Chapter 53: As Many As You Have, I'll Take Them All

"Yes."

Tong Kun immediately followed Chang Xin toward the building that seemed to have abruptly appeared there.

Just at that moment, Liu Hen pushed the door open, and the warm firelight from inside spilled out, instantly making the exterior much brighter.

"Sir, the leader of the caravan has been brought here." At this moment, Chang Xin acted as if she genuinely were Liu Hen's subordinate, her tone entirely natural.

Tong Kun hastily offered a salute: "I am Tong Kun, the eighth captain of the Copper Dragon Camp trading post. Greetings, Lord Liu Hen."

Looking at this clean-faced man whose ragged outer garments clearly concealed an unusual inner armor, Tong Kun wore a look of awe.

Perhaps influenced by first impressions, he felt that the person before him possessed a completely different aura, and under the other man's gaze, he felt immense pressure.

"Please come in, Captain Tong Kun," Liu Hen said with a smile.

"I wouldn't dare dirty my lord's room. If my lord has any instructions, you may give them directly."

Tong Kun actually did not dare to step inside.

This made Liu Hen raise an eyebrow inwardly, realizing that the status of Awakened ones might be even higher than he had imagined.

He did not make a superfluous effort to insist that the other party enter, but asked curiously, "How far is the Copper Dragon Camp from here? I haven't heard of this camp before."

"I am ashamed to say, under the protection of Lord Copper Dragon, we rarely go out and seldom interact with outsiders all year round."

Tong Kun explained, "This time, the neighboring Red Conch Camp seemed to be experiencing a war, and they pressed us very hard while also promising Lord Copper Dragon sufficient benefits, which is why we were ordered to come out."

"I see."

Liu Hen asked again, "Is that Lord Copper Dragon also an Awakened one?"

"Uh..."

Tong Kun hesitated for a moment, but still answered truthfully: "Although Lord Copper Dragon is a copper ore vein that gained sentience, it has always protected us and is the guardian deity of our Copper Dragon Camp."

As soon as he finished speaking, he regretted it. To reveal such a secret—if Lord Copper Dragon found out, it would surely kill him, right?

However, in front of an Awakened one, the pressure was too great, and he simply could not control his mouth.

After all, he was a "sheltered" person from a camp; his mental fortitude and temperament were entirely incomparable to the wilderness scavengers outside.

Without even exerting any pressure, Liu Hen had easily extracted such vital intelligence.

"..."

Liu Hen and Chang Xin exchanged a glance, both realizing that the matter was not so simple.

Originally, he had intended to occupy that copper ore vein, but now... that plan might need to change.

A copper ore vein that gained sentience—and spirits of nature, in essence, could also be considered monsters or demons.

In other words, the people of the Copper Dragon Camp were worshipping a monster!

However... in the world of night mists, in order to survive, humans would worship monsters as deities. If that monster kept its promise and was truly willing to protect a place, to a certain extent, that could also be considered a good thing.

"That Lord Copper Dragon must be a benevolent spirit."

Liu Hen smiled. "If there is a chance, I must go and meet this Lord Copper Dragon."

***

Tong Kun secretly broke out in a cold sweat, while respectfully replying aloud, "Lord Copper Dragon should also be looking forward to meeting my lord."

Liu Hen smiled, changing the subject: "Can you reveal the details of your trade with Red Conch Camp? To be honest, I am also quite interested in your copper ore. If possible, I hope to buy some of your copper ore."

"This..."

Tong Kun braced himself and answered, "Two nights ago, Lord [Conch God] of Red Conch Camp communicated with Lord Copper Dragon, hoping to exchange ten tons of flint for a thousand tons of copper ore."

Red Conch Camp had flint available for external trade?

Liu Hen's interest spiked, but he didn't rush to ask about that, instead asking curiously, "Conch God?"

Since it had already come to this, Tong Kun had no choice but to bite the bullet and explain: "I have never seen that Lord Conch God, but Lord Copper Dragon said that Lord Conch God is a giant sea snail that gained sentience."

"..."

Not to mention Liu Hen, even Chang Xin and the others felt a chill run down their spines.

Red Conch Camp actually worshipped a monster just like Copper Dragon Camp did?

Could it be that the people in all the camps of this world worshipped monsters?

Did they rely on the power of monsters to fight against the Nightmares of the underground world?

