Chapter 100: Pioneer Camp! Survival Rules!

The three walked along, stopping and starting; Li Hu was a chatterbox, spilling the beans about the pioneer camp's situation like pouring beans from a bamboo tube.

Wang Shan listened silently, occasionally interjecting a few words, his eyes continually scanning the surroundings. On the edge of the barbaric wilderness, indeed everywhere revealed primitiveness and roughness.

After about an hour, Li Hu pointed ahead at a sparse grove, grinning: "Brother Wang, see? Up ahead is our den!"

Pushing aside the last branch and leaf, a mountainside-built camp came into view.

Rather than calling it a camp, it's more like a huge stronghold.

The perimeter consisted of thick logs and irregularly stacked stone walls, crooked yet sturdy.

Inside the wall, simple wooden and stone huts could be faintly seen, scattered about.

A few wisps of cooking smoke rose, bringing a hint of liveliness to this barbaric land.

"Hey, not bad?" Li Hu said with some pride, "This is our home built blade by blade, stone by stone by our brothers!"

Zhang Mei added: "About three to four hundred cultivators reside in the camp, most at the Body Refining level. Going out to hunt or gather herbs like us is everyday fare."

Wang Shan nodded and followed them toward the camp gate.

At the gate, a few cultivators wielding weapons stood guard; seeing Li Hu and Zhang Mei, a scarred man raised his chin: "Yo, Tiger, Ah Mei, back? How's the haul?"

Li Hu laughed heartily, patted his waist pouch: "Not bad! This is Brother Wang Shan, whom we met on the road; he wants to stay at our camp."

The scarred man's gaze swept over Wang Shan, a hint of scrutiny: "Newcomer? Know the rules?"

"I understand, I understand, elder brother, rest assured." Wang Shan clasped his hands, his expression calm.

He could feel that the people in the camp had eyes full of vigilance and ferocity; clearly not a gathering of pushovers.

Upon entering the camp, the scene inside further confirmed Wang Shan's judgment.

The road was pitted; cultivators on either side mostly hurried, wearing animal hides and coarse cloth, many bearing wounds, the air faintly reeking of blood and medicinal herbs.

Occasionally one could see a few corners where people quarreled over trifles, swords drawn and bows taut.

"Cough, Brother Wang, don't take offense," Li Hu scratched his head, a bit embarrassed, "We're rough folk here; for a bit of resources we sometimes get… uh, rowdy."

"The weak are prey to the strong; survival of the fittest is the same everywhere." Wang Shan said lightly. This place was even more direct than he imagined.

Zhang Mei whispered nearby: "The camp has rules; private fights are overlooked by the leader as long as no one dies. But if you ruin the camp's major affairs…" she made a throat-slitting gesture.

Wang Shan understood.

"First I'll take you to meet our leader," Li Hu said, "Elder Xiong will want to see the newcomer."

The so-called leader's residence was merely a slightly larger stone house at the camp's center. Two men with steady breaths stood at the door, evidently the leader's confidants. Li Hu stepped forward to announce, and was soon allowed inside.

Inside the stone house the light was somewhat dim; a hulkingly built man sat in the chief seat, wiping a massive board axe. His upper body bare, muscles knotted, a ferocious scar ran from his left shoulder to his right abdomen, exuding oppression. This man was the pioneer camp's leader, Xiong Ba, at the early stage of the ninth level of Body Refinement.

"Boss, I've brought the person," Li Hu said in a muffled voice, his usual bluntness subdued before Xiong Ba.

Xiong Ba lifted his head, eyes like lightning, falling on Wang Shan: "You're Wang Shan?" His voice sounded like rolling thunder.

"Greetings, Bear Leader." Wang Shan was neither humble nor arrogant.

"Ah Hu said you came alone from the Man Yun Mountain Range? And you still know a bit… the ropes?" Xiong Ba set down the board axe, arms crossed, eyes probing.

Li Hu hastily added: "Boss, Brother Wang isn't simple! Earlier we met a second-order swift wind demon wolf, and Brother Wang with one palm…"

"Ah Hu!" Zhang Mei tugged his sleeve lightly, signaling him not to say too much.

Xiong Ba waved his hand, cutting off Li Hu's words, still fixed on Wang Shan: "Pill master? Or talisman master?"

Wang Shan pondered a moment, then said: "I have some familiarity with pill and talisman craft, but I dare not call myself a master."

"Oh?" Xiong Ba raised his eyebrows, showing some interest, yet his scrutiny undiminished. "Our camp lacks most pills and talismans. If you truly have ability, stay; I, Xiong Ba, will naturally welcome you. But hear me first: this camp does not harbor idlers; everything must follow the rules."

"I'd like to hear the details." Wang Shan said.

