Overseas Islands

Overseas Islands.

The geography of this region is somewhat unique because it was originally a continent. Later, a large area of the continental shelf collapsed and sank, eventually leading to the current geography of the region. From the map, it looks somewhat like the Spratly Islands near Singapore, except that there are more scattered islands than that continental plate. The largest of these is the territory of the Amazon, followed by the stronghold of the indigenous people, and numerous islands of varying sizes scattered in the sea.

As they entered the area of Overseas Islands, Soren's expression became serious.

This region is somewhat like a Tropical Rainforest, teeming with unknown dangers. While the small islands may seem unremarkable, their challenge levels are all above level 9. This means that even a team of Adventurer with around level 3 strength could be wiped out on some of these islands. Many unknown and terrifying creatures reside here, some quite small, yet posing a greater threat than even Draconic creatures.

Furthermore, there are some formidable Prehistoric Giant Python here, with some Challenge Rating 15 or higher!

They're basically the same as Dragonkind.

Soren had no intention of exploring these small islands; some places were off-limits even to the natives, so he naturally didn't plan to recklessly venture into dangerous areas. His destination was the larger island further ahead. If he remembered correctly, there was an island with a diameter exceeding five hundred square kilometers, along with other connected islands. This was Soren's first stop; if it was suitable, he would establish a camp here.

Because the locations he chose all had natural harbors!

Two more days have passed.

When Soren saw a towering mountain peak and cliffs rising from the coastline, he finally knew he had reached his destination. Seagulls filled the air, and dense forests stretched into the distance. The ground was covered in a thick layer of bird guano; this area of islands had served as a stopover point for migratory birds, accumulating a vast amount of guano over millions of years. Don't underestimate this guano; it's an extremely valuable resource!

To put it simply, these bird droppings accumulate on the land over time, and with a little processing, they become the best fertilizer!

Soren chose this place as his base not only because of its advantageous geographical location.

"Stop here."

Soren glanced at the others, then fixed his gaze on a spot on the cliff face where a Metal Cross lay, its skeleton seemingly still visible. This skeleton belonged to a once-famous Pirate King who had fallen into enemy hands and been cruelly nailed to the cross. His ghost could be found there, but only at specific times. He would make a difficult request of the others, and if they fulfilled it, they would receive his treasure.

The soul of this Pirate King resides in the Spirit Realm, and encountering his soul seems to require special conditions!

Soren had no interest in taking on such a task, even though it was Quasi-Legendary in difficulty. He looked at the others and said, "You guys stay here!... Adele Isabella!... Humpback Whale!... You few come with me to the island to have a look!..."

A small speedboat was lowered.

Soren quickly led a few people to the island. Perhaps because few outsiders appeared here, as soon as they set foot on the island, a sky full of birds took flight, and there seemed to be some noise in the distance. However, it quickly calmed down. The fact that a town could be built in this area was only because it was relatively safe. Soren was naturally not naive enough to think that there were no enemies here. He did not venture too far into the jungle, but came to a flat area south of the cliff. This was a natural flat area, the place where others had found it and eventually built a town.

There were some white stones in the woods. They felt brittle and crumbled easily when squeezed.

Soren picked up a stone, smelled it, and a smile involuntarily appeared on his face. The others also curiously picked them up and smelled them, but immediately threw them away with disgust, because they smelled like excrement. These pirates couldn't see the value of these stones, but to Soren, they were his most important treasure, even more valuable than a Gold Mine. This place was actually an inexhaustible Gold Mine, but the natives just didn't know how to use it.

--"Guano, a type of mineral, also known as bird and animal droppings. Accumulated droppings and carcasses of birds, bats, and seals are a high-quality fertilizer." [Geography Knowledge]

The knowledge he had learned before flashed through Soren's mind.

The area near the forest on this island is Guano accumulation point. Because it is located in a migratory bird area, countless Guano have accumulated over millions of years. Digging three feet down reveals high-quality fertilizer material.

But!

There's more valuable stuff here than just this.

Soren cautiously surveyed his surroundings, then placed his hands on the hilt of his sword, gestured to his men behind him, and said in a low voice, "Be careful! There might be monsters around here!"

