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Even so, Iron Castle's status as the core of regional trade has not been reduced in the slightest.

The main reason is that, in addition to minerals, there is also a special resource that is not available elsewhere, that is rock salt.

The rock salt is produced in the surrounding area of ​​Iron Fort. It is of high quality and large quantity, and it is very easy to sell in other areas. As early as more than a hundred years ago, many merchants in remote areas made their fortunes by selling salt, creating brilliant legends.

Everyone understands that there are risks in doing business here, but the greater the risk, the greater the profit. Therefore, many families who are well versed in business opportunities regard Iron Fort as their base camp. For example, the Rothschild family once tried to completely monopolize this resource.

After years of evolution, merchant families rely on trade to earn wealth, accumulate wealth, cultivate their own power, and when they become rich, they invest in larger businesses. Some families used money to open the way and win over major violent gangs, and their strength became stronger and stronger. Most of the families naturally became the secret benefactors of the gangs.

In this way, the methods of buying, wooing, and assassinating the enemy have finally become the characteristics of Iron Castle. The relationship between several factions is good and bad, it all depends on the face of the donor.

However, it is still rare for the various gangs to really turn their faces and fight to the death.

After all, everyone is eating in the same pot, and it doesn't look good for anyone to tear their skins. Moreover, businessmen believe in the supremacy of financial resources. As long as they don't do anything out of line, everyone will make money.

Everyone is clear in their hearts, and conflicts of interest are only temporary. If you want to make a lot of money and live a comfortable life, you can't please anyone if you keep fighting among yourself. It's better to unite and rob others.

Dozens of villages and towns are dotted around the iron castle, and powerful families often take their hands to those villages and towns to "buy goods". They bribed the locals with money or "physical exchanges" and grew stronger, so that the iron castle became more and more populous and prosperous.

The gangs under the command of these families are constantly looking for more mines and underground items left over from the pre-civilization to replenish the supply of goods, and their influence is also growing. The surrounding gangs of all sizes prosper, and finally form the current structure of Iron Castle.

In addition, there is also a strange, exciting, and frightening activity in the iron castle, called the curse of witch hunting.

The so-called "witch hunt" is just a symbolic name, and there are actually no wizards to hunt.

There is only one real content of the activity—to capture mutated beasts or mutated humans, the best ones can be caught alive, and it doesn't matter if they are killed.

This activity has a long history, but the source is unknown. According to rumors, it was a local custom left over from the era when mutations were rampant long ago.

At that time, due to the extremely low social moral constraints, unethical incidents often occurred in various family forces in Iron Castle, resulting in the proliferation of illegitimate children in the family.

It is very dishonorable and disrespectful for an illegitimate child to have an improper name. If any family has an illegitimate child, it will be a great shame to the family.

Everyone discriminates against illegitimate children. Looking at illegitimate children, they feel that they are dirty, twisted, and the product of desire. They have no inheritance rights, which will lead to the evil consequences of fighting for power and profit, intensifying family conflicts, and triggering many social conflicts and family vendettas.

The status of illegitimate children is considered evil, and some people even believe that they will bring about mutations, body decay, and all kinds of terrible things, and the status is very low. This is actually very unfair to the child, because the child did nothing wrong, it is all the fault of the parents.

But there is no way, prejudice is also a conventional moral view, and this kind of thing is so unfair.

Iron Castle people can be extremely tolerant to other things, but when it comes to the issue of illegitimate children, they speak with one voice and strongly condemn it.

Because several times, several powerful forces in Iron Castle fought violently over the issue of illegitimate children, **** disasters affected every family in Iron Castle, and in the end there were countless deaths and injuries, which was extremely terrifying.

Lessons learned from the past are unforgettable.

In order to solve the hidden dangers caused by the family chaos, someone had an idea and proposed to let these illegitimate children hunt mutant beasts as a double means of punishment and forgiveness.

So the purpose of hunting was not simple at first.

In the wilderness, the illegitimate children killed by monsters died as soon as they died, indicating that they should not have lived. If there is a reward, there will be a punishment. The illegitimate children who can catch the prey and come back alive show that they are powerful, can be recognized by the family as an orthodox identity, and inherit the family business, so there are not so many people who question it.

Fighting poison with poison can kill two birds with one stone.

This activity can also bring other benefits, such as promoting regional security and freeing ordinary people from fear of mutant beasts or mutants.

The "Witch Hunting Curse" works surprisingly well. Many local families have acquiesced to this rule, and are willing to send their illegitimate children to hunt mutant creatures in the wilderness around the northern mountainous area to gain honor. Therefore, this activity has become the best way for the self-proving power of the family's unethical products.

From the perspective of the illegitimate children, they have already been rejected by the family anyway, unable to inherit the family property, and have no status in society, so it is better to go on a risky witch hunt and try their luck.

If you're lucky, you might be able to justifiably acquire family status and be respected by the world.

If you are unlucky, you can only blame your own fate.

As time passed, not only the illegitimate children were willing to participate in the "Curse of Witch Hunting", but also the other downcasts in the Iron Castle couldn't help but go, hoping to use this honor to wash away their bad luck.

Joyner was shocked by the words of several prisoners.

Unexpectedly, there is another extreme and barbaric way of living in a human settlement hundreds of kilometers away. The chaos and depravity of Iron Castle is different from this place, but its cruelty and barbarism are not inferior to Yinsha Castle.

The fire had been burning for several hours, the crackling sound of the fire was getting smaller and smaller, and the prisoners were a little tired.

"Then why were you guys locked in?" Joyner asked.

The prisoners were silent when they heard her question, as if they didn't want to mention it.

Georgina saw that their faces were covered with a layer of haze, as if their hearts were dead. I thought, maybe everyone said they were tired, so it was fine not to answer.

"What else?...Because we can't pay the ransom!"

ransom?

Little Dirty Braid was straightforward, with fire in his pupils, and he responded first, "We were small businessmen who knew each other. After we came to Yinsha Castle, some people crowned us in order to monopolize the golden route to get rich. He was charged with unwarranted crimes and secretly betrayed to the local Xuanming Gang, so he was locked up here."

His words aroused high approval from others.

"Yeah, this kind of dirty method is very common in Iron Castle. After all, we are competitors with the merchants here, but the ransom they want is too high!" Another thin man echoed.

"Actually, they can't afford to kill us, because they only want money!"

"But they're asking too much~lightnovelpub.net~ It's outrageous! No one will redeem us."

"I guess the people who sent the letter had forgotten about us. Anyway, they can't afford the money, so we can only do coolies in this law prison, eating and dying."

Once everyone opened the chatter box, they couldn't hold each other anymore. They started to talk about it, and everyone's face was filled with extreme despair and loneliness.

This is the reason why their hearts are ashamed!

Joyner thought that the prisoners who could be arrested by the Xuanming gang were either their deadly enemies or those who committed serious crimes, but she never expected that these people were just ordinary businessmen.

For the ransom, these thugs in Yinshacastle will not even let the merchants go, how shameless!

These people have never committed a crime, but they are forced to become cattle and horses, and they are imprisoned here for life. It is indeed too sad.

"Why is a beautiful woman like you locked in?"

The old man with a haggard face curled his lips, and the iron chain on his arm kept dangling.