Chapter 30: Hoarding Supplies

Satisfied with the acquisition of an illustrated guide, Lin Mu felt content.

He didn't look closely at the weapons and equipment, merely scanning them briefly. Most were common iron gear and weapons that were useless to him. Besides, he had already sold his iron cavalry for 200 copper coins—quite a bargain.

Having finished with the guides, blueprints, weapons, and equipment, the next step was skills and specialties.

To his frustration, the skill panel was as empty as a wasteland, without a single consignment listing. Lin Mu felt quite depressed; he had been hoping for a pleasant surprise, such as "divine skills" like *Subjugation Technique*, but there wasn't even a trace of them.

Finally, after browsing through the skills and specialties he actually wanted, he found nothing; his luck was poor. Next, Lin Mu moved on to check: Resources.

The resource consignment panel had many pages—over a thousand in total. It seemed players were working very hard at gathering resources.

Resources were divided into several categories: Grain, Minerals, Timber, Stone, and Special...

The grain production within Lin Mu's territory could be described as extremely abundant. Whether it was rice or fish, thanks to the bonuses from his Divine-grade Scholar, the Divine-grade Village attributes, and the fertile Black Soil, combined with the hard work of countless farmers, his current grain stock had reached nearly 2 million units.

To be honest, Lin Mu was startled when he saw this grain storage amount. He didn't know the exact specifics, being an incompetent Lord, so he didn't ask further for the time being.

Daily consumption was only a few tens of thousands of units, which couldn't compare to the output. The territory's grain would only continue to increase; the warehouses had been expanded multiple times just to hold it all.

Originally, Chang Yin had suggested that Lin Mu sell grain on the market. However, knowing that grain prices were low in the early stages before increasing severalfold later, Lin Mu rejected the suggestion. He also shared some information with Chang Yin; upon receiving Lin Mu's guidance, Chang Yin was shocked. He hadn't expected his Lord to possess such foresight, and he felt a growing respect for Lin Mu, though Lin Mu remained unaware of it.

In the Mythical World, many "real history" players are unable to speak to the natives; the laws of heaven and earth automatically block such information. Attempting to cheat the system can even result in fatal punishments—lessons learned through blood and tears. Many players have tried to tell natives the true course of history or even find historical figures to reveal their fates, but the consequences were unthinkable!

Lin Mu had always maintained restraint in this regard.

However, sharing advanced management techniques, methods, or making vague judgments based on current historical data was permitted by the laws of heaven and earth. This was because many natives saw things more clearly than the players; they simply chose not to point them out.

...

Lin Mu checked his copper coin balance and found it had reached 7,162,100. It seemed his weapons had all sold. The players in the Huaxia District were quite wealthy, haha...

Such a large quantity of weapons could arm many people. Furthermore, he would continue to sell such weapons in the short term to further enrich his treasury.

In a sense, he was providing momentum for the development of the Huaxia District, making its foundation stronger. As for whether they could surpass him, Lin Mu was slightly worried, but mostly gratified. If he had obtained so many copper coins and still couldn't develop better than others, he would truly be wasting his luck.

The price of grain was basically 5 copper coins per unit, which was cheaper than what the government NPC natives sold. Government grain was generally 8 copper coins per unit, so players rarely bought from them. Although some players had starved to death at the beginning, no player would spend 16 RMB per unit of grain. Gradually, players began to gain a foothold, the food problem began to be resolved, and now there were even surpluses being brought to the market to exchange for copper coins.

However, currently, there were no other player territories or Lord-class players in Dongye County, so grain generally lacked a good market and remained stockpiled, as if waiting for Lin Mu's arrival.

Without a second thought, Lin Mu began his sweep. Any grain priced at 6 copper coins or less was instantly bought out.

10 units of Rice, Price: 57 copper coins; 27 units of Meat, Price: 1,630 copper coins; 157 units of Wheat, Price: 780 copper coins; 38 units of Wild Vegetables, Price: 228 copper coins; ... 20 units of Salt, Price: 1,500 copper coins; 15 units of Red Carp, Price: 90 copper coins; 180 units of Grass Carp, Price: 1,080 copper coins; ... 10 units of Fire Carp, Price: 1,000 copper coins; 200 units of Mutton, Price: 20,000 copper coins; 150 units of Fire Beef, Price: 30,000 copper coins; ...

Lin Mu didn't mind the prices of some rarer meats; it was a way to increase the variety of food for his people, which would gradually improve their morale.

If there were professional chefs, rare meats like Fire Carp or Fire Beef could be turned into delicacies. Combined with special ingredients, they might even become attribute-boosting [Feasts], such as a [Fire Beef Banquet] that could increase combat power by 100 for one in-game day.

