“Alright, then I’ll tell you. The Crimson Forest is the largest primeval forest on this continent. It covers almost half of the entire continent’s area, while the Fallen Nether Empire is just an ordinary human nation.”
Stone moved from the window to Luo Pipi's side, looking at her with curiosity: "I thought the Luo Ming Empire was very powerful."
"If this were a human nation, their strength would indeed be quite impressive," Luo Pipi gave a fairly objective assessment.
"So, there are other countries that aren't human?" Stone couldn't help but think of the dwarf kingdom living in the Crimson Forest. If dwarves could live in the Crimson Forest, did that mean there might be other races there?
Luo Pipi's answer resolved Shi Tou's confusion perfectly: "Many magical beasts live in the Crimson Forest, and the intelligence of high-level magical beasts even surpasses that of humans. Although it has not been fully confirmed, it is said that many kingdoms established by various races are located in the Crimson Forest."
"Are there any elves?" Stone still hadn't given up on finding out about the elves.
Luo Pipi sighed and spread his hands helplessly: "I've already said it, elves only live in the Moon Goddess Forest and the Demon Sound Forest. The Crimson Forest is suitable for some powerful magical beasts, but not for weaker races like elves."
Warcraft? Race?
Stone noticed a problem. It seemed that Luo Pipi didn't see the elves as magical beasts.
"Are elves not considered magical beasts?"
"Of course not. We only regard humanoid beings like elves as different races. In fact, the people of the Eastern Family are not the same race as us."
Stone was speechless. Did white people think that people of Asian descent like them were some kind of elves?
"Besides elves, what other races are there?" Putting aside this troublesome question, Stone was very curious: Did humans know about the existence of dwarves?
“There are many. But the most human-like are the people of the Eastern family, followed by elves and orcs. By the way, orcs are a very special race, and there are many sub-branches within the orc race. Among them, the most human-like are the ape-men race within the orc race.”
Anyway, the journey was boring. And there were no other towns besides the supply stations for the next week, so Luo Pipi was happy to have a good chat with Shi Tou.
Stone blinked, clearly exasperated. "Ape-men are very similar to humans? That's obvious, aren't humans evolved from ape-men?"
“There are also several other races that have been missing for quite some time. Although all indications suggest that they still exist in this world, their numbers must be very small.” Luo Pipi thought for a moment and gestured towards the stone: “They are a head shorter than you, and they stay that tall for life. We call this race dwarves, but dwarves have been missing for a long time.”
Stone tried his best to keep his expression natural, but his heart was still in turmoil. The dwarves had been fleeing for over six hundred years, yet even so, humans still knew of their existence. It was hard to say whether to say that humans valued history or that the dwarves were just unlucky.
"There is another race called the Dwarfs. They are even shorter than dwarves, but they are very intelligent. Unfortunately, while there are still traces of dwarves, the Dwarfs have disappeared into the annals of history."
Seeing Luo Pipi's sighing expression, Shi Tou didn't know what to say for a moment. After a long while, he finally spoke up to comfort her, "Maybe they're just hiding somewhere. A race doesn't just perish so easily."
"Where are the dwarves hiding? As for the gnomes, they must have disappeared."
Stone was startled. She didn't know why Luo Pipi was so sure that the dwarves were just hiding somewhere, rather than disappearing like the gnomes.
"Do you know where the dwarves are hiding?" Stone asked, partly out of curiosity, but also because he wanted to find out how much humans knew about the dwarves.
Luo Pipi sighed, "How could anyone know? Dwarves are very good at hiding. They abandon their original homes, mines, and fields and simply disappear. Even if humans dig three feet into the ground, they won't be able to find them."
Hearing "digging three feet into the ground," Stone's heart skipped a beat. After carefully observing Luo Pipi's expression, Stone figured she was just saying it casually, and then relaxed: "Has no one gone to look for the dwarves?"
