Discovering a Gold Mine

Stranglethorn Vale was a wonderful place. The environment was excellent, and the scenery was beautiful—hundreds of times better than those so-called 6A-rated scenic areas from Sun Busong's previous life.

A babbling brook beneath a small bridge, an ancient road shaded by trees, a suspension bridge, withered trees, and fish swimming in the shallows!

Of course, to Sun Busong, it was all just scenery. What he cared about was the resources here.

First of all, there were inexhaustible gold and silver mines. Sun Busong's ways of making money were already tens of thousands of times more effective than those of ordinary people, but money never hurt anyone. How could he complain about having too little? Besides, Night Town belonged to him now. How could he develop it without money?

Then there were the neutral Goblins. The name Treasure Bay sounded impressive, and it truly lived up to its name: a veritable treasure trove. It had a neutral bank, a neutral Auction Hall, a neutral harbor and coastline, neutral flight routes, and, of course, an arena!

But Sun Busong wasn't planning to go to Treasure Bay just yet. He wanted to get a little closer to Captain Duo Lun first.

"Boss, these people don't think much of us. Let's go. I don't want to put up with them!"

The Tauren felt uncomfortable about it. He was too straightforward.

"Cut the chatter. Just stay close to me. The monsters around here are high level, especially along the sides of the road. Trolls and beasts over level forty could charge out at any moment."

The Tauren pushed a small cart, looking thoroughly displeased.

Sun Busong had originally planned to put him in a harness and make him pull the cart on all fours like a proper ox. But the stubborn bull refused, no matter what, so Sun Busong had no choice but to let him be.

Sigh! He wouldn't get to ride in an ox-drawn cart. He really wanted to experience the fun of driving one.

Humar had gone ahead in Stealth to scout the way. After advancing to Excellent quality, not only had he grown stronger, his appetite had also increased. Ordinary meat and fish no longer suited his taste.

Sun Busong had killed several kinds of beasts along the way just to cook something Humar would like. After Humar had eaten his fill, Sun Busong finally coaxed him into scouting ahead.

"My ox, don't pull such a long face. Your ox face isn't any shorter than a donkey's. Listen to the boss. Put up with it for a few days. Once we've gotten to know them, the boss will avenge you and kill those few bastards who gave us dirty looks."

"Really?"

Heavy Fist's ox eyes widened until they were almost as big as eggs.

"When have I ever lied to you? Hahaha. How about this? Once we're done here, we'll go to Treasure Bay. There'll be a big auction there in a few months. I'll get you a few good things then."

Sun Busong wasn't just making empty promises. Heavy Fist's class inheritance was very important to his future development. A single-path Shaman wouldn't satisfy his ambitions, so this time he'd brought the bull along to complete the Nightmare Trial.

"Hmoo, hmoo~~~ I'll listen to the boss, hmoo~~~"

Whenever he got excited, the guy started speaking his native language.

The small cart held three large crates filled with food and some herbs. The heaviest crate was sealed shut, and Sun Busong couldn't be bothered to find out what was inside. It was only a few dozen miles, and they'd get there quickly at their pace.

Not long after they crossed a suspension bridge, Humar returned from scouting ahead.

"Roar, roar! Awooo!" He looked urgent, growling a jumble of sounds and gesturing back and forth with his claws.

"..."

Sun Busong couldn't understand him at all, so he turned to look at the Tauren.

"Why are you looking at me? I'm a Tauren, not an ox!"

Heavy Fist knew the difference perfectly well, hahaha.

Once, they'd passed a ranch, and Sun Busong had even bought a plump dairy cow there. The Tauren's first reaction had been, "That thing doesn't look tasty!"

What did that have to do with eating? He'd bought it for the Tauren to ride!

But Sun Busong couldn't say that out loud.

"Let's go. There's probably trouble ahead. Guard the cargo; I'll handle the rest."

"Don't worry, boss. As long as I'm here, the cargo is safe."

Following Humar, Sun Busong crossed a deep ravine and climbed up a cliff. He crouched behind a boulder and peered down.

It was a ruin called the Gash Ruins. It must once have been a large tribe; judging by the enormous, damaged stone pillars, the place had surely been magnificent.

A group of wild Trolls had made their home in the ruins. Why call them wild Trolls? Because, just like humans, not all Trolls belonged to the Horde. Some wanted nothing to do with it and carved out territories of their own, where they could rule as they pleased.

They took no part in the conflicts between the Horde and the Alliance, and didn't care about the Scourge, either. But small groups like these, cut off from the larger world, were exactly the kind the Burning Legion liked to control—and the easiest for them to control. All it took was sending out a few succubi or Banshees to bewitch their leaders, and the whole group would become the Burning Legion's most loyal lackeys.

So Sun Busong had no qualms about killing these scum who refused to stand with the Human Alliance. The same went for the Horde Side. Monsters like these were excellent sources of experience and loot.

After observing them, Sun Busong realized these Trolls were quite strong. They were all over level thirty, and some of the larger ones had already reached level thirty-seven—ten levels above him. They'd even trained tigers and leopards to fight alongside them.

