About twenty minutes later, Marco and his group returned to the mine's encampment.
Just then, Silver Flash the unicorn and Swan the griffin suddenly appeared behind the troops, with Swan carrying a dead wolf in its beak!
It turned out that after Marco killed the pack of wolves, the system didn't indicate the completion of the mission. Marco had then ordered Silver Flash, who was ambushing deep in the forest, to attack the remaining forest wolves.
Marco then stroked their heads to show his praise. Afterward, Marco signaled them to go outside and keep watch, while he led his men into the wooden hut.
The wooden huts here had been built a few days earlier. Marco's soldiers were working with the garrison soldiers, clearing the surrounding traps. Now that the wolf pack was dead, these things were useless.
Another group of people were starting a fire to cook wolf meat. This time, excluding the charred forest wolves, Marco had harvested a total of 24 wolf pelts and a large amount of wolf meat.
Because Skagos Island was a large island, salt wasn't really scarce here. The Stoneborn had always used seawater to boil fish for consumption.
Fortunately, Marco had later taught them to use ceramic pots to boil seawater and extract coarse salt. However, due to the climate in the North, the sun-drying method couldn't be used.
Since the introduction of coarse salt, Marco had also taught them how to preserve meat and salt fish, allowing them to consume meat and replenish salt even far from the coast.
Recently, the warriors had been eating black bread and dried salted fish, and hadn't had fresh meat for a long time, so when they saw the blood-red wolf meat, their mouths watered.
A few of the more gluttonous ones even started eating it raw, but Ma Sheng Dan loudly stopped them, whipping them a few times.
Ever since Marco unified Skagos Island, he had been encouraging everyone to increase their vegetable consumption, because he found that many Stoneborn suffered from Night Blindness due to not eating vegetables and fruits for a long time.
For this mine construction, Marco also had Ma Sheng Dan bring a batch of pumpkins and carrots in advance, to completely solve the problem of Night Blindness, making it easier for everyone to work in the mines in the future.
Fortunately, there was never a shortage of these long-lasting vegetables in Griffin's Fortress, and these vegetables were all from the Ashan World varieties, which were very easy to grow, had high yields, and could be preserved for a long time.
After this season, Marco will try planting these vegetables on Skagos Island, but he doesn't know what the yield will be like. Skagos Island can't grow wheat on a large scale, so he's unsure about other vegetables.
In a few years, the long summer will fade, and Winter will come, which could very likely cause a large-scale reduction or even cessation of production in the North. Marco had always been thinking about stockpiling more food.
At that time, whether it was gathering the refugees or using them as leverage, it would be very useful. Marco hoped to preserve more population before the White Walkers invaded.
Otherwise, it would only benefit those White Walkers. Marco didn't want to experience the helplessness of facing a skeleton army in reality.
The Night King wasn't so easily dealt with; otherwise, he wouldn't still be running around up north after thousands of years.
Seeing the plot in the TV series where they die like child's play, Marco felt his intelligence was being ground into the dirt by the writers. He wouldn't wait for Arya to deliver a single blow.
Moreover, without solving the White Walkers and the wildlings, Marco couldn't rule the world. These things could only be planned bit by bit.
Marco entered the room and first went to the storage room to check. After seeing that the pumpkins and carrots hadn't been touched much, Marco dragged Ma Sheng Dan out and gave him a severe scolding.
To scare these guys who didn't eat vegetables, Marco could only pretend to be mysterious in front of the large pot and mumble a few Chinese words. He then told everyone that he had cast a spell, and if anyone didn't eat vegetables,
the meat and fish they ate would turn rotten, and they would feel constantly uncomfortable. Only when they ate vegetables would they be able to recover.
The Stoneborn had always worshipped Marco like a god, so after hearing his words, they all believed without a doubt. The few who had just eaten raw meat picked up carrots and started to munch on them again.
This scene left Marco speechless. As a child of the Zhonghua Family, raised under the Red Flag, he had never had any fondness for these cannibals.
In the minds of the Zhonghua Family, people should know about ethics and shame. Although some Stoneborn ate people out of desperation, due to lack of food, the modern mindset still influenced Marco.
Therefore, when dealing with some small tribes that were incorrigible and did all sorts of evil, Marco was extremely ruthless, directly eliminating those who refused to change.
However, since Marco strictly forbade them from eating people, many had been strictly following his orders, except for a certain incorrigible fellow, of course.
But as long as they weren't wantonly killing the innocent or engaging in rape and plunder, Marco would turn a blind eye to some of their actions.
Moreover, they didn't resist Marco's cultural education. Many who only spoke the ancient language were working hard to learn, which made Marco change his opinion of them quite a bit.
