword" and leaned forward, cutting off most of the arrows. However, many still pierced the raft, sticking diagonally to the side, resembling hedgehogs.

A ranged mage behind him leaped up and cast a spell, but due to the turbulent current, the bamboo raft kept shaking as it moved forward, and two spells in a row missed. Just as he was about to cast a third spell, he saw something in front of him, and a gigantic goat-headed monster jumped onto the raft and landed right in front of him.

"Damn it, how can this thing jump up here!" The mage screamed after being stabbed twice in a row. Ye Miao turned around and swung his sword. When he was about to chop the sheep-headed monster for the third time, the monster's head and body were separated and fell into the river. Three seconds later, it disappeared without a trace along with the body that fell on the bamboo raft, dropping its equipment.

In the rafting gameplay, since the players are on the bamboo raft and the monsters are mostly on the shore, the dropped rewards do not need to be picked up by the players, but will be automatically collected into the backpack of the killer.

Ye Miao saw the system automatically pop up the pickup prompt, and felt it was very considerate. At the same time, he smiled and said: "If they can come up, we can go over!"

After saying that, she took two steps back, took a running start, and then leaped over the river between the bamboo raft and the shore with ease. With both swords wielded, she charged into the dense army of sheep-headed monsters.

"Boss, don't be so reckless!" The mage who had just been beaten felt his scalp tingling, and before he could finish his words, his arm was grabbed.

"You row the boat." Chu Cheng stuffed the long pole for rowing the bamboo raft into his hand without saying a word, then he also stepped back to run and jumped onto the river bank.

This mage had never paid attention to the Olympics before the apocalypse, and had never teamed up with Chu Cheng to clear a dungeon after joining the territory. He had no idea of ​​Chu Cheng's strength, and his mind went blank when he saw this operation: "Oh my god... The boss is a melee fighter after all! You archer, don't try to get yourself killed!!!"

But wherever the two men passed, the monsters that were originally as surging as a tide fell one after another like harvested wheat, and several melee sheep-headed monsters jumped onto the bamboo raft. Yi Hang also handed the long pole to others, and quickly drew his bow, shooting arrows at their faces, one by one.

Confused Mage: ???

What does it mean??? Melee Archer???

What kind of team is he approaching!!!

The female assassin two steps away was just as unable to intervene as the mage, so she simply freed her hands to applaud: "The national team is awesome! Awesome!"

"Boom, boom--" The river bank where Chu Cheng and Ye Miao were suddenly shook. Everyone looked up in horror and saw only the trees swaying.

A huge black shadow emerged from the foggy forest, with large dark red characters above its head reading: [Sheep-Headed Monster King].

Ye Miao took a defensive stance and instinctively backed away. After two steps, she suddenly bumped into a solid back. She glanced sideways warily. Chu Cheng was just shooting down the last few monsters with arrows. He pointed toward the raft and said, "Hold the raft steady! The guide says if the raft flips over, the whole team will be wiped out!"

"Holy crap?!" the mage was shocked.

Seeing the boss coming out, he was about to rush over to help, but now it seems that stabilizing the bamboo raft is the more important thing!

Yi Hang's mouth twitched: So that's how it is.

He had previously felt that a team of ten with only one melee fighter was too few, but Chu Cheng insisted that Ye Miao's combat prowess was sufficient. Now it seemed that while his combat prowess was true, it was definitely not his original intention in forming a team this way.

What he really wanted was probably that Ye Miao would go ashore alone to fight as a melee fighter, while the other team members could only attack from a distance. Although he was also a ranged fighter, his level was high enough so he was fearless and could fight alongside her!

Yi Hang thought with a sense of humor: I am of a high level and I am fearless. It must be fun to be a light bulb!

But considering their years of brotherhood, Yi Hang held back.

On the bamboo raft, there is now a relatively low-level mage at the bow and stern to support the boat, and the other team members are throwing darts, arrows, and spells to attack the boss.

On the shore, Ye Miao and Chu Cheng moved flexibly, attacking and dodging the boss's attacks.

They soon discovered that in addition to normal attacks, the [Sheep-Headed Monster King] also had two spells, one called [Darkness Shrouds] and the other called [Black Shadow Pierces].

