Jiang Hao had already categorized the fat man who sold the potions and the young man in charge of the mounts as belonging to the gnolls' forces. He intended to publicize the gnolls' wickedness on the spot and then take the opportunity to drive the two men out of Dingbei City.

But he suddenly realized that he was now the lord of Dingbei City, and in a day, countless people from the Rabbit Kingdom would flood into Dingbei City seeking his protection. How could he disregard their interests and drive them away based solely on his own likes and dislikes?

While they may have enjoyed themselves for a moment, is it really good for the people of the Rabbit Country to not have various life-saving and restorative medicines?

You must understand that after reality merges with the Spirit Realm, everyone only has one life; once you die, you're truly dead!

At the same time, Jiang Hao also thought of another question. Why would the fat man selling potions and the young man selling mounts, knowing the current situation in Dingbei City, still risk coming here?

Jiang Hao was certain that the gnolls had taken control of their forces and prohibited them from interacting with Dingbei City. As for the forces belonging to the beastmen, such as the Potion Guild and the Mount Guild, although they were under pressure from the gnoll empire, they still risked sending people over.

What they're after is nothing more than profit! If we drive them away now, wouldn't that be tantamount to pushing them to the enemy's side?

Now, the human race in Dingbei City, or rather the entire realm, has the jackal's butcher's knife hanging over their heads. Can the human race alone save their lives, or even repel the jackal invasion?

Jiang Hao was well aware of the strength of the Jackal Empire. They used Realm 5 as their capital and controlled nearly 2,000 new and old Realms of varying sizes in the surrounding area.

Can Blue Star, a tiny realm that has just been born and is still in its infancy, really rely on its own strength to fight them head-on?

Even if Jiang Hao believed his skills were excellent and his summoned creatures were powerful, he was not arrogant enough to think he could turn the tide on his own.

Faced with such a predicament, Jiang Hao recalled a famous saying by the founding father of the People's Republic of China: "Make as many friends as possible and as few enemies as possible!"

In an instant, Jiang Hao felt as if the clouds had parted and the sun had shone through, and he suddenly understood the direction of his next move.

Jiang Hao continued, "I'm sure you're all aware of Dingbei City's current situation. I deduce that you've all come here today at great risk and under immense pressure."

"I don't know if this realm can withstand the attack of the Gnoll Empire. But since everyone is here, as the city lord of Dingbei City, I certainly can't let you leave empty-handed."

Jiang Hao walked up to Old Wang and asked, "Old Wang, when will your Black Dragon Hall in Dingbei City open for business?"

Old Wang was filled with trepidation and immediately bowed, saying, "The higher-ups have given instructions that as long as you, the city lord, are willing to rent a storefront, you can go in in half an hour."

Jiang Hao smiled and nodded, then asked, "How many of those large-scale mines like the one last time can we get this time?"

Old Wang's face instantly lit up with a smile, and he bowed again, saying, "To show our sincerity, the higher-ups have already prepared 80 large mines for you. If you can empty the mines completely like you did last time, I'll try to get you another 50."

Upon hearing that the mine would be completely emptied, the managers of the various business units nearby began to get restless. Some widened their eyes, while others snorted coldly, thinking the two were just boasting.

Seeing that the effect was quite good, Jiang Hao pointed to a row of shops opposite the central castle and said, "The first and second shops on the right are free for you to use for two years. Go and arrange it quickly, I need to go into the mine in half an hour."

Old Wang knelt down with a thud and kowtowed several times to Jiang Hao. He said, "This old man thanks the city lord for your kindness. I will go and prepare immediately, awaiting your arrival."

Watching Old Wang's hurried departure, tens of thousands of sows shouted, "Old Wang, remember to prepare the gold coins. Last time it was 80 million, this time it might be even more!"

That assist was absolutely brilliant!

Upon hearing this, Jiang Hao immediately gave 32 thumbs-ups to the tens of thousands of sows in his mind!

Old Wang turned around, bowed to the tens of thousands of sows, and said, "Don't worry, sir, the higher-ups have prepared 10,000 gold coins, just waiting for you two to enter the mine!"

After saying that, Old Wang hurriedly ran off, as happy as a child.

The managers here could no longer hold back. Even the previously indifferent potion manager looked at Jiang Hao with eager eyes.

Jiang Hao walked up to Xiao Liu, the manager of the Forging Guild. Xiao Liu immediately became excited, breathing heavily through his nose, unsure whether to hold Jiang Hao's hand or clutch the hem of his own clothes.

Jiang Hao smiled and nodded, indicating that he shouldn't be nervous, and said, "Little Liu, City Lord, I have a question to ask you..."

"Lord, please speak freely. I, Xiao Liu, guarantee to answer all your questions without reservation."

Before Jiang Hao could finish speaking, Xiao Liu interrupted him, smiling and shaking his head, then nodding and saying, "Based on your experience, what kind of equipment do I need to order, and how many pieces, to protect as many people as possible during the initial merging of the two worlds?"

Xiao Liu was taken aback; the question was clearly beyond his level. But he didn't want to give up this hard-won opportunity, so he just mumbled "uh-huh" to himself.

Fortunately, the city lord of Jinling City came to his rescue, saying, "I wonder which people Your Lordship wishes to protect, and how many?"

Jiang Hao said solemnly, "Men, women, young and old, I want to protect the 140 million people of the Rabbit Kingdom."

Jiang Hao's words were like a thunderclap in spring. The city lord of Jinling City's eyes widened, several stewards looked puzzled, and the tens of thousands of sows scoffed, saying, "Fourteen billion? Protecting everyone is the same as protecting no one. In the current situation, it would be difficult to preserve even one or two sparks of civilization. And you're still dreaming? Wishful thinking!"

Jiang Hao's heart sank.

The city lord of Jinling City's expression turned solemn. After pondering for a moment, he said, "It is indeed impossible to protect 1.4 billion people with our current strength. However, I have a solution."

Jiang Hao grasped at a straw and hurriedly asked, "What method? Tell me quickly!"

The city lord of Jinling City said, "Given the population structure of your Rabbit Kingdom, a small portion of people will not be able to adapt to the Lingxu environment quickly. These people are either too old or too young, and can be treated as reserves. The remaining large portion needs to be trained as soon as possible. My idea is to have the older players mentor the younger ones, the stronger players mentor the weaker ones, and the veterans mentor the newcomers. Let the veteran players in the game lead a group of people to grow quickly, and after a fission, they will lead the next group to grow."

Brilliant!

Jiang Hao then immediately asked, "So what kind of equipment do you want to order now, and how much equipment do you want to order?"