Chapter 7: The Drifter Town and Teleportation!

The two men trekked through the wilderness, their backs laden with supplies, using tools to constantly clear the path through the encroaching weeds. Qian Long, possessing extensive experience, took the lead, assessing the terrain and occasionally adjusting their route.

Observing his laborious progress, Tang Zhen could not help but ask, "Is this how you navigate all the time? Don't you have maps or compasses?"

Qian Long shook his head, saying with a touch of resignation, "Maps are unreliable things; they are exorbitantly expensive and difficult to come by. Aside from a few fixed locations, everything else is in a constant state of flux. Take the grass beneath our feet—even if you were to set it ablaze, it would be restored to its original state by the next day. A patch of empty land might suddenly sprout a collection of buildings overnight. Ordinary compasses are equally useless; once you take them out, they just spin aimlessly, making it impossible to determine direction."

Ultimately, in an environment like this, experience was the only thing one could truly rely on.

They moved in fits and starts, stopping to rest whenever they grew weary. By the time dusk approached, they finally reached a narrow path. The track appeared to be well-trodden, which prevented the weeds from taking root. Qian Long told Tang Zhen that following this road would lead them to a Tower City.

The city, known as Black Rock City, was a formidable power. Its main tower stood twenty stories high, surrounded by four auxiliary towers, each five stories and twenty meters tall, which served as the primary defensive perimeter. Powerful troops were garrisoned within the towers, responsible for the city’s security.

Near the outskirts of the tower sat a town built by wanderers. While generating wealth for the city, the town also indirectly enjoyed its protection. Here, wanderers traded goods and information while waiting for an opportunity to be accepted into the city.

Because monsters emerged to roam in droves after dark—their numbers increasing in eerie, unpredictable ways, sometimes appearing out of thin air—the two men quickened their pace, arriving at the market just before nightfall.

Tang Zhen surveyed the wanderer town from a distance. It was built upon a hillside and covered a vast area. The weeds for several kilometers around the settlement had been cleared, providing a wide field of vision. The walls, constructed of massive boulders and logs, looked sturdy, standing well over five meters high, with armed wanderers patrolling the ramparts.

They managed to enter the town at the very last moment before the gates closed. After paying two brain beads each, they were granted permission by the guards to enter and exit the town freely for one month.

The wanderer town was immense, spanning several hectares—it was like a crude fortress. Unfortunately, it was not a "Tower City" sanctioned by the laws of Heaven, and it enjoyed none of the conveniences such a city would provide. Yet, everything had its pros and cons. Once a formal Tower City was established, wanderers without residency status would be barred from entry, causing the owner to lose a significant source of income.

To absorb all these wanderers as residents, a Tower City had to reach a very high level, and every upgrade required countless resources. Moreover, during each upgrade, the city would face an onslaught of monsters; failure to defend the city meant all previous efforts would be in vain. Considering the immense investment and the risk of losing everything, operating a wanderer town was far more carefree. Furthermore, when monsters attacked, the town provided a large number of combatants, serving as the first line of defense. Presumably, Black Rock City had established this town with exactly such considerations in mind.

The only drawback was that monsters would assault the settlement from time to time, and every night of guard duty felt like a siege. Ordinary monsters were easy to handle, but if one were unlucky enough to encounter a powerful beast, the town could face total catastrophe. Yet, the wanderers had little choice; sometimes, even when they knew a path was suboptimal, they had to grit their teeth and push forward. This was the truth of survival: one must adapt to life and fate rather than expecting them to accommodate you.

The master of the wanderer town also possessed a small armed force. On the streets, one could occasionally see soldiers clad in crude armor, their expressions stern and indifferent as they scanned every wanderer they encountered with piercing eyes. Tang Zhen carefully observed their equipment and found that the quality of most weapons was mediocre, and their armor only protected vital areas, leaving it unclear if they could withstand a piercing strike or a heavy blow. Still, compared to the wanderers who carried only short blades and iron rods, wearing scraps of metal and wood as makeshift armor, these soldiers were well-equipped.

