Somewhere on the west coast of the Calan Continent.
The giant floating ship flew above the clouds at an extremely low speed.
A few wizards belonging to the Crimson Family walked onto the deck and leaned against the side of the ship, silently looking down at the magical continent that was faintly discernible below them.
With their strength and the buff of the Eagle Eye spell, they could easily see through the thin layer of clouds and directly observe the strange natural landscape and the various types of jungle creatures in the Calan Continent.
Unfortunately, it was not as easy to find elves as it was to find humans. Humans liked to cut down trees near settlements to build tall and sturdy camps and buildings. Therefore, at night, as long as they followed the lights, they would naturally be able to find human villages and towns.
However, the elves were known to be the closest to nature and the race that loved the forest the most. They almost never cut down trees, and instead, they naturally built their villages and towns on especially tall and thick ancient trees.
Tree houses were the elves' living quarters.
When night fell, the elves would rarely light open fires. Moreover, they lived deep in the mountains and forests, so it was almost impossible to find them with candlelight.
On the other hand, people like Grim and the others were flying high in the blue sky. Looking into the distance, all they could see was lush greenery. It was difficult to find a single color in the sea of undulating trees. Under such circumstances, it was impossible to find an elven village with just the naked eye.
Therefore, if they wanted to find elves here, they could only go into the forest and jump high and low like the elves. It was like looking for a needle in a haystack!
"Taemo, can you recognize the terrain here? Before we start the war with the Elven Court, I hope we can hide this giant floating ship. Can you recommend a place? " Grimm simply swept his gaze across the lush green forest and asked the half-elf guide.
Of course, Grimm could not completely trust this guy who had joined them halfway. While waiting for an answer, Grimm silently called out the topographic map of the Calan Continent in his mind and compared it with the long broken coastline in front of him.
It seemed like it had been a long time since he last smelled the magic power in the Magic Forest. The half-elf Taimo suppressed his excitement as he laid on the side of the floating warship and observed the forest beneath him.
"If I remember correctly, this … this should be the White Cliff, which is slightly south of the West Coast. The most obvious sign here is the white cliff rock that stands tall at the edge of the coast. "
Following Tamo's finger, Grim saw a patch of white at the edge of the cliff.
"This is the area with the most complicated sea conditions near the West Coast. The reefs are the densest, and it's also the most unsuitable area for large ships. Therefore, in this area, the probability of us running into the Elven King's patrol is extremely low. " Tamo then pointed in a certain direction. "Head in that direction, and you'll find an elven village in about seven days. I'm sorry, I'm talking about the time needed to travel through the forest. As for riding on this … this big thing, it'll only take half a day … "
"An elven village …" Grim muttered to himself for a moment before shaking his head. "It's not suitable for us to come into contact with the elves so early. We need to find a suitable place to settle down first. Tamo, are there any large metal veins or mines in the West Coast? "
"Metal veins?" Tamo's jaw dropped in surprise. "There are quite a few in the central part of the Magic Forest, but on the West Coast …"
The half-elf lowered his head and pondered for a moment before gesturing with uncertainty. "It's about sixteen days' journey to the north from here. There seems to be a Ratfolk Mine there, but I don't know if there are any metal veins there."
"Then let's go there first!" Grim immediately gave the order.
A moment later, the floating warship ascended once more and dove into the clouds. It followed the direction that the half-elf had pointed out and quickly flew north along the coastline.
When the gigantic floating warship completely disappeared, two elves drilled out from the lush crown of a tall ancient tree at the edge of the forest. They were wearing clothes woven from green vines.
The two elves, one male and one female, stared at the spot where the metal monster had disappeared. Their eyes were filled with unconcealable shock.
"What was that? Was it another monster created by the witches? "The female elf's voice was trembling. It was obvious that she had not yet recovered from the shock.
"It doesn't matter what it was. We have to send the news of the metal monster back to the village as soon as possible. Maybe Grandpa Wenger can tell us the answer … "The male elf made a prompt decision.
"Alright, let's go …"
In the blink of an eye, the two elves disappeared into the crown of the tree behind them.
