Fair Trade (slight NSFW content)

Mr. Shu began to leave the unit with Zhang Ping following behind him. Right as he was at the entrance of the third floor, he turned around and spoke to Breeze, "The Huntress's name is Gongzi You."

"Gongzi You?" Breeze raised his eyebrows, surprised.

"Yes. Have you heard of this name before?" Mr.Shu studied Breeze's expression.

Breeze shrugged and spread his hands open, "Nope, I'm sorry. This is the first time I've heard this name."

A smile appeared on Mr.Shu's lips as he pointed at Breeze, "You're quite arrogant. I like that."

Breeze remained silent and sent the duo off with a smile.

"Hey, hey ,hey! Whose car is this? Why is it parked in a place like this? Can't you see that it's blocking the traffic?" a loud voice entered the duo's ears just as they descended the stairs. Breeze looked down from a window, and saw the lady from the neighbouring store on her motorcycle. A car was blocking her way, and the ice in her ice pack meant to keep her frozen food cold was melting under the hot sun, and this put the lady into distress.

When her shouts went unanswered, the lady dismounted from her vehicle and slammed her hand onto the jet black body of the car. She then shouted into the driver's seat, "Are you deaf? Can't you hear what I said? F*ck off! You're blocking the way! Do you think you're the only one with a big car? If you don't move your car out of the way right now, I will move it for you with my truck!"

Death Blossom, who has returned to the room with Breeze's drink, stole a glance through the window as well. She handed the glass to Breeze and chuckled, "Isn't that Mr.Shu's car?"

"Yup. Who else can afford a car like that?" Breeze nodded.

"Is he out of his mind? With a car like that, even a scratch will cost a fortune to fix." snickered Death Blossom as she took joy at the scene unplaying before her.

Breeze wrapped an arm around her shoulder and the couple enjoyed the spectacle unfolding below. Zhang Ping and Mr.Shu tried their best to remain calm, but Mr.Shu's slightly disheveled hair betrayed his true emotions.

The lady, noticing their presence, immediately redirected her barrage of insults towards the duo. As someone who was born with a silver spoon and had interacted with people from similar social status, Mr.Shu was not used to being berated in such a manner. He stared dumbfounded at the lady without even uttering a single response.

When Mr.Shu and Zhang Ping finally retreated into the car and sped away from the area, Breeze and Death Blossom erupted into laughter, "I don't think Mr.Shu will ever want to set foot in this area for the rest of his life." said Death Blossom.

Breeze apparently shared the same thought as well, "You're very smart, darling."

...

A video was playing on the triple display. It was a battle between two Hunters. Their positioning was excellent, and their precision and timing were very impressive as well.

Breeze drummed his fingers on the table as he watched the video. He was in a good mood.

Death Blossom, who was in her nightgown, set a plate of sliced watermelon on the table, cast a seductive glance at Breeze and sat on his lap, "Aiya, let's go to bed hubby. Why are you still awake?" she purred.

Breeze snaked his hand into her nightgown and kneaded the soft lump of meat on her chest and grinned, "I'm looking at a beautiful girl."

"F*ck! You're still looking at other girls even with a big beauty like me around?" Death Blossom rolled her eyes and glanced at the monitor. She was immediately stunned by what she saw.

Breeze ripped open her nightgown, brought his lips against her delicate mounds, and began caressing them with his tongue. He was pushed aside by Death Blossom, "Get lost!"

Breeze tightened his grip on death blossom and began tracing his hand along her smooth skin, "Honey, let's go to bed, why are you still awake?" He imitated her tone.

Death Blossom pointed at the screen "Who are they?" she was focused wholly on the video.

"The girl is Gongzi You, a player from the Eastern Continent, and that guy is Fleeting Time, Western Continent player." answered Breeze absentmindedly, "Can you win in a battle against them?"

Death Blossom's eyes were glued to the screen, "I'll give myself a 50-50 odds." she replied after a moment of thought.

