Woke Up to Find the Game I Made Came True

The traveling merchant truly lived up to his reputation. In front of Ye Bai, three rows of slots appeared, with the lowest-grade items being green-quality rare items. Starting from the second row, blue-quality uncommon items emerged, including semi-processed foods, crop seeds, minerals, heavy gears, and at the very end, three purple-quality items. Apart from two pieces of equipment, there was also a blueprint!

Ye Bai's gaze was immediately drawn to the purple blueprint.

It's a blueprint! She must buy it!

Without even looking at the content, Ye Bai made up her mind. As a game developer, she was all too aware of how low the drop rate for blueprints was in "Wan Jie". Although she had acquired two blueprints since establishing her territory, those were rewards for soloing a nightmare-level 0-tier dungeon. The final boss dropping a golden-quality blueprint was also a stroke of incredible luck.

For other players, obtaining blueprints through normal monster drops was an improbably small chance.

Traveling merchants didn’t always carry blueprints either; the odds were equally slim, and the prices were exorbitant.

After seeing the detailed description of the blueprint, Ye Bai couldn’t help but gasp.

【Energy Crossbow Blueprint】

Description: The method to craft the weapon 'Energy Crossbow'

Required Building: Blacksmith’s Forge

Restrictions: Crafters must be a [Blacksmith] professional, Personal Level >= 5

Materials: Fine Iron X3, Fine Copper X1, Knotted Wood X1

Which ruler wouldn’t love ranged units? A crossbow itself was a more advanced ranged weapon than a bow, with greater killing power, attack distance, and accuracy. Especially this was an energy variant, a form of magical technology that didn’t require extra arrows or quivers. Just supply energy, and it could generate energy arrows, making it akin to a laser weapon.

Not to mention Ye Bai’s territory had access to a Source Energy Crystal Mine, so energy was the least of her worries!

Equipping this to her territory’s guards would make it a godsend for the early game and usable even in the late game without needing an upgrade.

Unfortunately, its price matched its effectiveness. Just this blueprint alone cost a whopping 50 gold coins. Given Ye Bai’s territory's current monthly tax revenue of 54 copper coins, it would take over 70 years to afford just one blueprint.

“Hehe… My lord, everything I’ve brought with me this time is top-notch. If you miss this opportunity, you might not know when it’ll come again.” The traveling merchant gave Ye Bai an arrogant smile, hinting that these goods were rare.

The first time a traveling merchant arrives at a player’s territory, the goods brought are the most comprehensive, including some rare items. Then, based on the lord’s purchasing preferences, the probability of bringing similar items next time increases.

Merchants chase profits. If something sells well in a place, they’ll naturally continue to restock it.

If it were another lord welcoming a traveling merchant for the first time, even emptying their territory’s resources would barely allow them to buy one or two items, while the rest would be out of reach. But since Ye Bai had devoted a precious policy slot to the [Traveling Merchant], she naturally had the confidence to do more.

“Can I barter?”

“Of course,” the traveling merchant stroked his beard. “Nothing is untradeable; the key is whether the value is equivalent.”

This statement was one of the behavioral guidelines of the [Merchant Guild], a loose alliance of merchants. Almost all merchant NPCs belonged to this guild.

At the same time, the ‘shelves’ in front of Ye Bai transformed into a trading interface.

The center of the page was a scale, with the merchant’s goods on the left and the territory’s stored resources, cellar food, and Ye Bai’s personal inventory on the right.

【Smoked Meat】X400

【Herbs】X200

【Honey】X50

【Seedlings】X20

【Pottery】X50

【Gold Ore】X100

【Knotted Wood】X20

…

【Light Feather Boots】X1

【Light Feather Hat】X1

【Energy Crossbow Blueprint】X1

Seeing Ye Bai place everything on her shelves onto the trading scale, the traveling merchant’s relaxed expression gradually changed, and he looked at her in astonishment, his face clearly saying, “Are you messing with me?”

The scale, representing value, tilted dramatically in Ye Bai’s favor, while the merchant’s side sank to the bottom.

One after another, Ye Bai placed her trading items on the right side of the scale:

【Source Energy Crystal (Crude)】X24

Immediately, the merchant’s side of the scale began to rise, slowly lifting from the bottom.

Starting with the territory’s crude-grade Source Energy Crystals, Ye Bai added higher-quality 【Source Energy Crystal (Regular)】 crystals one by one.

Under the merchant’s astonished gaze, when she reached 31 regular-grade Source Energy Crystals, the scale leveled out completely, signifying the transaction value was sufficient.

【Confirm Trade】

The merchant’s inventory was instantly cleared.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve encountered a customer like you!” The traveling merchant came to his senses and looked at Ye Bai with a newfound warmth in his attitude.

Source Energy Crystals were the pinnacle of energy resources in "Wan Jie" and were even more valuable than gold. From her single move, he could easily deduce that this lord likely controlled a Source Energy Crystal Mine.

【Traveling Merchant ‘Kazmai’ has increased his favorability towards you by +20】

【You have gained +5 reputation with the ‘Merchant Guild’】

Taken aback by the favorability notification, Ye Bai looked deeply at the merchant named Kazmai. She had noticed something different about "Wan Jie" from her previous knowledge.

