newbobooks Chapter 381 Plans to Cope with the Cold Wave
Chapter 381 Plans to Cope with the Cold Wave
Chapter 381 Plans to Cope with the Cold Wave
As it turns out, there are always people who profit from disasters, no matter the world.
These selfish, short-sighted individuals are everywhere in the world. The yellow-toothed dealer is not the first, nor will he be the last. In fact, there are many such people on the front lines of the river basin.
In the eyes of the refugees, they were the embodiment of evil, wicked bastards who committed all kinds of evil deeds; in the eyes of the church's legalists, they were parasites on the city-state, beings who had turned their backs on the blessings of the gods.
But in the eyes of the rulers, they were the channels that maintained trade between city-states, and an indispensable part of the city-states' ability to survive to this day.
These itinerant merchants are detestable, but without them, city-states would be completely cut off from each other, trade routes would be occupied by monsters, the poor would starve to death, and mercenaries without jobs would even erupt into greater conflicts—all of which would be unavoidable.
Tang Zijun didn't think too much about it. Whether these vendors were beneficial insects or harmful insects didn't matter to him, as long as they were rich in protein, that was enough.
Walking on the streets of the river front, the gloomy sky seemed like a heavy lead weight, shrouding the city.
The situation was completely different from the last time I came here. Due to the sudden drop in temperature, the vagrants who had gathered under the city wall had disappeared. Only some tattered cloths left on the ground proved that they had stayed here.
The wind howled and whistled through the narrow streets, and compared to the lively scene not long ago, the front line of the river basin was now terribly stuffy.
There were very few pedestrians on the street, and everyone was pale-faced with a numb look in their eyes, like walking corpses.
"After the temperature dropped, the runes on the city walls were also affected. All the churches did their best, but more than three hundred refugees still died on the night the cold wave arrived."
Gloriam followed Tang Zijun, carrying the box, and spoke softly.
"The city lord sent guards to throw the corpses down into the rift valley. Firstly, he was worried that the corpses would cause a plague to break out, and secondly, he was worried that the corpses would rise up again. Of course, the main reason was that he was afraid that some extremely hungry people would eat the corpses."
"I can understand avoiding cannibalism, but why be afraid?" Chang Lei asked curiously.
Upon hearing this, Gloriand whispered, "After the War of the Gods broke out, the line between life and death became blurred. When human lives perished, the aura of darkness would seize the opportunity to infiltrate. If someone ate the corpses of others, they would be corrupted by the darkness and transformed into a non-human monster."
"How's the situation in Black City?" Tang Zijun asked.
"By the grace of the Ice Goddess, I had Desk and the others prepare in advance. Unlike the front lines in the river region, Black City is characterized by a large number of tents and a small number of people. With food and supplies, the low temperatures don't pose a threat to them. However..."
"Just what?"
Gloria sighed. "Planting in such low temperatures is incredibly difficult. The land, only recently excavated, has already turned into permafrost, and many plants have frozen to death. We can only watch helplessly as this happens."
"How much grain does the city have left?" Tang Zijun asked again.
"We harvested some earlier, and with what you left behind, it's enough to last us for several months if we eat it sparingly." Gloriand paused, then sighed. "But if the low temperatures continue, this food will eventually be exhausted."
"It's alright, we can just make a few more trips."
Chang Lei seemed indifferent, but Tang Zijun shook her head slightly. "Living off past glories isn't a solution. To survive in this world, Black City must become self-sufficient."
Then, Tang Zijun continued, "Grelando, it shouldn't just be our area affected by the cold wave. How are the other cities dealing with their food crises?"
Grilando thought for a moment, then answered.
"Some cities have crops that can grow under extreme conditions, but most of those seeds are priceless and are held tightly by a few people. Very few of them are released, and even if they are, most of them are dead seeds that cannot be grown at all."
"Some church healers built 'gardens,' using their supernatural powers to erect barriers around the land and adjust the climate within those barriers to normal conditions for growing food. However, this method was too resource-intensive and yielded low output, barely enough to sustain their own church's needs."
"As for the vast majority of people, they began cultivating insects..."
"insect?"
"Hmm." Gloriand nodded, then continued, "These insects reproduce rapidly, mature quickly, and are unaffected by extreme environments. Most importantly, they're incredibly easy to raise."
"Although the taste and appearance are a bit lacking, as long as it can keep people alive, that's enough for most people. Desker even suggested that I start this business as soon as possible. According to him, he has already started trying it and the results are encouraging."
