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Chapter 525: Dragon-Slaying Guide
October 15.
Bay Territory.
Clear skies.
Large quantities of Oriental Red Mulberry seedlings were planted around the various farmstead outposts.
The new round of expansions for these outposts began smoothly as adventurers and Bay Territory patrols cleared away the dangerous creatures in the wilderness.
One group after another of reserve workers, led by the new village chiefs, received the settlers transported to these areas.
They would soon repeat the usual tasks of developing outposts: planting trees, digging ponds, raising silkworms, and brewing wine.
With the experience gathered from earlier pioneers, they would get up to speed quickly and achieve noticeable results.
Accompanying them were teams of engineers.
They worked rapidly, first laying down rail tracks and magical power conduits.
Next, they transported in construction machinery and building golems.
The wilderness was leveled.
Mud was turned into stone, covering large swaths of building sites.
Foundations were set.
As soon as building materials arrived, row after row of residential buildings were quickly completed.
The entire construction process took only three days.
Remaining repairs were typically handled by idle settlers.
The settlers' dedication and thoroughness in their tasks determined whether they earned the title of "Exemplary."
Even with advanced machinery and golem technology, Bay Territory still placed a premium on nurturing talent.
Everything was approached carefully, starting with the smallest details.
It was foreseeable that more and more farmstead outposts would be established, bringing more farmland and fertile fields into cultivation.
"By the end of the year, Bay Territory's wilderness will have 80 additional farmstead outposts, bringing the total to 100, including the original 20."
"Each farmstead can cultivate 500,000 mu of farmland, reaching a total of 50 million mu by mid-next year."
"This is an unprecedented pace."
"By then, two-thirds of Bay Territory's wilderness will be developed."
"The remainder should be fully developed by the end of next year."
"By August of next year, the primary focus will shift to the eastern Silvermoon River plains."
"That area offers even more potential farmland, approximately 1.1 billion mu…"
Steward Ralph, jotting down these summarized figures, was particularly excited and quickly reported them to Matthew.
In just a year and a half, Bay Territory had opened up more than 10 million mu of farmland—more than the Ser Family controlled. How could that not be thrilling?
Bay Territory's growth rate was accelerating and showed no signs of slowing down.
A promising future was always something to celebrate.
Leafing through the Arcane Gazette, Matthew nodded along as he listened, delighted at the territory's progress.
However, Matthew knew that achieving Ralph's optimistic vision wouldn't be so straightforward.
The frequent disasters and conflicts to come were formidable obstacles on Bay Territory's path to development.
Setting down the Arcane Gazette, Matthew pointed at the prominently placed "Bay Territory Recruitment Plan" on the front page, half-joking as he said to Ralph:
"You can tell that the editor at the Arcane Gazette really needs the money, giving us such a prime spot again."
Thinking back to his conversation with the editor, Ralph picked up the Arcane Gazette and glanced at another notice that had cost 100,000 gold coins to place. He looked at his lord and asked:
"Will the approaching Kingslayer Star cause us any trouble?"
Recalling the "Mad Dragon Calamity," Matthew reviewed recent adventurer reports and answered without looking up:
"According to previous records, it will incite dragonblood creatures to riot."
Examining the details of the "Kingslayer Star," Ralph hesitated as he looked at images of rampaging dragonblood creatures:
"It would be better to eliminate them. Otherwise, they could cause casualties and hinder our development."
Matthew didn't share with Ralph just how catastrophic this "Mad Dragon Calamity" would be.
After all, mentioning it wouldn't help and would only cause unnecessary worry and panic. Better to prepare in advance.
Matthew calculated that the "Mad Dragon Calamity" was still four months away. With sufficient preparation, its impact on the territory could be minimized.
Perhaps even turned to their advantage!
Considering the next steps, Matthew softly instructed Ralph:
"Strengthen our ties with the nobles of the Carl Plain and intensify the construction of temporary outposts in the northern and eastern regions."
The north and east?
Ralph began to suspect something, nodded with a knowing smile, and said:
"Understood. I'll take care of it right away."
"But if dragonblood creatures in the territory are affected, what about the dragonkin?"
Aware of Ralph's concern, Matthew outlined the measures already in place:
"Ordinary kobolds, gnolls, and murlocs won't be affected. The transformed dragonkin will be relocated to the Underdark."
As for Yaya, there was nothing to worry about.
With her mastery of temporal power, Yaya could easily adjust her state and resist the recurring will checks of the "Mad Dragon Curse."
Confident that all bases were covered, Ralph nodded solemnly and left to arrange the details.
Matthew reviewed Bay Territory's other developments.
With ample population and financial resources, progress was smooth and often ahead of schedule.
In the race against time, Matthew and Bay Territory were holding a slight lead.
However, with the "Mad Dragon Calamity" approaching, Matthew decided to start preparations early.
What once was merely a defensive effort had now grown into a bolder ambition.
In the military factory,
numerous new dwarf craftsmen were discussing matters with their Bay Territory apprentices.
The dwarf craftsmen had initially believed that these apprentices, lacking solid foundational skills, would be difficult to teach.
After all, blacksmithing required years of experience to truly master and shine.
To their surprise, these Bay Territory apprentices were not only diligent and eager to learn, but their theoretical knowledge also exceeded expectations.
At times, the apprentices' technical insights even inspired the dwarf craftsmen.
When they inquired further, the blacksmiths learned about Bay Territory's open sharing of forging techniques and materials.
Shocked, the dwarf craftsmen tentatively applied for access and were indeed granted permission to view some of the shared knowledge.
After studying the materials, they found much of it highly useful.
Intrigued, the dwarf craftsmen naturally wanted to learn more advanced techniques.
They soon discovered that earning this knowledge wasn't difficult; they only needed to accumulate 1,000 merit points.
