Chapter 62

In truth, Ye Baizhi didn’t know how Xue Youchen was doing. But Da Bao could sense these things. When Da Bao said his father was fine, Ye Baizhi felt somewhat reassured. Still, now that she had emerged from the secret realm, she wanted to learn about Xue Youchen’s situation. However, the Snow Wolf Tribe was unaware of her existence—recklessly heading there wouldn’t be wise. She might even end up putting Da Bao in danger. There was no guarantee that all members of the Snow Wolf Tribe were trustworthy. Moreover, she didn’t even know how they would perceive them.

To be safe, Ye Baizhi decided it was best to investigate at the market instead. It was said that many beastmen gathered there.

By dusk, Ye Wulan led them to the market.

Ye Baizhi discovered that the place resembled an ancient town.

The market was situated at the very center, surrounded by rows of stone houses. These houses were built entirely from stone, giving them a sturdy appearance. From time to time, beastmen emerged from the stone houses, adding to the lively atmosphere with a considerable number of people around.

“In comparison, our Rabbit Tribe settlement really seems quite remote and underdeveloped.”

Most of the Rabbit Tribe’s people still lived in caves and hadn’t built stone houses.

“These beastmen don’t seem to belong to a single species.”

In just a short time, she spotted rat beastmen, bird beastmen, and leopard beastmen. The fact that they coexisted surprised Ye Baizhi.

“And they aren’t fighting!”

Seeing Ye Baizhi’s confusion, Ye Wulan explained, “Although various beastmen live together here, many do so to be close to the market for business. Behind them, each has their own tribe as backing.”

“Some are wandering beastmen—if they have enough hunting skills, they rent stone houses to live in.”

“Others simply purchase the houses outright.”

“In the past, this place was chaotic, with frequent fights. The previous Snow Wolf King established rules forbidding fighting here.”

“But enforcement has been difficult.”

“The Snow Wolf King established a guard unit in this area, assigning a group of skilled beastmen to maintain order.”

“Though their numbers are small, with the Snow Wolf Tribe backing them, no one dares to provoke the guards.”

“Anyone who violates the rules will be expelled.”

“Once order was restored, the price of stone houses increased, as did the cost of market stalls. As a result, only those with some strength can afford to live here, and few would risk breaking the rules.”

“But some powerful beastmen from larger tribes secretly violate them.”

Ye Baizhi listened and understood. She knew the northern region was under the Snow Wolf King’s rule.

“Does Xue Youchen manage the market affairs here?”

Ye Wulan shook his head. “No. As the Snow Wolf King, he has too many responsibilities, and he rarely oversees matters at this level.”

“Nor does anyone report issues to him.”

Ye Baizhi roughly grasped the rules—so long as business wasn’t disrupted, things would be left alone.

“What’s the price of these stone houses here?”

Ye Wulan replied, “A smaller stone house costs at least 100 Purple Spirit Stones, while larger ones go for over 200.”

Based on her predecessor’s memories, Ye Baizhi understood the local pricing.

One Purple Spirit Stone was equivalent to 1,000 Blue Spirit Stones. On an ordinary day, two Blue Spirit Stones could buy a single bird egg. A pound of the most basic beast meat cost around ten Blue Spirit Stones. Yet, even a simple, small stone house required over 100 Purple Spirit Stones.

It was similar to ancient copper coins and silver currency. One tael of silver equaled 1,000 copper coins. The pricing structure was roughly comparable.

Ye Baizhi understood as well.

“Ordinary beastmen really can’t afford to live in a place like this. No wonder some of the lower-ranked tribes still live in caves within their own territories.”

“Our Rabbit Tribe is quite far from here.”

Even with Ye Wulan using his strength to hasten their journey, it still took them two hours to arrive.

Ye Baizhi sighed, “How about we carve out a cave nearby to live in? These stone houses are way too expensive.”

She figured living in a cave wouldn’t be much different—after all, they were all beastmen, so it wasn’t worth being overly particular.

Ye Wulan chuckled and shook his head. “You can’t just dig a cave here and settle in, and besides, there aren’t any caves to carve out.”

“Since we’ll be doing business here later, let’s stay for now.”

“I still have some Purple Spirit Stones—we can rent a stone house first.”

Ye Wulan led Ye Baizhi and the others to the guards’ quarters, saying they wanted to rent a stone house.

The guard squad resided in the central area, where a large stone house had been built—almost like a manor—housing ten guards responsible for managing affairs in this region.

Upon learning that they wanted to rent a house, the guards assigned a Snow Wolf beastman to assist them.

“Renting a stone house? Lin Dong, go handle it!”

The Snow Wolf beastman, named Lin Dong, had fourth-tier strength and looked about seventeen or eighteen years old. However, he was extremely thin—clearly malnourished.

This surprised Ye Baizhi. Surely the guards’ earnings were enough to keep them well-fed?

But since she had just arrived, she naturally chose not to pry into such matters.

Lin Dong nodded stiffly, took the keys, and led them to see a few affordable stone houses.

“These are all two-room stone houses, considered cheap. Renting one for a year costs twenty-four Purple Spirit Stones.”

That amounted to two Purple Spirit Stones per month.

After renting the stone house, they still had to pay an additional two Purple Spirit Stones to Lin Dong. He had to bring it back to the guard squad. It was essentially a protection fee.

The fees collected from the residents in this area sustained the guards’ livelihood.

They chose a stone house in the easternmost part of the area, with a minimum rental period of one year. They paid twenty-four Purple Spirit Stones for the rent, plus an extra two as a fee.

“Guard Lin, may I ask how much it costs to set up a stall in the market?”

She knew that the market also had storefronts, but purchasing one was much more expensive—setting up a stall seemed to be the more practical option.

“Stalls can only be rented—three Purple Spirit Stones per month. If you want to buy a storefront, it costs over two hundred.”

Hearing this, Ye Baizhi couldn’t help but think it was expensive. If she wanted to buy a storefront, she would have to earn a lot more money.

“Alternatively, you can pay with beast meat or hides—each month, at least two hundred pounds of beast meat or twenty intact and well-preserved pelts.”

Listening to all this, Ye Baizhi had a clear understanding.

Using spirit stones was actually more convenient—they could be used to buy all kinds of goods. Besides, purchasing items in a prosperous city required spirit stones.

However, most of the nearby market area was inhabited by lower-ranked tribes, and spirit stones were scarce among them, so they mostly relied on barter.

Ye Baizhi took out two apples and handed them to Lin Dong. “These are wild fruits we picked. Thank you for your hard work, Guard Lin.”

“This is for you.”

Lin Dong’s expression shifted when he saw the apples. The fruit exuded a tempting fragrance, making him realize he was hungry. However, he couldn’t bring himself to eat them—he decided to take them home for his father instead.

“Thank you!” Lin Dong solemnly cupped his hands in gratitude. After a brief hesitation, he warned them, “Now that you’re staying here, you should be careful.”

“Avoid going out at night.”

“Ever since there was a problem with the Misty Forest’s barrier, the northern district has been unstable. Although our guard squad tries to maintain order, some beastmen who have wandered beyond the settlement have been secretly killed.”

“We haven’t yet discovered who is behind it.”

Ye Baizhi couldn’t help but ask, “Wasn’t the Snow Wolf Tribe supposed to have reinforced the barrier?”

She was primarily interested in hearing news about Xue Youchen.