Chapter 534: The Creator's Cat Rescue Operation
Besides the three Angels, there were also four Saints.
They were Reinette, who carried two heads in her hands and had two heads growing on her neck, and Jax, whom Hobert had just met yesterday.
Hobert could see that Miss Messenger was not in good condition. She did not have the strength of an Angel-level being and was only slightly stronger than Jax!
There was also an unfamiliar "Secrets Sorcerer" lurking on the edge of the battlefield, preparing to pick up the black jade that contained the ravings of the True Creator.
In mid-air, there was also a "Sailor" pathway Saint hiding in the clouds, staring at the "Secrets Sorcerer", ready to strike at any moment.
As for Klein, who was praying for help, he was fleeing the battlefield in a very disheveled state, carrying a black notebook on his head.
Hobert guessed that the notebook in his hand should be the Groselle's Travels. Even under True Vision, Hobert found it difficult to see Klein's specific state.
As for the "Sailor" pathway Saint in the clouds, he should be the true ruler of the Rorsted Archipelago, "Sea King" Jahn Kottman.
Hobert guessed that the "Secrets Sorcerer" was from the Aurora Order. He remembered that the Aurora Order had an "Secrets Sorcerer".
Almost the moment he saw the situation on the battlefield clearly, Hobert had already distinguished between friend and foe. At this moment, Suah's hand was reaching towards Klein.
Hobert realized that the time to act had come!
He picked up the Black Emperor card with one hand and manipulated "1-105" with the other, projecting the surging power into the real world.
...
Berserk Sea, on the mountain outside Bayam City.
The two heads in Reinette's hands opened their mouths at the same time, and two translucent ice arrows shot towards Jax, as if the space along the way was frozen.
Jax, who was already injured and whose body was noticeably smaller, hurriedly dodged, but the spot where he landed after dodging instantly turned black. The plants and animals on that piece of ground immediately died and rotted in an instant.
Jax put himself into the "Wraith" state, not daring to land, but he felt his spirituality flowing madly towards the rotten ground. He quickly entered the spirit world and came out from not far away, and only then did the momentum of his spirituality flowing towards the corroded ground stop.
In this battle, even though Jax had devoured the puppet bestowed by the Mother Tree of Desire, he was still no match for Reinette. After all, the power that the Mother Tree of Desire could project was extremely limited, and Reinette's Sequence level was also there.
Just as Reinette was about to launch a new offensive, suddenly her spirituality sensed something, and she and Jax looked towards the mid-air. They saw the sky being torn apart by solidified black power.
At the same time, the "Secrets Sorcerer" who was always watching "Sea King" Jahn still didn't dare to openly pick up the jade stone that contained the ravings of the True Creator.
Suddenly, his spirituality also sensed something and looked towards the position in mid-air that was torn apart by the black power. A solidified figure appeared there.
The appearance of this powerful being immediately made "Sea King" Jahn in the dark clouds feel a huge sense of oppression. He rushed out of the dark clouds and flew back to the ground.
Klaestor and the mist, who were fighting for some unknown reason, also stopped fighting and looked together at the solidified figure in mid-air.
That figure sat on a throne made of swords, wearing armor emitting a black, sacred light, and a crown that also radiated a sacred light. Unfortunately, one could not see the other party's face clearly, only their eyes flashing with black light!
A huge sense of oppression came over them, and the absolute majesty shocked everyone's hearts!
The evil and crazy aura of the original Suah, as well as the death aura of the mist, were instantly suppressed, and the entire mountain was filled with a strong sense of majesty.
Several Saints had the urge to kneel. They seemed to support this solidified figure from the bottom of their hearts, unwilling to disobey any of his orders.
The only Sequence 5 Klein present felt his legs go weak and required great willpower to continue moving forward.
If he didn't have Groselle's Travels on his head, he would have already knelt on the ground.
