Three days later, the five mountain chiefs once again gathered in Brettel City. Apart from the oldest Adleman, the four younger mountain chiefs all agreed to Han Shuo's request.
Even Adleman, who'd lost his lofty ambitions, had most of the mountain people in his mines leave the mountain to join the army. After some discussion with the four young mountain chiefs, they decided that he would be in charge of the mining of the surrounding five mines. A portion of the ore obtained would also be given to the four young men.
Brettel City was brimming with vitality. More than eight thousand mountain people had come down from the five mines. Dorcas had returned after hearing the news and split the troops into four large groups. The four large groups' captains were all on Han Shuo's side.
Although the mountain people had received a portion of the weapons and armor last time, they were far from enough for eight thousand people. Only three thousand of them had received a portion of the weapons and armor, while the other five thousand still used simple weapons.
With Jack and Dorcas' help, a weaponry workshop jointly funded by the Boozt Merchant Guild began operating on the original Mount Silk. Brettel City invested in the purchase of facilities for smelting metal ores, while the Boozt Merchant Guild was responsible for recruiting skilled blacksmiths.
Because Han Shuo had the dwarves of the Dark Forest to help him, the weapons workshop on Mount Silk was mainly in charge of forging armor for warriors. The dwarves were highly skilled in forging weapons, but they weren't as meticulous and meticulous as humans when it came to refining armor.
Under Dorcas' meticulous training, the mountain people were divided into four large groups and trained vigorously outside Brettel City. Dorcas, who'd graduated from the Imperial Military Academy, was indeed a talented general. Under his fierce training, the eight thousand mountain people's combat strength had increased to a certain extent.
After Faulke returned from outside, he started instructing the eight thousand mountain people on how to familiarize themselves with war chariots, ballistae, and catapults. These kinds of powerful defensive equipment often required strong people to operate. The mountain people were the best candidates. Under Faulke's guidance, the mountain people slowly familiarized themselves with the use of war chariots and other equipment at the four gates of Brettel City.
"My Lord, the moats that were originally dug at the four gates of Brettel City were all low-lying sewage. Now that we have these eight thousand mountain people, we can spend some time digging the four moats even deeper. This way, even if the seven grand duchies invade, the moats will be littered with their corpses. "One day, Dorcas found Han Shuo and proposed.
Brettel City's moat had originally been half-excavated, but due to the Lancelot Empire's repeated defeats against the seven grand duchies, they had been unable to excavate the moat. In the end, Brettel City was reduced to a chicken rib, and the moat was slowly forgotten by everyone.
Dorcas had a keen mind for war. He had long since seen the value of the moat at Brettel City's city gates. Adding to the fact that the moat was already in its embryonic form, it wouldn't be a difficult project to complete as long as they spent some time and manpower. Once the moat at Brettel City's city gates was successfully deepened, it would be a huge blow to the invading enemies.
This proposal was almost immediately approved by Han Shuo. The mountain people, who had just relaxed from familiarizing themselves with the various siege equipment, immediately became laborers again, joining in the excavation of the four moats.
Due to Han Shuo's arrival, the number of Dark Mantle members in Brettel City had increased by quite a bit. Under Dick's arrangements, the Dark Mantle members were dispersed to the seven grand duchies, continuously reporting the latest news to Dick. Dick would then report any news that was beneficial to Brettel City to Han Shuo.
As the Second Dark Sun Emissary, Han Shuo's position was much higher than Dick's. Han Shuo even had the authority to directly award merits and rewards to members of the Dark Mantle. Under Han Shuo's deliberate promotion, Chester had become an existence second only to Dick in Brettel City's Dark Mantle organization. Chester's position in the Dark Mantle had also risen by a level.
One day, Han Shuo, who was studying necromancy magic in Brettel City, was suddenly found by Adleman. Delia of Mount Silk, who had already joined the army, was also among them.
