Chapter 585: The Mercury Mine
Chapter 585: The Mercury Mine
Boom!
The arrow flew back at least three times faster than when it was shot, returning in the blink of an eye.
The young man hiding behind the rock didn't even have time to react. He only heard a loud bang from the cover in front of him.
"Huh?"
The young man in hiding peered out, finally realizing what had happened.
He had just fired an arrow, and now it had smashed into the stone pillar in front of him, shattering into pieces.
How terrifying was this power?
The young man stared blankly ahead, and Lindsay was walking towards him.
His arm began to tremble, and he took out another arrow from the quiver on his back:
"You... Don't come any closer!"
He had just drawn the bowstring.
Before he could even aim, Lindsay on the other side spoke,
"If you release your hold on the bow again, my reaction this time won't be like before, merely a warning."
"..."
The young man was speechless.
He dared not release the drawn bow in his hand.
His body was trembling violently, and the power he had used to shoot the bowstring was now being used to prevent the arrow from being released.
He could sense the strong source essence emanating from Lindsay.
His survival instinct was warning him that he was no match for the man before him.
And the only outcome of releasing the bowstring now would be death.
Before the young man could process this, Lindsay had already reached him:
"I'm glad you made the right choice."
As he spoke, Lindsay reached out and gently gripped the young man's hand, removing the drawn bow.
He could feel the trembling of the person before him.
So he moved gently, even returning the removed arrow to the young man's quiver:
"You can call me Lindsay."
Lindsay's gaze swept across the map.
This abandoned vermilion mine now only had a group of 20 people, making it a relatively small camp in the Desolate Land.
The young man continued to sweat in fear.
He looked at the well-equipped soldiers behind Lindsay, then at the Awakened man before him, whose intentions were unclear. With great effort, he said,
"You... What are you here for in the Poison Valley?"
"We're only trading for some toxic sand here. We don't have any extra food or water to spare!" Lindsay frankly stated his purpose.
"My purpose in coming here is neither for your food nor your water, but solely for the toxic sand you mentioned!"
The young man's expression became even more puzzled:
"Why do you need this stuff?"
In his eyes, the toxic sand produced in the Poison Valley could only have a minor damaging effect.
Compared to the Awakened man before him or those well-equipped soldiers, it was a completely different concept! He couldn't even imagine that someone would deploy such an exaggerated show of force just for this toxic sand!
"This thing is very valuable; you just don't know it."
The young man had accepted reality, and his tone relaxed slightly:
"How much vermilion sand do you want? We... No, as long as you..."
Before the young man could set the terms, Lindsay interrupted directly:
"All of it."
"I want this entire mine!"
Hearing this answer, the young man's expression was completely different from before.
If it were just for profit, he could certainly give up the toxic sand to protect the members of his tribe.
But if it meant losing their homeland...
In the Desolate Land, this was no different from wiping out an entire family.
Before the young man could fight to the death, Lindsay said,
"Rest assured, I don't plan to expel you from your homeland. Instead, I'm prepared to offer you a long-term stable life and work."
"The young man still held onto his bow and arrow, his expression bewildered.
'Long-term? Stability? Life? Work?'
He understood the meaning of each word, but when put together, it formed a concept he couldn't grasp.
Lindsey, noticing his confusion, shook his head and smiled.
'Do you know the Banyan Forest?' he asked.
The young man replied with a blank stare, 'No.'
'It's alright, you'll learn about it soon enough.' Lindsey turned and pointed at the soldiers behind him. 'See them? You'll be like them.'
'In simple terms, you won't have to worry about food and water. You just need to perform some safe tasks here.'
The young man was left speechless by Lindsey's words.
He had initially thought that this army was a threat to his family's very existence.
But the situation took an unexpected turn.
For some inexplicable reason—seemingly because he hadn't fired that arrow earlier—everything was now taking a turn for the fantastically better.
...
Next, Lindsey's team swiftly took control of the entire Vermilion Ore Mine.
There were twelve young men, four elders, and four children—the entire population of the mine.
As for their strengths, only one young man with a bow and arrow was an Awakened.
His name was Naire, a second-stage Element Controller who had inherited his skill from his father. Element Controllers were generally considered a decent skill.
While not as prestigious as the Divination Masters, there were still examples of Element Controllers reaching the seventh stage.
However, due to the desolate atmosphere of the wasteland, Naire didn't fully understand the potential of his skill. Instead, he yearned for the freedom and elegance of a Wild Hunter, so he applied his ability to his weapon of choice—the bow and arrow.
A complete reversal of priorities!
Then, Lindsey turned his attention to the camp's mineral reserves.
As their only tradable commodity, the people here also mined vermilion ore, storing a batch in the underground mine tunnels.
Lindsey didn't hesitate to take it all.
He didn't conserve the essence, opting to transport the vermilion ore back to the town. Instead, he directly set up a furnace and processed the ore using the workbench system.
After a series of operations, Lindsey checked the quantity in his bag:
'Mercury - 40 units.'
'With this amount, we have enough to upgrade the Town Hall!'
Lindsey's expression was one of excitement.
This number meant that as long as he returned to the camp and waited for the required gold coins to be minted, the base could be upgraded immediately.
Then, they would leap across time.
Recalling the changes the last era shift had brought to the city, Lindsey was confident that this era upgrade would bring about something truly remarkable.
For instance, the technological research at the Second Base.
Lindsey was in high spirits.
Later, in the Vermilion Ore Mine, he selected a leader from his accompanying members and made arrangements for the soldiers and workers' schedules.
Once everything was set, Lindsey called Vivian over privately.
'Vivian, from now on, you and I will be working together.'
Vivian looked a bit lost. 'Together? Shouldn't I be managing the mine?'
'No, I have a more complex task for you.' Lindsey explained. 'I'll take you back to the Banyan Forest. And when we return, you'll lead a group to establish a mature trade route here and streamline the mineral transportation process.'
'How about it? Are you confident you can do it?'"
(End of Chapter)
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