I Got a Gallery in the Wild - Chapter 36

The news that Heavenly Demon had become a Blue Badge spread like wildfire.

Since she was already a well-known fixed-handle user, it was only natural for the forum to flip out.

Although a Blue Badge was technically subordinate to the Orange Badge, it was still a legitimate moderator position.

If anyone violated the rules or crossed Heavenly Demon, chances were high they’d get banned.

’Heavenly Demon wouldn’t do that, though.’

Heavenly Demon was the ultimate my-way type.

No matter what anyone said, she was the type to stubbornly forge her own path ahead.

She practically possessed a mind of steel. Or perhaps it was the characteristic benevolence of an old elder?

To actually offend Heavenly Demon would mean hurling insults too unspeakable to utter.

’If it’s for something like that, you can’t really complain about getting banned.’

Either way, from my perspective, it was little more than a mundane incident.

Even if Heavenly Demon became a Blue Badge, nothing much would change.

It just meant there was one more moderator, nothing more.

At best, since I was on friendly terms with her, I might get a tiny bit of convenience out of it.

’Not that I’m going to rely on her, though.’

Relying too much on Heavenly Demon would undoubtedly make me lazy.

I was already receiving plenty of help as it was.

So rather than clinging to Heavenly Demon, it would be far better to become strong on my own.

’Now that she’s a Blue Badge, she’s probably super busy, right?’

A Blue Badge was essentially a volunteer. An unpaid wage slave.

Even so, if you abandoned your duties, you wouldn’t just lose the status—you could get banned.

Especially since the Orange Badge was so rigid and obsessed with rules and principles, she had no choice but to be careful.

’I should just focus on my own stuff.’

Even after running away from the muscular mushroom and seeing Heavenly Demon become a Blue Badge, my own tasks remained.

Specifically, receiving the wall barriers from Passing Dwarf to repair the shelter.

He said he’d send them around lunchtime, so it should be about time for the trade request.

’After I set up the wall barriers...’

Just as I was contemplating what to do after setting up the wall barriers—

[Passing Dwarf-nim has requested a trade. Do you accept?]

A trade request flew in from the dwarf.

Speak of the devil. I thought to myself as I hit accept.

[Passing Dwarf: You accepted right away. Got plenty of free time on your hands?]

I was waiting for you.

[Passing Dwarf: Ah. I like girls, you know. Look at me, so popular.]

[Wild Grylls: You crazy bastard lol. Did you finish making the wall barriers?]

[Passing Dwarf: I made them, but there’s a lot of them and they’re huge. You got a place to store ’em?]

At his question asking if I had a storage place, I looked around.

Perhaps because it was originally inhabited by the Mad Dog pack, the area around the cave was surprisingly spacious.

The inside of the cave was the same. It was a place where three massive beasts used to live.

If worse came to worst, I could just store them inside the cave while installing a few beforehand.

[Wild Grylls: Yeah, I do. Roughly how big are they?]

[Passing Dwarf: Check this out first.]

(Wooden Wall Barrier Photo), (Wooden Wall Barrier Photo 2)

Which of these looks better?

"Oh?"

I gasped in admiration while looking at the photos uploaded by the dwarf.

One was an utterly ordinary wooden wall barrier.

A wall made of sharply shaved wooden pillars linked together side by side.

The other was closer to a barricade.

While "wall barrier" and "barricade" are often used interchangeably, their forms differed.

If a wall stood vertically at a right angle, a barricade was set up at a slanted angle.

It was a structure where sharp wooden logs were tilted diagonally and firmly bound together.

[Passing Dwarf: You’re not planning to live there forever, right?]

If you’re using it temporarily, wouldn’t the spike barricade be better?

Easier to set up, too.

That one does look better.

[Wild Grylls: Fucking dug all those holes for nothing haha]

[Passing Dwarf: Just cover ’em back up loosely.]

I’ll go with this one then.

[Wild Grylls: How long will it take to make those?]

[Passing Dwarf: What I give you should be enough for basic defense. If it’s not enough, make the rest yourself.]