In the twilight hours, the market remained bustling. Wanderers moved in and out of dilapidated shacks or gathered around fire pits to chat. Others, armed and hired by the market, stood grim-faced on the walls, alert for monster attacks.

Not far from the market, the massive Tower City stood silhouetted against the night sky, looking like a ferocious beast. Whenever the wanderers in the market looked up and saw the faint glow emanating from the tower's windows, their eyes would fill with longing, dreaming of the day they might live inside and end their painful, itinerant lives.

A commotion erupted; Tang Zhen followed the sound to see a group of monsters attempting to storm the market. Ten minutes later, the monsters were repelled by the guards and fled, leaving behind many carcasses. By the time the sun rose tomorrow, these monsters would have their brain beads extracted, and their remains would be scavenged by wandering detritivores.

If one were to look closely into the darkness outside, they would see many more monsters prowling around the town. They lingered, wanting to attack, yet deterred by the wanderers' fire and blades, they could only pace and emit frustrated roars.

Qian Long, familiar with the layout, led Tang Zhen to a large, two-story adobe building. It was one of the cheaper inns in town—low, dim, and reeking of a peculiar odor. Behind a wooden counter near a fire pit sat a woman with a clean dress and a seductive air, flanked by two brawny men drinking swill from wooden mugs. The two men glanced at Tang Zhen and his companion, then ignored them.

"Two people, for three days."

"Half a level-one brain bead per person per day, including two meals. That's three level-one brain beads for three days. Pay up, handsome boys!"

As she spoke, the woman leaned forward, revealing a generous expanse of pale cleavage. With her movement, a deep, fathomless valley appeared before them, accompanied by a faint, musky scent.

Tang Zhen glanced away without a word. Qian Long, likewise ignoring the woman's flirtatious winks and provocations, nodded expressionlessly.

After paying the three level-one brain beads for their lodging, they were each given a coarse grain cake and vegetable soup for dinner—the daily ration provided by the inn. After finishing their meal, they retreated to their narrow, dark, and foul-smelling rooms to rest.

Lying on the straw-covered wooden cot, Tang Zhen composed himself. After checking the surroundings, he took out the pouch containing the brain beads. He slowly placed the beads next to his phone, and just as he had anticipated, the phone instantly absorbed them until they were completely gone.

With the absorption complete, his phone screen changed. Beneath the "Teleport" icon, a number appeared: "200+," indicating that his total gold coin balance was now sufficient for over two hundred round-trip teleports. In his personal information, his total gold coin balance had reached over thirteen thousand—a sum that left him thrilled. He was tempted to try downloading some software immediately, but for safety's sake, he decided to first test a teleportation back home.

Clutching the bag containing cash and precious metals, he navigated to the teleportation option on his phone. With a careful tap, he activated the function. In an instant, his vision blurred, a sensation like passing through a tunnel washed over him, and Tang Zhen successfully returned to his home.

After scrutinizing his surroundings and confirming he was indeed home, Tang Zhen let out a long, relieved breath. This journey had been so perilous and bizarre that no one would believe him if he told them. Naturally, Tang Zhen would never breathe a word of it to anyone; it was, after all, a matter of life and death.

Back home, Tang Zhen could safely experiment with his phone. First, he checked the teleportation settings, confirming that each trip cost five level-one brain beads. In gold coins, that amounted to fifty; a round trip would cost one hundred.

He then opened the application store to select the tools he needed. After careful consideration, he identified four functions as the most suitable for his current needs:
1. Primary Map: Displays the terrain and monsters within a 100-meter radius.
2. Eye-Level Projection: Projects the screen image directly into his field of vision, allowing for gesture-based control of the phone.
3. Primary Monster Detector: Displays information on monsters no more than three levels higher than the user.
4. Micro Storage Space: Creates a dimensional storage space with a volume of one cubic meter.

Downloading all four would exhaust the gold coins he had just acquired, but compared to the value of his own life, the investment was trivial. Moreover, these applications would help him survive more safely in the other world.

He clicked to confirm the downloads, and the gold coins in his account were rapidly deducted. Within a few breaths, all four applications were installed. Looking at the once-empty phone screen, now finally populated with icons, Tang Zhen felt a profound sense of security.