During the closed beta, traveling merchants’ favorability was tied to the entire territory rather than the individual merchant NPC. It was reflected in discounts for future purchases but didn’t show personal favorability like other NPCs.

Now, this merchant showed personal preferences like any other NPC, expressing his good will toward her.

After numerous interactions, Ye Bai had grown accustomed to this version of "Wan Jie"’s NPC intelligence, which reflected sophisticated AI. Leaders like Karli and even ordinary villagers had shown a level of intelligence close to humans.

Without the influence of loyalty and satisfaction mechanics, which operated like immutable rules, Ye Bai might have doubted whether this was a real world.

Maybe she could explore the "boundaries" of these NPCs?

So Ye Bai spoke to the traveling merchant, Kazmai: “I hope you can continue trading with our territory in the future.”

“No problem!” Kazmai agreed enthusiastically, obviously pleased with the proposal.

Ye Bai nodded. All she had to do was wait to see if it was still this merchant named Kazmai who came for trade next time, which would confirm whether she could operate beyond the familiar ‘game rules.’

…

After purchasing a large batch of supplies, carts shuttled back and forth between the market, warehouse, and cellar, transporting the goods.

The visit from the traveling merchant was a windfall for Ye Bai, transforming surplus Source Energy Crystals into resources vital for her territory’s development—enough to last until her territory reached Level 3.

The villagers watched these new additions with happy and contented expressions.

Most notably, filling the cellar boosted the territory’s satisfaction by 10 points, from 84 to 94, while loyalty increased by 5 points across the board, from 62 to 67.

With the current population, the stored food would last the entire village four months, and the Hunter’s Lodge was already processing previous hunts, while the four new farm plots had been planted, soon yielding new harvests.

For the villagers of Baiye Village, a Level 1 territory, a lord who can provide them with food is already a respected and beloved figure. Moreover, the lord only levies a very low tax, and there is even a herbal medicine healer working in the village...

Upon receiving a system notification, Ye Bai smiled. Loyalty and satisfaction directly impacted the efficiency of the territory, while also accelerating the growth of productivity.

She watched as the second point of productivity was filled, and then allocated it to the newly emergent technology branch of the Level 1 territory, **Processing and Refinement**.

Unlocking this technology was different from others, requiring 2 points of productivity.

**Processing and Refinement** unlocked Level 2 production buildings such as **Windmill**, **Oven**, **Smoking Hut**, **Pottery Workshop**, **Brickyard**, **Sawmill**, and **Smeltery**.

This was the most crucial technology for a Level 1 territory. Only from Processing and Refinement onwards could an industrial zone truly be called an industrial zone.

Materials needed for crafting energy crossbows, such as refined iron and refined copper, were unavailable at the Blacksmith's Forge and could only be produced at the **Smeltery** using iron ore and copper ore.

The food processing buildings included were also essential. Compared to crude food, higher-grade processed foods could improve the health of the villagers, slowly increasing their personal experience points. The higher the quality of the food, the faster the experience gain.

In five in-game days, it would be the twentieth day since the establishment of the territory. A new batch of refugees would arrive, and they would be the armed forces Ye Bai planned to train for her territory.

Ye Bai had accelerated her original development plan due to the emergence of energy ammunition. She intended to equip all the militiamen with energy crossbows and then lead them to open trade routes.

Trade routes were crucial for rapid development. To rely solely on local resources for all materials would be inefficient and likely insufficient. Baiye Village was like a pond that needed to connect to the river to bring in fresh, external resources to grow.

The experience gained from fighting monsters along the way would be enough to train the soldiers and push Ye Bai's personal level to twenty, just in time for her to change her occupation in a town.

As a player with a lord status, the difficulty of opening external routes was relatively lower compared to non-lord players. With a proper guard team, a level 20 player could venture into the wilderness.

This was because when a lord player left their territory with a territory armed force, they received a buff called **Explorer's Blessing**. This buff provided a combat strength check when encountering powerful wild creatures (level 20 and above). If a player avoided entering the danger zone indicated by the warning, they wouldn't be chased.

After all, starting in the wilderness wasn't as straightforward as starting in a town. To compensate for this, when a town player established a territory, the distance traveled from the town to the chosen location for building the city would automatically become a road, giving non-wilderness starting players the equivalent of a built-in trade route.

As for the issue of Baiye Village being discovered when opening trade routes... After some deliberation, Ye Bai concluded that it wasn't a significant problem.

Firstly, the nearby towns all belonged to the 'Galaxy Zone Earth Server'. Players active in these areas were those registered near the solar system in Void. These travelers were from various interstellar races, which immediately nullified the numerical advantage of powerful civilizations.

The essence of a civilization's power would naturally be concentrated on their original star regions. At most, small factions could form on Earth, but with different interests and complexities, they couldn't leverage numerical superiority. Even if Baiye Village was discovered, it wouldn't pose a threat.

Moreover, Ye Bai's primary goal in visiting a town was to open trade routes and change her occupation. At that time, as a post-occupation player facing players up to level 10, a single skill would be enough to defeat them.

