IMC Chapter 71

The crowd preparing to ambush hesitated at Fu Qing’s brazen reaction. Was he truly powerful, or was he bluffing? After some consideration, they were reluctant to give up.

The members of the group looked at each other. With a silent understanding, they didn’t waste time. With a shout from someone in the crowd, they surged forward. Despite their fear of danger, if they didn’t act now, they’d lose the chance to get a share of the spoils.

The dense crowd gave them immense courage. As they got closer to their target, their excitement grew. They were about to reap a huge fortune!

After all, no matter how strong the opponent seemed, he was just one person. Who knew how the empire’s officials had failed to defend against him!

However, their excitement and shouting stopped abruptly when they were only a few steps away from the masked man. In the blink of an eye, three majestic magical dragons appeared around him. Everyone came to a halt, suddenly realizing they had forgotten about the three dragons!

The three dragons looked down at the crowd with a dismissive glance, as if they were merely observing ants.

At that moment, the enormous magical beast’s pressure made everyone tremble. For the first time, they experienced the terror of a beast at the divine beast level. Just one glance had dissipated their earlier fervor.

Feeling the strong sandstorm from the surroundings, the three baby dragons emerging from the comfortable bracelet space were uncomfortable. Yinzi, in particular, let out a loud roar and then promptly ate a mouthful of sand, refusing to speak further.

The dragon’s roar caused the approaching crowd to shiver uncontrollably. People began to feel the urge to retreat, but no one wanted to be the first to back down. They all held their ground stubbornly.

“What are we afraid of! There are so many of us! Even if it takes time, we can outlast him! Three baby dragons are just one person!”

“Think of the resources!”

While some felt the urge to retreat in fear, others found their courage in the face of danger. The people of the Thick Soil Gobi understood the saying “Fortune favors the bold”. As a result, many were swayed by the encouragement. Consequently, some people moved forward while others fell back, causing a polarization within the group.

The people who had been prepared to fight to the death now found themselves frozen in place after only taking a couple of steps forward. No one dared to move another inch. Even the instigators who had rallied them were now silent, standing in place with blank expressions, staring in shock at the ever-increasing number of magical beasts before them.

One, two, three…

Ten, twenty, thirty…

Fortunately, due to space limitations, the number of magical beasts didn’t expand infinitely. However, with dozens of beasts gathered together, the area was packed to the brim. Even the three enormous magical dragons were obscured by the mass of beasts. Upon closer inspection, none of these magical beasts appeared to be easy opponents. Normally, dealing with just one of them would be a challenge, let alone a whole swarm.

Once the magical beasts filled the surroundings, Fu Qing’s calm voice echoed again, “Did you think the empire hadn’t considered using a sea of troops tactic?”

As the army of magical beasts gradually spread out, the crowd began to retreat frantically, and those who had already withdrawn now turned and fled.

Indeed, the number of knights and mages in the Empire’s Land of Gold Sources would only be greater, not fewer. How could they have believed so fervently in achieving their goal?

The speed of the retreating crowd ultimately couldn’t match the expansion of the magical beasts. Amidst screams and cries, the encirclement turned into a counter-encirclement. Throughout the entire ordeal, the masked man had remained completely unmoved.

From that moment on, Fu Qing’s reputation spread throughout the Thick Soil Gobi, alongside the fame of the tavern purchased by the wealthy pet snake. This indirectly led to a heightened respect for the tavern. Few factions dared to cause trouble, making Lan Qing’s development in the Thick Soil Gobi exceptionally smooth.

With the crowd dispersed by the magical beasts, the area gradually quieted down again, save for the unchanging wind and sand.

Shu Bao and Fu Qing waited a moment longer until the magical beasts, led by the three baby dragons, returned. Once within the range covered by Shu Bao’s spiritual sense, Yinzi immediately insisted on going into the jade bracelet space. Although the magical beasts didn’t say anything, each one huddled on the sheltered side of Yinzi, expressing their dislike for the wind and sand.

Shu Bao could only collect all the magical beasts within his spiritual sense range back into the jade bracelet. Fortunately, Shu Bao had become increasingly proficient in using the jade bracelet and no longer needed to touch each beast individually.

Ultimately, only Fu Qing could lead the way forward. Shu Bao decided to make himself at home on Fu Qing’s shoulder, sometimes pulling out a blanket to sleep directly on Fu Qing’s shoulder. To prevent rolling off while asleep, he even made a safety rope with a needle and thread to secure himself.

Seeing his beautifully decorated teammate on his shoulder, Fu Qing had little choice but to work together in strategizing and building.

Since Thick Earth Crystals couldn’t be traded, Fu Qing and Shu Bao had to continue deeper, planning to dig at the source themselves.

Before setting off, the three of them visited the tavern again. Finally, they got to rest inside as desired. Lan Qing, not in a hurry to open for business, decided to close the tavern for a few days to refurbish it properly before reopening.

