Chapter 583 – Raising One Level
Zhao Hai has been cursing people a lot recently. He felt very incensed, Gods, Demons, two people who are on the opposite spectrum were pining to occupy the Ark Continent. They might even cooperate in order to deal with its inhabitants. How unfortunate was this situation? How could he be the male lead in this story!!
When Juno heard Zhao Hai, he couldn't help but coldly snort, "Little Hai, you don't need to think that the people of the Divine Realm are good. Although a lot of Humans there are from the continent, from what Iron Hammer said, most of its inhabitants are native. Therefore, we don't need to consider them as people from the Ark Continent."
Billy snorted as well, "These fellows really cannot be considered to be good. Little Hai, I hope you can develop ways to be God-ranked experts as soon as possible. Perhaps when that time comes, we would feel a lot better when outsiders decide to visit."
Zhao Hai smiled bitterly, he knew that what Billy and Juno said was right. The God-ranked experts in the Divine Realm cannot be considered to be one of them.
Juno then looked at Zhao Hai and sighed, "Alright, let's not talk about these anymore. Let's eat. After the meal, Little Hai can get his goods then we'll take our leave."
Billy turned to Juno and said, "What? You're already leaving? I thought that you would need to stay for a few days?"
Juno forced a smile and said, "Forget it. I've already been away for too long. Also, I've managed to know a lot of things here. The things that are left for me to handle should be piled up right now."
Billy nodded, "Alright. Dealing with the invaders is the most important thing, I won't be holding you back. Let's eat and then let Little Hai get his goods. At the same time, I'll also be handing over a letter to be given to the Beast King. If Little Hai gives that to the Beast King, the probability of him seeing the Beast God's Spear should increase."
Zhao Hai understood what Billy was trying to do. Although Zhao Hai's standing in the Prairie was already high, he was still a human that Beastmen wouldn't generally trust, especially with the matter of their Beast God's Spear. But if he had a letter from the Dwarves, in addition to the Elder's command token, everything should go by smoothly.
The three didn't waste a single breath. After having their meal, they immediately proceeded to go outside. When Zhao Hai saw the display, he couldn't help but stare blankly at it. On the ground were more than a hundred types of things. It included about 30 species of unique Magic Beasts, more than 50 types of plants, and more than a dozen kinds of ores. These ores were very rare in the continent, they might not have even seen the light of day before.
However, these nuances aren't important. What was important were the alive plants and animals. For Zhao Hai these things were too useful.
Zhao Hai wasn't polite as he immediately received everything into the Space. A prompt was then heard, most of them about the plants and animals. But around the end, the ores were addressed as well. The ores were indeed rare and special. But because the quantity was too little, it would be impossible for them to be like Pure Iron, able to form their own lode inside the Space. However, the Space informed Zhao Hai that when those ores grow in a few years, each one of them would develop their own vein inside.
Because of the Space's recent upgrades, it had become possible for the ores to grow. In the past, if the amount of ore was this low, then it would be impossible for them to increase. For Zhao Hai, this development was very good news.
But what made Zhao Hai very surprised was the fact that all of these things were able to increase the Space's level by one. This made Zhao Hai gawk.
With his understanding of the Space, it was impossible for these things to make it increase by one level. The current development truly gave him a surprise.
However, after a moment of thinking, Zhao Hai had found the reason why this was such. It was possible that after the God's Blood had been absorbed by the Space, increasing its level by three, there were still some energy left behind but was unable to raise the Space's level. The recent pile was just the final push needed by the Space in order to level up.
Zhao Hai didn't make a big deal out of it. Although the Space had increased by a level, he still needed two levels for something significant to happen. These two levels wouldn't be very easy to get. He just hopes that the Beastmen had good things for him.
After receiving these things, Zhao Hai and the others immediately went to the empty warehouse that has been prepared by the Dwarves beforehand. Actually, this warehouse was just a very huge cavern inside the mountain range. Moreover, this cavern was completely unused, so there won't be any fear of any Dwarves stealing stuff that was inside.
When Zhao Hai was finished inspecting the warehouse, the things that he needed to do in the Dwarf Mountains was now almost finished. Arranging Dwarves for the Black Wasteland would still need some time, it was already quite good that Billy was working on it.
Upon finishing these two matters, the group immediately returned to Billy's office. When they sat down, Billy turned to Zhao Hai and said, "Little Hai, I've already set up some ironwares for you to bring, but it needs a day to collect. Are you alright with getting them tomorrow?"