Interstellar players couldn't unleash their full 'fourth-day disaster' potential of 'immortality' in Void. Ye Bai hadn't forgotten that a player's death in Void led to experience loss and subsequent level loss, resulting in real-life psychic trauma.

This trauma wasn't as simple as 'giving back'.

The psychic enhancement players gained in Void could be likened to nourishing and gradually growing their psychic entities. However, deaths in the game caused trauma to the entire psychic entity. The former was like consuming nutrients, while the latter wasn't about something coming back out but losing an equivalent amount as if cutting off flesh – entirely different in nature.

With such a plan in mind, Ye Bai logged out, ready to grab some nutrient fluid before returning.

But this time, upon exiting the Star Web, Ye Bai's vision didn't present the familiar public seating area ads...

Darkness, silent, complete darkness engulfed Ye Bai.

"!!!!"

What was going on? Where was she?!@@novelbin@@

After a moment, realizing her body showed no signs of movement, Ye Bai understood the situation. It wasn't her environment that had changed; she simply couldn't open her eyes.

This feeling was akin to the 'sleep paralysis' experienced halfway between wakefulness and sleep – fully aware yet unable to move, no matter how much effort was exerted, even to lift the eyelid just a bit!

Personal terminal...

**[Planet Signal Disconnected]**

**[No Signal Currently]**

Had her identity been discovered by some organization? Was this an advanced technology or psychic ability she couldn't comprehend? Was someone or some powerful entity monitoring her thoughts, trying to uncover Void's secrets?

Countless questions, accompanied by a deluge of frightening emotions like horror, panic, worry, and fear, flooded Ye Bai's mind all at once.

Under normal circumstances, her blood might have been rushing backwards, but instead, her body seemed in a 'forced numbness' state, suppressing such biological responses brought by hormonal changes to the lowest possible level.

Ironically, in this condition, Ye Bai gradually calmed down.

Just like the last time she faced the Star Alliance, rationality returned. Ye Bai began analyzing the current situation, piece by piece.

First, she was in a controlled situation, which was unquestionable.

Under such circumstances, it could also be ruled out that her thoughts were being monitored: If 'Baiye's' identity had been discovered by groups like the Star Alliance, there was no need to resort to methods that required her to 'think out the secrets', as it was too inefficient.

Thus, at least her 'thinking activities' were safe.

Second, her personal terminal had no signal, leaving her isolated from the outside world. However, Star Web's unique nature meant they couldn't block her from logging in.

This scenario could be divided into two possibilities: either the entity didn’t know Ye Bai's ability to access the Star Web, or they couldn't prevent her logging in. Given that Ye Bai had logged out voluntarily rather than passively losing consciousness, the latter was more plausible.

Thus, she immediately tried logging back into the Star Web –

The familiar 'study room' appeared, and the login succeeded! Indeed, they didn't know she could access the Star Web!

However, Ye Bai didn't celebrate for long. Her public identity on the Star Web, which had contact information with others, was 'Baiye'.

Baiye, an A-class psychic, how could she be held captive?

And even if Ye Bai sought help without revealing her identity, there was still the issue of not knowing if she was on Earth. The chance of being rescued was slim, nearly non-existent. In her era, she belonged to no faction, thus held no value to others, making it unlikely for anyone to exhaust resources or effort to investigate and save her!

Not to mention, her concealed secrets were too many. A pre-space migration human who sold the rights to Antarctica opening a Star Web account had to raise others' eyebrows, possibly linking the matter to Baiye... and she couldn't be sure.

For now, the most pressing matter was to confirm where she was located.

Ye Bai exited the Star Web, once again surrounded by that thick, endless darkness...

Absent senses... the effort was futile.

Indeed, without reaching the D-level of mental power, it is impossible to manifest spiritual tendrils that can break free from the body.

Ye Bai could only rely on the changes brought about by leveling up in the Ten Dimensions. With insufficient mental power and an immobile body, perks like [Roll], [Skillful Hands], and [Appraisal] were useless... until it hit her:

Appraisal?!

A bolt flashed through Ye Bai's mind.

In the game, [Appraisal] could gather information: for biological entities, it required the player’s gaze and intention, while for objects, it relied on touch.

However, obtaining information in a game made sense, but what about in reality? Ye Bai had never considered the possibility of this talent working in reality.

Regardless, she thought, desperate times call for desperate measures—she had to try!

[Appraisal], [Appraisal]...

Ye Bai attempted to use the ability externally, even though her body was incapable of movement. At the very least, she reasoned that she must be touching something that sustains her life, otherwise, she wouldn't still be alive.

"...

Time seemed endless in the darkness. Just when Ye Bai felt she was wasting her effort, two pieces of information suddenly flooded her mind:

‘Nutrient Solution Type IV, suitable for maintaining the vital signs of Type IV carbon-based life forms.’

‘GP-63 Anesthetic, patented by Markul Group's Fifth Research Institute; harmless to fragile life forms.’

In an instant, Ye Bai recalled the email she had received earlier from Markul Group.

Bad news: It was true—she had been kidnapped by alien forces.

Good news: She wasn't taken as ‘Ye Bai’ but as a rare species in the universe.