Even Hobert in mid-air immediately discovered that after he became a demigod, the image of the "Creator" had further solidified. With the blessing of the Black Emperor card, he felt as if he were even more like a True God.
Even under the gaze of Angels, they could only sense that this god's condition seemed not very good, but in their eyes, he at least had the strength of a "King of Angels"!
Before this, in the eyes of Angels, it was easy to see that the "Creator's" condition was not quite right. At least Adam had almost immediately noticed this.
Therefore, Hobert had almost never let the "Creator" show his face in front of Angels. Before, in the Alhambra Palace, he had only projected the corpse of the Ancient Death God.
However, at present, it only looked like he had such a Sequence level. Some of the "Creator's" abilities were only at the Sequence 2 level, and most of the abilities did not even reach that level.
What the "Nation of Disorder" strengthened were abilities such as "distortion", "disorder", and "magnification". Abilities such as "Charm" and "arrogance" were not greatly strengthened.
But none of the Angels and Saints present could see through Hobert's true strength. They were all stunned in place: Where did this god come from, or when did this god appear?
Unless a True God descended, Hobert at this time was a "god" with the strength of a "King of Angels" in the eyes of Angels! In the eyes of those below the Angel level, he was a True God!
After Hobert took his place, he first waved his hand and "distorted" Klein's position, causing him to appear on the edge of the cliff.
Then, the "1-105" in his hand turned into a giant sword emitting a blue light. At the same time, Hobert injected surging "Power of Order" into it.
The giant sword immediately turned black and emitted a sacred black light.
Hobert, sitting on the "Iron Throne", leaned forward, and the black giant sword slashed towards Suah's arm.
Suah, intimidated by the "Creator's" pressure, did not dare to confront him head-on and retracted his arm into mid-air.
Thus, the battle between Angels and Saints took place on the ground, and the battle between the "Creator" and the "Abomination" began in the air.
The last time the "Creator" met the "Abomination", the "Creator" was completely empty and could only use the rules of the supernatural world to prevent the "Abomination's" descent.
Now it was different. Hobert already had the ability to fight Suah in a real battle, and at the beginning, it looked as if the "Creator" had the upper hand.
Hobert pressed his attack, stabbing Suah with his sword.
The skulls growing on Suah's arm opened their mouths at the same time, uttering a silent curse towards the figure on the throne!
This curse was so vicious that the real world could not bear it, as if the space was distorted, like a hurricane blowing towards the figure on the Iron Throne.
Hobert held the giant sword in front of him, and a solidified, translucent black barrier appeared in front of him. After the vicious curse hit the barrier, it was completely blocked.
"Disorder!" Hobert immediately counterattacked, making the area around that arm immediately chaotic. This was a dual "disorder" in reality and concept. Even the oxygen molecules in it became very disordered, and the Angel's body would disintegrate in such an environment.
Suah's arm trembled violently, and the barbed tongues on it fell off, suddenly becoming larger and wider, wrapping around his arm and blocking the momentum of "disorder" disintegrating his entire arm.
After the state of "disorder" ended, those tongues quickly rotted and were blown away by the wind before they even fell to the ground.
Then Suah's long arm stretched out, revealing a black-gray shoulder that seemed to be covered with rotten flesh.
He reached out to the "Creator", and Hobert felt that his connection with the spirit world seemed to be broken, which quickly weakened his power, and it seemed as if he had become a superfluous part of this world. The whole world, even the surrounding air, was at odds with him, hoping that he would disappear from this world.
"Connection!" Hobert strengthened his connection with the "Nation of Disorder". Even if this world did not recognize the existence of the "Creator", the "Nation of Disorder" could make him a loophole existing in this world, rather than a superfluous part of this world.
In fact, having fought to this point, Hobert had lost all his advantages except for his aura. After all, his "King of Angels" Sequence level was forcibly propped up, and he might be exposed if he fought any longer.
Fortunately, Suah's shoulder that had just stretched out returned to the spirit world. Not only that, but his arm also quickly retracted.