While this might take an ordinary adventurer nearly six months,
dwarf craftsmen could achieve it in just a few minutes.
By submitting some of their forging techniques or metal-smelting formulas, they could earn enough merit points to access additional knowledge.
Bay Territory's system was designed to be fair:
As long as a dwarf craftsman contributed one or two comparable-level techniques, they could unlock access to dozens, even hundreds, of other techniques.
Most of the dwarf craftsmen agreed to this arrangement.
The techniques they "brought in" became knowledge for others to learn from.
Witnessing this, Manhammer initially felt uneasy.
But once he learned from Matthew that the knowledge gathered in Bay Territory would also be shared with the Dwarven Kingdom, his attitude shifted.
Manhammer eagerly began learning and even contributed his own master-level techniques and experience.
Thanks to this system, Bay Territory's forging skills and knowledge advanced rapidly, propelled by the collective effort of tens of thousands of craftsmen and dwarf artisans.
Several techniques earned rewards of up to 100,000 gold coins.
This inspiring incentive sparked a wave of enthusiasm for learning and innovation.
Bay Territory reaped significant benefits from these technical breakthroughs, producing higher-quality steels and metals.
These advancements in materials led to improvements in machinery and models, breaking new ground.
The fusion of technology and wisdom ignited a brilliant spark.
Riding this momentum, Matthew established several research institutes to explore forging, metallurgy, weapon development, and machinery.
A 10-million-gold investment was rapidly transformed into a wealth of technical expertise.
This knowledge then fueled the first round of upgrades in Bay Territory's factories.
Before long, the first batch of Bay Territory's advanced weapons and equipment rolled off the production line.
Thoughtful designs, exquisite craftsmanship, and high-quality materials made these items stand out.
But that was only the beginning.
With significant financial backing, the enchantment factory, aided by Duncan and his team, was quickly completed.
They were tasked with enchanting the advanced equipment, and their exceptional skill was evident.
In just two days, the entire batch of advanced weapons and equipment was fully enchanted with high-level enchantments.
Matthew was highly impressed by the results.
Not only because Bay Territory could finally produce top-tier equipment,
but also because they now had a "secret weapon" to combat the Mad Dragon Calamity.
The Dragon-Hunting Crossbow!
Specifically designed to slay dragonblood creatures, this lethal weapon
could pierce their resilient scales, tear through their tough muscles, and damage their soft internal organs.
107. Its critical advantage lies in dealing damage to dragonblood creatures while also weakening their strength and regenerative abilities to some extent.
To put it simply,
the Dragon-Hunting Crossbow is a large weapon capable of both damaging and weakening dragonblood creatures.
Possessing such a weapon doesn't mean it can easily slaughter dragonblood creatures en masse.
It merely provides a certain level of counterattack capability.
The truly threatening dragonblood creatures are at least elite squads, many of whom are exceptionally powerful.
Some are even terrifying leaders capable of causing disasters and danger.
Matthew's approach was straightforward.
One or two Dragon-Hunting Crossbows could serve as a deterrent, offering Bay Town's defenses a small boost in confidence.
However, they couldn't cover the entire Bay Territory's perimeter.
The solution? Ramp up production—if there were enough of them, it wouldn't be a problem.
But to foster the research institute's expertise, Matthew didn't share the blueprints he knew for the Dragon-Hunting Crossbow.
Instead, he issued a set of requirements along with a 100,000-gold reward for a successful design.
"It must pierce +10 defense armor at a range of 300 meters."
"It must include enchantments: Advanced Weakening, Advanced Suppression, and Advanced Slowing."
"The launched bolts must have connected high-strength ropes, able to attach to heavy objects for quick repositioning."
"Finally, the cost must not exceed 50,000 gold, with a production success rate above 40%."
Faced with Matthew's challenge,
several research institutes were intrigued—the 50,000-gold prize was no small sum.
A farmer would need to toil on 30 acres of land for 50,000 years in all conditions to earn that.
It matched the annual income of a typical viscount's estate.
It could equip a high-level professional with a full set of enchanted weapons and gear.
It could outfit an entire Bay Territory battalion with weapons and gear.
Or provide a comfortable living for 100,000 farming households for a year.
The research institute's members were at least high-level professionals, with a few promising mid-level trainees, numbering less than 100.
Participating in this project would mean each individual stood to earn hundreds or even thousands of gold.
It was undeniably enticing!
But soon, they were stumped.
Building a Dragon-Hunting Crossbow presented so many challenges that no single institute could tackle them alone.
After three days of trying,
they still couldn't get the cost under 50,000 gold. Then, the institutes had another idea.
If working alone didn't work, why not collaborate?
So, the major research institutes joined forces, each resolving certain technical bottlenecks.
By the sixth day, they delivered a set of blueprints to Matthew.
"Dragon-Hunting Crossbow, large crossbow, advanced pinnacle quality."
"Attack power: 30–40, range: 1200 meters, enchantments: Precision +3, Crushing +2, Strong Strike +1."
"Armor-Piercing Bolts, attack power: 15–20, enchantments: Armor-Piercing +8, Sharpness +5, Advanced Suppression, Advanced Weakening, Advanced Slowing."
"Production materials, total cost: 45,000 gold: 20 grams of adamantine, 10 grams of mithril, custom advanced bowstring, 20 kilograms of black ironwood…"
"Production cost: 5,000 gold, success rate: 45%."
Pleased with their efforts, Matthew nodded in approval and then invested another 50,000 gold:
"Refine the production methods and raise the success rate to 80%!"
With gold in hand, the researchers remained unsatisfied and poured even more effort into the project.
The promise of gold ahead motivated them.
For these researchers, the generosity of their lord and Bay Territory made the work all the more enjoyable.