When Tang Shidao entered the Scarlet Flame Crystal City, the first thing he noticed was not the secret spring stone pillars on the high platform in the center of the city, but the people in this city. What shocked Tang Shidao was that more than 90% of the people in this city were...
...hungry.
I have to say.
In addition to some ancient planets that are extremely different from other mortal worlds and the Mage Network, Tang Shidao really can't think of any other magical area where the creatures can actually be hungry. Not to mention the water-making and food-making techniques, plants can grow with 1 point of mana.
, enough for any bad field to get a bumper harvest. And you don’t need to wait too long. With a few more touches, the plants will grow, and you can watch the crops leap from seedlings to mature harvesting stage.
The magic power in the wilderness of the previous world is exhausted, but there are still practitioners.
The Mage Network can make mortals rich with just a wave of his hand, yet ninety people in an entire city are still starving. This kind of thing is so unbelievable when you see it with your own eyes.
Look around.
Tang Shidao discovered that Scarlet Flame Crystal City had a large population, and most of the members of every family were teenagers and children.
These families are also united as one family.
educate.
Work.
Practice.
Everything is done as a family, with father or mother imparting knowledge and the children listening attentively.
They can't help but be careful.
Because these parents will allocate their children according to their learning and ability. The poor, lazy, and hungry will not give them anything to eat. The young people who are slightly mature, or the young people who are successful in cultivation, will leave and find another better one.
A place to work, or a better training environment. Most young people who go out will bring back some food or tools to prevent their families from being unable to support them and their younger brothers and sisters to survive.
Judging from status.
These families are the lowest-level units.
Then, the young people are a little higher, working or practicing. They are in a stadium, a work hall or a school hall, which is the penultimate floor.
The mentor status of these young people is higher, which can be regarded as the third to last level.
Said he was a mentor.
In fact, they are more like experienced thieves. At this level, some of them are responsible for teaching, some are responsible for patrolling, and some are responsible for hunting. The villains who block roads in the city and collect fees actually belong to the third to last level.
Apart from civilian families and civilian youth, the "military soldier" known as the thief is the most common unit of force and also the lowest unit of force.
Only thieves and groups above are considered true mages.
Although, the level is still very poor.
The secret spring stone pillar in the center of the city is an altar, a mandatory place of sacrifice. On the penultimate floor, after the young people have gained some mana through practice, they need to pay taxes. It is not money, but mana points. 10 draws
5. Moreover, you should turn it in every other year. In other words, you cannot double your practice in one year. Your practice will be in vain this year, and you may regress after you turn it in.
Does the city lord care about your opinion?
No.
Won't.
In his eyes, all young cultivators are like leeks. It is your fault if you do not grow taller or double your height within a year.
The sacrifice of the Secret Fountain Stone is very dangerous.
Tang Shidao saw with his own eyes that at least 10 to 20% of the young mages were sucked into dry skeletons. In addition to draining their mana, their lives were also drained. At that time, no one rescued them at all, and they were even laughing and mocking them. Even worse, sacrificing them.
It was difficult to control at that time, and some thieves even deliberately beat or shot, causing the young mages to lose control and become confused.
As long as there is a little confusion, the young mages will not be able to escape and will most likely be sucked into dry corpses.
That's the situation.
Ordinary people are just like plants, while secret spring stones are like people who harvest and eat.
Tang Shidao walked to the city wall and looked far away.
There are trees, rivers, and birds and animals in the wild. However, they all have one thing in common: either they are super big or they are super small!
Flowers and trees.
Birds, beasts, insects and fish.
They all meet this standard, either extra large or extra small, not medium.
Under the giant trees are small grasses or seedlings.
There are giant fish or small shrimps in the river.
Tang Shidao could sense that it was not that there were no medium-sized ones, but that all medium-sized ones were prey. When a giant wolf of tens of meters passed by, a beast of several meters in size would definitely die. Only small mice could survive. Not that small mice could withstand energy.
It's just that there are too many of them, and even after a few bites of the giant wolf, there's still a lot left over.
The same goes for trees.
If it's too big, herbivores can't eat it. If it's too small, herbivores can't eat it all... Medium-sized trees, one tree at a time, it's surprising if there is any leftover.
In addition to natural competition, hunting groups in cities are also a disruptive factor.
Trees that are too big are difficult to cut down.
A beast that is too big is difficult to defeat and kill.
The medium-sized ones are the easiest, and the ultra-small ones can be caught, but you can’t catch them all, so there are some leftovers. The only place where medium-sized beasts can survive is in underground caves. Because the underground cave environment is too complicated, with countless snakes, insects, rats, and ants, they can escape easily.
It can hunt. Of course, underground caves are also the most common places for people to hunt.
on the ground.
Or, a team of mages capable of dealing with behemoths.
Or, a big kid who is so hungry that he risking his life to catch bugs and fish.
For young people or adults, the best choice is to go into underground caves for hunting. Tang Shidao also discovered that underground caves are the city's 'food factory' and 'meat factory', the largest food supply point. People here have no farmland, and the ground grows
What, people just eat whatever they want. Not long? Just be hungry.
"Your Excellency, can you excuse me?" Tang Shidao was watching, when suddenly a slightly trembling voice asked.
Tang Shidao turned around.
At this time, a young monk with a respectful expression next to him was holding his hands in greeting, with a look of fear in his eyes.
"What's up?"
