Favorite of the Beast-world: I Got Rich Through Farming-Chapter 342 - 225: Difficulty + Shipbuilding

The other onlooking Beastmen were all frozen on the spot, watching with extreme envy as a giant snake easily carried those few Beastmen to the other side.

Meanwhile, they were still clinging to a pathetic piece of driftwood, bobbing up and down in the turbulent river.

Not only that, but these poor souls had to be on constant alert, their hearts pounding wildly, always wary of being smashed into the river by a crashing wave.

Terrifyingly huge shadows occasionally flashed through the deep water beneath them.

These were all ferocious river Sea Beasts, capable of swallowing several Beastmen in a single bite.

The fact that An Jin had what amounted to a cheat code, a personal backdoor, made the Beastmen from the other tribes burn with envy. ’It’s cheating!’ they screamed internally.

...

「On the riverbank.」

The few Beastmen, soaked to the bone, quickly unloaded their cargo. After wringing the water from their tails, they flopped onto the ground in a circle, panting heavily.

The waves had been more violent lately than in the past. They were lucky to have run into An Jin and Mi Yin; otherwise, their chances of survival on this trip would have been slim.

An Jin walked over and casually opened a Beast Skin Bag to take a look, finding painted pottery and bolts of cloth inside.

These items were highly sought after by Beastmen from other tribes or cities.

They were also the best-selling goods from the city under her command.

"You’re... transporting goods to other cities?" A hint of surprise showed on her face.

’Just carrying it on foot? Is their method really that primitive and crude?’

Even if they didn’t drown in the river, the journey of thousands upon thousands of kilometers would be enough to run them to death—straight to the Beast God.

The Beastmen nodded. They pointed to themselves, then to the other Beastmen still drifting in the water.

"Us, and all those Beastmen out there, are either delivering goods to other cities or bringing them back to our own tribes and cities. The only way to reach our destinations is to cross this river."

"Have you always transported things this way?" she couldn’t help but ask, her brow furrowing even deeper.

"Of course. How else would we transport them?" The Beastmen scratched their heads, looking at her in utter confusion. "The goods can’t fly there on their own, so those of us who specialize in transport have to carry them over, and then return to the city."

"The journey is long, so a round trip can sometimes take a whole month. Along the way, we just find a random cave to rest in before shouldering the cargo and running again. And that’s on a good day. The scariest part is encountering a major river during its flood season, sigh... just like today. I’ve personally seen a few Beastmen get swept into the water by the waves and never come back up..." one of the Beastmen said sorrowfully.

It was only then that An Jin remembered: the Beast World had no post stations, nor any other convenient means of transportation. The only way was for Beastmen to run all the way to their destination on their own two feet.

’For the past two years, my development efforts have been focused on the commercial system and product variety. I can’t believe I never considered the issue of delivery and logistics.’

’What an oversight.’

After resting for a while, the Beastmen shouldered their cargo once more and bid her farewell.

More Beastmen from other cities had gathered on the riverbank.

"What’s wrong?" Seeing her silence, Mi Yin thought she was in a bad mood again. He couldn’t help but wrap an arm around her waist and ask softly.

"It’s nothing." An Jin shook her head.

Her gaze followed the Beastmen as they walked farther and farther away, their figures shrinking to mere silhouettes before finally disappearing into the vast twilight.

"Don’t you think this method of transporting goods purely by manpower is too backward? And such a waste of time? Besides, crossing such a dangerous river back and forth... who knows how many people have died here."

Mi Yin was about to say, ’That’s because they’re too useless,’ but the words died in his throat. He quickly swallowed them back down. "Do you have a better idea?"

’Her mind was always full of strange and wonderful ideas, each one leaving him in awe.’

"It’s not exactly a great idea, but I was just wondering if there’s another way to replace running on two legs. Look at this huge river."

An Jin pointed. "Could we build a tool that would allow Beastmen to cross the river safely?"

"..." Mi Yin tried to process what she was saying. After a pause, he finally ventured, "Driftwood?"

"Yes, the principle is the same. It’s just that one piece of driftwood is too small; it can hardly bear the weight of many Beastmen and their cargo."

"Then use more driftwood," Mi Yin said decisively.

"That’s one way to think about it, but tightly connecting many pieces of driftwood isn’t easy. We could build a boat—a big boat that can carry hundreds or even thousands of people!"

"A boat?"

"Mhm! Let’s head back first. This is a huge project. We can think it over slowly once we’re back!"

With a new goal in mind, the two of them wasted no more time and hurried back to the city.

When they saw she had returned, the Beastmen who were at their posts immediately rushed over to greet her. An Jin nodded to each of them in acknowledgment before returning to her castle.

Ling Hong, having caught her scent, found her right away. "What took you so long?" Noticing her pale and weakened face, he couldn’t help but pull her into a hug, his voice full of concern. "I should have gone with you."

"It was nothing major, though it was pretty dangerous... and surreal..." An Jin then told him everything that had happened, from beginning to end.

"It does sound dangerous. But what matters is that you’re alright."

Ling Hong’s tense brow relaxed. He naturally took her other hand and started walking, trying to lighten the mood with some happy news. "We’ve already wiped out all those Demon Beastmen in the city. I’ve also increased the city patrols. From now on, I absolutely won’t let any more suspicious characters get in."

"Mhm." She smiled, her eyes curving. "With you here, I always feel at ease."

Mi Yin glanced down at the two of them, then silently tightened his grip on her other hand, forcefully pulling her a little closer to his side. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

Back in the castle, Xi was still out playing somewhere and hadn’t returned.

The lunch from earlier had gone cold, so Ling Hong cooked some more food and served it on the dining table.

Having traveled so far, Mi Yin and An Jin were finally able to eat a hot, delicious meal. To show their appreciation, they polished off every last bite.

A preliminary idea for building a boat had already formed in her mind, and An Jin wanted to discuss it further with the two men, but her head felt a bit fuzzy.

Although the Beastman traits in her body allowed her wounds to heal on their own without much treatment, the physical exhaustion could only be relieved by rest.

Ling Hong sat on the edge of the bed, massaging her temples and rubbing her shoulders. "Get some rest first. Those plans aren’t urgent. As soon as you give the order, I can get the others started anytime."

The man’s voice was deep and slightly husky, its low, gentle warmth making An Jin feel a little drowsy.

"Alright, I’ll rest for a bit then. You can come get me if anything else comes up..." She yawned.

Her body felt limp. An Jin silently curled up under the covers, deciding to sleep for a while.

"Mhm, go to sleep." Ling Hong tucked her in. The slightly calloused pads of his fingers gently smoothed the crease between her brows, his deep, magnetic voice bringing a profound sense of peace.

He didn’t sit by the bed for long before getting up to close the half-open window, pulling the curtains shut as well.