I was a lord farming, how did I become an emperor?

Chapter 137 Snow Rabbit Man

……

……

Following the description of the meditation method, Rhodes slowly lowered his consciousness.

Try to calm yourself down and block out all the sounds around you.

The shouts of soldiers training, the sound of Martha chopping vegetables, and the sound of servants chopping wood gradually faded into the distance.

Slowly, Rhodes felt like a lone bird flying into a dense primeval forest, and the world became completely quiet.

Rhodes himself was also enveloped by darkness. He looked around blankly, but could not feel anything.

After an unknown amount of time, just as he was on the verge of madness, his vision was suddenly illuminated.

The starry sky gradually appeared before his eyes, stretching out into the distance.

"It seems he has entered a meditative state."

Rhodes thought to himself that the twinkling stars before him were like diamonds in the night sky, beautiful and full of mystery.

This is what it looks like when you normally enter a meditative state, as described in meditation texts.

What Rhodes had to do was use his mental power to draw upon the endless stars in the sky before him.

Then they come together to form nebulae, condensing into stacked star rings.

During this process, Rhodes' mental strength will gradually increase due to the constant pull.

Once the first star ring is fully formed, Rhode will be able to inscribe wizard runes within it, gaining his own innate spells.

Possessing the first star ring naturally became a mark of a low-level wizard apprentice.

This process is very long and mentally exhausting.

The ancient texts Linda provided stated that there were no shortcuts in this process, and Rhodes could only patiently cultivate step by step.

Let's start with the smallest one.

Rhodes focused his mind on a small star and began his wizarding journey.

Practice is more difficult than you might imagine.

Rhodes felt like his head was about to explode before he managed to bring the two stars together.

Then he ended his meditation and fell asleep without hesitation.

I didn't wake up until the next morning.

Avril even thought Rod was sick.

However, the effect was very obvious; Rhodes felt that the surroundings were clearer once again.

More importantly, Rhodes can more easily mobilize the scorching energy in his body without having to concentrate and charge it up for seven or eight seconds as before.

It's a pity that Rhodes didn't have Linda's crystal ball, so he couldn't know exactly how much the improvement was.

Rhodes will only be able to test the improvement when Linda and the others come again.

What Rhodes is looking forward to now is when he will be able to learn specific spells.

……

……

Snowflakes are a common sight in the northern wilderness during winter.

They often arrive without warning.

Even when the sun is high in the sky, snowflakes will occasionally drift down, gently landing on the dark green pine branches, and then engulfing the entire pine forest.

As the snowflakes fell relentlessly, hunger began to rage in many people's stomachs.

At this moment, in the burrow beneath the pine forest, several figures with rabbit ears clutched their stomachs, enduring hunger.

When unable to resist, they would pick up the earthenware pot from the fire, pour out hot water, add a handful of snow, and then swallow it.

"No, we need to find more food. We can't go on like this."

Looking at his emaciated tribesmen, Labet declared loudly, "As the strongest Snow Hare people, I must hunt to obtain enough food for my people!"

"Otherwise, many of our people will die if this continues!"

Inside the burrow lay many snow rabbit people with long rabbit ears and furry lower bodies.

And they were the aliens that Aleya had seen.

They never went far; they disappeared by hiding in a cave beneath the mountains.

The Snow Rabbit people are masters of digging burrows; given enough time, they can hollow out a mountain and have a deep understanding of geological structures.

At the same time, the Snow Rabbit can mix a little saliva or urine and cast a talent spell as an adhesive to strengthen the soil, making the dug holes exceptionally solid and less prone to collapse.

"No! I already sensed danger approaching us last time."

A female snow hare standing nearby firmly spoke up to stop them, saying, "You'll definitely be discovered if you go out this time, and you might not even find any food."

"We are very unfamiliar with this place, so we can't act rashly; we must proceed slowly."

"More importantly, for our people, a few prey is not enough to solve the problem. We must find a stable food source."

The Snow Rabbit people's dietary habits are still similar to those of humans, and they are also omnivorous.

However, thanks to their powerful digestive system, they can eat not only human food, but also plants such as moss.

In addition, there are small animals such as squirrels and pheasants, and even some insects and mice.

But whatever it is, it's not easy for the Earth Ear tribe, who have just arrived here, to find it.

They had searched the surrounding area and found only some frozen fruit and dried mushrooms, enough for the tribe to eat for only a few days.

Where will the stable food supply come from?

Labette glared at the female snow hare and stood up angrily. "Sherry, you make it sound so easy. Where are we going to find a stable source of food?"

"Perhaps we can search for those humans..."

