Building a Perfect Territory in the Mist

Chapter 37: Chapter 34: The Match, The Third Great General

The three of them looked at the scene in the battle arena, finding it all very novel.

This was the first time they had seen other players summon their Soldier Types in real life.

However, it seemed to be all new players on the stage, and the battles were just rookies pecking at each other.

An Ordinary Three-Star goblin fought an Ordinary Two-Star Walking Dead. It was an even match, trading a claw for a punch.

Elsewhere, a Two-Star goblin Assassin was fighting a Three-Star Stone Giant. The goblin’s dagger repeatedly struck the enemy’s body, ringing out with the sound of metal on stone but only managing to scrape off a few stone chips.

"The third floor is the novice battle arena. Everyone here is a newcomer below Tier Two."

Zhou Zheng turned and explained, "If you want to challenge stronger opponents in the future, you can go to the intermediate zone on the seventh floor and the advanced zone on the eighth. You even get contribution points if you win."

Shen Xing nodded slightly, mentally filing away the information, and asked, "Zhou, who are our opponents this time?"

"It hasn’t been decided yet. I’ll go arrange it now," Zhou Zheng replied, adding, "By the way, be careful during this match."

"The three of you have all raised Elite Level Soldier Types, which makes you the best among your peers, but your opponents shouldn’t be underestimated."

"After all, any player qualified to compete for a spot in the Foggy Void Realm is no weakling."

"So you must go all out, lest you get careless and fail."

The expressions on Qin Lang and Xu Jiayi’s faces turned serious.

A thoughtful expression also appeared on Shen Xing’s face.

’Go all out?’

’If I put my two Three-Star generals, Hellish Roar and Blood Roar, on the field, I should be able to win, right?’

A few minutes later, Zhou Zheng returned from the registration desk, handing them a file.

"It’s all arranged. Your match starts in about two and a half hours. This is your opponents’ file."

Qin Lang took it and immediately passed it to Shen Xing. The three of them huddled together to examine it.

Just as Zhou Zheng had said, those qualified to compete for a spot in the Foggy Void Realm were all elites among the newcomers.

Their three opponents all possessed Elite One-Star Soldier Types, according to intelligence that was about four days old.

’However... if that’s all the strength my opponents have, it seems I won’t need to deploy my two top generals after all.’

"Zhou, can we use this time to log into the game and prepare a little more?" Shen Xing suddenly asked.

"We need to do some more prep, too."

Qin Lang and Xu Jiayi raised their hands at the same time.

"Of course," Zhou Zheng nodded. "Your opponents this time are formidable, so it’s right to make more preparations before the match."

"The battle arena has dedicated lounges. Follow me."

With that, Zhou Zheng led them across the battle arena and into a private room.

Not only was there a sofa inside, but the coffee table was also laid out with plenty of snacks.

Qin Lang set down his shoulder bag and took out three pairs of black glasses from inside it.

They had brought them from home that morning, just in case they encountered a special situation and needed to log into the game.

Of course, it didn’t really matter if they wore the glasses or not.

According to the forums, it didn’t matter whether it was glasses, a phone, or a computer; they were all just mediums for entering the game.

The most important thing was actually the Fog Flower on each player’s wrist. That was the core that truly connected them to the game.

As players grew stronger and became Extraordinary or even Expert-level Lords, they would no longer need to rely on those external items.

They could enter the game at any time by directly connecting their consciousness to the Fog Flower.

As he put on the glasses, the scene before his eyes flashed.

A roaring Campfire, rows of black wooden huts, and the thick, churning Fog that surrounded them...

[Level 1 Arrow Tower, construction complete...]

[Level 1 Arrow Tower...]

A series of system notifications scrolled past his eyes.

Shen Xing looked around and found that his territory had changed considerably once again.

Eight Arrow Towers stood in pairs at the north, south, east, and west points of the village, the arrow slits at their tops glowing menacingly.

A small path paved with flagstones stretched from the Campfire to the village entrance.

The original piles of building materials had vanished, all of it having been chopped into Wood by the Beastmen and stacked neatly.

At this moment, loud snores echoed from within the small wooden huts.

The Beastmen had worked overtime all through the night and were completely exhausted; most of them had gone to sleep.

Only Dahou and a few other Beastmen were left patrolling the village.

Shen Xing didn’t wake them. There were no monster attacks at the moment, and he wasn’t planning to explore the Fog anyway, so he let the Beastmen rest up and recover their strength.

"Dahou, come here."

He beckoned to a distant Beastman with exceptionally thick arms.

As the third Elite Level creature in the territory, Dahou’s combat power was top-notch, even though he was only a One-Star.

After all, he had undergone Sacrificial Evolution once, and his Agility Attribute was 10 points higher than others of the same tier!

In a fight against others of the same tier, he’d have no problem handling a 1v2.

And now, Shen Xing was about to grant him a second Sacrificial Evolution!

Of course, Hellish Roar and Blood Roar were both stronger than Dahou.

As Elite Three-Star Beastmen who had also awakened a Talent Ability, their combat power was leagues ahead of other Three-Star Soldier Types!

Based on the opponents’ file, this battle would be a sure win unless they could somehow produce a Level 9 Boss-level Soldier Type.

But that was impossible.

According to Zhou Zheng, there weren’t many Tier One Lords in all of Jiang City who could raise a Boss-level Soldier Type.

Experts of that caliber wouldn’t need to compete with them for a spot; they would be pre-selected.

Of course, Shen Xing didn’t plan on sending out Hellish Roar and Blood Roar, as that would attract too much attention.