"Simple!" Xiong Ba slapped his thigh, "Want something? Offer something in exchange. The camp has a contribution points system; you can trade the pills and talismans you refine for points, then use those points to obtain the lodging, food, spiritual materials you need, and even… protection." His last words carried deep meaning.

"What if no one needs the pills and talismans I refine?" Wang Shan asked.

Xiong Ba grinned, showing a mouthful of white teeth: "Then you'll have to figure out how to survive on your own. This wilderness doesn't reason."

"I understand." Wang Shan nodded, "I am willing to obey the camp's rules." He is now penniless; the contribution points system is instead an opportunity.

"Good! Straightforward!" Xiong Ba seemed satisfied with Wang Shan's answer, "Ah Hu, first take Brother Wang to get settled. If you need basic materials for pill and talisman craft, you can withdraw some from the camp's accounts first, later to be offset with contribution points."

"Thank you, Leader." Wang Shan said.

Li Hu and Zhang Mei led Wang Shan out of the stone house. Li Hu let out a long breath: "Phew, the boss's aura makes me nervous each time. Brother Wang, you're impressive, keeping your composure!"

Wang Shan smiled, said nothing. This scene wasn't enough to move him. He now cared more about quickly accumulating spirit plant points and restoring his strength. In the system backpack, those pitiful seven spirit plant points truly left him feeling insecure.

"Brother Wang, what do you plan to refine first?" Zhang Mei asked, clearly having high hopes for his pill-and-talisman art.

"Let's first see what materials the camp can provide." Wang Shan said, "Let's first refine some commonly used healing pills and defensive talismans to test the waters."

The camp provided Wang Shan lodging in a small stone house near the edge, rather crude but fairly quiet. Li Hu helped withdraw some low-grade spiritual herbs of short age and some basic talisman paper and cinnabar from the camp's storehouse.

"Brother Wang, these are the materials we have; quality… hehe, please bear with it." Li Hu felt a bit embarrassed. Camp resources are tight; the good stuff has already been snatched up.

"No trouble, thanks." Wang Shan took the materials. He checked; they were indeed run-of-the-mill, low in age, but sufficient for refining first-order pills and talismans, barely enough.

After seeing off Li Hu and Zhang Mei, Wang Shan closed the stone door, a thought moving him to transfer some spiritual herbs into the system space. Although the spirit plant points were insufficient for large-scale cultivation, the system space's spiritual concentration far surpassed the outside world, still offering slight aid in boosting the herbs' potency. As for those seven spirit plant points, he carefully exchanged them for several key auxiliary medicinal ingredients, to improve the pill formation rate and pill quality.

Thereafter, he took out a crude pill furnace and talisman brush, beginning to busy himself in the stone house. For him, as long as he had materials, refining these low-grade items was a piece of cake.

The next morning, when Li Hu and Zhang Mei came to visit, Wang Shan handed them several jade bottles and a stack of talismans.

"Is this… finished?" Li Hu widened his eyes.

Wang Shan smiled faintly: "Some first-order Return Spring Pills and first-order Diamond Talismans, quality decent; take them to test the effects."

Li Hu eagerly opened a jade bottle; a medicinal fragrance far richer than ordinary Return Spring Pills assailed his nose. He tipped out a pellet; the pill's color was round and lustrous, with a faint glow flowing within. "Goodness, this appearance is far superior to those in the camp!"

Zhang Mei picked up a Diamond Talisman, carefully sensing the spiritual power fluctuation within; a flicker of surprise crossed her eyes: "The talisman's spiritual power is very stable, and… seems somewhat tougher."

"Brother Wang, how do you intend to sell these pills and talismans?" Li Hu asked excitedly.

"Fair pricing will do." Wang Shan had already calculated, "I'll set it slightly below the camp's market price by ten percent, but the effect—I think you'll judge."

Li Hu and Zhang Mei exchanged glances, both seeing delight in the other's eyes. "Let's go! Let's head to the trading area now!"

The pioneer camp's trading area was actually a relatively flat open space; many cultivators set up stalls here, exchanging or selling various items, from demon beast materials to harvested spiritual herbs, and even some damaged magical artifacts.

When Li Hu displayed the "Premium Rejuvenation Pill" and "Strong-effect Vajra Talisman" refined by Wang Shan, and explained their effects and prices, initially no one showed interest. After all, Wang Shan was a newcomer, and everyone was skeptical of his goods.

Until a man with a blood-soaked bandage on his arm, trying it out, bought a Return Spring Pill and took it. Moments later, he happily felt a cool sensation at the wound, pain greatly reduced, and his recovery speed noticeably faster than before with other pills!

"This pill... is damn effective!" the man shouted, instantly drawing attention from many.

"Lao Wang, you're not bragging, are you?" someone nearby said disbelievingly.

"Bullshit! I've used it myself, it can't be fake—it's way better than what that black-hearted Zhang San sells!"

