Merlyn could not believe her eyes. She knew very well what Adam was like. Ever since he was young, Adam did not like to read. He would cry non-stop when he saw books. It was only under his father's coercion that he could recognize all the words, but that was it. There was no way to make him continue reading books.
Although Zhao Hai had been doing well these past few days, he had not mentioned anything about reading. Merlyn only thought that Zhao Hai had become sensible, but he had not changed his habit of not liking to read.
How could she know that when Zhao Hai was on Earth, he was an otaku who lived on books. Asking him to leave books was like asking for his life. He did not read books a few days ago because he had just arrived and was facing such a dangerous situation. He was naturally not in the mood to read.
Zhao Hai did not notice Merlyn. His attention was focused on the book. Although this book was a miscellaneous book, there were many things recorded in it. Most of them were local customs, which were very useful to Zhao Hai.
Adam was just a popinjay in the past and did not know much about the local customs of the continent. Now, the continent was relatively peaceful. There were a total of 32 countries, big and small, led by the five empires. In addition, there were some tribal settlements. It could really be described as vast.
Zhao Hai was in the Aksu Empire, one of the five empires. The other four empires on the continent were the Rosen Empire, the Lyon Empire, the Fudo Empire, and the Bibo Dynasty.
Zhao Hai's current fief, the Black Soil Wilderness, had long been selectively forgotten by everyone on the continent. However, the Carrion Swamp behind the iron mountain range was one of the five forbidden areas on the continent.
The other four forbidden areas on the continent were Mount Akara. That was the territory of magical beasts. Very few foreign races could survive there.
The Arctic Icefield was a world of ice. The temperature was extremely low, and only a few ice-type magical beasts could survive there.
Flame Island was an island on the sea. It was a small island 5,600 nautical miles south from the Bibo Dynasty. However, the volcanoes on the island erupted differently. In addition, there was earth fire. It was an absolute forbidden zone.
The last was the Demon Abyss. It was said that it was connected to the Demon Realm, but it had not been confirmed. However, from time to time, some magical beasts that could not be seen on the continent would appear in the Demon Abyss.
The Carrion Swamp was famous for its poison. Be it the magical beasts or the undead creatures, they were all toxic. It was because of this that the Carrion Swamp became a forbidden area.
Adam's memories were vague, but the records in this book clarified them for Zhao Hai.
When Zhao Hai was on Earth, he was an otaku. If an otaku did not know about transmigration novels, he would not be a complete otaku. After reading this short book, Zhao Hai understood that he had come to a world similar to the ones portrayed in the transmigration novels. There was magic, battle aura, magical beasts, elves, dragons, and dwarves. Everything that existed in transmigration novels was here.
Zhao Hai was even more determined to keep a low profile. He did not know how powerful the top experts of this world were, but seeing Merlyn use water magic to water the ground today, he roughly knew how powerful these people were. That was ten acres of land. It would be too easy for Merlyn to deal with someone like him
Zhao Hai slowly put down the book in his hand. He had developed the habit of reading books over the years. His reading speed was much faster than ordinary people, and many of the things written in this book were not very useful. However, this book made Zhao Hai understand this world better.
The experts in this world were not inferior to those in the novels that Zhao Hai had read in the past. In the past, when Zhao Hai read novels, they said that mages' close combat ability was not good, and warriors did not have long-range attacks, but this world was completely different.
A mage's body was not as strong as a warrior's, but if they did not need to chant long incantations for some simple spells. An advanced mage like Merlyn could use spells below level three almost instantly. No one dared to underestimate such a mage, let alone try to fight them in close combat.
Although warriors knew how to use battle aura, it was not something that could be released easily. It would take some time to condense the battle aura. Most warriors knew how to use bows and arrows. Even if they did not know how to use bows and arrows, they would learn to use long-range weapons like javelins or tomahawks. Their strength could not be underestimated.
Zhao Hai slowly stood up and heaved a sigh of relief. Looking at the things in this book, he felt that his decision to keep a low profile was correct. There were too many experts in this world. Their powers were far beyond his imagination and were not people he could afford to offend.
