Chapter 384: Westward Journey

“Turn past the cliff ahead, and you’ll see Dustmother Clan.”

On the rugged mountain path, the merchant who had previously facilitated negotiations between Nagrand and the Stampede Plateau clans spoke eagerly.

Wu Qingsong nodded and glanced back at the beastkin women following behind him.

The simplest, most comfortable, and most impactful approach would have been for everyone to board Ling’s airship and land directly at the designated meeting point. However, shortly before their departure, Ling suddenly began experiencing pregnancy symptoms.

This brought them great joy. Even though he was already the father of two children, Wu Qingsong was still immensely happy. And for Ling, this was even more like a form of redemption.

Under such circumstances, Wu Qingsong couldn’t let Ling participate in any strenuous or risky tasks, let alone fly, which could potentially affect the unborn child.

Thus, they had to alter their original plan, departing from Nagrand ten days in advance and traveling westward, passing through newly established towns before heading into the mountain range to the west.

It had been a long time since Wu Qingsong had traveled in this manner.

Within Nagrand’s territory, there was already a relatively complete road system. The roads were regularly maintained by the local mousefolk, who cleared drainage ditches and filled in potholes with gravel and soil. But after leaving Nagrand’s controlled area, they had to traverse a barren landscape devoid of any road signs.

Fortunately, the merchant guiding them was well-acquainted with this trade route. Under his guidance, they followed springs and streams westward. After several days of arduous travel, they finally reached the forest at the foot of the mountains.

Wu Qingsong found himself missing the convenience of having Ling by his side. Over the past few years, he had grown accustomed to Ling handling all the minor details around him. Now, with Nina and Liuli filling in, many things felt less efficient, even somewhat disjointed and inconvenient.

It took him a few days to readjust to life without Ling by his side, and he became slightly more at ease. However, the sense of something missing remained strong.

“I wonder how Beth and Daniel are doing?” Liuli had been thinking about the two children the entire trip, prompting Wu Qingsong to shake his head again.

“I told you, you could have stayed in Nagrand with them.”

“But… but I promised Ling that I would take care of you,” Liuli insisted.

Who was taking care of whom, exactly?

Wu Qingsong sighed. Fortunately, it wasn’t just Liuli who had come along. Nina was there too.

As this was their first formal meeting with the Stampede Plateau clans, they needed to fully demonstrate their strength. Nina had selected thirty official members of the Divine Knights to accompany them to Dustmother Clan. In addition, nearly two hundred soldiers were traveling with them.

All of them were clad in the dark red lamellar armor that had become the signature uniform of the Thirteenth Mercenary Group since the Esola era, marching in a long column. Along the way, many beastfolk watched them from a distance but did not approach, giving Wu Qingsong an uneasy feeling.

Upon entering the mountains beyond Nagrand’s control, Nina had been systematically arranging for the beastkin knights to take turns leading scouts ahead. This journey was also a practical training exercise, testing their knowledge and skills in real conditions.

The young beastkin women diligently followed Nina’s orders. They soon discovered several impoverished small tribes, who displayed an unmistakable hostility toward their group—something the knights found incomprehensible. These tribespeople were unwilling to engage in conversation, so after confirming they posed no threat, the knights left small gifts of salt as a gesture of goodwill and continued on their way.

Towering coniferous forests stretched endlessly around them, limiting their view of the distance. The ground was mostly covered in thick layers of lichen, moss, and ferns, with decomposed pine needles piling up over an unknown number of years beneath them. The air was damp, and mist often shrouded their surroundings. For beastfolk accustomed to the arid plains surrounding the Icy Sea, this was an entirely different world. Even the houndfolk, who were familiar with forests, found this environment starkly different from what they knew.

“The beastfolk in this region still primarily rely on hunting,” the merchant guide enthusiastically explained. “The forests here are home to large numbers of deer, which serve as their main food source. Deer hides are also this region’s most valuable export.”

“Don’t worry,” he assured Wu Qingsong. “Lord, I travel this route at least six times a year and have never encountered any danger. There are almost no large predators in these lands. They’ve all been hunted to extinction.”

“Are there insectoids on the plateau?” Wu Qingsong asked casually.

By now, he was quite familiar with the merchant. The foxman had been born further west in the Mojina Plateau. Like many of his kind, he lacked the strength to thrive alone and thus made a living as a subordinate to more powerful groups, selling his intellect and knowledge. Though the foxman had never admitted it, both Wu Qingsong and Harold believed he was acting as an agent for some powerful faction in the Mojina Plateau.

“Insectoids?” The foxman shook his head. “I’ve almost never heard of them appearing here. Maybe it’s because we’re too far from the underground world, and the rock walls are too thick for them to tunnel through?”

“Besides leather, what else does this land produce?” Wu Qingsong asked.

If they were to integrate these beastfolk into Nagrand as allies, they needed to establish long-term, stable relations. While Wu Qingsong was willing to offer them gifts, he had no intention of using handouts to buy loyalty over the long term.

Having spent five years living on the plains, even though he didn’t often interact directly with beastfolk, he had learned a fair bit about their customs. Simply giving them resources wouldn’t earn gratitude. More likely, it would only fuel their greed and lead to misunderstandings about his intentions.

Long-term, mutually beneficial trade was the only way to build a solid foundation for their relationship.

“This place?” The foxman shook his head again. “Some rivers to the west have gold deposits. Occasionally, rare medicinal herbs can be found in the forests. There’s also some amber, but other than that, I don’t know much else. Lord, as you can see, the one thing this land has in abundance is wood. Wood, wood, and more wood. But what use is that? It’s heavy and massive, impossible to transport! Aside from leather, there’s nothing here worth trading.”

‘Is that really the case?’

Wu Qingsong was certain that this land held untapped resources. The problem was that the beastfolk lacked the ability to locate and extract them, let alone turn them into tradeable goods.

Could this be the key to opening up this region?

He pondered these questions throughout the journey until two knights rode swiftly back toward the column.

“Lord, we’ve encountered envoys from the Sarl Clan. They claim they’ve come to welcome us!”