Chapter 167 – Slime-Brand Transport Worker

Lord Mu remained unaware that his reputation was about to be tarnished. He merely watched the merchant caravan named ‘Winged’ depart, only withdrawing his gaze when they had ventured deep into the wilderness, and instructed the scout falcon to continue monitoring them.

“It seems the method of having Sophia and Daisy impersonate players to negotiate with other players is working fine.”

This was one of the advantages of having witch talents.

Speaking of which, Sophia was actually the most suitable person to represent them. The other witches all had additional distinctive features to varying degrees.

Daisy had a fluffy fox tail, Sickle Moon had a fluffy wolf tail, and Ailin had a pair of deer antlers on her head. Only Sophia had no visible external features when she transformed back into human form, aside from some speech habits that could be restrained.

Even Isloria had some minor features, though they were concealed beneath her clothing.

“Their negotiation skills don’t seem to be a problem either.”

Mu Yuan pondered.

The recent transaction with the Winged caravan had been his assessment of Sophia and Daisy. His requirements weren’t high – they didn’t need to perform exceptionally well, but at least needed to be above average and not easily led astray by others.

From what he had seen so far, Sophia and Daisy had performed quite well. Daisy even possessed a special talent that could subtly influence others, giving her an advantage in negotiations.

「Charming Will」

「Description: This talent enhances Daisy’s affinity, reducing others’ hostility and resistance toward her. The talent works passively, and actively activating it can significantly boost the effect while lowering the target’s willpower.」

Actively using the talent would be considered an underhanded tactic that could easily be detected.

But if not actively used, its influence was subtle and almost imperceptible. It was similar to how people tend to be more lenient and favorable toward attractive individuals – Daisy simply amplified this natural tendency to a higher degree.

With this in mind, the nearly prepared caravan could now attempt longer journeys.

The next day,

The Tianyuan Territory caravan – temporarily named ‘Guangyuan’, symbolizing abundant wealth – was about to depart.

The location of their destination, Stone Ridge Town, had been confirmed.

The main personnel included Sophia, Daisy, Lu Liu, and a certain Dolai.

Lu Liu served as the guard commander, leading a group of elite guards on the journey. Several of these elites had even awakened self-awareness.

Of course, they were still quite naive, primarily responsible for combat and making an impressive presence. The task of external communication fell upon Sophia and Daisy.

Even so, since this was their first time, Lord Mu wasn’t completely at ease. He planned to remotely guide Sophia and Daisy throughout the entire journey.

Dolai would serve as the communication antenna and base station.

Mu Someone’s Mental Link talent had actually expanded to cover hundreds of kilometers as his Rank and Mental Energy increased. Even while remaining in Tianyuan Territory, he could remotely guide Sophia in Stone Ridge Town, though it could only be done one-on-one and was quite strenuous.

Additionally, Dolai could serve as a backup transport pack.

The reason it was only backup was because for the caravan to operate normally, they couldn’t rely on General Dolai for long-distance transportation, even though… Dolai’s dimensional pocket had enormous storage capacity, far exceeding conventional spatial equipment, making it quite convenient for cargo transport.

The caravan needed to have its own transportation methods.Within the inner circle of the Taixuan Alliance, carriages and various transport vehicles could be used on paved roads, but this was naturally impossible in the outer regions, especially in territories nestled deep within mountains and forests.

Transportation tools had to be capable of traversing rugged terrain.

The Winged merchant caravan used ‘Rock Beasts’—massive creatures with strong endurance and high load-bearing capacity, though they were rather clumsy and slow-moving.

Rock Beasts were one of the most commonly used transport creatures among merchant caravans. Some large and top-tier merchant guilds, however, possessed their own exclusive transport creatures or transport puppets.

The conditions in Tianyuan Territory were relatively limited. Deliberately purchasing and cultivating transport units like Rock Beasts wasn’t impossible, but it would be a waste of financial resources and effort.

Thus, Mu Yuan made use of local resources, selecting transport creatures from the existing, often idle units that did nothing but eat all day.

That’s right, it was the Slimes~!

“Dolai, is the transport training for the Slimes going smoothly?”

“Of course, gurgle~!

“How could there be any problems when I’m in charge, gurgle~!”

Dolai thumped its chest proudly.

Though it was often unreliable, when it came to instructing its own kind, it displayed talent far surpassing its learning abilities.

After all, Dolai had once held the title of ‘Transportation Brigade Leader.’

It was precisely because Dolai had been skilled at transportation even before evolving that Mu Yuan conceived the idea of using Slimes for cargo transport.

Not far away, intelligent Halberdiers and Great Halberdiers, assisted by the territory’s civilians, were transporting crates of already packaged goods.

The crates were lined with some anti-corrosion materials, though their resistance wasn’t strong, as cost considerations had to be taken into account.

Mu Yuan lifted a crate with one hand and approached a Slime with a faint golden hue, large in size, resembling a lump of golden excrement from a distance.

He patted its soft belly and said, “Come on, swallow this crate. Remember, you can’t eat it.”

“Gurgle~!”

The Golden Slime’s large eyes sparkled brightly as it leaned forward slightly, swaying as if to say it understood.

It shuffled forward, its body slowly enveloping the one-meter-long crate like a viscous fluid. The process wasn’t fast, as it lacked the ‘Fluid Shaping’ skill, but it possessed considerable intelligence and knew how to utilize the properties of its gelatinous body.

