Chapter 613.5: Ideal 'Cooperation'
Besides these two types of transportation magical creatures, there were seventy or eighty different types of magical creatures around the Church's convoy.
Some were common magical creatures from the Northern Continent, also bred in Bay Territory.
Others were extremely rare magical creatures that astonished the people of Bay Territory.
Among them was a Pegasus named Nightmare, which even Matthew was seeing for the first time.
The Mother Earth Church's convoy brought nothing but surprises to the people of Bay Territory.
Their arrival, however, brought nothing but pure shock to the other side.
The robust Wyverns were far more formidable than ordinary ones.
Although their draconic aura had been restrained, the silver, gleaming armor on their bodies was enough to make one's heart tremble.
If it were just one or two, it wouldn't have been much cause for concern.
But when dozens of powerful Wyverns appeared together, with seven or eight of them at the Extraordinary level, the whole scene became rather 'intense.'
After much effort calming the trembling Kodo Beasts, Grand Druid Anthony turned around helplessly.
Just as he did, he saw Matthew striding forward. Looking up at his towering height of over two meters, the legendary druid blinked in surprise and said:
"Child, are you really an Arcanist? Not some Half-Giant Warrior in disguise?"
Looking at the familiar white-bearded face of the old acquaintance, Matthew shrugged with a bit of humor and replied:
"Ha, a Half-Giant Warrior can't pretend to be an Arcanist. But if it were a Half-Giant Druid, that might be a different story."
Shaking his head in amazement, Anthony couldn't help but take a closer look at the obedient Wyverns, asking Matthew curiously:
"How did you make them so obedient?"
Matthew pretended not to catch the deeper meaning behind Anthony's words and introduced Yaya, who was holding Orianna's hand:
"This is the ace of our territory. She can easily tame these Wyverns."
"Yaya, this is the legendary Grand Druid Anthony, the strongest Grand Druid in the entire Northern Continent."
Facing Anthony's kind and gentle face, Yaya asked curiously:
"Huh? Is this white-bearded grandpa really that powerful? Won't the other Grand Druids be upset?"
Anthony laughed heartily, retracting his gaze from Yaya with a bit of shock, and joked:
"Oh, they were plenty upset! I had to fight them several times before they acknowledged it."
As he spoke, Anthony even made a fist gesture.
The pride on his face made the students behind him instinctively turn away.
They couldn't bear to look!
They didn't dare to admit they knew him!
Yaya nodded in sudden realization, clenching her soft fists as if considering its power and persuasiveness.
Matthew, well-prepared, picked up a wine flask and handed it to the pleasantly surprised Anthony under the gaze of hundreds of eyes:
"Try this wine from Bay Territory. It's a flavor you won't find anywhere else."
Before his students could stop him,
Anthony, with his snow-white hair and beard and deeply wrinkled face—but not at all like an old man—snatched the flask in a flash and took a hearty swig.
"Hmm???"
The fiery taste made Anthony's eyes widen, while the indescribable coolness washed through his body.
Originally tired from purifying the wastelands, Anthony immediately felt his fatigue disappear, and vitality and ease returned to him.
He examined the flask in his hand, clapped to stop his students from trying to snatch it back, and asked in shock:
"What kind of wine is this? Was it brewed with Water of Life?"
Water of Life?
Hearing this, everyone in the Mother Earth Church convoy instinctively perked up their ears.
They could hardly believe that the unremarkable Bay Territory would be so extravagant as to brew wine with the precious Water of Life.
Matthew quickly shook his head, meeting the excited gaze of the Grand Druid. Seeing that he seemed much more rejuvenated, Matthew smiled and said:
"Of course, it wasn't brewed with Water of Life. I just added some in just now."
The group, just about to relax, was stunned by Matthew's words.
It seemed...there wasn't much of a difference, right?
Yet, thanks to Matthew's interjection, the previously tense crowd became more curious and began examining them with interest.
