"Establish diplomatic relations?"
Lincon released his hand, and the other man slowly took a few steps back. His attitude was completely different from the arrogance he had shown while speaking with Zhang Rui.
Zhou Qing narrowed his eyes and smiled. "That's right. Black Iron City hopes to have more exchanges with Longwind Fortress. In the future, the two cities can support each other and trade supplies..."
"Establishing diplomatic relations isn't impossible, but you just attacked my governor. How should we settle that score?"
"I was only joking earlier. I never truly intended to attack. If Governor Zhang is dissatisfied, I can apologize."
Zhou Qing's answer was flawless. If not for his earlier actions, those who arrived later might have thought he was a polite and refined gentleman.
But that was merely a timely disguise. Beneath that humble face was a petty man who would kill at the slightest displeasure, sweet-talking while concealing a blade.
Lincon was not buying it. He casually glanced at the headless corpse nearby, then turned to Zhang Rui.
"Where did that corpse come from?"
The moment he saw someone enter his territory on the panel, he had hurried back to the fortress and saved Zhang Rui at the critical moment. He did not know what had happened in between.
"He was a messenger I knew before. He wasn't from our fortress."
Standing half a step behind Lincon, Zhang Rui gave him a detailed account of what had just happened.
"Since he wasn't from the fortress, there's no need to leave the corpse on the main road. Throw it into the fields as fertilizer."
As Lincon spoke, a thick root suddenly burst from the ground, lifted the corpse, and flung it into the nearby Sunlight Sunflower Field.
Zhou Qing's pupils contracted slightly at the sight of the root. He looked toward the giant tree man slowly walking over, along with Li Zhouhai and the others.
One tree man of unknown rank, and one D-Class Ability User.
Sensing the energy fluctuations from Li Zhouhai, Zhou Qing quickly determined his rank.
Beyond the amount of energy contained within their bodies, the difference between C-Class Ability Users and D-Class Ability Users was that C-Class Ability Users could project their power outside their bodies, creating an environment beneficial to their own combat.
At the same time, they could use the energy they released to sense and judge an opponent's strength.
Zhou Qing could easily tell that Li Zhouhai was a D-Class Ability User, yet he could never see through Lincon.
Either the other party was an ordinary person, or he was so powerful that Zhou Qing could not see through him at all.
But the man had suddenly appeared and grabbed his wrist earlier. That was not something an ordinary person could do.
So Zhou Qing naturally classified Lincon as a B-Class Ability User as powerful as the Black Iron City Lord.
After all, it was not strange for someone who had survived alone in the darkness for three years to be a B-Class Ability User.
That was why he had immediately changed his attitude and thoughts.
Building a good relationship with a powerful Ability User was far more valuable than senselessly provoking trouble.
It was just that... he seemed to have angered the master of Longwind Fortress.
But it did not matter. Zhou Qing knew when to bend and when to stand tall.
Thus, in the next moment, Lincon saw Zhou Qing offer Zhang Rui his apology.
Zhang Rui did not refuse. Instead, he laughed heartily and threw an arm around Zhou Qing's shoulder, as if they were old friends separated for more than a decade.
Lincon said nothing from the side, merely watching Zhou Qing quietly.
Zhang Rui had just told him that Zhou Qing was a C-Class Ability User. In Black Iron City, such a person held nearly pivotal status, far beyond the Viper Lincon had killed before.
If they wanted to keep him here, they would not only have to pay a tremendous price, but would also face retaliation from both Black Iron City and Flint City afterward.
The current Longwind Fortress could not withstand the assault of the two largest Ability User cities in Jiangzhou.
Therefore, the wisest choice was to endure.
Zhang Rui chose to swallow this humiliation himself. Facing the enemy who had wanted to kill him only a moment ago, he still welcomed him with a smiling face.
"My lord, may I enter your fortress and have a look around?"
After a round of hypocritical apologies, Zhou Qing made his request to Lincon.
However, Lincon did not answer that question. Instead, he picked up the topic Zhou Qing had raised earlier about establishing diplomatic relations.
"You said Black Iron City wanted to establish diplomatic relations with Longwind Fortress. That's a good proposal. Longwind Fortress is in a remote and impoverished place. It needs more contact with the outside world if it is to develop."
"It just so happens that Longwind Fortress has a batch of supplies. If Black Iron City has enough items of equivalent value, we can trade."
As expected, Zhou Qing was drawn in by those words. He glanced once more at Longwind Fortress's dilapidated walls and asked with some doubt.
