Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

In the hope of setting up a magical army, Yang Ling followed the Gnome Elder to their tribe, prepared to gain a further understanding of the mysteries surrounding the spell formations.

As long as there was an army that could use magic to both attack and defend stationed at the Aila Mountain Pass, the fortress there would be impregnable. The Banto soldiers might not even be able to invade Wissen Town with an army of a hundred thousand, much less ten thousand. This way, he could obtain valuable time for developing Wissen Town.

The newly created Magical Beast Territory required a large amount of manpower, crystal coins, and resources. But even more importantly, they needed a certain amount of time to develop.

The outcome would be disastrous if they suffered the harassment of a large group of bandits or the attacks of the Banto Empire while they were in the early stages of development. Their circumstances would be dire.

For that reason, Yang Ling had saved Steve at the critical moment and forced him to assist in alleviating the conflict between Wissen Town and the Banto Empire. It was also for that reason that he had come to eliminate the bandit tribes despite just having gained control of the situation in Wissen Town. He wanted to obtain the largest amount of labor in the shortest amount of time to quickly develop the influence of Wissen Town.

The Gnome tribe was situated in an obscure valley. They had to take a boat across a culvert with waters several meters deep after getting past a sinister cave to reach their main base. It was definitely a strategic location. This might have been the reason that the Gnomes were able to proliferate in this forest where the strong preyed on the weak even without powerful physical abilities or being adept in magic.

The cave at the entrance was sinister and dark, but the valley behind the culvert seemed to be a paradise not of this world. It was covered with berry trees. The Gnomes would be able to harvest a large amount of berries when spring came next year. Unfortunately, the Gnomes no longer had any rations left. If they did not manage to find any food, none of the members of the tribe would be able to last until next spring.

Yang Ling was shocked when he saw the paradise-like main camp of the Gnomes. After taking a few turns, he was even more dazed when he saw the rows of exquisite wooden huts, windmills turning slowly in the wind, and the spring water being drawn toward the camp from the mountains.

Perhaps because they were working all the time, many of the Gnomes were covered in mud. They looked filthy, especially with their unique green skin. But no one doubted that they had a pair of nimble hands after looking at the exquisite huts and spinning windmills. It looked like the stories of the Gnomes once having an illustrious civilization weren’t just baseless rumors.

“Sir, please!”

After leading Yang Ling and Argus to the largest wooden hut, the Gnome Elder instructed his clansmen to gather a few dry berries, just enough to give one for every person.

Seeing Yang Ling observe the berries, the Gnome Elder let out an awkward smile. At the same time, the few Gnomes outside the windows could only swallow with difficulty, their eyes locked on the berries in their hands. It looked like the Gnome tribe was truly having difficult times.

After handing the berries to the young Gnomes outside the window, Yang Ling smiled as he rubbed their bald heads. Looking at their large heads, small bodies, and huge round eyes, he could not help but remember Shin Chan from the comic books.

“Sir, let us join Wissen Town and work for you. We won’t give you any trouble, and we’ll do our best if we are given something to eat. No matter what, we won’t be a burden to you!”

Looking at the excited Gnomes outside the window taking turns eating the berries, the Gnome Elder once again repeated his request. If he did not find any rations soon, many of his clansmen might not even make it through the week, much less the winter.

“How many of you are there?” Yang Ling showed no emotion. He still had a number of rations left in Wissen Town, but that did not mean that he could waste them as he wished.

“Counting the elderly and the children, a total of…” Looking at the expressionless Yang Ling, the Gnome Elder clenched his teeth. “A total of about two thousand five hundred people.”

Two thousand five hundred people?

Looking at the slightly blushing Gnome Elder and confirming that he hadn’t misheard, Yang Ling shook his head. He had not expected such a small tribe to hold two thousand five hundred people.

Seeing Yang Ling’s silence, the Gnome Elder nervously gave an explanation.

It turned out that unlike an average human, Gnomes usually lived to be about a hundred and fifty years old, and thus, there would be a good number of elderly in a Gnome Tribe. The more ancient the tribe, the more elderly there were. Omir’s tribe already had thousands of years of history and was naturally not an exception. They had about three hundred elderly who were unable to work.

Furthermore, there had been a large group of Gnomes wandering through the area half a year ago, all of them famished. The elder had sent men to bring them in after understanding their plight, combining their two tribes into one. Their population suddenly increased by roughly a thousand. That was also the reason why the rations that they had prepared for the winter were in such a severe deficit.

“Let’s do this: I’ll send someone to get you a few carts of rations to deal with your emergency. Then I’ll think about what to do after you’ve finished the rations!”

After understanding what was going on, Yang Ling avoided directly addressing the Gnome Elder’s request to join Wissen Town. He wanted to make the decision after learning more about the spell formations. After all, two thousand five hundred people was not a small amount. Wissen Town would welcome two thousand five hundred warriors or workers, but it would definitely not want two thousand five hundred useless mouths to feed.

