MM Racing Page 127
Page 127
He devoted a lot of energy to this task.
Whether it's preparing the bodies of these soldiers who sacrificed their lives in battle against bandits, or building cemeteries to provide them with burial plots.
He did everything personally.
His actions yielded the expected rewards:
[The host gave a grand burial to the soldiers who died in the defense of Blackrock Territory, earning the praise and recognition of the people of Blackrock Territory. This exemplifies the chivalrous spirit of "compassion" and "soul," earning +100 Virtue Points.]
Virtue Points (Updated): 675;
[Black Rock Territory residents, one town and five villages, 3500 people, overall loyalty increased to 30 (initial trust);]
However, to his surprise,
His second conscription order received a response far exceeding expectations.
Currently, the number of soldiers in the Black Rock Corps has been drastically reduced, and there is an urgent need to replenish their ranks with fresh blood.
He had thought that after the massacre by the demon bandit gang, which resulted in the loss of two villages as sources of soldiers, it would be very difficult to recruit even one hundred young and strong men for the second conscription order.
Unexpectedly.
The remaining citizens of Blackrock Territory responded very enthusiastically to his conscription order this time.
Many village youths who had previously scoffed at the first conscription order eagerly signed up and accepted the lord's summons.
Among them, the majority of young people are from villages near the two wastelands to the west and north.
This is understandable, given the events of the annihilation of the Wind Wolf pack and the construction of the large forging workshop.
In this light, Arthur underestimated his own achievements in developing the territory.
Back to the present.
After the voices of the 210 newly recruited soldiers gradually subsided.
At the same time, the indifferent voice of the Knight Lord System also rang in Arthur's mind:
The new recruits of the Black Rock Legion were inspired by the host's impassioned speech, further solidifying their decision to follow him.
[Black Rock Legion, 300 members, overall loyalty increased to 40 (deepening trust).]
Arthur was delighted upon hearing this.
This means that these soldiers, who have not yet received their own training, all have an initial loyalty level of 35 or higher.
For him, the higher the loyalty of his soldiers, the greater their combat effectiveness.
Then, they were taught the basic "Baby Breathing Technique" and given professional knight training.
He will have a brand new Blackrock Legion that has made a leap forward in both quantity and quality.
Thinking of this, Arthur couldn't help but turn his gaze to the energetic new recruits below the stage.
He shed his long-standing air of authority.
A gentle smile, unseen for a long time, appeared on his handsome face.
-----------------
After the new recruits' orientation session in front of the cemetery concluded.
Arthur returned to Blackrock Keep, the towering castle in the center of Frostraven.
After entering the office lobby.
The butler, Leon, was already seated in the seat to his left, seemingly waiting for him.
"Butler Leon, is there anything you need to report?"
Arthur strode to his seat and sat down, then asked the butler, Leon, why he had come.
"Yes, young master, I have two important things to report to you."
The butler, Leon, nodded to him and then continued:
"First and foremost, the first thing is about that Western merchant, Livy."
"Hmm! Didn't he leave Blackrock Territory when the demon bandit crisis occurred?"
Arthur still remembered him; he was a young man from a merchant guild who was talented but had not been given the opportunity to shine.
At the time, it was Mr. Linton, the deputy manager of his workshop, who introduced him to it.
In his view, businessmen are inherently profit-driven and risk-averse.
Therefore, he instinctively assumed that when his Blackrock Territory faced an extinction-level crisis, this young Western Merchant had already fled back to his father's Western Merchant Guild.
But next.
The butler Leon's words changed his opinion of the Western merchant:
“Young master, as far as I know, this merchant from the Western Frontier did not leave alone when the bandit crisis occurred in my Blackrock Territory.”
Instead, they joined the townspeople's refugee group and remained in Blackrock Territory.
"Oh!"
Upon hearing this, Arthur immediately became interested.
At this moment, he recalled that when he first met this young man, he had quite an ambition, wanting to contract the mining rights of his precious black crystal mine in Black Rock Territory.
He greatly admired the young man's courage.
Therefore, he set three conditions for Li Wei and put him to a one-month test.
Let's see if Li Wei really is as capable as he boasts, truly able to contract the Blackrock Territory's vital Ink Crystal Mine and bring prosperity to his territory's economy.
My thoughts return to the present.
Arthur had a general idea of what the butler Leon wanted to report.
But I still asked out of curiosity:
"I initially arranged a one-month trial period for him, and asked you, Butler Leon, to supervise him and provide him with as much help as possible."
So, how is he doing now in terms of black crystal mining and sales?
"Reporting to the young master, in the past half month, the Western border merchant Li Wei has completed your first two requests."
