Chapter 1106 Delegating Tasks
"Limitless drinking water and sea monster meat…"
Whether it was Chief Sur-Khan, Chief Valencia, Chief Ironshield, Chief Blackbear, or Chief Silvertooth, everyone present had goosebumps after hearing those words.
If anyone else had spoken those words, Battle King One-Eye and the others would have taken it as the ravings of a lunatic out of touch with reality.
After all, the sheer manpower required to dig such a large and long river from the Boundless Sea in the far west to the Infertile Plains was astronomical.
It would take countless years of digging, not to mention the various tribes wouldn't agree to work together in the first place.
They would have regarded such an idea as a waste of time and effort.
After all, between the western Boundless Sea and the Infertile Plains was the Western Jungle, home to the Golden Suanni Clan and countless other beasts.
They would become food to the powerful beasts of the Western Jungle before they could dig their river.
However, things were different when Hegemon Leonhardt was the one to speak those words. He was someone who could control the wind and rain, transforming the land with just a thought.
Furthermore, he commanded the allegiance of the entire Golden Suanni Clan. The Western Jungle was their beast kingdom.
"With your leadership and ability, creating such an artificial river definitely won't be impossible," Chief Sur-Khan acknowledged before saying, "Just thinking about it gets me excited."
"Same here," the other chiefs chimed in one by one with approving looks.
As expected, they did not swear their allegiance to the wrong person. Hegemon Leonhardt was an extraordinary and visionary leader who could lead them to greatness.
Meanwhile, Leon silently observed the chiefs.
Perhaps thanks to his charisma, the chiefs' hidden ambitions were waning, making them more honest and willing to work together.
'This is a positive sign of progress,' Leon thought.
The warriors of the Infertile Plains had great potential, but their competition and rivalry limited their achievements.
Divided, they fall. United, they prosper.
Although the Crawford Empire was more than capable of supplying water and food to the entire Infertile Plains in their time of need, it was too costly and inefficient.
Only by making the Infertile Plains self-sufficient would both sides benefit from their trades equally in the future.
'If I give a man a fish, he'll only be fed for a day. But, if I teach him how to fish, I will feed him for a lifetime, huh?' Leon casually thought with a smile.
"When do we start, my Lord?" Chief Ironshield suddenly asked, evidently excited and filled with anticipation.
"The river plan will wait. The new city comes first," Leon decisively stated before continuing, "Once the foundations are laid down, and we have water and food secured, only then can we consider commencing the river plan."
"Understood, my Lord," Chief Ironshield acknowledged Leon's decision.
The river plan might provide limitless water and sea monster meat for years to come, but if they couldn't resolve the immediate water shortage, they wouldn't even last another two weeks.
Nevertheless, Chief Ironshield thought of another matter that might be a minor issue.
"How do you plan to deal with the Battle God Palace and the remaining tribes, my Lord?" Chief Ironshield asked.
"Considering the Battle God Palace is situated not far from here, they will think were are openly provoking and challenging their authority by building a big city here. I'm afraid they wouldn't just leave us be."
"Naturally, with our numbers and strength, we no longer fear the Battle God Palace. But even if they can't beat us, they can still harass us and delay the city's construction," Chief Ironshield mentioned.
"We don't need to worry about the Battle God Palace harassing us." Leon casually shook his head and said, "We're not building just any big city but a self-sufficient megacity that can accommodate and support the entire Infertile Plains population."
"Once we spread the news, forget about harassing us; the Battle God Palace might even hope we complete the megacity sooner so they can try and take it for themselves. They can afford to wait if their secret water reserve is as large as I think it is."
"However, the same can't be said for the remaining unaffiliated tribes. The Battle God Palace would most likely try to buy their allegiance with the enticement of water or some other means so they can have a fighting chance against us," Leon speculated.
"We can't let that happen, my Lord," Chief Silvertooth voiced his opinion.
"Given the Battle God's long years as the de facto ruler of the Infertile Plains, the Battle God Palace will not quietly surrender their authority to us. If we give them a chance to consolidate their power, there will be more bloodshed."
"I suggest we send people to the remaining unaffiliated tribes to persuade their peaceful submission, my Lord," Chief Silvertooth suggested shortly after.
"I also had the same thought," Leon acknowledged with a nod and said, "Now that the Celestial Water Spark's power is depleted, many tribes must be anxiously looking for solutions or preparing to leave the Infertile Plains."
"This makes it easier for us to acquire their allegiance. Un, I'll leave this task to you," Leon delegated the job of sending people to persuade the unaffiliated tribes to Chief Silvertooth.
"Gladly with honor, my Lord!" Chief Silvertooth patted his chest proudly with excitement after being given such an important task.
However, he soon discovered it wasn't all that important to Leon.
"You only need to deliver the message to the unaffiliated tribes. There's no need to put too much effort into persuading them; it will only make us look weak," Leon instructed before reminding him, "Remember, we aren't the ones in a desperate situation; they are."
"Furthermore, loyalty can't be bought with desperation. If they are willing to submit, that's great. If not, then so be it. In the end, they will still surrender to us. However, their standing will be lower."
"You should forget about the Holy Sunfire Tribe and just focus on the tribes in the northern and eastern regions," Leon instructed.
"Understood, my Lord," Chief Silvertooth obeyed, seemingly calmed down.
If not for Hegemon Leonhardt's reminder, he would have done everything he could to persuade the remaining tribes to complete his task perfectly and increase his standing.