The problems currently faced by the Church of the Dawn in the territory are clearly unique to Blackwood Territory.
The vast majority of people believe that the excessive use of magic and divine arts in this dark and desperate world will inevitably lead to even more despairing outcomes.
Su Li has brought countless opportunities to the territory, allowing it to flourish with the support of abundant magic and fantastical abilities.
However, this vibrant vitality and high prosperity, influenced by the convergence of magical winds, certainly harbor great risks. Just as the magical capital is destined to be destroyed by magic, the High Elves have already demonstrated this. Excessive accumulation of magic and over-reliance on prophets will inevitably lead to the summoning of demons amidst extreme prosperity.
So, after listening to Van der's account, Su Li suddenly felt that his fruit tea had lost its flavor, tasting of death and blood.
He immediately put the teacup on the table and said, "The pillars of the Empire have always been steel, faith, and the nineteen taxes. A large, loyal, and reliable populace is the core pillar of our territory. Tell me about the output of the territory's ordinary civilians."
Su Li now sincerely feels that this kind of catalysis cannot continue so frantically.
The development of the territory needs to curb its crazy momentum, and stability is the most important thing.
In fact, there are already signs of this in the territory. In the territory's most sacred and vast holy site, Lake Leiflin, distortions occur every day, with a large number of monsters hiding beneath its surface.
Now, the intelligence system reminds Su Li every day or two to be vigilant against attacks and hunts by distorted monsters from the bottom of the lake, lest this sacred place become a source of filth, harboring evil distortions.
Although this holy site still appears relatively normal at present, if the magic wind is abused without restraint, it is feared that before long, as the number and strength of the monsters increase, eerie phosphorescence will appear on the lake surface when night falls. Powerful and terrifying monsters are lurking and developing, and by then, civilians will occasionally hear chilling roars coming from underwater.
Once the situation deteriorates, the daily intelligence system will be eroded and affected, changing from a reminder every few days to being spammed with the Lake Leiflin distortion crisis every day.
Then, the situation will truly fall into crisis, completely beyond redemption.
Chaos lurks, corruption erodes. The fate of this land is heading towards the crossroads of destiny.
But fortunately, it's only the first year. If the consequences are foreseen in time and preventive measures and improvements are taken, the situation can still be salvaged.
This is also an important significance of holding this annual meeting: to report on this year's achievements and to summarize the major problems and crises that exist this year.
Van der continued to report: "Since the end of the Sacred Debate, our Church of the Dawn has noticed this problem. The various catalyses in the territory have basically been stopped, retaining only some necessary divine arts, such as [Leia's Mercy], [Natural Order], and [Sunfall], which can provide a good environment for plant growth."
"So, we basically rely on manpower to cultivate amethyst grapes and spirit medicine farms. Now the scale of these two items is still a normal increase. The amethyst grapes are maintained at five acres, mainly cultivated diligently by our nuns through cuttings, grafting, and other methods. Divine arts only ensure that they have a better growing environment and a higher survival rate."
"The spirit medicine farm is entirely reliant on our nuns guiding your slaves to produce, only using the Gyllen Wind gathered by the Blessed Wisteria Tree, without using any divine arts. Using these herbs to consume the Gyllen Wind is also a good thing for the manor. Otherwise, a large amount of Gyllen Wind will gather and cannot dissipate, which will inevitably lead to stones turning into skeletons and trees growing arms and legs."
Su Li nodded slightly. The magic wind in this world is too strong. Ordinary people dare not go into the wild because there are too many of these strange distortions. No one knows whether the stones in any corner have already been distorted into skeletons, or whether the corpses of dead humans have become corpse demons.
As a spirit tree, the Blessed Wisteria Tree attracts a large amount of converging wind, which certainly brings a lot of benefits, but if this Gyllen Wind is not properly handled, the trees in the fantasy garden may really grow tentacles and limbs, or even human faces, devouring the humans who enter it.
In a sense, the green dragon Eliria absorbing Gyllen Wind in the canopy is also a good thing for the territory. She can also be regarded as an auspicious beast.
Herbs are the same. There is a saying that where poisonous snakes appear, there must be an antidote nearby.
Nature will achieve a balance with the Gyllen Wind. Generally, a large number of calming flowers will grow under the tree of life, which is a manifestation of balance.
Under the Blessed Wisteria Tree, the Church of the Dawn has deliberately planted a large number of calming flowers.
Su Li had not paid detailed attention to this aspect before, so he asked, "How many acres of spirit medicine have we planted in our spirit medicine farm, and what is the price of each calming flower?"
"We have planted a total of 15 acres of calming flowers, with a quantity of 3,500 to 4,000 plants per acre. The number of seeds is still the limiting factor for the scale of calming flowers. The price of this calming flower fluctuates depending on the merchants and forces it is sold to. Selling to our territory's hospitals, monasteries, and apothecary workshops, it fluctuates between about 18 and 23 silver coins per plant. Selling to merchant groups and other forces, the price fluctuates between 25 and 30 silver coins."
That is, at least 18 silver coins, and up to 30 silver coins, with a considerable range of fluctuation.
