Otherworld Advance Team
Chapter 1458 - 1451: The Country of Holding Achievements

Chapter 1458: Chapter 1451: The Country of Holding Achievements

As night fell, bonfires were lit in the fishing village, and the fishermen of the Ghost Race all gathered together, singing and dancing jubilantly. However, outsiders might feel a bit uncomfortable with the scene.

Because, as mentioned before, the Ghost Race cares more about masks than clothing, so many were bare-chested, including both men and women.

It was exactly as Zisu had said; although it was a welcome bonfire dance party, the Ghost Race seemed not to care much about their presence, merrily singing and dancing around the bonfire, which made Cheng Ziang and his group smile wryly.

Over a hundred people gathered in the open space of the village, mostly young people, with most elders resting at home, and some watching from afar on their own platforms.

The Ghost Race fishermen were constantly spinning and dancing around the bonfire, which was a dance somewhat similar to the Nuo dance, with a strong flavor of shamanistic rituals. Cheng Ziang noticed that the masks worn by the dancing Ghost Race people were somewhat different from usual, with the masks being overall longer, especially with the chin extending to the chest.

Not only that, but the design of these masks was also more bizarre, not the fierce and ferocious kind seen on monster masks, but rather an indescribably eerie feeling.

It is said that the Ghost Race people change masks according to their moods, so different masks represent different emotions. As previously mentioned, they do not wear just one mask for life, but frequently change their masks. Especially in wealthy families, it is common to change masks every three or four days, as casually as changing clothes.

Indeed, just as Zisu had mentioned, if you think of the Ghost Race’s masks as clothing, you can understand their seemingly bizarre obsession.

Because ordinary people also change many clothes throughout their lives, and different clothes are used for different occasions: formal attire for solemn events, battle attire for combat situations, and casual clothes for everyday wear. Understanding ordinary clothing as the masks of the Ghost Race, one would no longer be puzzled by their practices.

At the bonfire evening party without guests, the Ghost Race people wore masks and sang loudly, their enthusiasm as intense as the blazing bonfire in the center of the area.

From afar, Cheng Ziang gazed at the bonfire. Although he did not join in, he could distinctly feel the joyful mood of the Ghost Race participants.

Baiyue was standing right beside him, using the moonlight and firelight to record what she observed. Her notes included both sketches and extensive text, resembling an illustrated book.

Feng held up a fish oil lamp to illuminate for her, but her gaze shifted elsewhere. Noticing her action, Cheng Ziang followed her gaze and saw several Ghost Race individuals with crossbows, hidden in the dark, vigilantly watching the surroundings.

"It’s quite rare, isn’t it? Even a fishing village has its guards," Cheng Ziang couldn’t help but express his surprise upon seeing these Ghost Race guards.

Although these Ghost Race guards were hidden in the shadows, the ample nocturnal light allowed Cheng Ziang to clearly see them, even making out their features distinctly.

The attire of the Ghost Race guards was completely different from that of ordinary Ghost Race people and fishermen. Their leggings were wrapped with a layer of woven rattan armor, covering their bodies mainly around the chest and abdomen for protection.

Their clothes were still traditional Ghost Race attire but relatively tighter, with the wrists also tightened and covered by rattan armor.

They wore masks of the Yaksha, and seeing these masks, Cheng Ziang realized why the high shaman had a surprised look when he and Feng had picked up the Yaksha masks earlier; now it appeared that Yaksha masks were soldier’s masks.

This set of rattan armor was not heavy and fitted well. Cheng Ziang noticed that the Ghost Race guards wearing rattan armor moved quite nimbly, showing no signs of the burdens usually associated with wearing armor.

These Ghost Race guards wield very distinctive weapons; unlike what Cheng Ziang had imagined, their primary weapon is actually a crossbow, whereas their secondary weapon is actually knives and swords of shorter length.

Cheng Ziang noticed that these Ghost Race guards were all holding a crossbow, patrolling back and forth vigilantly. Hanging on their waists was a slender sword about one meter long, but its width appeared to be less than three centimeters by estimation.

