The following morning, the goblins working by the sweat of their brows on the Fields of Spirit Cultivation were illuminated by a sight that would have stunned any strategist in this world.
Lilith stood with her arms crossed, while beside her, Graaz was bending over backward to please his mistress.
"Your greatness knows no bounds, O Darkest One! Your hand turns sand into gold, and Your wisdom surpasses..." Graaz perorated incessantly, but Lilith accepted these flatteries without blinking, barely hearing them.
Her gaze was fixed on a GIGANTIC mountain of potatoes that towered before her like a mythical peak.
"Mistress," Graaz began, seeing a shadow of a smile on her face. "As ordered, all seven thousand seeds grew at a lightning pace. For the past few days, my workers have not slept to harvest every single tuberous treasure."
Lilith laughed out loud, the sound echoing across the fields. Seven thousand seeds, each yielding a bountiful harvest thanks to the magical soil and specialized seeds, meant approximately 700,000 kilograms of food.
A quick mental calculation: even with falling prices, as several new "farmers" had entered the market, selling batches of 100 kg for 10 gold would bring her a fortune. Without hesitation, she opened the trade panel and listed the first installment: 2,000 offers of 100 kg each (10 gold each).
The effect was instantaneous. Although other Demon Kings tried to produce food, most were limited by a lack of proper labor or barren land. Monster armies were growing faster than crops, making food still the most sought-after commodity on the exchange.
As soon as Lilith's offers appeared in the system, the global chat literally exploded.
"Hey, everyone, look! The Potato King is online again!"
"This is madness! 2,000 offers of Giga-Potatoes at once! Where does he get it from?!"
"Lilith is amazing! Has anyone finally figured out what race that is?"
"The Potato King has always been mysterious. Has a hidden prefix and only speaks when he needs some buildings. Probably sitting on sacks of gold laughing at us."
"I bet it's some plant-type Demon King! Maybe some ancient Dryad or Treant with huge farming bonuses? Only a plant being could produce this much!"
"Oh boy! It must be a giant walking potato! A plant monster!"
Lilith read these comments with a sour smile. A bunch of "unprofessional slackers" in the chat had long ago pigeonholed her as a peaceful plant being who only knew how to plant and harvest. Among the Demon Kings, one consensus reigned: this food tycoon certainly did not belong to a combat-strong race.
Fools. They had no idea of the existence of a Succubus who, with a single wave of her aura, could bring entire tribes to their knees.
However, Lilith knew one thing - money attracted trouble. Demon Kings weren't just enemies of the Heroes; they fought among themselves for dominance. The "Potato King's" gargantuan profits had certainly attracted the greedy eyes of predators who preferred stealing to planting.
Lilith observed the incoming sales notifications, fully aware that her sudden wealth was an eyesore for other players. The chat was buzzing with attempts to extract any information about the "Potato King." Many analyzed her behavior too closely, perceiving weakness or fear in her hidden race.
The truth was simpler.
Lilith didn't lack confidence - she simply lived by the principle that the less they know about you, the harder you are to kill.
While she felt respect for the powerful, indigenous forces of this world, other Demon Kings held no fear for her. Anyone who coveted her treasures and tried to invade the Valley of Eternal Darkness would end up as fertilizer for the next crop.
She quickly opened her contact list and sent a message to her favorite supplier.
Lilith: "Sweetie, I need another 10,000 seeds. Do you have that many in stock?"
Izera, who was apparently just waiting for a signal from her best client, replied almost immediately, sending a flurry of sweet emojis.
Forest Fairy Izera: "Of course I do! Shall we proceed straight to the trade?"
Lilith raised her eyebrows, smiling to herself.
Lilith: "Ooo, I don't have to wait for your fairies to gather enough this time?" she wrote with interest.
Forest Fairy Izera: "Thanks to our last transaction, I was able to take in many more forest fairies into the village! Now my seed production has accelerated severalfold. You are my favorite investor!"
Lilith laughed, sending the agreed 2,000 gold.
Lilith: "In that case, let's not waste time. Awaiting delivery!"
Hardly had the trade been finalized when the now-familiar golden pipe materialized over the center of the Fields of Spirit Cultivation, directly above the heads of the resting goblins. With a loud whistle, like the roar of a war horn, an uninterrupted torrent of brown seeds began to pour from it.
Graaz, seeing this once again, immediately fell to his knees, kicking up a cloud of dust.
"A MIRACLE! ANOTHER MIRACLE FROM OUR LADY!" he roared at the top of his lungs, his empty eye sockets burning with fanatical light.
All the goblins, who just a second ago were lazily chewing on food scraps, threw themselves face-down into the mud as if on command. They began to wail, mutter prayers, and reach their dirty paws toward the rain of seeds falling from the sky as if it were manna sent by a deity.
Lilith stood aside, watching the scene with complete disbelief. "What the hell...?" she muttered under her breath.
She observed her subjects, who in a few days had transformed from a band of lazy greenskins into an army of religious fanatics, seeing divine intervention in every move she made. The scale of their adoration was starting to be nearly as terrifying as her own stats.
"Graaz, get up and drive them to work instead of bowing!" she ordered, though she knew that at this level of fanaticism, her workers would now work themselves to exhaustion just to please their "Potato Goddess."
Lilith gave Graaz final instructions regarding the new werewolf village. She told him that Varg would arrive today to pick up "Giga Potato" supplies for his tribe.
As soon as she turned to head toward the canyon and check the progress of the work on the new obelisks, her system panel flared with a new message.
Succubus Queen Serena: "Hey, Potato. Are you there?"
Lilith felt her brow twitch dangerously.
"Potato? Really?" she thought with irritation. She was the Primordial Succubus Monarch, ruler of the Valley of Eternal Darkness, not some tuber from a garden. She had no idea at what point that ignoble nickname "Potato King" had stuck to her for good, but it had become nearly her official trade label.
Despite the irritation, Lilith remembered Serena perfectly. This particular Succubus Queen was a regular client. Previously, they had exchanged a valuable building blueprint for a gigantic amount of food, and Serena regularly bought additional supplies.
Looking at the quantities she ordered, Lilith could draw only one conclusion: Serena's army must be huge and awe-inspiring. This wasn't a minor player; this was a powerful Demon King.
Lilith: "Yes! I'm listening."
Succubus Queen Serena: "I have a new project here. Are you interested?"