Chapter 71: Daily Life of the Residents and the Apprentice Mage

Today, over a hundred newborns were born again.

Snow fell from the sky; the kobold of the Family Planning Department wore a fur coat, wrote on a paper slip with charcoal, and couldn't help muttering this.

As the Dark Scale Tribe expanded, division of labor naturally became clearer.

Warriors who hunt and defend the tribe's safety, lake frog folk who sow rice and handle production, fish folk who raise and catch fish, etc.

Based on individual differences, each monster found its own place.

Some weak goblins, thanks to outstanding talent, entered the mage tower to study magical knowledge.

Also, some strong trolls, due to dull wit, fell behind in their battle qi training, making little progress, and became construction laborers.

After the kobold of the Family Planning Department finished recording the data, it slipped the paper slip into its bosom and then leisurely walked toward the market.

It had finished its work for the day; now it was free time.

Arriving at the market.

It was extraordinarily lively.

"Ge Qi, work done? Come, look at the burrow rabbits I hunted today—winter burrow rabbits are especially fat and juicy."

"Ge Qi.."

As soon as the kobold Ge Qi entered the market, many monsters recognized it and warmly greeted it.

Obviously, Ge Qi still has some standing here; otherwise, with its feeble strength, it couldn't have earned such enthusiastic greetings from many monsters.

"Let me see."

Ge Qi responded to those monsters greeting it, then walked up to a goblin stall, crouched down to look at several gray giant rabbit carcasses on the stall, and reached out to fiddle with one.

This goblin had a sturdier build than ordinary goblins, whose height usually ranges from one to 1.2 meters, like a human child.

But the goblin before Ge Qi was different: it stood about 1.8 meters tall, its exposed muscles looking extremely robust; Ge Qi's gaze fell on those muscles, a flash of envy crossing its face.

"Hobli, your muscles are truly too strong; I wish I could be like you." The kobold Ge Qi picked a fine burrow rabbit carcass, held it in hand, and poured out twenty identically sized copper coins bearing a dragon pattern from its waist pouch.

The goblin 'Hobli' skillfully took the coins, flexed its muscles, and gave a hehe laugh: "It's just luck; actually I also envy you, for your brains are so sharp you can read and write—if I tried, I wouldn't understand a thing."

Entities like Hobli with abnormal builds are actually mutant variants among the goblin populace.

Such mutants are not uncommon among goblins, though most differ little from ordinary goblins.

For example, six-fingered goblins.

Another example is thick-skinned goblins.

Only a small fraction of goblin mutants possess strikingly excellent traits, like Hobli's kind of 'big goblin'.

Or like a month ago, when the Dragon Prince selected one named Hobli Mei, who has superior spellcaster talent, the 'mage goblin'.

Such individuals are rare mutants arising from tens of thousands of ordinary goblins, and they are one of several key reasons why this weak goblin race has survived to this day.

"Haha, that's true too." Ge Qi smiled, pride flashing in its eyes.

Precisely because it is smart, can read and write, and is quite sensitive and accurate with data, it could become a member of the Family Planning Department.

The Dark Scale Tribe has multiple divisions; the Family Planning Department is one of them, whose main duties are: one, tally the tribe's total population, record newborn numbers and ages.

Two, urge all races to reproduce.

Three, screen for talented monster residents (mainly newborns).

Other divisions such as the Combat Division gather nearly the tribe's strongest warriors.

The Agriculture Division, responsible for opening new paddies, increasing food output, etc.

The Fisheries Division, handling fishing and fish farming; after these divisions were established, the Dark Scale Tribe's overall development speed increased by several tens of percent.

Many monsters strive to enter the major divisions, for upon joining they gain higher status and also receive copper coin rewards.

"That's all; I'll go check other parts of the market to see what else I need to buy." Ge Qi smiled, rose, and left Hobli's stall.

Hobli glanced at the receding silhouette of Ge Qi, then lowered its head to look at the twenty copper coins lying in its rough palm.

Rubbing the exquisite yet imposing dragon pattern on the coins, Hobli still couldn't help sighing:

"Your Highness Ai Di is truly wise; the machine it created actually produces such exquisite currency."

Half a year ago, the Dark Scale Tribe discovered a relatively easy-to-mine copper vein; to handle the trade needed due to population growth, the dragonfolk leader Di Wuges went to Gray Stone Dragon Fortress to report this.

Then, Your Highness Ai Di fabricated a alchemical machine several meters tall.

Just feed it copper ingots, and it continuously produces uniform, exquisitely dragon‑stamped copper coins.

In the eyes of most monsters, this is naturally formidable and wise.

But they don't know that such dragon coins already existed in Jade City.

The Ai Di Your Highness spoken of by monsters is merely a copy.

As for anti‑counterfeit marks on the currency? None are needed.

Because gold, silver, copper, and iron inherently possess mystical power and value.

Gray Stone Dragon Fortress.