Breeze shared the same sentiment as well. He was shocked when he saw the Hunters in action. The players in Fate are actually THIS good? He had always dismissed the titles of "Solo King" and "Top Players" as gimmicks made up by the developers. What he saw was beyond his expectation. If they're this good in the video, then I wonder how it feels to fight against them.

"You'll have the chance to fight against those two." Breeze whispered into Death Blossom's ears when he noticed the excitement in her eyes.

"It's a shame that such occasions will be few and far between" Death Blossom grimaced, "We're not playing for fun. I don't think we'll actually be able to fight them."

"Who cares? As long as it's your wish, I'll do my best to make it a reality." a smile appeared on Breeze's lips.

Death Blossom returned his smile, "If you do that, I'm afraid that I'll get used to your pampering."

"It will be my pleasure." Breeze inched closer to her, and bit softly on her lips. As his tongue slithered across her lips, Breeze's hands had been busy as well. Death Blossom moaned in pleasure as the rest of her clothing was removed.

The night was still young. And there are many, many things to be done.

Ye Ci stood underneath her cloak at the Dor Ami dock. The red signature of enemy players filled her vision along with the green glow of players from allying factions. The Dor Ami plains was the only Neutral Zone in the Northern Continent filled with players from all four continents. Players flooded the map despite the absence of a city. They were there for the Trade Market in the center of the Dor Ami plains.

The Trade Market was populated by NPCs that could repair the equipment of players and traders that could replenish their supplies. There were also soldiers stationed within the Trade Market to keep the peace.

Players from all four continents would gather at the market and sell goods. As each of the continents had very different weather and geography, they would naturally have their own special produce, and these items were in high demand by Life Players seeking to level up their skills.

Of course, the Trade Market was also frequented by other players as well. Players were always in need of good equipment, no matter which continent they hailed from. The Dor Ami shore was well known for its pearls and gems that were needed for equipment upgrades.

The Dor Ami plains was significantly more peaceful than the Swamp of Sorrows even with a player population of multiple continents. Most of the players were here to trade, and nobody wanted to make life difficult for themselves. Despite the relative peace, conflicts would still arise between players fighting over spawn locations and treasure chests.

Ye Ci found herself in one of such situations. Two groups of players from opposing continents were locked in combat. Their numbers, team composition, and levels were rather similar, making it a battle of attrition. Such battles were a common sight in a Neutral Zone, which was why Ye Ci ignored the commotion and summoned her steed.

Just then, "Our reinforcements are here! Charge, my brothers! Let's f*ck these Northern Continent bastards up!" a player shouted, and Ye Ci turned around just in time to spot the red glows of enemy players in close proximity.

They're quite spirited, aren't they? Ye Ci was never interested in joining fights like this. Is a spawn location really worth all this? They might as well use the time and energy to look for a better spot.

An Arcane Missile landed on Ye Ci as she was still deep in her thoughts.

And a system notification immediately appeared, "You've been attacked by Northern Continent player: Kiss Me Baby. You are allowed to retaliate in this zone with no time limits."

Ye Ci raised an eyebrow, and spotted a lvl45 Sorceress as she adjusted her gaze to the direction of the spell's caster.

Two more Arcane Missiles landed on Ye Ci during that short window.

The spell barely dealt damage to Ye Ci, but her response to such attacks was always the annihilation of the aggressor. She strung her bow and fired a few arrows at the caster. The Sorcerer class was known for its low survivability and maneuverability. These factors, along with Ye Ci's huge lead in terms of level, meant that the Sorceress died immediately when the first arrow landed on her.

It was not supposed to be anything out of the ordinary as players would always die to a stray shot or two in a melee between two groups of combatants.

Ye Ci paid no more heed to her aggressor and continued on her merry way to the Trade Market.

More attacks landed on Ye Ci, followed by yet another system notification, "You've been attacked by Northern Continent player: Kiss Me Baby. You are allowed to retaliate in this zone with no time limits."

