Last night was Christmas Eve.

After breakfast, when the guards and chefs had packed up, Lynn and his group set off once more.

Although walking through the forest, Lynn always led them along the banks of the Acadia River.

Lynn not only needed to explore the forest and search for ore veins but also to investigate the water system layout of the Acadia River.

This was related to the future development of maritime industry in the territory!

In the blink of an eye.

Three days passed.

During this time, the Ore Vein Detector did prompt twice.

One time, it was a medium-sized copper mine.

Another time, it was a small iron mine.

However, both of these ore veins were buried deep underground.

Under current conditions, mining them was simply impossible.

In the blink of an eye.

Another two days passed.

Lynn stood atop a peak filled with sharp rocks.

Beneath the peak, there was an endless stretch of primordial forest.

The wide and turbulent Acadia River, like a meandering giant dragon, divided this primordial forest.

The end was nowhere in sight.

To the left was the Elfini Empire, and to the right was his domain's forest...

Lynn realized that exploring the water system layout of the Acadia River like this was unrealistic.

He needed a map of the Acadia River.

However, there also needed to be covert sentries stationed along the Acadia River.

If any ships navigated through this forest towards Crescent Bay, they could issue a warning in advance.

Lynn did not want to experience another incident where bandits drove straight into the village.

After briefly experiencing the vastness of the terrain and the grandeur of the scenery atop the peak.

Lynn led Red and the others down from the peak.

He still had so many things to do.

The main purpose of this outing was to find an iron mine.

This was related to the military strength of the territory!

After searching the forest for another two days, Lynn still had no results.

They had been away from the village for eight days.

Even though Lynn had great confidence in Kuisi's abilities and Ross's military recruitment.

Leaving the territory without his presence for such a long time could easily lead to upheaval.

Lynn certainly did not want to come back and find his home robbed just because he was looking for an iron mine!

After heading back for two days.

A string of text suddenly appeared in Lynn's view.

"Ore Vein Detector: 200 meters southeast, large open-pit iron mine."

Seeing the prompt before him, Lynn's eyes widened.

Iron mine!

And it's a large iron mine!

Lynn's mind raced as he opened the [Ore Vein Detector].

Sure enough.

A symbol of an iron mine appeared on it.

Lynn didn't hesitate at all, leading Red and the others towards the iron mine.

They trekked past colossal tree trunks that would require several people to embrace and crossed moss-covered high rocky slopes.

Lynn stood at the location marked by the [Ore Vein Detector].

As he gazed at the scene ahead, his pupils gradually enlarged, his face filled with shock.

Even someone usually as calm and stable as Lynn could not help but feel his emotions rapidly fluctuate.

Before him was a tiered, exposed black mountain.

Even though there was much moss covering the mountain, the distinct black color was still evident at a glance.

The area was extensive, and the mining area could span several square kilometers or even more!

Lynn understood that this was indeed an iron mine!

An open-pit iron mine!

[Large Open-pit Iron Mine]: Formed through a combination of multiple geological processes over a long time.

The reserves of a large iron mine are at least several tens of millions of tons!

Or even up to billions of tons!

The accidental discovery of a salt mine had already initiated a qualitative leap in the economic development of the territory.

The discovery of the coal mine had brought about a massive transformation in the facilities of the territory too.

Now, with the discovery of this large open-pit iron mine!

Lynn realized that this time, he was really going to take off!

Subduing the shock in his heart, Lynn walked into the mountain body and casually picked up a piece of black ore.

[Iron Ore]: High-grade, low in alumina content, few harmful impurities, good sintering performance, suitable for smelting and forging, etc.

Reading the text description, Lynn felt increasingly satisfied in his heart.

And it was high-grade iron ore!

High grade means a high mass fraction of iron elements in the ore.

This allows for the extraction of more effective iron content!

Behind Lynn, the guards were filled with curiosity.

Their Master Lynn rushed here without any orders for them.

Red approached and asked in confusion, "Master Lynn, what's the problem with these stones?"

Lynn's lips curled slightly, "Of course there is a problem!"

With this open-pit iron mine, he will have countless armor and weapons!

With this open-pit iron mine, he can arm his soldiers to the teeth!

With this open-pit iron mine, he will have an infinite number of heavily armored elite cavalry!

With this open-pit iron mine, he will have the confidence to knock out all enemies with a single punch!

Red's puzzlement was still apparent.

Lynn calmly stated, "This is an iron mine!"

"Simply put, every soldier in the territory will be clad in fine plate armor in the future!"

Hearing Master Lynn's words, Red was stunned.

Not only him, but all the guards behind were also stunned.

Iron mine?

Plate armor?

Before they could indulge in imagination, Lynn abruptly announced, "This exploration is over; now we can return!"

Everyone instantly snapped back to reality, respectfully responding, "Yes, Master Lynn."

Watching Master Lynn stride forward, they hurriedly stepped to catch up.

They could clearly feel that after finding this iron mine, Master Lynn's mood instantly improved!

Under the guidance of the Guard, Lynn walked through the forest.

In his mind, he was already planning how to extract this open-pit iron mine.

According to the Holographic Map, the open-pit iron mine is quite far from the village.

