Chapter 13: Taking Ten Thousand Steps Back

“I’m so done. I got scammed out of a bottle of water in a private trade. I just traded for it from Boss Mo^[1] today, and I hadn’t even taken a single sip before it was stolen!”

“Boss Mo, I really know I was wrong now! Please don’t come looking for me!”

“Nothing you can do. That’s just how private trades go. You have to rely on the other person’s character! The Trading Market taxes too heavily, but it’s still safer to trade important items there.”

“You can also trade in the Service Area. The offline market there allows face-to-face trading, so you don’t have to worry about someone running off with your stuff!”

“Boss Mo, I really know I was wrong! Please forgive me!”

“You dirty scammer, return my bread before you end up dead!”

“Forget it! Online trading only costs you resources at most. In a Service Area offline trade, you might lose your life!”

“Help me! The water Mo Yubai sold can’t be drunk directly at all. I drank it and got instant diarrhea. Who has anti-diarrhea medicine? I’ll trade stone blocks for it!”

“Oh, wow. You want to trade stone blocks for medicine? Keep dreaming! Besides, didn’t the boss say you have to boil it first and not drink it raw? Are you illiterate? I boiled mine and I’m perfectly fine. Who else can you blame for not listening?”

“Trading bowls, chopsticks, and spoons for food. I’ll accept any kind of food. Please, save this child! I’m so hungry I want to peel bark off the trees to eat, but I can’t even peel it off ⑉꒦ິ^꒦ິ⑉꧞”

“Taking ten thousand steps back^[2], even if it’s my fault for not listening and drinking the raw water, doesn’t Mo Yubai bear any responsibility at all?”

“Wow! You really took a massive step back there!”

“Boss Mo, I think this ‘ten thousand steps back’ guy is even worse than me. You only have one Tracking Gold Coin, so you should use it on him. I’m not worthy!”

“Wait, why use it on me? I just spoke the truth. I didn’t spread any rumors!”

“Use it on him! Use it on him!”

“Get lost! Fine, I’ll shut up, okay? You can keep that Tracking Gold Coin for yourself. It’s already dark. Once the boss is done with her business, let’s see how cocky you can be!”

“Selling a blueprint for a plastic water bucket, the kind used for bottled water. Only accepting nails or plastic in exchange. Scammers stay away! I also have a Tracking Gold Coin. If you dare scam me, I’ll track you down and slash you face-to-face!”

“Iron Blocks! Iron Blocks! Anyone selling Iron Blocks? One Activated Carbon for three Iron Blocks!”

“You should ask players who have a Workbench. Activated Carbon can purify water. Boss Mo sold so much non-potable water today, so a lot of people should be buying it!”

“Haha, that’s true, but I don’t know who has a Workbench either.”

“No worries, take your time. The chat channel isn’t at peak activity right now. Once midnight hits, it should sell easily.”

“Alright, I’ll wait a bit then.”

Mo Yubai felt a surge of joy as she read these messages. It seemed she really needed to check the chat channel more often; there were quite a few good things here!

And thanks to the reminder, if Zhang Bowen hadn’t sent so many messages, she really would have forgotten about him!

She would prepare the weapons she needed for later, and go find him right after dinner!

After all, she had made a promise. If she went back on her word, her reputation would be ruined!

Besides, in a place like the Survival Game, if you didn’t show your sharp fangs and deliver a fatal blow right when the bullying started…

The bullies would inevitably band together, pushing your boundaries step by step until they devoured you completely!

Pulling her thoughts back, Mo Yubai tapped on the avatar of the player selling Activated Carbon. It was a middle-aged man named Zhao Dafu.

She clicked to send a friend request, and it was accepted almost instantly.

“Boss Mo? Holy crap, is it really Boss Mo? What do you need Activated Carbon for?”

Zhao Dafu stared in pleasant surprise at the name and avatar on his game panel.