"What supplies does the city lord wish to trade? If it is merely ordinary materials or items from the Old Era, I'm afraid Black Iron City does not lack them."
"Food." Lincon's eyes glimmered faintly as he answered calmly.
Upon hearing those two words, Zhou Qing's expression immediately turned solemn.
No matter which city it was, food was always the most important and scarce resource. Any ruler who wished to maintain their rule could not avoid the issue of food.
A city was not made up solely of Ability Users. It was merely that Ability Users were stronger and could help the weak resist danger. Thus, the weak relied on them and willingly handed over their resources for them to control.
But if Ability Users could not provide them with protection and people frequently starved to death, the weak would choose new strong people, or would rather return to living in the darkness.
At the very least, compared to dark creatures, starving to death was even more terrifying.
Returning to the issue of food, Zhou Qing said seriously, "Does your fortress have packaged food from the Old Era?"
"No." Lincon slowly shook his head. "It's freshly grown food, definitely better than those vacuum-packed supplies."
Freshly grown food?
Zhou Qing felt his heart begin to pound. After Dark Descent, most of the land had been contaminated, and only a small portion could still be cultivated.
Thus, even Ability Users like them generally ate nothing more than vacuum-packed food that had been stored for long periods.
Yet now, someone was telling him there was freshly grown food. It was truly shocking.
Zhou Qing's first reaction was that it could not be eaten. After all, Dead Soil could indeed grow plants, but anyone who ate them would die.
However, when Lincon placed a golden Sunlight Potato in Zhou Qing's hand, he was completely stunned.
He raised it to his nose and sniffed it in disbelief. His superior bearing had vanished completely, and he looked like a beggar who had stumbled upon gold.
A warm scent of fresh earth flooded his nostrils. It was not the rotten smell of something sealed away for ages. Moreover, the potato was plump and round, without the slightest sign of shriveling. Every sign showed that it had only recently been dug from the ground.
Zhou Qing stood frozen for a long while before slowly placing the Sunlight Potato on his open palm. Ice energy gathered in his right hand, forming a blade that sliced the potato in half.
The inside was not black like plants grown from Dead Soil, but even more golden than its skin. Zhou Qing could even smell the potato's distinctive starchy fragrance.
He abruptly raised his head and looked at Lincon.
"My lord, can you tell me how you cultivated a plant capable of growing in Dead Soil?"
"Is that important?" Lincon looked unconcerned.
"Very important!" Zhou Qing took a deep breath and stared fixedly at the mysterious man before him.
"Forgive my offense, but if you cannot answer, I can guarantee that Black Iron City's army will set foot in Longwind Fortress before long."
"Are you threatening me?" Lincon's eyes suddenly narrowed, a cold glint flowing through his pupils.
"This is not a threat, but a sincere suggestion." Zhou Qing abandoned his earlier hypocritical manner and spoke clearly and solemnly.
"No city in the entire Jiangzhou region has overcome this technology. Even after gathering many researchers from specialized fields, we have been unable to make plants grow normally in Dead Soil."
"If it is because of Longwind Fortress's soil, then I believe the first thought in the mind of any city lord upon learning this news would be to occupy this place, not trade with you normally."
It was an undeniable truth, and Zhou Qing had already put it as tactfully as possible.
In the Dark Age, no one would talk to you about human rights.
Naturally, Lincon understood the stakes. The reason he had brought out the Sunlight Potato for trade was because he had anticipated this long ago.
Whether Sunlight Potatoes were planted outside or inside the city, they would sooner or later be exposed to other factions. Rather than let others covet them in secret then, he might as well bring them out in advance and turn them into bargaining chips on the negotiating table.
Of course, he was not worried that someone would take the Sunlight Potatoes back and cultivate them themselves.
Sunlight Potatoes had evolved through the Seed Mark, and he had absolute control over them.
Once they left the territory of Longwind Fortress, they could no longer be grown in Dead Soil.
"You have courage." Lincon nodded at Zhou Qing in approval.
"Please explain the reason, my lord."
"It's simple. I'm a Plant Cultivator. I can cultivate plants, and only the plants I cultivate can avoid the effects of Dead Soil and grow normally." Lincon answered calmly.
"Is it because you are a plant-type Ability User?" Zhou Qing frowned slightly upon hearing this.
Then, as if suddenly enlightened, he looked toward the Ancient Maple Guardian and understood.
"So that's it!"
Black Iron City had no plant-type Ability Users, so he had no way of discerning whether Lincon's words were true. He could only make his own judgment.
And that strange tree man did indeed fit the characteristics of a plant-type Ability User.
