Magic Farm 101

Chapter 101: Swallow Meat Goes on Sale in District 88

Dan Xingyu knew full well—there wasn’t a single serious or reliable one among this group.

[Divine Formless: Enough with the jokes. Seriously, I have a batch of swallow meat on hand, planning to list it on the trading board.]

[Now That I’ve Withdrawn: A batch? How much are we talking? If it’s not a lot, there’s no need to let outsiders benefit—let us help you use it up.]

[Divine Formless: Heh, not much.]

[Divine Formless: Just a mere hundred thousand portions. @Now That I’ve Withdrawn, are you ready to sell yourself into servitude for me?]

[Now That I’ve Withdrawn: …]

[The Sun Rises in the West: Did you say how much?]

[There’s Always Tomorrow: Second God, you know I’ve always admired you greatly.]

[Divine Formless: Mm, I know. But admiration still costs money.]

[There’s Always Tomorrow: Second God, you’ve changed! In the past, in situations like this, you’d at least hand out a couple bottles of water to your brothers for free.]

[Divine Formless: If it were my own, I wouldn’t mind giving you some. This time I’m selling on behalf of someone else, you get that?]

Dan Xingyu knew that everyone in the group had long been speculating that he had connections to some resource-rich player behind the scenes.

At first, they might have thought it was someone mysterious within their own district.

But the moment the swallow meat appeared, that theory naturally fell apart.

Just as they’d said, this wasn’t something that could appear in bulk in District 88.

Right now, they were probably guessing he either had some channel to connect with the local natives, or, more likely, they were getting close to the truth: that he’d gotten to know players from other districts through some special means.

There was little point in hiding this secret. Last time, when the resource zone suddenly appeared, it was the players’ first experience—no one had any idea what to expect. Next time the resource zone opens, those who get the cards will definitely be prepared in advance.

By then, entering the resource zone will be the best opportunity for players to exchange information and even trade.

A “District 01 specialty” like swallow meat was unlikely to stay hidden.

[Divine Formless: Stop guessing. It’s just as you think.]

[There’s Always Tomorrow: Damn, which is it? Did you really marry into a wealthy family?]

[Divine Formless: .]

[Divine Formless: Decision made. I’m listing it on the trading board, one beast crystal for two portions. @There’s Always Tomorrow, if you want to buy, it’s one beast crystal for one portion.]

[There’s Always Tomorrow: Even if you’re overcharging me! Gouging me for all I’m worth! I still have to say it—Second God, you never really wanted our advice! You just came here to show off!]

District 88 Regional Chat Channel:

[Divine Formless (highlighted): Info €€ Swallow meat. Swallow meat is now available on the trading board. Buy as needed.]

[Toilet Paper: Holy shit, that’s the equivalent of a hundred thousand bottles of 500ml mineral water! How did Second God get his hands on this? Amazing!]

[Eternal Night: @Divine Formless, where did you get it? Any discount for bulk purchase?]

[Divine Formless: No, I’ve set a limit of two portions per person.]

[No Phone, Life Is Hard: Got it! Thank you, Second God. I’ll always support you as our District 88 number one!]

There were nearly seventy thousand players left in District 88 now. Anyone who’d survived this long could participate in the Earthfire Dragon points event—no one was hurting for a single beast crystal.

And water resources in District 88—especially clean, drinkable water—were precious beyond measure.

Even if Divine Formless raised the price a bit more, there would still be a market.

But it was the same logic as with the Jade Crystal Peaches.

These hundred thousand portions of swallow meat, he suspected, were all privately owned by Qi Yu—which meant the vast player market of District 01 had yet to be tapped.

Letting more people benefit would only help with long-term development down the line.

Of course, he didn’t deny that with this pricing and purchase limit, he could maximize the number of players able to buy this relatively “cheap” drinking water, while still making a profit.

[Eternal Night: Hah, only you know how to play the good guy.]

[Divine Formless: Don’t be bitter, number two. Go check the points leaderboard—how come you’re trailing me by twenty thousand points? Reflect on whether you’re working hard enough!]

[Eternal Night: Divine Formless! Are you trying to piss me off on purpose?!]

[Divine Formless: If I really wanted to piss you off, I’d just blacklist you from the trading page. Wouldn’t that make you blow a fuse?]

Players in District 88 were already used to watching number one and number two bicker.

Their rivalry had started the moment the leaderboards appeared.

The ID “Eternal Night” had been highly active ever since entering the survival game.

He was a regular in the regional channel, posting survival tips, explaining the uses of various items, showing off whatever powerful loot he’d acquired, and so on.

Soon, a crowd of players had gathered around him.

He’d genuinely helped a lot of people, and many called him “Night God.”

He clearly enjoyed the adoration.

By contrast, “Divine Formless” had been utterly unknown during the novice period in District 88.

Until the end of the novice phase, when the survival challenge leaderboard was released.

Everyone had assumed “Eternal Night” would be number one—he himself thought so too.

But out of nowhere, an unheard-of Divine Formless appeared and took first place.

After that, when the regional leaderboard opened, Divine Formless claimed the top spot in combat power as well.

Maybe he had a touch of “top syndrome”—in any case, Eternal Night lost his cool.

His followers lost their cool too.

Because of the trend he set, all the strong players in District 88 were called “X God.”

