Moonlight draped like a light gauze over the high-backed revolving chair by the window and the large desk before it, cluttered with small trinkets.

Di’an, seated comfortably in the leather chair, chuckled lightly and said to the intrigued Xue Qi:

“Depending on factors like completeness, rarity, intensity, and the distinctiveness of the event it belongs to, an experience holds different values for different distributors.“

“So before we sell, should we find the distributor who needs it most?“

“Don’t rush,” Di’an leaned forward slightly. “If you did that, think how much trouble it would be for you. In truth, distributors everywhere trade the ‘Radiance’ and ‘Flashes’ they receive amongst themselves. So, in most cases, you can just rest easy and sell the Radiance contained within your glorious experiences.“

A look of cognitive dissonance flickered across Xue Qi’s face.

“Hmm. For example, take Mr. Buchen here,” Di’an gestured politely toward Yang Zicang.

“To successfully navigate an unfamiliar vessel through two storm belts and reach us without a Crossing Person—in my experience, that’s definitely a fairly glorious life experience. And he also helped the murdered ferryman by killing the perpetrator; that could be another decent experience.“

Yang Zicang’s heart stirred. Counting like this, did he already possess two portions of “Radiance,” and even a “Flash” on top of that?

“Considering the gap in strength between the murderer and Mr. Buchen, as well as the difficulty of the specific circumstances, I estimate that this experience of punishing the murderer could also yield a ‘Radiance.’ Not to mention the experience of clearing his name just now… Wow…“

Yang Zicang’s brow twitched.

The captain’s earlier words of caution suddenly resurfaced in his mind.

—…If you choose them, then this strand of fate, already half-born… will hold not a shred of ‘benefit.’

So, had he chosen to rely on these so-called merchants to clear his name back then, their method would likely have been to directly extract his experience, which could indeed prove his innocence.

But then, this experience that had half-unfolded on the reef, just as the captain said, would not have been able to burst forth into Radiance. Calculating this way…

Clap~ clap~ clap~

Deep in thought, Yang Zicang heard sparse applause.

He turned his eyes to Di’an, who had involuntarily leaned back in his swivel chair, slowly clapping. The distributor from the Moon Realm, clad in his military overcoat and bearing strange features, smiled admiringly:

“Impressive, Mr. Buchen! Freshly arrived, and by my count, just these short two or three days have been enough to produce three Radiances and at least one Flash! Heavens, I’ve truly never heard of such a thing!“

The man leaned forward, exclaiming with fervent eyes fixed on Yang Zicang.

“Become a long-term client of our Supply Station, Mr. Buchen.“

“Long-term contract?” Xue Qi seemed to have heard an archaic term.

“Even if you go to another Epoch Land next, I can recommend our other distributors to cooperate with you. I believe on this journey across the continent, you will surely give birth to many more Radiances. So sign with me, Mr. Buchen, and in the future, we can continue our cooperation on the next Epoch Land.“

Yang Zicang smiled faintly. “You haven’t finished explaining.“

“Huh?“

Yang Zicang pointed to the woman beside him with fair skin and soft, dark hair. “At the very least, you should let my friend here know what the second layer means.“

“Ah, this, hahaha. Hmm…“

Di’an looked at the lady beside the man, a smile on his face.

“That piece of information will cost you one Radiance, hehe.“

“Then we’ll go check with the Travelers’ Guild next door.“

“Oh, wait.“

Di’an stood up, raising a hand and walking over to placate Yang Zicang, who seemed ready to leave.

“Please understand, Mr. Buchen. We also have our own rules and regulations. I believe you’d also prefer to deal with a merchant who respects regulations over one who judges based on status, right?“

Xue Qi glanced at the young man beside her. From the moment Yang Buchen set foot on this reef island, she realized that if it were her in his place, her hands would likely already be locked in unbreakable iron bracelets and thrown into a cell. Even now, though she suspected the man beside her was using her as a pretext, she was perfectly willing to be that pretext. Thinking this, Xue Qi blurted out:

“If a merchant even requires a transaction just to tell customers his own origins, the first thing that comes to my mind isn’t this so-called respect for his own self-made rules, but a living, breathing example of someone who puts a price tag on everything… Heh, you know that term, don’t you, Mr. Di’an?“

“Ah oh, this young lady has quite the sharp tongue. Are you trying to call me a profiteer?“

Di’an glanced again at Yang Zicang, who stood waiting for him to step aside:

“Alright, alright, how about this. There are fewer and fewer visitors here anyway; at most, in a few months, I’ll be leaving too. So in this off-season at the end of an epoch, it’s reasonable to offer some convenience to two excellent guests.“

“Then we thank you for your kindness, Mr. Di’an,” Yang Zicang relented.