Zhao Hai thought for a moment, in any case he wasn't really anxious in leaving, he nodded and said, "Alright, then I'll wait until tomorrow before we leave."
Billy nodded, then he turned to his workplace and started to write a letter. Zhao Hai knew that Billy was writing the letter that was to be given to the Beast King, so he didn't disturb him. Instead, he turned to Juno and whispered, "Patriarch Juno, after we leave tomorrow, I can only drop you off in your territory before heading to Golden Island. I still need to prepare for my visit to the Prairie, I'm afraid I won't be able to stay for long."
Juno understood, he nodded and said, "That's not a problem. Dealing with this matter is much more important. After all, we still have a lot of time in our hands in the future."
Zhao Hai nodded, "Certainly there'll be a chance. But there is one thing I'll need your help with. Since my territory is far from the Ocean Waves Dynasty, I wouldn't have a huge opportunity to observe it. It's possible for the Dynasty to have already fallen to the Radiant Church's hands. I'll have to trouble you to keep your eyes on them."
Juno smiled and said, "No problem. We'll handle this matter with care. If we have any information, we'll pass it to Billy and have him place the letter along with the goods in the warehouse. This way, news arrives to you much quicker."
Zhao Hai nodded and said, "Alright. About the Gods and the Divine Realm's matter, please refrain from telling anyone about it. We cannot afford to make a stir if this gets spread out. This would only bring us harm."
Juno nodded, "Rest assured, I understand the implications. I won't tell anyone about it. Right, I'm planning to send some people over to Golden Island to do business, can you see to it that they are settled properly?"
Zhao Hai smiled, "That's not an issue. I'll go inform the island's manager about this later. When your people arrive at the island, just tell the people in charge that you're the Hurricane Family. They shall help you get settled in."
Juno patted Zhao Hai's shoulder and said, "Thank you, Little Hai."
Zhao Hai smiled faintly and said, "You're too polite. We're now allies, so you're absolutely welcome in my territory. Besides the people of my Buda Clan, only you and Patriarch Billy knew about my secret, even my father-in-law doesn't now. You should also keep that secret from the others."
Juno gave a smile and said, "Rest assured, I'm not that neglectful. But I really didn't expect that the poisonous fog in the Black Wasteland was your doing. Moreover, that poisonous gas can actually harm 9th ranks. No wonder nobody discovered your roots. With that place as a den, nobody would be able to guess it."
Zhao Hai smiled and said, "There's no other way. In the past, our Buda Clan was still very weak. If people found out that we're still in the Black Wasteland, they might go and deal with us immediately. And although we have the strength right now, I still don't want to restrict my freedom. There are too many greedy people in the continent. If they came to know the situation of my Buda Clan, then they might develop ideas and might turn their attention away from the Radiant Church. That would bring me a lot of troubles."
Juno smiled bitterly, he knew that what Zhao Hai said was true. Now that the matter with the Divine Realm must be kept in secret, the only thing that can shift people's attention was the news that the Buda Clan was occupying the entirety of the Black Wasteland, and had made it possible to be cultivated. This news would definitely would cause a huge reaction. In the end, there would be a lot of eyes that would be turned towards the Buda Clan.
The area of the Black Wasteland was too big, and it held a large amount of now arable land. This land of pure wealth would surely cause people to develop greedy thoughts.
The reason why people of the continent were suppressing the Radiant Church was because the church had threatened their rule, posing a threat to their interests. If a huge piece of meat such as the wasteland suddenly appears in the continent, people would take their attention off of the Radiant Church, and then shift towards the Buda Clan.
While they were talking, Billy had already finished writing the letter. He didn't use paper for it, but instead processed skin of the Iron Beast. The Iron Beast had a lot of uses aside from it being a good material for leather armor. Because of this, the significance of the Iron Beast to the Dwarves was just like what the Argali was to the Beastmen.
Billy rolled up the beastskin and then sealed it. He handed the letter over to Zhao Hai and said, "Little Hai, take this letter to the Beast King. He should be able to recognize that the seal is from our Dwarf Race. I wrote everything about the Divine Artifacts here. I believe that after reading the letter, he should be able to agree to your request."
Zhao Hai received the letter and nodded, "Alright, I also think that he would agree. My relationship with him is very good, there shouldn't be any more problems."
