Chapter 509: Another Scheme

Chapter 509: Another Scheme

Thus, the Otherworld gained another Earth-style item, once again published by Zheng Yichen. Now, after calculating carefully, some observant people were surprised to find that Zheng Yichen seemed to have produced too many things, especially daily necessities. Although it was strange for a dragon to do this, and he also had several Secondary Professions… what happened to being aloof? Was it really okay for him to be so down-to-earth?

Well, aside from the aloofness, after carefully calculating Zheng Yichen’s actions, those observant people realized he was actually the smartest. Other Auxiliary Profession Practitioners were immersed in research, and doing well in research could indeed earn money to fund further studies. But for those who only focused on difficult research… hmm… they were better off seeking investment from merchants.

Zheng Yichen was different. He not only delved into advanced research but also tackled low-end projects without missing a beat. Advanced research was hard, and succeeding brought great benefits, but missing out on the “mosquito legs”… it depended on what kind of mosquito legs they were.

Things like plastic bags and plastic tubes created by Zheng Yichen were such mosquito legs. Yet, these mosquito legs could build a massive user base and sustain themselves. One or two items from his hands might not accumulate significant wealth in a short time, but this wasn’t just one or two items—it was dozens!

Even though they seemed ordinary, dozens of daily items combined were no worse than the profits from a single Magic Potion. Magic Potions were only for Professionals, but daily items could be used by anyone. Even Professionals would prepare items like plastic bags when going out.

For ordinary loot or items obtained, wasn’t it better to pack them in plastic bags rather than cloth bags? Cloth bags could leak air, while plastic bags, if sealed properly, wouldn’t let odors escape or allow anything to seep out.

Therefore, after summarizing, those observant people realized Zheng Yichen’s success was no accident. This Little Dragon had a grasp on too many economic essentials, and many of his innovations were improvements on existing items. Since they were improvements, no one questioned their style. Moreover, the things Zheng Yichen improved were particularly… foundational!

Well, by occupying the foundational aspects, even if others wanted to make new improvements or innovations in the future, they would likely build upon what Zheng Yichen had created. This alone had given Zheng Yichen a tremendous head start.

Nowadays, people, including commoners, thought of Zheng Yichen whenever plastic bags were mentioned! The same for plastic hoses, rigid pipes, and faucets!! And then the Purple Vine Guild…

Yes, the Purple Vine Guild once again seized the business opportunities brought by the daily items Zheng Yichen created. For example, with the use of water pipes and faucets, the Purple Vine Guild invested in building some water towers. These water towers allowed items like pipes to truly serve their purpose. After all, pipes didn’t automatically have water once installed, nor did simply connecting them to a river suffice. There were many wells in the city, but compared to the convenience of tap water, wells fell short.

Wells weren’t available in every household; often, one well served many, and distances varied. Those living nearby might not need faucets, but for those farther away, having one was no issue. Moreover, water fees weren’t expensive… ordinary families could easily afford them.

Building water towers wasn’t an investment that yielded quick returns, but it was a long-term one—not hugely profitable but steady and endless. So, after the Purple Vine Guild seized this opportunity, many other guilds followed suit. Long-term investments were quite important, even essential, for guilds.

As a guild, if you didn’t have some long-term investments and developments, it gave people a sense of instability in terms of credibility. Long-term investments meant stability. Without them, who knew if you were the kind of guild that would make a quick profit and then disappear?

Thus, the foundational items Zheng Yichen created had already influenced too many people. Now, seeing Zheng Yichen’s Online Store launch another item called a syringe, those observant people were exasperated. Their organizations had been trying to imitate Zheng Yichen’s creative style, aiming to produce similar items before he did. But the things he made varied too widely. Each new item had little connection to the previous ones, while those with high relevance were released in rapid succession, like a combo attack, leaving them unable to keep up.

What was this syringe thing?

Soon, they found out. The specific usage still came from within the Containment Zone. The Sanctuary Church introduced an Immunity Potion. Oral consumption had weak effects, but injection worked well, saving half the dose. After injection, the Immunity Potion provided immunity to Flesh Seed infection for about eight hours. As for how to detect when the potion’s effects weakened or faded?

It was simple. The black Immunity Potion and the white buffer potion had different volumes, with the buffer potion being smaller. When using this potion, the buffer potion would lose its effect first. Once it did, the burning sensation from the Immunity Potion would appear. Zheng Yichen had strictly calculated the ratio of the two potions. Generally, after the buffer potion’s effects disappeared, the black Immunity Potion would expire within three minutes—enough time for the user to replenish it.

It was then that the usage of syringes became widely understood. Just as the person in charge Zheng Yichen faced at the Quarantine Camp had thought, syringes caught the attention of researchers in the Life Domain… coupled with their affordable price, sales of this item started at ten thousand…

Yes! Starting from ten thousand, sales instantly multiplied several times. That initial ten thousand wasn’t due to Zheng Yichen artificially boosting orders but was purchased by the Sanctuary Church itself. As for the Creator of the Immunity Potion, the Church didn’t disclose this, as agreed in the Contract. Zheng Yichen’s identity was sensitive; the Sanctuary Church would use his potions but wouldn’t publicize certain matters. If Zheng Yichen were a dragon with a clean, spotless record, the Church wouldn’t mind letting him gain fame…

Otherwise? Just like Oss, even if he did something important, it was lightly glossed over afterward—though with a hefty reward. Zheng Yichen was the same; just the special resource channel provided by the Sanctuary Church alone earned him a lot.