Lin Mu remembered these vividly!

Unfortunately, the highest-ranking chef in his territory was only an Advanced Chef, not yet at the Expert level or above. They were unable to cook [Feast] type foods or even secret recipes.

In times of chaos and war, farmers are displaced and unable to farm in a stable environment. Thus, in a chaotic era, food becomes a critically important issue. With countless wars, large or small, the consumption of food and supplies is astronomical. Food becomes paramount—this was the experience players gained from history and the game world.

Lin Mu knew the importance of food, as did many players. However, currently, everyone's pockets were empty, and they were all just trying to buy a piece of black iron weaponry; they weren't worried about future appreciation yet.

Internally, food stabilizes the rear and settles the people; it prevents starvation and, consequently, prevents riots among the populace. It is vital.

Externally, food is a massive consumption of war. Whether it is money or grain, resources are the guarantee of war. War is fought through economics; without a solid economic foundation, one cannot speak of war!

Since ancient times, food has been the fundamental basis of warfare.

Having experienced the sight of starving corpses and white bones scattered across the land in chaotic eras, Lin Mu knew the importance of food deeply.

This was why he positioned it as the second most important industry in his grand blueprint.

The first was Armaments: Weapons and Equipment.

Currently, grain prices were extremely cheap. Lin Mu continued his sweep; for every extra unit he secured, he would earn an extra ten or twenty copper coins in the future. Lin Mu could almost see countless pieces of gold rushing toward him. *Let the storm of gold coins come even more fiercely!*

1 unit, 20 units, 100 units, 1,000 units... 100,000 units... Lin Mu continuously snapped up the consignment listings.

After sweeping all grain under 6 copper coins, Lin Mu checked his copper coins: 6,505,011. With over 6 million copper coins left, he continued to sweep grain at other price points. If he had enough coins, he hoped to sweep everything.

Slowly, the number of pages in the grain consignment interface began to dwindle. Lin Mu had swept almost everything, except for some outrageously priced items, such as 3 units of Purple Sable Meat for 100,000 copper coins. *Are they trying to reach the heavens?* With such ridiculous prices, Lin Mu ignored them.

He needed to take stock. His backpack had been full for a long time, and his warehouses were nearly stuffed. Looking at the various types of grain, he felt a sense of immense satisfaction.

He was a pioneer, possessing unparalleled advantages. No other player faction should be as powerful as him! Haha...

His empire was slowly growing!

Finally, after a careful tally, he had obtained over 500,000 units of common grain, such as rice and wheat, and over 60,000 units of rare meat, such as Fire Beef. He had spent a total of over 4 million copper coins, leaving him with over 3 million. Making money was easy, but spending it was just as easy.

The grain on the market was basically wiped out. This situation was noticed by other players. In an information-rich world, news spreads quickly, and this "tycoon-style" behavior soon shocked the players of Huaxia!

Currently, players did not engage in such massive operations. Although there were trades worth hundreds of thousands of copper coins, they were rare and mostly conducted privately, so players usually didn't know. Now, such extravagant behavior was happening right under the eyes of many players, instantly triggering a frenzy

"What a tycoon! That player who built the world's second village must be from a great clan, possessing a strong backing and a powerful economic foundation. He must have countless retainers working hard for him to build such a complete blacksmith system and sell such top-tier weapons so quickly. He's a tycoon among tycoons, a super-carrier among tycoons!"

"Yeah, such tycoon behavior! A peerless hero! I beg the hero to adopt me! I'm a soft girl, and I have a sister—we're twins! We're gentle and easy to handle, and we're good at everything from being cute to housework! Tycoon, contact me!"

"Hey girl, I'm a tycoon too! I'll contact you! I love soft girls! Hehe!"

...

"Hmph, if I knew where you were, I would definitely visit your territory! I have hundreds of thousands of troops under my command; I'll make you submit to my iron hooves!"

"Quick, go find him! The player of the world's second village is anonymous and cannot be contacted. We have to find the person directly. We need to establish a relationship and trade with him; it would be highly beneficial for both of us. He probably won't refuse!"

"Strategy Department, Staff Department, analyze the location of this 'world's second person' immediately! Arrange scouts to search that area. We must find him and bring this money tree under our control! I'll pay an extra 100,000 copper coins, hmph!"

...

"Ahhh! Why is that player anonymous? If it were us, we would definitely promote him heavily. Opportunities to show one's face to the whole world are rare; the advertising value would be astronomical! Intelligence Officer No. 6, organize your men immediately. You must find this person! Once found, buy exclusive information from him! Remember, *exclusive*!"

...

100,000 words! This is a milestone. Keep going!! Requesting recommendation votes and bookmarks!

(End of Chapter)