Lai Ang withdrew from the mental space and slowly opened its dragon eyes.

A stream of information visible only to it flowed through its mind.

"First‑circle spell·Water Shield (max level)"

"Should the first‑circle Water Shield rune be fused with the third‑circle Tidal Shield?"

"Fusion successful"

【Unknown Spell】: Third‑circle 1st level

【Fusion Traits】: 1st‑level reserve, 3rd‑level defense boost, 1st‑level auto‑defense) "The unknown spell has been named by you as 【Tidal Shield】."

Lai Ang came to from the fusion spell's information, glanced at the Tidal Shield after merging with Water Shield, noted the trait upgrading from 1st‑level to 3rd‑level defense boost, and nodded in satisfaction.

It stretched its nearly nine‑meter dragon body, feeling quite content.

The pleasure of this power increase, at this moment, washed away the boredom of studying spells.

It's been over a month since recruiting the spellcaster apprentices; it's also time to check their learning progress. Lai Ang thought.

It spread its dragon wings, its previously prone posture also rose to stand; subsequently, its dragon body, under the effect of a magic-like levitation technique, hovered in midair, its dragon wings merely gave a slight tremor, and it flew toward the hollow above the Gray Stone Dragon Fortress.

As for when it rains or snows, how does the Gray Stone Dragon Fortress become damp? Black dragons and white dragons naturally like rain and snow.

Under the blue sky and white clouds, the black dragon soars freely.

Not far off, a towering mage tower nearly fifty meters high came into the black dragon's dragon eyes.

The mage tower is constructed of gray boulders, the same material as the Gray Stone Dragon Fortress—a hard gray marble.

The tower's design is quite simple; although only part of it has been built, it already reveals a grand, rugged style that well suits the monsters' aesthetic.

Lai Ang landed, folded his dragon wings, and slowly walked into the tower.

Even considering its massive size, entering the tower does not feel cramped; on the contrary, it is rather spacious.

A speaking voice in the distance caught Lai Ang's attention.

A dozen or so spellcaster apprentices had gathered together, apparently discussing something.

The magic pattern of a level-1 small water ball is not like this; the magic nodes of a level-1 small water ball and the quantity of a level-0 small water ball are the same—both have three nodes. The reason a level-1 small water ball is more powerful than a level-0 small water ball is that the structure of its three nodes is more ingenious. Specifically, watch me cast it once; I'll slow down the speed.

The frail, short Huo Bumei was surrounded by a crowd of monsters of varying heights; many monsters wore looks of deep concentration, their gazes fixed tightly on Huo Bumei's palm.

There, a water ball formed from nothing, gradually condensing into existence.

Because the process of condensing a small water ball is extremely slow, and Huo Bumei intentionally used mental power to deliberately trace the positions of the magic nodes inside the small water ball, many of the monsters quickly grasped it first.

"I understand!" the troll wearing a gray cloth robe shouted excitedly, drawing a dissatisfied glare from the other monsters immersed in study.

The troll shrank its head, closed its mouth, and then began to actually operate on its own.

It pondered, murmuring words, and soon a small water ball condensed into view.

The troll felt that the explosive power contained in this hovering small water ball in its palm was about ten percent greater than that of the previously condensed small water ball, and it instantly became overjoyed.

Clearly the contained magical power is the same, yet the power has increased.

The troll gazed obsessively at the small water ball, marveling at the subtlety and greatness of the spell structure.

Lai Ang watched the young monsters immersed in learning and exchange, watched everyone pondering deeply, watched everyone's progress and failures, and a look of satisfaction appeared in his dragon eyes.

It seems that, in the Dark Scale Tribe, it built a mage tower, selected a batch of monsters with spellcaster talent and trained them, and it is still effective.

It was not wasted effort; it carried out a detailed knowledge breakdown of the upgraded spell.

Take the Zero-Ring Trick—Small Water Ball as an example.

Level-0 small water ball is the original small water ball; then come level-1, level-2, level-3, all the way up to level-10, which is the maximum level, which Lai Ang divided into ten grades.

Each level's power gradually increases; Lai Ang recorded the knowledge of the spell constructions of different levels separately in paper books, placed them in the mage tower's library, for the twenty-one selected monsters with spellcaster aptitude to study.

Otherwise, if there were no such detailed level division, letting them start by learning the maximum-level small water ball trick would be truly too difficult; they might not even get started after a year of study.

But after Lai Ang broke it down, they learned step by step, first mastering the easiest level-0 small water ball, then proceeding to learn level-1 and level-2 small water balls, such that the difficulty suddenly dropped by a major level.

Although this also increases the time spent.

However, for spellcaster apprentices lacking sufficient perceptive talent, this is nevertheless a direct highway.

At least, there is a very clear goal of becoming stronger.

"After a few days, this batch of spellcaster apprentices should have some combat ability." Lai Ang thought to himself.

(End of chapter)