Eh? This name looks familiar. Thought Ye Ci as she noticed the name of the attacker. Wait, isn't this the Sorceress that I've just killed? She had no interest in the battle, but the Sorceress had gained her full attention. She surveyed her surroundings and spotted a graveyard not far away. Ah… So she's on her way back to the battlefield after reviving in the graveyard and she saw me. It certainly does not take long for her to forget the lesson I gave her.

The Sorceress was dressed in a dark grey robe inscribed with glowing runes. One could tell from a glance that the robe was something very expensive. The staff that she held tightly in her clutches was something that Ye Ci could easily recognize. It was a top-tier lvl45 staff, The Drifter's Staff. So she's not only stupid, but also rich.

If skill level was not a factor, Ye Ci would always prefer a rich opponent over one who was poor. You'll never know what a rich player might drop. Come to think about it, I did not have a chance to see what she dropped just now. What a shame.

Kiss Me Baby headed to the battlefield the moment she spawned in the graveyard. She had notified her party members about the belt that had dropped upon her death, and it was successfully retrieved. She was confused by the events that unfolded before her death. The only thing she did was to attack the enemy reinforcements, and she was instantly slain. She called up her battle report, but it was already refreshed upon her revival. This meant that she remained ignorant of the identity of her assailant.

She did not expect to come across the same player as she was on her way and anger immediately boiled within her. You were lucky to have allies around you. Now that you're alone, it's time for me to teach you a lesson. Thought Kiss Me Baby as she fired an Arcane Missile at the player.

The Arcane Missile landed on its target, but Kiss Me Baby was shocked by the damage value that appeared. 300? Are you kidding me? My Arcane Missiles has a 20% attack buff! It should be dealing at least 1500 points of damage! What the hell?!

It did not take long for her to realise that the player's level was way ahead of hers, and that the player alone was responsible for her earlier death.

Fear gripped Kiss Me Baby's heart the same time realisation dawned upon her. She had mistaken the identity of her killer in the brawl, which was why she had the courage to even challenge the player. But with this realisation, she began to panic.

Kiss Me Baby was not a terrible player, but she was used to fighting in a group. Going up against another player in a 1v1 was an entirely different story. She knew that her good performance in most of her fights was due to the presence of other teammates that kept her safe as she blasted away with her spells without much of a care.

Her brain was a mush as the player began changing direction towards her. What do I do? What do I do? It took her quite a moment to recover from her shock, and she began running away from the player. In her panicked state, Kiss Me Baby had even forgotten to summon her steed.

Ye Ci turned her steed around, and stared square at the Sorceress who had attacked her. She was a Human female with shoulder-length chestnut hair. The sorceress would be considered cute in normal circumstances. However, cute was something that was far from her expression at that very moment. Ye Ci laughed as she looked at the Sorceress who was losing her head out of fear. She's somewhat of an idiot…

There was no need for mercy against a player who was rich, and an idiot, and had attacked her. She spurred her horse and galloped at full speed in the direction of Kiss Me Baby, who immediately fled without even summoning her steed.

Ye Ci was confused. Does she really think that she can outrun a horse? Is she thinking that she can outrun me, a Huntress? If she was not in a hurry, Ye Ci might even come up with many interesting ways to toy with the Sorceress. Time was, however, not on her side, and she was not in the mood.

Ye Ci strung her bow the moment Kiss Me Baby was within her attack range, and fired off three arrows at the player, which resulted in critical hits. Kiss Me Baby immediately dropped dead on the ground.

She walked up to Kiss Me Baby, and noticed that the Sorceress had dropped a small hoe upon her death. It was a Purple Quality Herbal Hoe with quite a few stats that could increase the gathering success rate and gathering speed of medicinal herbs. It could even increase its user's success rate in potion brewing. Despite her secondary class as Potion Brewer, Ye Ci was not interested in leveling her life skills. It'll be a waste for me to keep this. I might as well give it to someone who needs this.

Ye Ci stared at the Sorceress and smiled. As expected, this girl's rich. I can sell this for at least 50,000 gold coins in the market. Things like this are in high demand! I wonder if she'll burst a vein when she realises that her hoe is gone...