"Humanity?"

As soon as the female snow rabbit, Sheri, finished speaking, Labette raised her voice eight octaves and said excitedly,

"They'll just arrest us, lock us up, and treat us like pets to be watched!"

"A beautiful snow rabbit girl like you is treated like a plaything and trampled on at will!"

"They would even cut off our ears and wear them as ornaments on our heads!"

"They'll even skin us to make clothes!"

……

Rabette was agitated, and her words were filled with anger.
"Have you forgotten the elders' warnings?"

“Now we are the elders, Labette.”

Sherry said, "What you just said are all stories from the past, things that happened a long time ago."

"And the elders also told us that humans are different from each other."

Sherry countered, "Didn't a human recently teach us about farming?"

"That's because he wants to take you away and have children with you!"

Labette retorted loudly, while Sherry frowned.
"Don't assume everyone is like you, only knowing how to reproduce."

"I reproduce for the sake of our race..."

"Okay, stop arguing."

An older snow rabbit nearby, unable to bear the commotion, stopped the two and suggested:
"Perhaps we could sneak into human territory and take some food while they're asleep."

The older snow rabbit suggested in a low voice, a sly glint in his eyes.

"There's a village at the foot of the Black Stone Mountains to the east. I saw smoke rising from it. I think there must be a lot of people living there, and they must have food."

"You mean to steal it? That's not appropriate."

Sherry frowned and shook her head.

"Is it appropriate for humans to capture us?"

"Rabette retorted, clenching her fists tightly," she said.

"Labet, you need to calm down."

Xue Rui's tone softened as she advised, "Don't let past stories influence your judgment."

"People are different from one another, just like snow rabbit people are different from one another."

"If it weren't for the betrayal of the White Claw Tribe, our homeland wouldn't have been destroyed by the Bloodscale Tribe, and we wouldn't have had to flee here."

"That's because you're too kind. It's because of your kindness that we fell into the Bloodscale Tribe's trap," Labette said with displeasure.

"It's not kindness, it's prejudice, just like you are now."

Sheryl looked at Labette and said without any hesitation, "I trusted the White Claw tribe because of my prejudice, thinking that my own kind was more trustworthy."

Therefore, I don't want you to discriminate against humans because of prejudice.

"I will be more careful in the future, but that doesn't mean all humans are bad."

"Okay, okay, so what do we do now?"

"I can't help it," Rabette asked, her voice tinged with exhaustion and hunger.

"We should talk to those humans first and see if we can make a deal."

Sherry suggested softly, her long ears twitching slightly, a smile involuntarily spreading across her face. "Do you remember the iron ore we found in that mountain over there?"

She continued, her eyes sparkling with anticipation.

"Humans love iron ore, don't they?"

"Didn't the person who taught us always ask us if we had discovered iron ore?"

"And haven't we also collected some herbs these past few days?"

As she spoke, Xue Rui took out several fragrant plants from a small cloth bag at her waist.
“I think these herbs could also be traded with those humans.”

"Yes."

The middle-aged snow rabbit nodded.

“Herbal medicine is a good idea. We can keep collecting it and then trade with them if those humans are willing.”

"More importantly, if they are well-intentioned."

Sherry explained, her voice filled with anticipation.

"Then we don't need to hide anymore. We can move around freely on the outskirts of the Blackrock Mountains and we don't have to be afraid of being attacked when we look for food."

"Therefore, we should strive even more to live in peace."

This is also the main reason why Sherry disagrees with stealing.

Even the Snow Rabbits of the Black Rock Mountains dared not venture deep inside, fearing the presence of terrifying beasts.

If you want to live here, you can't easily anger the people who live here, otherwise you'll always have to hide.

"What if those humans are evil?"

Labette crossed his thick forearms over his chest, his brow furrowed, and asked, "What if they refuse to cooperate and try to arrest you? What should we do then?"

"So I went to talk to them."

Sherry answered calmly, her eyes firm.

“If they catch me, I can escape. Or even if they do catch me, they won’t be able to find you.”

"This will prove that they are evil humans, and then you can leave with your people."

Sherry's tone was resolute.

"No! I can't let you take such a risk! If anyone's going, it'll be me." Labette suddenly stood up, his eyes wide.

Sherry shook her head violently.

"You're too impulsive. You can't do it," Xue Rui sighed softly.
Labette's personality is more like that of a fierce tiger; he is more suitable for hunting.

However, when it comes to negotiations, he often portrays a good thing as a bad thing.

"More importantly, you are the strongest warrior in our tribe, and you must stay to protect your people."

