Lei Luo nodded and said, "Great strength is good; my mine to the north is short on manpower."
"This one, and these few..."
Lei Luo casually pointed to ten barbarian slaves, including the young man, who looked the strongest and had the most "vitality" in their eyes.
"What's the price?"
Andrew saw that Lei Luo had chosen his targets so quickly, and they were all the most valuable young and strong barbarians. He was secretly pleased and, with a roll of his eyes, quoted a price: "My Lord has good taste! These are all tough bones that we had great difficulty catching. Each one... fifty gold dragons!"
This price was clearly inflated.
The market price for an ordinary strong barbarian slave was between twenty and thirty gold dragons.
Andrew had accurately judged that Lei Luo urgently needed laborers and had initiated the conversation, hoping to seize the opportunity to raise the price.
Lei Luo's eyebrows didn't even twitch; only a barely noticeable curve appeared at the corner of his mouth.
"Steward Andrew, are you joking with me? Fifty gold dragons? At that price, I could buy a well-trained gladiator in the South."
He paused, a hint of playfulness in his tone: "These 'tough bones' of yours, in my opinion, are nothing more than wild dogs with broken spines. It's questionable whether they'll even survive until next spring. I'm buying them simply for convenience, to save myself the trouble of recruiting vagrants. Twenty gold dragons each, no more."
The smile on Andrew's face stiffened.
"My Lord, this... this is too low! Look at their physiques, their strength..."
"Physique? Strength?"
Lei Luo scoffed, pointing at the stubborn barbarian youth.
"Look at the injuries on his body, and then look at their numb expressions. After I buy them, I'll still have to treat their injuries, provide food, and assign people to guard them to prevent them from escaping or rioting. These are all costs. Twenty gold dragons is already considering that we need manpower."
"My Lord, thirty-five! No less! This is truly the cost price!"
Andrew began to haggle.
"Twenty-five."
Lei Luo was unmoved.
"This is my final offer. If you don't think it's worth it, then so be it. Although Blackstone Town is short on people, I'm not in a hurry."
He acted nonchalant, as if this transaction was expendable.
Andrew looked at Lei Luo's calm expression, then at the slaves he had brought.
Long journeys often resulted in slave attrition; selling them early was always better than having them die on the road.
He gritted his teeth, seemingly making a difficult decision: "Alright! Twenty-five it is! Consider it making a friend! However, My Lord, that young man you chose..."
He pointed to the barbarian youth with fierce eyes.
"This lad is very headstrong; several of our guards have suffered at his hands. If you buy him, you'll need to guard him carefully."
Aide stepped forward, took a money pouch from a Followers, counted out two hundred and fifty heavy gold dragons, and handed them to Andrew.
The transaction was completed.
The ten barbarian slaves, including the young man named Thor, were taken over by the guards Aide had brought.
They looked around blankly, seemingly not fully comprehending another turn in their fate.
Thor still maintained his defiant demeanor, but when his gaze swept over Lei Luo, a complex and hard-to-fathom emotion seemed to flicker in his eyes.
"Thank you for your patronage, My Lord!"
Andrew put away the gold coins, his face wreathed in smiles.
"Does My Lord need any other 'goods'? We still have some good ones here..."
"No need."
Lei Luo waved his hand.
"Have your team complete their resupply as quickly as possible, then leave. Blackstone Town is small and cannot accommodate too many guests."
"Yes, yes, we'll be ready right away!"
Andrew repeatedly assented, not daring to say more.
He had Old Buck handle the follow-up matters for the slave-catching team.
Lei Luo looked at the ten barbarian slaves he had bought.
The wounds on their bodies stung in the cold air, but what made them even more uncomfortable was the uncertainty of their future and the deep-seated humiliation.
They were like a herd of livestock waiting to be redistributed.
Lei Luo paced over to them, Aide following behind him.
"Raise your heads."
Lei Luo's voice wasn't loud, but it carried an undeniable power.
The slaves hesitated, most still numbly keeping their heads down.
Only the young man named Thor still held his chin up, glaring at Lei Luo with bloodshot eyes, like a trapped young beast.
Lei Luo's gaze swept over them.
"I know you hate me, hate everyone who turned you into slaves."
He paused, observing their reactions.
Aside from Thor's gaze becoming fiercer, the others seemed unchanged, perhaps due to despair, or perhaps they simply didn't believe this new master would say anything good.
"But now, your fate is in my hands."
Lei Luo continued, his tone calm.
"I'll give you a choice."
This finally elicited some reaction; a few slaves subtly raised their heads.
"I need manpower, both laborers for the mines and warriors who can fight for me."
Lei Luo pointed to Blackstone Town in the distance.
"Here, warriors will receive respect, food, weapons, and perhaps even freedom and glory. As for laborers..."
He didn't finish, but the implication was clear.
"You can choose whether to continue being a slave laborer, at the mercy of others and living day to day, or to pick up weapons, pledge allegiance to me, and become a warrior."
A dead silence fell over the open space, with only the sound of the wind sweeping by.
These barbarian youths clearly hadn't expected to hear such words.
Slaves were slaves; when did they ever have a choice?
They looked at each other, their eyes filled with suspicion and distrust.
Become a warrior?
Pledge allegiance to this human lord who bought them?
It sounded like a clumsy joke.
No one responded.
Thor even scoffed and turned his head away, seemingly finding Lei Luo's words an insult to their barbarian warriors.
"It seems you don't believe me."
Lei Luo wasn't surprised; he had anticipated this reaction.
"Or perhaps, you think it's shameful to pledge allegiance to a human who 'bought' you?"
His gaze fell on Thor again.
"Barbarians revere strength, don't they? The strong are respected."
Thor sharply turned his head back, glaring fiercely at Lei Luo, a low growl escaping his throat.
"Very good."
Lei Luo nodded, a faint smile appearing on his face, though this smile sent a shiver down Aide's spine.
"Then let's settle it the barbarian way."
"The ten of you can challenge me in turns."
Lei Luo extended a finger.
"As long as any one of you can defeat me, all of you will immediately gain freedom. I will send people to safely escort you out of my territory, and I will not break my word."
At these words, all ten barbarian youths were stunned, and then an incredible light erupted in their eyes.
Freedom?
Just by defeating him?
This was like a pie falling from the sky!
Although they were slaves, their inherent combativeness and desire for freedom were instantly ignited.
"However..."
Lei Luo's tone shifted.
"If all of you lose, then you must swear a blood oath to me, from then on pledging complete allegiance to me, becoming the sharpest spear and the strongest shield in my hand. Any who harbor second thoughts will be executed without mercy!"
Blood oath!
This was the most sacred and severe oath in barbarian tribes; once sworn, it meant completely dedicating one's soul and loyalty to the other party.
This condition was undoubtedly harsh, but compared to an endless life of slavery, the temptation of "gaining freedom by defeating him" was simply too great.
