Chapter 73
Money
Lucas and Chu Shen landed after a little over fifteen minutes of flight. Lucas used his cybernetic eyes to scan for a nearby town which was almost thirty miles away. They got close before landing so that they could avoid being spotted.
They also wrapped a strip of torn cloth around Lucas’ leg and Chu Shen chopped a tree branch in the shape of a walking stick for him using a short sword from his spatial ring.
Soon they got into town. After exploring for a bit Chu Shen made a judgement. This realm was almost exactly his own, except for minor differences in technique.
Chu Shen had discussed with Lucas exactly what they were going to do when they got into town. However things did not go like Chu Shen planned for them too…………
It was to be expected honestly, Chu Shen should have seen this coming. Their original plan called for them to rent a room and buy some metal. With that Lucas could make a crude prosthetic using the fabber.
However Chu Shen forgot something very important which I am sure you know by now.
Money.
Yep, money. Who actually believes there is a universal currency much less inter-dimensional currency? Maybe the currency that can be traded with everyone would be goods but Chu Shen didn’t have any.
Of course he was an artificer but he only had inscription ink and some beast cores. He also had some sc.r.a.p weapons but no one wanted them. This was a pretty nice town and to sell something that only a low level apprentice could make was apparently a pipe dream.
So Chu Shen and Lucas finally gave up. Now both of them were sitting down next to the stone wall that surrounded the city.
“So Chu Shen, do we have a plan as to what we should do next?” Lucas asked.
Chu Shen sighed. “Earning money is hard. But we might be able to hunt some of the beasts around here.”
Lucas got up. “Alright let’s go then, come on!” He enthusiastically cheered Chu Shen on. Luckily as a cyborg, his internal gyroscope helped him keep his balance on one leg. Sighing once more Chu Shen got up.
“Fine, I heard there are cla.s.s 3 beasts on the south side of the village. A cla.s.s 3 beast is comparable to a Dragon Stage cultivator so we should be able to earn some money quickly. It’s starting to get dark out so we should hurry.”
They immediately set out for the south side.
Once there they encountered their first cla.s.s 3 beast, which was actually familiar with Chu Shen. Surrounding the beast stealthily Chu Shen whispered to Lucas the information he knew about this beast.
“Lucas, this is a cla.s.s 3 beast called Shadow Fox. From what I remember from my world it can cloak itself in shadow making it invisible. It’s also fast and aggressive but will run away if it realizes its in danger.”
Lucas grinned. “Alright then. I don’t have a combat HUD exactly but I do have a tracking program meant for a.n.a.lysis in the lab. It should be a piece of cake.” His hand split apart and changed to become a plasma welder.
Chu Shen shook his head. Well, it was time to see exactly how Lucas kept up with him. Taking his living steel hammer he recalled the fact that he still hadn’t upgraded it yet. Grimacing he took out the crossbow that he had also neglected to update.
Then they attacked.
Chu Shen came out first, simply walking out and standing in front of the fox. The fox immediately perked up and looked at him. Suddenly it vanished, seeming to meld with the long shadows cast by the descending sun.
Lucas quickly appeared behind the fox, so fast it was a blur to Chu Shen even with only one leg. The plasma welder lit up a bright blue, slashing at a seemingly empty spot in the gra.s.s.
Yelp
The fox immediately cried out in pain as its back was struck with searing hot plasma, ripping through the fox’s spine. Lucas winced as well, seeing the plot of the animal.
Shaking his head he looked away from the fox while Chu Shen came up with the short sword and stabbed the disabled fox in the back of its neck. It’s pelt was worth some money along with the beast core, though not very much.
Lucas looked at Chu Shen for a second but looked away again. “Ugh. That was awful. I mean, how could you kill a poor beast like that. It wasn’t doing anything wrong.” None of his previous enthusiasm was apparent.
Chu Shen looked at him strangely. “It’s simple, we need the money to get food and a place to sleep. Besides, did you forget about that man who tried to kill us for being in the wrong place?
Life is cheap here. Try your best to survive otherwise you may just be left behind, buried under a nameless tombstone.” Chu Shen left Lucas with those cold words and left to find more foxes. Those were actually words that his father had told him before when he was training.
Using his hammer he swiftly and efficiently crushed the heads of the foxes, avoiding the chest where the beast core was located. Without Lucas to spot the foxes sneaking ability it became harder, but not impossible.
The foxes could not get past his body shield though, as the ability to coat the body in Qi was called by cultivators who reach the martial realm. He simply waited until they attacked before swiftly smashing their head in once they revealed themselves.
Foxes, compared to other level 3 beasts were not very strong. Not to mention that Lucas was a very advanced cyborg while Chu Shen was a martial student. Comparing their power levels to the foxes, they truly were like normal beasts that were being sent to the slaughter.
Eventually Lucas came back and joined him in hunting the foxes, though he was still slightly squeamish. Seemingly to apologize for his previous breakdown he vigorously hunted down the foxes with him.
Soon there was over twenty foxes that had been slain. Gathering them all Chu Shen left the beast cores inside the foxes since it might damage it’s fur to remove it. Better to leave it to the experts.
The two most expensive things on the fox was it’s fur, which was a pretty black and orange color, along with it’s beast core. Bringing it back, Chu Shen was able to find a small shop that bought the foxes, giving him a silver for each fox. Counting it up he nodded.
A room at the inn costs ten silver and a meal costs two. With it, they could have a nice rest. Together, Lucas and Chu Shen headed for the nearby inn and rented a room to share. While Chu Shen ate a small dinner, Lucas went up to the room to power down.
After all, Lucas was a cyborg and only needed power though he could enjoy food. Chu Shen on the other hand needed food to survive. Considering their small amount of money, Lucas decided to forego eating for now.