Among the half-beast races, the most remarkable group—the Merfolk—also left Luo Luo in awe. Strictly speaking, the Merfolk do not belong to the half-beast races; they resemble the legendary creatures known as mermaids from the Earth era. Luo Luo refers to them as such, calling the female Merfolk mermaids because they are indeed very beautiful.
High-tier Merfolk can even transform their tails into legs to walk on land just like humans. However, visually, it is evident that they differ significantly. If a Merfolk and a human stand together, the Merfolk appear as if they have been enhanced with a ten-level beauty filter. They are one of the few races in the divine realm that can rival the Foxkin in terms of appearance, with other beings affectionately referring to them as the "Dual Beauties of the Divine Realm."
The Merfolk are gentle in temperament and have long lived on small islands in water-rich areas, mostly along the coast. Unlike the Fishmen, who are ugly and resemble beasts—essentially, fish standing upright—the two are not the same race. One could say that Merfolk evolved from humans, while Fishmen evolved from fish, with a significant gap between them.
Merfolk are good swimmers, considered experts in aquatic environments. Luo Luo decided to put their talents to use by entrusting the fishing and aquaculture industries to the Merfolk. This decision resulted in approximately a 40% increase in the daily catch of fish resources. Additionally, the aquatic products raised by the Merfolk are plump and abundant.
Previously, the main battle race of Sada, the Behemoth, had been taken predominantly to the battlefield, leaving only about thirty individuals remaining. Most of them were young Behemoths, and several years would be required for them to mature. Additionally, the fertility rate of Behemoths is quite low; a pair may only produce five to six offspring in their lifetime, which is among the lowest rates across most racial groups.
Luo Luo valued them quite highly, as the advantages of Behemoths are still quite prominent. They are tall and possess strength that surpasses most creatures. In Luo Luo's divine realm, these Behemoths are the strongest, with excellent physiques that indicate their endurance, recovery ability, and vitality greatly exceeding that of other races. One can imagine that in future battles, while robots wield rifles, Behemoths could carry cannons and shoulder missiles. How mighty that would be! Moreover, if specialized equipment for Behemoths were developed later on, it would significantly enhance Luo Luo's combat power. After all, living beings are inherently more agile than the current machines.
Of course, the size of the Behemoths can be overwhelming for other races. Luo Luo did not compel them to move to human cities, as regular streets and buildings could not accommodate their size. To address this issue, Luo Luo designated a special area exclusively for the Behemoths and ordered the engineering team to construct houses there, all built according to their stature. This was quite a task for the construction crew, but fortunately, the Behemoths understood that these workers were there to help them and often lent a hand. If not for their enormous strength and superior physiques, lifting such heavy materials would have been daunting, but they could easily carry them to the desired locations, saving much effort for the engineering team. Despite the fact that using machines could achieve the same results, it would indeed be much more labour-intensive. Even before entering the battlefield, the advantages of the Behemoths were already apparent.
Their enormous appetites posed no real problem for Luo Luo, as he understood that Sada had only around 1,800 Behemoths previously due primarily to food shortages. Although he was a Beast God, Sada was not adept at planning the divine realm and failed to have his subjects cultivate crops or raise animals, which led to frequent food-related conflicts among his subjects. The Behemoths' large appetites contributed to the stagnant growth of their population. Now that this problem had been resolved, their fertility rates should improve, and of course, Luo Luo hoped for their numbers to grow.
However, the reality is that not all beings can comprehend the policy of racial integration and coexist in harmony with other races.
Moonlight Tavern
This is an establishment opened by natur3 elf merchants in the capital city, specifically selling elven alcoholic beverages. It is very popular among certain creatures who have been engaged in labour for extended periods and have enough money to afford such expensive items. Although food is abundant in the divine realm, to the extent that beings could eat for hundreds of years without running out, the price of liquor is relatively low. The elven wines, however, are brewed from rare fruits found in the divine realm, thus commanding a high premium and becoming a luxury item. Every glass of wine sold at the Moonlight Tavern is, therefore, extremely expensive. This has led to dissatisfaction among some other races.
The Dwarfs are simple in nature but have fiery tempers, stemming from their long exposure to fire and steel, which has made them prone to anger. They love drinking, and they drink heartily. The Moonlight Tavern is a frequent haunt for nearby Dwarfs, and they often spend most of their monthly wages there. This leads to many Dwarfs meticulously counting their coins while drinking, which can be quite frustrating, but they suppress their dissatisfaction in accordance with Luo Luo's policy of racial integration.
Over time, this issue erupted.