"City Lord, many stone men have suddenly appeared in the mine in the belly of Mount Silk. These stone men have attacked the miners deep within the mountain, causing the deaths of more than ten miners. The stone men are not afraid of magic, and their bodies are very sturdy. We don't know how to deal with them. Please help us, my Lord. "Adleman immediately explained the ins and outs of the matter after finding Han Shuo.
Han Shuo was taken aback. He furrowed his brows and asked, "Stone men? How could there be stone men in the mine? Has this ever happened before? "
Delia, who was dressed in soft armor, had a tall nose and slender legs. She was very eye-catching as she stood there. She shook her head and replied, "No, there's never been one before. Ever since my father took over Mount Silk, I've never heard of a stone man inside."
Delia was originally the chief of the mountain people of Mount Silk. Even now, there were many of her former subordinates on Mount Silk. Mount Silk was the place where Delia's father's generation had lived. Now that stone men had appeared in the mine, she, the former chief of the mountain people, expressed her strong concern.
"Those stone men appeared in the center of Mount Silk. Did they suddenly discover their existence in the newly opened area?" Han Shuo frowned and asked Adleman.
Now, not only did the mountain people mine for ores, but there was also a weapons workshop in cooperation with Brettel City and the Boozt Merchant Guild. Every day, Mount Silk could produce a dozen or so good armors. When more blacksmiths arrived at Mount Silk, the weapons workshop would be able to operate to Han Shuo's satisfaction.
There were many iron and copper ores in Mount Silk. These ores could be directly smelted into iron and copper, then mixed with other metals. A skilled blacksmith could then forge them into armor. For Han Shuo, Mount Silk wasn't just a mine. The successful operation of the weapons workshop was also very important. Therefore, he was very concerned about Adleman's matter.
"Yes, my Lord. When we dug deeper into the mountain, we discovered that the iron ore there was even more abundant. Just as we were about to deploy our men to do a big job, a group of stone men appeared out of nowhere. These stone men seemed to have very low intelligence and couldn't communicate with us at all. In any case, they immediately attacked us and killed many of our miners, "Adleman replied.
"I see!" Han Shuo thought for a moment, then nodded and said, "I'll go with you to Mount Silk and see what's going on with the stone men in the mines."
"Many thanks, my Lord!" Adleman was gratified.
"My Lord, Mount Silk used to be my home. Even now, there are still many of my friends there. I would like to go with you to take a look. I hope my Lord will allow me to do so." Delia looked at Han Shuo with her big bright eyes and pleaded.
After entering the army, they had to obey all orders. They were no longer allowed to do as they pleased. It looked like Dorcas's training during this period of time had paid off. This Delia was much more disciplined than when Han Shuo had first met her.
Nodding, Han Shuo replied, "Alright."
At the foot of Mount Silk, one could still see a lot of greenery. However, the higher one went, the less green there was. At a glance, all one could see were grotesquely shaped rocks. There were no longer any flowers or grass.
Spring had arrived, and the weather was warm and comfortable. Han Shuo, Adleman, Delia, and a few mountain people walked towards Mount Silk. Because Adleman was older, he couldn't walk fast. Han Shuo could only slowly walk up the mountain with him.
Along the way, Delia, who was clad in a soft armor, shone brilliantly. Her arms and calves were exposed, and she wore a shiny silver armor on her chest and abdomen. Under the sunlight, the silver armor on her body glistened, and when combined with the luster of her wheat-colored skin, it dazzled the eyes of a few young mountain people who were protecting Adleman.
Within Brettel City, Delia was publicly recognized as the number one beauty of the mountain people. Her own strength was extraordinary. In her previous life, she had held a high position, and ordinary youths didn't dare to be presumptuous. However, now that she had become an ordinary squad leader, her outstanding strength still surpassed that of Zach and Kent. Ordinary young mountain people still couldn't attract her attention.