Among them, [Black Shadow Penetrates] is a single-target attack. Once hit, the black mist will directly penetrate the body, ignoring defense and causing high damage.

Darkness Shroud is an AoE attack skill, so while the damage isn't high, being hit by it will stun you for 1 second, preventing you from moving or casting skills. If the boss happens to cast Shadow Through at this time, it can be very troublesome.

What's even more annoying is that every time [Darkness Shroud] hits the ground, it will cause an earthquake, and the river will also be affected. The bamboo raft will shake violently and it has been on the verge of capsizing several times.

Ye Miao glanced at his teammates struggling to keep the bamboo raft balanced, and felt unhappy in his heart: What kind of monster wants them to fail the mission? Wishful thinking!

"Chu Cheng!" she shouted. Chu Cheng, who was shooting arrows at a rapid speed, stopped and saw that she was rushing towards the boss.

"I'll attract its hatred, and you attack it from behind!" Ye Miao said as he leaped up, stepped on the front hoof of the sheep-headed monster king and made a double jump, leaping to his shoulder, holding the dagger in his hand and stabbing the monster in the face.

"Okay." Chu Cheng chuckled and quickly ran behind the monster. The Sheep-Headed Monster King noticed something was wrong and was about to turn back when he was hit again. Instantly furious, he roared and cast [Dark Shadow Piercing] at Ye Miao.

"Overlap of reality and illusion, shadowless sword!" Ye Miao released two skills at the same time, completing the exchange the moment the phantom appeared. The [Black Shadow Piercing] that was originally aimed at her hit the phantom, and the phantom's health bar was emptied and it disappeared instantly.

But even if one phantom vanished, there were still 12 figures clinging to the monster, including herself. All 12 figures simultaneously activated their shadowless swords, and sword shadows swirled around the goat-headed monster king's body, constantly flashing.

This skill combination was extremely damaging and insulting. The boss instantly became furious, clawing frantically at the shadows that flashed across his body, trying to catch Ye Miao, not even bothering to use any skills.

Ye Miao nimbly dodged two attacks that flew over his head. Chu Cheng also rushed behind the monster, pulled out five golden arrows and cast the skill [Ten Thousand Arrows]. The five arrows flew out of his hand and split continuously before hitting the target, weaving into a golden light.

Ye Miao caught a glimpse of golden light and guessed that it was Chu Cheng casting a skill. He immediately launched a new round of [Shadowless Sword], chopping the monsters and creating shadows.

Looking from the bamboo raft at this time, Ye Miao looked heroic in front of the monster; the back of the monster was covered in golden light.

Two seconds later, arrows hit the monster one after another. Combined with the damage from the Shadowless Sword, the monster's health bar was quickly dissolved and rapidly shortened at a speed visible to the naked eye until it returned to zero.

"Fuck——" The mage was dumbfounded.

The monster fell to the ground with a loud bang, and the smoke and thick fog it stirred up filled the air and did not dissipate for a long time.

The teammates subconsciously narrowed their eyes, and two dark shadows walked out from the smoke and dust, and their outlines gradually became apparent.

"So strong!!!" Everyone applauded at the same time. The mage, who had no idea about their fighting ability, was the most surprised and clapped the loudest.

When they reached the shore, Chu Cheng paused for two seconds, waiting for Ye Miao to jump onto the raft and stand firmly. Then Chu Cheng jumped on and told everyone slowly, "It is said that the most generous reward for rafting is the treasure chest at the end. There is one for each person, and it contains a lot of things."

Hearing this, the team members were in a good mood.

Since the rewards for killing monsters were previously stuffed directly into the backpack by the system, the team members who could hardly touch the monsters knew that they could not complain because of their low output, but they still felt that their trip was in vain and had some regrets.

But if the final treasure chest is the highlight, then it’s different... That means that they were taken by the boss to lie down and get the rewards. As for those dropped by the monsters before, it’s only right that they should be given to the boss!

After the boss died, the water was still turbulent, but without any skills to disrupt it, the bamboo raft became much more stable.

After drifting a few dozen meters further, a small wooden house appeared not far from the shore. The bamboo raft automatically docked under the control of the system. Chu Cheng looked at the wooden house and said, "This is a place for players to rest and recuperate. The rewards are also here."

"There is such a setting, how thoughtful!" said the female assassin in the team with a smile.

