It was far more profitable than selling them to the buyback tab individually.

Although he had bought a few things in the meantime, none of them were valuable, so he hadn’t spent much.

But if he were to put in a purchase order for thirty, it would cost twenty to thirty thousand Points.

But then, Luo Dingran said, "Since we’re requesting a large quantity this time, we can try to push the price down. No one was willing to trade for a small amount, but with a larger volume, someone might consider it."

Cheng Zongyang asked, "What price?"

Luo Dingran thought for a moment and said, "Let’s push it down from your previous price to four hundred Points each. And we can add a note about long-term cooperation to see if that works."

"Will anyone sell at that price?" Cheng Zongyang was doubtful. "I listed a buy order for over eight hundred before, and no one sold."

Luo Dingran said, "For a small quantity, maybe no one cared about that many Points. But this time, the total is over ten thousand, so someone might give it a shot. Plus, the offer of long-term cooperation might make a difference.

"My lord, analyzing your previous purchase requests, it’s possible you bought up the seller’s entire stock. Once their stock was gone, and since your next request was only for a few, they had no incentive to go out and find more."

’This analysis was something Cheng Zongyang hadn’t considered. Stock... If it really was their stock, then it would make sense why he couldn’t buy any more later, even after raising the price. It was a real possibility.’

Regardless of whether it made sense, he quickly did the math and got a rough estimate.

"Including other fees, that comes to 13,930 Points."

But before Luo Dingran could speak, Cheng Zongyang gritted his teeth and declared, "If we’re going to buy, let’s buy more! Let’s request sixty. Total: 27,850 Points."

"Yes, this subordinate will see to it at once," Luo Dingran said with a smile.

With more manpower, future tasks would be much easier to handle. He wouldn’t have to work one person like they were two or three. This situation had already caused many matters to be delayed.

’Next, I’ll need one hundred and twenty corpses.’ Cheng Zongyang wasn’t worried. After all, they didn’t need to be Martial Artists. Ordinary people died in the County Town every day, mostly from illness.

But collecting one hundred and twenty corpses in a single day was a different story.

He also had to collect sixty Soul Crystal Stones, which couldn’t be done in a short time either.

Cheng Zongyang shook his head. He could only focus on completing the collection of Soul Crystal Stones first. As long as he had all the Soul Crystal Stones, he could create new Soul Slaves anytime he had the corpses.

He left the matter of the purchase order to Luo Dingran and went to find Luo Zheng.

Luo Zheng was alone, feeding some livestock.

As he approached the enclosures, he saw deer, goats, chickens, ducks, and pigs.

While the numbers weren’t large, the variety was quite wide. Most had been purchased from the item shop after it refreshed. A few had been caught in the mountains.

Luo Zheng was raising them well.

Among them, Cheng Zongyang noticed that several of the black-earthen pigs had large bellies and were close to giving birth.

"My lord!" Seeing Cheng Zongyang arrive, Luo Zheng immediately put down the wooden bucket in his hands and cupped his fists.

"No need for formalities. You’re raising them well," Cheng Zongyang said with praise.

Luo Zheng smiled. "You flatter me, my lord. These animals are quite resilient; they gain weight no matter what they eat."

Cheng Zongyang looked around, but not seeing what he was looking for, he couldn’t help but ask, "Where’s the Mole Beast?"

Luo Zheng replied, "It ate about an hour ago and is resting in the cave. It likes to sleep in there."

"How’s the cave excavation coming along?" Cheng Zongyang had only just remembered about it.

Thinking of the Mole Beast’s work ethic, Luo Zheng also said with a smile:

"It’s almost done. We’ve dug five large caves, enough to store a lot of supplies. The Mole Beast’s Ability and Talent are incredibly useful. Rock and stone are like soft earth to it. And with its Earth Control Ability, there’s no worry of the caves collapsing. My lord, we should try to raise more of this type of Exotic Beast."

Hearing this, Cheng Zongyang gave a helpless smile. "I’d like to, but Beastman Essence isn’t something you can just request to buy. The item shop’s refresh is purely a matter of luck.

"So far, I haven’t seen any special item refresh a second time. We’ll just have to look for more slowly after the territory expands. They’re out there somewhere; they can’t run away."

