Elven cultivators

Although the war between the Silvermoon Clan and the Steelmane Tribe has ended, the follow-up work is extremely complicated and tedious.

The main focus was on the takeover and reorganization of the Leiming River basin.

The Steelmane Tribe has been developing on this land for over a thousand years, and in the last hundred years it has expanded rapidly, leaving behind countless strategic strongholds and resource points.

Large and small outposts were scattered across the crisscrossing plains, valleys and hills, and each one required manpower to be dispatched to count, register and receive personnel.

Hundreds of thousands of orc prisoners and members of vassal races also had to be identified and resettled one by one.

They might suppress, recruit, or enslave.

Just getting these things organized is enough to keep anyone in charge of coordination extremely busy.

All these matters piled up on Eleanor's desk.

As a result, the elven girl has basically not left the Nine Heavens Tower these days.

Except for the occasional trip back to his residence for a short rest, he spent almost all his time in the Tianyuan Hall.

When Anton entered the Tianyuan Hall, he saw Eleanor sitting behind a long table, with a mountain of documents piled up in front of her, almost completely obscuring her figure.

Flora stood to the side, holding a document in her hands, reading aloud the things recorded on it. She would occasionally pause to let Eleanor think and make annotations before continuing to read.

Upon seeing Anton arrive, Flora immediately stopped speaking and bowed in greeting.

Eleanor looked up at him and smiled slightly, placing the pen in her hand next to the ink bottle.

Anton waved his hand, and Flora tactfully closed the document, bowed to the two of them, and turned to leave Tianyuan Hall.

The heavy wooden door closed behind us, shutting out the noise from outside.

Anton sat down across the long table, his gaze sweeping over the mountain of documents, and said with a smile, "Still not done with the work?"

"Almost done." Eleanor leaned back in her chair and let out a long sigh. "There's a lot more stuff in the Thunder River Basin than I imagined. Just taking stock of the strategic locations and resource points took almost two months, but the most tedious parts are basically done."

She reached out and pulled out a folded roll of parchment from the side, spreading it out on the table between them.

It was a finely drawn map, with the major mountains and towns of the Thunder River basin marked on it using different colored inks.

Eleanor traced the red circles on the paper with her fingertips.

"Most of the strategic locations and resource points are nothing special; they're just regular mines, animal farms, and food production areas. Just take over them according to clan tradition. The only thing you need to decide on is these three magic stone mines."

Anton looked down at the parchment.

The above concisely describes the reserves and quality of the three mineral veins.

Two of them have medium to high reserves, stable vein orientation, and decent quality, belonging to the type that can produce stably for many years.

The other one is of higher quality, but the vein is not deep and the proven reserves are limited, so it is estimated that it will not be mined for many more years.

"We've already sent people to the three magic stone mines, but mining hasn't resumed yet. I'd like to wait until you make a decision before we discuss it further," Eleanor said.

Anton didn't think for long. He pointed to the two magic stone veins with higher reserves and said, "Stop mining these two veins for now. Don't touch them. I'll set up the Qiankun Transformation Array later to convert them into spirit stone veins. Just continue mining the other one as usual."

"Okay, I'll arrange for someone to shut down the operation and prepare for the conversion as soon as possible."

Eleanor nodded, took notes, and wasn't too surprised by the answer.

With the invention of the Spirit Stone Core, the arrival of Spirit Stone Technology was a foreseeable outcome.

Once the promotion and popularization of spirit stone technology begins, the clan's demand for spirit stones will inevitably soar to an astonishing level in a very short period of time.

She naturally understood the importance of being prepared for a rainy day.

It's better to convert as many spirit stone veins as possible now than to be scrambling to catch up later.

"What happened to the other forces in the Thunder River Basin after that?" Anton continued to ask.

Eleanor smiled and said, "As soon as the Steelmane Tribe collapsed, the remaining forces in the Thunder River Basin immediately sent people to express their submission. They were mostly small forces with no ambition, but they were quick to act. Some even took the initiative to offer to become vassal races of our clan."

"However, I didn't agree immediately; I need to investigate further before making a decision."

It’s different in the past.

The Silvermoon Clan of today is no longer the small power that once readily accepted any race or force willing to submit.

They not only possessed a powerful military, but also controlled a vast trade network.

