Since he decided to spend more quality time with his subjects after defeating the Kitsun Lord, Michael didn’t rush anything. He didn’t want to waste his time doing anything, but talking and discussing crucial topics about the development of his territory was certainly not a waste of time.
Michael ended up talking to the Tamers close to two hours before he left the Bilrox Ranch. He promised them to create two more Beast Ranches. One with livestock like Titan Pigs, and Servant Cows to breed in order to procure highly nutritious milk and meat. Titan Pigs and Savant Cows could be bred in large numbers to feed the Soldiers to make sure that they would have enough nutrition to practice Body Refinement techniques. That was a good way to save precious money and to be independent of the meat procured through daily hunting in the Untamed Jungle.
Michael agreed to the livestock Beast Ranch but was a little hesitant about the other Beast Ranch. Apparently, two Tamers were famous for taming Bloodhounds, and Silver-eyed Sparrows. Bloodhounds were fierce monsters but once tamed they could be used in hunting parties to pursue monsters. Meanwhile, Silver-eyed Sparrows were easy to tame, but hard to train. According to the tamer, Silver-eyed Sparrows could be trained to send messages to each other through their high-pitched voices.
As long as they built their nests far away from each other, one nest could warn another about threats and the invasion of enemies all over the Untamed Jungle. It was a complex network of Silver-eyed Sparrow nests that required finesse and hard work to train the Sparrows until they could forward warnings properly. However, once the Sparrows reached that level they would turn into an extraordinary alarm system.
Michael was curious about the Silver-eyed Sparrows but he was a little worried about Bloodhounds in his territory. If not trained properly, they might wreak havoc inside his territory. In the worst case, they may even attack the Bilrox. If Bilrox felt unsafe in a previously safe environment, they would flee and create a new safe haven somewhere else. Michael couldn’t afford to lose the Bilrox now that a Bilrox Queen appeared. Therefore, he had to think a lot about what to do now.
‘In the first place, where am I supposed to be getting my hands on a stock of Titan Pigs, Savant Cows, Bloodhounds, and Silver-eyed Sparrows? The Zentika Empire is off-limits, and the Untamed Jungle doesn’t have such monsters. Should I send the Valyr Lordess a message? Maybe they have what I need?’ Michael wondered on his way to the Farmers, the 4-Star Nature Spirit, and the Forest Pixie. The Botanica Sorcerer was also present, patiently waiting for Michael’s arrival with the Head of the Farmers.
Once Michael arrived at the farmland, he was greeted by a beautiful sight. In between the humongous trees of the Untamed Jungle stood a majestic tree that seemed to embody the very spirit of nature. Michael couldn’t determine the type of tree very easily as the majestic tree seemed to change every moment. It had gnarled and weathered bark resembling the wrinkles on the face of a wise elder. The tree’s roots reached deep into the earth, anchoring into the ground to withstand all kinds of disasters.
It was the Nature Spirit that had grown into the majestic tree after months of absorbing energy and nutrition.
Around the Nature Spirit, a mesmerizing scene unfolded. The Forest Pixie, tiny and radiant, danced in the sunlight that filtered through the Nature Spirit’s leaves. Its delicate, semi-translucent wings shimmered like spun gold, casting tiny shimmering rainbows upon the earth.
The ethereal being continued to dance around, its laughter bright and tinkling like wind chimes. It weaved intricate patterns through the air, each movement delicate and as majestic as the Nature Spirit itself. In its presence, the air and origin energy seemed to merge, creating ripples in the surrounding area as the energy and potent power were led to the farmlands.
Michael never witnessed how exactly the synergy between the Nature Spirit and the Forest Pixie worked. He always thought that the Nature Spirit would absorb energy through its leaves and send it into the ground through its roots to nourish the ground and stimulate the farmlands. However, it seemed that the essence of life itself pulsed through the Nature Spirit and that the Forest Pixie aided the Nature Spirit in the distribution of pure lifeforce. The soft rustling of leaves filled the air as the Nature Spirit swayed gently in the breeze. The Nature Spirit was still smaller than the trees around it. Nonetheless, Michael felt that the Nature Spirit was the center of it all. The energy of the forest converged in the Nature Spirit, creating a haven where the boundary between the natural and the mythical was blurred. The tree was not merely a living entity, it was the embodiment of Michael’s territory, a sanctuary where the magic of nature thrives and the cycle of life begins.
