Chapter 280: Vassal Races

Sinuoli continued heading north early the next morning; he had just received news that the first batch of immigrants from Bordeleaux was about to arrive. Sinuoli intended to go and see the Humans who were about to enter his domain.

"Zhuwangshan has been restored quite well!"

After experiencing another long trek, Sinuoli's longing for a railway became increasingly urgent. Finally, the plateau came to an end, and he once again saw the long-lost vast expanse of greenery. And amidst the greenery, a Shanbao poked its head out.

"Let us welcome the esteemed Ancestor Chosen, Lord Sinuoli!"

After recovering Gaoyuanbao, Sinuoli had purchased two more Helicopters and assigned them to Red Cloud Mountain and Zhuwangshan. The pilots circling in the sky had notified them of the Lord's arrival in advance, and Gelate had organized a welcoming formation for Sinuoli and his guards in front of the castle.

"The wounded are recovering well! How has the mopping up of the enemy remnants gone?"

Sinuoli shook hands with the welcoming party one by one; these were also warriors of the Expeditionary Force, but they had remained behind to protect the rear. Sinuoli certainly knew that they all felt regret for not being able to fight the Demon Legion and for not being the first to step into the lost fortress, so he treated these compatriots equally when distributing the spoils of war.

"We have gradually unsealed the Earth Vein Network, searching the tunnels section by section. Relying on the Iron Cage Hand Cannon, the brothers have burned those spider things inside clean, but the Greenskins in the jungle below the mountain are still restless."

Sinuoli saw the materials and raw resources waiting to be processed in the hall. The Brood Queen did not have strong control over her own Divinity, and many places in her nest had been permeated by it; these materials carrying a trace of Divinity were rare goods anywhere.

"A group of black and poor fellows came later; if it weren't for the document signed by you, I would have thought they were some kind of Goblin variant!"

Clan Chief Gelate, like every Dwarf, held a deep sense of dark humor toward humanoid creatures about his own height. "I joined forces with them to fight the Greenskins a few times. There was one ambush opportunity that was quite good, but unfortunately, our Strength was limited, so we didn't dare to pursue them deep."

"Very good, very good! I will allocate ten more sets of Meteorite Armor to you later. Are there any battle reports or post-war statistics? Bring them for me to look at in a moment!" Sinuoli praised him twice; he was very satisfied with a subordinate who could implement orders while still exercising a certain degree of flexibility.

"By the way, send out the news of my arrival and ask the person in charge over there to come over." After a banquet, Sinuoli suddenly remembered.

The Pygmy tribe was not far from the mountain range, and they arrived the next evening. Sinuoli did not go out to greet them but arranged for Clan Chief Gelate to do so on his behalf. Following a burst of noisy sounds, the visitors walked into the hall.

"I pay you the highest respects, Your Majesty Sinuoli, true master of the Qunshan!"

A chieftain who was clearly tall and strong, with more ornate ornaments on his body and a cloak on his back, walked forward. He extended both hands, palms facing Sinuoli to show he had no weapons, and then bowed deeply. For a race that excelled at using poisoned weapons and blowpipes to compensate for their physical shortcomings, this was the highest etiquette.

"Welcome, friend, what should I call you?" Sinuoli signaled for him to stand up.

"Dunbiya, you may call me that!" The Pygmy chieftain actually spoke fluent Common.

"Good, Dunbiya. I previously handed an agreement to your subordinates; now it seems you have implemented the terms, and I am also willing to fulfill my promise." Sinuoli scanned the Pygmy elites in the hall.

"You are indeed as true to your word as the Ancestral Spirit revealed!" Dunbiya flattered him.

"Ancestral Spirit? What does that mean?" Sinuoli became interested; he had not expected that such a backward race could actually produce spiritual entities.

"Literally, the souls of our ancestors. With the help of witch doctors, we can summon them to provide help or attack enemies." The chieftain looked at the two fellows behind him wearing strange masks and bone ornaments.

Sinuoli had noticed these two people very early on; one was tall and thin, the other short and fat, looking a bit like the 'Fat and Thin Arhats'. These must be the Pygmies' spellcasters.

"The two Great Deities will protect the souls of the strong; their witch doctors serve as the bridge connecting mortals to the spirit realm."

"How many of you are there? Wasn't it said to be over ten thousand?" Sinuoli frowned; for such a small ethnic group to give birth to gods, their power did not seem too bad.

"To be precise, over fourteen thousand." Dunbiya sighed.

"When were your gods born?" Sinuoli asked while thinking. Back then, the Dwarf race didn't even have enough Authority for Grimbrindal to become a god; these Pygmies didn't even have a fraction of that.

"We are also a race created by the Ancient Sages. At our peak, we once numbered in the hundreds of thousands. At that time, we were attached to the spokespeople of the Old Ones, and our ancestors also received help from the Slann." This must have been the most glorious time for the Pygmies; Dunbiya added quite a few body gestures while narrating.

"But for some reason, the Shenmiaochengshi fell into ruin, and the Slann disappeared. With the rise of Nehekhara, Greenskins, and spiders one after another, our living space was constantly squeezed."

Sinuoli pieced together the map in his mind; life was indeed not easy for these Pygmies. The Lizardmen in the Southlands were decaying even more severely than in Lustria, so it was normal that they couldn't look after them.

"Hard times will eventually pass. I am developing the entire Nan Shijie Bianyuan Shanmai, and you should seize this opportunity. I will allocate land for you to farm and allow you to obtain resources from nature, but you also need to ensure the safety of that region and accept my conscription when necessary."

The Dwarf King made his promise, and the Pygmies, having received the guarantee, thanked him repeatedly. Compared to the Greenskins and skeletons that were difficult to communicate with, the orderly Dwarf race undoubtedly made them feel more secure.

"Please allow me to present this ancestral treasure to you! The Divinity upon it can allow the wearer to suffer less harm." Dunbiya took an item from the two witch doctors and walked to Sinuoli, holding it with both hands.

"This is?" As soon as Sinuoli took it, the system reacted. This thing was a Connecting Chain, a component of Gazul's Gift. Only, instead of a "Hero's Pendant" hanging on it, it was a beast bone carved with different human faces on the front and back.

"Interesting, they turned this thing into an accessory that adds resistance to damage. With no news of the Nine Scrolls of Nagash for now, wearing it as a necklace is making the best use of it." With his thoughts clear, Sinuoli put the necklace around his neck.

"Wulala!"

"Usuthu!"

A large amount of dialect cheering rang out. These people did not understand what agreement their chieftain and the Dwarf King had reached, but accepting the tribute meant acceptance.