There can't be a Harvest Moon in the RimWorld.

On the other hand, I do need a place to store things that are inconvenient to keep on the ranch, such as the war equipment I plan to build. Leaving them directly on the ranch would probably cause misunderstandings among the residents, since I'm defending against hypothetical enemies.

Just then, Gray successfully created part of the First Dimension equipment, and like me, he needed a secret base, which led to our impulsive decision.

“Boss Marcus, I can understand why you didn’t choose a location in town, but why a ranch?”

Hmph, how naive! What's the difference between these two options and simply exposing yourself?

"The town is too crowded and noisy; it can't even accommodate Sebala's workshop, let alone a secret base. By the way, there's an empty lot next to your blacksmith's shop. It would be best if you could openly set up shop there."

"That vacant lot? It seems to have been someone's land a long time ago, but no house was ever built on it, so it's been vacant ever since."

"The ranch is even worse. If you keep going to the ranch every day, everyone will know we're carrying out a secret operation. Besides, although the ranch has a lot of space, the available buildings are too small, and building a temporary house would be too conspicuous... We can't exactly dig a hole underground, can we?"

Gray thought about it and realized that digging a cellar on the ranch was indeed not a good option. It would be hot in summer and cold in winter, wouldn't get any sunlight year-round, and would flood when it rained. Even worse, if he lit a stove, there wouldn't be any smoke to escape!

"What are some good spots on Mount Mads?" Gray decided to ask to avoid aimlessly wandering the mountain on a rainy day.

I pointed to a place in the distance and said to him, "Of course I've considered that. First, it needs to be a secluded spot, where people can't come and go and we can't be seen often. Second, it can't be too remote; if there isn't even a road, the path we create will just look like a signpost. Finally, it needs to be well-hidden, able to conceal both our activities and forging traces."

After I finished speaking, I quietly asked him, "So, did you guess where it is?"

Gray frowned coldly: "This mountain is quite well-hidden if you want to be discreet. But to ensure that your tracks are not detected while also having people around as cover, that's too difficult."

I looked at him seriously: "Think carefully, is there really no such place?"

Gray was taken aback by what I said, wondering why I looked like there was only one answer. He frowned and continued his analysis: "Alright, considering the conditions of human foot traffic, the entire mountain trail meets the criteria, as Gotz and the residents will pass through this route. But how could a fire on the mountain go undetected?"

“That’s the key point.” I looked at him confidently, “There happens to be a place on this mountain where you can light fires every day without being detected, because it’s always filled with smoke…”

As we spoke, we rounded the corner of the mountain ahead and came to the foot of a flat rocky hill. There stood a high, sheer cliff, its shape extremely steep, as if carved by a knife and axe, showcasing the power of nature. But at the foot of the cliff, a small house sat quietly, along with a pool of water from which steam slowly rose.

Gray looked at me in shock and said, "This...this was also part of your calculations, boss!"

Of course, I had already decided on this location. What place could be more suitable than the mountain valley where this hot spring resort is located?

There are well-maintained roads to climb, and nearby mines provide raw materials. Even more ingeniously, the constant steam rising from the site cleverly masks the smoke from the forging furnaces and also makes water access convenient!

Is there a better place in the whole town?!

"Grey, let's start looking for a place. Save your shocked expression for later." I ordered Grey around to do the work without any hesitation.

Gray quickly returned to normal and began searching for a suitable location. Although the area was not small, most of it was occupied by hot springs, leaving only a lonely mine shaft, which was even less likely to be a suitable site for a base.

If you choose to locate your base in a mine, you'll not only have to deal with potential Sebakas who come to mine, but you might also encounter unexpected ranch visitors. The colonist system actually sets the visitor arrival point right there!

Furthermore, the legend of the haunted mine that could change direction at any time also made me resist coming here.

Gray searched the area around the hot springs and mines but couldn't find a suitable location for the facility. He even examined the rock depressions, excitedly assuming they were caves, only to discover they were just shallow indentations.

I was responsible for searching the side closest to the cliff, and I searched extensively there. That cliff, on this somewhat rugged and imposing Maders mountain, seemed a bit too sharp and exposed, like an out-of-place spectator appearing on a television screen. The entire cliff was covered in vegetation, with many vines twining along its surface, forming a green curtain.

I looked at the seamless mountain vegetation and suddenly became curious about what the cliff behind it looked like. So I got closer to the mountain, reached into the vegetation, grabbed a handful of pebbles, and examined them carefully.