Labette was about to say something when Sherry raised her hand to stop her, her movement gentle yet undeniable.

Let's vote.

Sheryl looked at another middle-aged snow rabbit man, her voice clear and strong.
"Raise your hand if you agree that I should go."

The Snow Rabbit tribe currently has no leader, only elders.

The three were the elders of the Dier tribe.

After speaking, Xue Rui raised her hand without hesitation. Her steady arm signified her firm attitude.

The other middle-aged snow rabbit hesitated for a moment, but ultimately supported Xue Rui and raised his hand.

"Two to one."

Sherry announced the results with a smile on her lips.

"I hate this show-of-hands voting."

Despite saying that, Labette could only sigh helplessly, her long ears drooping as she sat back down in her original seat.

……

……

Since receiving news of the alien race's presence, Jess has been increasing the number of people patrolling the village every day.

Not only are there visible sentries patrolling, but also hidden sentries lurking near the woods.

The importance of mines is self-evident.

The lord entrusted him with such an important matter, and Jess cannot allow anyone to cause trouble.

Especially at night.

Jess ordered all soldiers to sleep in their armor, and the slaves were not allowed to take off their clothes; they had to be able to assemble at their posts in the shortest possible time.

Jess himself would often get up in the middle of the night to conduct spot checks on the soldiers to prevent them from secretly sleeping at night.

Then they carefully monitored each shift change, not letting any suspicious signs slip by.

Jess anticipated all possible sneak attacks and made preparations to defend against the alien race.

But to his utter surprise, two aliens with rabbit ears stood swaggering in front of the village gate.

Jess assumed that the opponent had the extraordinary ability to take on the entire stronghold single-handedly, and immediately became alarmed, ordering all soldiers to assemble and await orders.

However, to his surprise, the two long-eared rabbits had come to make a deal with him.

Jess naturally did not have the authority to make a trade.

He invited the two aliens to the mountain stronghold, ordered the soldiers to keep a close watch on them, and then passed the message to Rhodes.

……

……

With the initial construction of the wolf farm completed, Rod, at Wolf Hoof's invitation, inspected the newly built wasteland wolf breeding farm.

The layout of this place is actually similar to that of a horse ranch, with a simple fence surrounding it.

There's basically no need to guard against the escape of the Steppe Wolves; the main defenses are against other ferocious beasts and sneak attacks.

This wolf farm is located in a secluded mountain forest near a coal mine.

This way, both sides can support each other.

If there is any danger at the coal mine, Wolfhoof and his pack of wolves can provide rapid support.

Rhodes did not allow the Wolfhoof tribe to raise too many desert wolves, because feeding these wolves was a considerable expense.

His tribe wouldn't grow rapidly in the short term, so he didn't need too many wolves and only kept thirteen.

This way, there's no need to consider the issue of conflict between wolf packs.

The wolf packs usually provide food for the wolf pack tribe themselves.

The wolf pack needs to train and hone its hunting skills, and some of the prey it hunts happens to become food for these wild wolves.

Just as Rhodes was about to leave after inspecting the wolf farm, he received news about the two alien envoys.

"Snow Rabbit People... I've never heard of them."

After reading the report, Rhodes felt that the wasteland was becoming increasingly complicated.

I heard about lizardmen before, and now snow rabbits have appeared.

There are also savage tribes that worship beast spirits and nature spirits, as well as various magical beasts and ruins.

These were all things that Rhodes had heard as stories in Tulip Castle before.

Now they're all right in front of me.

No, it's not that the Northern Wastes are complicated.

That's just how the world has always been.

Rhodes thought about it for a moment.

Perhaps many fantastical things have been discovered in the four provinces of the empire, but they have all been kept secret by the various noble families.

The northern wastelands, on the other hand, are mostly uncultivated, pristine lands.

That's why Rhodes discovered so many strange alien races and things here.

Rhodes suddenly remembered the western islands that Dawn had mentioned.

—That place is also a chaotic land, with many legends of foreign races.

Perhaps the world has more than just the untouched virgin land of the North Wilderness.

Rhodes shook his head slightly, temporarily suppressing the jumbled thoughts in his mind.

He handed the letter to the guard.

"Let them come to Frostleaf Town to see me."

Neither the mine nor the wolf farm was a suitable place for a meeting, so Rhodes decided to return to the manor first.

"Oh, and by the way, have Jess prepare a hood for them to cover up their alien features."

The presence of a rabbit-eared alien could easily cause panic among ordinary people, and Rhodes didn't want to create any unnecessary trouble.

"Yes, Lord Lord."

The guard responded and immediately went to deliver the message.

(End of this chapter)