By becoming a vassal race of a clan, one can not only gain protection but also receive tangible benefits.

This is exactly what many smaller forces dream of.

In the eastern part of the continent today, many small and medium-sized forces have long been regarded as vassal races of the Silvermoon Clan and are eager to join them.

However, after the Silvermoon Clan tightened its recruitment standards, those races without any special skills and who are not useful are now finding it difficult to get a chance.

"Don't rush into a decision, take your time to investigate, quality over quantity."

"I think so too." Eleanor nodded, then changed the subject, "In addition, the clan has recently recruited a lot more half-elves."

"Ever since the news of the Steelmane tribe's destruction spread, half-elves have been coming to join our clan. As of yesterday, the total number of half-elves we have registered has exceeded 60,000. Now, half-elves are the most numerous of all the clan's vassal races."

"Sixty thousand..."

Anton looked thoughtfully at Eleanor.

"What are your plans for these half-elves?"

Eleanor clearly had a plan in mind, and without hesitation, she replied, "I intend to establish a half-elf legion, to distinguish it from the foreign legions."

As Eleanor spoke, she pulled a brand-new parchment from the side of her desk and laid it out in front of Anton.

Anton looked down and saw that the paper detailed the current status of the Silvermoon Clan's various legions.

First is the Silver Moon Legion, which is the core legion. It currently has 22,000 members, all of whom are of the Black Iron rank.

As for officers, they are mostly at the Silver rank, with many at the Gold rank.

Many veterans have even reached the Silver rank.

The Black Iron Legion is already the most powerful legion on the continent, and the Silver Moon Legion's overall strength is definitely among the best, even within the Black Iron Legion.

Anton had high expectations for the Silver Moon Legion.

He hoped to cultivate the Silver Moon Legion into the first Silver Legion on the continent, which is why he kept raising the standards for selecting soldiers.

The Silvermoon Legion also enjoys the best treatment within the entire clan.

Not only are cultivation resources plentiful, but they also do not have to undertake any garrison, patrol, or guard duties.

The only thing they needed to do was to be the sharpest spear when the clan waged war against other tribes.

Secondly, there is the garrison, numbering over ten thousand.

Most of the soldiers have already reached the Iron rank, and their overall strength is steadily improving.

Based on the current trend, in a few decades or even a hundred years, this guard force is very likely to transform into the Silvermoon Clan's second Black Iron Legion.

Then there's the Daoist Army Corps.

There were two main forces: the Yellow Turban Warriors Legion and the Five Camps Divine Soldiers Legion.

The former has reached a number of 12,000, each with a combat strength level of mid-silver, making it a genuine steel torrent.

Although the latter was only recently built and currently has only 2,500 units, its individual combat strength is stronger than that of the Yellow Turban Warriors, and when arrayed, it is even more difficult for the Gold-rank warriors to withstand its attacks.

These two legions are far more powerful than ordinary Iron Legions, and in a sense, they are genuine Silver Legions.

However, each deployment of the Dao Army Legion consumes a large amount of spirit stones, and the cost of daily maintenance and repair is also not low. Otherwise, the clan could have built an ironclad torrent capable of sweeping across the continent.

Further down are the foreign legions, which are currently the largest force in the clan.

To date, the number of personnel has exceeded 200,000, all of whom are elites carefully selected from various vassal races.

With its superior equipment and standardized training, its combat strength is enough to rival the main forces of many powers in the Eastern Continent.

Finally, there is the soon-to-be-established half-elf legion, tentatively planned to have a strength of 20,000.

The number of staff will be expanded as needed depending on the growth in the number of people.

"Considering that half-elves are generally not very strong, this newly formed half-elf legion is probably even weaker than the foreign legions."

While Anton was reviewing the data, Eleanor quietly explained a few words:

"Considering that half-elves are generally not very strong, the initial combat strength of this newly formed half-elf legion is probably slightly inferior to that of foreign legions."

"However, the bloodline of half-elf is similar to ours, and they can cultivate power techniques and alchemy faster than most vassal races. Once the legion is established, after a period of nurturing and training, their overall combat strength should improve quickly."

Anton nodded in satisfaction, pushed the roll of parchment back, and looked at Eleanor with undisguised approval in his eyes: "Not bad, the development is progressing very well. You've worked hard during this time."