At this moment, Ma Sheng Dan also walked in with his people. He said to Marco:
"My Lord! Come and see, we seem to have found the thing you were talking about! It's not far from here!"
Marco followed him out, and it seemed they had found the heat-radiating stone the Direwolf had mentioned. He just didn't know what it was!
Near the outpost, on a rock face, Marco saw the red stone Ma Sheng Dan and the others had described.
Ma Sheng Dan said they had searched for a long time before discovering it in a slightly loose stone.
The stone looked like a piece of red crystal, with a section of it emerging from a crack in the rock, a crimson that seemed to drip blood!
Marco walked forward and gently touched it, sensing a terrifying aura of Elemental Energy. Just as he was wondering about it,
A screen suddenly popped up in front of him:
"Ding! You are standing before an Elemental Reactor guarded by strong sentinels, which contains a large amount of treasure. Do you want to challenge the sentinels?"
Scared, Marco quickly pulled his hand back. Back on Earth, whenever he played games, he would always attack these treasure vaults for treasures and resources.
But every time, the powerful guards inside the vaults would cause him to lose a lot of manpower, especially now that he had no advanced troops. He was afraid he'd never return.
For a moment, Marco couldn't help but stare at the crystal stone, lost in thought. He was extremely conflicted. What he needed most right now was resources, but he was also short on manpower!
Moreover, all this wealth would come at the cost of losing manpower. So, for a while, Marco was incredibly conflicted, feeling somewhat bewildered.
Ma Sheng Dan watched Marco's expression, which went from excitement to dejection to sighs, and he was also full of doubts.
So, he cautiously asked Marco, "My Lord! Are you alright? Is there a problem?"
Marco was brought back to reality by his question and said to him with some helplessness:
"Ma Sheng Dan, do you think I'm being hypocritical? I was just criticizing you for not protecting your people, and now I'm agonizing over whether to make some sacrifices!
If others saw me doing this, they'd definitely look down on me! As a lord, keeping the good reputation and benefits for myself, while letting the people bleed and sacrifice themselves!"
Hearing Marco's words, Ma Sheng Dan immediately became agitated. He waved his hands frantically, as if to stop Marco.
"No! No! My Lord, you mustn't speak of yourself like that. The Stoneborn of Skagos Island will only be grateful to you! It is our honor to sacrifice ourselves for you!"
After saying this, he swallowed hard. He'd been too excited just now and hadn't even used honorifics. He thought for a moment and then said to Marco:
"My Lord! I believe in you! Everything you do has a purpose. If you were here and encountered those wolves, you would definitely minimize the losses.
I heard my father say that some nobles in the south are like wild dogs, only engaging in the 'procreation movement' all day long, and sometimes even with men!
You are different. You are the one who made our three tribes stop being enemies. You are the one who ensured that our elders and children wouldn't starve in the coldest days!"
After speaking, he looked at Marco with reverence. "Warg" Langya also chimed in:
"My Lord! I heard the Bloodstone Elder say, 'Even the strongest Direwolf will have a day to be injured and die, but it will die in a fight, not howling from the cold and starving!'
We have always believed that you will make us better and better, and become the overlords of Westeros! No longer will we be called hairy cannibals!"
Marco looked at the two men in front of him, and the hesitation in his heart slowly disappeared. He thought carefully, and found that his thinking had always been stuck in games and his past life.
He came to this world to live a better life, to make a name for himself in this world, and to stir up trouble.
This is a real world, everyone has flesh and blood, people will die in war, and there is no chance to save and restart. He could not be so slow any longer.
The threat of the White Walkers was still there, and the Bolton Family was still eyeing this place covetously. He had no time to get entangled in these things. Only by constantly improving his own strength would he not become a stepping stone for others.
After making up his mind, Marco said to Ma Sheng Dan:
"Give the order! Everyone eat tonight, and then get a good night's rest. The soldiers and I will come here tomorrow morning, we're going on an expedition!"
He cut off the two who were about to speak, saying to them:
"I'm in charge of this matter, you are not allowed to come in, I command you in the name of the Lord!"
"...Yes! Lord!"
About 20 minutes later, Marco and his party returned to the mine's encampment.
Just then, Silver Flash the Unicorn and Swan the Griffin suddenly appeared behind the troops, with Swan holding a dead wolf in its mouth!
It turned out that after Marco had killed the pack of wolves, the system didn't prompt that the task was complete, so Marco had Silver Flash the Unicorn, which was ambushing deep in the forest, attack the remaining forest wolves.