Ye Ci placed the hoe in her inventory and headed to the Trade Market.

In Dor Ami plains, where conflict could happen at any time in any place, the only safe zone was the Trade Market. Combat was not prohibited within the market itself, but with its garrison of lvl200 soldiers, players found it wise to keep their emotions in check and maintain the peace in the market. If a player initiated a fight… The wrath of the lvl200 NPCs would descend upon, swiftly taking their life while giving out the penalty of reducing their level by 1.

Ye Ci remained cloaked as she wandered around the Trade Market looking for players that might be selling maps. She had never been to the Northern Continent in her past life, which meant that her knowledge about the geography of the continent was very limited. This was why she needed to buy maps off Northern Continent players.

After squeezing her way through the crowd, Ye Ci finally found herself standing before a stall with a lot of maps, "Maps! I'm selling maps! They shall be the light that guide you to the right path, and your best tool for murder! You'll need these if you're planning to travel across the continent!" shouted the owner of the stall, "Maps! I'm selling maps! The most complete collection of maps of the Northern Continent is up for sale at the lowest price in the entire server! Quality is assured! It's entirely your fault if you don't stop by the first time, but if you don't drop by the second time, it's on me! Come, have a look! Maps, maps!"

Quite a number of players gathered in front of the store, but not many of them were customers. After all, few had the capability of traversing through enemy territory. It was something that came at a high risk with very low return. Players preferred to stay within the Dor Ami Plains itself.

Despite the lack of buyers, the player selling his map did not give up. He continued shouting at the top of his lungs in a bid to attract buyers.

Ye Ci studied the player who was selling the maps. He was encased in a suit of rusty armor and armed with a motley two handed sword. The player was not part of a team, and had a low level. It was obvious that things were not going very well for him.

She pulled the hood of her cloak lower and walked up to the player, "Are you selling the maps of Mor Jiami Plains and the Sacred Snowy Mountain?"

"Hmmm… Let me have a look." the man sifted through his inventory with apparent enthusiasm at the sight of a rare customer, but he then stopped his movements and stared at the player standing in front of him, "You're looking for the maps of the Mor Jiami Plains and the Sacred Snowy Mountain?"

"Yes." Ye Ci's face was hidden by the cloak, and her expression was hidden from the player, but this did not mean that his face was hidden from her.

The map seller was baffled by the player standing in front of him. Her identity, appearance, and class were hidden by the cloak, but the unmistakable red glow marking her as a hostile player was still visible. So what are the maps for?

Those two places are in the heartlands of the Northern Continent. There's a lot of big cities and dungeons over there. Are they trying to start some trouble over there?

The player then rolled his eyes at himself. I've thought too much into it.

There's at least 200 million players in the Northern Continent. What can this person do alone? Even if they can reach the Mor Jiami Plains or the Snowy Sacred Mountain, they'll be hard pressed to even survive. What trouble can they make?

With his worry out of the way, the player continued looking for Ye Ci's maps. He found only the map of Dor Ami Plains in his inventory as the Snowy Sacred Mountain was a high level map that even Northern Continent players would avoid.

"I'm sorry, but I only have a map of the Mor Jiami plains, and it'll cost you 3,000 gold coins."

Ye Ci took the map and paid the full amount to the player's delight. He was running a small business that was not earning much, and players who would haggle and try to talk the price down was something that he hated.

This unknown player from an opposing continent, however, did not even ask for a reduction in prices. Their generosity was something that he liked, and he decided to strike up another deal, "If you're willing to wait, I can get you a map of the Sacred Snowy Mountain."

Ye Ci surveyed her surroundings, and found no other map sellers, "Alright then. I'll give you an hour." she nodded at the player.

"I gotchu! I have fast travel points all over the continent. I'll make it in time." the player immediately packed up his goods. The market price for a piece of Sacred Snowy Mountain map was 5,000 gold, but it could be sold at up to 10,000 gold coins at times. It was something that not many would usually ask for, but when there is a demand…

"I want a copy of the maps leading to that place as well."

