Zhang Hong sat cross-legged on the bed, concentrating on a brown duck feather hanging on the mosquito net frame. The duck feather was tied to a cotton thread and swayed gently in the breeze.
"Hanging Feather Method" is the name he gave to this mysterious method. This method was learned from the wild mage Andrew who was captured alive by him.
Andrew was lucky. After being captured alive, he confessed everything he knew. The school didn't treat him harshly because he was a half-baked magician. After being locked up for a while, Xiao Chen and Morey went to interrogate him. This guy was shocked by Xiao Chen's powerful mental power and cried and shouted that he wanted to stay and be Xiao Chen's apprentice. The committee considered that this guy would be helpful in understanding the magic of this world, and finally decided to release him and keep him as a consultant. Now that this guy has a nominal inheritance, he is very proud and is ready to join the magic group that is being prepared.
The school has already mastered Andrew's concentration method and the concentration method taught to Li Jia by Serinda Arias, but out of caution, it is still studying the dangers of these two methods and is not open to individual learning for the time being.
But Zhang Hong couldn't wait any longer, he had to improve his strength as soon as possible, he knew that there were two time bombs waiting for him outside the school, which could ruin his reputation at any time. So he made up his mind and used his own mechanical watch to exchange this mysterious method of condensing the soul from Andrew, as well as a few small spells.
After practicing for a while, Zhang Hong felt that he was a genius.
According to Andrew, the fat guy, it took him more than two years to make some progress in his practice of concentration, but it only took Zhang Hong more than a month to initially feel his own consciousness.
Just like now, he could feel the feather in front of him even with his eyes closed. This was not an illusion or imagination, but a wonderful feeling. Just like seeing, hearing, and smelling, now he could "feel".
In the past, Zhang Hong would always practice until he was mentally exhausted, but today, he stopped after practicing for about twenty minutes because he had more important things to do.
After getting dressed and going out, Zhang Hong dodged a few indigenous children playing in the corridor and some broken bottles and cans that came from nowhere with a look of disgust on his face before going downstairs.
Zhang Hong sighed. The school was becoming more and more chaotic.
More than a month ago, the attack by horse thieves destroyed many houses of the townspeople, so the school temporarily took in the local families who came to the school for refuge. Unexpectedly, some people found that the school dormitory building was a hundred times better than their broken houses, and they refused to leave the school. There were several such families living in Zhang Hong's building. Some of the adults in their families joined the guards, training and patrolling on weekdays, and some joined the agricultural group, responsible for hunting and farming. Several smart or skilled people have joined factories and workshops.
Most of these people had terrible living habits. Some urinated and defecated anywhere, some collected scraps everywhere, some built fires and barbecued meat in the corridors. They did all kinds of weird things, which made Zhang Hong and others who lived with them miserable.
Fortunately, they are still obedient. Perhaps because they have been supervised too much by the lords, most of them are humble and respectful in front of the earthlings. The school has equipped them with special "life managers", which has allowed them to slowly adapt to life here. But it is easy to manage adults, but it is difficult to manage children. These "wild children" often make so much noise that Zhang Hong can't even sleep well. It's not that Zhang Hong has never supervised them, but he just scolded them the day before, and a pile of shit was pulled at the door the next day. He now feels dizzy when he sees these lawless little ghosts.
Zhang Hong walked along a road towards the school gate. He was surrounded by busy pedestrians. They only said hello when they met, and had no time to exchange pleasantries. Nowadays, there are no holidays in schools. Everyone is like a wound-up spring, turning non-stop. If he hadn't asked for leave due to illness, he should be teaching Chinese to the natives at the language school at this moment.
Zhang Hong walked to the gate while thinking about something. The school gate has been expanded. Towers have been erected on both sides, a platform has been built on the top, and a parapet has been built on the outer side with shooting holes on it. It has already looked like a castle. Several guards with spears were standing guard under the leadership of a soldier with a gun. Three of them were from the school and two were locals. Just like anywhere else, these locals have begun to infiltrate the school and are everywhere.
"Have you heard? Xiao Chen and his team bought four to five thousand slaves!" A student holding a spear and a sharp-looking camera whispered. Although his voice was soft, Zhang Hong still heard it.
"You must be mistaken. Four or five thousand? How is that possible? How many of us are there in total? Maybe four or five hundred at most?" another student asked in surprise.
"How is that impossible? Two people from the business team have already come back to report the news. The school will have to arrange food and accommodation for these people right away!"
“Wow, this way we can do a lot less work, right?” a student said happily.
