Chapter 207: New City

Su Lun felt warm all over his body. The magical dishes made from Frost Wyvern meat and some precious magical ingredients were not only extremely delicious but also had special effects.

However, because Su Lun’s physical constitution was already too strong, these magical dishes could not strengthen his body further. Although they did not enhance his physical attributes, they allowed his body to quickly recover stamina for a period of time and temporarily increased his spell resistance.

Even though these magical dishes had little effect on Su Lun, they worked very well for others. Heatherway benefited the most, as these dishes were very effective for those with lower physical fitness, with the effects gradually decreasing as physical fitness improved.

The main ingredient this time was Frost Wyvern meat, which provided Su Lun with increased ice element resistance and doubled his stamina recovery rate.

Jushi and Johnson, the two big eaters, consumed the most. However, magical dishes were not something that could be eaten freely. After seeing these two guys with red faces, sweating profusely, and their whole bodies looking like boiled shrimp, the Halfling Frodo quickly warned, “Lord Su Lun, they cannot eat any more. Eating too much will overload their bodies.”

Su Lun stepped forward directly and knocked out the two still-fighting eaters with one punch each. He then handed them over to other Barbarian Guards to take them back.

This time, Frodo had prepared plenty of food. Even though the group had eaten and drunk heartily, there was still some left. However, everyone was already quite full, especially the few female Spellcasters, who naturally had smaller appetites.

“Do not waste the leftovers. Pack them up and take them with you,” Su Lun said to the already full crowd. Although he did not cook the food, he provided the ingredients.

Upon hearing Su Lun’s words, the previously lazy group immediately became energetic and began discussing the distribution of the food. Even the usually calm Grace did not hold back, arguing fiercely with a red face. However, they quickly agreed on a distribution plan. Chris and Heatherway received the most, while the amounts given to others were not too different.

Frodo was now the chief food advisor of Zhenbei City, a position recognized by Su Lun. Every month, Su Lun allocated some funds and various magical ingredients to him for experiments and told him about several new dishes. This former adventurer had completely been led astray by Su Lun.

In his previous life, Su Lun was not a chef, but as a seasoned food enthusiast from a nation of food lovers, he admitted that while he could not cook, he certainly knew how to eat. Although he did not remember all the eight major cuisines and their derivative styles from his previous life, he was familiar with dozens to hundreds of them.

After the distribution, Su Lun left with Chris and Heatherway. After eating magical dishes, some exercise helped to better absorb the effects. Su Lun had eaten a lot and was feeling quite warm, which was a normal reaction. He planned to engage in some post-meal exercise with Chris and Heatherway.

With the buff of rapid stamina recovery, even though Heatherway and Chris had improved physical fitness, they were no match for him. However, they had their own unique skills. For example, Heatherway’s use of the Grease Spell was absolutely masterful, described in one sentence as “enjoying the silk-like smoothness.”

As a Succubus, Chris had much higher physical fitness than Heatherway and excellent coordination. Her various rope arts and postures were highly skilled, giving Su Lun an even better experience. However, she was still no match for Su Lun. In the end, Angela and Anna had to come to the rescue before it was over.

The night passed without incident.

Since Zhenbei City no longer faced other threats in this wasteland, Su Lun began preparing to build new cities around the territory. Based on the current immigration rate, Zhenbei City would have a population of 50,000 within a year. In addition to the refugees recruited from Florentia, Zhenbei City had recently accepted the submission of a Barbarian tribe.

As the new overlord of this wasteland, Zhenbei City was not as brutal as the Orcs. Moreover, the presence of many Barbarians in Zhenbei City was naturally known to the surrounding Barbarian tribes. Combined with the living conditions in Zhenbei City, it was very attractive to these Barbarians.

Previously, the main reason more tribes did not submit was the awareness that Zhenbei City’s rise would inevitably alert the other two large tribes in the wasteland, leading to a major battle. At the time, no one had high hopes for Zhenbei City. However, the situation changed unexpectedly. Who would have thought that after defeating the Centaur Tribes, the seemingly unstoppable Orc Tribe would be crushed by Zhenbei City in a single battle?

Soon after, the remaining Centaurs directly joined Zhenbei City, making it the sole overlord of the wasteland. The other tribes naturally knew what choice to make. However, those who submitted at this time carried less weight compared to those who had fought alongside Zhenbei City. Therefore, Su Lun did not offer them particularly favorable treatment.

In short, to get better treatment, they needed to contribute to Zhenbei City. This was the foundation of Zhenbei City.