Ye Ci had earned a substantial amount of coins from farming the monsters near the Doluo Tribe. Money was something that she was not short on.

"Got it. Just give me a moment, and I'll be back as soon as I can." Ye Ci's words were music to the player's ears. He cared not if she was a player from an opponent continent, nor did she care about her business in the Northern Continent. She was a huge buyer, and such buyers are hard to come by, "By the way, the name's Rogue Rabbit One. I'll wait for you here when I get back." Ye Ci nodded at the player, and moved on to another stall.

What is the benefit brought by markets such as this upon the game? It drives the economy of the game, funneling resources that would otherwise remain inaccessible to players of different continents. At this very moment, Ye Ci was standing in front of a stall with a vendor selling backpacks.

The largest backpack in Ye Ci's possession was a 22-slot pack, but the player was selling a 24-slot pack. Ye Ci was in a dilemma. It's just 2 extra slots. Should I buy them? But paying 5,000 gold for 2 more slots is not worth it. The market price of a 22-slot pack is only 1,000 gold.

The players in the market shared the same sentiment with Ye Ci as well. Many were attracted by the 24-slot backpack, but most immediately lost their interest when the price was made known to them. The one selling the backpacks was a Life Player, who remained unfazed by the protests of his potential customers.

"Heh, are you here to buy some backpacks?" asked the player when he noticed Ye Ci standing in front of his stall.

"They're all too small." Ye Ci shook her head.

The player was slightly confused, "You're telling me that 24-slot bags are small?"

"You're charging me an additional 4,000 gold coins for the 2 extra slots they have over the 22-slot ones. They're not worth it." replied Ye Ci.

This prompted a laughter from the player, "It's all about supply and demand. Hell, I'll be able to sell these at a higher price in the capital."

Ye Ci wasted no energy in arguing with the player. She knew that he would not be selling his goods in a place like this if he could sell them at a higher price in the capital of the Northern Continent, "Well, sell them in the capital then."

"Which you will be selling at an even more absurd price."

The player inched closer to Ye Ci and spoke in a low voice, "The price can be negotiated."

With backpacks of larger size not yet available in the Eastern Continent, Ye Ci was indeed in need of the packs, "What else do you have?" the player pulled a sturdy looking brown pack out of nowhere and initiated a trade with Ye Ci, "This is a 28-slot pack! Do you want it?"

A 28-slot backpack? Even Ye Ci herself was shocked. This is WAY larger than the ones I have. If I can swap all of my packs with this… I'll have 30 additional slots…

But… The price though…

Despite her newfound wealth, she was still wary of spending a large sum of money.

"How much for one of these?"

"20,0000." came the reply.

Ye Ci narrowed her eyes. It's a fair price. Especially for something like this that's in high demand. She was still not very willing to part with her coins. After all, a new patch would soon be introduced into the game, and blueprints for backpacks would be made available to players visiting the Central Continent.

"I want five of them, but I don't have the coins. Are you willing to trade for an item istead?" Ye Ci shook her head.

"So what will you be trading me for the backpacks?" asked the player, "I don't mind, but I don't want trash either."

Ye Ci shrugged at the player. Well, it's not like I really need them.

She placed Kiss Me Babe's hoe in the trading tab and said to the player, "This is it. Take it or leave it. It's up to you."

The player was surprised to see the Purple-quality hoe. He was a tailor, but this hoe would benefit the Potion Brewer in his team greatly.

"I'll take it."

Ye Ci narrowed her eyes when she noticed the player's expression. She knew that the hoe was a high quality item, but she also knew about an Orange-quality hoe that was way superior that could be from a hidden quest, "This is a rare stuff, but I have a feeling that 28-slot backpacks will be obsolete once the new patch is released…"

The player, understanding the meaning behind Ye Ci's words, placed five 30-slot backpacks into the trading tab, "This is the best I have! I'll trade them for the hoe!"

Ye Ci did not even hesitate in accepting the trade.

Just then, a loud voice rang out in the market, "There! There's the bastard who killed me twice!"