Eleanor didn't say anything polite, she just smiled slightly, and the weariness in her eyes from working at her desk for days seemed to have faded a bit.

Anton didn't continue the topic, instead asking, "What's going on with the Bloodclaw clan?"

"No." Eleanor shook her head. "The news of Scar's death has spread throughout the continent, but the Bloodclaw Clan has not made any public statement. They have neither declared their intention to take revenge nor issued any statement of condemnation. Their silence is somewhat unusual."

Her tone carried a hint of barely concealed doubt.

After all, the Bloodclaw Clan has always been known for its toughness in the north.

It's baffling that a saint was killed without any reaction.

Anton pondered for a moment, then slowly said, "The Vorn Plains are too far from us. If the Bloodclaw Clan were to launch an expedition, the cost would be too high, and the chances of success would not be high. They are probably considering this point, which is why they have not acted rashly."

"However, given the Bloodclaw Clan's style, they won't let this go so easily."

"A barking dog doesn't bite. The quieter it is, the more careful you should be." He looked up at Eleanor. "Send more scouts to the Vaughn Plains recently to keep a close eye on what's going on there, especially whether they're moving troops eastward."

"Yes." Eleanor nodded solemnly.

In the path of cultivation, there are numerous types of techniques, talismans, and magical treasures used for detection, many of which are methods that have never appeared in the Dawn Continent before, and many people are completely unaware of them.

Thanks to this, the Silvermoon Clan's intelligence network has been developed very smoothly over the years.

It's not difficult to plant a few inconspicuous spies in the north.

"What about the Nine Netherworld City?" Anton asked about something else.

Eleanor immediately said, "We have fully digested the territory of Crimson Blood Fertile Land, and the mining work in Crimson Blood Cave is on track. Now, the Nine Nether City Domain has resumed its outward exploration. This time, with the cooperation of Dark Elves and Yin Soldiers, the progress is much faster."

"Last month, the exploration team discovered a new magic stone vein, of medium size and of good quality."

"Oh?" Anton raised an eyebrow. "Looks like we're pretty lucky."

The Underdark has many mineral veins, but most of them are of various metals. Magic stone veins are relatively rare and are more scattered than those on the surface.

Finding an unclaimed magic stone vein is indeed quite lucky.

"Add this magic stone vein to the list of veins that can be converted into spirit stones."

"alright."

"Any news about the Dark Spider Queen?"

"Not yet. I sent people to explore in the direction the Dark Elf Matriarchs mentioned, but we haven't found any clues yet. I estimate that the Dark Elves are located far from the Nine Nether City Domain."

Anton remained silent for a moment, his expression not changing much: "Keep searching, there's no rush."

He paused for a moment, then added, "Also, I'm going into seclusion for a while. During this time, you can keep an eye on the clan's affairs as usual. Also, there are two other things I'd like you to keep an eye on for me."

Eleanor sat up slightly, pretending to listen.

"The first is the spirit; please keep an eye out for it for me."

"Secondly, powerful fire-attribute creatures, preferably at the Saint level, or at the very least at the Legendary level."

Needless to say, the purpose of searching for powerful creatures is naturally to refine the essence of the soul.

In fact, the essence refined from legendary-rank creatures is sufficient to serve as a spirit seed.

But if we could find a creature of saintly rank, that would be even better.

The latter type of spirit seed has a higher effect and can greatly shorten the time required for a magic weapon to be upgraded to a spirit weapon.

Eleanor didn't ask for further explanation, simply replying, "Okay, I'll arrange for a search."

Anton nodded, stood up from the table, and gave Eleanor a slight nod: "Thank you for your hard work these past few days."

"Your seclusion is important; leave the clan's affairs to us. You don't need to worry about them."

Eleanor smiled slightly.

She knew that Anton was at a crucial juncture in his breakthrough.

Once Anton successfully advances to the Nascent Soul stage, it will undoubtedly be a tremendous boon for the clan.

After all, a cultivator's breakthrough not only represents an increase in their own strength, but also means the 'unlocking' of many high-level formations, magic treasures, and Dao soldiers, further enhancing the clan's development potential.

In the eyes of all the clan's high-ranking members, Anton's improvement in cultivation was more important than anything else.