Zhao Hai slowly walked to the window of the study. There was also window paper on the window. Only some commoners on the continent had window paper. Some of the noble families on the continent used glass, but it was not popularized yet. It was very expensive to make, so Grimm did not buy it.
Zhao Hai gently opened the window and looked outside. This study was on the third floor. The lighting was very good. From here, he could see the square between the inner and outer fort clearly.
He could see many women weaving straw mats in the front yard. However, Zhao Hai did not see Meg. It seemed like she had gone to prepare the materials for the thatched boat.
Zhao Hai looked at the busy people and couldn't help but smile bitterly. These people were really too easy to satisfy. Moreover, they didn't know that they were facing a huge crisis.
At this moment, Zhao Hai really hated himself. He did not have the strength to protect these people. At most, he could only send these people into the Space Farm and let them escape this calamity. However, hiding was not a solution. The Carrion Swamp would always be a hidden danger.
At this moment, there was a knock on the door. Then, Merlyn's voice followed, "Young Master, it's time for lunch." Zhao Hai was stunned. He did not expect time to pass so quickly. He looked out again. Indeed, the women who were weaving the grass were returning to their houses to eat.
Zhao Hai opened the door and saw Merlyn standing at the door happily. He was stunned and said, "Grandma Merlyn, what's the matter?"
Merlyn did not say anything and only said, "It's nothing. I'm just feeling happy. Young Master, let's go down and eat."
Zhao Hai nodded and followed Merlyn downstairs. At this moment, Meg and the others had returned and were waiting for him downstairs. They entered the dining room and realized that Merlyn had already prepared lunch.
After the few of them sat down, Zhao Hai turned to Wood and said, "Wood, I have tasked Meg to try making a thatched boat for the next few days. You have to lead more people to gather more grass, and also assign some men to help Meg and the girls."
Zhao Hai turned to Rock and said, "Rock, help An and the others gather all the stones we need as soon as possible. Pile the stones somewhere. When there is a certain amount, I will help you transport them back. This will save a lot of trouble."
He then turned to An. "An, you have to be careful when you mine the stones. You have to pay attention to your safety."
He turned to Ju and said, "Ju, you should organize everyone to weave the straw mats first. After they learn it, you have to follow Meg and think about how to make a thatched boat. Don't make this thatched boat too big. It is quite good if it can accommodate ten or so people. Don't be afraid of wasting the resources. Anyway, there is a lot of grass on the mountain."
They all nodded in response. Zhao Hai then turned to Merlyn and said, "Grandma Merlyn, do you think we should build a sentry post at the top of the mountain to watch the Carrion Swamp and the surroundings of the castle? If there are really magical beasts or undead creatures coming out of the swamp, we can make preparations in advance."
Merlyn thought for a moment and nodded. "Young Master is right. We should build a sentry post. I'll arrange it after lunch. Young Master, you don't have to worry. You should read more if you have time."
Zhao Hai was stunned by Merlyn's words. He did not expect Merlyn to ask him to read more books. However, he would be spending a lot of time in the study room in the future, so he nodded and said, "Don't worry, Grandma Merlyn, I will read more. However, there are too many things that need to be settled right now. After our lives are more stable, I will spend more time reading."
Merlyn nodded, but Meg and the others looked at Zhao Hai in a daze. They had grown up with Adam, so they naturally knew how Adam was. Now that they heard Zhao Hai say that he wanted to read seriously, they really could not believe it.
After saying that, everyone began to eat. Zhao Hai ate quickly and immediately walked to the study. He really wanted to understand more about this world.
When Merlyn saw that Zhao Hai had gone to the study again, her eyes could not help but light up. Although the strong was respected in this world, a knowledgeable person was very respected as well. Even in the Aksu Empire, many important management positions were held by famous scholars because those emperors realized that a country could not be without scholars.
This was also one of the reasons why Merlyn was happy. Because Zhao Hai had drunk the Void Water, it was impossible for him to learn magic and battle aura. Now that he had the Space Farm, it was equivalent to a life-saving place. If he could not defeat others, he could run into the Space Farm and hide. No one could do anything to him, but this alone was not enough. He still needed the respect of others. Since he could not learn magic and battle aura, the only way he could gain respect was from knowledge.