"Shopkeeper, to be honest, besides lodging, we also need your help with something."

The four-person team ate and drank their fill, and their exhausted bodies found some relief. Baker also began to worry about the return journey.

"We come from Pengcheng in the south and are heading to Lingcheng in the north. However, when passing through the Misty Forest, we encountered a thick fog, causing us to lose our way and enter the forest, and we haven't been able to get out since. So... if the shopkeeper has a way to help us leave the Misty Forest, we are willing to pay a suitable reward for this method."

"Do you want me to help you out of the Misty Forest, or to your destination, Ling City?"

These are two different concepts.

The Anxin Inn is located to the south. To exit the Misty Forest from here, the fastest direction is to head south. However, if you're in a hurry and want to reach the north quickly, heading south will obviously waste more time.

During the meal, Jennifer had mentioned the urgency of time. Su Yao remembered this and speculated that these people must have something that required them to hurry.

"Safety is the most important thing, and if we can add speed to that, it would be even better."

Beck still looked quite anxious, but he was afraid that his demands were too high and would make Su Yao unwilling, so in the end, his expression was one of awkward entanglement as he spoke.

Su Yao blinked, understanding that they still didn't really want to take a detour south. In that case, she had to seriously consider whether she could take on this task.

[Positioning Teleportation Card: Level 5 one-time use card. After use, you can select a location within 500 kilometers and teleport directly to it.]

[Mechanical Card: Silently recite the mechanical item you wish to create in your mind.]

One was a level five reward obtained after advancing in magic rank, and the other was a level four card drawn from the deck.

These two cards are currently usable, but Su Yao is somewhat undecided about which one to use.

"I want to make an off-road vehicle," Su Yao thought, wanting to first see what materials were available.

[Materials needed for the off-road vehicle: 30 Evil Spirit Bones, 5 Evil Spirit Skins, 50 Swamp Slimes, 4 Rubber Tigers, and several Magic Ores.]

Su Yao: .....

Good heavens, not a single familiar face.

However, the names Evil Spirit Bone and Evil Spirit Skin seemed to be related to evil spirits. Su Yao took out the "Evil Spirit/Beast Compendium" and searched through it, and indeed found these unfamiliar items inside.

Apart from the magical ore, these items are all parts of monster bodies and can be obtained by defeating them. Moreover, considering the overall situation, the monsters are not of a high level, so the items should not be difficult to acquire.

As for the magical ore, the southern region happens to be the main production area, so obtaining it is not an issue.

Su Yao's means of transportation could still be completed, although not at the moment.

"I have a way to get you to the north quickly, but the price might be high," Su Yao said, having already decided on the teleportation card. Now it was just a matter of whether they could afford it.

Before Baker could respond, Jennifer sneered, "I have yet to encounter something I can't afford. Just tell me, how much?"

"One crystal diamond." That is, ten thousand gold coins.

"So expensive!" Stephen pulled on Baker, hoping Baker would persuade Jennifer.

Jennifer was actually quite shocked, but since she had already spoken, she couldn't go back on her word.

Shaking off Beck's hand, his eyes fixed intently on Su Yao: "You take out the item first. I want to see what is so valuable!"

Doing business, you can't be too secretive. Su Yao readily took out the card.

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"What is this? Are you messing with me?"

Jennifer had never seen anything like it.

However, Baker was a bit more attentive. He took a closer look and slowly withdrew the hand that was about to tug on Jennifer's sleeve. He sensed that this was something good.

Su Yao followed the system's prompts to introduce the card, even handing it to Jennifer to let her feel it.

Jennifer's expression gradually became serious. After all, she was a level three mage, and she could still sense the energy fluctuations on the card.

Very rich, very powerful, very surging.

They handed the card to Baker and Stephen, and they too felt the same force. After exchanging glances, the message in their eyes aligned.

"Teleportation magic circle, it can still be pinpointed... One crystal diamond, it works! We'll buy it!"

Beck's heart pounded. He no longer thought it was expensive; in fact, a fleeting thought crossed his mind that this item, like everything else in the inn, was part of a charity!

Transaction successful.

Both parties were very satisfied.

Su Yao sighed inwardly. These people were indeed extraordinary; they could casually take out a diamond, and more importantly, it seemed they had much more money than just that!

Su Yao began to scrutinize her inn again, pondering what else she could sell to make some money.

The system was also extremely enthusiastic about making money, and it proactively appeared to remind: [After completing the time-limited task, the host received a level four earth magic weapon. Now, there is a level two water magic staff in the shop.]