While Hobert breathed a sigh of relief, he saw a huge underwater creature with sixteen fins on its back swimming along the coast on the other side of the cliff. It turned out that Suah's target had left, and there was no point in him staying here.
Hobert stretched out his hand and cast a "Disorder," covering up the traces of the giant underwater creature, both in reality and in the mystical realm.
This way, Suah and the others would not be able to find Klein's trail.
At the same time, Hobert discovered that Kleist had already abandoned his opponent and forced Reinette back, and had taken Jax into the spirit world!
Hobert was also preparing to leave when he suddenly seemed to think of something: "Disorder!"
An angel-level "Disorder" could throw the corresponding spirit world space into a state of "Disorder." Sure enough, Jax looked bewildered as he returned to the real world from the spirit world: How did I return to the battlefield again after just leaving Lord Kleist's protection?
Hobert swung his greatsword at Jax: If I can't beat the big one, can't I beat the small one?
Before the sword even arrived, the immense sense of oppression had already arrived. Jax was shocked by this surging pressure, and his movements actually became very slow.
Just as the black light emitted from the greatsword was about to sweep over him, a cane made of bones appeared, blocking the blow for Jax.
Kleist reappeared in the real world, giving Jax a look to let him go first.
At this time, Reinette had already left, and no one was blocking Jax anymore.
But at this moment, on the left side of the black-armored figure in the air, a monster with a bull's head and deer antlers appeared, and on the right side, a huge sea serpent appeared.
Hobert swung his sword again, smashing it towards Crista, while the "Bull Devil Monarch" and the "Great Sage" flanked him from the left and right, rushing towards Jax.
Jax was about to enter the spirit world, but the "Great Sage" "distorted" the space in front of him. At the same time, the "Bull Devil Monarch" opened his mouth and spat out a dull word: "Filth!"
Jax entered the state of "Wraith," but his body was still covered with a layer of black mucus.
And when the "Sea King" Jahn had just arrived here, the dark clouds that appeared in the sky saved the "Great Sage" a lot of effort.
Crack ~
A thick bolt of lightning struck Jax, who was already injured and under the influence of "Filth," and most importantly, in the "Wraith" state.
The lightning's attack bonus against "Wraiths" clearly stunned Jax in place. Immediately afterward, this "Disciple of Silence," whose figure had become much fainter, jumped into a dewdrop dozens of meters away, wanting to escape using the mirror-like jump method.
The cooperation between the "Bull Devil Monarch" and the "Great Sage" was quite tacit. The "Great Sage" had just attacked with "Lightning," and the "Bull Devil Monarch" stepped forward: "Distort!"
Jax's thought of escaping was immediately "distorted," turning into a charge towards the two saints.
Although he quickly broke free from the "distorted" state, he returned to the side of the "Bull Devil Monarch."
Jax immediately let out a sharp scream towards the "Bull Devil Monarch," an attack from the spirit body that could indeed blow the "Bull Devil Monarch" backward, but it would not have too much of an impact on the "Bull Devil Monarch," who had no spirit body.
Moreover, the "Great Sage" filled the position in time, opening its bloody mouth wide. The trees around Jax, which had become withered, were uprooted and sucked into its mouth.
Jax immediately stabilized his body to prevent being sucked in. At this time, he saw the monster with the bull's head and deer antlers charging towards him, lowering its head to gore him with its antlers.
He made himself enter the Wraith state again. According to common sense, the Bull Devil Monarch's attack would not be able to hurt him this way.
Who knew that when the Bull Devil Monarch was about to gore Jax, a layer of black light suddenly covered its golden antlers.
Dong ~
Jax was sent flying, spitting out a mouthful of blood in mid-air. He felt like his lungs were almost gored out!
The Bull Devil Monarch's attack made him unable to maintain his posture, and he was sucked into the stomach of the Great Sage in one gulp.
Then, the Bull Devil Monarch jumped onto the huge body of the Great Sage. The Great Sage leaped into the air, and the two of them rode the wind away.