He gradually moved forward along the flat ground, and as the terrain rose higher and higher, it began to become a high slope.

Then a patch of red land appeared before us.

There were some wild animals nearby, but they immediately fled upon seeing Soren and his companions. Sensing the danger emanating from them, even a Cheetah was frightened and ran into the jungle. Soren used his Scimitar to cut through the soil, then reached out and scooped up some red clay. He kneaded it in his hand, then tossed it onto the ground with a broad smile.

It is indeed Clay!

In his memory, the town here was built with Red Brick. He didn't know what techniques were used, but a cluster of brick houses and a large section of walls were built in just three months. Bricks had already appeared in Ancient Rome, and humans had been experimenting with firing other things from Clay since the time of pottery making. Soren even knew a little about the process of making Porcelain, so the requirements for firing Red Brick were not too simple for him.

but.

The most crucial point is how to increase production. The construction technology in this world is quite advanced, but mass production is not widespread. Most high-end products are made by Spellcaster, and Soren doesn't know how those people managed to produce so many bricks in such a short time. But that doesn't matter. Those people only started expanding overseas after the Time of Troubles, while he has already started two years ahead of time. Even if he lacks a slight technological advantage, he can still develop on a larger scale ahead of others.

"What are you doing, sir?"

A man with a large head, somewhat resembling a bobblehead doll, but with a fierce and menacing face, stood at the back, muttering under his breath, "Looking at rocks and soil! Are you perhaps assessing whether this place is suitable for cultivation? Overseas lands are all wasteland; even if you wanted to cultivate it, it would take several years to turn it into arable land."

"Don't look at me like that!... Before I became a pirate, I farmed for several years!..."

Pirates all had strange appearances, and were generally not handsome. Noticing the strange looks he was getting, he chuckled and said, "Don't let my swiftness in chopping off heads fool you, I'm pretty good at farming too."

Soren ignored what was behind him.

He walked all the way to the top of the hill. Looking down at the distant plains, he mentally calculated the size and distance of the space. Perhaps due to his powerful computing ability, or perhaps due to the data-driven simulation, he actually constructed a rough model of a town in his mind. This place actually had enough space to accommodate the development of a medium-sized city. Don't underestimate those guilds that expanded overseas in their previous lives; many of them were professional-level talents, and the places they chose naturally had many comprehensive advantages.

On the other side.

The Half-Elf first mate stood at the bow of the ship, when suddenly he seemed to sense something. He looked down at the Seawater below, and the person next to him asked in confusion, "What's wrong?"

He stared at the seabed for a while, then gently shook his head and said, "Nothing. I just think I saw something."

Time passed second by second.

About two hours later, Soren finally finished surveying the surrounding area and returned with the others.

He had already made up his mind!

Although he had two backup locations he hadn't checked yet, Soren was already very satisfied with this place. The other two locations were a bit remote, still a day or two's voyage away. To expand and develop overseas, he needed to rely on the resources of the mainland, so the closer the shipping route, the better, making it easier to transport other supplies. This location, with its natural harbor, geographical advantages, land resources, and so on, could be considered one of the best places among the Overseas Islands.

Furthermore, this location has another advantage: it is relatively far from the activity range of the Amazon and not near the main camp of the indigenous people.

Because the island is not very large, not many indigenous people have migrated there.

In this Overseas Islands.

Generally, the larger the island, the more intense the competition, because it represents a vast territory. Conversely, smaller islands, due to limited space for development, sometimes lack indigenous inhabitants.

The island in front of us is just the right size—not too big, not too small—it has room for development, but it's not too conspicuous!

"Disembark!"

A slight smile finally appeared on Soren's face, and he said in a deep voice, "Move all the supplies down there, and arrange for men to set up camp on the flat ground ahead."

He's planning to acquire land here.

(Quitting smoking is really tough, day six... My mental state has been really tough lately, and this part of the story is progressing slowly, so updates might be less frequent. Expanding overseas isn't just about randomly acquiring land; that's suicidal. There's a lot of foreshadowing in this part of the story, and many things need to be explained. Finally, I'll announce something really positive in a couple of days. Muah! Once I get through this period, I'll have a big update.) (To be continued~^~)