As long as you know how to tie ropes, it’s easy to craft.

I’ll think about it. Can you send them right now then?

[Passing Dwarf: Sec.]

[Wild Grylls: Passing Dwarf-nim has registered items for trade.]

[Passing Dwarf: Take ’em.]

[Wild Grylls: Thx thx. Anything you need?]

[Passing Dwarf: Just give me alcohol lol]

Can’t give you alcohol, but I’ll find some bar snacks for you.

[Wild Grylls: Fish alright with you?]

[Passing Dwarf: Not bad.]

Don’t you need a fish trap to catch fish?

[Wild Grylls: It’d be nice, but they’re way too huge, so making one sounds rough?]

[Passing Dwarf: I’ll make it for you.]

You better give me those bar snacks though. Got it?

K

As the trade concluded, the items sent by the dwarf arrived.

I thought they wouldn’t be very tall, but I was mistaken.

Even with the logs set diagonally, their height slightly exceeded my own tall stature.

If anything, crafting them this way must have been even more troublesome.

’They’re bigger than I thought?’

There was no time to be flustered. Soon, the next batch of barricades would arrive.

Thanks to the time gap between transfers, I was able to place them slowly.

It seemed to take extra time to transfer because their size was larger than expected.

Or perhaps it was due to a lack of space.

"Huuu."

As time passed, I finished both the placement and the fine-tuning of their positions.Visit nоvelping.com for the full chapter.

There was a bit of clunkiness since I didn’t know the exact criteria for where traded items materialized, but no accidents occurred.

’I guess there’s no such thing as an inventory?’

Every time a large object arrived like this, it seemed bound to cause headaches.

It would be great if there were a dedicated storage space for traded items.

Job finished!

(Photo of shelter with barricades installed)

Finally done installing the barricades. There are still more left to go, but I feel proud.

By the way, isn’t there a storage space or something for traded items? They suddenly kept popping out out of nowhere, making it so hard to arrange them.

└ Good work. But that feature you mentioned actually used to exist. It just got restricted.

└ Wild Grylls) Why was it restricted?

└ Because of smuggling. People used to criticize it as military-style bureaucracy, but then the Orange Badge two terms ago ruined an entire fief, so it got blocked.

└ Isn’t that restriction meaningless for the Orange Badge? She can do whatever she wants.

└ Yeah, if the Orange Badge lifts the regulation, it can be done. But would the current Orange Badge really do that for us?

└ Wild Grylls) Can’t we get like 10 minutes? That’s more than enough.

└ There are bastards who shove drugs up their ass to transport them, as if she’d ever give us that option keke

└ She might do it for you, Grylls. But is there even a system to lift restrictions for specific fixed-handle users only?

└ Nope. Unless you’re a Blue Badge maybe. Even if you are a Blue Badge, you’d still have to suck up to the Orange Badge lolol

└ One thing’s for sure: the current Orange Badge is an old boomer, so no way she does it.

└ Don’t Abandon the Hero: I am not an old boomer! I simply value rules and principles! Calling someone a boomer just because they maintain order means that person is in the wrong! In technical terms, that’s called antisocial behavior!

└ Did the Orange Badge just show up?

└ Hey Orange Badge. Why don’t you lift the restriction then? You can do whatever you want now anyway.

└ Don’t Abandon the Hero: Actually, that’s something I’ve been deliberating over! I will review it positively, so please wait! Farewell then!

Reviewing it positively, huh? It seemed I could hold onto some hope.

If only I could store things for even five minutes, that would be amazing.

Although I had organized the barricades, things were still roughly cluttered around.

’No. I’m being too greedy. What was I thinking?’

I quickly shook my head. I shouldn’t be like this.

Even though I resolved to reduce my reliance on the Gallery, here I was getting annoyed over a minor inconvenience.

Its utility really was addictive like a drug. No wonder people couldn’t quit posting on the Gallery.

Only by overcoming challenges on my own can I grow. I reaffirmed my resolve once more.

