The auction journey concluded perfectly.
Chen Yu was in a great mood.
He had obtained the resources he needed, made a substantial profit, and simultaneously boosted his reputation within the cave-city.
Of course—
He had also established an adversarial force.
It was perfect!
To progress, one needed a goal. Merely developing quietly, growing stronger, and achieving greater glory held no challenge for Chen Yu anymore.
Enemies were a necessity!
Only the pressure from enemies could accelerate his progress. Furthermore, having an enemy clarified Chen Yu's vision.
Returning to the camp's cave dwelling.
Upon Chen Yu's arrival, he found his camp had transformed.
Row upon row of structures stood side by side.
Bustling figures were everywhere, most of whom he didn't recognize. What Chen Yu found most unbelievable was that two wolf-kin were actually guarding the entrance.
"Halt!"
As Chen Yu prepared to enter his camp, the two wolf-kin guards stopped him.
"Who are you?"
Hiss!
To be honest, seeing wolf-kin guards up close was quite imposing.
"You insolent pup, you dare ask who we are!" Before Chen Yu could speak, Hei Dou stood up, glaring. "This is your leader, the Camp Lord. I am also your leader, the Second Camp Lord. Go on, get out of the way. Who do you think you're blocking?"
"Camp Lord~"
At this moment, Kairin also emerged with a smile, addressing the two wolf-kin guards at the entrance.
"This is our Camp Lord~"
"What about me?!" Seeing that the introduction had ended without him, Hei Dou exclaimed with wide eyes, "You have to tell them about me too!"
"Right, right, this is our Second Camp Lord."
Kairin introduced him with a full smile.
The wolf-kin guards immediately bowed and paid their respects. Satisfied, Hei Dou proudly tilted his head and patted the wolf-kin's head with his small paw.
"Work hard, Brother Two is watching over you!"
"Stop showing off."
Chen Yu grabbed Hei Dou by the scruff of his neck and walked in.
Entering the main camp area, Chen Yu took his seat on the throne he had acquired from the Undead Mausoleum. Kairin brought him a bowl of iced water and a can of fruit.
Taking a sip of the iced water and a bite of the canned fruit.
Chen Yu let out a contented sigh, glancing out at the area beyond the main camp.
"Quite a few people have arrived."
"Indeed!" Kairin said with a smile. "As you instructed, we've been hiring people with high salaries. Although they learned that the work wasn't in the city, the multi-fold salary was enough to entice many. Ultimately, it's all thanks to the gold coins you provided, Camp Lord, that the recruitment has gone so smoothly."
Chen Yu took a general look around.
Within the camp area alone, there were about a hundred people working. The shortage of personnel in the smelting area had been addressed, and the drying and planting areas were also well-staffed.
"There are quite a few people."
"Some of these individuals were not recruited. Mercenaries spread the word, and two neighboring small villages wish to pledge their allegiance to us. I tried to contact you earlier, but you didn't reply, so I took the liberty of accepting them as well," Kairin explained softly.
Hearing this, Chen Yu raised his wrist communicator.
He opened his private messages and saw that Kairin had indeed sent him a message he hadn't replied to. Calculating the time, he must have been confronting the crocodiles then, so he hadn't paid much attention.
"Good!"
Chen Yu nodded slightly and smiled.
"If villages want to join us, we should accept them," Chen Yu said softly. "Those we hire are ultimately hired. Only by strengthening our own camp's capabilities can we truly advance."
"You are correct."
Kairin nodded with a smile.
"Word about our camp has just begun to spread, and I believe more villages will pledge their allegiance over time. If for no other reason, simply having ample food is enough to attract those villages to us."
"Is food scarce in the cave-lands?" Chen Yu frowned.
"Extremely scarce!"
Kairin sighed deeply at this.
"In our cave-lands, both food resources and water are extremely scarce. This is true for any nation. The number of kingdoms capable of ensuring sufficient food supply can be counted on one hand."
This was good news.
Chen Yu, with his food greed-critical strike, was like a god in a place as food-scarce as the cave-lands. More importantly, his greed-critical strike could be upgraded.
It was currently 50 times, and it might not be long before it reached 100 times.
Or even more!
If mere food could attract villages to join, it would be incredibly simple for him.
Open the box.
Critical strike, 50 times food, bring it on!
Chen Yu had no fear of his food supply depleting as long as he had enough workers. They would explore outside, bring back boxes, and exchange them with Chen Yu for a guaranteed base amount.
Wearing his luck set and utilizing his greed-critical strike, Chen Yu opened the box.
Compound interest!
"Kairin, you are currently handling many matters for our camp. There are a few things I need to remind you of," Chen Yu said softly.
"Please, Camp Lord."
"Absorbing villages to increase our camp's population is a good thing, but an increased population also means increased resource consumption, especially food!" Chen Yu stated seriously. "You must carefully manage this aspect. A deficit is absolutely unacceptable. It's best to maintain a reserve of over 60%."
Chen Yu's food supply did not solely serve his camp.
Within the region—
Tens of thousands of people were still awaiting sustenance.
He had to ensure that the survivors in the region could fill their stomachs and not starve to death in the cave-lands. Otherwise, many of his future plans would be difficult to execute.
"Understood!"
Kairin nodded resolutely.
"Secondly, as our camp expands, it's impractical for you to personally handle everything. You can select individuals from our camp who are capable of taking charge and give them management positions. You can then oversee them."
"Yes, Camp Lord. I have actually been observing discreetly. I will promote suitable individuals when I find them."
"Finally..."
*Clang.*
Another golden box was tossed out.
"This box contains fifty thousand gold coins. Take it and use it," Chen Yu indicated the box. "Don't worry about resource investment for camp expansion. I want to see a leap in our camp's progress. Regardless of how much funding is needed during this period, it's acceptable. If the money runs out, come to me."
"Camp Lord, I haven't even used up the ten thousand you gave me last time!"
Kairin was astonished.
He was truly shocked. Was his camp really an outsider? How could it seem to be doing better than families that had existed in the cave-lands for decades or centuries?
This was simply unbelievable.
"Take it and use it!" Chen Yu whispered intently. "I require you to spend all these gold coins within seven days. After seven days, come back to me, and I will provide you with more funding."
"Camp Lord~"
Fifty thousand gold coins, spent in seven days?
This...
Even the major families in the city-states wouldn't dare to spend money like this, would they?
"We have absolutely no shortage of money in our camp," Chen Yu stated seriously. "As long as you use all this money for the camp's construction, no matter how much you spend, I can afford it. Kairin, remember one thing, our camp..."
"Has no shortage of money!"