Chapter 584 – Also Wants to Marry?
Zhao Hai was currently standing on the Haven's bow with Juno. Although they look like they were appreciating the scene of Iron Warhorse River, their minds were on something completely different.
The didn't have the mood to enjoy the scenery. The Gods and the Demons had given them enormous pressure. It was like they had mountains stacked on their shoulders, making it hard for them to breath.
Two days had already passed from the time that they had left the Dwarf Mountains. In the two days that they were hurrying along, even if they already have a plan to deal with the Gods, they still thought of the matter with a heavy heart.
After some time, Zhao Hai sighed and said, "Since the Dwarves had already started to prepare for war, it seems like the Black Wasteland would need to do the same."
Juno sighed as well as he said, "Not only you, we'll be preparing as well. What a pity, our Hurricane Family's domain is too small. Moreover, we don't have any good produce in it. Preparing for the future would be quite a problem."
Zhao Hai smiled faintly and said, "Grandpa Juno doesn't need to worry. As long as you keep your eyes on the Radiant Church, it's already enough of an effort."
Juno sighed, "That's the only thing that we could do. We'll have to pass the other matters on to you. Also, Billy needs to convince the Elves to be our allies, otherwise, it would be troublesome."
Zhao Hai nodded, "I'll also head to the Prairie and talk to the Beastmen. I hope that they can agree based on my merit. Right, let's not talk about this anymore. Grandpa Juno, what business are you preparing to do in Golden Island?"
Juno smiled bitterly and said, "The usual, basic goods. Our Hurricane Family hasn't done much business all these years, so we really don't know anything else."
Zhao Hai smiled and said, "How about this. If you really want to do business in Golden Island, you can approach the administrator there. His name is Kun, he's my wife Laura's Grandpa. I'll tell Grandpa Kun to help you set up a business that can turn a profit."
Juno smiled and said, "Thank you. Our people really aren't very suitable for business. In the younger generation, the only one with an eye for business is Kristen. When we send people to Golden Island, she'll be placed in charge."
Zhao Hai smiled bitterly inside without changing his outside expression, he just nodded and said, "Alright, I'll help them get settled in. However, they might not regularly see me in the island. I'm mostly on other places all year round. If they need anything, they can just ask Grandpa Kun for help."
Juno didn't say anything but just nodded. He knew that Zhao Hai had already guessed his intentions. Juno wanted to send Kristen to Golden Island in hopes that she can marry Zhao Hai.
If Juno wasn't aware of the matter with the Divine Realm, then it would be impossible for him to have such an idea. After all, the Hurricane Family doesn't seek profit, so it wouldn't be in their best interests to be married to the Buda Clan.
But now that he knew about the Gods, he couldn't help but develop this plan. From what he had felt from Zhao Hai, Juno can faintly sense the might of the Buda Clan. Getting good relationships with the Buda Clan would immensely aid the Hurricane Family in the future.
Moreover, Juno somewhat believed the prophecy of the Dwarves that Billy had told him. If that was indeed true, then Zhao Hai would become the saviour of the entire continent. If he didn't use this early opportunity to establish a connection with Zhao Hai, then he wasn't worthy of being the Patriarch of the Hurricane Family.
Although the Hurricane Family wasn't known for its ambition, no Great Clan can completely survive without it. The reason the Hurricane Family was able to survive was because they had maintained their current status. In the Buddha Empire, the Hurricane Family wasn't the biggest Clan nor was it the smallest. Their status in the empire was just average, attracting the goodwill of the Imperial Clan as well as the other Nobles. Their unambitious ways made it possible for them to maintain their status and interests.
However, with the looming threat of the Divine Realm, the situation had changed. If people from the Divine Realm came, the continent would certainly fall into chaos. In this case, rankings and status would be useless, only strength can decide everything.
Because he clearly knew about this point, Juno wanted to arrange Kristen to marry Zhao Hai. Having Kristen do business in Golden Island was the first step.
But Juno a wise old person. He already saw the relationship between Zhao Hai and his wives. And seeing that Zhao Hai's wives were already very attractive, Juno didn't directly offer Zhao Hai the marriage. He wanted to make Kristen go to Golden Island first to do business and maybe have a few interactions with Zhao Hai. Juno hopes that the two might develop feelings for each other in the near future.