The Gnome Elder was perceptive. Seeing that Yang Ling was avoiding talking about his request, he actively started explaining the spell formations that were drawn using the Blood Essence of Magical Beasts. He had to give more if he wanted a greater reward. Having a few carts of rations was good enough. If they used the rations sparingly, they might sustain his clansmen for half a month.

The greater the hopes, the greater the disappointment!

After learning more about the mysteries of the Gnomes’ spell formations, Yang Ling understood that it was not as simple as he had imagined.

First, the blood of the Magical Beasts had to be fresh. The fresh blood of Magical Beasts would frequently lose its effectiveness after being exposed to air for more than an hour. Thus, it was not suitable for him to draw complicated spell formations.

Second, there was also a requirement for the medium the spell formation was drawn on. Not any person or rock could meet this requirement. For example, the effect would be the best if they drew a wind element spell using a Wind Wolf’s blood on its own Essence Crystal; it would be less effective when drawn on crystals without enough energy, and even worse when drawn on a person without enough Magical Energy.

Finally, the process of drawing the spell formations was complicated, and the rate of failure was incredibly high. Even the tribe’s most experienced Gnome Elder Omir could only succeed once every ten times. Sometimes, if they were not careful enough, they could even cause explosions. The higher the level of the Magical Beasts, the more powerful the explosions were.

After causing five explosions in a row and almost burning off his eyebrows, Yang Ling gave up in frustration. These spell formations drawn using the Blood Essence of Magical Beasts might seem similar to the Wizard Amulets on the surface, but they required a lot of effort to draw.

“Omir, how many people in your tribe can draw these magical spells?”

Yang Ling did not give up after his multiple failures. If there were enough people who could draw spell formations in batches, quickly building up a magical army might still be possible.

Seeing Yang Ling staring at him, the Gnome Elder understood what Yang Ling was thinking. He hesitated for a long while before saying awkwardly, “There are only five currently, but… If we have some time, we can add a few more apprentices!”

Only five?

Yang Ling shook his head and let out a bitter laugh. Five people might not produce more than a few spell formations a day, even if they worked from morning until night. He would have to wait ages to set up a team of a few dozen men, much less a magical army that could be used for both offense and defense.

It was no wonder that there were so few Spellcasters among this many Gnomes. It was also no wonder that the Gnomes were still starving at the bottom of the pecking order even though they had such a powerful ability!

Should I take a few Gnomes back as workers and let the rest die off on their own?

Yang Ling deliberated silently as he looked at the nervous Gnome Elder. It was clear that directly moving all two and a half thousand Gnomes back to Wissen Town was a losing transaction for him.

Seeing Yang Ling’s expression, the Gnome Elder pleaded nervously, “Sir, other than drawing spell formations, we can also make various practical tools. We can even send brave warriors to do battle for you!”

Faced with the snow-covered land, his hungry clansmen would definitely die if they did not have enough rations. At this point, Yang Ling was their only hope. If they missed such a rare opportunity, his clansmen might have no choice but to wait for their end.

Send warriors to do battle for me?

Looking at the skinny frame of the nervous elder and recalling the Gnomes’ chaotic battle formation and brittle defense, Yang Ling once again shook his head and let out a mirthless smile. If Wissen Town had to depend on such an army for battle one day, it might truly be on the brink of collapse.

“Sir, you have to save us. Sir…” Seeing Yang Ling shake his head once again, the Gnome Elder led his clansmen and knelt on the floor without hesitation.

Following the elder’s lead, the Gnomes all knelt. Some of the white-haired elderly and ladies wept. Everyone understood that no one would be able to last through this long, cold winter without Yang Ling’s help.

“Sir, we still have a considerable amount of rations in the castle. Are we going to…” The tiny Gnomes knelt on the ground, their faces dripping tears and reddened from the cold. Argus, who was normally a man of few words, could not help but plead for them.

Originally, Argus had wanted to say more, but he had no choice but to close his mouth when he saw the emotionless Yang Ling and the hordes of Gnomes on the ground. It would have been fine if there were only a few dozen Gnomes, but two thousand five hundred Gnomes was too many.

“Since bandits have severely harassed the merchant teams passing by and impacted the development of Wissen Town, I have no choice but to clear this area of any tribes that made a living by robbing others!” Looking at the Gnomes listening intently to him, Yang Ling continued, “If you are not afraid of hardships or death, you can join my army. Serve me and obtain the rewards you deserve!”

Yang Ling had an idea when he saw the horde of Gnomes on the snow-covered floor.

While the Gnomes lacked firepower, they had the numbers advantage and were familiar with the terrain of the Ladak Mountain Range. Creating a foreign troop team and using them to gather information and distract enemies would allow him to clear out the nearby aboriginal tribes much more quickly.

Spell formations that could instantly cast magical spells, exquisite craftsmanship, and a group of Gnome soldiers…

Yang Ling knew that he had to hand over a shipment of rations in exchange for accepting this group of Gnomes, but it would definitely be worthwhile in the short term. In the long run, it might even be a decent transaction.