"Tsk."
Tang Zijun and Chang Lei exchanged a glance, both seeing an indescribable complexity in each other's eyes.
Although Tang Zijun had anticipated that the arrival of the cold wave would disrupt the ecology of the river front and surrounding areas, she did not expect the impact to be so great. For the residents of Dreamland who were still living in medieval agriculture, any natural disaster was a catastrophe.
"Perhaps the experts in the bureau can come up with a solution." Chang Lei stroked his chin. "Wasn't the problem of growing vegetables in winter already solved?"
"But the problem is that the conditions in Black City may not be met, and it's not just that the temperature is low here; the cold air carries some unknown energy."
"I can try to purify some of the energy," Hyacinth whispered.
"Are you sure you can manage on your own?"
"No, I'll just call a few more friends up."
Chang Lei then looked at Tang Zijun. "The conditions in Black City are a bit poor, but it's not like nothing can be done. If it's just a simple greenhouse, there's still some potential."
"Moreover, Black City currently has ample food supplies, which gives us some time to experiment and make mistakes. If it really doesn't work, we can always try other methods."
"Okay, that's fine." Tang Zijun nodded. "Then it's settled. Go back and inquire about any alternative materials for the greenhouse. Let's try one out first."
After speaking, Tang Zijun, Chang Lei, and the others all looked at Grelando simultaneously.
Feeling the gazes fixed on her, Grilando suddenly felt an increase in pressure for no apparent reason.
In fact, from the moment Chang Lei opened his mouth, she could no longer understand the conversation. What greenhouse, what greenhouse, what conditional material substitutes—these jargons sounded like gibberish to her.
However, Gloria knew that Tang Zijun and Chang Lei didn't have any bad intentions, so in the end she could only manage to say, "I...I'm fine with anything...You can decide, my lord."
Although Grelando is still the official ruler of Black City, everyone in the mercenary group and even every citizen of Black City knows that the true lord who controls the future development of Black City has long since become someone else.
The group continued on their way and soon arrived at the outskirts of the market.
There weren't many changes here; it was still bustling with activity. The only difference was that the vendors were dressed more warmly, and white mist would puff out of their mouths and noses when they spoke.
Seeing the relatively bustling market, the crowd's mood was somewhat affected, and they were no longer as depressed as before.
Chang Lei nudged Tang Zijun's arm with his elbow. "Wolf Rider, didn't you take a liking to that outfit I bought for Luan Luan before? How about I take you to see it? Maybe they'll have some good stuff this time."
"." Tang Zijun did not refuse.
Actually, Tang Zijun's main purpose in coming here was still that strange mechanical head. Now that the deal has been made and his goal has been achieved, there is nothing else that is particularly attractive to him.
Although the market on the front line of the river was bustling and full of all kinds of goods, to be honest, it was just for novelty. Most of the things that were hung here were just decorations that were of little use to Tang Zijun.
The monster corpses we bought last time were enough for the bureau to study for a while. Tang Zijun wasn't a hunter, and she didn't intend to buy a monster's head to frame and hang as a specimen at home.
As for those alchemical creations, compared to the various technological creations in the real world, they are completely outclassed and useless even if you buy them. As for alchemical potions... well, Tang Zijun wouldn't dare to drink them casually, mainly because they look disgusting.
Following Chang Lei, Tang Zijun and the others gradually arrived at the center of the market. There were a lot of people here, not quite crowded, but not far off.
Whether it was because there were more refugees fleeing to the area recently or for some other reason, Tang Zijun noticed that there were many more unfamiliar faces around her. Many of them carried an aura completely different from that of people on the front lines of the river region. Some of the smells were so nauseating that Tang Zijun frowned frequently.
"There were some traveling merchants who came to the front lines of the river region with that nobleman. Most of them came from the west, and they immediately occupied the busiest part of the market."
After listening to Grelando's explanation, Tang Zijun nodded without saying anything.
There's no such thing as a powerful dragon being unable to suppress a local snake here. In the markets along the river front, space is always determined by the goods; whoever has more and better goods gets to occupy the best spot.
This is an unspoken rule, and also an unspoken understanding among itinerant merchants. When they see out-of-town merchants carrying various goods coming over, some local merchants will voluntarily give up their shops.
Just as Tang Zijun continued forward, an enormous figure instantly caught his attention.
In the crowd not far away, a huge, humanoid figure was slowly moving forward. With each step it took, the faint sound of metal scraping and colliding could be heard.
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