After all, he had been playing the game for less than a week. He wasn’t some pay-to-win whale or a Second Generation Lord.

Raising a Three-Star Soldier Type this quickly was bound to attract attention.

"Boss!" Dahou strode over with steady steps, his beast-like eyes glinting with loyalty.

Shen Xing nodded and, without wasting any words, directly activated his Talent Ability.

VMMMM!

A red light descended upon the Beastman.

Within the light, Dahou’s body began to change rapidly. A series of CRACKLES and POPS echoed from his muscles as if they were being completely reorganized.

His already powerful arms, in particular, swelled by another layer!

They looked like two giant tree stumps attached to his sides, completely out of proportion with his frame.

Most amazingly, the weapon in his hand changed as well.

A jet-black Iron Axe appeared in his previously empty left hand, instantly switching him to a dual-wielding stance.

[Advancement successful! ’Dahou’s’ Potential has increased to Elite★★!]

[Attributes gained from this evolution: Power +13, Spirit +5, Agility +18 (bonus +10), Constitution +7]

[Awakened Skill: Dual Axe Mastery (Passive)]

...

’Huh? Dual Axe Mastery, another new advancement path?’

Shen Xing was starting to realize that the evolution paths of the Soldier Types in his territory were wonderfully bizarre.

Unlike in other territories, where most Soldier Types had fixed advancement paths.

He knew it was because of Sacrificial Evolution; the additional attribute bonuses altered their evolutionary paths.

Of course, this change was for the better.

After all, special advancement paths like this were usually stronger than the ordinary ones.

He glanced at Dahou’s newly activated Skill.

[Dual Axe Mastery (Passive): When fighting with dual axes, Attack Speed +25%, Power +15%.]

...

’Very strong.’

Dahou’s arm strength was already incredible, and his slashes were both fast and fierce.

Now, with an extra War Axe and this awakened Passive ability, his strengths were pushed to their absolute limit.

’Now, in addition to Hellish Roar and Blood Roar, I have another great general!’

Next, Shen Xing crafted some animal traps in his territory and then absorbed a few Soul Stones.

However, since he had already reached Level 5, advancing to Level 6 required absorbing 10 Soul Stones and would take seven to eight hours.

There definitely wasn’t enough time for that now.

He took off the glasses, logged out of the game, and his vision returned to the lounge.

Qin Lang and Xu Jiayi were still wearing their glasses and lying on the sofa, clearly still preparing inside the game.

「Meanwhile, in a corner of the lounge.」

Zhou Zheng, wearing a gray trench coat, stood with another middle-aged man, watching Shen Xing and his friends from a distance.

"Are these the three newcomers you encountered last time?" the middle-aged man asked in a low voice.

"Yes, Director Liu."

Zhou Zheng lit a cigarette for him and put one in his own mouth. "These three kids have good potential. The first time they encountered a Fog incident, they were in a panic. The second time, they were already able to fight the monsters head-on."

"Let’s see how they perform in a real battle first," the middle-aged man called Director Liu said lightly. "The spots for the Void Realm are tight this time. The old-timers from the other cities are trying to shove their own people in."

"I’m only giving them a chance as a favor to you."

"Looks like my name carries some weight after all," Zhou Zheng said with a smile. "Of course, that’s only because Director Liu is willing to do me the favor."

"Enough with the smart mouth," the middle-aged man glanced at him coolly. "Whether or not they can secure a spot will depend on the outcome of this match."

He paused, then continued, "However, if they show outstanding performance in a real battle, we can provide some additional support."

"Allocate 2,000 contribution points to them in the name of the Jiang City Anomaly Handling Bureau."

"That many?" Zhou Zheng was slightly startled, then his eyes narrowed.

The middle-aged man seemed to see right through him and warned, "You brat, don’t even think about skimming off the top. If you do, getting fired will be the least of your worries."

"Director Liu, you’ve misunderstood me! Am I that kind of person?" Zhou Zheng protested.

"Heh..." Director Liu sneered but didn’t expose him. "These contribution points are the Bureau’s way of supporting the newcomers."

"The higher-ups are also hoping for more excellent newcomers to emerge and mature as quickly as possible. Otherwise, both the Land of Mist and the real world won’t be able to hold on for much longer."

Zhou Zheng’s expression tightened. "Has the situation gotten that bad?"

"It has..." Director Liu sighed. "Anomalies have been cropping up frequently all over the country these past two years, with all sorts of large-scale Fog invasion events emerging one after another."

"The ones inland are manageable. Once discovered, teams are dispatched to extinguish them immediately."

"The most dangerous are the leakage points out at sea. You don’t know when they appear or how much Mist Energy has accumulated inside them. Not even satellites can detect them."

"By the time they fully erupt, they’ve often already turned into massive, disaster-level events."

"The landings of ’Huajiasha’ and ’Willow’ cost our Hua Country two Master-level Lords."

"Over in the Land of Mist, the uprising in the Fallen Royal City also led to three major cities being devoured by monsters."

A solemn look flashed in Zhou Zheng’s eyes, and his expression grew serious.

"Alright, you don’t need to think about all that. For you, it’s still a distant concern, after all."

Director Liu patted his shoulder. "In short, we need to show these newcomers where we stand."

"Let them know they can go all out during the fight, with no need to hide their strengths."

"As long as they demonstrate sufficient strength, then we—the Anomaly Handling Bureau, Hua Country—will pour all our resources into nurturing them."

Zhou Zheng nodded solemnly. "Yes, Director Liu!"

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