"We searched and tried every possible method to find the dwarves. Even more than 500 years ago, after the dwarves had all disappeared, the human kingdom issued a warrant, saying that finding a dwarf would be rewarded with 10,000 gold coins."
What the hell? Who's so stupid as to issue this order? Isn't this just pushing the dwarves to their deaths?
Stone was furious: "Was this an order issued by the Fallen Nether Empire?"
Luo Pipi was a little confused by Shi Tou's inexplicable temper and said innocently, "No, it was jointly issued by all human countries except for the Luo Ming Empire."
Thank goodness, at least they're not her unworthy descendants.
Stone breathed a sigh of relief, then asked, puzzled, "If that's the case, why are you so sure the dwarves didn't disappear, but the gnomes did?"
“They have different personalities, and they also disappear in different ways.” Seeing that Stone was still puzzled, Luo Pipi patiently explained, “The dwarves disappeared suddenly overnight, but after they disappeared, sometimes one or two weapons made by the dwarves would still appear on the market, so people judged that the dwarves did not really disappear, but just hid somewhere.”
Stone cursed inwardly at those dwarves who sold weapons to other races; wasn't that just asking for trouble?
"But the dwarfs were different. They disappeared slowly, with fewer and fewer people with each generation. Finally, more than three hundred years ago, the last dwarf died, and the dwarf race was never heard from again."
At this point, Luo Pipi still had a very sad expression: "Dwarfs are very intelligent and can create some cutting-edge mechanical products, something that humans will probably never catch up with. Since the dwarfs disappeared, the few mechanical products that are left on the market have become treasures."
The stone is even more sorrowful than the fallen skin. Mechanical products? Even if all the dwarfs really died out, wouldn't humanity try to make some? Does that mean that without dwarfs, the technological age will never come?
“I think humans are quite intelligent too,” Stone reminded him sadly.
"Humans are intelligent, but they can't be compared to dwarfs." Luo Pipi concluded with certainty: "You're only saying that because you've never seen the mechanical products made by dwarfs. By the way, I remember I have a book that records the mechanical history of dwarfs, I'll find it for you to see."
Watching Luo Pipi rummage through his spatial equipment, Stone felt an unparalleled sense of annoyance. Mechanical history? What the hell?
"Here you go, this is it."
Upon receiving the book, Shi Tou felt like he was about to wet himself the moment he saw the cover.
On the cover of the thick book was a picture of something Stone looked very familiar with—the kind of thing usually kept in museums, though Stone had never seen it in a museum before. Normally, most people wouldn't know about such things from museums, but rather from watching period dramas every evening.
Okay, in the past life of the stone, this thing was called a spinning machine, and there were many, many kinds. The one shown on the cover of the book that Luo Pipi gave me was just a very old kind of spinning machine, the kind that you had to flick it by hand to spin it, and on average it probably wouldn't produce a single bolt of cloth in a month.
"This is called a loom. It appeared five hundred years ago and was gradually improved by the dwarves. The loom we use now is the latest version that the dwarves completed before they disappeared," Luo Pipi kindly explained when he saw Stone staring intently at the cover.
Spinning machine and loom, the names are similar. Stone didn't want to dwell on the names; she just wanted to ask, "So, all those dwarfs are dead, aren't you going to upgrade your equipment? This is the very oldest kind of equipment, okay?!"
She numbly flipped through the book, which was mostly filled with hand-drawn illustrations with annotations. But Shi Tou had no interest in reading the annotations; she could roughly guess what it was just from the pictures, even without looking at the annotations.
However, the more she read, the more speechless she became. Finally, she slammed the book shut and stared at Luo Pipi.
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My subscriptions have been terrible lately, everyone! Are you all preparing for final exams? /(ㄒoㄒ)/~~
...
Chapter 196: Registered Mercenaries Are Looked Down Upon
"Finished reading? Any thoughts?" Luo Pipi asked casually as she poured Shi Tou a cup of tea after she closed the book.