Butler Leon replied:
"For the first time, select twenty-five villagers from the two villages you designate, and train them in professional mining techniques to become top-notch miners."
Secondly, using his mastery of the ink crystal ore rune cutting technique, he forged several sets of large-scale mining equipment in the idle forging workshop.
It is currently in operation, and as he said, it can mine black crystal ore with almost ten times the efficiency of our previous mining operations.
At this point, even the butler Leon couldn't help but click his tongue in admiration, expressing his respect for this young man from the Westerlands:
"As expected of a merchant family that specializes in dealing with exotic energy mines!"
"This Li Wei is indeed a talented person!"
Arthur clapped his hands in admiration after hearing this.
After all, Blackrock Territory has just emerged from a disaster and is currently in a period of recuperation.
Despite this, the young Western merchant was still able to efficiently complete several of his requirements for the mining of black crystals ahead of schedule.
His talent should not be overlooked.
Thoughts turn.
He smiled knowingly, anticipating what the butler Leon was about to say:
"So you came to me to ask about the last request I made to him, right?"
"Yes, young master."
Butler Leon nodded:
"Li Wei told me that he is ready to go abroad to sell the batch of mined black crystals that you promised him."
But before that, one must apply for a certain amount of knightly protection.
After listening, Arthur pondered for a moment and then replied:
“I approve it. Go and inform Gao Wen to give him twenty elite Black Rock Legion soldiers to be in charge of protecting Li Wei’s caravan.”
"Understood, young master!"
After ending this topic.
The butler, Leon, took a parchment from his pocket and placed it on the long table in front of him and Arthur.
After unfolding the parchment, he continued:
"The news that we annihilated the demon bandits with a bounty of level three has reached the ears of the count in the North."
This parchment was delivered today by a messenger of the Silver Rank Knight level, commissioned by the Earl.
Please take a look at the information above, young master.
Upon hearing this, Arthur frowned slightly and stared intently at the unfolded parchment scroll in front of him.
After a while.
He uttered a deep thought, then processed the information he had read from the parchment in his mind.
Setting aside the flowery words of comfort, he gleaned the most crucial information.
That is—in half a month, Countess Oriana Alcott of the North will personally visit Blackrock Territory to verify the results of Blackrock Territory's annihilation of the "Bounty Level Three" demon bandits, and to bestow the promised reward.
now.
Arthur's brow furrowed even more.
Because he felt somewhat confused, he murmured:
"What merit do I, Blackrock Territory, possess to deserve the personal presence of this Earl of the North?"
Chapter 124 The Key to Breaking Through to the Silver Rank: Extraordinary External Objects
Another half month has passed.
In a secret meditation chamber in Blackrock Fortress.
[Rank (Updated): Late Iron Tier (500/500)]
Since returning to Blackrock Territory from the abode of the alchemist Merlin, Arthur has not slackened his training.
I practice the Knight's Breathing Technique for four hours every day without fail, constantly strengthening the foundation of my life force.
In addition, there's the environmental advantage of the long nights in the North.
With the help of the Lv.2 "Blessing of the Moon", he was able to absorb more lunar essence, which greatly accelerated his cultivation progress.
However, now that he has reached the end of the life force accumulation for a Black Iron Knight, he feels a significant slowdown in his cultivation.
The butler, Leon, told him that he had encountered a bottleneck in his advancement to Silver Knight.
For a Black Iron Knight to advance to a Silver Knight, the prerequisite is to accumulate life force, making the life seed located in the heart area sufficiently resilient.
The key to advancement lies in stimulating the resonance between the body and soul, and then using intention to grasp the moment when the "origin of the soul" appears.
By establishing a wondrous connection between the "Soul Origin" and the Seed of Life, one can break through the bottleneck and advance from a Black Iron Knight to a Silver Knight.
At that time, there will be a qualitative leap in both physical strength and speed, as well as in the control and understanding of waveguides.
In response, the butler Leon gave him a very direct example:
He broke through a minor realm half a month ago and advanced to the late-stage Black Iron rank knight. He wanted to learn the third combat skill, "Purgatory Annihilation Slash," recorded in the excellent-grade "Flame Lion Breathing Technique."
However, even after half a month of personal guidance and practice from the butler Leon, he still couldn't find the trick to unleashing this powerful combat technique.
The butler, Leon, said that this was normal.
Because the third combat technique of Knight Breathing Technique has extremely strict requirements for the control and understanding of waveguide.
For an ordinary late-stage Iron rank knight, it would take years to even begin to learn the basics.
However, once one advances to the Silver Rank Knight, a resonance occurs between the "Soul Origin" and the Seed of Life, allowing for a clearer understanding of the essence of the Aura power.
At that time, learning the third combat skill will be a natural process, requiring only gradual effort.