Strangely, these pebbles were too barren, lacking any of the smoothness of soil. They were all formed from shale and sandstone, as if they had undergone long-term erosion, leaving only the underlying limestone standing still.

Moreover, the vegetation on this cliff face is quite different from the lush vegetation around the valley, creating a clear break in the vegetation and making me doubt its original appearance.

As I touched the flat surface of the cliff, a bold idea suddenly popped into my head.

This smooth cliff erosion, this continuous transport of water and soil—could this have been a waterfall before?

Chapter 124 Land Fault

A waterfall, geologically known as a cascade, is the phenomenon of river water falling vertically from a height as it flows through faults, depressions, or other similar areas. During the river's existence, a waterfall is a temporary feature that eventually disappears. They typically appear in the upper and middle reaches of rivers, on the edges of plateaus, or along fault lines on the Earth's surface.

Simply put, a waterfall is a section of flowing river water that suddenly plunges almost vertically, acting as a major obstruction in the river's flow. In the upper reaches of a river, due to frequent water shortages, many waterfalls are temporary, only appearing during the rainy season or when snow melts.

Therefore, it's quite normal to find a waterfall not far from the foot of the mountain. The presence of a hot spring nearby also indicates that this area has a relatively weak geological structure, making it prone to sudden drops in elevation.

However, what is puzzling is that the mountain wall I saw was indeed straight and steep, like a cliff cut by human hands, and there was no trace of long-term erosion by the power of water.

Besides, the soil here shows obvious signs of water transport!

"Grey! Come quick! There might be a clue here!"

I called out to Gray, who was searching in the distance, and told him to abandon his useless work on the other side and join my exploration.

"Boss Marcus, did you find anything here?" Gray quickly appeared beside me, curiously inquiring about my discovery.

I said ambiguously, "I think this place... how should I put it, should have a pool?" As I spoke, I measured a spot about five meters in diameter on the ground with my foot and explained to him.

“There must have been water flowing through this place before, but I don’t know when it stopped flowing. But I think that whether it was the erosion from the water over time or the violent impact of the flood season, there should have been traces left.”

After listening to what I said, Gray frowned and thought for a moment, then squatted down and touched the soil on the ground.

“Boss, the soil on this ground is similar in composition to the soil along the roadside, and there are no signs of water flow.”

I also fell into thought: "That's the most abnormal thing. Why would there be traces of water erosion on the vegetation-covered rock face, while the ground is as neat as a horizontal line? This normalcy is the biggest problem."

I let my thoughts wander further and walked to the bottom of the rock wall, imagining what this place originally looked like.

Long, long ago, there must have been a stream of water rushing down the cliff, forming a spectacular waterfall.

The violent torrent of water erodes the rock face, eventually crashing against the ground. Driven by erosion, it tends to carve deeper downwards, likely forming a pool. The river's energy will ultimately create a relatively smooth, concave-up longitudinal profile of the waterfall. Even in the absence of gravel as the river's erosion tool, the energy available for eroding the waterfall's base is considerable.

This is one of the characteristic features associated with waterfalls of any size, as well as with flow rate and height: the presence of cascading pools!

A cascade is a basin eroded out of the riverbed below a waterfall. In some cases, the depth of the cascade may be similar to the height of the cliff that creates the waterfall. The cascade eventually causes the cliff slope to collapse and the waterfall to recede.

“Grey, I have a question for you.” After thinking for a moment, I looked at Grey again. “How does this river on Mount Mads flow through the area now?”

Grace paused for a moment, then began sketching on the ground with a twig. This was a piece of cake for him, a weapons designer.

"This river is formed by the confluence of many small tributaries of the Mades Mountains, flowing into a mountain lake. And the water volume varies with the seasons. That's how the river originates."

The shape of a lake was immediately drawn, followed by a thicker solid line winding down.

"Then the river flows out from the hillside lake, extends horizontally along the mountain for a while, and then flows down the mountain, entering the top of the ranch area. From here, we enter the town area."

The thick solid line gradually descends, and soon the shapes of two buildings appear.

"First came Mineral Town Ranch and Yodel Cattle and Sheep Ranch, and after Lady Lilia's Chicken Farm, it officially flowed into the sea, completing its mission."

After Gray finished his detailed drawing, he turned to look at me. "Boss, is there a problem?"

I held my forehead, finally feeling that the problem had been identified.

"Gelfred, dig down."

Gray looked at me, puzzled. "Boss, what are we digging for?"