Then Sun Busong looked farther into the distance, and his eyes lit up. A gold mine!!!

"Hehehe."

Sun Busong couldn't figure out why seeing a gold mine made him grin so obscenely without meaning to!

He left Humar hidden there, then returned to Heavy Fist.

"My ox, there's a gold mine here! I'm going to make it our Imperial Guard's!"

"Really!" Heavy Fist was thrilled to hear there was a gold mine. "Boss, is it big?"

?

It took Sun Busong a moment to understand what he meant. "The gold mine should be pretty big. More than a hundred people are guarding the entrance, and they've tamed some beasts, too. Their levels are all much higher than ours, though. Here's the plan!"

Sun Busong began assigning Heavy Fist his duties. They had to take the gold mine, but the two of them alone weren't enough.

Killing people wasn't a problem for Sun Busong. But once they'd killed everyone and taken the mine, who would work it? Who would guard it? That was the problem.

Sun Busong decided to tell Captain Duo Lun about the gold mine. But first, he wanted to give the captain a little appetizer.

"Once you've finished the mission today, head back to Night Town overnight and give my letter to Usop. Have him contact the Brotherhood. You don't need to come back for the next few days. Spend some time with Usop. I'll make a few preparations and get Captain Duo Lun to do something useful."

Rebel Army Camp.

"Who's there? What do you want? Oh, supplies from the Goblins. They actually sent a dwarf to deliver them? That's strange. They usually bring the supplies themselves. Never mind... You haven't touched anything inside, have you? Good, good... I'd hate for our land mines to suddenly explode. I really would."

The person receiving Sun Busong was a sergeant. Even Sun Busong hadn't expected one of the crates he was delivering to contain land mines—and there were quite a few of them.

Those bastards hadn't told them beforehand. If Sun Busong had accidentally set them off, he'd have been in for a world of trouble.

"We've delivered the cargo. Please sign for it and give us a receipt. We need to head back and report."

After the sergeant checked the cargo, he smiled at Sun Busong. "You did well. Everything's intact, and nothing's damaged."

"These land mines will help us resist attacks from Korson and his men. Thank you for bringing them here. If you're looking for other work, I think I can find something for you. By the way, you don't have to deal with those Goblins anymore, do you?"

The sergeant seemed to like Sun Busong and was planning to give him the follow-up missions, too.

"Hehe! I was just wondering how I'd get my explosives inside."

The moment Sun Busong saw the land mines among the cargo, a plan had already formed in his mind. He hadn't expected the sergeant to be so accommodating. Now Sun Busong didn't have to worry about how to sneak in.

"Sergeant, just tell me what else needs doing. I'll get it done. And I hope you'll put in a good word for me with the captain."

"Hahaha, no problem, no problem. I love helping the next generation!"

Then the sergeant assigned Sun Busong his next mission.

Sun Busong found an excuse to send Heavy Fist away. He headed straight back to Night Town. His strength wasn't bad, but that was all it was. At level twenty-seven, Heavy Fist didn't have the frighteningly large Health Points that Sun Busong did. His survival here would be a problem.

"If we're going to take on Korson, we have to weaken his medical forces. He has a large number of medical personnel gathered there. They use Jungle Potion to heal their troops and Poison Grass Juice to poison our men.

"We need those medicines to treat our own soldiers, and we also need a sample of the poison to develop an antidote. Go to Korson's camp, Sun Busong, and bring back both. The medicines should be on the medical personnel and soldiers, while the Poison Grass Juice is probably stored in some supply crates around the camp."

That was the first mission the sergeant gave Sun Busong: bring back seven doses of Jungle Potion and one dose of Poison Grass Juice from the enemy camp.

"I'm sure you can handle this. When you return, I'll report your contributions to Captain Duo Lun. Go on, brave warrior!"

Now this was a master of empty promises. He didn't have to give anything up; a few words were enough to send someone else into mortal danger.

"Yes, sir! I'll be back with good news!"

The enemy camp was on the easternmost edge of Stranglethorn Vale. Both sides were actually rebel forces, but they'd fallen out over how to divide certain interests. Now they were mortal enemies. The nobles of Stormwind hadn't even started dealing with them yet, and they were already tearing into each other.

When Sun Busong made it to the Korson camp, he realized that these people were the real main force.

They lived in wooden lodges, with blockhouses and sentry posts, and even had a huge underground storehouse—which was really a secret underground base.

Sun Busong almost regretted joining that bastard Duo Lun so casually. Joining Korson seemed like the way to get ahead.

After scouting the area, Sun Busong had a pretty good idea of their numbers and arrangement. To begin with, they had at least four different unit types.

Korson Herbalists were Caster Class fighters. They could use poison and heal their allies. Then there were the Korson Jungle Warriors, defensive Warriors who wielded swords and shields, as well as Korson Beastmasters and their ferocious beasts. Sun Busong also spotted some hidden sentries called Korson. They were probably a branch of the Rogue Class, with the ability to hide.

Since he'd already accepted the mission, this place belonged to him now. He was desperately short on Kill Points lately!

Sun Busong began ambushing them from the perimeter. His first targets were the Korson Herbalists, who carried Jungle Potion.

