In the early morning, sunlight gently shone through the window and sprinkled into Martin's room. Martin woke up slowly, washed up, and sat at the dining table to enjoy breakfast.
After the meal, Eric walked over quickly and said respectfully to Martin, "Young Master, the Arena has shipped all the magic crystal ore worth 110,000 to Sunset Valley overnight. I have arranged for Alton to guard it there to prevent others from coveting and stealing it."
Martin nodded slightly, then picked up the communication crystal and sent an order to Yoder: "Have the guards escort all the death row prisoners out of the Luoxia Valley. The situation in the Luoqiu Mountains is complicated. If the escort team is too small, there is a risk that these prisoners will riot along the way."
Yoder quickly replied via the communication crystal, confirming he understood the arrangement. Martin then contacted Betan, informing him to lead a hundred men to the outside of Sunset Valley to meet Yoder and escort the condemned prisoners. Betan quickly replied, stating he was aware of the matter.
Time slipped by, and in the blink of an eye, it was noon. After lunch, Martin prepared to lead the thirteen surveyors to the Luoqiu Mountains. On the way, they took a detour to Luoxia Valley. Martin entered the valley alone and found Alton waiting. Upon seeing Martin, he immediately bowed and saluted.
Martin nodded, signaling Alton to leave. He walked directly to the magic crystal ore and silently chanted, "System Recharge." Instantly, the ore pieces vanished like phantoms, and the energy reading on the system panel continued to climb. When all the ore had disappeared, Martin opened the panel to check: Host: Martin, Level: 0, Oath-sworn Guards: 222, Energy: 122,110.
Looking at the energy value, Martin thought to himself that it would be more important to upgrade the two golden knights first.
After leaving Luoxia Valley, Martin reunited with the others and headed towards the Luoqiu Mountains. As for Luoxia Valley, Martin planned to station troops there later. He was certain that this was his territory, and no one else would dare occupy it without permission.
As soon as they entered the Luoqiu Mountains, Martin immediately assigned the prospectors to work. As expected, the situation remained the same: the mineral veins were extremely difficult to find. Fortunately, they had ample manpower this time, and in just two days, they successfully located a vein—the Black Crystal Iron Ore Vein.
However, after careful inspection by the prospectors, they all concluded that it was only a small vein. Even so, Martin decided to mine first. He took out a map, carefully marked the location of the vein, and then the group headed towards the Demon Copper Mine camp.
While they didn't encounter any major crises along the way, they did encounter minor troubles. One time, they were suddenly attacked by an A-level monster. Just as everyone was tense, Eric and Alton quickly acted and killed the monster.
This scene shocked the thirteen surveyors. They realized then that Martin's guards were all Golden Knights. From that moment on, the surveyors' attitude toward Martin and his group changed noticeably, becoming more reserved. Martin paid no attention, remaining focused on his journey, continuing toward the Demonic Copper Mine camp.
After arriving at the Demonic Copper Mine camp, Martin arranged for the thirteen prospectors to rest, while he, under Betan's guidance, headed to the valley where the Demonic Copper ore was stored. He had Betan wait outside the valley while he entered alone to begin collecting the ore.
As the ore continued to disappear, the energy reading on the system panel soared. Martin's face lit up with joy as he watched the ever-increasing number, his mouth almost stretched to his ears. After the collection was complete, the energy reading on the panel had reached 168,000. Martin couldn't help but sigh: mining with more people is more efficient.
After leaving the valley, Martin planned to take the 100 knights and squires he had left behind with him. Betan and William begged him to leave 50 of them behind, but Martin refused.
Martin explained that they were short-handed and needed to finish mining that small vein before looking for a new one. Besides, Betan already had 250 men, especially the 200 condemned prisoners; any more would be difficult to manage.
When preparing to leave, Martin handed Betan a space ring, which contained healing potions, stimulant potions, recovery potions and fifty sets of D-level knight armor.
Also, I told them that if they were seriously injured, they should take healing potions; if they were depressed, they should take stimulating potions; if they were physically exhausted, they should take recovery potions. Remember, these people are my human-shaped gold coins. They must be treated well to good food and drink, and not be allowed to die.
Also, have the knights wear knight armor and patrol inside and outside the camp, so they don't have to dig. With that, he took a hundred knight squires and a prospector to the Black Crystal Iron Ore Vein.
After arriving at the destination, Martin quickly gave Alton instructions: "First, lead everyone to clear a piece of land and start building a camp. Once the camp is initially organized, find a nearby cave or valley to store the ore."
After explaining all this, Martin handed the mining tools, food, and daily necessities to Alton and prepared to leave. As for the remaining twelve prospectors, Martin decided to place them in the Demon Copper Mine camp for now, and to bring them out at any time if needed.
On the return journey, Martin remained composed, avoiding unnecessary trouble. After all, he was only accompanied by a single Golden Knight, so he had to proceed with caution. Fortunately, he had a safe journey and successfully returned to Luoqiu Town.
Upon returning to town, Martin immediately ordered the three overseers to be brought in, intending to promote them to Golden Knights. As for Man Feng, his favorability rating hadn't yet reached sixty, currently hovering in the low fiftys. Martin figured that with more time together, his favorability rating would likely improve.
Soon, the three of them arrived at Martin's room, knelt on one knee, and shouted, "Loyalty!" Martin was very pleased with this call of loyalty when they met. He immediately asked Eric to inform everyone that they should do the same greeting when they met. Eric obeyed the order and quickly took out the communication crystal to send a message.
Afterwards, Martin asked the three of them to get up and head to Luoxia Valley with Eric, who had just sent the message. After arriving at Luoxia Valley, Martin asked Eric to go in and check it out first, as usual.
After confirming that everything was alright, everyone entered. Martin looked at the three and said earnestly, "You've followed me loyally since the beginning of the Earldom. Today, I will reward you for your loyalty." He had the three stand apart, then silently recited in his mind, instructing the system to deduct 166,500 energy points.
As the energy rapidly dissipated, the knightly power surrounding the three began to fluctuate violently, and the process of advancement began. The energy surged, breaking through layers of barriers and successfully ascending to the realm of Golden Knight.
The three of them were trying their best to stabilize their realm. As the momentum spread, Martin signaled Eric to resist. Martin didn't want to experience the pressure of the momentum brought by others' advancement a second time.
After six days of arduous promotion, the three woke up one after another on the seventh day. Upon seeing Martin, they immediately knelt on one knee, their tone full of fanaticism and loyalty, and shouted loudly: "Loyalty!"
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