Published: March 12, 2025
Chapter 567: Dwarf Iron Mountain
The ship sailed along the Iron Horse River, and around it, one could occasionally see three-masted or five-masted cargo ships. The deep draft of these vessels indicated that they were carrying heavy cargo.
They were not far from the docks at Dwarf Iron Mountain, and it was believed that these ships were engaged in trade with the dwarf clan, mostly transporting iron goods.
When people mention the iron goods of the dwarf clan, the first thing that comes to mind is weapons. In fact, the dwarf clan produces many types of iron goods; in almost all aspects of daily life, they have manufactured iron products.
Moreover, the dwarf clan doesn't only make iron items; they work with all types of metals, including gold and silver. These precious metals are quite famous across the continent, but their iron goods are the most renowned.
The weapons produced by the dwarf clan are simple and unadorned, while their gold and silver items are extraordinarily ornate, to the point where they could be considered works of art. Even the spirit clan, known for producing artistic works, cannot compare to the dwarf clan in this regard. It seems that they have an innate intuition for metals, a terrifying instinct.
Of course, the dwarf clan has also realized that even though Iron Mountain is vast, it can eventually be mined out. Therefore, they have started to adopt a recycling approach. If one wants to trade iron goods with them, sometimes they have to offer some scrap metal in exchange.
This means that both the ships heading to Dwarf Iron Mountain and those coming from there likely carry metal.
Mr. Zhao Hai was aware of this custom of the dwarf clan, but they didn't strictly require one to bring metal for trading. There are now some merchants specialized in metal recycling business with the dwarf clan, indicating that the development here is considerably better than that of the orc tribe.
The Peach Blossom slowly docked at the dwarf clan’s port. This port was quite large, and there were many ships, but upon inspection, almost all the vessels were from the nobles of the Pagoda Empire; there were no ships from other nations.
Zhao Hai was curiously observing a group of people at the dock. They seemed to be the dock managers. The individuals were not tall, the tallest among them barely reaching about 1.5 meters, while the shortest was around 1.3 meters. However, they were very sturdy, dressed in heavy armor, and each had a large hammer strapped to their backs.
This hammer was not the type used for combat, as Zhao Hai had seen in ancient Chinese weaponry; it looked more like a tool for blacksmithing but was much larger and weighed several dozen pounds.
The heavy armor these dwarves wore, combined with the hammer, meant that each of them was carrying at least 100 pounds, but their nonchalant demeanor revealed their immense strength.
It was Zhao Hai's first time seeing dwarves. They had brown hair, large beards, and ruddy faces, almost as if they had been drinking.
Once the ship was docked, Zhao Hai and Juno stepped off. Immediately, two dwarves came over to them, and upon reaching Zhao Hai and Juno, they bowed slightly and said, "Are you two here for business?"
Zhao Hai smiled slightly and replied, "Indeed. I am Zhao Hai from the Budah family, and I am here specifically to do business with my dwarf friends. This is my first visit, and the person beside me is the family head of the Hurricane Family."
Upon hearing Zhao Hai mention that Juno was the family head of the Hurricane Family, the dwarf's expression changed immediately, and he respectfully bowed to Juno, saying, "So it is the family head Juno who has arrived. My apologies, please!"
It seemed they hadn’t paid attention to Zhao Hai's self-introduction and completely overlooked him. Zhao Hai was taken aback and then bitterly smiled.
The Budah family was also a well-known large family on the continent, but the dwarves treated him this way, which could mean one of two things: either these dwarves had never heard of Zhao Hai's name, or they simply disliked him.