Or... were the monsters enslaving humanity?

Liu Hen did not know, and he did not want to provoke them.

He changed the subject once again: "How do you sell your copper ore?"

"Forgive me, my lord. This batch of copper ore is needed for the trade with Red Conch Camp; we didn't bring any extra."

Although he didn't dare to refuse an Awakened one, Tong Kun was even more afraid of messing up his own Lord Copper Dragon's major affair, so he could only steel himself and refuse.

"You are carrying a thousand tons of copper ore? With that much ore, parting with just one ton shouldn't be a problem."

Liu Hen smiled. "Besides, I certainly won't let you suffer a loss; I only want one ton. With just one ton missing, Red Conch Camp probably won't even notice, or you could just say some scraps fell off during transport."

"This... if it's just one ton..."

Tong Kun let out a secret sigh of relief, then said with some hesitation: "When selling externally, the listed price of our Copper Dragon Camp is one magic crystal per kilogram of copper ore. This..."

This damn thing was almost comparable to the price of tree cakes; it was ruthless enough.

One could only say they truly lived up to being camp people.

However, Liu Hen was not angry and smiled, saying, "Naturally, I will purchase it according to your prices. Please wait a moment."

He turned and entered the room, directly using the workbench to craft a warm garment.

Since he didn't have that many magic crystals on hand, he could only substitute other products, and by the way, promote his own goods.

Outside, Tong Kun seized the opportunity to ask Chang Xin, "May I ask which giant city Lord Liu Hen comes from?"

Giant city?

What on earth was that?

Chang Xin was puzzled inwardly, but outwardly maintained a cold expression: "Don't ask what you shouldn't ask."

***

"Apologize."

Tong Kun figured that Lord Liu Hen's itinerary might be a secret, so he didn't dare to ask any further.

Before long, Liu Hen came out holding a piece of clothing. He first glanced at Wu愿明 (Wu Yuanming), then smiled at Tong Kun and said, "This is a tree-bark thermal garment I made myself. It has heat-retaining properties and can trap body heat. You can have someone try it out first. As for its price..."

Wu Yuanming was initially puzzled, but when Liu Hen mentioned the price, he suddenly realized and hurriedly said, "When we previously got goods from my lord to sell in Red Conch Camp, they bought them for two hundred magic crystals without a moment's hesitation. My lord, this subordinate thinks the price of this thermal garment could perhaps be raised..."

"No need."

Liu Hen smiled. "One hundred magic crystals is enough. One must always leave a bit of profit margin for others."

Tong Kun inwardly frowned. What kind of clothing was so expensive, costing one hundred magic crystals a piece?

Was this treating him like a fool to be fleeced?

"Captain Tong Kun, go have someone try it, and we can talk after you return." Liu Hen handed the tree-bark thermal garment to Tong Kun.

Tong Kun didn't dare to refuse, but he wasn't going to be taken for a ride either, so he immediately nodded: "Then please wait a moment, my lord."

He took the garment and turned to leave.

Once Tong Kun had walked away, Chang Xin asked curiously, "That kind of clothing... can it really trap body heat?"

"Of course."

Liu Hen nodded. "A single piece can only trap the body heat of the corresponding part of the body, but a complete set can trap the body heat of the entire body. Even in an environment of minus sixty degrees, you won't feel cold."

Chang Xin fell silent, and after a long while, suddenly said, "I've decided to follow you. Do you have any plans to build a faction? I can work for you."

Liu Hen turned to look at her, and seeing her earnest expression, asked, "Aren't you going to conquer the world?"

"Conquer the world?"

Chang Xin was puzzled. "I only intend to conquer camp people, not conquer the world."

Liu Hen: "..."

They weren't even on the same channel of conversation.

However, Chang Xin continued, "The camp people have monsters protecting them and possess firearms; achieving all this will definitely be difficult. I want to follow you first. But rest assured, during the time I follow you, I will work for you earnestly. With my help, I imagine your faction can be established much faster."

"We'll talk about it later." Liu Hen did not give a direct answer.

Although he had plans to build a faction, he had not yet settled down and needed to plan for the long term.

A few minutes later, Tong Kun returned, bringing two other people with him. Excitement was evident on all three of their faces.

"My lord, how many more of these clothes do you have?"

Tong Kun said with unconcealed excitement, "These clothes—at the price you mentioned, however many you have, we'll take them all."