“No trouble at all, please, sit.“

Di’an signaled to his assistant with a look. The medium-built officer immediately went to fetch a clay pot, poured two cups of coffee from a kettle, and hurried over to place them on the edge of the desk.

Di’an also returned to his seat. “My identity as a distributor comes from the second layer of the Moon Realm. How exactly the goods are supplied to me is irrelevant to the people of this world. The reason I exist is that this Track of Fate is a replica; the world it manifests cannot connect to the Moon Realm of the true old world.“

“You mean in the true old world, there are no merchants like you? People there can directly bask in the Moon Realm’s moonlight?“

Di’an replied noncommittally: “Aha, you guessed right. The Moon Realm’s Radiance that once shone upon the real world cannot reach this replicated Track of Fate. Hence, we exist—merchants selling the Radiance of the various layers of the Moon Realm.“

Various layers… Yang Zicang pondered the meaning of these words. So, the Moon Realm had many layers, and each layer had similar distributors.

“The Track of Fate is a replica. Is this world some kind of massive thought-force field?” Xue Qi asked.

Di’an looked over.

Yang Zicang felt this question was clearly beyond the scope. It probably wasn’t something the man before them would answer directly, and if he did, he would likely demand “Radiance” as payment again.

But this time, he was wrong.

The Moon Realm distributor before them very generously answered the woman’s question directly.

“No.“

Seeing Xue Qi’s slightly disappointed expression, Yang Zicang said to her: “In the city I came from, there was a stretch of land that was the manifestation of a Saint’s body. It was real.“

“What? Such a thing exists!“

“That giant blanket I used is a cape left behind by a Saint.“

Yang Zicang turned his head to look at the distributor, who was smiling as he watched the two of them talk.

“Sir Di’an, may I ask, can the experience concerning that Saint also be extracted into a Radiance or a Flash?“

“If it’s an experience of breaking through the ‘impossible,’ then indeed, a ‘Flash’ can be extracted. Because the significance of such an experience can evoke the same shock and emotion across different civilizations and races, even across different histories and space-times. But for experiences other than Flashes, we have no way to extract them, as they don’t exist within this Track of Fate after all.“

At this, Di’an seemed a little embarrassed, and the words he clearly wanted to add remained unspoken.

But even this was enough for Xue Qi to wear the expression of someone who had just learned their considerable wealth was now bankrupt.

“I… I clearly had so many excellent performances before.“

Yang Zicang’s expression remained much more indifferent.

“Aha, forget about them.” Di’an picked up an earring from a small tray on the desk; its cut facets scattered sparkling light under the lamplight streaming through the window.

“I have here some distributor contactors made into jewelry, also called distributor beacons. You two, as long as you sign a ‘Long-Term Radiance Experience Acquisition Contract’ with our supply station, this contactor will allow you to quickly rate and trade your ‘glorious experiences’ anywhere within this Track of Fate.“

Seeing Xue Qi’s instantly captivated look, Di’an smiled and picked up an exquisite necklace from the tray, handing it along with the earrings to the lady who appeared to be in her twenties.

“Beautiful, isn’t it? This item can be yours for just one Radiance.“

“I, I don’t have…“

“No, you should have one. You contributed significantly during Mr. Yang Buchen’s process of proving his innocence earlier. Of course, I understand Miss Xue might not want to use her only Radiance as payment currency right now, so we can collect it after you acquire your second experience.“

Truly so accommodating.

The lady, fiddling with these two silvery, sparkling objects in her hands, looked at the young man beside her, her gaze seeking the opinion of this “Yang Buchen.“

Yang Zicang glanced at the ring faintly flickering on his chest.

In just these short two or three minutes, several people from the Weiting Travelers’ Guild had already contacted him, wanting to purchase his salvage experience. But he could only vaguely hear them and couldn’t connect the communication. The tranquility of this room seemed to shield the model’s connection.

“Is this so-called long-term contract exclusive?” Yang Zicang asked. “Also, you only mentioned that past glorious experiences can no longer be extracted. What about Flashes?“

“Ah, this…“

Di’an felt the drive in Yang Zicang’s gaze. This guy, is he deliberately trying to make things difficult for me…

缺 9
Chapter 9: The Distributor’s Beacon

Faced with Yang Zicang’s slightly aggressive questioning, Distributor Di’an felt a pang of unease. I wonder just how much that Saint he encountered told him about the Moon Realm.