Master Lakto, the Dwarf with the best metallurgy skills, is a regular at the Moonlight Tavern. However, even with his high salary, he cannot afford to consume freely at the tavern. Coming once a month is already quite luxurious, so one can imagine just how expensive the drinks are. Moreover, Lakto has a large family to support; although Dwarfs are small in stature, they are all muscle-bound and have considerable daily consumption. Previously, they struggled to have enough to eat, but after coming to Luo Luo's divine realm, while sustenance is no longer an issue, getting enough to eat means that every meal must include meat. This leads to the situation where, despite Lakto's above-average income, he must budget carefully for each visit to the tavern for his family's livelihood.
"I clearly brought two silver coins; how come I only have one left?" Lakto always brought two silver coins to drink, enabling him to enjoy four cups at a time. This time, upon buying drinks, he found one coin missing and could not locate it anywhere.
His penny-pinching manner displeased the tavern manager, Ash, who was recently hired as the manager. Due to the Moonlight Tavern's good business, the owner decided to expand operations to other cities and sent a former manager—who was also her confidante—to explore new markets, leading to a staff shortage. Ash was newly recruited from the Elf race. The Moonlight Tavern offers excellent benefits, and everyone in the Elf community is aware that working here is a great opportunity. With his gentle demeanour, Ash secured this position and is eager to make a mark. However, in the past month, a beverage called white liquor, produced by humans through distillation, has become popular in many cities. Unlike the fruit-based elven wines, this offers a distinctly different flavour. Although white liquor is also expensive, it is several times cheaper than elven fruit wine, which has caused Ash's performance to plummet just as he took over the Moonlight Tavern.
Lakto is a long-time customer, but he only comes once a month, making this their first encounter. Ash is exhausted from the declining sales, and when he coincidentally meets the frugal Lakto, it ignites his anger. When Lakto complained while buying alcohol about how good elven wine is but too expensive compared to white liquor, Ash completely lost it, cursing Lakto for being a poor miser who only deserves to drink the inferior liquor made by humans, unworthy of the fine wines of the elves.
Lakto also had a fiery temper and immediately yelled at Ash, calling him a scammer. The two began to argue heatedly and even got physical. Most of the other customers in the tavern were regulars at the Moonlight Tavern who recognized Lakto and knew he was of good character. Witnesses to the whole incident felt that Ash's words were excessive; after all, it was just a complaint, yet he faced insults, which anyone would find intolerable. As a result, everyone sided with Lakto, making Ash feel wronged. He began to shout and demand that Lakto be kicked out. But Lakto would not acquiesce; having paid for his drink and not receiving it, on top of being insulted for no reason, he could not tolerate it. As a naturally hot-tempered Dwarf, when pushed by Ash, Lakto shoved him back hard, knocking him down. This ignited the powder keg, and Ash started calling on his kin in the kitchen and lounge to surround Lakto. However, Lakto was not easily intimidated. Most of the people present were Dwarfs, and he quickly summoned them, leading to a brawl in the Moonlight Tavern.
At that moment, Luo Luo had just absorbed new races. The Cat race, Rabbit race, and Fox race had recently sent members to start living in the capital, while a portion of the other half-beasts, particularly the Jackals, had also come to seek their fortunes in the city. These newly arrived half-beasts didn't have much money, so they didn't visit the more expensive Moonlight Tavern for drinks, and thus their dissatisfaction with the Dwarfs was not deeply felt.
However, the other races that had been living in the capital for longer empathized with the Dwarfs' frustrations. Seeing the Dwarfs causing a ruckus in the Moonlight Tavern, and noticing that they seemed to have the upper hand, the other races merely stood by and watched, showing no inclination to intervene.
What began as a verbal spat quickly escalated into a racial conflict. Both sides called their friends to join in, crowding the commercial street where the Moonlight Tavern was located until it was full. Other races clustered around, watching the scene unfold. After all, since it was such a significant event, they did not want to get involved.
The angry groups turned the commercial street into a chaotic scene, and several innocent bystanders were caught in the crossfire. Just then, the mechanical race's patrol received word of the commotion and rushed over to forcibly separate the two parties.
They began questioning both parties about what had just occurred, as such a large conflict required a resolution for all to see.
However, when attempting to ascertain the cause of the entire incident, even the mechanical patrol found it somewhat tricky. Both sides claimed the other had initiated the physical confrontation and insults. The core issue was whether Lakto's complaints could be considered an insult to the Elves, especially since he spoke ill of their wine in their tavern. Determining the matter was quite difficult, as Luo Luo's divine laws did not explicitly cover this situation. Thus, the robots' logic systems could not make a judgment on such a vague condition.
At this moment, many people from various races surrounded the commercial street, eager to see how the situation would be resolved.
Luo Luo happened to be patrolling the divine realm. Upon noticing the crowd gathered on the commercial street, he initially thought an event was taking place, but upon closer inspection, he found a scene of chaos and realized something had gone wrong. After communicating with the mechanical patrol, he learned the cause and course of events.