After that, everyone got off the bamboo raft one after another. Everyone received the key to open the treasure chest when they got ashore. Like the previous rewards, it was automatically generated into the backpack.

Everyone entered the cabin. Ten treasure chests were neatly arranged, their contents invisible from the outside. Since the team members had little choice, they each randomly picked one and opened it. Ye Miao walked over to the third one, crouched down, and opened it. After a golden light effect, the reward appeared. It was indeed generous!

[Gold Coins*30000]

[Advanced Blood Replenishing Potion*7]

【Mutton*52】

【Star Wand*1】

Among them, the Starlight Wand was a purple piece of equipment specifically for ranged mages. The ranged mage happened to be opening a box next to Ye Miao and stumbled upon it. He couldn't take his eyes off it and flattered her, "Boss... this is mage equipment. You definitely won't need it in close combat. Give me a price for it?"

Since he would have to sell the territory anyway, Ye Miao certainly didn't mind selling it here first. He quoted the regular price of purple equipment in the territory: "1300? Is that okay?"

"No problem!" The wizard immediately rummaged through his bag for gold coins, as if he was afraid that someone would snatch them from him.

At the far right end of the cabin, Chu Cheng went straight to the 10th chest after entering, and Yi Hang followed him, naturally going to open the 9th. So there was no one else to Chu Cheng's right, and Yi Hang was blocking the others on his left. Everyone was busy opening their own chests, so no one would deliberately look over here.

Chu Cheng opened the box and his backpack at the same time, took out a golden piece of equipment, and quickly put it into the box.

Yi Hang was stunned: "You are..."

"I got the gold equipment." Chu Cheng raised his voice with a hint of surprise.

This time, everyone's attention was drawn to the scene. The members who had already collected their rewards simply gathered around, their faces filled with envy: "I haven't seen the gold equipment yet! Let me see it!"

"What luck do I have?! It's said that the price of gold equipment has increased significantly. Purple equipment only sells for three or four thousand outside the territory. All gold equipment can be put on the auction house. Everyone can grab it according to their financial ability!"

Chu Cheng took out the golden equipment slowly, looked sideways, and looked at Ye Miao who was also approaching to watch: "But I can't use it, you can use it."

[Name: God's Blade Dual Swords]

【Quality: Gold】

[Description: Increases normal attack damage by 100%, attack speed by 30%, and dodge by 30%. If the holder's health drops below 50%, the "God's Punishment" state will be triggered, increasing the attack damage to 500% once every 10 normal attacks.]

Durability: 1000/1000

"Damn, it's a magical weapon—" Yi Hang made a timely comedic comment. Since he had his back to everyone, only Chu Cheng could see the gossip in his eyes.

Ye Miao: "This..."

She felt conflicted. On one hand, she felt that since they were already so close, it was inappropriate to ask for money for a piece of equipment. On the other hand, she also felt that... gold equipment was priceless! There was no way you could just give something like this away for free!!!

Chu Cheng seemed to have guessed what she would say. He squeezed the bow on his shoulder and said, "I made the golden bow with the blueprint you gave me before. So, you're welcome."

Ye Miao felt relieved instantly and took the swords with a smile: "Thank you!"

After everyone had put away their equipment, someone soon noticed a pile of firewood in the corner of the cabin, and next to it, a ukulele. As they approached, the system slowly displayed subtitles:

Congratulations on successfully completing this rafting trip.

In the company of friends, there is more to it than just fighting side by side.

Please light a bonfire outside and spend a quiet and peaceful night with your friends!

Campfires will restore your stamina and can also be used to cook food.

If you have a musically inclined friend in your group, you might want to use this ukulele to add some fun to your trip.”

"We ensure that the surrounding environment is safe while you rest."

It would have been fine if the last sentence hadn't been mentioned, but once it was mentioned, it actually aroused everyone's vigilance. Yi Hang looked around nervously: "Is the system trying to cause trouble? Is there something strange going on?"

"No, it should be really safe..." Ye Miao thought.

Although she had never seen the drifting mode, when she played "Fantasy World" before, similar text would appear after several large copies. The system promised that the environment was safe and it was really safe.

"Really..." Yi Hang hesitated, but he relaxed a little. Once he relaxed, he realized something else.