Stone stared at Luo Pipi, remaining silent for a long time.
"What's wrong?" Luo Pipi felt a chill run down her spine as she was stared at by Shi Tou's big, piercing eyes, but when she looked down at herself, she didn't seem to see anything wrong with herself.
"Excuse me, has nothing been improved here since the dwarfs disappeared?"
Luo Pipi nodded, but her face was full of confusion: "Of course, why do you ask that? Since the dwarves have all disappeared, who would come to improve the mechanical tools made by the dwarves?"
The stone silently ground its teeth. Was this the legendary inertia? Humans were clearly capable of doing better than the dwarfs, but due to preconceived notions, the world's technology completely stagnated after the dwarfs disappeared.
"I'll tell you a very old story, would you like to hear it?" Seeing Luo Pipi nod, Shi Tou pondered for a moment before slowly beginning to tell the story.
"Once upon a time, there was a vast ocean, teeming with many creatures, including fish, shrimp, and crabs. By the way, you don't know what a crab is, do you? Let me tell you..."
After describing the crab's appearance to Luo Pipi in detail, Shi Tou continued, "Crabs are generally quite large, but there's a strange type of crab. It could easily grow very big, but because it's afraid of being exposed to wind and rain, and also afraid of accidentally dying in the mouths of other creatures, it chooses to live in a small snail shell, hiding there for its entire life..."
"They are always just a tiny bit big, and they are never full. But they never starve to death. Because of their deep-rooted laziness, these crabs live in snail shells and are called hermit crabs."
Luo Pipi listened to the story with a thoughtful expression. After Shi Tou finished, Luo Pipi paused, somewhat stunned. "Duo'er, do you mean that humans don't actually need dwarfs to improve mechanical devices?"
"Why must we rely on dwarfs? I think no one in this world is indispensable. Since dwarfs have disappeared, why don't humans take matters into their own hands?" Stone was truly helpless. In her previous life, in a world without dwarfs, people still made technological progress, didn't they?
Luo Pipi's expression was somewhat uncertain: "But, didn't the Creator create this world hoping that all races would live in harmony and create this beautiful world together? Dwarves are good at forging, gnomes are good at machinery, elves are good at managing forests, orcs manage the grasslands very well, and dragons possess the most powerful martial arts..."
Stone listened quietly. In Luo Pipi's words, every race in the world had its own strengths, as if they were all indispensable.
"But even though the dwarves have disappeared, aren't humans still forging weapons?"
"Yes, the dwarves have disappeared." Luo Pipi sighed deeply. "Duo'er, you are a Qi Master, do you know the history of Qi Masters?"
Why are we suddenly bringing this up?
Stone looked at Luo Pipi with some confusion: "I only know that Qi Masters are already very powerful, even more powerful than magicians."
Luo Pipi nodded: "Yes. Aura Masters are extremely powerful. More than six hundred years ago, before Princess Irene created system magic, when the dwarves were still active on this continent, Aura Masters were the most prestigious group of people on the continent."
"It's really hard to imagine." Although he knew Luo Pipi was telling the truth, Shi Tou still found it hard to believe the glory days of Qi Masters six hundred years ago, considering their current status.
"That's right, it's really hard to imagine. Humans do forge weapons, but did you know that the original forging techniques were inherited from the dwarves? But even if the dwarves had no ulterior motives, humans still couldn't grasp the essence of forging. Later, with the disappearance of the dwarves, those top-tier aura masters could no longer find suitable weapons..."
Luo Pipi's expression was somewhat dejected: "Later, Irene announced the rules of the system magic to the world. It can be said that before that, magicians were extremely rare, like phoenix feathers. Even if one became a magician, most magicians would remain at the one-star stage, and only a very few could advance."
"System magic is that powerful?" Stone raised an eyebrow. Of course, she knew the current situation of mages. Basically, from one star to five stars, it is relatively easy for mages to advance. Of course, it becomes more and more difficult as you go further. Once you reach seven stars or above, the difficulty will increase dramatically.