This is also reasonable, after all, this calming flower is rare. It is indeed very rare. If you want to cultivate it in batches, the conditions are still very harsh. It requires a special terrain and landform where the Gyllen Wind converges.
But if you say the price is expensive, it is not really that expensive. Ordinary people, as long as they have the courage to walk into the forest and look carefully, can basically find a plant within two kilometers.
Van der once introduced that this calming flower basically needs to gather the power of life within two kilometers to form a plant. And the wild nature of Tal in the forest is particularly strong and full of vitality, so calming flowers are relatively easy to encounter. Moreover, if you pick it this year, you can find one nearby next year with a high probability.
So, even though Blackwood Territory is extremely short of agricultural population, it still maintains more than a dozen hunter huts, maintaining a scale of nearly 50 hunters. Hunting is secondary for these hunters. Entering the forest to collect berries, raspberries, bird eggs, and precious herbs is the meaning of their existence.
The wild nature of Tal makes everything in the forest grow lushly, and it would be a complete waste not to collect it.
Moreover, those pioneering strongholds in the forest will also regularly send villagers to gather together and return to the town with militiamen and adventurers to sell some precious items they have collected in the forest and around the strongholds.
This leads to the fact that the prices of goods in the town basically fluctuate every day. If Su Li did not look down on these petty profits, he could engage in hoarding, buying low and selling high, and earn a lot of wealth.
A calming flower sent by a farmer or hunter sells for 20 silver coins. If he collects it and sells it for 30 silver coins, he can earn 10 silver coins.
As the lord, he is in contact with gold crowns every day, so that the people around him are almost blurring the purchasing power of currency.
A calming flower costs 20 silver coins! That is equivalent to a month's salary for an armed servant, and two months of labor for farmers and hunters. It can be said that anyone who is lucky enough to encounter a calming flower in the wild or in the forest can bring a large amount of unexpected income to their family, equivalent to winning a generous year-end bonus.
Therefore, it can be known how much wealth the Blessed Wisteria Tree has brought to Blackwood Territory.
The spirit medicine farm is a manor that Su Li began to focus on as soon as he entered Blackwood Territory, and the harvest in this area is very considerable.
Van der reported in detail: "Calming flowers are still spirit medicines after all, and the income is very considerable, reaching more than 800 gold crowns per acre. However, we sell relatively little to the outside world, and most of them are used to make potions. This year, the total income of the spirit medicine farm is 1,780 gold crowns. And it also includes the scale of more than a hundred acres of trauma herbs and swift swallow herbs."
Sure enough, once you come into contact with the transcendent world, this value becomes extremely considerable.
800 gold crowns are equivalent to the income of 800 farmers for a year. 800 farmers are at least equivalent to a large village or even two ordinary villages!
In other words, many kingdom knights within the Empire, even if they are nobles, do not have as much income in a year as an acre of spirit medicine field in Su Li's manor.
That is why, when they participate in wars, they can only bring two or three knights of their family's bloodline, with dozens of temporarily conscripted mud legs, responding to the call of the Baron and Earl.
This is also why the nobles of the Empire know that the wind of magic is very dangerous, but they still can't help but want to manipulate it. Just a little influence when the Gyllen Wind converges can bring thousands of gold crowns.
How can the nobles resist the greed in their hearts?
Su Li naturally can't help it either, especially since his troop size is not large, but the quality is extremely high! He is going to attack the barony next year, and the scale of elite knights even needs to continue to increase. There must be more spirit medicine fields to support him, otherwise he will not even be able to pay the maintenance costs of the troops.
So he can only focus on profits and asked, "We have invested a large number of calming flowers and herbs in potion making. How many potions are left? How much profit has been earned?"
Van der answered in detail: "A large part of the potion production has been consumed in military consumption. Now we have a total of 4 Earthblood potions left, 5 Tears of Mercy potions, 210 Sharla's Hand potions, and 300 purification potions. This year, our total revenue from selling potions is around 980 gold crowns."
Sharla's Hand potion is an entry-level psionic potion that can be produced by churches and hospitals. If divided according to equipment level, it is roughly equivalent to dwarven fine-quality equipment. However, because it can be made purely by hand and the medicinal materials are relatively common, the price is relatively cheap.
Of course, this relative is also from the perspective of the territory's military and national instruments. For civilians, it is still an unaffordable high price. One bottle costs 50 silver coins, and half a year's income is gone. But to pay taxes and maintain the necessary living expenses, an ordinary family cannot save half a year's income at all.
So this potion is really a high-end product. Further up, a bottle of Tears of Mercy potion costs as much as 100 gold crowns, which is something that ordinary civilians cannot touch in their entire lives. Even in the transcendent world, this potion is very rare. A high-level nun or priest can only produce one bottle when the divine grace is strong, bathing in divine grace.
Su Li does not have too much demand for the profits of the potion industry. The priority now is to meet the internal needs of the territory's conquest. As for how many materials they consumed overall last year and how many potions they made, it is not that Van der did not count, but it is not necessary to report.
Su Li does not need to listen to these detailed data. Auditing them is the responsibility of the Blackwood Province Council.