He immediately looked at Chu Cheng, and Chu Cheng indeed had a half-smile on his face.

Damn it, we agreed to play dungeons together, but some people have other intentions than playing together!

He suspected that Chu Cheng had invited them to go rafting just for the romantic moment at the end. And if there wasn't a minimum number of people for rafting, he was sure Chu Cheng would have found a reason to only invite Ye Miao out!

Yi Hang was furious, but what could he do? Of course he could only cooperate!

He took a deep breath and said, "This setting is interesting! Come on, come on, everyone, move the firewood, let's light the bonfire and have a good rest outside! The bamboo raft was shaking so much just now that my clothes got soaked. It's really uncomfortable!"

——After the fierce battle, the team members were still in shock and realized belatedly that their clothes were really wet!

Clothes in the game don't usually get wet, unless you're caught in the rain for a long time. Even if they get splashed with water, they'll dry quickly without you noticing anything. But now everyone's clothes are practically soaked, sticking to their bodies and making them uncomfortable.

So it seems that this function of warming yourself by the fire after rafting is not only "romantic" but also has some practical uses. Of course, no one thought it was meaningful, so they all rushed forward to pick up the firewood and carried it to the open space outside the cabin.

When I stepped out of the cabin, I saw that what had been afternoon was now completely dark. Night enveloped the mountains and forests, and the stars shone like diamonds inlaid on a black silk cloth. The full moon was obscured by the tangled branches and leaves, with only a hint of light showing through, casting a cold white frost on the ground.

It seems that time flows differently in the dungeon than outside. The system is really working hard to create an atmosphere.

Ten minutes later, the bonfire was lit and everyone sat around it, slowly drying their clothes.

Chu Cheng took out the pre-prepared meat skewers from his backpack and roasted them on the campfire. The aroma of the meat filled the air, making people's mouths water.

Another ten minutes later, the skewers were grilled, and everyone shared them and started eating. Chu Cheng's cooking skills were 83 from the beginning, and now they are about to break through the 95 mark. The food he made tasted amazing.

Yi Hang had been too busy rowing the boat at noon and hadn't eaten, so he was already starving. Now, he was eating a large lamb skewer, his mouth full of oil, but he didn't forget to show his support for his good brother.

He nudged Chu Cheng with his elbow: "Hey, do you know how to play the ukulele? Play one."

"Okay." Chu Cheng had originally planned to play, but wanted to wait until after dinner. When he heard him mention it, he simply stood up and went into the house to get the piano.

Carrying his ukulele out, he casually asked everyone, "What do you want to listen to?"

This time Yi Hang maliciously sabotaged the show, biting into a skewer and saying, "Super Mario?"

"..." Chu Cheng's heart skipped a beat, and he turned his head to ask Ye Miao, "What are you listening to?"

"Hmm..." Ye Miao quite liked the current atmosphere. Seeing him ask her this, she began to think seriously. However, she was not good at music to begin with, so she couldn't think of anything out of the blue. After pondering for a long time, she mentioned a song she often listened to during her school days: "Rice Fragrance?"

She thought it didn't matter even if no one sang it, because the melody of "Rice Fragrance" itself was nice and the atmosphere was also good.

"Okay." Chu Cheng nodded, and sat down beside her casually. He lowered his head to pluck the strings of the piano, and the music spread out, it was a very healing melody.

As Ye Miao listened to the music, she felt the bonfire grow warmer, the wind gentler. The whole world was bathed in a warm glow, silently seeping into her heart.

Chu Cheng started humming at an unknown point, and then the lyrics gradually became clear: "I still remember you said that home is the only castle. Following the fragrance of rice, the river continues to flow. Smiling slightly, I know your childhood dreams..."

The team members happened to be of similar age and shared the same student memories. The atmosphere was lifted, and everyone clapped their hands to the rhythm and joined in the chorus:

"Don't cry, let the fireflies take you away."

"Countryside ballads are our eternal support."

"Go home, back to the good old days..."

Under the night sky, the warm bonfire casts a warm glow.

After "Rice Fragrance" finished, Chu Cheng played "Blue and White Porcelain." Because it was an old song from over a decade ago, without mentioning the title, everyone reacted to the prelude. Then the female assassin in the team sobbed and collapsed on her companions: "Wow, blue and white porcelain! I still remember when I first bought an MP3 player, this was the first song I downloaded! Damn the apocalypse, give me back my comfortable life!!!"

