Chapter 312

"How about it, did you all feel it?"

"We felt it! Within one or two months, we'll definitely break through!"

"This is truly wonderful—should we tell my lord this good news?"

"I think we should hold off for now; it's still one or two months away, not one or two days!"

"Exactly, I agree—don't tell my lord yet. Wait until we've truly broken through, then give him a surprise!"

"Alright, it's settled then!"

"Shh, my lord's coming!"

In the castle's front courtyard, Mi Gen and the others had been waiting for a long time.

They knew their lord had a habit of going out every few days.

Counting the days, their lord hadn't taken them out for quite some time.

So they simply waited right there in the courtyard; if my lord didn't set out today, they'd head to the training ground.

But clearly, the Moon Chase Divine Envoy had brought good fortune to Stormhold again—today, their lord was going out.

"You lot, what were you muttering about just now? You seemed pretty happy."

"My lord, nothing much, we were just chatting casually!"

The group had already agreed—they wouldn't reveal the surprise just yet.

As for whether this counted as deceiving their lord, as long as it didn't affect matters of importance, it clearly didn't.

"Fine! Then let's go! Moon Chase seems to have found another good thing!"

Gervas didn't mind—he could probably guess what they'd been talking about.

After all, the only thing that could make them all happy at once was the system's intel: their imminent breakthrough.

So they're planning to surprise me later, are they?

Then let them see what a real surprise is!

Leading the group of knights, Gervas headed straight for the coast.

He also brought along Wood and five griffin knights.

Mick had returned to Stormhold three days ago with two hundred cavalry.

And confirmed there had been no setbacks along the way.

The cavalry knew Gervas wasn't treating them as cannon fodder or slaves, so no one tried to escape during the journey.

Upon arriving at Stormhold, they saw the brand-new wooden houses Gervas had ordered built ahead of time, and the initial supplies prepared for each family—linen cloth, black bread, smoked fish jerky, and more.

Naturally, these cavalrymen were deeply grateful and settled down completely.

For the past two days, they'd been undergoing formation drills under Lei Meng's instruction.

Yes, just plain formation drills—nothing more, just to look neat and uniform.

Because the Darwin family had previously trained them to the strictest standards.

And they were all veterans with at least five years of service.

So their combat awareness and combat skills were already flawless.

……

"My lord, we've reached Sugarcane Island!"

Old Jack, the most experienced sailor, had been reassigned as captain of the Black Pearl.

The Black Dragon and Storm vessels, along with other small boats, were now entrusted to the newly trained sailors.

"Circle around Sugarcane Island and head to the spot I mentioned—one li east of the island!"

"Yes, my lord!"

Soon, under Old Jack's skilled handling, the ship reached the coral reef zone east of Sugarcane Island.

Originally, Gervas planned to wait for the fish-people to arrive and have Waga and others harvest the Blood-Qi fruits for him.

But after asking Old Jack, he learned the east side of Sugarcane Island was a shallow coral reef area.

The deepest parts were only four or five meters—so Gervas changed his mind.

Because at this depth, his subordinates could easily dive down.

And seeing the clearly visible seabed around him, Gervas confirmed Old Jack's information was accurate.

This was thanks to the earlier survey when choosing the dock location, which had let Old Jack memorize the depths of surrounding waters.

"My lord, there's a patch of bright red coral here, with a faint red glow—could this be the coral cluster you're looking for?"

After only ten or so minutes of searching the coral zone with over a dozen small boats, a nearby vessel suddenly cried out.

Gervas immediately ordered Mi Gen and the others to row over—and sure enough, they saw clear underwater patches of red coral.

Amid the vivid red coral, faint red glows could also be seen.

"It's almost certainly it. You lot, dive down and harvest all the magical herb fruits on this coral!"

"Yes, my lord!"

Gervas was directing Mi Gen and the others.

Hearing this, they didn't feel it was beneath them—they immediately shed their leather armor and plunged into the sea with splashes.

Thanks to their cultivation of the Battle Qi Breathing Method, their breath-holding capacity was several times that of ordinary people.

Not long after, they surfaced one by one, each clutching bright red, glowing coral fruits.

"These are… Blood-Qi fruits?! My lord, congratulations—you've found a patch of Blood-Qi coral! Each fruit sells for only ten gold coins, but it ripens every year, so you can harvest it annually!"

I have to say, the wizard Wood was indeed very knowledgeable, immediately recognizing the variety of fruit that Meagan and the others had picked.

Soon, harvesting ended—fifteen Blood-Qi fruits in total, worth one hundred and fifty gold coins.

Of course, this wasn't much compared to other intel—but it was steady and continuous, yielding every year from now on.

Moreover, as long as they are protected well, this Blood Qi Fruit coral cluster could still grow stronger.

Back on the Black Pearl, just as Mi Gen and the others had finished donning their leather armor, Gervas beckoned them to come before him.

"My lord, do you have any further orders?"

"Take these Blood Qi Fruits, one for each of you!"

Mi Gen and the others were stunned; they never in their wildest dreams expected their lord to give such an order.

They had heard Master Wood's words earlier.

"My lord, these are potion fruits worth ten gold coins each!"

"I know!"

"Then why do you still..."

"Haven't you reached your bottleneck? Take this Blood Qi Fruit, and you can break through immediately!"

"Uh, my lord, you knew?" Mi Gen and the others widened their eyes.

"That's right. Do you lot still intend to wait and give me a surprise later?"

The group immediately scratched their heads, unsure how to respond.

After a pause, they dared not ask their lord how he knew, but continued to refuse, "My lord, your servants have indeed reached the bottleneck before breakthrough; we only need one or two months to complete it!"

"Therefore, you have even less need to give us these Blood Qi Fruits. It would be better to sell them directly! They are worth ten gold coins each; consuming them only accelerates us by one or two months. That is far too great a loss!"

Gervas was actually surprised that his subordinates were still trying to decline.

Just as he was about to say something, Wood spoke up before Gervas could, "Breaking through by consuming a Blood Qi Fruit does not merely help you break through one or two months early!"

"It can also strengthen your meridians and body during the breakthrough, and furthermore, the effect during the breakthrough can reach more than four or five times the normal state."

"Therefore, using one Blood Qi Fruit to break through now is equivalent to the nourishment of four or five Blood Qi Fruits under normal circumstances!"

"Uh, Master Wood, is the effect during breakthrough really that good?" Mi Gen and the others were stunned.

"Of course! Hurry and thank Lord Gervas for his benevolence and generosity! After all, I have never seen Blood Qi Fruits given away for free among other nobles!"

"Either they must be exchanged for great merit, or purchased with one's savings; at most, a noble might lower the price by one or two gold coins out of consideration for the master-servant relationship."