"Are these the mortals you discovered in the Wasteland Territory?"
Inside Longxing Valley, Zhou Chun gazed at the three mortals, two men and one woman, shivering and kneeling before him, his eyes filled with surprise.
Previously, there were naturally no mortals in Longxing Valley.
When the Zhou Family was cultivating loyal family warriors, they never recruited females either.
Therefore, it was impossible for the cultivators of Longxing Valley to have given birth to mortals, and moreover, it wasn't possible to produce such adult individuals within a year's time.
The three mortals Zhou Chun now saw were discovered by Zhou Zhengyong while he was exploring the Wasteland Territory, on a plain more than six hundred li away.
According to Zhou Zhengyong, there were several mortal tribes on that plain, the larger ones numbering a thousand people and the smaller ones two to three hundred.
These mortal tribes appeared to be extremely primitive, with most of their hunting weapons made of beast bones and stones, and iron implements being very rare.
Their clothing was also made from animal skins, bird feathers, and tree bark, and they had no system of writing to pass on their heritage.
However, according to Zhou Zhengyong's understanding, these mortal tribes were likely the descendants of the mortals once bred by the Dragon Transformation Sect in the Wasteland Territory.
It had been twenty to thirty years since the campaign to the south had passed.
At that time, many of the mortals living in the Wasteland Territory perished after losing the protection of the Dragon Transformation Sect.
But within a large base population, there were always a few lucky ones who survived, and many of the lower-ranking cultivators from the Dragon Transformation Sect also escaped, possibly offering protection to some mortals. Discover hidden content at My Virtual Library Empire
Even though these lucky ones survived, after losing the protection of cultivators, their meager strength was hardly sufficient to live on in the wilderness.
Thus, they were forced to migrate constantly, moving away from dangerous areas.
During this migration, the adult members of their tribes either died from the fangs of demon beasts and wild animals or succumbed to diseases and accidents.
Their new generation, having had no opportunity for education and never having experienced civilized society, devoted all their effort to obtaining food and survival.
As a result, civilization regressed, savagery fostered, and the survivors, organized into tribes, fought tenaciously to live on in the wilderness with their rugged bodies.
After understanding the situation clearly, Zhou Chun couldn't help but sigh, "They are indeed a group of pitiable people!"
He then turned his gaze towards Zhou Zhengyong and asked, "So what do you plan to do with these few mortals, Brother Yong?"
Hearing his words, Zhou Zhengyong hesitated briefly before speaking in a deep voice, "If the family permits, I would like to keep these mortals here to help with some chores and even relocate those mortal tribes over here, to establish a settlement nearby."
"Brother Yong, I understand your kind intentions,"
Zhou Chun nodded, showing that he understood Zhou Zhengyong's sentiment, but then furrowed his brows and said, "However, if too many mortals live nearby and are allowed to grow in strength, it will inevitably attract more attention. If the existence of Longxing Valley is revealed, the consequences would be unimaginable!"
The Zhou Family established Frontier Base in Longxing Valley to secretly collect various resources from the Wasteland Territory, not to colonize the area.
Once this place begins to gather the wilderness people and establish a settlement, it would indeed be colonization, which would be difficult to go unnoticed.
And the small Zhou Family could not withstand the onslaught of the wilderness overlords.
"Yes, I have also considered what you mentioned, Thirteenth Brother, but the benefits of taking in mortals are also evident. With the service of mortals, our cultivators here would be spared from many unnecessary chores, and if some cultivators are willing to mate with mortal females to have offspring, it could lead to children with Spirit Root Aptitude, thus increasing the number of cultivators in Longxing Valley!"
Zhou Zhengyong first nodded, acknowledging Zhou Chun's remarks, but then offered his own view, attempting to persuade Zhou Chun.
Seeing this, Zhou Chun couldn't help but fall into contemplation.
How could he not understand the benefits that Zhou Zhengyong had articulated? However, compared to those benefits, the drawbacks were more obvious and serious.
But since Zhou Zhengyong had been personally appointed by him and he had said that all matters of Longxing Valley were to be decided by Zhou Zhengyong, he wasn't very approving but felt reluctant to outright refuse.
So, after much thought, Zhou Chun gave Zhou Zhengyong a slight nod and said, "Brother Yong, if you really want to save these mortals, I cannot stand in the way of your kindness. However, one thing must be ensured: these mortals must not be relocated near Longxing Valley. They must be settled elsewhere, and you must make sure they never learn of Longxing Valley's existence."
"Alright, I've taken your words to heart, Thirteenth Brother, and I will handle this matter properly!"
Zhou Zhengyong's face brightened as he nodded and agreed promptly.
"Let's leave this matter as it is for now. Now, let us discuss another issue,"
Zhou Chun spoke and then suddenly slapped the Spirit Beast Pouch at his waist, and before him appeared a Golden-Furred Giant Monkey nearly two zhang tall.
This Golden-Furred Giant Monkey was the Vajra Spirit Monkey that had been guarding the Central Peace Hall at Zhou Family Mountain.
Coming out of the Spirit Beast Pouch, the Golden-Furred Giant Monkey, seeing Zhou Zhengyong whom it hadn't seen for a while, smiled and waved a greeting with its hand.
Zhou Chun, seeing this, also smiled and said, "Hou Dali, in a way, is an old friend of yours, Brother Yong. Having it guard our family's gate was an underutilization of its abilities, so after talking to it, it agreed to come to Longxing Valley to fight alongside you, Brother Yong, and serve the family."