Walking down the street, Su Nan was surprised to find that the city was much more crowded and lively than before.
Many of the people were wearing leather armor and carrying weapons, looking quite formidable.
Noticing Su Nan's scrutinizing gaze, Ke Yi explained with a smile, "After the Blackstone Mine reopened, many caravans rushed over upon hearing the news. Many of these people are caravan members and their accompanying mercenaries."
Su Nan understood.
The prosperity of a city often begins with thriving commerce.
As long as the Blackstone Mine continues to be developed, Blackstone City will become one of the top cities in Jin Yan Province within a few years.
As he walked, Su Nan saw a makeshift shed made of wood.
More than a dozen people were busy inside, some cooking porridge, others distributing it.
A group of ragged, emaciated people lined up in front of the shed, their eyes fixed on the porridge stall, their throats constantly moving, their faces filled with impatience.
However, under the watchful, albeit veiled, gazes of the surrounding soldiers, they could only obediently wait in line.
"Who are those people?" Su Nan asked Ke Yi.
"They are refugees from the western Jinghua Duchy. There's a war there, and many civilians have been displaced. I sent people to meet them and plan to incorporate them into the city."
Su Nan seemed thoughtful upon hearing this.
Besides income, population is a crucial factor in the prosperity of a city.
Blackrock City is located on the border, and its population is already small, with even its army numbering only a mere five hundred.
This is an inherent weakness.
Without addressing this issue, Blackrock City will never grow strong, and a cavalry regiment will never be formed.
Incorporating refugees is undoubtedly an excellent solution.
Especially those refugees who survive long journeys are mostly young men and women with good physical condition.
After joining the territory, they can quickly become laborers after a few days of rest.
Young adults can directly join the army, strengthening Blackrock City's military power.
"Before winter arrives this year, I plan to launch a preemptive strike against the Blackscale Lizardmen tribe in the Redhorn Wilderness,"
Ke Yi continued, his eyes gleaming.
"Moving the battlefield to Redhorn Wilderness will spare Blackrock City from the ravages of war,"
Su Nan nodded knowingly.
Although Ke Yi didn't say it aloud, the more important reason was clear to both of them.
Obtaining more Blackscale Lizardman blood would allow Blackrock City to cultivate more knights.
The two then discussed recent events in the Golden Rock Province.
When Su Nan heard that Earl Storm had been attacked, seriously injured, and was unconscious, he was quite surprised.
Earl Storm was a Grand Knight and a powerful lord; his guards would certainly be very tight.
Under such circumstances, how could an assassin have managed to severely injure him?
What exactly was the Starfire Cult?
Seeing Su Nan's doubts, Ke Yi explained, "The Starfire Cult is a mysterious sect that emerged more than ten years ago. It developed extremely rapidly, growing into a sect with influence throughout the duchy in just three or four years. They operate very secretly, their sect's purpose is unclear, and it is said that they secretly collude with many nobles, yet they have also assassinated many nobles—it's very strange." The more
Su Nan listened, the more suspicious he became.
Could the Starfire Cult be backed by wizards (apprentices)?
Su Nan tried to recall, but didn't have much of an impression of the Starfire Cult.
After all, when he first encountered the game in his previous life, it was already version 2.0.
He knew almost nothing about version 1.0 unless it involved something extremely important related to wizards.
Just then, a commotion arose ahead.
The two had turned a corner and arrived near a tavern.
The tavern doors were wide open, and a noisy, bustling atmosphere emanated from inside; it seemed many people were shouting loudly.
Upon entering, they discovered that people were having a drinking contest.
Two burly men sat on either side of a round table, desperately chugging alcohol down their throats.
As they drank, they cast provocative glances at each other.
A dozen or so tall, burly men surrounded them, cheering them on enthusiastically, occasionally erupting in loud shouts of encouragement.
Su Nan's gaze swept over the crowd, landing on one of the men engaged in the drinking contest.
The man was about twenty-five or twenty-six years old, with a rugged appearance and extremely thick body hair. His exposed arms, chest, and most of his face were covered in hair, and his amber eyes looked more like those of a wild beast than human eyes.
"A beastman,"
Su Nan murmured instinctively.
Beastmen were originally products of wizarding experiments.
They were mostly bloodthirsty and ferocious, extremely aggressive.
Once exposed to even the slightest external stimulus, they easily lost control of their bloodlust, transforming into ferocious beasts and attacking any living creature they could see.
In ancient times, the earliest beastmen caused the "Beastification Disaster," resulting in numerous casualties, until they were eventually suppressed by wizards.
However, after many years of reproduction and weakening of their bloodline, later beastmen have improved considerably, and most can control their beastly abilities.
Beastmen cannot cultivate breathing techniques, but their physique far surpasses that of ordinary humans.
Adult beastmen possess the strength of a trainee knight.
Some beastmen with the blood of ferocious beasts flowing through their veins, after rigorous training, can even achieve strength comparable to a knight.
However, in contrast to their powerful physique, beastmen's lifespan and reproductive capacity are far inferior to those of normal humans.
Today, beastmen are rarely seen on the continent.
Even if they are, they mostly live within the Cangjin Empire.
Su Nan never expected to see a descendant of a beastman here.
"Few can discern Ota's origins at a glance; you are truly knowledgeable,"
a voice suddenly sounded in his ear.
Su Nan turned his head and saw a tall man, around forty years old, walking towards him with a smile. He
was wearing an expensive-looking crimson fox fur coat.
"Lord, it's been a long time."
Upon approaching, the man first bowed to Ke Yi, then looked at Su Nan.
"May I ask your name?"
"Su Nan."
Su Nan nodded slightly to the man, already guessing his identity.
"This is my younger brother," Ke Yi introduced, then introduced the man to Su Nan, "This is Mu Zhuo Ismail, the owner of the Fire Fox Merchant Guild."
"Lord Su Nan, it's a pleasure to meet you."
Mu Zhuo shook hands with Su Nan with a smile, but inwardly he was puzzled.
According to the information he had gathered, this second young master of the Shining Family was eccentric and liked to lock himself in his room tinkering with strange things, rarely going out. Such a person should not have much experience, and logically, he shouldn't have been able to recognize the Ota Beastman's identity at a glance.
Furthermore, the intelligence report stated that Su Nan lacked knightly aptitude, hadn't even mastered the breathing techniques, and was physically weaker than the average person.
Yet, looking at Su Nan before him, his posture was upright, his eyes bright, and his spirit full of energy—he showed no signs of being frail or weak.
What were those people responsible for gathering intelligence doing?
They couldn't even handle such a small task!
Mu Zhuo frowned secretly, determined to give those people a good scolding later.