Word spread from ten to a hundred. Soon, Wang Shan's stall was surrounded by people. Those Vajra Talismans were also bought for testing, and the result was equally delightful—the shield they generated was far more solid than same-tier talismans.

"How much for this pill?"

"Give me three Vajra Talismans!"

"Any Return Spring Pills left? I'll take them all!"

The scene became extremely lively. The first batch of pills and talismans refined by Wang Shan sold out in less than half an hour. Li Hu and Zhang Mei helped collect contribution points on the side, grinning ear to ear.

"Brother Wang, you really are... a true expert hides his abilities!" Li Hu counted the contribution points in his hand, his eyes nearly narrowing to slits.

Wang Shan wore a faint smile, his heart also relieved. The first step was a success. He used these contribution points to first exchange for some healing pills with better effects for himself to take, and the rest he exchanged for more low-tier spirit plant seeds and some materials for refining second-tier talismans.

He planted all the seeds in the system space, looking at the patch of new green, as if seeing hope for the future. As long as he had enough spirit plant points, his strength could quickly recover, even improve further.

After initially establishing a foothold in the camp, Wang Shan continued refining pills and talismans to earn contribution points while also, intentionally or not, probing Xiong Ba, Li Hu, Zhang Mei, and others for information.

"Bear Leader, what exactly is the scenery deep in the Man Yun Mountain Range? Are there any high-tier demon beasts lurking there?" After a trade, Wang Shan asked casually.

Xiong Ba gulped a mouthful of spirit wine, wiped his mouth, and said: "Deep inside? Hah, that godforsaken place—I have no interest in going! I heard there are even fourth- and fifth-tier old demons in there; with our level of cultivation, going in wouldn't even be enough to fill a tooth gap! We just skim the outskirts, scraping a living."

"What about Heishi Town?" Wang Shan asked again, "I've heard it's the largest gathering of cultivators nearby."

"Heishi Town, well, it's indeed the largest market town in our area, over a hundred li away. We take some useless materials we gather in the camp, or need any special supplies, and go there to trade." Xiong Ba paused, his brows slightly furrowed, "But lately that place hasn't been very peaceful either."

"Oh? How so?" Wang Shan's heart stirred.

"I also heard from brothers who went to Heishi Town that it seems some branch of the Wan family from Qingyang City has sent many people over there, acting like they're looking for someone, causing a fuss." Xiong Ba smacked his lips, "Those big powers' affairs are beyond us; better not to pry."

"Wan family!" Wang Shan's hand holding the wine cup paused imperceptibly, then he took a sip as if nothing happened. Sure enough, that old thing Wan Tianjue won't give up easily. It seems Heishi Town is off-limits for now.

He also probed indirectly about trade between the camp and Heishi Town. Xiong Ba didn't hide anything, saying that although there was trade, the relationship was quite complex, and those guilds and powers in Heishi Town often exploited the interests of these pioneer camps, leading to occasional small-scale clashes, with a few deaths being common.

"Damn it, those city bastards, all high and mighty, think we blood‑lickers on the knife edge are easy to bully?" Li Hu fumed beside him, "If it weren't for needing to exchange necessary pills and magic artifacts, who would want to deal with them!"

Wang Shan remained silent. It seemed the survival environment of this pioneer camp was even tougher than he had anticipated.

As the quality of the pills and talismans Wang Shan produced kept improving, his reputation in the camp grew. Many cultivators had benefited from his favors and held him in high regard. Some hunting teams going out would even place advance orders for his pills and talismans.

But as Xiong Ba said, the camp doesn't tolerate idlers, nor is it short of jealous people. Wang Shan, an outsider, could easily earn a large amount of contribution points with just his skill in pill and talisman crafting, naturally arousing envy and covetousness from some.

That day, Wang Shan had just stepped out of his stone hut, preparing to go to the trading area to replenish materials, when he bumped into several men with unfriendly faces. Leading them was a one‑eyed dragon, a Body Refining eighth‑layer peak cultivator, considered a top figure in the camp, known as the "One‑Eyed Wolf", always domineering.

"Yo, isn't this Master Wang the great pill master?" the One‑Eyed Wolf blocked Wang Shan's path with a fake smile, "I heard you've recently made a small fortune."

Wang Shan frowned slightly, his tone flat: "Do you have business with me?"

"Nothing much, just the brothers are a bit short on funds and want to borrow some contribution points from Master Wang the pill master for spending." The few men behind the One‑Eyed Wolf also hehe‑laughed, subtly surrounding Wang Shan.

"What if I don't lend?" Wang Shan's gaze was calm, showing no joy or anger.

"Not lend?" The One‑Eyed Wolf's smile vanished instantly, a fierce glint flashing in his single eye, "In this pioneer camp, no one has ever dared to defy the One‑Eyed Wolf's face! Kid, I advise you to be sensible, or you'll suffer!"

The air instantly grew tense.