After the first Barbarian tribe submitted and was accepted, other surrounding Barbarian tribes began to consider the idea. There were few large tribes in the wasteland, but small tribes of one to two hundred people were countless. These small tribes lived in constant uncertainty, never knowing when they might be wiped out or absorbed by other tribes.

Aside from other tribes, the wasteland also held dangers from powerful Magical Beasts, such as the Frost Wyvern Su Lun had slain. If these creatures targeted them, the small tribes would have no means of resistance.

The submission of Barbarians significantly increased the number of Barbarian Warriors in Zhenbei City. Although these Barbarian tribes were small, with only one to two hundred people each, several together added up to a considerable number. Soon, the Barbarian population in Zhenbei City exceeded a thousand, and the growth rate showed no signs of slowing.

Su Lun ordered the army to begin recruiting Barbarian Soldiers and planned to form a unit of heavy infantry with them. Although Barbarians had the drawback of becoming uncontrollable after entering Berserk mode, they were highly effective at breaking enemy formations. The Florence Kingdom was unwilling to use Barbarians due to their high cost and high casualty rates, treating them as expensive consumables.

However, in Zhenbei City, these Barbarians were not treated as consumables. The existence of the System accelerated their advancement, allowing their strength to grow very quickly. After a few advancements, they could overpower most armies. Equipping them with Iron Armor and weapons would significantly reduce their casualty rates, something Zhenbei City could easily afford.

“Chris, how much funds are left in the treasury, and what is the stock of various supplies?” Su Lun asked after issuing an order.

“Currently, there are thirty thousand Gold Nar. Food supplies amount to one hundred ten thousand units, enough to feed Zhenbei City for a year. There are eighty thousand jin of iron ingots…”

After listening to Chris’s report, Su Lun said directly, “Allocate half of the funds and supplies. I plan to build a small city in each of the four directions around Zhenbei City.”

“Master, our current number of slaves is limited. Starting construction on four cities at once will progress very slowly,” Chris reminded him.

“I know. We’ll start with the cities to the south and east. The city to the east is for the Centaurs to live in. They will provide some manpower. Then, we can capture some slaves from the wilderness and send some of our own people. That should be enough.”

“Since they need to raise livestock, other basic infrastructure can be a bit weaker, but the housing and livestock pens must be good,” Su Lun said with a smile.

“The city to the south will settle the refugees immigrating from the Northern Provinces next month. At the same time, we’ll dispatch a five-hundred-strong army and allocate some slaves for construction. We must complete the housing and city walls before winter arrives.”

“Also, during this time, have the newly formed armies go out for practical training and capture slaves…”

Chris recorded Su Lun’s requirements and later assigned them to others for execution.

“Master, if we capture slaves on a large scale, our food consumption will increase rapidly,” Chris calculated and said with some concern.

“No need to worry about that. In at most another month and a half, the crops in Zhenbei City will mature again. We may not be able to guarantee meat, but potatoes will be sufficient. Those slaves are lucky to have anything to eat. Compared to their previous lives, I think I’m being quite merciful.”

Upon reflection, it made sense. What did creatures like Kobolds and Goblins in the wasteland used to eat? Wild vegetables, insects, plant roots, other animals, or even other Goblins. Moreover, they often went hungry. Now, working for Zhenbei City, although it was tiring, at least they had enough to eat, and no one would kill them arbitrarily.

The construction of the new towns quickly began. Funds, supplies, and manpower were transferred. The Centaurs were the first to take action. They were very much looking forward to building and living in a town. At least with the protection of city walls, they would have more time to react if faced with surprise attacks again.

The southern town also began construction. The new city was located about fifty li south of Zhenbei City, a distance that was neither too far nor too close. If attacked, they could hold out until the main army from Zhenbei City arrived for rescue. The permanent garrison there was currently five hundred soldiers. As the town developed and grew, the size of the garrison would also increase accordingly.

After the construction of the new cities, the three cities formed a triangle. The area within the triangle would be completely controlled by Zhenbei City. This was the method humans used when pioneering the wilderness, gradually expanding their territory.

A five-hundred-strong army escorted three thousand refugees, along with an even larger number of slaves and supplies, to the south to build the new city. Su Lun personally led the team. The location chosen for the new city was by a lakeside. The lake was very large, roughly several times the size of Zhenbei City, as Su Lun quickly assessed. It was rich in aquatic products, and the surrounding land was fertile. Su Lun quickly decided to build the new city by the lake.