Luo Zheng simply nodded and said, "My lord, do you have a new assignment for the Mole Beast? Shall I go and get it?"

Cheng Zongyang shook his head slightly. "No need. I was just asking. You can have the Mole Beast try to explore for ores. If that works, it will become even more useful. I’ve almost finished my business outside. By the time I’m done, it will be about time to use the Mole Beast."

Luo Zheng immediately agreed.

’Using the Mole Beast to find ore was indeed a good idea. After all, the Mole Beast possessed a special Ability that no other Exotic Beast had.’

’As long as it could familiarize itself with the scent of some ores, finding them wouldn’t be difficult. And the subsequent mining would be a piece of cake.’

But the next moment, Luo Zheng seemed to remember something and said:

"My lord, the Wilderness Silk Insects you left with me last time have now been bred to the fourth generation. The number of insects steadily producing silk has surpassed ten thousand. Their food consumption is truly staggering. What are your instructions for them?"

Cheng Zongyang was taken aback, only then remembering their existence. He asked, "If I recall correctly, these Silk Insects are omnivores, right? What are you feeding them?"

"We feed them quite a variety." Luo Zheng led Cheng Zongyang to a separate wooden house built behind the main building, used for raising the Wilderness Silk Insects.

The house had two levels, each about three meters high.

Inside were rows of shelves, and on the shelves were trays of golden-green Silk Insects, each about the size of an index finger. Some were already spinning cocoons on withered branches.

"The first level is now all for silk production, and the Second Level is for those that are still growing. The ones on this level are the fourth generation. I’ve already collected dozens of pounds of cocoons. These here are what’s left after we screened out the less vigorous ones; the remainder are the elites.

"Their diet is quite varied: tender leaves, the dried and minced Internal Organs of cleaned animals and fish, and also specially raised water rat meat."

"Water rat meat?" Cheng Zongyang was puzzled. "Where are you raising them? How come I haven’t seen any?"

Luo Zheng continued to explain, "My lord, I discovered the water rats by chance near the stream. They exclusively hunt small fish in the water. Their bodies are twice the size of a normal rat’s.

"Water rats reproduce extremely quickly. They can grow to maturity and breed the next generation in about half a month, with a litter of seven or eight.

"So, I had the Mole Beast dig a rather large pit by the stream specifically to raise them. After the Mole Beast reinforced the pit, the water rats can’t dig through it. With proper Defenses in place, they can’t escape either. They can be bred in large quantities.

"In the future, they will be an excellent food source, whether for feeding the Silk Insects or other animals."

Hearing this, Cheng Zongyang’s eyes lit up again. "What’s the quality of the meat like?"

Luo Zheng smiled. "Because they grow up eating small fish, shrimp, and other aquatic life, and since they are always active in the water, their meat doesn’t have the gamy smell of mountain rats or common rats. Instead, it has a hint of a seafood flavor. The taste is decent, and the meat yield is also not bad."

"Hahaha, as long as there’s a large quantity, that’s all that matters. Raise more of them. We can air-dry the excess in the future and sell it for money."

"Yes, my lord," Luo Zheng agreed, but then added, "However, if we breed them in large numbers, the fish population in the stream might be limited."

In a good mood, Cheng Zongyang shook his head. "Don’t worry. I’ll be expanding the territory shortly. I don’t know by how much yet, but I imagine it will be a significant amount. The ocean is to the south, so acquiring food will be much easier in the future."

"Then this subordinate is relieved," Luo Zheng said, cupping his fists.

Cheng Zongyang then said, "Get a thousand of these Silk Insects for me. I’ll find a time to take them later. Don’t take them from the first floor; pick them from the Second Level. I’ll take them outside to raise them.

"Finally, I’ll have to trouble you to write up a breeding manual detailing the cultivation methods. Of course, just select the Silk Insects for now; there’s no rush to pack them. We can pack them separately when it’s time."

"Yes, my lord!" Luo Zheng agreed once again.

Cheng Zongyang then returned to the small house beneath the marketplace.

He looked at the two untouched chests of silver in the corner and took a deep breath.

"After all this time, I can finally expand the territory," Cheng Zongyang muttered. He then looked off into the distance and said, "Expand the Wilderness World territory."

Instantly, a virtual interface popped up in front of him.