This guy is deliberately pressing this question now, clearly trying to devalue me. But Di’an was clearly immune enough to such situations by now; his expression didn’t change a bit. He merely nodded slowly and said:

“As you know, sir, it’s already the end of the Epoch. So the device capable of extracting ‘Heroes’ Flashes’ from another Track of Fate has already been shipped to my next place of work.“

If this fellow comes to my office on the next Epoch Land and still doesn’t see that thing, I’ll just say it was lost on the way, Di’an muttered to himself inwardly.

……

Outside the door, several people pressed their ears to the wooden door, but only muffled buzzing sounds came through, and they couldn’t make out the words.

A young man in an old hoodie and glasses moved his ear away from the door, only to be slapped on the head.

“You think you’re a stethoscope, moving around like that?“

“Ouch.” Casper rubbed his head and looked up at the Native American beside him, who had two long braids and wore a fringed cardigan.

The few of them straightened up. “Vice President, you’re here.“

Wapi Redcloud nodded with a grunt.

Casper pushed up his glasses and said, “Vice President, aren’t you going to rest?“

“How can I sleep with such a big matter?“

Wapi Redcloud glanced at this member of the Travelers’ Guild, then pressed his own head to the wooden door as well.

One person said, “This is bad, Vice President Wapi. That yellow-skinned man called Yang Buchen has been in there for quite a while. He might be directly snagged by this distributor.“

“It seems they’re still talking, we should still have a chance.“

Wapi Redcloud, with his ear pressed to the door, frowned and said, “If he’s smart enough, he should come to our guild to compare prices.“

He straightened up and looked at the few of them.

“We’ve been traveling on land and sea for these past few months, and so far we haven’t managed to gather the Radiance we need. Now, with this Epoch about to end, a Flash has appeared.“

Casper whispered, “Boss, we absolutely must get our hands on this Flash. With it, we’ll recoup our expenses for this period.“

“Those broken efforts won’t have been in vain.“

“Yeah, you’re right.“

The Travelers’ Guild Vice President nodded. “We’ve hardly encountered a Flash; we must secure it.“

He swept his gaze over the people before him and said to a man with a kindly face:

“Kim Tae-cheol, your Chinese is good. Wait here and invite him to our shop when he comes out. I think he won’t mind if I give him a better offer.“

Kim Tae-cheol said tactfully, “No problem. This guy looks shrewd at a glance; he definitely won’t rashly sell the Flash in his hands. I’m just afraid…“

“Afraid of what?“

“Afraid he doesn’t understand the value of that Flash and gets easily fooled by those mysterious-looking trinkets in the distributor’s hands.“

Wapi Redcloud’s brows furrowed.

He looked at his wrist, which had several cord-like guard bands. The man’s hand touched one of his plain guard bands, on which hung a lonely little key.

-｛Fee Traveler’s Inn is witnessing the daily life of today’s lodgers.｝

“So far, there should still be a chance.“

……

Yang Zicang and Xue Qi looked at the booklet in their hands, which contained some explanations about Moonlight from this supply station, as well as some events that had occurred at sea and their final transaction prices.

Most Radiance-level events eventually transacted at around one thousand to over twelve hundred Moonlight, and only one event involving the subjugation of a demonic sea creature sold for fifteen hundred Moonlight at Di’an’s.

Xue Qi said, “I see prices here for sales to other shops. Some of these seem to be distributors from the fourth and first layers?“

Distributor Di’an looked at the woman with a smile. “Mm-hmm.“

“So, we can sign long-term contracts with distributors from each layer of the Moon Realm.“

“That’s right. As for me, I only have the right of first refusal for the second layer. For other distributors on the same layer, as long as the price doesn’t exceed twenty-five percent, I have the priority right to purchase Radiance at the agreed price.“

Di’an raised a finger, its nail turning pointed, and said, “Our standard bid is 1000 Moonlight per Radiance. Most distributors on the continent use this price. As for Radiance related to maritime affairs, this shop can purchase it at a premium of five to twenty-five percent, up to a maximum of fifty percent, depending on the specific event.“

Xue Qi and Yang Zicang exchanged a glance, then she clutched the necklace and said, “In that case, regarding the acquisition of Moonlight from the second layer of the Moon Realm, I will sign a long-term contract with you.“

“Very good.“

Di’an turned his head and looked expectantly at Yang Zicang.