Ye Miao was also moved. How old was she when she heard "Blue and White Porcelain"? She seemed to be in elementary school. Being so young, she didn't understand popular music back then. She only remembered older students singing it, some even copying the lyrics in beautiful notebooks. At the time, the biggest challenge in her life was her final exams. She hadn't expected to be transported to the apocalypse overnight.

She sighed inwardly, lost in thought for a moment. In her daze, she happened to meet Chu Cheng's smile. He was just singing: "The sky is blue, waiting for the mist and rain, and I am waiting for you."

She didn't come back to her senses in time, her eyes fixed on his, and her heart was inexplicably touched.

We sat by the campfire for about two hours. By the time our clothes were dried and the skewers cooked on the campfire were eaten, it was already dawn.

So they boarded the bamboo raft again and continued on their way. Not far away, they came to another fork in the road. When they reached the intersection, they once again passed through a layer of faint silver light, which was the exit of the dungeon.

Ye Miao looked around and found that the bamboo raft had returned to the main river channel where it came from. It just changed direction. By paddling along the current, it was just able to return to the territory.

About two kilometers ahead, on another bamboo raft, several people had been silent for a long time, until Tan Kening choked up and complained, "Damn, this system is shit. They're just killing monsters, but why are they having a bonfire and singing at the end? You too, why play the theme song from 'The Wandering Earth' when there's no other song?! Listening to this in the apocalypse is too much!!!"

The melee mage who had just been playing the piano didn't dare to say a word, hugging his knees in frustration. "I asked around, and none of you requested a song! So I'll have to do it myself! Besides... playing this is better than playing 'Don't Look at Me, I'm Just a Sheep'! It would ruin the atmosphere!"

"How did I ruin the atmosphere?" Deng Wei's eyes widened as she argued, "It's so relaxing and fun, perfect for celebrating after defeating monsters!"

As she spoke, she kept looking at the back of the man standing at the front of the bamboo raft and rowing the boat. While she was being stubborn, she was also thinking in her heart: Was her performance today a little too stupid?

Should I choose a more romantic song?

For example...for example, the theme song from "Titanic"?

At the front of the bamboo raft, Fang Yuming, who was paddling the raft, had a sullen expression on his face, but his heart was filled with complicated feelings.

He knew that there would be no future between him and Ye Miao, but every time he was killing monsters or doing dungeons, he couldn't help but think of her.

She was so powerful that even if it wasn't the end of the world, her absolute strength was intoxicating. He believed that anyone who had seen her fighting would be unable to help but think about it.

…But why would someone play “Don’t Look at Me, I’m Just a Sheep” after a fight?!

Fang Yuming's mind seemed to be split in two. One half couldn't help but recall the battle scenes he had seen, while the other half was filled with a demonic voice, telling him that the sheep's intelligence was unimaginable, and no matter how high the sky was, their hearts were still unrestrained, chasing the sun every day...

Meanwhile, Wang Yong's merchant ship had returned to the territory. He had originally sailed directly from City T to Wuxia City in City S, but while in Wuxia City, a shipping lane had opened between the territory and Good Morning City in City J. Seeing that there was also a shipping lane between Wuxia City and Good Morning City, Wang Yong opted for a detour, first going from Wuxia City to Good Morning City and then spending half a day there before returning to Overnight Rich City.

This way, he was able to sell all the potions that had previously been unsalable in Wuxia City. He also bought some specialties from Good Morning City, filling up the cabin and preparing to return to the territory to sell them.

So after returning to the territory, the merchant team dispersed without even taking a breath, and went to various markets in groups of two or three, setting up stalls to sell various seafood.

"Squid! Fresh giant squid! Selling a skill card that comes with grilled squid! Friends who own restaurants, please take a look if you're passing by!"

"Silver cod! Top-quality silver cod! High-quality ingredients only require the simplest cooking methods. Simply frying it will make it delicious!"

"King crab! Anyone want king crab? It's a great choice for a dinner party!"

“…”

The shouts of hawking effectively caught the attention of the members. They were already accustomed to the abundance of supplies in the territory, but now, hearing about so many new ingredients, they all rushed over to watch.

