Chapter 42: Just to Make a Living

Early the next morning, bathed in the faint dawn light, the Igor family expedition broke camp and set off.

Before leaving, the Lord solemnly scooped up a handful of dirt from the infected zone. Under the watchful eyes of all his subjects, he carefully sealed it inside a silk pouch.

The expedition, which had numbered a full thousand members upon departure, had lost half its forces after enduring the baptism of the terrifying horde of the undead. These tenant farmers, guards, and servants, fiercely loyal to the Igor family yet ultimately left without even remains to bury, would forever sleep in this forbidden land, never to awaken.

Taking a bag of soil steeped in the blood and tears of his subjects from the infected zone was the only thing Xiahou Yan could do for them. It was a memorial, so that they would not be forgotten.

After this brief memorial ceremony ended, Xiahou Yan learned from the chubby Mayor Joel that the craftsmen in the expedition hadn’t been idle these past few days. They had been constantly inspecting and repairing the vehicles. Due to the previous heavy fog and the undead horde’s attack, many of the convoy’s carriages had suffered varying degrees of damage, and numerous draft horses had been killed or injured.

However, the expedition’s cargo and personnel had suffered simultaneous losses. As a result, after the craftsmen worked overtime to repair and consolidate the remaining carriages, there were actually just enough to go around. In other words, if the losses in personnel and supplies hadn’t been so severe, the Lord would have been stressing over how to allocate vehicles to his subjects.

This highly ironic fact left Xiahou Yan not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

"In short, after we leave the infected zone, we must restock our horses, vehicles, and food as soon as possible," Mayor Joel rambled on for a while before finally getting to the point. "Assuming the map is correct, as long as we head south, we can enter the territory of the Houston Grand Duchy and resupply in their capital, Yanxi City."

The Houston Grand Duchy... According to Eliot Igor’s rather limited geographical knowledge, this noble territory was situated very close to the southern tip of the empire, almost within the invasion range of the Demon race’s marauders.

As for the Igor family’s new territory? Sorry to say, it was even further south.

The Imperial Court clearly felt no pity for this ancient family suddenly saddled with charges of treason. With a wave of a hand, they relocated the Igor territory from the prosperous Western Territory to the southernmost border of the nation. They euphemistically called it "reclaiming wasteland for the nation," but the practical meaning was, "We don’t want to dirty our hands, so we’ll let our bros from the Demon race and the wilderness bandits help us dispose of these political prisoners."

Feeling incredibly wronged, the Lord cursed inwardly, "Goddammit."

"So, do we still have enough funds to purchase supplies?" Xiahou Yan sneezed, wiping his nose as he consulted Mayor Joel.

"No." Mayor Joel’s answer was concise, but it inflicted massive emotional damage on a certain penniless Lord.

"Thank goodness we scored a haul from Adrian’s magic laboratory before we left!" Xiahou Yan sighed with emotion. He turned to Master Laurie, who was standing not far away, and said, "Master, I’m afraid we’ll have to contribute a portion of our loot again!"

Feeling incredibly wronged, Master Laurie cursed inwardly, "Goddammit."

The master really wanted to grab the Lord’s collar, which was embroidered with the Golden Eagle crest, and demand an explanation: Why should he, the Chief Mage, have to shoulder the territory’s expenses? Although Victor Laurie had worked at Eagle’s Rest Castle for most of his life, technically, he was still a formally hired employee of the Igor family. He even kept the employment contract personally signed by Duke Vincent Igor!

Where in the world was there a rule that an employee had to cover the boss’s financial losses? It was beyond absurd—it was downright preposterous!

Master Laurie truly wanted to argue with the Lord about this. But in the end, he merely tucked his hands into his sleeves, shrank his neck, and leaned against the carriage. He gave a muffled grunt of agreement, not daring to utter a single complaint.

"Aside from that, I also suggest you purchase some Elf plant seeds in Yanxi City." Mayor Joel cast a disdainful glance at Master Laurie before continuing to address the Lord with a serious expression. "This area of the Southern Empire was once the territory of the Ancient Elf Empire, so it has retained many Elf plant seeds from ancient times. Although these crops bred by Elves require strict climatic conditions and are difficult to cultivate on a large scale, their yields are astonishing. My Lord, reclaiming a new territory will inevitably lead to food shortages. We had better prepare early."

On the surface, Xiahou Yan nodded and agreed profusely, but his heart sank.

Although he didn’t know what "Elf crops" Mayor Joel was talking about, he was all too familiar with "Elf plants"!

In the ancient era of the continent, the masters of the world were not humans, but Elves. One of the greatest specialties of these pointy-eared, beautiful, and long-lived creatures was utilizing magic to cultivate plants.

Plant materials cultivated by Elves possessed excellent properties that ordinary wood could never hope to match. Highly resistant to corrosion, incredibly durable, and possessing strong magic affinity, Elf plants were not only the top choice for nobles crafting luxurious furniture but also common materials for all kinds of magic equipment.

For example, magic staffs, the standard equipment for mages, were mostly carved and polished from the rare Elf plant known as the Jade Rainbow Camphor Tree. Because mages were generally physically weak and couldn’t lift heavy chunks of magic metal, the Jade Rainbow Camphor Tree—which had low density and high magic affinity—became the undisputed choice for almost all renowned mages.

Take another example. The greatest treasure of Eagle’s Rest Castle wasn’t the Pure Gold Ceremonial Sword bestowed by Romannus VI, nor was it the Nightmare Helmet captured from the Demon race and passed down through generations. Instead, it was a Spirit-Gathering Narcissus that had been clinging to life for thousands of years, surviving to this day!

This unremarkable Elf flower, which looked like a withered leek, possessed miraculous effects that countless mages dreamed of: any creature resting within a five-meter radius of the Spirit-Gathering Narcissus would see the natural recovery rate of their magic power double! Whether you were a first-tier Magic Apprentice or a ninth-tier Saint Mage, the recovery rate doubled without fail. And right now, on the entire continent, the number of surviving Spirit-Gathering Narcissus plants could be counted on one hand.

The rarity of the Spirit-Gathering Narcissus was not an exception for this specific plant, but a common trait among all Elf plants. Since the Great Elf Empire had long since collapsed, the Elf race had subsequently vanished and neared extinction. Almost all the Elf plants that could be found today were precious relics left over from the era of the Elf Empire thousands of years ago!

In other words, no race currently living on the continent possessed the ability to cultivate Elf plants on a large scale anymore. Even if they could be grown, they relied entirely on Elf seeds passed down from ancient times. When it came to Elf plants, saying "every one used is one gone forever" was not an alarmist exaggeration.

And whether on Earth or in the Otherworld, "rarity breeds value" was a universal truth.

Although the prices of different varieties of Elf plants varied slightly, they were all priceless, rare treasures on the market. Unless one came from an exorbitantly wealthy family that practically dined on gold and jewels, who could afford even a single stem or seed of an Elf plant?

If it weren’t for the exorbitant prices of Elf plants, how could Victor Laurie, the dignified Chief Mage of the Igor family, still lack a suitable magic staff to this day?

True, Elf crops had high yields and great utility, but the impoverished Igor family still had to be able to afford them!

"Mayor Joel, since you’re the one making the suggestion, will you be footing the bill to buy the Elf seeds when the time comes?" Xiahou Yan looked at Mayor Joel with a beaming smile.

"I think making do with planting some ordinary wheat and rice would be just fine," Old Joel said, his attitude taking a complete one-eighty.