"It's incredibly impressive. Originally, magicians passed down their knowledge through a master-apprentice system. A master would take on a maximum of three to five apprentices in his lifetime, and that was often the case. Some magicians didn't even take on a single apprentice in their entire lives. Therefore, most magicians were self-taught through books, which was completely unsystematic and relied entirely on talent."
Shi Tou frowned, recalling the current model of the Imperial Capital Academy. Yes, this school-style educational institution, with its clear division into classes and grades, was clearly the educational model from her previous life. It seemed that the Imperial Capital Academy was also thanks to Princess Irene.
So, it seems she really caused quite a bit of trouble in this world in her past lives.
"Later, Princess Irene announced the system magic, which divided magic into levels 0 to 9. She also categorized various types of magic according to their offensive, defensive, and life-assistance properties, as well as their difficulty. In short, it is because of her that Imperial Capital Academy is in its current form."
Luo Pipi's face was filled with dejection: "Because of the disappearance of the dwarves, and because of the sudden emergence of Princess Irene, the status of magicians has risen instantly, while battle aura masters have inevitably fallen into a trough. Therefore, I do not agree with your statement at all. Everyone in this world is indispensable."
Stone was very depressed. Were humans' forging and mechanical skills really inferior to those of dwarves and cowards? If that were the case, then should the world she lived in in her previous life have remained in the Stone Age forever?
"Actually, you can think of it this way: the Creator naturally made dwarves and cowards disappear, maybe so that humans could take their place? Think about it, a child is supposed to be raised by his biological parents, but what if his parents pass away? Should he sit at home and wait to die? Or should he actively seek help from others to live a good life?"
Luo Pipi was a little confused by the stone. Although she felt that what the stone said made some sense, she had been taught since childhood that humans could never surpass dwarves in forging, and naturally, they could never surpass dwarves in mechanics.
Stone gave many more examples, but Luo Pipi remained stubborn. She firmly believed in the education she received from childhood that all races were indispensable, and if a race disappeared, it meant that the responsibilities that race should bear would also disappear.
In the end, even after waiting until they reached the vicinity of the Crimson Forest, Stone still couldn't persuade Luo Pipi.
After getting off the carriage, Stone looked up at the sky with great distress. "God! Please let Luo Pipi travel through time, just to our past life, so she can experience how omnipotent humans are!"
"Duo'er, let's go to town and find a place to stay!" Luo Pipi led Shitou toward town.
Stone looked around at the town's buildings and was relieved to find that this town was not the one she had visited before. Otherwise, if she had run into Linda's grandmother, she wouldn't know how to explain it to her!
Although they had been traveling for a long time, it was still summer, and there was still a long time before the end of autumn. Luo Pipi didn't plan to go into the Crimson Forest at any time, but instead stayed in town all day, as if she was carrying out some plan.
With the ring's spatial ability at her disposal, and the fact that she wasn't entirely powerless, Stone began strolling around town while Luo Pipi got busy.
This town was significantly larger than the one she had visited before, and what intrigued her even more was the presence of a massive mercenary guild within it.
Stone bought a very ordinary knight's sword at the market and carried it into the mercenary guild.
The Mercenary Guild was enormous; the mission hall on the first floor alone was over a thousand square meters. Stone stood at the entrance for a while, then walked to the nearest counter. Above the counter hung a sign that clearly read: Mercenary Registration.
"I want to register as a mercenary." Stone stood on tiptoe and barely managed to reach the counter, muttering to himself, "Why did they make the counter so high?"
Behind the counter was a very old man. After looking at the stone with only half its head sticking out, the old man took a while to come to his senses: "You? Or your elder?"
Stone was speechless, and said through gritted teeth, "Me!"
The old man hesitated for a moment: "Registering as a mercenary is no joke."