Crista, who had been held back by Hobert, gritted his teeth, but still quickly entered the spirit world and left here.
The "Rose School" currently has a total of five "Disciples of Silence," and two have now been killed by the subordinates of the "Creator."
(Previously, in the battle in the Southern Continent, one was killed by the Black Hound Spirit Beast.)
Hobert also quickly withdrew his power. Just as he was about to leave, he suddenly felt a gaze from the direction of Bayam looking over here.
But the owner of that gaze seemed to realize that Hobert had noticed him, and immediately terminated the observation process.
Hobert didn't think much about it. After returning to the real world and making some preparations, he used the "Faceless Necklace" for navigation and entered the spirit world to find the "Great Sage" and the "Bull Devil Monarch."
At this time, they were already waiting on an island not far from Bayam. Although the "Sea King" Jahn sensed the unusualness of the "Great Sage," the "Creator" gave him a great shock, and he did not dare to chase after them!
Hobert ordered the "Great Sage" and the "Bull Devil Monarch" to stand ready. With a wave of his hand, he separated the belly of the "Great Sage," and Jax rolled out from inside.
Hobert was about to give the other party a "Disorder" when he discovered that Jax had turned into a puppet made of bark, dry and rough all over, and no longer had a human appearance.
Because the puppet had no signs of life, Hobert thought that the other party had used a substitute or something to escape, but upon closer inspection, he realized that Jax had lost control when he was about to die painfully and turned into a monster that resembled a puppet.
But he soon died in the "Order Cage" of the "Great Sage," and finally turned into this appearance.
At this time, his Beyonder characteristics were already condensing on his teeth. Hobert patiently waited for a few minutes, and the "Bull Devil Monarch" and the "Great Sage" disappeared one after another due to insufficient power.
Hobert vigilantly paid attention to every move around him and set up an altar. Finally, he waited until all of Jax's Beyonder characteristics condensed on his teeth, turning into a silver-white puppet.
The white eyeballs of the puppet moved, and it was about to look at Hobert. Fortunately, Hobert was quick-witted and fast-handed: "Distort!"
The white eyeballs of the puppet looked elsewhere. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Hobert quickly sacrificed the puppet to the "Nation of Disorder."
After returning to the island, Hobert made the space around Jax's corpse "chaotic," and took advantage of the "disorder" to "stuff" the corpse underground.
Hobert also cleaned up the traces of the altar before using "Travel" to leave.
...
The bottom of the Berserk Sea.
Klein finally breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that no enemies were chasing after him.
Recalling the pressure displayed by the "Creator," he realized: The Creator is much stronger than before, and seems to be infinitely close to a True God!
Thinking of this, he revealed a helpless smile: "Justice" and "Hanged Man" both think that I and the "Creator" are allies. They may not have thought that the ally of such a powerful "Creator" is just a Sequence 5!
Then, Klein thought again: How should I thank the "Creator" for the rescue?
Although he had his eyes closed the whole time, he clearly felt the "Creator" helping him resist the attack of the "Rose School" angel and sending him to the side of the cliff.
After thinking for a while, only the "Sea God Scepter" and the "Death" card might interest the "Creator," but he was reluctant to part with the former, and the latter might be from the "Creator." Should he send it back to the person?
The key is that the "Death" card is very useful when I summon myself! He was also a little reluctant to part with it.
Immediately afterward, Klein thought of the "Hanged Man's" approach at yesterday's gathering. He could consider writing a letter to Hobert and asking him what he needed?
At this time, Klein suddenly discovered that there were bloodstains on "Groselle's Travels." He was slightly stunned. When did he get injured?
But after checking, he had no wounds on his body.
Suddenly, Klein thought that he had used "Groselle's Travels" to block the attack of that "Wraith," and that the "Travels" had fallen not far from the "Wraith" during the subsequent battle.