He recognized this avatar. When Boss Mo got the first kill on a monster, he had clicked her avatar to check it out. Unfortunately, she had closed her friend request channel back then.

He hadn’t expected his luck to turn around, allowing him to successfully connect with the boss now.

Mo Yubai frowned and asked, “What, do I need to file a report just to buy your stuff?”

“Hahaha, no, no! I’m just a naturally curious guy! If you want the Activated Carbon, Boss, just give me two Iron Blocks. Consider it a gesture of goodwill!”

Zhao Dafu broke into a cold sweat. He didn’t want to overplay his hand and annoy the boss. After all, she still had a Tracking Gold Coin in her possession, and he had no desire to compete with that rumor-monger for the privilege of being its target.

Only a fool would pass up a good deal. Mo Yubai raised an eyebrow and said readily, “Alright, two Iron Blocks for one Activated Carbon. How many do you have?”

“Haha, Boss, I have four pieces of Activated Carbon. Do you want them all?” Zhao Dafu thought to himself that the boss actually seemed quite reasonable.

“Sure, send them all over. Transfer them to me first. I always receive the goods before making the payment. If you don’t agree, that’s fine too. We can just trade normally.”

“Hahaha, I might not dare do this with anyone else, but your reputation is trustworthy, Boss. I’ll send them over first.”

When Zhao Dafu saw Mo Yubai’s message, his heart did a nervous flutter at the thought of his resources going down the drain. Still, he gritted his teeth and sent the items first.

A big shot like her would surely care about her reputation. There was no need for her to scam him out of a few pieces of Activated Carbon.

After receiving the Activated Carbon, Mo Yubai was about to take out the Iron Blocks to send them over when she suddenly noticed the Iron Block wrapped in toilet paper in the corner.

Recalling the sticky drool, she frowned. Considering that Zhao Dafu was decent enough and she was getting a discounted price anyway, she sent over nine Iron Blocks!

“The extra one is a bonus for you. If you get any good items in the future, feel free to trade with me anytime.”

Zhao Dafu stared in pleasant surprise at the extra Iron Block, hugging and kissing it a few times to show his joy!

Wait, why were there several triangular teeth marks on this Iron Block? Whatever, it didn’t matter. Replying to the boss was more important.

“Oh! You’re too generous, Boss. I’ll shamelessly accept it then. Do you still need more Activated Carbon? A buddy of mine was selling some this morning. I’ll recommend him to you.”

“Sure, thanks.” Mo Yubai tapped on the contact card he recommended and sent a friend request.

Since it was evening and everyone was resting, the request was accepted almost immediately.

“Mo Yubai? The boss who was the first to reach level three? What do you want?”

Zhang Xiaojun looked at the chat box with disdain. A woman who looks this pretty leveling up so fast? Everyone knows how she did it, he thought to himself.

“I wouldn’t call myself a boss, but I do have business. I heard you were selling Activated Carbon this morning? Do you still have it?”

Mo Yubai frowned as she read his message. The downside of the server-wide announcement was indeed obvious. Now that everyone knew she had plenty of resources, they would definitely try to hike up the prices.

“Two bottles of drinking water for one Activated Carbon. Non-negotiable!” Zhang Xiaojun’s eyes lit up when he saw her message.

She needed to trade with him. This was the perfect chance to rip her off. A girl couldn’t possibly use up so many resources anyway, so he might as well help her spend them.

Mo Yubai had collected hundreds of bottles of water by the creek today, so she naturally didn’t lack water. However, she loathed being taken advantage of.

“Three pieces of Activated Carbon for half a bottle of non-potable raw water. If not, forget it. I hate being treated like a sucker.” Frowning, Mo Yubai typed out these words and waited for his response.

When Zhang Xiaojun saw this message, he immediately flew into a rage. A big shot with so many resources, yet she was so stingy!

Women really are petty, he thought, and immediately began spewing a torrent of abuse.