Of course, some of the Church’s plans would fall through. Zheng Yichen intended to let Loris and the others use this channel. He had engaged in scheming a few times and genuinely found it exhausting. Rather than scheming with the Church, he’d prefer to tease the Saintess… ahem.

Speaking of which, wasn’t the Church’s Saintess still scheming against that Derivative Witch with Soul Perception abilities lately?

Muttering to himself, Zheng Yichen glanced at a temporary “quarantine station” set up within the Quarantine Camp. It was stocked with ample Immunity Potions at reasonable prices. The Sanctuary Church had even established many corresponding “welfare” rules. For example, when completing exploration Quests in the Stone Forest, if the performance was high enough, one could receive multiple Immunity Potions for free. Even if the target wasn’t met, a baseline injection was guaranteed—but only if there was real progress, not just wandering around the Stone Forest.

Additionally, rewards would increase as exploration of the Stone Forest deepened, since it grew more dangerous further in. These rewards were extra and didn’t affect the original payouts.

But for now, for their own safety, many Professionals were willing to pay for their first injection of the Immunity Potion. After that, as long as they completed exploration Quests, it became a cycle: pay once, and no more payments needed afterward. Why not?

“Please note, this Immunity Potion is for prevention, not eradication of Flesh Seeds. If you were already infected by Flesh Seeds before, the Immunity Potion won’t work,” a female Church member said. Her slender hand grabbed the wrist of the Professional in front of her. The latter’s slightly lecherous expression froze on his face!

The woman before him was beautiful. It was hard to find attractive women in the Containment Zone, and being unable to leave for long periods made some Mercenaries restless… Seeing a beauty and having physical contact naturally livened up their expressions, especially since they were the ones giving the injections.

So, the Church was sneaky too, using all sorts of schemes to motivate Professionals. Imagine many pretty Church sisters helping with injections at these temporary quarantine stations… tsk!

What they didn’t expect was that although these sisters were pretty and looked delicate, that soft little grip made his wrist feel like it was clamped in a vise. Any thought of the sister’s smooth skin contact was utterly replaced by pain!!

While this Professional’s face twisted, the poor blood circulation in his wrist caused the veins on the back of his hand to bulge. The Church sister cleanly inserted the syringe into a vein, released her grip, and injected the entire tube of potion. Professionals had strong physiques, so a forceful push wouldn’t risk bursting blood vessels. After finishing impassively, the Church sister discarded the syringe, picked up a new one, and drew the white buffer potion. The two potions couldn’t be mixed.

They had to be injected step by step to be effective; mixing would cause spoilage.

“Still want this hand?”

“Uh, this one’s fine,” the Professional replied, his face still stiff. The Church sister’s grip had been painful, but after letting go, it left no aftereffects—clearly, she had precise control over her strength. Judging by this, the sweetly smiling sister before him must be quite formidable. “I’ll do it myself!”

Seeing the sister raise her soft hand again, he quickly grabbed his own wrist. Although the needle prick had drawn a little blood, the Church sister acted faster. She inserted the needle through the existing wound, then a faint glow shone from her finger as she wiped the needle hole on the back of his hand, removing both the blood and the wound the size of the needle hole.

This was also a technique of power usage, not quite Restoration Magic but similar in effect. Its strength was weak since it wasn’t Magic, but enough to heal a needle-sized wound. “Done, next!”

The smiling Church sister’s expression turned cold instantly, ushering him out briskly!

At that moment, from another spot, a Mercenary let out a horrifying scream, making the departing Professional glance over. He couldn’t help but twitch his lips. Well, the Church sister before him was sly and changed expressions quickly, but at least she was pretty and had nice skin. Suffering a bit counted as physical contact. Compared to himself, the one screaming truly deserved sympathy!

His arm was gripped by a large hand, and no matter how he struggled, only his body flailed while the captured forearm remained immobile—all due to that large hand. The hand was big, but that wasn’t the main point. The point was its owner was a woman!

Though it was hard to tell, she was indeed a woman!

“What are you screaming for? Can’t you stay quiet like a man?” the Female Knight said, looking disdainfully at the agitated Mercenary. This somewhat sharp-faced Mercenary was mentally cursing profusely. Why did it have to be like this? Earlier, this spot had been occupied by an exceptionally pretty Church sister, arguably the prettiest in the entire temporary quarantine station. After finally waiting his turn, she was replaced!

Replacement was one thing, but the other sisters’ standards were acceptable. Yet, what was this thick-faced, burly Female Knight, whose build put men to shame? Why did he have to encounter this? Why him… Looking behind, the long queue that had formed earlier had completely scattered after she appeared!

“Can… can I request a change?”

“It’s just an injection… what change? Stop squirming, or I might jab the wrong spot,” the Female Knight snorted. The Mercenary wanted to say he couldn’t move even if he tried. After struggling for so long, his arm felt like it was pinned under a mountain, utterly motionless. What terrifying brute strength…

Seeing him calm down, the Female Knight quickly completed the injection. Well… despite her rough appearance, her control over strength wasn’t lacking, nor was her feminine delicacy. So, the injection went smoothly—it was just the recipient’s psyche that suffered some trauma, evoking even Zheng Yichen’s sympathy from a distance. This was really unlucky.

“Done. Next time, wash your hands cleaner before coming. Don’t think smearing something on and wiping it off won’t be noticed.”

“…I still have a wound here.”

“Huh? I don’t do healing! Why fuss over a needle-sized wound?”

Other places might not care, but they were in the Containment Zone now. Any external injury risked Flesh Seed infection—how could they not care? But under the Female Knight’s oppressive gaze, he ultimately backed down, took out a Recovery Potion, and applied a bit of the liquid to the back of his hand…