The "Wraith" had been hit by the "Fatal Attack" of the "Death Knell," and blood had spilled all over the surroundings. Could it be that the "Wraith's" blood had dripped onto the "Groselle's Travels"?
The more Klein thought about it, the more likely it seemed: Does that mean that the "Wraith" is now in the "Groselle's Travels"?
After divining that his next actions would not be dangerous, he quickly dripped his blood on the surface of the "Groselle's Travels" and entered the "Story" to find that "Wraith."
...
Outside Bayam City.
"Sea King" Jahn looked at the nearly completely withered forest and the mountain that had been cut in half, lost in thought.
The mountain that had been cut off was done by that god-like being when they accidentally sliced it off with their giant sword during the final battle with the "Rose School" angel.
The Minotaur-like, antlered monster that appeared later made "Sea King" Jahn think of the previous information he had on the "Creator".
At his level, the information he received about the "Creator" was more detailed and of a higher level.
According to the limited information, the "Creator" was a weakened evil god, but after seeing the "Creator" today, "Sea King" Jahn didn't think so. The "Creator" was clearly in good condition, with no hint of evil or madness.
Could it be that the "Creator" had used some method to improve their condition recently?
Jahn shook his head, unable to confirm his guess. He planned to go to the "Chasm of Storms" in person to report today's events to the Pope.
While heading to the "Chasm of Storms", he couldn't help but speculate: Was today's battle a continuation of the "Creator's" battle and conflict with the "Rose School"? The only Sequence 5 present was likely a subordinate of the "Creator". They had obtained information about the "Rose School" and ultimately lured out the enemy, triggering the war just now.
But a new question arose. Was the "broadcast" that took place throughout Bayam done by the "Creator"? Logically speaking, they had the motive and ability to do so, but the power of the "broadcast" felt completely different from the "Creator's" power!
At this moment, "Sea King" Jahn suddenly recalled the huge sea serpent. He had actually detected Kalvetua's aura on that sea serpent, but Jahn was certain that Kalvetua was already dead.
Then it could only be a sealed artifact formed from Kalvetua!
So Jahn immediately thought: In that case, Kalvetua's Beyonder characteristics were picked up by a subordinate of the "Creator"? Last night's "broadcast" must have been done using Kalvetua's Beyonder characteristics! That explains everything.
… …
Backlund, No. 62 Empress Borough.
Hobert had no idea that a huge, dark pot was flying towards him.
He said to the noble children in the meeting room: "Tomorrow morning at eight o'clock, those who are willing to participate in the assessment will gather here, and I will take you to the fief.
"I'll say it again, unless you withdraw in advance, you'll be gone for a month. Be mentally prepared!"
After sending away the noble children, Hobert couldn't wait to enter his study. After locking the door, he immediately entered the "Nation of Disorder".
Sitting on the "Iron Throne", Hobert held the pure white puppet that had just been sacrificed.
In the real world, the puppet would actively look at Hobert, but in the "Nation of Disorder", as the master of the source, the puppet's eyes were looking elsewhere, not daring to look directly at him.
The moment he grabbed the puppet, Hobert already knew its abilities and negative effects.
First of all, this puppet has certain living characteristics. It will actively make eye contact with other creatures. Any creature that has made eye contact with it will either be entangled in a vicious curse, their body will immediately mutate, or their head will be separated from their body, or they will explode in place, and they will continue to encounter attacks from powerful spirit world creatures. Or they will become believers of the "Mother Tree of Desire", piously worshiping Her and serving Her.
Even if ordinary objects are used to block the puppet's line of sight, it's useless, because its line of sight can penetrate the spirit world and reach the target's eyes directly. If it is blocked by objects, you won't know where it is looking.
Hobert immediately thought of two ways to seal this characteristic. Either keep placing many insects around the puppet, so that the puppet keeps making eye contact with the insects and killing them. Or find a way to seal its eyes.