"I'm wondering if there are any pretty girls among these slaves. You see, there are more boys than girls now, so should the school take some care of them? For example, give one to everyone?" Another student seemed lustful.
"Shut up, everyone." The soldier holding a rifle, who looked like the squad leader, shouted, "What are you dreaming about? It would be better to let you be "life managers" when the time comes."
Immediately, the two students' faces fell.
After hearing this, Zhang Hong walked out of the school gate without saying a word, but his heart was boiling like boiling water.
Four or five thousand slaves, what a fortune that is! Now Xiao Chen and Luo Ling, two villains, have made a profit. What a great achievement! Zhang Hong felt a sour taste in his heart. He walked down the ramp that was close to the wall, thinking over and over again how wonderful it would be if he could accomplish such a great achievement. While imagining other people praising his achievements, he also complained that the damn Hong Lifeng was dead and still causing trouble for him.
If it weren't for that damned guy, I could also go as a representative to the Earldom...
The road between the school and Frollo Town was greatly widened, and sometimes horse-drawn carriages and ox-drawn carts carried goods between the two places. Zhang Hong's destination was an inn in the town. The inn owner had fled to other places before the horse thieves arrived, and now this ownerless inn has become a temporary base for the Blue Flame Mercenary Group.
Zhang Hong pushed open the door of the hotel and found that the lobby on the first floor of the hotel was dark and small, with no one there. There was only a stern-looking half-elf sitting behind the bar, drinking by himself, and a giant man over two meters tall, gnawing on a leg of lamb. When the half-elf saw Zhang Hong coming in, he glanced at him nonchalantly and continued to drink. The giant man was not moved at all and continued to fight with the food.
Zhang Hong was shocked by the half-elf's gaze. The way he looked at him was like a hunter looking at his prey, which made him feel cold and frightened. The moment he entered the door, he seemed to have seen through all his weaknesses. And the giant man, just the back of a black bear, could cause great pressure on people.
These damn natives! Zhang Hong instinctively wanted to leave this hellhole, but reality forced him to rely on the help of these people. He mustered up his courage, slowly walked to the bar, subconsciously straightened his collar, coughed and said, "I, I'll hire someone."
The half-elf did not answer and continued drinking.
"I'm here to hire someone to help me do things!" Zhang Hong said, raising his voice.
The giant turned around and looked at him, saying in a gruff voice, "The captain is not here, so we won't accept the mission."
"You mercenaries, you are staying in the town, aren't you waiting to be hired? I have gold coins!" Zhang Hong took out two gold coins from his pocket and slapped them on the table. "The mission is simple. You all know that our army is about to expel the goblin tribe in the nearby woods. I will go with you, and I need two masters to protect me. And if we find any escaped horse thieves, you guys take action and kill them for me! I will pay you bonuses according to their strength!"
The giant took a look at the two shiny gold coins, swallowed his saliva, pushed the half-elf and said, "Drunkard, he can really afford the gold coins."
The half-elf said nonchalantly, "Wood, have you forgotten what Captain Kalanda told you? Stay here and guard the town, don't cause any trouble!"
"But my mom said that if you have money and don't make it, you're a fool." The giant looked at the two gold coins with envy. "There's nothing going on in this town these days. I'm getting sick from boredom. Besides, if we leave, we still have Leo and the others."
Zhang Hong was delighted to see the giant was interested, and quickly said, "I not only have gold coins here, but also a lot of castle-specific goods, many of which you have never seen before. If you want, I can help you get them."
The half-elf sneered, "You humans, even if you fell from the sky, can't change your ugly habit of bribing people. I'm not interested in your stuff, let's go." The half-elf poured the wine in the glass into his mouth and threw the glass on the table with a clang. Zhang Hong knew without thinking that he was going to send him away.
Seeing that the half-elf was unmoved, the giant became anxious. He scratched his head for a while, then suddenly slapped his head and said loudly, "By the way, Cole, don't you want to learn a few more spells to increase the power of your magic bow? This guy came out of the magician's castle. He might have it on hand!"
Half-elf Cole narrowed his eyes and said in a cold voice: "Gamero, you are such a fool! Do you think the magician's inheritance can be given away just like that? If you get involved in this kind of thing, you will die without knowing how!"
Zhang Hong was moved when he heard this, and he quickly said, "Why didn't you tell me earlier? Of course I have magic. I am a magic apprentice myself, and the magic I have is not inherited from the magic castle, but brought from my family. As long as you are willing to help, I can promise to teach you two magics. There will be no trouble."
Hearing this, Cole couldn't help but stand up. Zhang Hong knew that he was moved...