Michael was enchanted by the beautiful scenery in front of him. He noticed too late that his entire body was covered in goosebumps, or that the Botanica Sorcerer and the Head Farmer were staring at him. Upon noticing them, Michael smiled lightly, trying to hide his embarrassment.
“It is a majestic sight, ain’t it, my Lord?” The Botanica Sorcerer asked, looking excited. He understood the Lord’s reaction since he had felt just like his Lord when he first witnessed the playful synergy between the Forest Pixie and the Nature Spirit.
“Thanks to their hard work everything grows faster and we have fewer issues with snails. In fact, ever since the Forest Pixie joined the territory we have yet to find any rotten crops. All ripe fruits and vegetables are of great quality and we were able to expand the farmland without any issues. After all, the range of the Nature Spirit’s domain expanded thanks to the Forest Pixie,” The Head Farmer explained before hurriedly adding, “My Lord.”
Michael didn’t say anything at first. Thus, the Botanica Sorcerer spoke up once again, “The Nature Spirit will soon advance to the 2nd Tier. By then its domain will expand again. The Forest Pixie will probably be stimulated enough to reach the 1st Tier. Once both the Nature Spirit and Forest Pixie have advanced, we should start planting herbs, flowers, and other rare ingredients of better quality. Once ripened their quality will be even better than before. This should help the Alchemists to create potions and pills of better quality. The Energy Nourishing Pills’ effectiveness would increase by more than 30% with ingredients of higher quality! That would be great, My Lord, wouldn’t it?”
Michael regretted a little bit to have talked so little to the Farmers and the Botanica Sorcerer. They were knowledgeable and knew what they had to do and what they needed to make the most use of the environment within the Untamed Jungle, and the domain effect created by the Nature Spirit and the Forest Pixie.
“That’s exactly why I came here. I have some rare goods that require experienced farmers to tend to,” He said, retrieving two pouches filled with Element Seeds from his War Rune.
The Element Seeds were produced by the Elemental Empress. Michael collected them from the treasury where they had been collecting dust. The Kitsun Lord had yet to meet the necessary requirements to plant the Element Seeds. They would have withered under his observance. Fortunately, Michael had the Untamed Jungle, the Nature Spirit, the Forest Pixie, a Botanica Sorcerer, and hundreds of Farmers to help him out with that. He was certain that the Element Seeds could grow easily with the aid of everyone – especially with the notes made by the Kitsun Lord’s subordinates. Most conditions to grow the Element Seeds had been written down in great detail. Therefore, it would hardly be a problem to grow elemental fruits and vegetables in his territory.
The Botanica Sorcerer and the Head Farmer picked one pouch each and looked inside. The insides of the pouches were filled to the brim with grain-sized seeds. They didn’t look anything special other than their vibrant color distinguishing them. Traces of elements could be found within each of the seeds, but it was hard to notice with the bare eye. The traces of the elements were not as vibrant as the seeds’ color but they were definitely there.
Michael retrieved the notes made by the Kitsun seeing that the Botanica Sorcerer and Head Farmer were having problems figuring out what exactly the seeds were. Their perception was not as high as Michael’s. Thus, they couldn’t sense the traces of elemental energy within them.
“This will probably help you understand what you’re holding,” Michael said before he chuckled lightly. He was not sure how rare element seeds were but most people he asked about them knew about their existence. Therefore, he expected the Botanica Sorcerer to know about it.
Unfortunately, that didn’t seem to be the case.
“Wait…what?!?” The Head Farmer exclaimed as he finished reading the first page of the notes. His hands began to tremble and he hurriedly closed the pouch filled with elemental seeds. He rushed over to Michael and returned the pouch.
“I don’t deserve to hold such treasures. Please pardon me. I don’t want to be flogged!!” The Head Farmer apologized profusely and was about to kneel down on the ground when the Botanica Sorcerer reacted as well. His eyes were filled with shock and his hands trembled as well. However, he didn’t act as quickly as the Head Farmer.
“My Lord…is that what I think it is? Do you want us to plant all of these? There…must be hundreds of Element Seeds….each of them is worth a fortune. And…a-and I cannot really promise anything. I was never given a privilege like this…Tending to Element Seeds…This…This is a dream coming true!!”