20: Chapter 20 Tonight, let's talk about something else.

After seeing off the satisfied and fully laden caravan.

Gao Feng looked at the mountain of supplies before him and the heavy money bag filled with silver in his hand; his heart was filled with deep emotion and surging excitement.

He understood that relying solely on hunting and farming behind closed doors was far from enough.

He had to learn to establish connections with the outside world and efficiently convert the advantageous resources at his disposal into the means of production necessary for his own development.

He ordered everyone to transport the supplies back to the Panshi Stockade, while he himself immediately took a bundle of newly acquired iron-core arrows and entered the spirit spring space.

He soaked the arrows in a bucket of spiritual water.

To his pleasant surprise, under the continuous nourishment of the spiritual water, those arrowheads, originally forged from ordinary iron, were undergoing strange changes at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Their surfaces became smoother and harder, and the blades shimmered with a chilling, eerie blue light!

This was definitely not a luster that ordinary steel could possess!

Gao Feng was ecstatic; the spirit spring could actually strengthen ordinary objects!

Although the effect was limited, if he used these "spirit spring enchanted" arrows to deal with that Tiger King, the penetrating power would surely increase significantly!

He could already imagine that in the future, he would possess an elite army equipped with "enchanted" weapons!

The success of this trade acted like a shot of adrenaline, greatly boosting the morale of the entire Panshi Stockade.

Not only did they obtain the valuable supplies necessary for survival and development, but more importantly, they found a bright path filled with hope.

Gao Feng's goal had also quietly shifted from the previous simple "resolving the tiger menace" to something more grand and greedy—"Hunting the Tiger King"!

That third-rank Tiger King entrenched in the depths of the mountain forest was no longer just a deadly threat in his eyes.

It was five hundred taels of silver!

He stood on the high ground of the pass, looking toward the core area where the tiger pack was entrenched, his eyes flashing with an unprecedented, burning light, like a hunter locking onto prey.

As if it had sensed this unconcealed, greedy gaze.

From the deepest part of the mountain forest, a tiger roar filled with violence and supreme majesty suddenly resounded throughout the entire valley.

The roar seemed to be declaring its supreme sovereignty to all creatures that dared to covet its throne, brooking no form of provocation!

A storm was brewing.

A true battle of kings, one that would decide the ownership of this valley, was on the verge of breaking out!

The Tiger King's roar reverberated through the valley, the lingering sound carrying a chilling pressure.

The soldiers patrolling near the pass all turned pale, subconsciously gripping their weapons; it was a fear stemming from biological instinct.

However, Gao Feng, standing on the high ground and letting the mountain wind blow against his robes, showed not a trace of fear on his face.

In his deep eyes, the flames of greed ignited by the "five hundred taels of silver" slowly faded, replaced by an iron-cold calmness and calculation.

"Third-rank exotic beast..."

He muttered to himself, clearly assessing the gap between himself and the enemy.

He knew his own weight better than anyone else.

Second-rank Skin Refining was already considered an invincible expert in the eyes of ordinary people, capable of splitting stones and breaking monuments.

But facing a true third-rank exotic beast, it would be an all-around suppression in strength, speed, reaction, and even recovery.

A head-on confrontation would have a negligible chance of winning.

Capture it alive?

That was even more of a fantasy.

His own strength was an insurmountable chasm lying between him and the five hundred taels of silver.

The immense joy brought by the successful trade with the Chen Clan Trading Firm was now rapidly replaced by this deep anxiety regarding his strength.

The Panshi Stockade was like a heavy war chariot that had just started; external parts like supplies, population, and morale were rising, but the core engine—high-end combat power—was improving too slowly.

"Must find a way to improve strength as soon as possible!" This thought was branded into the bottom of his heart like a red-hot iron.

He was not a gambler who would pin his hopes on luck; before he had sufficient certainty, he would never bet his own future and that of the entire stockade.

At nightfall, Gao Feng paced restlessly in his room.

The flame of the oil lamp danced before his eyes, and his thoughts churned violently.

He thought of his greatest secret—the spirit spring space.

That time of intimacy with Luo Qin had caused the space to have a qualitative leap, and the memory of that all-around improvement was still fresh.

Then... what about the others?

Once this thought sprouted, it was like wild grass growing madly, impossible to contain.

His gaze involuntarily turned toward another beautiful figure in the stockade—Luo Shu.

Unlike her sister Luo Qin's heroic and spirited demeanor, she possessed an inherent intellect and scholarly aura.

She was not as dazzling as her sister, but rather like a cup of warm, gentle tea that needed to be savored slowly.

Since taking over the management of the stockade's supplies and population registration, those thick account books had become orderly in her hands, with every transaction of supplies and every change in population clearly recorded.

She was undoubtedly an indispensable management talent for the Panshi Stockade.

But at this moment, in Gao Feng's eyes, her greatest value perhaps did not lie in this.

"Strength..." Gao Feng clenched his fists, feeling the surging Qi and blood in his body, "In this chaotic world, only absolute strength is the Foundation for survival and development.

Everything else can be put aside."

He made up his mind.

That night, Gao Feng sent someone to pass a message, inviting Luo Shu into his room under the pretext of "discussing the stockade's future supply planning and account reconciliation."

When Luo Shu walked into the room gracefully, holding a thick account book, she was still somewhat puzzled.

The Stockade Master had just held a meeting during the day, so why was he specifically looking for her at night?

However, when she saw the situation in the room, her heart immediately began to thump wildly.

In the room, the oil lamp flickered, casting their shadows long against the wall.

The Stockade Master Gao Feng was not sitting at the table as usual, but was standing by the window with his hands behind his back; he was not looking at the night outside, and his eyes, which appeared exceptionally burning under the lamplight, were staring at her without blinking.

There were no maps or sand tables in the room, and the table was completely empty.

Luo Shu was so intelligent that she understood what was happening in an instant.

Her cheeks turned bright red in a flash, as if dyed by the sunset glow, the redness spreading all the way to her delicate neck.

She subconsciously hugged the account book in her arms tighter, as if it could bring her a trace of security.

Her knuckles holding the account book turned slightly white from the force, her heart was in turmoil like a panicked deer, and she hurriedly lowered her eyes, not daring to meet those aggressive eyes.

"Stockade... Stockade Master..." She gathered her courage, her voice as faint as a mosquito's, "You... you called me here, didn't you say... you wanted to check the accounts?"

Gao Feng did not speak, but slowly walked towards her.

With every step he took forward, Luo Shu's heart beat faster.

The strong masculine scent on him, mixed with sweat and virility, enveloped her like a physical presence, making her feel parched and flustered.

Gao Feng walked up to her, reached out, and gently pulled the thick account book from her arms, tossing it onto the table with a light sound, which also shattered the last line of defense in Luo Shu's heart.

"The accounts can wait until tomorrow," Gao Feng's voice was low and magnetic, "Tonight, let's discuss something else."

As he spoke, he did not give Luo Shu any chance to react, pulling her into his arms.

"Ah!"

Luo Shu exclaimed, instinctively struggling symbolically for a moment, but Gao Feng's arms were like iron hoops, leaving her unable to move.

Her whole body went limp, and she could no longer muster any strength.

The intellectual, faint fragrance of ink on her, the scent of a maiden, was completely different from Su Yue's alluring charm and Luo Qin's heroic spirit, and instead, it further stirred the primitive desire for conquest in Gao Feng's heart.

Under Gao Feng's unquestionable domineering manner, she finally gave up resistance, closed her eyes as if resigning herself to fate, her long eyelashes trembling slightly like butterfly wings...