CHAPTER 195: CHAPTER 193: END OF THE BLOOD CROWN MOUNTAIN WAR_1

Once the general plan for constructing a city and a road within Thunderous Swamp was established, what remained were the supplementary negotiations on the ceasefire agreement for the Werewolves and Lizardmen.

The details covered included:

How to relocate the Werewolf and Lizardman clans within each other’s spheres of influence, along with the compensation plans.

How to requisition land for the Thunderous Swamp Great Road and its surrounding facilities.

How to recruit laborers from the Werewolf and Lizardman Clans for building the road and constructing the city.

The border demarcation between the Werewolf forces represented by Yan Xing on the southern edge of Thunderous Swamp and the Lizardmen.

And how to invite the Werewolf Tribes from the northern lake’s edge of Thunderous Swamp to delineate their borders with the Lizardmen.

The addition of these numerous details extended the peace talks for a full five days before both sides formally signed the Bloodcrown Mountain Peace Treaty.

Simultaneously, the Werewolves and Lizardmen also signed several agreements with Yan Xing.

After rounds of negotiations, the war that had engulfed the depths of Thunderous Swamp finally ended.

The main Werewolf and Lizardman forces, which had been in a standoff at Bloodcrown Mountain, fully retreated, and the soldiers of each clan followed their respective Clan Leaders back to their territories.

Yan Xing subsequently hosted several banquets to honor the Werewolf and Lizardman leaders. This was to foster good relations and learn about their special local products, paving the way for future trade.

He then separately hosted the Werewolf and Lizardman Chieftains interested in farming, signing numerous agreements for targeted agricultural and commercial support from Eternal Domain.

Yan Xing even personally visited the territories of Chief Qiao She and Lianzu Chieftain to inspect the environment of their lands. He even had Chui Chui specially design agricultural urbanization plans tailored to their specific situations. He also privately promised them more preferential support.

Riding the momentum of the peace talks, Yan Xing actively expanded his influence in Thunderous Swamp, consolidating his position and interests in its core regions.

When Yan Xing, thoroughly pleased, returned to Red Mud Wetland from the depths of Thunderous Swamp, carrying a thick stack of bills and economic agreements—

「Two months had passed」

—since he first traveled north through Red Mud Wetland into the heart of Thunderous Swamp.

The season had shifted from the heat of summer to the cool of autumn.

Eternal Domain promptly issued autumn clothing to its subjects and also provided each person with a velvet quilt.

Arlanda, dressed in a red, tight-fitting autumn garment, sat on her dormitory bed, contemplating matters.

The new dormitory area had just been completed, and Arlanda had obtained a room of her own. The room, though not large, was much more convenient than the previous four-person dormitories, meaning she no longer had to constantly be on guard against her roommates discovering her Elf identity. Beneath the windowsill, Arlanda also had her own dressing table, adorned with a mirror and a potted plant.

With the canal now operational, timber from Thunderous Swamp flowed continuously into Eternal Domain. Carpenters in the woodworking shop used this timber to craft a great deal of furniture, which was then distributed to the domain’s subjects. This unified supply system meant the subjects of Eternal Domain only needed to focus on their work, without worrying about the daily necessities of clothing, food, shelter, and transport. And because Lord Yan Xing was so generous to his subjects, not one of them, despite their busy days, had the slightest complaint about their Lord.

Through the dormitory’s glass windows, she could see vast numbers of houses still under construction outside. This is the planned residential area for Eternal Domain’s subjects, located outside the central city wall. The Lord’s castle will be built inside the central city wall in the future. Consequently, many buildings previously constructed within the central city wall are gradually being relocated outward. Construction of Eternal Domain’s second city wall and Moat has already begun.

Arlanda was utterly amazed by the development speed of this human domain. It seemed to be expanding ceaselessly. Every day brought new changes. If she didn’t visit certain places for a few days, she might even get lost upon returning. Eternal Domain’s rapid development could be attributed to their use of a substance called cement. Cement started as a gray powder that turned into a gray slurry when mixed with water. This slurry was applied to bricks to build walls, and the cement would harden like stone in a very short time, binding the bricks firmly together. Moreover, it didn’t soften again when wet. Houses built with bricks and cement were extremely sturdy; they could be inhabited and used almost as soon as they were completed.

To Arlanda, cement seemed like some kind of alchemical substance. And using alchemical substances to construct ordinary houses was something one would probably only see in Eternal Domain. Arlanda had seen far too many such extravagant uses of alchemical substances here.

She was no longer surprised by the startling clarity and transparency of the glass in the dormitory windows. She no longer marveled at how her clothes fit so snugly yet elastically, being breathable yet warm, light, and comfortable—sometimes making her feel as if she weren’t wearing anything at all. She wasn’t amazed by the silky smoothness of the quilt she had just received. She didn’t wonder at Eternal Domain using steel to make bed frames. She didn’t wonder at the vibrant energy here.

Arlanda fiddled with a potted thyme plant on her table, quietly using her elven natural power to stimulate it into releasing a stronger fragrance.

Inhaling the scent, she said slowly, a reluctant tone in her voice, "I have to go. I hope the next owner of this room will take good care of you."

The latent period for this assassination mission had dragged on longer than Arlanda expected. Yan Xing had entered Thunderous Swamp two months prior, and no one knew when he would return to Eternal Domain. Meanwhile, Arlanda had run out of God-given gold coins. She wasn’t a human farmer, so she couldn’t receive a God-given gold coin weekly as a taxpayer. The limited God-given gold coins she possessed had all been brought from Nuta City. Submitting one each week kept her identity concealed for that week. But the God-given gold coins were finite. At the beginning of this week, she had handed over her very last one. Next week, unable to produce another God-given gold coin, she could no longer maintain her disguise as a farmer of Eternal Domain.

Therefore, Arlanda decided she had to leave Eternal Domain. Over the past few days, she had quietly stockpiled some food and supplies. She planned to travel along the edge of Thunderous Swamp and slip through the cluster of border fortresses built by the Silvermane Principality to its northwest. The Werewolf Tribes along the southern edge of Thunderous Swamp recognized the farmers’ uniforms of Eternal Domain. If she encountered a patrol from the Silvermane Principality, she could temporarily hide within Thunderous Swamp. Once she confirmed it was safe, she would continue to navigate the gaps between the Silvermane Principality’s border fortresses. She felt her chances of returning safely to the Elf-controlled areas this way were very high.

Truthfully, Arlanda really didn’t want to leave. This place was so much better than the bitterly cold North. But without God-given gold coins, staying meant certain exposure. On the Wildwind Highlands, the hatred between humans and the Elf Race ran bone-deep, ingrained in their very blood. If her identity was exposed, she would undoubtedly be executed.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK...

Just then, a knock sounded at her dormitory door.

The loud voice of Auntie Rapeseed called from outside, "Emerald! Emerald! Another batch of refugees has arrived at the camp; we’ve got work to do!"

"Okay, Auntie Rapeseed, I’ll be right out," Arlanda replied.

She changed her clothes and shoes with utmost speed, clapped her hat on her head, and then opened the door.

Smiling at Auntie Rapeseed outside, she said, "Auntie Rapeseed, let me handle the task of receiving the refugees this time. You can attend to other matters; I promise I’ll do just as outstanding a job as you."