"Dig the soil."

After I said that, I picked up a branch from the side and started digging in the spot I had in mind.

Although Gray didn't understand my actions, he still started digging with me. With the two of us working together, we quickly dug a hole. Judging from the soil, it was still a combination of clay and mud, and it was very damp due to today's abundant rain. There was also an earthworm scurrying away in panic.

But soon, with a "crack" sound, the branches in Gray's and my hands snapped!

There was a clear fault line at a depth of about 20 to 30 centimeters. Even though neither of us are archaeology professionals, we could feel the obvious difference.

That strange feeling was as if the land was made up of two completely different types of soil!

Gray threw away the branch in his hand, dug out the solid soil at the bottom with his fingers, and washed away the acidic clay components with the rainwater, leaving a lot of granular material in his palm.

"Pyrite, ferrosilicon, low-purity gold, silver by-products, brass and copper... Boss Marcus, the bottom layer of soil is all ore waste!"

Mineral waste! No wonder the ground became incredibly hard at this level, and the branches that had been so powerful in front of us were all broken and sunk to the ground.

After Gray finished speaking, we both turned our gaze to the abandoned mine behind the hot spring house.

"Boss, could this be the site where waste ore was dumped in this mine before?"

I pondered for a moment and said, "Whether in terms of distance or composition, it should match. It seems that the miners back then dug out the ore, sorted it, and dumped a large portion of the slag here."

So-called ore is not the kind of thing that is mined directly and becomes mineral; it often contains many impurities. Only after those useless minerals are screened out can the remaining rich ore be worth further smelting.

But Gray was puzzled: "But the behavior of filling this place is completely incomprehensible. Without flowing water, sorting minerals is a dirty and tiring job, it's just asking for trouble."

Gray usually did this kind of odd job at the blacksmith's shop, so he knew the ins and outs very well. His opinion was also very pertinent; such short-sighted behavior was of no benefit to the mining industry.

But without a doubt, this previously existing waterfall must have been closely related to the miners!

So the next question is, why are they filling in the hole like this? How could such unprofessional things happen in the once-thriving mining industry?

Chapter 125 A Hidden Paradise

Using running water to wash and sort minerals is undoubtedly something that has happened before.

However, it is also true that the waterfall here has been filled in and leveled.

What exactly is the problem in the middle?

"Grey, who knows the original inhabitants of this town best?" This long-standing question has been on my mind, and today is the perfect time to ask it.

Gray thought for a moment: "Actually, the residents in the town are all from later. Although some are descendants of the original residents, they only moved here when they had no other choice. Including my grandfather and me, we didn't officially settle here until two years before Zack came."

"So, among the original inhabitants, only Gotz probably knows them quite well, right?"

“Gotz?” I was a little puzzled. “He’s barely older than Sheriff Harris, but definitely not as old as Boss Dart. Why would he know better?”

Gray explained to me, “That’s only relative. But Uncle Gotz is the longest-living second-generation resident in town. At least after the old owner of the ranch left, he was the only remaining native resident of this town.”

This island is located far overseas, so naturally there aren't many residents. From the information I have, the original inhabitants all moved away after the "mysterious singing" incident, leaving only a few people whose whereabouts are unknown, and it's unclear whether they still live here.

Among the later residents, Carter, the owner of the grocery store, and Dick, the owner of the winery, were second-generation residents who came here to inherit their ancestors' property.

As for Mr. Dart, Mrs. Lilia, and Sebala, they must have come to town later to buy land, build houses, and run businesses.

The least experienced of them all are Thomas the Tank Engine… Mayor, Sheriff Harris, Father Carter, Dr. Dort, and others who came later. They only came to perform their duties after the population increased and the settlement was formed.

"Götz..."

In a flash of inspiration, I suddenly saw something.

I turned and looked up at the summit of Mount Mads. Suddenly, an image flashed in my mind of a turbid torrent rolling down the mountain, engulfing the trees along the way with immense force, carrying tons of mud and water, like a ferocious beast brushing past the side of Mineral Town!

"Grey, I think I've got it."

"Boss, what are you thinking about?" Gray looked up at me as he studied the slag on the ground.

“We had a misunderstanding. Actually, these slags were dug out by the miners, but they weren’t necessarily the ones who filled them in.”

The waste ore excavated by the miners back then was piled up here. Some of it did settle at the bottom of the waterfall pool with the flowing water, but that amount was just a drop in the ocean compared to the volume that the waterfall pool had accumulated over the years.