Completing the mission was a must. Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to get near the warehouses storing explosives in the future.

Sun Busong could easily kill these soldiers without making a sound. He'd gained plenty of Slaughter Value during that night in Night Town. He didn't have to kill an enemy himself to gain Slaughter Value; as long as the enemy was Elite Level or higher, assisting in the kill could also increase his Health Points and Kill Points!

Sun Busong:

Dwarf Warrior, level 27.

Health Points: 62,335!

Base Attributes: Strength +98 (+356 Free Attribute Points), Agility +65, Stamina +65, Intelligence +27, Spirit +27, Armor +1,095.

Secondary Attributes: Damage 425–499, Speed 2.15, Power 1,362, Hit Rating 61, Critical Strike Rate 31.99, Precision 50.

With his current stats, he could kill these people with one swing of his axe. They didn't even have time to react before they were dead.

In two hours, Sun Busong had wiped out every sentry around the camp, along with the soldiers in its barracks and wooden lodges. Corpses littered the ground behind him, and blood flowed in rivers!

He was completely numb to scenes of carnage like this now. He could have stood in a pile of corpses to eat and sleep without feeling the slightest discomfort. It was as though all the weakness, compassion, and fear from his previous life had been left behind in the river of time after he crossed over. Now he only wanted to kill more enemies and grow stronger.

He'd completed the mission long ago. After wiping out all the troops above ground, Sun Busong looked toward the underground base in the distance.

It wasn't time to go inside yet. He still didn't know enough about what was down there, so he forced himself to resist the urge to go in and slaughter his way through. Then he returned to the Rebel Army camp and found the sergeant.

"You really brought back the Jungle Potion! Hahahaha! Well done, Sun Busong. These medicines will greatly improve our troops' chances of surviving and fighting on the battlefield, and this poison will help us make an antidote as soon as possible."

"Wait here. I'm going to reward you, hahaha!"

After getting the Jungle Potion, the sergeant was so excited he could hardly believe what had happened. He'd never expected the cannon fodder he'd picked up at random to complete such a difficult mission.

Before long, the sergeant returned with an axe in his hand.

"I saw you usually use an axe, so I dug out the battleaxe I used to wield. It's an Excellent-quality green item. I'm giving it to you as a reward. I hope you'll keep up the good work and live up to my expectations—and this axe's, too!"

"Yes, Sergeant!"

It was a piece of junk. Sun Busong glanced at it. He could only sell it for two silver coins.

"Next, I have an even more important mission for you. If you can complete it, I'll recommend you to help me manage the logistics. Hahaha, there's plenty of money to be made in my department!"

"Please give me your orders, Sergeant!"

After yet another string of missions, Sun Busong changed direction and killed twenty Korson Jungle Warriors at another Korson camp.

When he returned, the sergeant said nothing about putting him in charge of logistics. Instead, he issued him another mission—and this one wasn't easy.

"We've now weakened his regular troops to a great extent, but that means you'll have to face his elite forces directly. If those men haven't been sent out to attack our stragglers, they should be stationed in a cave called the 'Storehouse' on the mountain behind the Korson camp.

"I know a lot of Korson's men personally. They're battle-hardened veterans, loyal to Korson, and, worst of all, they show their enemies no mercy. This probably won't be an easy mission for you. Be careful, Sun Busong. Once you've defeated them, I'll recommend you to my superior, Captain Duo Lun."

This time, he'd drawn an even bigger pie in the sky. And this mission really was difficult. If anyone else had to do it, even ten lives wouldn't be enough.

This time, he had to kill Korson Special Forces and Korson Spirit Doctors. The Special Forces weren't too bad, but this was Sun Busong's first time encountering Spirit Doctors.

When Sun Busong made his way into the underground base, what he saw made him feel that all the effort had been worthwhile. Hahaha! Another huge gold mine—and this one was even bigger and deeper than the mine he'd seen during the day!

After killing the Special Forces near the entrance to the mine, Sun Busong hadn't gone far before he found the other unit type mentioned in the mission: Korson Spirit Doctors.

They were Caster Class fighters with three skills: Life Drain, Shrink Ray, and Shadow Bolt!

He didn't kill too many. He just killed enough to meet the mission requirements, then returned to the sergeant.

Unexpectedly, the sergeant really did take him to see Captain Duo Lun this time.

"Sergeant Yuwa told me you're brave and have plenty of combat experience. Sun Busong, Sergeant Yuwa has complete faith in your abilities, and I have complete faith in him. It's a pleasant surprise that you managed to defeat Korson's special forces. I'd been afraid we'd be left to fight alone, completely suppressed by the colonel's excellent tactics and soldiers. But now, it seems our chances of survival have improved. With you on our side, I can already see the light of victory shining on me!"

Captain Duo Lun no longer treated him with the hostility and contempt he'd shown before. His smile was warm and friendly, making Sun Busong feel appreciated and needed.

I've seen plenty of faces like this in my previous life. Who can't sweet-talk people?

"I've decided to have you work with Sergeant Yuwa to manage the logistics. But before that, I need you to do one more thing for me!"

There it was again, that damn bastard!