His followers deliberately trolled in the channel:

[We’ve got Night God, Fish God, Su God in our district… What should we call number one?]

[Divine Formless is a weird name. Can’t call him Formless God, Image God… God God?]

[Haha, two ‘Gods’—why not just call him Second God?]

…

While they were being sarcastic, Divine Formless appeared:

[Divine Formless: Second God is a fine title. I like it.]

[Divine Formless: My name has two ‘Gods’ in it, so I’m number one. Too bad Night God only has one ‘God’—so he’s stuck at number two.]

[Divine Formless: Clearly, having an extra ‘God’ makes you a bit stronger.]

Everyone: “……”

[I, Li Er Gou: Look at my ID! I’m the rightful, legitimate Second God! How can you steal my nickname!]

[Now That I’ve Withdrawn: Damn, why didn’t I think of this sooner! If I’d named myself ‘Now That I’ve Withdrawn, It’s Three Steps,’ everyone could call me Third God. Then I’d easily take the top three spots!]

[The Sun Rises in the West: By that logic, I should have named myself ‘The Sun Rises from All Four Directions.’]

…

That was how Divine Formless inexplicably got to know people like “Li Second Dog.”

After they became familiar, they formed a small, regular trading group. There’s Always Tomorrow was invited in by Li Second Dog.

His first words upon joining:

[There’s Always Tomorrow: I often feel inferior around you all, simply because my name is too normal.]

.

Because the swallow meat was listed in bulk, at a fixed price, with self-service trading and one-click transactions, it was hardly any trouble at all.

Number one was doing charity—one beast crystal for two bottles of drinking water. Every player in District 88 who heard the news jumped at the chance.

Whether they managed to buy it or missed out by a few seconds, everyone was frantically calling for Divine Formless in the regional channel, asking if there’d be another chance.

[Divine Formless: Most likely, yes. Wait for news.]

He called Qi Yu directly.

When the call came through, Qi Yu was in the middle of his third cast of the day.

The first time, he’d reeled in a clump of green grass.

The survival panel identified it as a bunch of nearly moldy seaweed—completely worthless.

Qi Yu: “……”

The second time, he pulled up a wooden treasure chest.

But the chest was battered and broken, nothing like the ones he’d seen before.

[Damaged Wooden Treasure Chest: A chicken-rib chest. It might contain nothing, or it might yield inferior items.]

He opened the chest and got one bottle of spoiled wine and a chipped goblet.

Qi Yu silently set the loot aside, deciding to give it one last try.

Clearly, his luck at fishing today wasn’t great. He’d try once more, and if nothing good turned up, he’d call it quits.

The comms orb lit up. As soon as Qi Yu answered, he sensed something.

He turned his head and saw a flock of swallows flapping their wings as they flew over.

His frustration at catching nothing good vanished in an instant!

New points and new beast crystals were on their way.

“Dan Xingyu, what’s up?” His tone was light.

Dan Xingyu said, “The swallow meat you sent me—it’s all sold out.”

Qi Yu: “That fast?”

Dan Xingyu: “Of course. Our district is at 43°C now. Forty-three degrees! Do you get it?”

If the players hadn’t all gained extra constitution from the survival game, at this temperature, with no air conditioning or cold drinks, and still having to go out and hunt Earthfire Dragons, half the IDs in District 88 would have gone gray.

But even with enhanced constitution, the heat was still brutal, and everyone’s need for water had skyrocketed.

Swallow meat wasn’t just precious—it was convenient.

Ask yourself, in the middle of fighting monsters, is it easier to pull out a bottle of water and chug it, or to pop a concentrated capsule?

[Your friend “Divine Formless” has initiated a trade with you.]

[You have received Level 1 Beast Crystal x51,000.]

Qi Yu was surprised: That many?

Dan Xingyu said, “I set the price at one beast crystal for two portions of swallow meat. The remaining thousand or so portions—I’m keeping as a service fee.”

He called it a service fee, but the trade he sent had already deducted the transaction fee.

In the survival game, player-to-player trades incurred a 5% fee on the item’s value. That meant, of the 51,000 Level 1 beast crystals transferred, Divine Formless had to pay 2,550 crystals as the fee.

He hadn’t even mentioned it.

Dan Xingyu went on, “Swallow meat has a huge market in our district. You can buy as much as you can in your own district—no matter how much, we can take it all.”

Water was essential for survival.

And now, the temperature in District 88 was still rising every day.

Even Divine Formless had no idea what the climate would eventually become.

Qi Yu: “Got it.”

He didn’t bring up the transaction fee either—just as he’d sent over 103,000 portions of swallow meat without blinking, with no guarantee, and Divine Formless hadn’t questioned it.

He simply said, “I’ve just learned something new. I’ll send it to you at mealtime.”

Divine Formless: “Alright, I’ll hang up now—another Earthfire Dragon just showed up.”

Because of the points event, their conversations these days were always rushed; only at mealtimes could they sit down and rest for a while together.

As the call ended, Qi Yu’s fishing rod twitched.

He reeled in the line.

[You have obtained: Ordinary Trash Can x1.]

A shallow green rectangular object.

[Ordinary Trash Can: Furniture for holding garbage. Can be upgraded.]

A trash can wasn’t anything rare, but this was the first time Qi Yu had seen an upgradable one.

An idea struck him. He took out the basic building upgrade blueprint he’d bought just yesterday from his backpack.