What‽

Although slightly disheartened at the price, Xu Chen thanked the Merchant and left the Store returning to the Eternal Green Sea.

'Now I need to figure a way out of this Mystery Zone, and hopefully, I can find something to sell as I figure my way out.'

When Xu Chen emerged from the Store, he looked around for anything that might seem out of place in this endless grass field. Unfortunately, he saw nothing, so he decided to walk straight, hoping he'd eventually reach the edge and be able to leave this place.

Xu Chen didn't know precisely how long he walked, maybe around 3-4 hours, and the more he walked, the more he realized nothing seemed to be changing, so he started thinking.

'Maybe this place creates illusions? Or could it be directly influencing the minds of those within? If it's an illusion, would closing my eyes make it possible to leave? But if so, this wouldn't be much of a Mystery Zone, now would it?'

Seeing as it could do no harm, Xu Chen closed his eyes and carefully started walking to the left. Xu Chen's steps were slow and cautious just in case he actually did manage to get out; he didn't want to fall or trip on anything.

After walking for a few minutes, Xu Chen was shocked to find this might actually be working as he felt his foot bump into something. When he opened his eyes, he could see what it was.

Alone in this endless field, a beautiful green and cyan flower stood before Xu Chen, and it was unlike any he'd ever seen before. It swayed gently in the wind. Although it was beautiful, Xu Chen was more curious to know if he could get a nice price for it from the Merchant as he unhesitatingly plucked it and reached out for the Store's door, which materialized before him.

At the same time, Xu Chen couldn't help but be surprised that his basic idea worked. After all, wasn't this a Mystery Zone? Could closing your eyes really be all there is to it? Probably not, but at least he felt elated to know he could progress towards leaving the Eternal Green Sea.

"Welcome back, Stranger. Got something for me, eh?"

Xu Chen felt creeped out by the end of the Merchant's greeting. Had the Merchant been somehow watching him this whole time, or was it just a wild guess?

"Uh... yes, I do have something for you. How much can I get for this?"

The Merchant took the flower from Xu Chen's hand before he could blink. The lightning-fast movement sent chills down Xu Chen's spine. How in the world did the Merchant move that fast?! And was he going crazy, or did the Merchant's arm really extended all the way to him?!

"Mhhh... this is a basic elemental flower you've got here called the Breeze Petal. But it's only a year old and hasn't accumulated very much Wind Qi. You'll get 25 credits if you sell this to me. Otherwise, you can keep it if you so desire."

The Merchant didn't seem to care about Xu Chen's shock and gave his analysis of the flower, which, much to Xu Chen's surprise, could be sold for 25 credits. This recouped the credits he spent on the general surroundings and brought his total up to 60 credits, a small step forward but a step nonetheless.

"I'll sell it, Merchant."

As soon as Xu Chen said he'll sell it, five white spheres shot out from behind the counter into his body. Although a little confused by their appearance, Xu Chen concluded that these spheres represented credits, and it would seem each sphere was worth five.

"Heheheh... Thank you for your business, Stranger."

The Merchant expressed his gratitude as Xu Chen left quietly, still feeling disturbed by the Merchant's inhuman movements.

Back in the field, Xu Chen decided to keep going in the same direction that he'd been previously, and about twenty minutes later, he bumped into another plant.

This time he ran into a small bush that had what looked like blackberries growing on it, and after grabbing a few, Xu Chen went into the shop to see their worth.

Just as before, the Merchant greeted Xu Chen and snatched the berries from his hands so fast he didn't even notice the Merchant's arm move this time.

"Just some Dark Berries, I can give you at most 0.05 credits for each amounting to 0.65 credits total. Truthfully, Stranger, I suggest you keep these as food as you're unlikely to find much else to eat in the Eternal Green Sea. I can also vouch that these are safe to eat as well."

The Merchant's suggestion made sense with Xu Chen, he would eventually get hungry, and these would be much more helpful than the meager amount of credits they'd sell for.

"Thank you for the suggestion, Merchant!"

Xu Chen thanked the Merchant as he left the store again, berries in hand and ready to continue forward.

And off he went progressing with his eyes closed as time went by, Xu Chen could feel the air getting colder, and after opening his eyes, he could see that the sun was setting.

He decided to take a break and eat a dozen dark berries as he watched the beautiful sunset. He looked on feeling awestruck because, in his old world, he'd never seen such a picturesque sunset in his entire life.

After the sun went down, the moon became visible in all its glory and made Xu Chen feel calm even though he was in an unknown world.

Having had enough of a break, Xu Chen started walking again, and about an hour later, he heard a strange noise. Opening his eyes, he could see there wasn't anything in front of him, but just as he was about to look around, Xu Chen suddenly found himself in great pain as he was sent flying through the air with only one thought on his mind.

'What‽'