For Hobert, the second method was relatively simple. He took a piece of "Order Crystal" and turned it into the shape of an eye patch, putting it on the puppet's eyes, completing the initial seal of this sealed artifact.
As for the abilities of this sealed artifact: "It can turn the target into an animal for a certain period of time. During this period, the target will lose their language ability and some Beyonder abilities; it can establish a close connection with the target in the spirit world, and create a phantom dagger, injuring oneself, and the target will be injured, but the holder will not suffer substantial harm; it can temporarily become stronger by devouring the flesh and soul of Sequence 9 'Prisoner' pathway Beyonders, or pre-made puppets full of curses. The stronger the target devoured, the greater the degree and duration of strengthening; spirit world creatures will become extremely friendly to the holder; the holder will be proficient in making puppets with curse abilities; can enter the spirit world and the mirror world; the holder will not be possessed."
Hobert nodded slowly: Overall, the abilities of this sealed artifact are not bad. Again, because Jax died not long after losing control, his abilities were not very strange.
What Hobert was most satisfied with was that he could use the Sequence 3 level "Source of Curses". At this level, the "Source of Curses" seemed to exchange injuries for injuries, but it only harmed the enemy and not himself.
In addition, the ability to devour the same Sequence or create puppets seemed to be a special ability of Jax. Hobert didn't remember that Beyonders of the "Prisoner" pathway had similar abilities.
The negative effects are: "The holder will be cursed the moment they get the sealed artifact. The curse is relatively mild for the first three minutes, only causing falls, illnesses, or bad luck. After three minutes, the curse will cause the holder to suffer more serious injuries, and after five minutes, the curse will put the holder in mortal danger; after using it a certain number of times, the holder will experience hallucinations, hear the puppet speak, and see it communicate with them like a normal person. Eventually, the holder will unconsciously remove the seal on its eyes and make eye contact with it; if the holder uses the ability to devour puppets or devour Beyonders of the 'Prisoner' pathway, the 'Mother Tree of Desire' will lock onto and affect the holder for a certain period of time."
Hobert smiled wryly: In other words, the ability to become stronger through devouring is completely unusable! After all, who can withstand the influence of the "Mother Tree of Desire"!
As for the other negative effects, they seemed not very strong, but they were very tricky, because falling or having bad luck in battle could easily lead to death.
As for the second negative effect, Hobert seriously suspected whether Emlyn had been cursed in a similar way, which is why he liked dolls so much?
Thinking of this, Hobert twitched the corner of his mouth and smiled. He summoned a ball of "Power of Order" and resealed the puppet, eventually gaining three minutes of safe use time.
After naming this sealed artifact "1-108", Hobert looked at the skull of the Black-haired Golden-horned Evil Creature and the stomach pouch with the remnants of the sea serpent's spirit.
"Bull Devil Monarch" can still be used four times, and "Great Sage" can still be used eight times.
If he could use them and get three or four more Grade 1 Sealed Artifacts, he would make a fortune!
Returning to the real world from the "Nation of Disorder", Hobert had just taken a few sips of tea when Todd came to report on his work: He had found several factories that were being rented or sold.
So Hobert, led by Todd, came to the factory area, observed the area in person, and took a fancy to a factory located on Gear Avenue.
Without any workers stationed there, this factory looked very large, and the supporting facilities were relatively complete, although very simple, but there were dormitory buildings and a cafeteria.
At this time, there was no concept of an industrial park. In the entire factory area, this was a relatively large factory building.
The rent was 5,000 pounds for half a year and 9,000 pounds for a year. The landlord was only willing to rent and not very willing to sell, so he offered a high price of 150,000 pounds to sell it.
Hobert was now rich and powerful, but it would hurt him a lot to take out 150,000 pounds at once.
So on the carriage back, Hobert decided to rent it.
Todd suggested that they could rent it for half a year first, which could save upfront costs. There was also a point he didn't say, that if the benefits were not good, it could reduce losses.