"What does my lord wish to exchange with Black Iron City?" Zhou Qing asked after sorting through his thoughts.
"Wait here."
Lincon had Zhou Qing wait where he was and signaled to Zhang Rui beside him. Zhang Rui immediately understood and hurriedly brought over paper and a pen.
Lincon considered the materials needed to evolve his plants and wrote down their names on the paper.
"Holy Flame Seed, Sunstone, Healing Crystal Core, Demon Heart, Blood of a B-Rank Lifeform, Life Fruit..."
Zhou Qing took the list Lincon had written and glanced over it, then could not help scratching his head.
He knew every word written there individually, but when they were put together, he did not recognize any of them.
Holy Flame Seed?
What was that? He had never even heard of it.
And this Sunstone—was it a stone that had been exposed to sunlight?
Zhou Qing felt as though his head was about to explode. He was like a country bumpkin who had just arrived in the city and knew nothing.
Lincon spoke at the right moment. "You do not need to find everything on this list. As long as you have one item, you can trade it with me for Sunlight Potatoes."
Zhou Qing looked somewhat troubled, but he still agreed, saying that once they found anything similar, they would send it to Longwind Fortress.
"My lord, may I take this Sunlight... Potato back with me?" Before he realized it, Zhou Qing's words had become respectful when speaking to Lincon.
"Yes." Lincon did not refuse.
"Thank you! Then I'll be going back first!" Zhou Qing clasped his fists deeply, then turned and left.
At this moment, his mind was entirely occupied by the Sunlight Potato in his hand. How could he still have any thought of entering Longwind Fortress to investigate?
Watching Zhou Qing's gradually receding back, Zhang Rui asked in confusion, "My lord, why reveal the Sunlight Potato? Out in the open, it's no different from an atomic bomb. Before our strength is secure, I'm afraid it will bring considerable risk."
Lincon slowly let out a breath. Though he had looked relaxed just now, having a C-Class Ability User standing so close to him had still made him uneasy.
Because he was not sure whether he could block a sudden attack from Zhou Qing.
"As Longwind Fortress enters these people's sight, the matter of the Sunlight Potatoes will be exposed sooner or later. Rather than play games with them in secret, I prefer putting the chips on the table."
"Besides, Sunlight Potatoes can grow in Dead Soil not because they are Sunlight Potatoes, but because of me."
Lincon's gaze was calm. "The water problem has been temporarily solved. Next, perhaps I should find a way to strengthen the fortress."
Zhang Rui nodded, his expression heavy.
Black Iron City's visit had sounded an alarm for Lincon.
When facing forces like Flint City and Black Iron City, which were made up of powerful Ability Users, Longwind Fortress was as fragile as an infant.
The Black Iron City represented by Zhou Qing might barely be dealt with through an exchange of benefits, but Flint City, with whom they had long formed a grudge, would likely not be so easy to handle.
At that moment, Li Zhouhai suddenly ran up to Lincon. "My lord, that bull..."
Lincon followed the direction Li Zhouhai was pointing.
The Raging Bull they had brought back had somehow run into the field where the Sunlight Potatoes were planted and was happily munching on the newly grown stems and leaves.
Liu Ying was so anxious that she was practically jumping in place, desperately lashing the Raging Bull with her whip. Yet the Raging Bull was completely unfazed and did not even flick its tail.
Clearly, compared to the delicacy before it, those lashes meant nothing.
Lincon sighed and had Li Zhouhai restrain the Raging Bull so it would not destroy too much of the Sunlight Potato field. Before long, he would specifically cultivate a kind of grass for the Raging Bull to eat.
After giving those instructions, Lincon returned to his courtyard and placed the Nightglow Plants gathered from the swamp region on the ground.
The Sunlight Sunflowers in the courtyard still stood tall, their golden buds facing the sunlight.
"There's plenty to do next!"
Lincon looked at the panel.
[As the Longwind Fortress Guardian, you have established diplomatic relations for the first time. Experience +300.] [Bound User: Lincon] [Main Class: Longwind Fortress Guardian (Beginner Rank 9)] [Experience: 580/1000] [Talent: Lord] [Abilities: Fine Shrine Crafting, Purification Rune, Reinforcement Rune, Infusion Rune, Xingyi Fist, Firearms Mastery] [Secondary Class: Plant Cultivator (Beginner Rank 9)] [Experience: 350/1000] [Talent: Seed Mark] [Abilities: Accelerated Growth, Plant Affinity] [Strength: 72—Agility: 69—Spirit: 78—Charm: 20—Reputation: 2450]
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