"Oh my god, seafood! Where does all this come from? Is there a sea nearby?"

Wang Yong did not hide the fact: "There is no sea nearby, but now we have a shipping route. We can go to the coastal cities for business."

"Oh wow, how much are the silver cod?"

Wang Yong said, "The silver cod are all pre-cut pieces. 300 gold coins per piece, 500 gold coins for two pieces. Large quantities are discounted."

The other party immediately showed regret: "This is too expensive! It's just the ingredients. I have to go back and make it myself!"

Wang Yong shook his head. "This is a gold-quality ingredient. The food you make is basically guaranteed to be gold. Even if it fails, it's still purple quality. Unlike ordinary ingredients that have to be thrown away if they fail, it's worth the price. Furthermore, 'Fried Fish' is a white skill card, which means it's one of the few things that allows you to cook gold food using white skills. It's the best choice for players with low skill levels who want to eat better."

His words moved the customer.

According to the game settings, the success rate of cooking is only related to the cooking level and the rarity of the skill card. White dishes can be made with a very low cooking level, and the higher the level, the higher the level required. It has nothing to do with the quality of the ingredients.

Therefore, most players cannot cook high-end dishes not because they do not have money to buy gold cards, nor because they cannot get good ingredients, but because their cooking skills are not high enough and they will fail to cook golden food.

But if it's a white card + gold ingredient combination, it's different! As long as the cooking skill is above level 20, the cooking success rate of white dishes is 100%, which means that as long as you spend money to buy ingredients, even a novice cook can make good food.

Even if you fail, you can still eat a portion of purple quality fried fish!

"It's truly a golden ingredient"—the thought crossed everyone's mind. Once you think that, your wallet starts to empty.

"I want one."

"I want two!"

"I own a Western restaurant. How much discount can I get for a 50-yuan purchase?"

Wang Yong: "50 yuan, 50 yuan, you can get a 40% discount."

"Okay, okay, I'll take it! And give me some of that squid, too, along with the Grilled Squid skill card. Calculate the price!"

The business of the merchant team suddenly became prosperous, and everyone looked satisfied.

Before the opening of navigation, due to the low prices in Overnight Rich City, they basically purchased goods from Overnight Rich City and sold them to other territories to make money, but now they can make money both in the round trip and onwards, and the efficiency has been greatly improved.

That night, the territory's market was even more lively.

Grilled squid, seafood rice, fried oysters, hairy crab rice cake...

Although many of these things have been seen before, the ingredients were only occasionally dropped by monsters, and the quantities that could be sold were very small, which is completely different from the current dazzling array.

Ye Miao, who had been out all day, was completely unprepared for this. She had originally just planned to stroll around and eat Chu Cheng's VIP set meal in the evening. However, upon entering the market, she was dazzled. Shocked, she pulled Chu Cheng: "Grilled squid! Want some? It's my treat! And fried crabs, what's going on today? Come on, let's try some."

"...Okay." Chu Cheng agreed spinelessly.

Although he is a chef, he has to admit that street seafood is indeed very attractive.

The author has something to say:

The entire drifting gameplay setting pays tribute to the large-scale online game "Ragnarok".

*"Ragnarok" is an online game that has been around for over a decade and is still very much alive. It has a very high degree of freedom. I started playing it with my younger brother when I was in high school. I ended up winning a long time ago, but he's been playing it all the time and recently dragged me back into it...

Hhhh, I've strayed off topic. I really loved the rafting gameplay back then. The first time I played it, I was completely blown away. I still remember everyone coming ashore, soaking wet, lighting a bonfire, the cooking players distributing food, and the bards singing by the fire...

As mentioned earlier, this game offers a high degree of freedom, so much so that you can even import your own sheet music. So, I've heard "Rice Fragrance" and "Blue and White Porcelain" countless times on the streets of Dunbaron. Sometimes, players will even organize an ensemble, where everyone plays a song together.

That romantic feeling of life made me realize for the first time how wonderful a game made with care can bring to people.

So today, more than ten years later, even though the old graphics of "Ragnarok" are obviously no longer up to date, I am still willing to return to Dearconer and Dunbaron, even if it is just to hang up the game -v-

===

I'll give out red envelopes to 50 random comments on this chapter.