Chapter 278: Building Trade Routes, Flexing Muscles (2)
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
In a setting where various races like humans, lizardmen, kobolds, half-orcs, and sea clans coexist, it left her greatly surprised.
Especially when she laid eyes on over a dozen unbelievably beautiful elves, envy and jealousy gnawed at her, almost breaking her teeth.
Darn it! Even the dreams of otaku boys and girls found fulfillment here, complete with stunning big sister elves! What else could be missing for someone of his stature?
As they progressed further, I_Love_Black_ Stockings felt utterly numbed, like being under complete anesthesia.
Big boss, just lay it ail out at once; my heart can’t take much more.
At this moment, Ji Chen, who had been acting as her guide, turned around and smiled as he asked, “I heard you’ve become one of the representatives of the King Kong Island Players’ Alliance?”
Just a moment ago, he had checked the forums and learned that not long ago, King Kong Island had formed a player alliance to manage the island’s affairs.
Among them, the ten most powerful players were elected as representatives, and I_Love_Black_Stockings happened to be one of them.
Upon hearing this, I_Love_Black_Stockings’ face lit up. “Exactly. Not long after your last visit, we established a player alliance on King Kong Island to manage unnecessary conflicts, decrease internal disputes, and redirect our attention beyond the island.
Thanks to the string of successes we had previously, I utilized the significant gold and resources I had acquired to grow significantly stronger, eventually becoming one of the top players on Kong Island.
And it’s also thanks to the trade event you organized that I gained some popularity among the players on King Kong Island, so…”
As she said this, Ji Chen had already understood the situation.
Last time, when he silently allowed I_Love_Black_Stockings to collect ticket fees for the player trade event, it naturally made the players on King Kong Island think he was supporting her. Therefore, everyone gave their respect and elected her as one of the representatives.
Putting together I_Love_Black_Stockings’ words, he came to the realization that her visit this time wasn’t just a casual one…
Thinking this, Ji Chen remained composed and led her to the Lord’s Castle.
In a side hall.
Ji Chen sat at the head of a long table, while I_Love_Black_Stockings sat on the left side.
Their respective heroes stood on both sides.
In the somewhat subdued setting, the long table with its medieval design, the tall-backed chairs, the flickering candles illuminating the table, and the heroes positioned on either side immediately established a solemn ambiance.
Seeing Ji Chen silently looking at her, I_Love_Black_Stockings also couldn’t help but become serious.
Without much hesitation, she suddenly stood up.
“Big boss, it’s been a while since 1 used my forum name to address you. It doesn’t feel very polite, so let me formally introduce myself.”
“My real name is Jiang Xueqing.”
As time pa.s.sed in this world where players mysteriously couldn’t log out and were trapped, coupled with a system that was game-like and allowed for disguised names in the chat system, a unique cultural phenomenon evolved among the players.
In general, players usually address each other by their forum usernames rather than their real names. Only players with relatively good relationships and trust will share their real names.
Since I_Love_Black_Stockings willingly shared her real name with Ji Chen, it indicates a relatively high level of trust and approval towards him.
“Jiang Xueqing…,” Ji Chen repeated to himself a few times and then looked up, “Alright, I’ve remembered your name. My real name is Ji Chen.”
I_Love_Black_Stockings’ face brightened up. The fact that Ji Chen also voluntarily shared his real name implied that he might be starting to acknowledge her.
Thinking about it brought her a bit of joy.
“Please have a seat. Don’t just stand there smiling like a fool… You must have something else to discuss on your visit to my territory,” Ji Chen went straight to the point.
I_Love_Black_Stockings quickly adjusted her expression and sat down somewhat awkwardly. “Big Boss Ji Chen, you truly have sharp insight. You immediately discerned my intentions! Well, here it is: I’ve come as a representative of the King Kong Island Player Alliance.”
“What’s the request?”
“Players hope to establish a long-term trade route between King Kong Island and your Crown of the Ocean.”
A trade route? That sounds intriguing.
Ji Chen nodded, signaling her to continue.
“Well, you know that King Kong Island was initially quite closed off. In the early days, players fought to the death for limited resources, resulting in more grudges and internal conflicts than actual gains.
However, with the ongoing process of opening up, establishing external trade routes to import the resources required for player development has become a necessary decision.
Therefore, I came here as a representative to ask if Big Boss Ji Chen has any intention of building this route with us.”
“I see…” Ji Chen paused.
This idea was rather interesting. Creating a player alliance to avoid excessive conflict and sustain it by importing resources was a sensible approach.
King Kong Island’s players, despite several “Battle Royales”, still have a considerable population, relatively concentrated distribution, and thus, a sizeable market.
Moreover, King Kong Island was relatively close to the New Moon Islands compared to other places that require weeks of sailing, which reduces the time cost.
If they could export goods and products from the Crown of the Ocean to King Kong Island in large quant.i.ties, it would be a profitable long-term business.
Looking at Ji Chen’s unchanged expression, I_Love_Black_Stockings began to feel nervous and cautiously asked, “Big Boss Ji Chen, what are your thoughts on this?”
“This sounds promising,” Ji Chen replied, his gaze steady. “But 1 would like a concrete answer. What exactly does King Kong Island need in terms of goods? What’s the proposed trade method? How will the benefits be distributed between the two parties?”
Throwing out three of the most crucial questions in a single sentence.
I_Love_Black_Stockings took a moment to consider and then said, “Food and weapons, these are the two things King Kong Island needs the most.”
“King Kong Island might seem large, but the arable land is scarce. Moreover, frequent tsunamis, storms in the vicinity, and raids by the native Half-Orcs often destroy the crops we manage to plant.
Also, the fish resources in the surrounding waters aren’t very abundant. So, we’ve been facing a shortage of food.
Besides, we have a significant demand for weapons and equipment. There are practically no mineral resources on the island, so we rely mostly on the weapons and equipment that come with recruiting humanoid troops. Many of them have suffered serious damage.”
Food and weapons?
Ji Chen’s thoughts stirred. The Crown of the Ocean had plenty of these.
Within the underground realm of the Lizardmen, one could find valuable forging materials such as ores, warehouses br.i.m.m.i.n.g with weapons and equipment, and the legendary hunger-quelling delicacy known as the Fluorescent Mushroom.
“We can supply these things from the Crown of the Ocean.”
“How much can you supply, and can it be done consistently?” I_Love_Black_Stockings asked with some concern. If they could only provide a small amount for a short period, it wouldn’t significantly help King Kong Island.
Ji Chen didn’t say much but led l_Love_Black_Stockings to a warehouse complex near the underground caves of the Crown of the Ocean.
Hundreds of Lizardmen were continuously transporting goods from underground, loading them into the warehouses.
When he had them open two of the warehouses, revealing shelves filled with Fluorescent Mushrooms and various weapons and equipment, I_Love_Black_Stockings was utterly shocked.
These two warehouses must have stored at least a hundred thousand units of Fluorescent Mushrooms and weapons and equipment, right!?
“Is this enough?” Ji Chen asked indifferently.
“It’s more than enough.”
I_Love_Black_Stockings nodded repeatedly. Not to mention these two warehouses, there were more than a dozen larger and smaller warehouses in this place, most of them packed with supplies.
And the Lizardmen were still tirelessly bringing in cartloads of Fluorescent Mushrooms and weapons and equipment from outside, filling up the vacant warehouses.
This was beyond generous!
I_Love_Black_Stockings understood that Ji Chen was flexing his muscles.
It seemed like she needed to rethink the trade allocation plan she had originally planned..