’Let’s inspect the barricades properly first.’

A day might come when I have to craft barricades all by myself.

Times when something happens to the dwarf, or when I can’t access the Gallery.

To prepare for such moments, I needed to understand the structure of the barricades.

’So he carved out the logs and inserted them together. And bound them tightly with ropes just in case.’

When I have time, it would be good to practice making a smaller barricade.

Trees were scattered everywhere around here, so I would never run short of materials.

The only thing lacking would be my craftsmanship. It would be vastly inferior compared to what the dwarf made.

’Aren’t Dwarves short? Did he really make all of this by himself?’

Suddenly, the physical anatomy of a Dwarf crossed my mind.

The barricade was slightly taller than my own height.

It was quite fascinating that a Dwarf constructed a wall barrier of this height all by himself.

He might raise a fuss every day begging for alcohol, but the dwarf might actually be someone of high standing.

"Kkyuu."

"Are you hungry?"

Wonmo, who had trotted over to my side, stared at me with bright, clear eyes.

While I was busy installing the barricades, lunchtime had arrived before I knew it.

Since I didn’t have any fish, it seemed I’d have to make do with Fasting Pills today.

I gave Wonmo a large piece of meat I had bought from the Gallery.

With eyes sparkling, Wonmo began scarfing down the meat in the blink of an eye.

’I also need to learn how to set traps.’

The problem was whether an ordinary animal would fall for an ordinary trap.

So far, the only small animals I had encountered were squirrels and rabbits.

Even those were surprisingly huge.

The rabbits were literally the size of medium-sized dogs.

And they were so fast that the moment they sensed my presence, they fled instantly.

’Then I just need to make the traps bigger.’

It was a simple yet effective solution.

I just had to set the trap with the mindset of catching a wild boar rather than a rabbit.

Chewing on the bitter Fasting Pill, I glanced behind me.

I felt something climbing up my back, and as expected, it was Speed Sloth.

"You want one too?"

"..."

The little guy nodded his head at his signature agonizingly slow speed.

I handed him a Fasting Pill and began browsing the Gallery.

I planned to circulate my Mental Cultivation Method after taking a short break.

[Heavenly Demon-nim has requested a 1-on-1 chat! Do you accept?]

"Huh?"

While browsing the Gallery, a single notification caught my eye.

Heavenly Demon hadn’t initiated a trade, but requested a 1-on-1 chat.

As far as I knew, 1-on-1 chats were unavailable not just for regular users, but even for fixed-handle users.

I faintly recalled hearing it was to prevent clique-ish favoritism. But why Heavenly Demon?

’What’s this? Is it different for Blue Badges?’

Though puzzled, I couldn’t reject a request from Heavenly Demon. I accepted the invitation.

Upon accepting, a window similar to the trading interface popped up.

[Heavenly Demon: Honorable sir. Canst thou see my words?]

Hello. I see them clearly.

[Wild Grylls: Can Blue Badges use 1-on-1 chat?]

[Heavenly Demon: Normally, it is impossible.]

However, I persuaded the Orange Badge to grant me this privilege.

Though in return, I must be the one to initiate the chat first.

Ah, I see.

[Wild Grylls: How is life as a Blue Badge?]

[Heavenly Demon: There are many images that delight my eyes.]You are reading on NovelPing, the official source.

However, those with low enlightenment like thee would surely fall prey to a Heart Demon.

I roughly understood what she meant.

Last time, I entered blindly and got my eyes brutally flashbang-seared.

But Heavenly Demon was a hardcore addict among forum addicts. She would easily shrug off stuff like that.

In a way, she possessed the ideal qualities of an excellent Blue Badge.

She had time to spare, immunity to Heart Demons, and a rock-solid mind.

From the Orange Badge’s perspective, appointing Heavenly Demon as a Blue Badge must have been a welcome move.

Sounds tough.

[Wild Grylls: Is there no time limit on 1-on-1 chats?]

[Heavenly Demon: There is none.]

Though all contents of our conversation will naturally be exposed to the Orange Badge.

