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

After an intense competition, the gray robed old man managed to win the auction for the forest of Anacardia at eight hundred thousand Purple Crystal Coins, much to the surprise of everyone present.

Even though it was a little regrettable, Arismede was not unhappy. He had already managed to meet his goals for his trip. He managed to gain a clear understanding of the various aspects of the Magical Beast Territory, and he had successfully established a budding relationship with the leader Yang Ling, creating a foundation for the large scale entry of the Merchant Association in the future.

Before he left, he once again invited Yang Ling to be a guest at the Aragon Merchant Team and left behind the means of contact at Montson. He hinted that the merchant team would soon enter and establish a presence in Wissen Town, and hoped that the two parties would be able to work together.

Learning from Arismede, the people took the rare opportunity to greet Yang Ling. Everyone knew that only by receiving the support of the leader Yang Ling could they share a piece of the pie.

Even though Yang Ling showed no expression on the surface, only showing a slight smile, he was incredibly excited within. After sharing a glance with Goode, his trusted tactician, he knew that they had achieved the goal of the auction.

If they could auction off the forest of Anacardia today, they would be able to auction off the mercury mine in the future. Goode had also revealed that they were willing to invite merchants to take part in the large scale construction of the Black Water City, harbor, and pier. Yang Ling believed that this news would cause a commotion between the merchants from other lands. Perhaps there would be many merchant teams flocking to the town even before the following spring.

After the group scattered, Goode instructed Orlando to lead the gray robed elder into the meeting room for a moment’s rest before introducing Yang Ling to the stranger’s background.

As it turned out, that old man was the person responsible for the merchant team that the Waize family had sent over to rescue Steve. His name was Christian. Goode was a little suspicious that there was a scheme behind his participation in the auction for control of the Anacardia forest.

“It is best if he has no schemes. Otherwise, we’ll auction the forest of Anacardia again after we capture him!” Yang Ling thought to himself as he walked quickly to the meeting hall. He smiled at his own scheming.

After a few formalities, the old man named Christian got straight to the point, revealing his intentions. A conversation between two smart people was usually more direct. After all, no one could hide anything from the other person.

As it turned out, Christian was a shipmaker and had two motives for coming to Wissen Town. Firstly, he had hoped to free the imprisoned Steve. Second, he had come to purchase suitable supplies of wood, and he naturally could not pass up the opportunity when he came across the high quality tree sap that was imperative in shipbuilding.

After taking a sip of rum and sitting for a moment, Christian looked at Yang Ling and said sincerely, “Sir, the mother of young master Steve misses her child very much. Do you think you could allow the young master to return with me? In appreciation for your care over this period of time, I can pay you three hundred thousand Purple Crystal Coins.”

“I’m sorry Sir Christian, before the situation becomes optimistic, it is not beneficial to any of us if Steve were to return to the Banto Empire!” Yang Ling was relentless, rejecting the other party’s proposal immediately. “Sir Steve is doing very well here, please do not worry!”

A few hundred thousand Purple Crystal Coins were worthless compared to the security of the territory. Even though he was not sure if continuing to imprison Steve and taking him hostage had any long term effect, Yang Ling was not willing to pass up on any opportunities. As long as the Waize family was asking for favors in the Banto Empire, they would buy more time for his own territory.

His territory would be much safer after the Gnome Elder managed to draw out many Magical Spell Formations, or after the alchemists managed to create a backstock of bombs with the Black Pulp Melons as the base ingredient.

After repeatedly increasing the number of Crystal Coins, seeing Yang Ling show no signs of letting up, Christian could only give up and turn the discussion toward his plan to collect the tree sap. At the end of the discussion, the two parties had decided to work together to set up a ship-making facility at the harbor. Yang Ling would supply the manpower, land and wood, while the other party would provide the capital and skill. The profits will be a sixty-forty split between Yang Ling and Christian.

“Sir Yang Ling, you must be cautious on your route toward Montson. Also, please move Sir Steve to a safe place and protect him heavily when you are not at the castle!” Before he left, Christian hesitated before reminding Yang Ling. He then took out a token from within his robes, “This is the token of the Waize family. It might prove useful if you encounter any trouble in the Livenza Alliance.”

Once preparations were in place, Christian left quickly, surrounded by many guards. Seeing his figure disappear over the horizon, Yang Ling and Goode looked at each other, silently deliberating the meaning behind his words.

Goode thought for a while after Christian left, and then said to Yang Ling, “Sir, why don’t you stay in Wissen Town, and I’ll attend the emperor’s birthday celebration in Montson on your behalf?”

“Hmph. What’s going to come will come eventually!” Yang Ling responded, grunting dismissively. “I’ll send a team of elite Beastmen over from Black Water City to defend the town. If there are any problems after I leave, you can go look for the Fox Elder at Black Water City. He will assist you.”

Since Christian had already warned him of the dangers, it was clear that the threat did not come from the Waize family. Even though he could not be sure of where the threat would come from for the time being, Yang Ling was not as worried as Goode. Even though the defense of his territory was still a little thin, the current Wissen Town was not the Wissen Town of the past.