Hobert nodded slowly: "You're right, 5,000 pounds doesn't sound like a lot of money, but it will reduce the financial pressure of our initial investment, and there are many benefits. So go rent it for two years, discuss it with the other party, and it's best to reduce the rent for two years to 15,000 pounds! Or even lower!"
Todd was stunned: Did I not make it clear just now? Or did I hear it wrong?
… …
In the blink of an eye, it was evening. After dinner, Hobert asked Dennis to take a walk in the backyard.
At this time, many plants had been replanted in the backyard of the Earl's Mansion, the pond had also been repaired, and some ornamental fish had been released and some aquatic plants had been planted.
Bathed in the light of the gas street lamps, Backlund's unique thin mist added a touch of haziness to the surrounding scenery.
Walking along a path in the woods, Hobert said to Dennis, "I called you out here to tell you something very important."
Dennis followed half a step behind, listening intently.
"Your father went to Viscount Teuton's place to complete a task for me. He has now completed his task and returned home." Hobert smiled. "I'll give you five days off to go back and rest."
Dennis stood there for a few seconds, his mood a mix of joy and longing for his father, leaving him feeling quite complex.
Snapping out of it, he quickly caught up with Hobert. "Your Lordship, does that mean my father has been loyal to you all along?"
"Yes." Hobert continued walking forward unhurriedly. "Don't blame your father; his work required secrecy at the time and he couldn't tell anyone."
Dennis nodded. "I understand, I won't blame him."
"Go back and pack your things; we'll return to the territory together tomorrow morning!"
...
At eight o'clock on Wednesday morning, Hobert, along with Dennis and 35 noble youths, arrived at the Lord's Manor in Jeffery City via the "Traveler's Gate."
This wondrous journey amazed the noble youths who had experienced the extraordinary and made those who had never experienced the extraordinary feel as if they were in a dream.
They had originally thought it would take several days by ship to reach the Earl's fief, but they never expected to arrive in just an instant.
Corwin was already waiting there, with the spells that Hobert had purchased in advance, which could allow them to master Feynapotter in a month.
Such spells were very cheap; if ordered in bulk from "Vice Admiral Iceberg," they only cost 6 silver Solas.
In addition, Hobert also purchased a batch of permanent Loen-speaking spells, preparing to give them to Conrad, Corwin, and others.
In the future, Hobert's focus of development would be in the Kingdom of Loen, so his main subordinates must be able to speak Loen and be proficient in Loen writing.
The arrival of these thirty-odd noble youths greatly alleviated the shortage of low-level cadres in the territory.
Currently, throughout the entire Jeffery Territory, anyone who could simply read and write had been conscripted into the town government, even one of the Lord's Manor's chefs and many male servants had been transferred to work in the town government.
At the same time, several night schools were established to allow them to work while receiving further training.
However, because the territory expanded too quickly, there was still a shortage of manpower.
And apart from the previous Jeffery Town, the illiteracy rate was even higher in other places, especially on the West Bank. Under the previous rule of the demons, not a single person besides the children of nobles could read or write!
Therefore, Hobert brought these noble youths here, partly to assess them, and partly to alleviate the pressure on manpower.
After Corwin arranged for these people, he attended the "Knight's Meeting" convened by the lord in the afternoon. The attendees were all knights conferred by the lord.
This meeting mainly discussed some of the current problems, as well as the future development tasks assigned by Hobert.
Among them, one of Conrad's reports caught Hobert's attention: a large amount of arable land on both sides of Full Moon Lake was still idle.
The reason for this phenomenon was the gradual decrease in the population of the South Colson area in recent decades.
For example, in the demon-ruled West Bank, the population had decreased by more than 40% in fifty years. The situation on the East Bank was slightly better, but the population had also decreased by about 10%.
Hobert asked, "What is the approximate population gap?"
"Currently, it looks like about 30,000 people." Conrad said, "If we recover the lost land, the final gap may reach about 40,000."
