The Military Industry Department's Creation, the 2-Pound Divine Eagle Cannon!

At the end of September, the maize in the lake region had just ripened, forming green ears of corn. The fresh fragrance of grain drifted on the wind, and great flocks of birds came after the scent.

The village farmers had all been mobilized, sleeping day and night beside the fields, killing the birds and beasts that stole the maize. These toilsome days would continue for more than ten days, until the maize was fully ripe, and only then would the farmers go into the fields to harvest it.

In this era, in order to raise yields as much as possible, maize was always harvested late. Tender fresh corn was a luxury for nobles; the maize most commoners ate was old, yellow, and hard, hard enough to chip a tooth if bitten raw. Agriculturally speaking, this was making full use of the crop's after-ripening effect. They always had to drag it out until the leaves turned yellow, the husks turned white, and the stalks died through, just to harvest another dou or two.

On this day, southeast of the capital, a large troop of warriors passed between the field ridges, wearing armor, carrying bows, and bringing along strange golden-brown bronze beasts. The farmers along the way all knelt prostrate on the ground in awe, not daring to glance at the warriors. The country folk of the capital region always had a little more worldly knowledge, and with a display like today's, even without banners raised, it had to be the highest rank of nobility—even the supreme king himself!

Before long, the warriors vanished behind the small hills to the southeast. The farmers murmured a few words to one another, then continued watching over the village fields. When the sun rose to the middle of the sky, the cry of a