Even though they did not have his Magical Beast army, Yang Ling believed that the enemy would not be able to cause too much damage if they managed to infiltrate the town. Wissen Town had many elite Bullmen, Medusas, barbarians and elf archers.

Even though he did not worry too much about the situation, caution and preventative measures were still necessary!

Next, Yang Ling and Goode came up with a new plan for the territory’s defense. The army posted to the Aila Mountain Pass could not be removed, and the Ogres in the Taildon Valley should not be moved either. The only changes they could make were in the distribution of the Beastmen gathered at the Black Water City.

Over the intervening time, the Fox Elder had traveled the area and recruited many new tribes. After a discussion with the Fox Elder, Yang Ling transferred two hundred Bullmen, two hundred Medusas and four hundred Dogmen to defend Wissen Town. Coupled with the guards already stationed in Wissen Town, Goode had an army of nearly a thousand six hundred people on his hands. Adding the few Spellcasters and the Gnome tribe, Yang Ling believed that they would be able to deal with any small scale attacks from their enemies.

Also, in order to strengthen the defense of Wissen Castle, Yang Ling decided to leave the Gargoyles behind, giving them the responsibility of attacking assassins that managed to infiltrate the castle. They would pose as statues from day to day, and use their high speeds to launch surprise attacks on enemies that might infiltrate the castle.

After making the necessary preparations, Yang Ling wanted to train before he went on the journey when a piece of good news arrived from the Taildon Valley. An Ogre had unintentionally dug out a Crystal Diamond when he was excavating the five-colored crystal mine!

A Crystal Diamond was the cream of the crop when it came to crystals, and harbored a great amount of energy. According to Goode’s explanation, it could enhance the Magical Energy and power of the spells of a Great Spellcaster to a large degree. It could also gradually improve the constitution of Spellcasters. They were treasures every Spellcaster dreamed of getting their hands on.

On the Tailun Continent, almost every empire had control over a dozen crystal mines, but there were very few that could produce Crystal Diamonds. As far as people understood, there might be none at all. If news of a crystal mine that could produce Crystal Diamonds spread, it would attract a rain of blood.

Yang Ling and Goode rushed to the Taildon Valley, with a few aides in tow. They went directly to where the Crystal Diamond had been found, under the leader of the Twin-headed Ogre Braska.

“Master, look, this is the place where the Crystal Diamond was excavated!”

Braska beamed and produced a pure white Crystal Diamond from his robes, reverently showing it to Yang Ling. Even though he did not understand the value of the Crystal Diamond, he knew that this was not an ordinary piece of treasure. He had immediately sent a personal guard to notify Yang Ling after discovering the Crystal Diamond.

The Crystal Diamond was not large, only about the size of a lychee, but Yang Ling could feel that it harbored a massive energy. After a preliminary test, he realized that its energy could be converted into Wizard Power. Not only that, it could also be converted into the so-called Magical Energy of that world. Before the Crystal Diamond, he could only conjure a weak streak of ember, but while wearing the Crystal Diamond, the ember of fire expanded tenfold, almost reaching the length of half a chopstick.

“Braska, how many people know about the Crystal Diamond?” Yang Ling realized the Crystal Diamond’s importance, and knew it could spell disaster if news of its discovery were to leak. It could attract a great deal of trouble.

“Master, with me included, only three people know. I blocked the information after I received the news from my clansmen!” Even though Braska was not too smart, he was not exactly dumb. He had immediately stopped the news from spreading and notified Yang Ling to deal with the matter himself.

“Good, Braska, you did very well!” Nodding his head in admiration, Yang Ling hushed his voice as he gave an order. “From this day onward, increase the intensity of the patrols in this area. Do not let even a mosquito in!”

“Yes, I understand!”

The Twin-headed Ogre Braska took the order in stride, and immediately went back to settle the defenses. Under his command, the violent Ogres sprang into action, each working to seal off the paths to the Taildon Valley, preventing anyone from infiltrating the area.

Goode also became increasingly excited when he felt the massive ripples of energy in the crystal mine. His hands trembled gently where they held his staff. He sometimes stroked the sparkling crystal ores, sometimes closed his eyes as he felt the energy. The Magical Beast Essence Crystal on the top of his staff beamed streaks of blinding light.

As he toured the crystal mine, Goode’s excitement grew. He took in a deep breath before saying loudly, “Sir, the Magical Energy in here is so great, there’s definitely more than one Crystal Diamond. Perhaps there might even be a rare Crystal Marrow deep within the mine, otherwise, there’s no way that so many premium crystal ores could be formed, much less the Crystal Diamonds!”

Crystal Marrow?

Even though he had never heard of Crystal Marrow, Yang Ling knew that it must be an extraordinary item when he saw how Goode’s eyes shone in excitement. A small Crystal Diamond harbored so much energy, and its value would be immense. He could not imagine how precious the Crystal Marrow Goode spoke of would be.