Published: February 8, 2025
Three days later, most of the forces originally gathered near the villa had moved to Puxing Town. Upon arrival, they discovered that the people from Cloud Summit had already tidied up the town thoroughly. The entire town was divided into various areas, each marked with a number, representing different functions.
For example, there were transaction areas, rest areas, garrison areas, work areas, and so on. Some areas were exclusively for Cloud Summit Villa, such as the garrison area, which housed the Cloud Summit Battle Team responsible for maintaining order in Puxing Town and was off-limits to other forces.
Upon entering Puxing Town, the people from Ying City couldn't help but admire Cloud Summit Villa and Ye Zhongming even more. It was clear that everything was planned meticulously; evidently, preparations for establishing a trading market had begun as soon as Ye Zhongming returned.
Although they could gain free residency here by joining the city tax system, the shops in the transaction area required rental fees. Many were grumbling about this, but after inquiring about the prices, they found them reasonable. The cost varied depending on the area, with those closest to the Cloud Summit Exchange being the most expensive, claimed by Star Beauty Corporation and Renxing Battle Team. Although Bai Feng's team suffered significant losses during Ye Zhongming's last assault on Ying City, their foundation was still strong.
With these two forces leading the way, most of the teams from Ying City rented shops in the transaction area, and the rental fees collected every three months bolstered Cloud Summit's finances.
Once all these matters were settled, the rules for the Puxing Town trading market were distributed to every force that owned a shop.
Upon reading the rules, many secretly cursed Cloud Summit for being vampires, but after considering the benefits of being here, they suppressed their grievances.
The tax payments clearly affected their interests. To conduct business here, simply renting a shop was not enough; they also had to pay a transaction tax, which was simply based on the size of each force.
This system was understandable since, in the apocalypse, it was impossible to determine exact quantities or transaction values, making it impractical to tax based on sales revenue. Therefore, taxing based on the strength of the teams became the best method. After all, it was unrealistic for a small force to expect to gather abundant resources for trade. While this method of taxation was certainly not perfect and had its loopholes, it was still the best approach available.
This dual taxation system undoubtedly left many dissatisfied, but considering that Cloud Summit was responsible for ensuring safety, order, hygiene, and other aspects, it was somewhat understandable. Furthermore, the transaction tax was not excessive, and the first batch of teams entering the trading market enjoyed discounts, with future adjustments being scheduled regularly, making it appear fair at least.
For these forces, aside from renting shops, the most important matter of the day was the priority purchase rights for the improved potions and equipment promised by Cloud Summit Villa. A long line had already formed outside the Cloud Summit Exchange.
The Radiant World Army had withdrawn from Ying City, but Cloud Summit had also re-released the power rankings for the forces in Ying City. According to this list, the top ten forces, those from eleventh to fiftieth, and the first five hundred forces were categorized differently in terms of equipment and potion levels and quantities. Due to the overwhelming interest from those wishing to make purchases, an auction format was adopted. This resulted in many smaller forces feeling slightly exploited by Cloud Summit.
There was some grumbling, but no resentment, because even after the auction, the prices of these weapons and equipment were still significantly lower than the normal prices, not to mention that the improved potions were unavailable elsewhere.