Industrial Revolution of the Mage Lords

Chapter 165: Soul-melting Ore and Strange Wild Fruits
Harvey put down the paper battle report in his hand, stood up, walked to Pierce and patted him on the shoulder.

"Don't be too discouraged. I told you that less than one-tenth of the casualties is already a very ideal result... I'm very satisfied with your performance, Pierce."

Asdalen chuckled and continued, "He feels sorry for the soldiers we've worked so hard to train. After all, we've spent so much time and energy teaching them how to transform from refugees, serfs, and shepherds into warriors who can skillfully wield magical weapons..."

Harvey sighed. "Battle always brings death. This is something none of us can avoid. Our soldiers are selected from the general public, and we will recruit more soldiers willing to fight bravely to protect their homeland."

"Properly bury their remains, arrange for the municipal authorities to distribute the compensation to their families as soon as possible, and don't be perfunctory with the military funerals..."

He regained his spirits and asked Pierce carefully, "That natural mineral vein has been occupied by the demons for so long, yet there's no sign of mining at all?"

Pierce nodded and answered honestly, "Yes, they only dug a few shallow pits and didn't even explore the location of the mineral vein before giving up casually..."

He paused and added, "But I've ordered the transport of that strange instrument in the pit and the piles of metal cans filled with unknown liquids. They should be in the underground laboratory by now..."

Harvey interrupted his narration with a smile and said directly, "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go and see how their technology tree works..."

……

Reiner approached the strange, twisted tower-shaped instrument, observing it from front to back, completely baffled by its true purpose. "It looks like a pile of discarded metal parts, a random piece of jumbled stuff..."

This tower-shaped instrument does look extremely crude in appearance. The metal shell is full of pits and has many spots of damage, corrosion and rust. On the top is a transparent cover inlaid with spherical crystals. A thin metal tube passes through it and connects to the base at the bottom. There is obviously a groove at the base, and it seems that some additional device needs to be placed to form a real whole.

Harvey was itching to take it apart to see the internal structure and whether there were any engraved inscriptions or an operating mechanism that could be driven by magic energy.

Asdalen suddenly stopped him, saying, "Wait... I think I know the specific use of this thing..."

He picked up a strange metal can from the side that was also seized from the mining area, shook it gently, and heard the sound of water coming from inside.

Then he walked straight to the tower-shaped instrument and inserted the can tightly into the groove of the bottom base.

"That's it?" Harvey's eyes widened in confusion. "This jar and this instrument are actually matched? What exactly do they do?"

Asdalen pondered for a moment before slowly saying, "I lived for a long time in the Northern Kingdom of Eternal Night, founded by ancient wizards. I've heard some wizards who fought against the demons mention this thing. It seems to be a potion used by the demons to... strengthen their soldiers' physical functions."

Harvey suddenly realized and immediately asked, "So, this jar contains the strengthening potion that the demon soldiers carry with them? And this device is the machine that produces these potions?"

Asdalen nodded and continued to explain, "Yes, this potion is different from the potion used in the Bloodline Warrior Awakening Ceremony. It doesn't give the demon soldiers a permanently strong physique after a single dose. Instead, it needs to be used repeatedly. Every time the potion's effect wears off, the soldier needs to replenish it."

The word "stimulant" instantly popped up in Harvey's mind. Taking it once, it works for a while, then continuing to use it after the effects wear off—isn't that the typical way stimulants are used?

"How is this potion prepared? What are the side effects of repeated use? It can actually allow demon soldiers to unleash powerful physical functions comparable to those of bloodline warriors. There must be certain limitations, right?"

Harvey was certain that this thing must have certain negative effects, otherwise, in the war between the two races in the Evil Moon Mountains, these drug-addled demon soldiers would have already overwhelmed the human spellcasters and the Judgement Army.

Asdalen nodded, directly agreeing with Harvey's guess.

"Indeed, while strengthening potions can be freely given to demon soldiers, the dosage and usage cycle must be strictly controlled. If the dosage is exceeded or used too frequently, the soldier will immediately die from blood and flesh depletion."

"Furthermore, the origin of this potion is extremely strange. Ancient wizards were unable to decipher the true formula. We only know that the main ingredient is a magical mineral called Lingrong Ore. It needs to be transformed by this instrument before it can be poured into special jars and distributed to the demon army."

After listening to Asdalen's entire description, Harvey immediately connected all the clues and vaguely got the answer from them.

This isolated demon army that accidentally fled to the vicinity of the Divine Spine Mountains was most likely a small unit responsible for the southern offensive within the demon army that launched a massive attack on the evil orcs. After encountering stubborn resistance from the evil orcs, they were forced to move to the foot of the Divine Spine Mountains further south for unknown reasons and lost contact with the main demon army.

During the long-distance battle, the strengthening potions carried by this demon army were gradually exhausted, and they urgently needed to seek replenishment of potions. Therefore, they used some secret method of surveying the mineral veins to find the naturally formed magic stone vein, set up equipment for potion conversion, and prepared to make potions to strengthen the soldiers.

But just as they started digging, they found that the difficulty of mining this vein was far beyond their expectations. The possible Rongling ore was probably located in extremely deep strata, and it was impossible to collect it without special methods.

So they anxiously divided themselves into several outpost teams and began to explore the surrounding area, looking for other possible mineral vein branches. Those shallow mineral vein branches were easier to dig and collect.

What happened next, of course, was that the exploration team sent by Harvey discovered the traces, which then led to a full-scale encirclement by the Northern Army. The demon soldiers, who were short of medicine and gradually became physically weak, were unable to resist at all and were all annihilated near the mining area.

"A team that relies on drugs to boost its combat effectiveness always has significant weaknesses and flaws..." Harvey sighed as he made his final judgment. "Once their supplies are cut off, the team's morale and combat effectiveness will plummet, ultimately leading to an irreversible despair."

Taking this into consideration, he basically gave up the idea of cracking the demon enhancement potion and using it on his own soldiers. Compared with the real magic guns in his hands, relying on potions to forcibly increase combat power is an extremely dangerous and undesirable behavior.

"Oh right! There's also that strange fruit that grows near the mining area. I heard it's ruined several greedy soldiers. Has Egno figured out a way to save them?"

Reiner couldn't help but burst out laughing. "Sir, the problem was solved the same day the person was delivered. Although the fruit is extremely sticky, once you pour strong liquor on it, it will immediately melt away and no longer have such a strong stickiness."

"But the teeth of those unlucky guys can't be saved. The fruit pulp stuck to their mouths for too long, and when they took it out, all their teeth were pulled out along with it. Egno is now worried about how to give them a mouthful of metal dentures..."

(End of this chapter)