Zhao Hai telling Juno that he wasn't in the island most of the time was akin to informing Juno that he was aware of his plan. Zhao Hai wanted to express that there was almost no chance of any marriage happening. But although Juno got Zhao Hai's message, he still wanted to give it a try.
Zhao Hai looked at Juno's perseverance and sighed. He had already lived for quite some time in the Ark Continent, so he now understood the thoughts of the people living here. Because of this, he found Juno's decision to be understandable. But Zhao Hai wasn't planning on marrying Kristen.
Therefore, he told Juno that he cannot stay in Golden Island for most of the year. So even if he were to get in contact with Kristen, there wouldn't be a lot of chances to do so.
After another day of sailing, Zhao Hai and the others had finally arrived at the Hurricane Family's port. The reason why they were able to come back quickly was because they were travelling downstream. Therefore, the ship's speed was very quick.
Zhao Hai didn't stay for long, a short time after Juno disembarked, he immediately set sail. And after the ship has sailed, he immediately went to the Space along with Laura and the others. It was time to increase their ranks.
After arriving at the Space, Zhao Hai first went to Iron Mountain Fort to bring Green and Merine over. Then he went to Golden Island to call Kun, Blockhead, and Rockhead. Karen joined the group as well.
Green and the others had no idea why Zhao Hai took all of them to the Space. After the group had sat in the villa, Zhao Hai immediately informed them about the information that he had acquired while he was with the Dwarves. The Divine Realm, the Radiant Church, the Engraved Ark, all of it was told to the others.
Quite some time after they were shocked by the news, Green looked at Zhao Hai and said, "Young Master, do you mean that the Radiant Church was tasked by the Divine Realm to control the continent? And the Engraved Ark was tasked by the Demon Realm to destroy it?"
Zhao Hai nodded and said, "Yes, it seems like so. Although I'm not completely sure that the Radiant Church wanted to control the whole continent, we are certain that their intentions aren't good. If they can control the continent, then they would definitely enslave everyone in it."
Kun's face sank as he said, "This matter is too troublesome. Do you have any plans for it?'
Zhao Hai smiled faintly and then told them about the God's Blood as well as the Space levelling up. After Zhao Hai ended his report, Green and the others immediately expressed their happiness. For them this was really good news.
Green laughed and said, "This is fantastic! I've waited for this day! Hahaha. I must become a 9th rank expert immediately."
The others were happy as well, everyone except Karen. He seems to not care about it, he turned to Zhao Hai and said, "Little Hai, give me more blueprints. I've discovered how marvelous those ideas were just in my small time researching them. Although those didn't have any Magic Formations, they can actually mimic a formation's effects. I'm preparing to combine those with Magic Formations, as long as it succeeds, then it might lead to something that can change the continent."
Zhao Hai was simply speechless about this madman father-in-law of his. When others heard that they can become 9th ranks, they immediately became happy. It was only Karen that didn't care about it and instead only asked for more blueprints.
When she heard what her father just said, Laura couldn't bear it as she said, "Father, leave the matter of the blueprints to another time. You can now be a 9th rank expert, aren't you happy?"
Karen nodded and said, "Of course I'm happy. However, I'm much more interested in Little Hai's blueprints. If we can use Magic along with those machines, we can make a lot of extraordinary things. We can make machines that do our work for us, we can make carriages that can run by themselves, we can use a new type of energy to power our lamps. These things can immensely help the entire continent's living conditions."
Zhao Hai stared blankly at Karen, he really underestimated this father-in-law of his. Zhao Hai didn't expect Karen to come up with these things, it was surprising.
After some time, Zhao Hai recovered as he looked at Karen and said, "Father-in-law, let's deal with being a 9th rank first. If you become a 9th rank, your lifespan would be lengthened. Then, you would have more time to do research. What do you think?"
When Karen heard Zhao Hai, he thought about it for a moment before he nodded and said, "Alright, let's deal with that matter first. But if I become 9th rank, you better give me those blueprints."
Zhao Hai helplessly nodded, he was really speechless about Karen's ideas. He replied, "Father-in-law can use the Blood Pond in order to become a 9th rank now. Grandpa Green, Grandpa Merine, Grandpa Kun, Blockhead, and Rockhead, can you wait for a day or two? We need to decide which one goes first. People still need to cultivate for some days to become 9th rank. If all of you do it at the same time, nobody would be left to manage Iron Mountain Fort and Golden Island. That wouldn’t be good."