“And you, sir? I’m very fond of these ‘three’ Radiances of yours. Hmm, what I mean is, even if that battle didn’t reach the value to extract a Radiance, as long as you’re willing to sell the Radiance and that Flash as a package deal with me, I can count it as three Radiances, all at the highest price.“

“I’d like to go take a look next door first,” Yang Zicang said.

“Those traveling merchants are completely unreliable. You’d best deal with a professional distributor. They’re just reselling using abilities gained from some fortuitous encounters.“

“It shouldn’t hurt to find out. Whether I sell or not, I’ll come back.” Yang Zicang stood up. “By the way, regarding Flash-level events, what is your asking price?“

“Flash!“

A burst of light erupted in Di’an’s eyes. It was clear that whether in the Lost Frequency Lands or this new Track of Fate, Flashes were something these mysterious beings of the old world greatly desired to obtain.

Di’an said solemnly:

“Esteemed guest. If you sell this Flash to me, it starts at one hundred thousand. But if you only want help extracting the Flash without selling it, as a long-term client we can help extract it for the low price of three Radiances.” He raised a finger. “Non-long-term clients must pay a handling fee of at least ten Radiances for extraction assistance.“

Yang Zicang quickly understood the value of a Flash after a brief thought. Just the extraction assistance alone cost at least 10,000 Moonlight.

Although he still didn’t know exactly what Moonlight was, and the man before him didn’t seem intent on explaining further, perhaps the other party simply assumed he had already learned much from that powerful being capable of extracting Flashes.

Seeing that this deal couldn’t be closed immediately, Di’an didn’t press further. He picked up a rigid leather wristband about a finger’s width from the table, adorned with two dusty little agate stones.

“I’ll give you this wrist guard band.“

“Give it to me?“

“Consider it a thank you for avenging my friend. That guy Aqiang, though a bit stubborn, was a good man. He often brought me wine, which I loved to drink.“

He pressed the wrist guard into Yang Zicang’s hand. “These two little gems mean you can use it to contact two distributors at once. It will witness your experiences on behalf of the distributor.“

-｛Distributor February. Di’an has given me a distributor beacon: Sharkfin Zuma Guard Belt.｝

Yang Zicang looked up, fixing his gaze on this person smiling at him.

“February?“

“Mm-hmm.“

Yang Zicang suppressed the surge of emotion in his heart.

“Don’t you have anything better?“

“Hey hey, although you’re a very good customer, something like this isn’t just something anyone can buy.“

Yang Zicang looked up and smiled.

“Sorry, I just thought since there’s this kind that can contact two distributors at once…“

“A spiritual accessory messenger alchemical treasure, also called a ‘distributor beacon.’“

“Mm, right, distributor beacon. Does this mean there are also alchemical accessories that can contact more distributors?“

“Because the owners of many shops on the continent are gone, my high-end goods here are sold out and out of stock. Currently, I only have items like necklaces, bracelets, and earrings for contacting one or two trading houses,” the boss Di’an said quite naturally.

Yang Zicang fastened it onto his wrist.

“Thank you. I’ll go take a look at the guild next door and then come back.“

“Haha, very good, very good.“

February. Di’an thought his gift had worked. He pinched his index and middle fingers together, and with a snap of his fingers, the dim atmosphere in the room rapidly dissolved. The supply station chief, who had no military bearing whatsoever, returned to his slightly sloppy demeanor.

-｛Sharkfin Zuma Guard Belt: You can sell the just-cataloged event through “Di’an, head of the Escort Treasure Tower Armor Four Supply Station of the Mist Ocean Trading Company.“｝

Hearing this sudden, inexplicable voice, as slow and emotionless as someone who hadn’t eaten, Yang Zicang was startled. Because it somewhat resembled his own inner voice.

“This thing can talk,” Xue Qi also looked over. She glanced at the pendant in her hand, and upon sensing it slightly, a telepathic voice continued to resound dreamily in her mind.

-｛Mist Ocean Brand Single-Diamond Glass Crystal Necklace: You were twenty-one and a half years old when you were born, and have no strange experiences worth cataloging.｝

The woman stared at the necklace in her palm, stunned for a moment.

“Heh, they don’t have their own life. This is just an ordinary auxiliary spiritual alchemical item. What truly drives it is your model,” Di’an said.

“I see.“

Yang Zicang nodded. The ring on his chest automatically surfaced then concealed itself, and a faint thread, finer than a strand of hair, flashed and darted into the wrist guard band.