I started with a portal, then turned around and handed it over to the nation.

Village chief Haimer felt his heart was about to stop.

He shakily extended his cane, pointing at the box: "Raine, this...this is all for us?"

"Yes! All of them." Renn nodded, his voice loud and clear:

"Mr. Lin said this was to thank me for showing him the way, and also to thank the village for taking care of him these past few times."

"My God..."

Haimer's legs went weak and he almost lost his balance, but Barton next to him caught him.

"This box... even just a small handful, could buy our entire village ten years' worth of food!"

Blacksmith Forging Stone swallowed hard, his eyes wide: "If we took this box to Shigu Town, we could buy half a street!"

The villagers immediately erupted in uproar.

Some people covered their mouths and cried, while others shouted excitedly.

"Who...who are they?" Arya squeezed next to Renn, her big eyes filled with admiration. "You really broke in? You killed the cat demon?"

"We've broken in. The corpses of the cat demons we've killed could pile up into a mountain, but their weapons are just too powerful! Not a single cat demon corpse is intact!"

As Ryan looked at the blue light inside the box, he remembered that night.

He remembered those black pipes spewing fire, the monsters inside the helmets with no way to escape, and that irresistible force.

"Those are their weapons, and their helmets! That helmet is amazing! Even if the cat demon is invisible, I can still see where he is with that helmet..."

The crowd fell silent again, listening intently to Ryan's story.

Only that box of Moonstone soil emitted a dazzling light under the sunlight.

"Click".

Raine closed the heavy, sealed black box, completely shutting out the faint blue light.

Dozens of eyes around were staring intently at the box, still reeling from the scene they had just witnessed.

That's how it is.

The old village chief, Haimer, slammed his cane down on the ground with a sharp "thud," breaking the silence in the room.

"Okay...okay."

Haimer's voice trembled slightly as he stretched out his withered hand and repeatedly stroked the outer shell of the black box.

"With this, generations of people in Fernwall Village will no longer have to put up with those vampire merchants."

"Even if all else fails, we can use it ourselves. Double the grain supply should be enough to feed us!"

The blacksmith, Forgestone, squatted beside the box, his rough hands stroking the mechanical lock again and again, clicking his tongue in amazement.

"The craftsmanship... you can't even feel a seam. This box alone could be exchanged for a fine steel hammer at the blacksmith's guild."

"village head."

Raine interrupted everyone's exclamations. He stood ramrod straight, the exoskeleton behind him emitting a soft hum: "The goods have been delivered, I should be going now."

Haimer abruptly raised his head, a glint of light flashing in his cloudy old eyes: "So hasty? You haven't even had a sip of water since you got back."

"Lin Mo and the others are waiting for me."

Raine shook his head, his gaze drifting towards the direction of Shigu Town: "They're leaving, going to a faraway place. That camp in town was something they traded for; from now on, that'll be our stronghold."

"They entrusted that place to me temporarily."

Renn took a deep breath and instinctively placed his hand on the armor plate on the outside of his thigh.

"I promised that as long as I live, no one will be able to set foot in there."

Haimer slowly stood up, leaning on his cane; his previously hunched back seemed to straighten a bit.

He glanced around at the villagers, his gaze finally settling on Ryan's face.

"Raine, you're a good hunter, but you need to understand one thing."

Haimer took a step forward, lowered his voice, and said in a serious tone, "This isn't just about guarding a gate."

"Look at this box."

Haimer pointed to the box on the ground: "The contents of this box could buy ten Fernwall Villages. They just gave it to us like that. What does that mean?"

The pharmacist Seran, standing nearby, adjusted his glasses and continued the conversation:

"This means that in their eyes, this thing, though valuable, is not as important as a trustworthy ally."

"That's right." Haimer nodded heavily, his withered fingers poking at Renn's chest.

"They are incredibly strong. They almost wiped out those cat demons in a single day."

"If we can get along well with people with this kind of power, then we can stand tall and speak with confidence, not to mention goblins, even if the lord's army comes."

"So, you're not just going there to watch their house."

Haimer's eyes sharpened: "You're going on behalf of Fernwall Village. You need to let them know that although we are poor and weak, we are loyal and reliable."

"As long as they still need us, Fernwall Village can survive in this chaotic world."

As Raine listened to these words, he felt the burden on his shoulders was even heavier than that of the exoskeleton.

He doesn't understand politics or allies.

But he understood one thing: holding that camp meant holding the life of Fernwall Village.

"I understand."

Ryan clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white: "I will treat that place as my own home and guard it."

"Go ahead." Haimer waved his hand, a relieved smile on his face. "Go home and pack your things, don't keep the warriors waiting."

The Ryan family lived in an old wooden and stone hut at the west end of the village.

"laugh--"

With the valve released, Ryan removed the exoskeleton at the doorway.

The black steel structure stood silently in the muddy yard, out of place with the surrounding dilapidated fence, like a future visitor who had wandered into the wrong place.

Wearing only a linen shirt soaked with sweat, Ryan pushed open the creaking wooden door.

The room was dimly lit and filled with the smell of old wood and mildew.

He skillfully pulled a leather backpack from under the bed and began stuffing it with things: two changes of coarse cloth clothes, a sharp skinning knife, and a roll of firewood.

"Brother Ryan!"

A clear shout came from the doorway.

Arya came running in, panting, carrying a bulging cloth bag in her arms.

"This is the Forest Breath I just mixed."

The girl, her cheeks flushed, shoved several small glass bottles sealed with corks into Renn's hands: "If you're injured or too tired, a sip will really help. And this too..."

She then pulled out a piece of dried meat wrapped in oil paper; it was smoked venison that she hadn't been able to eat during the last festival.

"Take it and eat it on the way."

Looking at the overflowing contents in his hands, Ryan was about to decline when a series of noisy footsteps suddenly came from outside the door.

"Raine! These are freshly baked wheat pancakes from your auntie, they're still warm!"

"Take this flask of wine! It's homemade, good for warding off the cold!"

"Brother Renn, this is some game I just hunted, take it with you!"

The small courtyard was instantly filled with villagers.

Everyone was carrying something in their hands—food, useful items, and someone even brought a brand-new wool blanket.

Those are all the good things they can offer.

"No! Stop stuffing it in!"

Surrounded by hands, Renn frantically tried to fend off the outstretched arms, pleading, "I can't take any more! I really can't take any more!"

He pointed to the exoskeleton in the yard: "That thing is powerful, but it only has so many attachment points. This wool blanket is too big; it will jam the joints if you hang it on!"

"Then bring food! Food doesn't take up much space!"