...

...

The torchlight flickered slightly, and the Scar Lizardman felt a chill down its spine as it gazed at the scene before it.

In the spacious cave, mounds built of flesh stretched densely into the darkness.

Each mound was about half a man's height, with a wet, sticky surface emitting a sweet, putrid stench.

Black-red liquid flowed upstream in the mounds, pouring into the pits at their centers.

Inside, the Mixed Blood stood naked with eyes closed.

The black-red liquid, like maggots, slowly wriggled up and twined around the bodies of these Mixed Bloods.

The skin of these Mixed Bloods was grayish-white, yet they were unusually tall.

Even standing in the mounds, they seemed almost two meters high.

Their shoulders had broadened, and their physiques far surpassed that of ordinary Lizardmen.

The Scar Lizardman's eyes widened in astonishment as it took all this in, so much so that when the Great Shaman placed a hand on its shoulder, it shivered in fright.

"Great Shaman."

The Scar Lizardman quickly bowed its head, not daring to look directly at the Great Shaman before it.

"You should be able to see that they have all become stronger."

The Great Shaman stared at the Scar Lizardman, "Do you desire this kind of power?"

"Huh? Me?"

The Scar Lizardman shook its head repeatedly, "I'd better not, Great Shaman, I…I can't bear such power…"

The Scar Lizardman glanced again at the ghastly appearance of the Mixed Blood in the mound, shaking its head even more resolutely.

Compared to power, it still wished to be a normal Lizardman.

The Great Shaman gave the Scar Lizardman a meaningful look, making it shiver once more.

The cave became deathly silent, and the Scar Lizardman dared not breathe.

"If you don't want it, then go back and rest."

After a long while, the Great Shaman spoke again, and the Scar Lizardman let out a sigh of relief.

The Scar Lizardman hurriedly bowed to the Great Shaman, not daring to look back, and limped out of the cave as quickly as it could despite the pain.

The Great Shaman turned to watch the Scar Lizardman's retreating figure, murmuring softly,

"Those chosen by fate cannot escape."

...

...

Man Xiu traded his goods for fifteen hundred pounds of dried meat, and the payment for the Lizardman corpses was made in Gold Coins.

As for Luo De, besides acquiring a heap of daily necessities and four thousand pounds of rye, he also gained three hundred and fifty Gold Coins.

Luo De felt that he had suddenly become wealthy.

But Luo De was not interested in money.

Luo De desired slaves and grain more, so he could only have Lawrence send a message to the small merchants in Border City, asking them to bring more grain and slaves next time.

Goods would be more expensive at the border, but there was no choice.

In comparison, Lusen did not pay in Gold Coins; he offered twelve thousand pounds of rye, a thousand pounds of wheat, and two thumb-sized Flame Extraordinary Gems.

"It's truly unimaginable; a Lizardman corpse can match the value of thousands of acres of fertile land."

After sending off Man Xiu, Luo De couldn't help but marvel as he held the money pouch in his hand.

Beside him, Lusen chuckled with a slight sigh, "The prices of noble luxury goods are high because they are mainly scarce items."

"But they still can't compare to Spellcasters; this time, I gave more than Mr. Man Xiu."

There was a trace of bitterness in Lusen's smile.

"That's only natural, the price of one Extraordinary Gem is equivalent to the output of tens of thousands of acres of land."

Luo De toyed with the Extraordinary Gem in his hand and suddenly had a flash of inspiration, asking,

"Lusen, do you know anything about the history of Ancient Times?"

Lusen responded humbly, "I know a little, do you have any questions?"

"There's a great disparity in prices between nobles and commoners, and even more so between the Extraordinary and the nobles."

Luo De looked perplexed, "I really want to know, where did Wizards' wealth come from?"

"You see, 'wealth rises from the bottom', only the laborers at the bottom can generate wealth, nobles squander it, and the Church and Wizards squander even more."

"So the wealth produced by laborers is limited, where did all the wealth that the many Wizards and Churches squandered during Ancient Times come from?"

Listening to Luo De, Lusen's eyes gradually widened.

He stared blankly at Luo De, "I never expected… you would ask such a question…"

"Such questions about the laws of the world's operation were only discussed by the revered wise men with us…"

"Ah… is that so?"

Luo De found it hard to believe Lusen's words.

After all, these topics, even some high school political science classes on Blue Star would touch upon.

Not to mention that university students, even if non-sociology majors, had to study them.

"Do you know the answer?" Luo De asked.

Lusen replied, "Of course, though some are verified and some are speculative."

"Let me hear them all."

"Alright."

Lusen wasted no words and directly explained:

"It's certain that during Ancient Times, Wizards could create various potions and spells that affected agricultural production."

"For instance, they could double or triple yields of farmland, and significantly increase the number of offspring, meat yield, and milk production of livestock, among others."

"Noble Lords harvested more, their territories could support more people, and thus, produce more wealth."

Luo De nodded.

The power of Ancient Wizards far exceeded imagination, surpassing even his own entries.

He wondered if his golden entries could be stronger than the Wizards.

On the other hand, it proved that to become rich, one had to cultivate more land and raise more pigs.

"But that's just for agriculture, what about other resources? The study of potions and spells by Wizards consumes a large amount of materials."

"You've hit the key point."

Lusen lowered his voice, "In this regard, the wise men have two theories: one is that there's another continent in this world;"

"The other is that Ancient Wizards likely began otherworldly travels, acquiring resources from other worlds."

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