Lan Qing also discovered another great thing in the tavern: a teleportation array. The array was located in the tavern owner’s room and, when inactive, resembled a peculiar decorative pattern painted on the floor. When activated, the pattern glowed with a silvery-white light, and stepping into it would reveal possible destinations for teleportation.

At this moment, the only available destination was the Chaotic Swamp tavern. The teleportation array could only be used if the two taverns were owned by the same person or if both parties signed a teleportation contract. Lan Qing clearly met the former condition.

“This is great! Traveling between the two taverns will be so much easier from now on!” Lan Qing was pleased to find this unexpected bonus, having previously thought the distance between the two taverns was a bit far.

The three of them studied the teleportation array extensively and found that, aside from the activation condition, each use of the array required a significant amount of energy. This energy could come from mages, energy potions, or energy stones.

For others, this might mean a costly teleportation, but for Lan Qing, an apothecary, it was a minor issue. Coincidentally, Thick Earth Crystals were the perfect energy stones for the teleportation array, with one crystal capable of sustaining the array for hundreds of activations.

“It seems the Qi brothers had their own share of adventures; these two taverns are not ordinary,” Fu Qing remarked, his gaze towards Lan Qing growing more amiable. Perhaps this foolish snake had some good fortune; he had previously thought he had bought at a loss, but now it seemed he had bought at a gain!

For ordinary people, the high energy consumption of the teleportation array might seem somewhat useless, but for them, the array was a divine tool that solved a major problem.

After studying the teleportation array, the three found their rooms and rested well. After such a long journey, being able to rest assuredly made everyone sleep soundly.

The next day, after closing the tavern doors, the tavern disappeared from view, invisible and intangible to anyone other than Lan Qing.

As they set off again, their direction became clear, thanks to the Thick Soil Gobi map they had found in the tavern. The map not only showed the terrain but also marked the distribution of major factions, which greatly helped their understanding of the Thick Soil Gobi.

Following the route on the map, they finally found their way. Though the path nearly blended with the surrounding yellow earth and desert, it was still distinguishable.

“Thick Earth Crystals can’t be traded, so even if we go, we won’t be able to buy them directly.”

“Why don’t you just surrender? Get 100 Thick Earth Crystals and then make your escape!”

Sitting on his shoulder, Shu Bao was analyzing the situation and pondering how to acquire the Thick Earth Crystals.

“No need to make it so complicated. We’ll just go directly to the Empire’s mines and take them over. That way, we’ll have a source of energy for the teleportation array in the future,” Fu Qing suggested simply and bluntly.

The mouse was stunned for a moment, then clapped his paws together, “Great! Let’s do it! We’ll take over their mines!”

Lan Qing, who was in the bracelet, was unaware of the situation outside and was patiently turning the duck eggs over.

The environment in the Thick Soil Gobi was even harsher than in the Land of Gold Sources, and the distribution of forces was more complex. The Empire’s influence here was quite weak. The major factions were unwilling to move against the Empire because they also had interests in other regions and could not afford to offend the Empire too much.

But Shu Bao and Fu Qing had no such concerns. Since they had already thoroughly offended the Empire, taking another mine didn’t matter.

Thus, after three days, Shu Bao and Fu Qing arrived near the Empire’s mines. Shu Bao released all the magical beasts, and they charged into the Empire’s mining site in a grand and overwhelming manner.

The Empire’s people were stunned. They never expected anyone would dare to raid the Empire’s mines. When they saw the intruders’ attire, their jaws dropped in shock. Not only was the masked man on the wanted list, but he was also boldly charging into the mine without any attempt to hide.

The Empire’s people were initially furious, but when they saw the huge and intimidating horde of magical beasts behind Fu Qing, they were left speechless!

Among the Empire’s ranks, there were indeed some hot-blooded individuals who were devoted to the Empire, but they soon became the magical beasts’ snacks.

It took Fu Qing less than half an hour from appearing to taking control of the mining site, and he continued his swift and decisive approach. Unlike resource points, mining sites lacked obvious boundaries and walls and were vast in area. Only the residential area had a few small wooden houses, which were for the management, while the miners themselves slept in tents.

After the Empire’s people were captured, the miners showed no reaction. They numbly stared at everything in front of them, as if devoid of any feelings or grudges.

Curious about the miners’ reaction, Shu Bao approached and asked.

Seeing a talking mouse, a younger miner finally showed some emotion, “Raids on the mines happen from time to time. No matter who takes over the mines, our lives won’t change. We’ll keep working like this until we die.”

Shu Bao looked at the emaciated young miner in silence for a long time, then contacted Lan Qing in the bracelet, “Lan Qing, you can also construct the blueprints activated by the Xia Wang Tribe, right?”

“Yes!” Lan Qing nodded. Since he had not chosen a primary or secondary role after teaming up with Shu Bao, whatever Shu Bao could operate, he could also manage.

“In that case, while managing two taverns, you might also need to manage a base,” Shu Bao said somewhat anxiously. If things continued like this, wouldn’t the snake need to be split into three parts?

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