Of course, not all guards were equipped with crossbows; some held long spears as well. Due to their short stature, the spears of the Ghost Race were not as exaggerated as those of the East Continent army, generally around two meters. There were also some Ghost Race guards carrying short bows, which is a very primitive type of bow, its only advantage being its lighter draw weight, suitable for rapid shooting.

It is said that crossbows are very common on Aximiya Island because the inhabitants, due to their short stature, cannot use longbows with higher draw weights. Hence, this powerful potential energy weapon became their best choice.

The origin of bows and crossbows on Aximiya Island can be traced back to the period of the Kyushu Empire’s invasion, during which the Kyushu Empire commonly equipped their forces with bows and crossbows. After their defeat, these weapons were captured and modified by the Ghost Race, becoming the standard weapon of the Ghost Race army today.

Actually, Cheng Ziang and his peers have always held a misconception that the military equipment of the Kyushu Empire was rather primitive; however, this isn’t the case.

The military technology of Dongsheng’s army is undoubtedly behind compared to the Demon Clan’s army. However, in comparison to other countries, they are still very much ahead, even showing an overwhelming technological advantage over some nations.

Back when the Kyushu Empire invaded Aximiya, the gap in military technology between the Kyushu army and the Ghost Race army was even more severe than the current gap between the Demon Clan’s army and the Dongsheng’s army. The Ghost Race was almost entirely in a primitive state, completely outmatched by the feudal military of the Kyushu Empire.

If it were not for the harsh natural environment of Aximiya Island, which caused heavy losses to the Kyushu Empire, it is likely that Aximiya Island would have been incorporated into Kyushu’s sphere of influence by now.

However, the military technology of today’s Dongsheng army has reached its peak; there’s no chance for further advancement unless through military reform, transitioning from a cold weapons army to an era of firearms.

Although the military technology of the Demon Clan’s army is superior to that of Dongsheng’s army, unfortunately, it cannot be imparted to the Ghost Race. Because Aximiya Island is located in a subtropical region with a very humid climate, traditional muskets have many limitations there, which is why the Ghost Race is not very fond of this new weapon type.

Moreover, the most critical point is that since the last war, the Kyushu Empire has never dared to make moves against Aximiya Island again. This has led the Ghost Race to develop a complacent mentality, believing that the Kyushu Empire will no longer consider invading Aximiya Island, and therefore they have also relaxed their efforts to upgrade their military technology.

Of course, the so-called relaxation refers to new technologies. In fact, since the last invasion by the Kyushu Empire, the Ghost Race has always been committed to improving existing military technology, pushing the leftover military equipment from the Kyushu Empire to its limits.

After a day of visiting, Baiyue also noticed that iron does not seem to be abundant on Aximiya Island. Therefore, as she walked through the village, she rarely saw ironware; even the pots used for cooking were mostly ceramic. Meanwhile, across the strait in West Outer Heaven, the Demon Clan had long been using iron pots.

This is precisely why the ships sailing from the Continent to Aximiya Island primarily carry iron products. However, due to clear regulations from the Dongsheng Empire prohibiting the export of iron products to Aximiya Island, aristocrats and merchants took a different approach by directly selling iron ore and coke to the Ghost Race, allowing them to smelt iron themselves.

This cunning maneuver was something the Imperial Court of the Dongsheng Empire had not anticipated, thus it became a legal loophole that has yet to be rectified.

And the most critical issue is that this law only applies within the jurisdiction of the Dongsheng Empire. In other words, if merchants were to import goods from Fengyu or West Outer Heaven and sell them to Aximiya Island, the Imperial Court would have no way of tracking or prohibiting these transactions.

In fact, even with a Civil Official administration, it is extremely difficult for the Dongsheng Court to amend laws because doing so would directly touch on the interests of the Nobility, thus provoking their strong opposition. The previously mentioned retraction of the salt franchise rights can be considered the biggest victory of the Civil Official Court, but despite that, they were unable to reclaim the monopoly rights for sea salt.

The so-called monopoly of salt and iron was only halfway completed by the Dongsheng Court; obstinate conservative forces always find gaps in policies to gain benefits, leaving the Court powerless and without effective measures.

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