After about ten seconds, the crate was fully absorbed into the Golden Slime’s body, seemingly solidified within. No matter how the Slime shook, the crate wouldn’t fall out.

To demonstrate, the Golden Slime even performed a Leap Strike on the spot.

It leaped high into the air, and upon landing, its body wobbled like a large belly, yet the cargo inside remained completely undamaged.

“How about that? Impressive, right? This is what I taught~!”

Dolai placed its hands on its hips proudly.

Mu Yuan ruffled its hair and said, “Yes, yes, it is impressive.”

It had indeed achieved his intended goal.

Given the Golden Slime’s size, it could swallow four to six crates without appearing too bloated, and the cargo wouldn’t hinder its movement. While Slimes were slow when merely shuffling or dragging themselves, their jumping ability made them quite agile, allowing them to leap effortlessly through mountains and forests.

Since this was the first attempt, Mu Yuan decided to test it on a small scale.

The merchant caravan was kept modest in size, consisting of only six ‘Golden Transport Slimes,’ ten Imperial Guards, ten Great Halberdiers, ten Sharpshooters, and the standard tool, the Camera Falcon.

That was all.The guards were all equipped with standardized gear bearing unified insignias. He had even specially crafted matching ‘little capes’ for the Golden Slimes, engraved with the emblem of the Guangyuan Merchant Guild.

He also provided portable tents, daily necessities, tools, and more for key personnel like Lu Liu, Sophia, Daisy, and Dolai.

Lord Mu had exhausted himself with worry.

But since it was their first time and they lacked experience, he had no choice but to prepare everything he could think of.

“Is this perhaps a tad too much?”

Isloria watched as her Lord continuously transported supplies from the real world, a slight sweat forming on her forehead.

Sophia and Daisy felt the same.

Yet they were deeply touched.

With such a Lord, what were the sisters waiting for? They must charge ahead without hesitation!

For the Lord, caw!

“With the Doraemon Storage Bag on this trip, we might as well bring as much as we can—treat it as a trial to gather experience.”

“Understood.”

Isloria found this reasoning sound.

Truly, he was the man Undead General hailed as the ‘Father of Prudence.’

Mu Yuan turned his gaze to Sophia, Daisy, Lu Liu, and Dolai… Well, perhaps Dolai could be excluded. He addressed the first three, “The primary goal of this journey is not merely to sell goods—that is the least important task. Our main objectives are to familiarize ourselves with the outside world and to investigate the local market in Stone Ridge Town.In truth, Mu Yuan was also deeply curious about the genuine lord cities beyond.

Official towns were typically the most prosperous and well-developed within these lordly cities.

However, he had never seen one in person—the scattered photos online were far too limited.

“Understood, caw!”

Half an hour later, at the southern exit of Tianyuan Territory.

Fearless General Lu Liu stood clad in black Treasure Armor, holding the Earth Rock Shield, with a large black Spear strapped to his back. Towering over two meters tall, his mere presence exuded an indescribable pressure.

Matters of escort, marching, and troop command fell under Lu Liu’s responsibility.

Talents like Sophia and the other Witches possessed broader knowledge.

But generals like Lu Liu, who originated from military units, had their own advantages. Their combat intuition and sharpness were ingrained in their very bones.

Such were military units—their primary function was combat.

Without external factors, a player would never defeat a military unit of the same level and tier, with comparable skills and rudimentary intelligence.

Even if Sophia were 6 levels higher than Lu Liu, her chances of winning against him would likely be less than 20%.

Of course, their roles differed.

As the merchant convoy prepared to depart, Mu Yuan, like a fretful mother, offered over a dozen more reminders. Noticing Isloria covering her mouth to stifle a laugh and Dolai’s head drooping as if already asleep, he reluctantly concluded his speech and waved them off.

Soon, the convoy vanished from sight.

…

Squelch~ squelch~ squelch~

In the rugged mountain forests, large golden blobs hopped along in a synchronized rhythm, one after another.

They crossed streams and scaled hills.

The other guard soldiers also moved with remarkable agility, leaping through the wooded terrain. Their pace was significantly faster than that of the Winged merchant convoy that had passed through the day before.

After all, the Slime transporters were nimble and had already stepped into the professional tier.

Both Sophia and Daisy, being Elite-ranked, dashed across the mountainous landscape as if it were flat ground. As they traveled, they reviewed the materials provided by their Lord, engaging in lively discussions and ensuring not a moment was wasted.Lu Liu wore a solemn expression, his gaze meticulously scanning the surroundings inch by inch. Even though there was not the slightest trace of monsters yet, he remained completely vigilant.

This was his attitude.

Dolai glanced left and right, seemingly appearing a bit redundant?

It wasn’t until the caravan had traveled over a hundred kilometers and Lu Liu ordered a temporary camp to rest that Dolai snapped out of its dreamlike state and began its performance as the grand chef, kicking off the feast.

After eating, drinking, and resting, the caravan set off once again.

According to estimates, the journey from Tianyuan Territory to the distant Mountain Ridge Town would take the better part of a day. Since this was the first trip and the road conditions were unfamiliar, the travel time might be even longer.

Happy National Day! I’ve had a lot going on lately, so the next chapter will still be a bit delayed, but barring any surprises, it should be earlier than yesterday… (:з」∠)

(End of Chapter)