To him, this presented a significant problem. On the surface, it appeared as a verbal spat between the Elf and Dwarf races that escalated into a conflict, but he recognized it as a misunderstanding stemming from the integration of races; the differing customs of each race could lead to major misinterpretations.
This was not the first conflict in recent years. Many issues had arisen during the integration process. Frequently, misunderstandings over minor events or differing interpretations led to verbal disputes and even escalated into full-blown brawls.
Luo Luo realized that there had been a management failure on his part, and he needed to find a solution. Of course, the first step was to resolve this incident. He called up the parties involved: Lakto from the Dwarf race and Ash from the Elf race.
At that moment, the onlookers suddenly noticed the mechanical patrol kneeling and performing a salute, shouting, "Our God has descended!" Everyone else followed suit, standing respectfully, waiting for Luo Luo to speak.
"I am aware of this matter now. The parties involved, Lakto and Ash, please step forward."
Lakto and Ash recognized that the situation had spiraled out of control. They knew they would be held accountable, but they didn't expect to be face-to-face with their God.
"Reporting to our God, I am Lakto of the Blackrock Dwarfs."
"Reporting to our God, I am Ash of the Nature Elves."
"Then, who would like to explain the cause of this incident?"
"I'll go first." Both wanted to speak first, refusing to yield to one another, but faced with the God, they could only glare at each other.
Luo Luo felt a headache coming on and designated one of them to speak first: "Alright, Lakto, please start."
"Our God, I purchased wine from him, but he insulted me as a poor wretch. A man can be killed but not insulted!" Lakto's face turned red as he spoke.
Seeing Lakto's expression, Luo Luo knew he wasn't lying, so he turned to Ash.
"Our God, he is lying! He said our wine is not as good as white liquor, and he said it right in front of me in the tavern—how can I bear that?"
Hearing Ash's words, Lakto immediately retorted, "What I said is the truth; your wine costs more than white liquor!"
Ash shot back, "Then go drink white liquor! Don't come drink at our tavern! Besides, white liquor is made from grain, while our wine is made from fruit. The cost is fundamentally different—how can you lump the two together?"
"That hits the nail on the head. Why can your Elf wine be brewed from fruit?"
"Because the fruit is grown by us, the Elves. Of course, we can use it to make wine."
In Luo Luo's divine realm, he had arranged for the Elven subraces to cultivate staple vegetables and fruits. The area dedicated to growing vegetables was large, yielding abundant harvests, and they stored well, which Luo Luo considered a vital food reserve. On the other hand, fruits generally did not store well and spoiled quickly. Most fruits grow on trees or in forests, leading to a subconscious association of tree-covered areas as Elven territory.
Thus, all these fruits belonged to the Elves. They managed the cultivation and sales, and all the fruit shops in the cities were run by the Elves, selling forest fruits across the divine realm. However, this raised a problem resembling the monopolies of the Earth era.
Grain and vegetable prices were low and accessible to everyone due to Luo Luo's focus on them in large quantities, but fruit was different. The harvest seasons for fruits were short, and since they were initially grown in limited amounts, all under Elven control, the prices were dictated by the Elves. Generally, fruit shops sold them at retail, and they dared not raise the prices too high.
On one occasion, some Elves felt sorry for the fruits that had been on the shelf too long and looked unappealing, which no one wanted to buy. So, they decided to brew them into fruit wine for sale. At that time, fruit wine was a new product in Luo Luo's divine realm and quickly gained popularity, causing prices to soar and revealing a lucrative business opportunity to the Elves. After discussion among them, they decided to reserve a large quantity of fruit for wine production while maintaining the minimum amount of fruit for external sales. This situation meant that while people could buy fruit, purchasing large quantities for winemaking was impossible, as the Elves controlled all the raw materials for brewing fruit wine. This exemplifies the term "monopoly," often associated with high profits.
The emergence of white liquor clearly shattered this monopoly. White liquor is made from grains, which are abundant in the divine realm. Most grain stores are run by various races independently; although they procure and transport the grains from the Elves, the ample supply and low prices are due to Luo Luo's oversight.
The Elves had considered cutting off the grain supply to the humans brewing white liquor, but after much deliberation, they abandoned that idea because Luo Luo had set grain prices at the beginning, stipulating that they could only decrease and not increase. This resulted in an increasing saturation of the market with white liquor, severely impacting the Elven fruit wines.
Take the Moonlight Tavern, for example. The owner had just opened branches in four cities. In less than three months, the introduction of white liquor had caused a loss of at least half of the Tavern's customer flow. The incident between Ash and Lakto was not an isolated case; during this past month, the conflicts between the Elves and other races, especially the Dwarfs and humans, had escalated the most.