Strangely enough, in the blink of an eye, they had blended into the forest, making it difficult for anyone to track them.
A day later, the news about the appearance of a terrifying metal monster spread to every elven village on the west coast.
… …
The Ratfolk Mine.
Tamo's sixteen-day journey was only a day and a night for the floating warship.
If it wasn't for the fact that it took them four hours to locate the mine's entrance, Grim and the rest would have arrived much sooner.
As the name suggested, the Ratfolk Mine was hidden in a dense forest. There was only a dark, slanted entrance to the mine, and a large tribe of ratfolk lived in it.
The elves were a tribe that paid great attention to their appearance and cleanliness. It was impossible for them to work in a dark and damp mine that never saw the light of day. Therefore, the forest elves and the ratfolk in the mine reached an agreement. The ratfolk would hand over a certain amount of ore to the forest elves every year in exchange for the right to live in the mine.
Therefore, not a single elf could be found in the Ratfolk Mine. The only ones living in the mine were intelligent ratfolk that were less than a meter tall. They could walk upright like humans, and they could use all kinds of sophisticated tools.
These rat-men were too skinny to wear heavy armour, so they could only wear a metal cap on their heads. Then, they lit a thick candle on top of the cap, and used the dim light to move about freely in the dark and damp mine.
The weapons of the ratfolk miners were pickaxes. Some of the stronger ratfolk warriors were equipped with 'powerful' weapons such as machetes, iron swords, and spears.
Based on Tamo's description, Grim could tell that the most powerful Ratman Leader was only a grade-1 Ratman. The rest of the Ratman Warriors and Miners were either high-grade Apprentices or Quasi-Sorcerers. They didn't have any elemental power, and only knew how to scheme and scheme.
Grim didn't want to send his precious wizard to deal with such trash. He only sent a goblin technician and five archer magic machines to break into the mine.
Grim and the rest found a slightly flat area outside the mine and set up tables and chairs. After drinking two cups of hot tea, the battle in the mine was over.
Almost 200 ratfolk, including the Rat King, were killed in one fell swoop. They were shot full of holes by the metal bullets of the magic machines. As for the metal crossbow bolts shot by the Ratman hiding in the dark tunnel, no matter if it was strength or attack power, it was not enough to harm the thick metal shell of the Magic Machine.
Hence, after being suppressed, the archer magic machines easily slaughtered the entire group of ratfolk.
The goblin technician brought back four or five ores that were mined from the depths of the mine.
Grim casually picked up one of the ores and weighed it in his hand. He then raised it to his eyes to examine it.
[Beep. This is an ordinary ore. It contains 11% of the mineral content. The rest is useless waste. The mineral content is as follows:]
[Luo iron ore 1.42%...]
[Olivine ore 3.27%...]
[Pyroxene ore 2.86%...]
[… …]
[Metal content is less than XXX%. Not worth mining or smelting …]
The A.I. Chip gave a final evaluation after a long list of the mineral's composition.
The quality of the ratfolk's mine was not high. Most of what they offered to the elves were topaz, olivine, agate, and other low-grade magic materials. These things were of some value to the elves, but they were useless to Grim who was eager to establish his foundation.
After inspecting the ores brought out by the gnome technician, Grim waved his hand in disappointment. Everyone boarded the floating warship again. The warship turned around and flew at high speed towards another mysterious mine in the distance.
It could be said that in order to find a suitable metal vein as soon as possible, Grim was willing to do anything. After all, this was the border of the Great Magic Forest. The Elven Kingdom could only send a limited number of troops here, and it was not enough to stop them.
In another five or six days, the Dark Witches and Ashen Witches' alliance would arrive at the Calan Continent. At that time, they would become even more eye-catching and easy targets.
At that time, the Elven Kingdom would be more willing to send their elite troops to encircle them, and would not bring a group of elven troops to chase after the giant floating ship.
In truth, with the sturdy ship and giant cannons, Grim no longer cared about the armies of the secular world. The only ones he was wary of were the elemental users and the powerful elves.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