Marco then stroked their heads individually to praise them. After that, Marco signaled them to go outside and stand guard, while he led the others into the wooden huts.
The wooden huts here had been built a few days ago. Marco's soldiers were clearing the surrounding traps together with the garrison soldiers. Now that the wolves were dead, these things were no longer needed.
Another group was busy starting a fire to cook the wolf meat. This time, excluding the burnt forest wolves, Marco had harvested a total of 24 wolf pelts and a large amount of wolf meat.
Since Skagos Island was a large island, there wasn't much of a shortage of salt here. The Stoneborn had always used seawater to boil fish for consumption.
Fortunately, Marco later taught them how to use earthenware jars to boil seawater and extract coarse salt. However, due to the climate in the North, the salt-drying method couldn't be implemented.
Since coarse salt became available, Marco also taught them how to cure meat and salt fish. This way, even far from the sea, everyone could eat some meat and replenish their salt intake.
Recently, the warriors had been eating black bread and dried salted fish, and hadn't had fresh meat for a long time. So when they saw the blood-red wolf meat, their mouths started to water.
A few of the more gluttonous ones even started eating it raw, but they were loudly stopped by Ma Sheng Dan, who picked up his whip and gave them a thrashing.
Since unifying Skagos Island, Marco had been encouraging everyone to increase their consumption of vegetables. He noticed that many Stoneborn had developed Night Blindness due to not eating vegetables and fruits for a long time.
For this mine construction, Marco had also specifically asked Ma Sheng Dan to bring a batch of pumpkins and carrots in advance, in order to completely solve the problem of Night Blindness and make it easier for everyone to work in the mines in the future.
Fortunately, Griffin Fort never lacked these vegetables that could be stored for a long time, and these vegetables all came from Ashan World, were very easy to grow, had high yields, and could be preserved for a long time.
After this season, Marco would try growing these vegetables on Skagos Island. He didn't know what the yield would be like. Skagos Island couldn't grow wheat on a large scale. He didn't know how other vegetables would fare.
A few years later, the long summer would fade, and Winter would arrive. It was very likely that the North would experience large-scale production cuts or even shutdowns. Marco had always wanted to stockpile more food.
At that time, whether it was to gather refugees or to give as favors, it would be very useful. Marco hoped to preserve more population before the White Walkers invaded.
Otherwise, it wouldn't be a bargain for those White Walkers. Marco didn't want to experience the feeling of helplessness when facing the skeletal sea in reality.
The Night King wasn't so easy to deal with, otherwise, he wouldn't have been bouncing around in the North for thousands of years.
Looking at the scenes in the TV series where they died like child's play, Marco felt like his IQ was being rubbed on the ground by the screenwriter. He wouldn't wait for Arya to give him that one sword.
And if he didn't solve the White Walkers and the wildlings, Marco couldn't become the ruler of the world. He could only plan these things little by little.
After entering the room, Marco first checked the storage room. Seeing that the pumpkins and carrots remained largely untouched, Marco dragged Ma Sheng Dan out and gave him a stern lecture.
To scare these guys who wouldn't eat their vegetables, Marco could only pretend to mutter some Chinese phrases in front of the big pot, and told everyone that he had cast a spell on the food. If anyone refused to eat the vegetables,
the meat and fish they ate would turn rotten, and they would suffer from stomachaches until they ate vegetables again.
The Stoneborn had always worshipped Marco like a god, so after hearing his words, everyone believed him without a doubt. The few who had just eaten raw meat picked up the carrots and started munching on them again.
This scene left Marco speechless. As a child of the Zhonghua Family, he had never had any good feelings towards these cannibals.
In the minds of the Zhonghua Family, people should know about manners and a sense of shame. Although some Stoneborn ate people out of necessity, due to a lack of food, modern thinking still influenced Marco.
Therefore, when dealing with some incorrigible, wicked small tribes, Marco was extremely ruthless, directly eliminating those who refused to change.
However, since Marco had strictly forbidden them from eating people, many had been following his orders. Of course, except for a certain incorrigible guy.
But as long as they weren't wantonly killing innocents or engaging in rape and plunder, Marco would turn a blind eye to some of their actions.
Moreover, they weren't resistant to Marco's cultural education. Many of those who could only speak the ancient language were working hard to learn, which also changed Marco's opinion of them.
At this moment, Ma Sheng Dan also walked in with some people. He said to Marco:
"My Lord! Please come and take a look. We seem to have found the thing you were talking about! It's not far from here!"
Upon hearing this, Marco followed him out. It seemed that they had found the heat-radiating stone that the Direwolf had mentioned, but he didn't know what it was!
On a rock face