On the way to Mount Silk, Han Shuo's mind was constantly thinking about the stone men in the belly of the mountain. His heart was full of doubts, and he didn't know where those stone men had come from. He didn't pay any attention to Delia, who was infatuated with the surrounding mountain people.
"City Lord, how do you plan to deal with those stone men?" Delia suddenly asked Han Shuo when they were about to reach the middle of Mount Silk.
Han Shuo, who had been secretly thinking, turned his head and revealed a brilliant smile, saying, "Let's see when we get there. Before I see those stone men, I don't know how to deal with them."
"If that's the case, if the stone men attack us like they did to my people, what should we do?" Delia's bright eyes looked at Han Shuo as she continued to ask.
"Then let them forever turn into stone." Han Shuo replied in a relaxed manner.
Hearing Han Shuo's words, Delia nodded hatefully and said, "They dared to kill my people, I definitely won't let them off. Those damned stone men, I will make them pay the price."
It seemed that Delia was very concerned about the dozen or so miners that had been killed. From this, Han Shuo could see that Delia was a responsible person. Even though she was no longer in charge of Mount Silk, she had immediately requested to come with Han Shuo to see what was going on when she found out that Mount Silk was facing a crisis. This showed that Delia really treated her subordinates quite well.
After Han Shuo expressed his attitude towards the stone men, Delia seemed to relax a lot in front of Han Shuo. She then excitedly asked about Han Shuo's experiences, especially about how Han Shuo had ruthlessly challenged the experts of various cities in the Lancelot Empire and left no survivors. There was also the battle with Leah Cain of the Brut Merchant Alliance. Delia displayed a strong interest in these matters.
There were currently many merchants from Ossen City in Brettel City. These merchants were very familiar with some of Han Shuo's experiences. After arriving in Brettel City, out of reverence for Han Shuo, they continuously narrated some of Han Shuo's heroic deeds to the citizens of Brettel City, adding oil to the fire.
Unknowingly, all the citizens of Brettel City knew of Han Shuo's past experiences. In addition, Han Shuo's performance in facing the four bandit groups had been publicized by some of the citizens. Currently, Han Shuo's prestige in Brettel City was beyond imagination. To the citizens of Brettel City, a city lord who could bring them stability and prosperity was far more prestigious than the king who had abandoned them in Ossen City.
Han Shuo didn't say much in response to Delia's enthusiastic questioning, only giving her a few perfunctory replies. However, the more indifferent Han Shuo appeared, the more interested Delia became. Along the way, she didn't tire of asking questions about Han Shuo's challenges to various experts.
While Han Shuo was having a headache, the group finally arrived at the cave entrance leading to the mine in the belly of the mountain. There were already a dozen or so miners covered in dirt and dust waiting at the cave entrance. When they saw Delia appear, these young miners were full of surprise, cheering, "Leader!"
From these miners' sincere joy towards Delia, Han Shuo knew that Delia should be a good leader in their hearts. Han Shuo looked at Delia a few more times in astonishment. When Delia saw Han Shuo looking at her in astonishment, she proudly puffed out her full chest, as if saying, "Did you see that? Actually, this lady is also very powerful!"
Han Shuo couldn't help laughing at Delia's behavior, but didn't comment much. When Delia used the tone of a leader to question the miners, Han Shuo had already released a yin demon according to the contents of their conversation. It slowly flew towards the area they were talking about.
"Let's go inside and see what's going on?" While Han Shuo was using the yin demon to explore deeper inside, Delia spoke to the waiting miners.
"Wait, Mister Adleman, it's better if you don't go in." Han Shuo suddenly said, "It's a bit cold and damp inside. Elder is an adult, just wait outside for a while." Adleman didn't insist.
He knew that with his current condition, he would only be a burden if he went inside. He smiled and agreed, saying, "Thank you for your understanding, my lord."
Nodding with a smile, Han Shuo glanced at Delia and the others before walking into the dim mine.
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