Chapter 613: Desert Plan
“Your Majesty, are you planning to send troops to conquer the Southernmost Region now?” Tie Axe's usually composed face showed a rare hint of excitement. "But the Evil Moon is almost upon us..."
“How many people do you think Winterfell needs to defend against the swarming demonic beasts?”
“This…” He took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing his excitement. "If we look at the scale of previous years, a thousand people can hold the walls."
"So, to be on the safe side, leaving two thousand five hundred soldiers should be more than enough. What's more, a new batch of reserve troops has already begun recruitment. Defending Winterfell is not a problem." Roland stood up and walked to the French window. "Tell me about the Southernmost Region. You should be the most familiar with that place."
“Yes, Your Majesty!” Tie Axe saluted. “Most of the Southernmost Region is yellow sand. Oases are scattered west of the Yin River, and most of the Mojin people above the ninth level live in these oases. The largest oasis has a city built on it, which is also the only city in the Southernmost Region – Iron Sand City.”
“Is the Yin River a river?”
“It can only be considered half a river,” Tie Axe explained. “Most of the time, it is buried underground, like an underground river. The parts that are exposed above ground have formed oases, so the Mojin people also call it the River of Life.”
Roland turned around and asked curiously, "Where does it originate? Looking at the map, there are no high mountains or lakes nearby."
"It originates from the sea, it is a gift from the Sea God," Tie Axe walked to the table and pointed to the connection between the western side of the Southernmost Region and the green land. "There is a huge cave here, and the flowing seawater constantly pours into the cave. Standing on it, you can feel the ground shaking under your feet."
"You mean, seawater is the source of the Yin River? But it can obviously nurture oases."
The ability to nurture oases means that the Yin River is a freshwater river – the salinity of seawater is too high to be used for irrigation and drinking. This sounds completely illogical.
“The Mother of the Earth absorbs the salt in the seawater. That entire area is covered in white salt, which also isolates the green land of Graycastle. When salt is needed, just take a bucket and scoop it up from the ground.”
Is this the work of nature? The soil under the yellow sand actually filters out the salt and forms saline-alkali land? Roland marveled. It seemed that in addition to petroleum, he had another resource to collect.
“How many people live in Iron Sand City?”
“About forty thousand.”
“That’s even more than the old royal capital of Graycastle?”
“Your Majesty, the cities of the sand people are not the same as the capitals of kingdoms,” Tie Axe smiled. “Iron Sand City only has a core area where the rulers of the six clans live. The outer areas are basically tents or thatched bungalows, built up layer by layer, gradually forming the current appearance – as long as you enter the oasis, you have entered the territory of Iron Sand City.”
“What about the Mojin people who live in other oases? There must be quite a few of them, right?” Roland asked. Population is key to quickly converting local specialties into usable resources. It was unlikely that he would transfer a large number of people from Winterfell to extract petroleum; in the end, he would have to rely on the locals to work for him.
The Chief Commander nodded. “No one has counted, but I estimate at least one hundred thousand.”
Then it should be enough to establish several mining stations and a transportation line. The next question is how to control them.
“By the way, what was that Sacred Duel you mentioned last time? How do the Mojin people determine their rule?”
This time, Tie Axe's answer was very detailed, taking about half an hour. Roland finally understood the power struggle of the sand people.
Putting aside the internal promotion of clans, for these alien races who advocate martial power, strong strength is the only thing worth trusting. The ruling class of Iron Sand City is usually composed of six clans, who are not hereditary but compete for power based on their own strength. However, in order to avoid the clans killing each other for power and weakening the power of the race to deal with external dangers, choosing a small number of people as representatives to duel has become the best choice.
Over time, this
rule has been recognized by all the sand people and given a sacred meaning – whether it is a large clan stationed in Iron Sand City or a small clan born in an oasis, they must abide by the results of the Sacred Duel. Anyone who tarnishes the duel will be spurned by all the sand people.
“Does this mean that the highest ruler of the Mojin people is the clan chief?” Roland asked in confusion. “Don’t you have figures like Great Chieftains?”
“Great… Chieftain?”
“A leader who can unite all the clans, similar to the King of Graycastle.”
“This…” Tie Axe hesitated. “There is a saying among the clans that there are only two ways to make all the sand people submit – one is to receive the affirmation and blessing of the Three Gods, and the other is to open up a vast oasis for the clan, eliminate the overwhelming sandstorms, and keep the sand people away from hunger, thirst, and the threat of death.”
“The affirmation of the Three Gods… how do we calculate that?” Roland frowned.
"You can offer corresponding sacrifices to the Three Gods in the Scorching Land, namely the Ironclad Giant Scorpion that dominates the earth, the Unicorn Sea Beast that controls the southernmost cape, and the Four-Winged Eagle that dominates the sky." Tie Axe paused. "These three beasts appear and disappear unpredictably, taking countless lives, but no one has ever found their nests, and baits and traps are useless – I even suspect that they may be hybrid demonic beasts that already possess the most basic intelligence."
Neither condition is easy to achieve, especially the second one, which is close to the power of a god to make an oasis grow in the desert. Roland couldn't help but sink into thought. If he only helped Echo regain the position of clan chief to avenge the five-year-old frame-up, it wouldn't be of much help to unite the entire Southernmost Region. Although the six clans have different status, they do not have direct subordination, not to mention the sand people scattered in the oases. He had to think of a way to become the Great Chieftain of the Mojin tribe.
In addition, the Sacred Duel is also something that must be considered. The First Army may be able to crush the Iron Sand City Guard, but it may not be so easy to make the sand people consciously submit to the rule.
The most appropriate method is to use the rules set by the Mojin tribe themselves to achieve the annexation plan.
“Can you invite people from other races to participate in the duel?”
"There is no problem with that," Tie Axe affirmed. "I am a mixed-blood, but I can still participate in the duel on behalf of the Aosha clan. In fact, brave gladiators are often welcomed by the major clans, which is also the only hope for small clans to turn over – if three or four brave people can appear in the descendants, there is hope to win a better ranking in the Sacred Duel."
“Is that so?” Roland smiled slightly. “Since that’s the case, it will be much easier.”