Chapter 18: Chapter 18: Fire Fox Trading Company Walking down the street, Sunan was surprised to find that the city was noticeably more crowded, much livelier than before. Quite a number of people wore leather armor, carrying weapons and looking fierce. Noticing Sunan’s curious gaze, Kei explained with a smile: "Since the restart of the Black Stone Mine, many caravans rushed over upon hearing the news. Many of these people are caravan members and accompanying mercenaries." Sunan was enlightened. The prosperity of a city often begins with thriving commerce. As long as the development of the Black Stone Mine continues, in a few years, Black Stone City will rank among the top cities in Golden Rock Province. As they walked, Sunan saw a simple makeshift shelter constructed out of wood. More than ten people were busy inside, some cooking porridge, others distributing it. A group of ragged, emaciated people lined up in front of the shelter, staring intently at the porridge stall, their throats moving constantly, their faces eager. But under the watchful gaze of soldiers nearby, they could only obediently queue up and wait. "Who are those people?" Sunan looked at Kei. "They are refugees from the Thorn Flower Duchy in the west, which is currently at war. Many civilians have been displaced, and I’ve sent people to help bring them into the city." Sunan was thoughtful upon hearing this. The foundation of a city’s prosperity, besides income, is the population. Black Stone City, located at the border, inherently has a small population, with only about five hundred soldiers in its army. This is a congenital shortcoming. If this issue isn’t resolved, Black Stone City will never grow strong, and the Cavalry Legion can’t be established. Absorbing refugees is undoubtedly an excellent solution. Especially those who survived the long journey are mostly healthy young men and women. After joining the territory, a few days of rest is enough for them to become laborers. Young adults can directly join the army, strengthening Black Stone City’s military force. "Before winter arrives this year, I plan to take the initiative and attack the Black-scaled Lizardman tribes in the Red Horn Wilderness." Kei said, his eyes gleaming. "By moving the battlefield to the Red Horn Wilderness, Black Stone City can avoid some of the flames of war." Sunan nodded in understanding. Although Kei didn’t say, both knew the more important reason. Obtaining more blood from the Black-scaled Lizardmen would allow Black Stone City to cultivate more knights. They then talked about recent events in Golden Rock Province. Upon hearing that Count Storm was severely injured and comatose from an attack, Sunan couldn’t help but be surprised. Count Storm himself was a great knight and a lord with real power, surely surrounded by tight security. Yet, assassins managed to severely wound Count Storm in such circumstances. What exactly is the Starfire Sect? Noticing Sunan’s doubt, Kei explained: "The Starfire Sect emerged more than a decade ago as a mysterious cult that grew rapidly. In just three or four years, it became a sect with influence throughout the duchy. They operate secretly, with an unclear doctrine, reportedly colluding with many nobles privately, but they’ve also assassinated nobles frequently, which is quite peculiar." The more Sunan heard, the more he felt something was amiss. This development trajectory... Could the Starfire Sect be backed by Wizards (or apprentices)? Sunan recalled and realized he had little impression of the Starfire Sect. After all, during his past life when he played the game, it was already at version 2.0. Unless it was something very important related to Wizards in version 1.0, he was basically unfamiliar with it. As he pondered, a commotion suddenly came from up ahead. The two had rounded a corner and arrived near the tavern. The tavern’s door was wide open, with noisy voices coming from inside, seeming like many people were shouting loudly. Going inside, it turned out people were having a drinking contest. Two burly men sat on either side of a round table, desperately pouring alcohol into their mouths. They glared at each other provocatively as they drank. Around them, a dozen burly men excitedly cheered, occasionally erupting in loud applause. Sunan’s gaze swept across the crowd and landed on one of the drinking contestants. The man seemed about twenty-five or six, with a rugged appearance and thick body hair, which covered his exposed arms, chest, and much of his face. His eyes were amber, not human-like but more like a beast’s pupils. "Beastman." Sunan’s expression flickered, blurting out subconsciously. Beastmen were initially products of Wizards’ experiments. Most of them are bloodthirsty and ferocious, with strong aggression. Upon slight external stimulation, they easily lose control over their bloodthirsty instincts, transforming into beasts and frantically attacking any living creature they see. In the Ancient Era, the earliest Beastmen caused a "Beastman Disaster," resulting in mass casualties, until Wizards subdued them later. However, after years of breeding and bloodline weakening, modern Beastmen have improved a lot and can mostly control their beast transformations. Beastmen cannot cultivate breathing techniques, but their physique far exceeds that of ordinary people. Adult Beastmen possess strength equivalent to apprentice knights. Some Beastmen with wild beast bloodlines, after arduous training, can even achieve formidable strength comparable to knights. But relative to their powerful physiques, Beastmen have shorter lifespans and lower reproductive abilities than normal humans. Today, sightings of Beastmen are rare on the continent. Even if they exist, most live within the Cangjin Empire’s borders. Sunan didn’t expect to see a Beastman descendant here. "Few can instantly recognize Ota’s origins. You are indeed knowledgeable." A voice suddenly came to Sunan’s ears. Sunan turned to see a tall man, about forty years old, with a smiling face walking toward him. He wore an expensive-looking red fox fur coat. "Lord, it’s been a long time." As he approached, the man first greeted Kei before looking at Sunan. "May I know your name?" "Sunan." Sunan nodded lightly at the man, having guessed his identity. "This is my brother." Kei introduced, then proceeded to introduce the man’s identity to Sunan, "This is Mu Zhuo Ismail, the boss of the Fire Fox trade association." "Pleased to meet you, Mr. Sunan." Mu Zhuo smiled broadly and shook hands with Sunan, inwardly puzzled. According to gathered intel, the second young master of the Flashing Clan is withdrawn, preferring to stay locked in his room fiddling with odd things, rarely going out. Such a person should have limited exposure and shouldn’t be able to recognize Ota as a Beastman at a glance. Moreover, the intel also mentioned Sunan lacked knight potential and hadn’t even started learning breathing techniques, with a physique weaker than ordinary people. Yet, the Sunan before him stood tall, his eyes bright and spirited, showing no signs of weakness. What are those responsible for gathering intel doing? Can’t they handle even trivial matters? Mu Zhuo frowned inwardly, deciding to give those intel gatherers a good scolding later.