That's funny, I remember playing a little bit of a Silkroad themed (MMO)RPG as a teenager (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silkroad_Online). I wonder if this game inspired it somehow.
Fantastic game. Only thing free my friend and I could play so we'd play nonstop for a summer or two. Learning basic business sense running a shop outside the safe towns was one of those cool things MMOs can really offer. Support harp class was OP as all hell.