"Yes, please forgive me, Your Excellency. Our city lord sent me to come over and ask if we have offended anything. Regarding what happened in front of the city gate, the city lord has already executed those ten people. I hope you will not have any misunderstandings. If
Your Excellency is free, and the city lord would like to invite you to be a guest. What do you think?" The young monk didn't even dare to give his name, so he just apologized and got to the point.
"Your city lord is only around Saint Realm 2, right?" Tang Shidao said calmly.
"Yes, yes, Your Excellency." The young monk was shocked. The strength of a person who can speak like this is definitely above that of Saint Realm 2. After thinking about it, he quickly added: "However, the father of the city lord is also one of the most powerful people in the city.
Lord, possesses the miraculous power of Holy Realm 6."
"Doesn't the family even have a Realm Master?"
"Oh...then, that..." The young monk broke into a cold sweat and couldn't answer the words at all. In fact, he knew what the realm master was and what the supreme being was. He had even heard of the magic spirit master and the ancestor spirit.
but.
In the wilderness of the previous world, the more powerful the person, the closer they lived to the secret spring.
A strong mage who is far away from the secret spring becomes less powerful the closer he gets.
It's not that you can't get close, it's that you don't dare to get close.
The energy around the secret spring is the richest, and also the most dangerous. Generally speaking, a strong mage cannot even withstand it, let alone absorb it. Just like steel can be thrown into a fire, but if you are firewood, if you throw it into the fire, you will die.
.Similarly, if the temperature of the flame is too high, steel cannot withstand it. At the level of the Holy Realm, you can still fool around far away from the secret spring. If you get close, you won't be able to survive without others killing you.
"Your Excellency...you, you...we, we..." The young monk couldn't finish his words, and his spirit was about to collapse.
"May I ask a question?"
"Yes, please tell me." The young monk answered immediately, regardless of what the other party wanted to ask.
“Why is it safer underground than above ground?”
"Ah? You mean, living creatures and the like? Hmm, that's right... Because, because of the core of the void elemental soil, some associated minerals will be produced around it. These associated minerals also have extremely strong toughness, and may even be
Protect the safety of a place. The secret spring gathers energy from all directions, but it cannot compete with the core of the void primeval soil."
"There's nothing you can do about it, right?" Tang Shidao smiled.
"Yes, yes, what you said is true. I'm sorry that I made a mistake. That, um, secret spring, it... it can't do anything to the Void Realm, so the closer to the Void Realm, the safer it is. We are far away from the secret spring like us.
The place with the spring is also the safest underground cave with the largest number of creatures." The young monk did not dare to refute, here power is the truth.
"Don't worry, just answer my questions, I won't embarrass you."
"Ah? Thank you... Thank you for your magnanimity." The young monk broke into a cold sweat.
"Ask me again, why are these people starving?"
"This... Regarding this, Your Excellency, I apologize that I cannot explain it. There are many reasons for this. Generally speaking, because of the secret spring stone altar, mages rarely cast spells in cities or nearby places because it is easy to make mistakes. So.
, it is very difficult to plant and breed. Similarly, it is difficult for animals or plants with magical powers to survive. If a magical beast is injured or fighting, it is likely to be drained of energy and die, and the same is true for magical plants that are destroyed."
"Turn into a dry skeleton?"
"Yes, yes, you are right, Your Excellency. Another reason is that some people feel that civilians need to work hard to get more food. Therefore, they deliberately reduce sales. In fact, everyone is very busy at work, just in exchange for
There is relatively little food. Ultimately, because the altar is there, it is inconvenient to cast spells, so there is a shortage of food."
"Why don't you demolish that stone pillar?" Tang Shidao asked again.
"Ah... this, no, of course not. What you don't know is that our Scarlet Flame City can exist only because we have this altar. It belongs to another strong team, and I don't know who it is. In short, we must
Submit enough energy within the stipulated time, and then you can live safely. If the amount is insufficient, the city lord will have to advance it himself."
"If you don't have this kind of stone pillar, it means you have no one to protect you. Is this considered paying protection fees?"
"This... this..." The young monk was speechless. The answer of yes was the truth, but he did not dare to tell the truth. The answer of no was a lie.
Does he dare to deceive this mysterious man in front of him who doesn't even look down upon the Realm Lord?
Of course not.
"I understand, you don't need to tell me. Does every city have stone pillars like this?"
"yes."
"Every secret spring has an owner?"
"This...it is rumored that each secret spring is controlled by a group of people, or even multiple groups. However, no one person can own it. Because the secret spring is also a passage, it has a very special inner world inside. In addition to guarding
Someone needs to explore the outside as well as the inside. Therefore, many people must cooperate." The young monk opened his mouth and came, presumably this is something everyone knows.
"I'll give you food, can you help me exchange it for some money and a piece of identification?"
"Ah? Of course, of course. You don't need to give anything, we are happy to handle it for you." Facing the strong, the weak can only fawn unconditionally.
"No, just change it for me." Tang Shidao waved his hand.
A large amount of magical food and fruits were scattered on the ground.
This kind of thing is easy to obtain.
Strictly speaking, any mage's secret room can be planted in large quantities. However, others do not have Tang Shidao's ability to open the space door to the secret spring stone altar without being deprived of any energy by the secret spring stone altar.
The young monk was shocked and didn't understand how Tang Shidao did it.
but.
Others came quickly and took away the things... These ingredients are treasures of cultivation.
Five minutes.
Tang Shidao exchanged a large sum of money and obtained an identity certificate from Red Flame City: Magic Monk, Tang Feng!