What a coincidence, among these people, Baker is of the earth element, and Betty is of the water element.

Su Yao cheerfully called out to the few people who were about to take a break, "I have some other treasures here, would you like to take a look?"

Beck turned his head to look at Su Yao in confusion, not knowing what was going on, suddenly feeling a chill at the back of his neck.

Ten minutes later, after giving away another crystal diamond, Baker finally understood that this feeling was called "scattering wealth."

"If you don't like it, you can give it to me," Stephen said, practically drooling.

A fourth-level magic weapon, how fragrant!

Beck instantly turned cold, quickly put away his weapon, and distanced himself from Stephen.

"What do you, a fire element, need something from the earth element for? It doesn't make sense!"

"It's a shield, it can also be used... Hey! Wait for me, don't close the door!"

Su Yao touched her pocket. Although the gold coins were stored in the system, she always felt she could still feel them this way.

"Shopkeeper."

Su Yao heard Gerard calling her.

"I want to give you something."

"Are you sending me off?" Su Yao asked, puzzled.

"Yes, please wait a moment!"

Gerard could be heard thumping up the stairs, and then thumping back down with something on his back.

"This is..."

[Bone of the Evil Spirit: From a second-level evil spirit, the bone caterpillar. This bone is both incredibly hard and highly malleable, making it an excellent material for construction and an indispensable component in machinery production.]

Isn't this the off-road vehicle material that Su Yao has been looking for?

Sure enough, she was destined to have an off-road vehicle!

"I'll take all of these, and I'll pay you." Su Yao was now rolling in wealth.

Gerald shook his head, "I don't want money, this is something to thank the shopkeeper for saving my life."

"Our transaction is complete; you don't need to do this."

Su Yao remembered that when he came back in the afternoon, Gerard had quite a few wounds on his body, most of which were definitely from the bone caterpillar wraith.

"No, you must take it! Everything else can be paid for, I can repay by collecting things, but a life-saving grace cannot be. Without you, I would have been dead long ago, let alone buying exorcism liquid. Please, you must accept these things!"

As he spoke, tears welled up in Gerard's eyes.

Su Yao's heart softened; she couldn't refuse such a sincere gift.

"Alright, I'll take these."

Gerard smiled, his dark skin wrinkling into folds.

Years of labor under the sun had caused this young adventurer to age prematurely. However, he was still very happy, because aging was better than losing his life. Besides, he was capable enough to leave the small town and embark on the journey northward.

"Are there many people in the south who are cursed by evil spirits?"

Gerald put away his smile and sighed. He didn't know why Su Yao suddenly brought up this matter, but the topic was a heavy one.

"Our small town has already seen thirty people die this year. The rampages of evil spirits and beasts are becoming more frequent, and we can't fend them off."

Every time the evil spirits attacked, they could only flee to other towns to hide. If they ran too slowly and couldn't escape, they had to hide in the cellar. With worse luck, they would be attacked by the evil spirits and cursed. The worst outcome was losing their lives directly.

"If we take the exorcism potion to the south to sell, do you think it will work?"

"Of course!" Gerald exclaimed excitedly. "The South really needs exorcism potion. If the shopkeeper goes to sell it, he will definitely make money!"

"I said, we."

Selling is not the point; the focus is on the subject.

"We?" Gerard didn't quite understand.

But after he circled those two words three times in his mind, the evil spirit bone in his hand suddenly fell.

"Can I, can I do it?" Gerard asked, his lips trembling. "Can I work with the shop owner?"

Su Yao patted the young man's shoulder, then walked around to the back of the counter.

"I need someone to help me sell things in the south. If you're willing, I can hire you."

After speaking, Su Yao directly took out a contract.

This was hastily produced by the system.

"I do, I do!"

Su Yao smiled and gestured for Gerard to sit down first. "Let's settle the contract first. Your salary will be based on the items you sell. The fixed monthly salary is 300 gold coins. For every thousand bottles of potion sold, I'll give you a 5% commission. If you sell less than a thousand bottles, the monthly commission is fixed at 300 gold coins. The safety of your travels will be guaranteed by the inn. Each time, you can receive some safety items from me. If you don't use them, you can sell them, as there will be new ones provided next time."

"Isn't this too much?" Gerard did a quick calculation. Just selling a few bottles could earn him six hundred gold coins in a month.

"No, that's too much. I only need a hundred gold coins each month."

Su Yao: .....

Unexpectedly, the most difficult part of signing the contract emerged: Gerard didn't want that much money at all!