My goodness!
The magical glows flashing across the magic armor worn by Bay Territory's people nearly blinded their eyes.
Although they weren't fond of metallic items, the Church members who had traveled far and wide had sharp eyes.
After all, from their beginnings of lonely environmental restoration,
To slowly 'communicating' with local forces.
Then to 'cooperating' with fists and negotiations.
This series of changes allowed them to make clear judgments.
They knew when to be strong.
And with whom it was better to speak softly.
Grand Druid Anthony gave Matthew a thumbs up, took another hearty swig, and happily accepted the gift.
His students behind him were both heartbroken and helpless.
Heartbroken that they couldn't share more of their teacher's purification tasks.
Helpless over their teacher's habit of sneaking drinks.
Along with that, their perception of Matthew began to grow more complicated.
Matthew, not one to waste time, gestured invitingly to Grand Druid Anthony, speaking with anticipation and enthusiasm:
"Bay Territory has long awaited your arrival. Please board the Wyverns; the welcome ceremony is already prepared."
Grand Druid Anthony gave Matthew a slightly skeptical look. Even though he found the young Arcanist quite interesting, he couldn't help but mutter inwardly:
"Could it be that this trouble-loving Arcanist Lord has created some mess he can't clean up and wants us to solve it?"
Despite his suspicions, Grand Druid Anthony walked over with a smile, waving to his reluctant students behind him:
"You few, come with me. The rest, continue at your own pace."
Though confident in Anthony's strength and trusting that Bay Territory would not dare offend Mother Earth,
The students still suppressed their discomfort, made arrangements for the others, and followed their teacher's footsteps.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The howling winds were easily blocked by magical barriers.
Feeling the unique vitality of the Wyvern beneath him, Anthony looked at Matthew with interest and asked:
"Young man, these Wyverns are huge. They must eat a lot, right?"
Tugging on the reins and signaling the Wyvern to fly slower, Matthew pointed to the vast Misty Swamp below and replied:
"Yes, they need about two cows a day. The vast schools of magical fish bred in Misty Swamp are the main food for these gluttons."
Passing through the thin mist ahead, Grand Druid Anthony's gaze fell below.
Seeing the scene of the Misty Swamp's breeding grounds, his slit-shaped pupils sparkled with curiosity as he said with great interest:
"You can actually command Murlocs? That's quite a skill. Can you teach us? I can do something for Bay Territory in exchange."
A favor and action from a Legendary Peak Grand Druid!
That kind of reward was nothing short of immense!
However, Matthew wanted more. He shrugged nonchalantly and said:
"This solution isn't particularly difficult, but the requirements are quite stringent."
"The ones we manage in Bay Territory aren't ordinary Murlocs. They've undergone Dragon Blood modification and have developed intelligence."
Dragon Blood modification?
My goodness!
Anthony, deeply impressed by Matthew and Yaya's achievements, began to take a keen interest in the recently prominent Bay Territory.
After all, there were few forces in the entire Northern Continent openly clashing with the Kingdom of Kor Elves.
How could such a small territory like Bay Territory have the courage to do so?
To his surprise, not long after their meeting, Bay Territory gave Anthony another great shock.
Vast expanses of newly cultivated wastelands and farmland made Anthony's eyes widen.
He stared in amazement at the efficiency of the Agricultural Golems, watching as one plot of land after another was rapidly developed, and he couldn't help but smack his lips and say:
"Using Golems to help with land reclamation and farming? That's quite a far-fetched idea..."
Before Anthony could fully process it, a thick record book of reclamation statistics was placed before him.
Matthew, smiling cheerfully, addressed the slightly hesitant Anthony:
"The production and reclamation efficiency of Agricultural Golems is more than a hundred times that of ordinary laborers."
"We need more manpower devoted to more valuable and efficient work."
Anthony, who was very concerned about land cultivation.
Looked at the records showing that Bay Territory had cultivated over fifty million acres of land this year.