At this moment, Lakto continued, "Previously, you controlled the raw materials for fruit wine, not allowing other races to brew it. That's one thing, but selling it at such a high price? What's the actual cost?" Despite being just a Dwarf, Lakto was a master metallurgist with a vast knowledge base. He often spent entire days at the Chengdu Library to develop stronger alloys and had learned a wide range of knowledge in the process. He could be considered one of the most renowned intellects among the Dwarfs, with clear thinking and broad knowledge.
"Those fruits are cultivated with great effort by us Elves. Are we not entitled to use them?" Ash still did not realize that Lakto was setting a trap for him.
"Using them is certainly allowed. But harming the interests of everyone for your own gain is wrong; that is a blatant monopoly." Luo Luo watched their debate with interest. Lakto had even brought up the concept of monopoly, indicating he had read quite a bit.
Ash was far from grasping the concept. He didn't understand what monopoly meant, but he knew Lakto was not saying nice things. He replied, "This is our contribution as Elves; how dare you deny it?"
"Your contribution as Elves? That's laughable. Which race in the divine realm hasn't contributed? We Dwarfs smelt metals, Goblins manufacture parts, Humans raise livestock, and the Mechanical Race maintains security. Even the newly arrived half-beast races contribute to the divine realm. To use 'contribution' as your argument is ridiculous! Everyone contributes, so why should the Elves monopolize? If that's the case, then we Dwarfs should raise our metal prices too."
"But we need to eat! If we don't sell them at higher prices, how will we afford food?" Ash was at a loss; he was just a minor manager and couldn't match Lakto's verbal sparring.
"Who doesn't eat? All beings need food, and in the divine realm, food is quite cheap. I've never heard of anyone starving. By your logic, if the Elves need to eat, then you should sell your wine at high prices; then Dwarfs should raise the prices of our metal tools too."
Wow! Luo Luo did not expect Lakto to have such sharp reasoning, and his arguments were impeccable. Through this situation, Luo Luo also realized that this was not merely a simple issue of racial integration; it involved the operation of the economy and labor distribution as well.
For example, take the Elves. They supply food to all races in the divine realm, making them feel they contribute the most but not receive the respect they deserve, which makes them feel aggrieved. This was merely a change in psychology; by monopolizing fruits, they aimed to achieve their goals and gain more economic benefits, which is an economic issue.
When considering these two problems, they ultimately still boil down to political issues. Luo Luo understood that the other gods had their followers divided into primary and secondary roles, all managed through a church that worshiped the god himself. This social structure was simple and easy to manage.
Applying that method directly in Luo Luo's divine realm might not be fitting. The two situations had essential differences. Since Luo Luo desired his divine realm to evolve into a technological society, he needed to change the system.
Previously, his divine realm was small with fewer subjects, and robots managed it, which made him believe there wouldn't be any issues. At that time, the various races coexisted peacefully and promoted one another. However, as time passed, relationships faded, and with the expansion of the divine realm and an increase in subjects, more troubles soon followed.
Luo Luo wanted to end the previous hands-off management style and to establish a new management system—though that was a matter for another time.
For now, he needed to resolve the conflict between the Elves and Dwarfs.
After pondering for a while, he issued a divine edict.
"Dwarf Lakto, as the instigator of this incident, you are fined and have your rewards confiscated for three months. Do you accept this punishment?"
"I accept! But what about him?" Lakto dared not oppose Luo Luo but felt it was unfair not to punish Ash as well.
Luo Luo was aware of his emotions: "Let me finish speaking. First, do you accept how you will be treated?"
"I accept."
Luo Luo could see that he was still somewhat unwilling, but that was alright; he had more to say. He then turned to the smug Ash and stated, "The Elves are indeed suspected of monopolistic behavior, so I order you to lift the restrictions on the quantity of fruits that can be purchased, allowing others to reasonably brew fruit wine. Furthermore, I will arrange for robots to impose strict limits on the prices for selling your fruit wine. Do you accept this handling of the situation?"
Ash was dumbfounded. Although it seemed like Lakto was the main culprit and had been punished first, the penalty for the Elves struck directly at their core, causing their monopoly on fruit wine to vanish.
"Ah, My God! What's this monopoly about? Just because he says so doesn't make it true!"
Luo Luo gave him a deep look and said, "Since the Elves have no objections, then it shall be carried out."
Then Luo Luo vanished.
The Mechanical Race received Luo Luo's divine edict and began executing the supervisory tasks as instructed.
Ash stood there in shock, wondering, "What just happened? How did I agree to this?"
At this moment, Lakto had turned the tables and triumphantly said to Ash, "I told you that you were illiterate—spend more time at the library and learn about what monopoly really means."
When the onlookers saw that Luo Luo had made a ruling and the situation had calmed, they began to disperse, leaving Ash alone, confused in the wind.