Chapter 61: Chapter 61: Clay Golem Jordon worked very efficiently, delivering the materials Sunan needed by the next day. Sunan immediately instructed the workers to move the materials into the temporarily constructed laboratory, then set out to create the first Golem Puppet. The main material for a Clay Golem is clay. A type of soil with very little sand content, sticky, not easily permeable by water, and has good plasticity. Creating a Clay Golem requires about 0.5 tons of clay, along with a small amount of silver, crystal, and the most important Soul Core. The lowest grade of Clay Golem can use gemstones as a Soul Core, but the intelligence level of such a Clay Golem is extremely low, only capable of performing simple tasks. Such as cleaning an area, carrying things, or hammering people. In his past life, Sunan had created many Clay Golems, and revisiting the old craft quickly became second nature to him. After more than half an hour, a clay body about two and a half meters tall appeared on the wide workbench. Its face was square-shaped, with no neck. It had a broad and strong chest, with sturdy arms hanging down to its knees, and short, thick fingers that were rather nimble. Its legs were only one-third the length of its body, and its feet were broad and flat. The chest of the Clay Golem was still open, revealing the complex Enchanted Runes inside. Sunan placed the rune-inscribed gemstone inside, sealed the groove, and began chanting incantations. The final step in golem creation was to animate the golem, imbuing it with vitality. As the incantation sounded, the surrounding Energy Particles suddenly became active, quickly converging from all directions and rushing into the clay golem’s body. Concurrent with the influx was the Elemental Magic Power from the earth vein nodes. With the infusion of energy, the body of the Clay Golem began to change, breeding and expanding a vitality entirely different from flesh and blood. The whole process lasted over ten minutes. Subsequently, magic power gradually subsided, and the energy particles slowly returned to calm. Rustle! The clay golem on the workbench suddenly moved, and then its huge, sturdy body sat up, the rigid face staring blankly at Sunan. "It’s done." Sunan’s face lit up with joy as he pointed to a box nearby and issued a command. "Move the box outside." "Yes, Master." The clay golem’s voice responded dully, then it jumped to the ground with a thud. Its movements were a bit clumsy at first, but it quickly adapted and effortlessly moved the heavy box outside. Sunan nodded silently to himself. Clay Golems are extremely useful laborers, especially since they consume little energy. Once fully charged, they can perform labor-intensive tasks continuously for four to five days. When their energy is nearly depleted, they can quickly recharge by entering the connection Array of the earth vein node. They are simply the best workhorses! "The most costly material for making a Clay Golem is the gemstone; the rest of the clay, along with a small amount of silver, copper, and crystal, are not worth much." "Manufacturing a Clay Golem costs only about a dozen Gold Coins. In the long run, it’s more economical than hiring workers and much more efficient." Sunan decided immediately to manufacture ten Clay Golems over the next couple of days, to complete the construction of the base as soon as possible. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎 As for the Steel Golems, they would have to wait until the Puppet Factory was established. After all, metal golems require higher skill and equipment standards. Unlike Clay Golems, which can be created with just a simple workbench. ... As time flew by, the month of renewal arrived. The snow melted, and a few patches of vibrant spring appeared in the fields. With the deployment of ten Clay Golems to the project, the speed of the base construction skyrocketed. Heavy stones that required several workers to lift could often be carried in one go by a Clay Golem, leaving the illiterate workers astonished. Kei came to observe a few times, and after witnessing the Clay Golems at work, his eyes lit up instantly. "These things are simply born for the logistics corps!" Kei immediately conceived the idea of forming a logistical unit of Clay Golems. Even after learning that the manufacturing cost of a Clay Golem was over ten Gold Coins, he did not give up. "These things, even if they are expensive, don’t cost as much as the Black Rock Cavalry Legion, and yet they revolutionize logistical capabilities in war." "Form a logistics unit with these for sure the pressure on supplies during a battle can be greatly alleviated!" Sunan, unable to refuse Kei’s persistence, promised that once the base’s manpower needs were met, he would provide him with a batch of Clay Golems. It is worth noting that after reclaiming Flashing Territory, due to the significant increase in territory income, Kei immediately stopped exporting Black Stone Iron. The Black Stone Iron produced by the Black Stone Mine was henceforth supplied only internally to Flashing Territory, to arm the army and expand the Black Rock Cavalry Legion. Expanding the military power remains the top priority for Flashing Territory at present. After all, there’s still Marquis Golden Rock next door with a watchful eye. And to expand the Black Rock Cavalry Legion, the first problem faced is the insufficient supply of Junior Dragon Blood Potions. Flashing Territory currently has only sixty to seventy Black-scaled Lizardman captives, and the amount of blood extractable each month is limited. The ultimately produced Junior Dragon Blood Potions are far from enough to support the rapid expansion of the Black Rock Cavalry Legion. For this, Kei has been quite distressed and has consulted with Sunan several times. Sunan, too, has pondered many solutions to this issue. For instance, extracting blood from Hidden Dragon. The bloodline concentration of Hidden Dragon far exceeds that of ordinary Black-scaled Lizardmen. Just by itself, the obtainable blood material each month would be much more than that group of Black-scaled Lizardman captives. However, after much consideration, Sunan finally vetoed this idea. If they continuously drew blood from Hidden Dragon, it would significantly lower its bloodline concentration enhancement speed. This is something Sunan could not accept. While supporting the territory’s growth is important, enhancing his own power is equally paramount. Hodge’s appearance was a wake-up call for him. Though the Starlight Continent today is an Elemental Desert, many hidden powerhouses still exist. A Hodge, who is at best a Tier One Legend Knight, forced him to use nearly thirty rune gemstones to resolve the situation, leaving him with barely any chances of escape if a stronger enemy appeared. So for the sake of his safety, power enhancement must not slow down! After giving it much thought, Sunan finally came up with a viable plan. That is, finding a substitute for Junior Dragon Blood Potion! Given that the scale of the Black Rock Cavalry Legion will further expand in the future, this substitute must be capable of large-scale production and be inexpensive at the same time. This naturally excludes potions. After much deliberation, Sunan finally set his sights on Magic Plants. Though in his memory, there were no Magic Plants that fit his requirements, it didn’t matter. Since they don’t exist, he would cultivate them himself. With the synthesis cube in hand, he inherently holds a greater advantage in cultivating new Magic Plants than other Wizard Apprentices. "I already have some leads on the potion. Just give me some time, I’ll find a solution," Sunan said. Kei, having great trust in his brother, felt much relieved after hearing this from him. Then, Kei suddenly remembered something and asked Sunan, "You mentioned recruiting apprentices from the territory earlier, what’s that about?" "Once my construction here is finished, specific areas will need dedicated personnel for maintenance. I plan to train them myself and see if I can discover some Wizard Apprentice potentials." Kei’s spirits lifted upon hearing the last part. Black Stone City flourished rapidly thanks to having Sunan, a Wizard Apprentice, which ultimately led to the reclamation of Flashing Territory. The facts have demonstrated how crucially a Wizard Apprentice can contribute to the development of a territory. If a few more Wizard Apprentices emerged from the territory, it would undoubtedly be a tremendous boon! Thinking of this, Kei immediately patted his chest, promising to handle the matter efficiently and beautifully for Sunan.