Yet it matters not. What I intend to teach thee is merely the basics.

The basics?

Didn’t you already teach me everything?

[Wild Grylls: Didn’t you say I even unlocked my Upper Dantian or whatever?]

[Heavenly Demon: Indeed.]

Yet the issue lies in the fact that thou hast unblocked it far too quickly.

If the foundations are lacking, one is bound to falter.

Even a bridgehead that appears sturdy will eventually collapse if built with shoddy construction.

Though she was clearly using martial arts terminology, it surprisingly made sense to me.

The part about "shoddy construction" resonated with me the most.

So this was what people called ’wisdom.’ Truly a wonderful master.

That makes total sense.

You mean my body could collapse like a cheap, shoddy building, right?

[Heavenly Demon]

Precisely.

Henceforth, I intend to instruct thee in the fundamentals.

Though the stem be robust, if the roots are weak, it shall soon wither.

Thank you.

[Wild Grylls: But I’m not sure if I’ll be able to understand everything.]

[Heavenly Demon: Worry not.]

I shall break it down so that even thou canst comprehend.

First, sit in the cross-legged lotus position.

I sat cross-legged just as Heavenly Demon instructed.

Perhaps because I was getting used to it, it didn’t hurt and actually felt refreshing.

I should practice other postures besides the lotus position later. Extra flexibility never hurts.

[Heavenly Demon: Ah. There is one thing I am curious about.]

What did it feel like when thou didst circulate thy Mental Cultivation Method?

Was there no sensation of a blockage at the crown of thy head?

Not at all?

[Wild Grylls: It just felt like it made a full circuit around my entire body?]

[Heavenly Demon: Thou truly hast opened the Gateway of Life and Death.]

It seems thy Internal Energy flows unhindered through thy Conception and Governing Vessels.

I didn’t understand a single word, but I could tell she was impressed.

[Wild Grylls: That’s a good thing, right?]

[Heavenly Demon: It is a wondrous thing.]

In terms of realm, thou art at the late stage of the Master Realm.

Yet because thy breakthrough was so radical, thou wilt not even be able to manifest Sword Qi properly.

Sword Qi? You mean putting mana into a sword?

[Heavenly Demon]

Indeed.

Though I would prefer thou callest it Internal Energy, not mana.

It is not strictly wrong, yet it irks me strangely.

So it irks her. It seemed she had immense pride in her Internal Cultivation Art.

Well, she was an elder who had experienced all the vicissitudes of life, so I could understand her pride.

In fact, it was something I ought to respect. I should be careful in the future.

I’ll be careful.

Anyway, I can’t do it.

Because this is the first time I’m hearing about it.

[Heavenly Demon: Not only Sword Qi, but even enhancing thy physical body shall prove arduous.]

That is precisely why the fundamentals are paramount.

I see.

[Wild Grylls: Got it.]

[Heavenly Demon: Therefore, knowing the pathways shall make it easier for thee.]

Read carefully.

When circulating the Mental Cultivation Method, the direction of Internal Energy flows from the Lower Dantian, Huiyin, Changqiang...

Heavenly Demon’s lecture continued. Extremely long windedly.

I could only gape slack-jawed, staring blankly.

Because I couldn’t understand a single word of it.

It felt as though I was learning 1+1 in basic math, only for calculus to suddenly drop out of nowhere.

[Heavenly Demon: If it be too difficult, I can show thee via a diagram.]

Is that possible?

[Heavenly Demon]

(Rough Diagram of Pathways) How is it? Canst thou see it clearly?

I could see it clearly enough.

It was a rough image illustrating a side profile of a human body and the pathways inside.

’What language even is this?’

The real issue was that I couldn’t read the language at all.

At least the pathways were drawn, so I could figure them out by context.

’Will I really be okay?’

It was way too hard.

Meanwhile, as Heavenly Demon’s crash course was underway—

[Sword Matstar: Orange Badge-nim. You made a deal with Heavenly Demon-nim, didn’t you?]

Deh?!