Hobert suddenly had a bold idea: he could recruit manpower from the East Borough of Backlund to fill this gap!
His governing philosophy leaned towards creating wealth rather than plundering it.
The reason for saying "leaned towards" was because Hobert's initial accumulation came almost entirely from plundering the enemy.
But he knew that such plundering could not last, so investing the spoils to create more wealth was the right path.
However, no matter what kind of investment, it required manpower to operate. In this era, population was crucial.
As long as there was population, there would be inexhaustible wealth, and one's own strength would have surging, continuous follow-up power.
And currently, in this era of overcapacity, population was also in a state of excess for the countries of the North Continent, which created the slums of Backlund.
In fact, the view of the countries of the North Continent was not entirely correct. It was the uneven distribution of population that led to this phenomenon, not a true overabundance of population.
"I plan to supplement this gap from Backlund." The more Hobert thought about it, the more feasible he felt this method was. "Prepare for the corresponding reception here. I can only provide simple training to the people supplemented from Backlund over there.
"Their state should only be that they can speak simple Feynapotter. In addition, they have nothing to their name, so we need to prepare to provide them with food and tools for a period of time."
Conrad nodded. "That's not a big problem!"
Then he asked, "Then should we move the local population together?"
Hobert pondered for a moment and shook his head. "Let them live together! This will at most create some conflicts in life, but if they are directly separated, it is easy to create serious opposition."
In the second half of the meeting, they focused on discussing another issue: the future development direction of the territory.
The construction tasks around Jeffery City had been mostly completed. The tourism industry and the opening of waterways were already generating some income for the city, but of course, the main source of income was still the auction house.
Now Jeffery City was basically self-sufficient while ensuring the continuation of the project.
However, the construction of the industrial zone, the renovation and relief of the new territory, etc., had already cost a lot of money.
Currently, there were two development methods. One was to wait until Jeffery City had income, about three months later, and then develop other territories.
The other was to continue investing, developing the new territories while Jeffery City was developing.
Most people supported the former development model, because the territory's population was severely insufficient. Even if some population could be supplemented, it would take time, so even if there was investment, there would be a lack of sufficient manpower for construction.
Hobert pondered for a moment. "The industrial zone cannot be stopped! The development of other regions should also continue as long as manpower allows."
Hobert had already prepared before coming to give Philip the 30,000 gold Solas from selling the Ancient Azure Dragon Beast Beyonder characteristics, as well as 20,000 pounds in cash and gold.
This money was all earned at the Tarot Club in the past two months, as well as the money from selling the "Criminal" Beyonder characteristics to Leonard, and the gold paid by the Balk family.
In this way, Jeffery Territory would have another 54,000 gold Solas in funds, and would be very affluent in terms of money again.
Then, in addition to continuing to build the industrial zone, two bridges and a new wharf would have to be built, and the roads between the towns would have to be hardened, and so on.
In short, there were many things to be busy with!
Hobert had already thought about the products to be produced in the industrial zone, which was to produce various daily necessities. First, to alleviate the shortage of industrial products in the South Colson area, where everything needed to be purchased elsewhere.
Secondly, because these products had no technical barriers, the machines were basically not difficult to buy, and a few technicians could be hired at high salaries to start work.
Moreover, the requirements for labor were not high, and the fanatical believers who were currently building the industrial park could be competent.
After Hobert finally set the tone, the meeting ended.
After a short rest, Hobert went to the Special Operations Department to see Captain Dunn, who had deep eyes.
After Captain Dunn's hair became thicker, Hobert was a little unaccustomed to it.
During this period, Captain Dunn had led teams to the West Bank for "internships" twice, once capturing a "Unwinged Angel" who had secretly sneaked into the territory, and once capturing a "Secrets Supplicant" from the Aurora Order who had come to inquire about information.
Captain Dunn's rich experience opened the eyes of other members!
"A branch must be established on the West Bank!" Captain Dunn said as soon as he saw Hobert.
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