The territory is not the rule of one person. In order to maintain the normal operation of such a large territory and rule, Su Li has set up a complete operating system for Blackwood Territory.
The political structure of Blackwood Territory set up by Su Li is still very clear. The lord is the highest ruler of Blackwood Territory, symbolizing the center of power, and is held by the hereditary nobles of the Purple Flower family, representing the supreme sovereignty and ruling power of Blackwood Territory.
The main functions are to formulate major policies, appoint senior officials, and directly intervene in key affairs when necessary. The lord's authority is the entire political
Below the lord are high-level direct attendants, bishop groups, and knight orders.
High-level direct attendants are currently mainly Su Li's private army, but with the development and growth of the territory and the promotion of his title. In theory, it will also include nobles, military generals, and important administrative officials of affiliated territories in the future. They are responsible for managing Su Li's daily affairs, meeting arrangements, the lord's itinerary, and providing strong support in military, diplomatic, and major decision-making aspects.
Especially in the future, the support and support of these nobles for Su Li's position is of great significance to Su Li.
The bishop group is an important religious and political force in Blackwood Territory. The bishops are not only the leaders of the church, but also Su Li's important advisors.
They are responsible for managing church affairs, presiding over important ceremonies, and providing guidance to the entire territory on a moral and spiritual level.
In addition, they also participate in local power, especially in rural areas, education, charity, and rescue.
The knight order is the core military force of Blackwood Territory, and at the same time a symbol of social status. Knights are not only excellent warriors, but also the ruling class and maintainers of local order.
There is no doubt that the knight order bears the responsibility of defending the territory, carrying out military missions, and participating in local governance. Knights usually have their own manors, farms, and even fiefs.
The Provincial Council is the administrative center of Blackwood Territory, another core institution parallel to Su Li's subordinate institutions, responsible for the daily administrative management and execution of the territory.
At the same time, the Provincial Council has the most departments under its jurisdiction, covering political affairs, finance, civil affairs, justice, urban construction, agricultural development, education and culture, foreign liaison, military logistics, emergency management, knight academy, horse administration system, city guard security, and other aspects.
The biggest feature of the Provincial Council is that it operates relatively independently, but still needs to report to the lord on major decisions and obtain approval.
The Provincial Assembly is the legislative body of Blackwood Territory, mainly responsible for deliberating and passing laws, supervising the work of the Provincial Council, and proposing amendments when its work is improper or offends the interests of a large number of people.
Its members mainly include feudal knights representing the ruling class of the territory, farm owners centered on the halfling autonomous territory, mayors, city representatives, church figures, and leaders of the dwarf community, and so on.
Finally, there's the military command, parallel to all of this, where Marshal Orstein is stationed, responsible for coordinating and commanding the military operations of the Province of Hesse. This includes formulating military strategies, managing the army, coordinating fortifications, and responding to emergencies.
Basically, with this administrative system in place, Su Li only needs to stay in the castle and enjoy himself; specific affairs can be handled by the ministers below.
According to the level of talent, actually, the talent in one county, if properly employed, is enough to found a country.
Su Li can rely on these talents to build at least a County.
He only needs to manage the overall policies, so he said, "I remember you reported before that the production of 'Sharya's Hand' was 35 units per day. Has it recovered now?"
Sharya's Hand is the most important medicinal potion produced by the Church of the Goddess of Healing and Mercy. 35 units a day was the church's peak production capacity, with a large number of church knights and thousands of pounds of herbs supplied. The Empire calendar has 400 days a year, and the output of Healing Hand alone is as high as 7000 gold crowns. Of course, this medicinal potion is different from farming; it has a lot of costs. The cost of one Ning Shen flower is close to 20 silver coins.
But even at the lowest profit calculation, this Sharya's Hand brings the territory a revenue of 3000+ gold crowns per year.
However, the war has led to a large consumption of herbs, and a large reduction in the number of knights and medical staff in the Church of Sharya, and the territory's medicinal potion production capacity has not yet fully recovered.
Vandal said honestly, "The output of the Church of the Goddess of Healing and Mercy has not yet recovered, but our Church of the Goddess of Dawn has also begun to make its own medicinal potions. Currently, the territory can produce 40 ordinary medicinal potions per day, and about 5-8 high-level medicinal potions per month."
"After the spring birth ceremony next year, when the goddess's mercy descends upon the world, our production will further increase. It is estimated that the monthly medicinal potion production will be around 1500 gold crowns."
1500 gold crowns/month is not a small amount.
Su Li did a simple calculation. Next year, the output of these three farming items—spices + elixirs + medicinal potions—will average 3000-3500 gold crowns per month.
The reason for the fluctuation is that the output of elixirs and the cost of medicinal potions overlap to some extent, and a considerable part of the output cannot be converted into income and will be consumed by the territory's nobles, knights, wars, and churches.
But even at 3000 gold crowns, or even 2500 gold crowns per month, that's enough to pay the salaries of 500 elite knights!
Of course, it is still far from meeting the maintenance costs of 500 elite knights, because to maintain an elite knight order, their salaries are only a part of the military expenditure.
War horses, weapons, armor, food, training, and supplies are all huge expenses.