The total grain harvest exceeded 35 billion catties.
Enough to feed more than 35 million people—a tremendous harvest.
He couldn't help but lick his lips, staring with anticipation at the Agricultural Golems fertilizing the fields below, and eagerly asked:
"I've never seen a territory use this kind of method for farming..."
"No wonder my god wanted me to come and see..."
"I didn't expect it. The development of Arcane technology and the use of tools have already begun to affect every aspect of people's lives..."
"Is that the fertilizer produced by Bay Territory? It certainly seems to be brimming with the essence of nature."
Hearing Anthony's murmurs to himself, Matthew smiled instinctively, raising his eyebrows slightly.
Bay Territory's massive harvest scale meant that a significant portion of farmers and residents were also followers of Mother Earth.
It was inevitable that this would attract the attention of the powerful deity.
The reason was simple: Mother Earth was also the Goddess of Harvest.
Perhaps Bay Territory's abundance was even blessed by Mother Earth.
Although Matthew was displeased with Mother Earth's connection to the Great Evil God Lathander,
He still had considerable respect and goodwill towards the kind deity and the members of her church.
The followers of Mother Earth's Church were inclusive of all races and creatures.
Over 70% of the farmers were followers of Mother Earth.
The members of Mother Earth's Church were practically the epitome of harmlessness and benevolence.
They taught farmers how to cultivate, how to nurture seeds, and how to achieve abundant harvests.
In addition, they also purified polluted areas.
For example, in the recently ravaged Bloodmoon City, there was a large group of Mother Earth's Church members busy at work.
Matthew seized this opportunity, using yield-increasing fertilizer as bait, to 'invite' Mother Earth's Church to Bay Territory.
Meeting Anthony's clear and unclouded eyes, Matthew nodded without hesitation, smiling as he said:
"It's precisely with the help of this fertilizer that the newly cultivated wastelands have enough fertility to produce such a massive amount of grain."
"According to comparative calculations, the fertilizer's contribution to increasing yield and production can reach up to 60%."
60%?
Feeling as though Mother Earth herself was watching him, Anthony's eyes shone with excitement.
He raised his snow-white eyebrows in delight and asked without hesitation:
"Are you truly willing to cooperate with the Church, not only to share the formula but also to produce it together?"
Anthony could sense his goddess's intent—it was to acquire the fertilizer's formula at any cost.
If he could accomplish this, he would receive immeasurable divine grace and perhaps even Mother Earth's blessing.
Seeing Anthony's tense expression, Matthew immediately realized.
He had somewhat underestimated the impact of fertilizer—a powerful tool—on Mother Earth and her Church.
From Matthew's perspective, the invention and research of fertilizer were not novel.
Not to mention its thousand-year-long history of use in his previous world, even in the Eastern Empire, it was said to have been used for years.
What Matthew didn't know was that Mother Earth saw more than just the effect of the fertilizer.
Its significance was not just in increasing crop yields.
More importantly, across the entire material plane, it would enable more people to be fed, more production to occur, and bring her more followers and faith.
Moreover, it would allow many starving farmers a chance to eat and survive.
Even understanding the importance of fertilizer, Matthew still chose to agree without hesitation, with a similarly cheerful smile, he responded:
"Of course, this was already decided before you came, so there's no need to worry."
"Bay Territory needs more fertilizer to support the constantly expanding farmlands. We also need the Church to provide some minerals and other materials for support."
"Hmm, the most important one is Life Essence."
Life Essence?
Was that really all Matthew and Bay Territory wanted?
As Anthony gradually regained his composure, despite the goddess's urging in his ears, he questioned Matthew again. Receiving the same answer, he nodded without hesitation:
"Alright, it's settled then."
Having secured the Life Essence, which was equivalent to obtaining the formula, Matthew was naturally very satisfied with the deal.
With a large amount of Life Essence obtained.
The crucial sixth-stage modification surgery could finally commence.