Forty miles!

After eight days of continuous exploration, Lynn and his party had already traveled forty miles.

This was even under the complex road conditions in the forest.

Otherwise, they could have gone further.

The challenge of how to excavate appeared in Lynn's mind.

Excavate iron ore like excavating salt mines?

As soon as this idea came out, Lynn instantly dismissed it.

Even if starting from the open-pit salt mine, cutting down logs all the way and laying roads, achieving this nearly forty-mile journey would take too long!

Not only that, it would also require a lot of labor and resources.

The next second.

Lynn's eyes suddenly brightened.

The open-pit iron mine is only two or three miles away from the Acadia River.

It is completely feasible to transport the extracted iron ore by small boats to the back of the village!

This means that it is only necessary to temporarily cut down logs and build a road for this short stretch.

The road entering the open-pit iron mine can be paved when there is more labor available.

With the transportation issue of iron ore resolved, the next task is to produce more iron excavation tools and to arrange for excavation personnel.

As Lynn pondered,

his party had already exited the forest, mounted their horses, and galloped towards the village.

Not even close to the village yet,

Lynn saw from a distance that Colin was leading a dozen apprentices by the Acadia River, installing the water wheel.

With the stone mill and forging water wheels, six water wheels were already standing on the Acadia River!

In the wasteland farther from the village, a group of people were busily working together.

It was Guy and his team of stonemasons and carpenters building a ranch.

In the fields, Gavin and Wilbur were tending to the peas...

Seeing this scene, Lynn nodded with satisfaction.

Even after being away for nearly nine days, the village was still operating normally.

Just as he returned to the front of the village, Lynn noticed that Kuisi was waiting in the open space in front of the village.

As he approached, Kuisi greeted him with delight.

"Master Lynn, you're finally back!" she said anxiously.

Lynn dismounted and asked curiously, "What's wrong?"

Kuisi quickly explained, "Barely two days after you left, Grayson returned, bringing eight hundred pounds of high-quality iron, thirty thousand pounds of barley, and ten thousand pounds of wheat."

"Since you were not here, I did not trade the equivalent amount of fine salt with him, but... Grayson is willing to leave these goods with you first."

Although Kuisi had witnessed and participated in the step-by-step development of the village,

she was also one of the people Master Lynn trusted most.

Kuisi deeply understood that Master Lynn was the real owner of this land!

She could collaborate on anything with Master Lynn's permission,

but she would not overstep when it comes to Master Lynn's property!

Moreover, the value of these goods was nearly ninety Gold Pounds.

Lynn nodded and asked, "Has Grayson already left?"

Kuisi replied, "Yes, Master Lynn, Grayson has already left."

"However, there is a merchant named Alan Brown who has been waiting outside the city wall for a day. He claims to be Grayson's brother..."

"Even though his surname is the same as Grayson's, Instructor Ross didn't allow his caravan into the city wall without your permission!"

Lynn raised an eyebrow.

Alan Brown?

Lynn said, "Tell Ross to let them in."

The importance of the city wall once again became evident.

Without a clear introduction from an intermediary, no one can enter his territory!

If they want to enter, they must get his approval!

Kuisi acknowledged and immediately called a nearby guard to relay Master Lynn's order.

Lynn strode toward the wooden house.

"Kuisi, please prepare a tub of hot water. I need a good soak!"

Being out for nearly nine days, his body was sore and smelled!

Kuisi acknowledged, "Yes, Master Lynn, I'll go right away."

Half an hour later.

A bathtub filled with hot water was placed in Lynn's wooden house.

Wisps of white steam continuously floated and spread throughout the room.

Lynn soaked comfortably, relieving muscle soreness and dispelling the fatigue from his body...

The guard rode to the city wall at the mountain pass to deliver the message.

The Alan Brown caravan would need at least two to three hours to reach the village from the city wall, even at a fast speed.

Lynn had plenty of time!

It wasn't until a little over two hours later that Lynn, having finished his bath, changed into comfortable silk clothes and walked out of the wooden house.

In the distance,

a caravan of horse-drawn carriages was traveling along the lime road towards the village.

Lynn observed the caravan.

On ten carriages, each pulled by four strong draft horses, goods were piled high.

Because of the rain tarpaulin covers, Lynn couldn't see what was inside.

The carriages were evidently specially reinforced, utilizing a composite structure with ironwood, thick-spoked wheels, and sturdy bodies...

Around the carriages were thirty mounted guards.

They had stern expressions, their eyes vigilantly scanning the surroundings.

Their left hands tightly held the reins while their right hands touched the handles of the one-handed swords at their waists, with a metal round shield strapped to their backs.

Their bodies were also clad in partial chain armor.

Compared to Grayson's attendants, Alan Brown's guards were much stronger.

This full suit of armor was enough to dissuade many small gangs of bandits!

To ensure the safety of the territory, Ross led nearly a hundred soldiers following them.

At the front, a similarly armored, fat man was the first to dismount from his horse.

His fat and pale face, with a squeezed body barely fitted inside the armor,

especially those eyes that were nothing more than slits, left a deep impression on Lynn!

With a thought, a stream of text appeared in Lynn's eyes.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.