Chapter 54: Even the production team's donkey wouldn't dare rest like this! [Please add to collection and...]

It seems that [Tears of the Moon Goddess] can be taken off the shelves now.

This new Moon Goddess Spring water shall be named [Holy Moon Water].

It will definitely fetch a good price.

After all, it boasts a recovery ratio as high as 1:3, while simultaneously restoring both Mana and Stamina.

It is absolutely an essential item for home use, travel, monster hunting, and exploration.

A smile played on Zong Shen's face.

He was already imagining the scene of making a fortune through [Holy Moon Water].

Just then, a commotion drifted in from outside the territory.

The Wolf Cavalry had finally returned to the territory, bringing the farmers and the two mages with them.

The five unlucky farmers looked exhausted.

Walking for several hours over a distance of seventy or eighty miles was comparable to completing a full marathon.

Even the two mages, who possessed slightly stronger constitutions, looked weary.

Only the Wolf Cavalry, riding their giant wolves, remained in their usual state.

Such long-distance trekking was indeed an ordeal without a mount.

"My Lord, we have returned to the territory successfully."

Three Wolf Cavalrymen dismounted from their wolves, bowed, and saluted.

Zong Shen nodded and walked over to them.

"You have worked hard."

"Take a rest; we will set out again in a while."

Zong Shen checked their hunger and satiety levels.

He took out five portions of fine wheat bread and fresh water, distributing them to the Wolf Cavalry and the mages.

As for the new farmers, he distributed [Roasted Wolf Meat]—high-quality protein that was hearty and filling.

The aptitudes of these farmers were quite mediocre.

Four were Dull, and one was Ordinary.

They were more than sufficient as basic labor.

Next, he took out three portions of [Unknown Dried Meat] to feed the giant wolves.

Regarding this dried meat, he was unwilling to guess what kind of meat it actually was.

However, in the wilderness where resources were scarce and everything had to be built from scratch, feeding it to the giant wolves and the black panthers was the most prudent arrangement.

Watching Zong Shen's combat group expand even further, the loyalty of the eight farmers who had been rescued later began to rise one after another.

[Due to your increased martial strength]

[Farmer San Pang's loyalty to you has increased by 5 points, current loyalty: 70]

[Farmer Xiao Zhuang's loyalty to you has increased by 5 points, current loyalty: 68]

[Farmer Er Ya's loyalty to you has increased by 5 points, current loyalty: 68]

...

The loyalty of those eight farmers began to increase simultaneously.

Among them, San Pang, who had the best aptitude, reached 70 loyalty points, while the others reached 68.

As for the five farmers brought back from the unlucky lord's territory, their default loyalty was 70 points.

Overall, things were quite stable.

Once everyone had rested for half an hour to alleviate the fatigue of the trek, Zong Shen clapped his hands and called out to Farmer San Pang, who was logging nearby.

"Alright, alright, time to get up and work."

"Even the donkey in a production team wouldn't dare rest this long!"

"Hey, San Pang, take these five new farmers with you to gather resources. There are five sets of tools at the gate!"

Hearing this, San Pang did not dare to delay. He scurried back and bowed to Zong Shen.

Then, he led the five new farmers to collect the tools and went to work.

Although he didn't know what a "donkey in a production team" was, he understood the Lord's command perfectly.

Zong Shen clearly saw that the eyes of the five farmers following San Pang were shimmering with tears of gratitude...

He nodded with satisfaction...

Currently, with the Lord's Courtyard as the center, all resources within a radius of one or two hundred meters had been harvested clean.

The farmers' gathering range was becoming increasingly distant.

This was an inevitable trend.

As the territory developed, its influence and radiation range would gradually increase.

There were still at least three hours before dark.

Within the territory, everything had been completed except for the [Tier 1 Elemental Arrow Tower].

The Dwarf Uncle was still lying in a corner next to the courtyard, clutching an almost empty wine jar, snoring loudly.

He showed no sign of the awareness required to immediately report for duty at the [Blacksmith Shop].

Zong Shen was in no hurry.

He consulted the Strategy Guide and found that it was still not suitable to undertake expansion missions at this time.

Thus, he decided to initiate the second round of exploration for the day.

Previously, when conquering the bandit camp, the Strategy Guide had provided a tip: thirteen miles west of the bandit camp, there was a small grove containing a Silver Treasure Chest and several Bear Monsters.

That location was not far from the territory.

It was located to the southwest of the territory; he could easily secure that treasure chest before nightfall.

Thinking of this, he directly summoned Luna and Tie Zhu to arrange the second wave of exploration.

"Tie Zhu, go explore the grasslands to the east of the territory. You must return before sunset!"

Tie Zhu nodded without any hesitation.

As a subordinate with maximum loyalty, Zong Shen's command was his life.

He turned and left the territory, heading toward the vast grasslands to the northeast to explore.

"Luna, Colby, Bjorn, Favid, Tasia."

"You will follow me to explore the southwest direction of the territory."

"Avid, you are responsible for patrolling the territory to ensure the safety of the farmers."

Zong Shen quickly selected several people.

He left the Wolf Cavalryman Avid in charge of territory security.

The others followed him out for exploration, including the two mages.

As powerful long-range damage dealers, they were indispensable to Zong Shen's roster of able-bodied men.

Tasia rolled her eyes secretly.

Favid also flashed a slightly awkward smile.

Although mages had strong offensive capabilities, there was still a gap between their physical fitness and that of melee soldiers.

Without mounts, long-distance trekking was indeed a challenge for them.

Zong Shen took note of their expressions.

He was already considering getting mounts for these two mages in the near future.

Unfortunately, Zong Shen had not seen any horses in the unlucky lord's territory earlier.

He didn't know if they had been eaten by beasts, or if the inhabitants had eaten them...

"Let's go! Let us work together to build a great territory!"

Zong Shen raised his right hand high and shouted a slogan.

He returned to the courtyard to take a small bucket of Moon Goddess Spring water for backup.

Then, with a graceful movement, he mounted his old traveling horse and began advancing toward the southwest at a jogging pace.

Behind him, the two Wolf Cavalrymen and Luna followed in the second rank.

At the rear were the two mages in their robes, lifting the hems of their long garments, struggling to keep up through the calf-high grass, doing their best not to fall behind...

Zong Shen had the Strategy Guide activate a golden directional arrow in front of his eyes.

Following the arrow's guidance, he advanced toward the vaguely visible grove in the distant southwest.

About forty minutes later, the group arrived at the outskirts of the grove.

Calling it a "grove" was an exaggeration; it was actually pitifully small.

The entire forest was not even as large as a small park on Earth.

If Zong Shen could fly, he would see that this little patch of woods looked like a single, abrupt freckle on the vast grassland.

If not for the guidance of the Strategy Guide, no one would have guessed that such a tiny grove actually contained a Silver Treasure Chest!