Dawn’s light was faint.
White Ivy, stepping lightly on the dew-laden grass, ran along the mountain path deep in the forest.
She climbed over one mountain and then another.
Suddenly, White Ivy stopped in her tracks.
"WOOHOO! WOOHOO! WOOHOO!" Red Peach jumped and cheered.
White Ivy untied the Spider Silk Rope securing the goods on her Carapace, removed a Spider Silk Bag, and pulled out a Vermilion Wood Plaque. It was made from the remains of a Ninth-Age-Period, King-Level Cloud Crown Divine-Given Seed. The front was carved in relief with the pattern of the Cloud Crown Divine Wood of Cloud Crown Mountain. The back depicted, from top to bottom, images of White Ivy, lde, Lupine, Grass Dragon, and Silvergrass. At the end, there was an image of a peach tree, with Red Peach also included. Behind each image, it was marked with the unique characters exclusive to Cloud Crown Mountain.
This was the Main Plaque held by the Caravan Leader, used to record the Caravan’s information for trading at Cloud Crown Mountain.
Every Caravan mber also held a petite Subordinate Plaque as proof of identity and strength.
"Aweso!"
Grass Dragon declared, "From now on, as we travel the continent, let’s see who dares look down on !"
"This wood alone is very valuable."
Grass Dragon, Lupine, and Silvergrass also took out their Subordinate Plaques, joyfully flipping them over to examine them.
White Ivy said smugly, "lde, you made the right choice sticking with , right?"
Red Peach cheered, "That’s right! That’s right!"
Silvergrass agreed, "Exactly!"
Grass Dragon said, "It’s decent. The Divine-Grade Kunlun Seed is secured!"
Lupine added, "Now, our Caravan controls White Poplar Fruit, Lightwing Seed, Night Fragrance Fruit, Spotted Embrace Fruit, and Kunlun Seed—five kinds of Divine-Grade Fruit!"
"Look at you all, so easily pleased..."
lde, constrained by his dignity as an elder, didn’t take out his Subordinate Plaque to examine it. His heart swelled with too much joy to contain, and he urged, "The Green Torreya Kingdom is a long journey from here. Let’s make use of the mild sun and cover more ground now. We can rest mid-morning and set off at twilight, adjusting our travel to nightti."
"YEAH! YEAH! YEAH!"
"GREAT! GREAT! GREAT!"
"LET’S GO! LET’S GO! LET’S GO!"
"CHAAAARGE!"
White Ivy rapidly packed away the Wood Plaque and sprinted off.
Red Peach hopped along, following closely behind her.
Lupine, Grass Dragon, and Silvergrass raced to catch up.
lde was left alone on the mountain path, utterly flustered.
After splitting from her family, White Ivy had been an independent rchant for many years. She had earned Source Stones, and her business was growing. Shouldn’t she have beco more mature and stable by now?
But the reality was quite the contrary; she was even more excitable than before.
Couldn’t she be a bit more reliable?
lde watched, speechless and exasperated for a long mont. Then, with trembling spiritual power, he shouted, "Stop! Co back, White Ivy! You’re going the wrong way!"
...
...
...
The Sun Burying Bettle Tribe was conservative, but not as extre as those on Cloud Crown Mountain; they still interacted with other tribes.
Yuezuo Mountain practiced closed-off managent, but it wasn’t entirely sealed.
Vast plains and forests outside the mountain had been razed, the land hardened to create an enormous free-trade plaza.
Any Fla Spider Caravan could co here to trade.
Any Insect Clan Warrior could co here to buy and sell goods.
There was no fixed trading ti; it was open all year round. The Green Torreya Kingdom alone boasted over fifty thousand Sun Burying Bettle Warriors, and warriors from nearby kingdoms were also drawn by its reputation. Trading in the plaza continued year-round, through all seasons.
Within the Sun Burying Bettle Tribe, ordinary Origin Force Food produced in any warrior’s Territory was not regulated and could be handled autonomously. However, all Divine-Given Origin Force Food production was centrally managed by the Tribe and traded only with twenty to thirty large Caravans.
One still had to ascend Yuezuo Mountain to trade for truly valuable goods.
lde led the group, weaving briskly through the plaza and heading straight for the mountain pass.
"Huh?!" White Ivy stopped in surprise.
"Revolve Spider King!" White Ivy greeted him warmly.
Behind her, Red Peach, Lupine, Grass Dragon, and Silvergrass also stopped.
"Greetings, Revolve Spider King," they said.
lde reluctantly paused, turned, and greeted, "Lord Birah Hitam, Lord Coriander, Lord Jerusalem Cross..."
A few from the Revolve Spider King’s Caravan who recognized lde responded sporadically.
Revolve Spider King began, "You are..." He looked bewildered, then annoyed. Who is this impolite Little Spider, greeting so directly?
lde interjected, "I am lde! A junior of Carpesium’s."
"Oh—" Recognition flickered in Revolve Spider King’s eyes. He stared at White Ivy and queried, "Are you that Little Spider from Cloud Crown Mountain last year? The one selling Origin Force Honey?"
White Ivy chirped, "Yes, yes! I’m White Ivy!"
Revolve Spider King asked, "And you are traveling together because...?"
White Ivy replied, "I’m also a junior of Carpesium’s. lde and I are in the sa Caravan."
Lord Jerusalem Cross couldn’t help asking, "Judging by your formation, are you heading to Yuezuo Mountain?"
White Ivy declared, "Of course!"
Lord Jerusalem Cross then asked, "I saw you at Cloud Crown Mountain last year?"
White Ivy confird, "Yes."
Lord Jerusalem Cross looked at lde, puzzled. "lde, you’re usually so composed..."
lde explained, "We’ve acquired so good items and are taking them to Yuezuo Mountain to sell. We’re hoping to secure a pass to trade within the mountain."
White Ivy, paying little heed to the other Lords and Mountain Lords of the Revolve Spider King’s Caravan, directly approached Revolve Spider King himself and began to chat enthusiastically, "Revolve Spider King, is your Caravan here to restock ordinary Origin Force Food?"
Revolve Spider King grunted, "Hmm."
White Ivy pressed, "Your next stop is Cloud Crown Mountain, right?"
Revolve Spider King affird, "Yes."
Being questioned so persistently by a seemingly insignificant Little Spider, Revolve Spider King was growing quite impatient.
Then suddenly—
"That’s wonderful!"
White Ivy swiftly untied the Spider Silk Rope on her Carapace, produced the Vermilion Wood Plaque, and proudly displayed it to Revolve Spider King.
"Look, Revolve Spider King! I just got this! I’m a Caravan Leader now!"
"We’re heading the sa way! We could travel together!"
A Cloud Crown Mountain passage plaque!
Revolve Spider King slowly rose to his feet.
The other, previously nonchalant spiders from the Revolve Trade Caravan also rose, their spiritual power surging towards White Ivy.
The Wood Plaque... it’s real?!
How is that possible?
How did they manage to get one?
lde and Lord Jerusalem Cross, who had been conversing warmly, also fell silent.
The surrounding Sun Burying Bettle Warriors, busy with their trading, turned to look, astounded.
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