Chapter 25: The Altar of State and Land!
In Jiuzhou, inside a seaside apartment in the Magic Capital, a man wearing a bathrobe sat in the courtyard. On the small round table beside him was a computer.
The computer screen displayed numerous discussions from the game forums.
“Half-Journey Through the Mortal World? An interesting player. But this guy is a little too high-profile. If he wants to suppress our Three Great Guilds, then he'll have to pay the appropriate price!”
“I just wonder whether this brat can afford that price!”
The man muttered quietly before opening a chat application in the corner of the screen and entering a chat room. It was a group with two thousand members. The entire group was silent, without a single message.
The man calmly typed out a message and sent it.
[This Lord Will Dominate the World]: Half-Journey Through the Mortal World has been attracting a bit too much attention lately. Gather all information regarding him in the game and submit it to me. Also, keep collecting information about the main city, Luoyang.
The moment the message was sent, the entire chat room exploded. One person after another emerged and responded, indicating that they understood.
After everyone accepted the task, the man closed his computer, turned toward the distant sea, spread his arms, revealed a smile, and muttered to himself:
“The position of the Three Great Guilds cannot be shaken. The authority of Dongning Pavilion cannot be challenged!”
...
While countless players were making noise in the channels, Xiao Wen quietly opened his territory construction interface and found a small box about half the height of an adult within the unique building section.
The Altar of State and Land!
[Altar of State and Land]
Type: Unique Building
Effects: Increases the refresh rate of special refugees; favorable weather and abundant harvests, increasing crop production.
Description: The land is supreme, upon which the people's sustenance depends. Sacred rites reveal divine favor, offerings fill the air with fragrance. Those who have rendered service to the people are honored with blessings. When the gods descend to enjoy the offerings, cloud chariots drift gracefully.
Xiao Wen withdrew his gaze from the Altar of State and Land and smiled.
This thing was good!
Whether it increased crop production or not, he didn't really care.
After all, if he ran out of food in the early stages, he could simply buy it with ingots.
What truly interested him was the first attribute.
Special refugees!
After players established territories, refugees would occasionally arrive seeking shelter. Once accepted, these refugees could become farmers within the territory, cultivating land, reclaiming wasteland, and increasing agricultural production.
During wartime, these farmers could also be converted into militia, taking up hoes and wooden clubs to fight.
Although their combat power was somewhat low, they made up for it with numbers. At critical moments, they might even create a miraculous turnaround.
Of course, the refugees mentioned here were merely ordinary refugees.
Aside from ordinary refugees, there was another category known as special refugees.
These people often possessed unique skills and talents but had been forced into exile.
If recruited successfully, they could rapidly increase a territory's strength.
Because of this, special refugees were highly sought-after talents among lord-type players.
In his previous life, someone had even refreshed a fifth-tier strategist from among these refugees—the poisonous strategist Jia Xu!
That had made Xiao Wen extremely envious for quite some time.
And now, he could enjoy the same opportunity himself. How could he not be happy?
Just as Xiao Wen was feeling excited, the private chat window in the corner suddenly flashed.
It was a message from Shen Shuyi.
Opening the window and reading her message, Xiao Wen's expression became somewhat strange.
The message was quite interesting. On the surface, she was congratulating him for completing the hidden quest, but beneath the surface, she was asking for strategies and tips regarding the Territory Defense Battle.
A guide?
Had this future Female Emperor completely attached herself to him now?
Or was she determined to keep harvesting him alone?
Whatever. It wasn't particularly important information. Telling her wouldn't hurt.
He immediately sent a reply.
[Half-Journey Through the Mortal World]: The difficulty of the defense battle depends on the number and level of villages you've occupied. Under normal circumstances, as long as you maintain sufficient troops, prepare ambushes in advance, and add a little strategic guidance, your territory won't be breached. There aren't really any special tricks.
[Dancing Moon with the Wind]: Thank you, Great God! I'll definitely remember everything you've said.
[Dancing Moon with the Wind]: By the way, Great God, could I have your contact information in real life?
[Dancing Moon with the Wind]: You've helped me so much. I'm truly grateful and would like to treat you to a meal.
The moment this message was sent, Shen Shuyi felt her heart pounding wildly.
She was nervous beyond measure.
And it wasn't just nervousness.
Behind that nervousness was even more embarrassment.
Whether Shen Shuyi was embarrassed wasn't important.
What mattered was that her livestream had completely exploded.
Viewers began teasing her one after another.
[Boss Lady, you're actually inviting another man to dinner right in front of me? You've changed! My heart is broken!]
[Boss Lady, girls should be reserved! How can you casually invite another man to dinner? Therefore, this opportunity to treat Great God to a meal must be given to me!]
[Holy crap! Brothers, get your notebooks ready! Great God's contact information is about to be revealed!]
[I bet a rocket gift that Boss Lady's springtime has arrived.]
...
Xiao Wen knew nothing about the chaos in the livestream.
At this moment, he was staring blankly at Shen Shuyi's message.
Treat him to dinner?
Should he go or not?
A beautiful girl...
The future Female Emperor...
A dinner gathering at night...
After dinner, maybe sing a few songs, have a few drinks...
Wouldn't that mean he could capture this future Female Emperor ahead of schedule?
The thought flashed through Xiao Wen's mind.
But the next second, he suppressed all those wandering thoughts.
Not yet.
This future Female Emperor would play a critical role during a great catastrophe in the future!
Without her during that disaster, Xiao Wen didn't dare imagine what would happen to Blue Star.
Therefore...
It was better to maintain a friendly and ambiguous relationship for now.
Raising a Female Emperor wasn't something accomplished overnight.
[Half-Journey Through the Mortal World]: The time has not yet come. If fate wills it, you and I will eventually meet.
The moment those words appeared, the livestream exploded again.
[Holy crap! He rejected her?]
[I'll bet two lollipops that this guy isn't a man!]
[It's over. Boss Lady's first love ended before it even began!]
[Boss Lady is so miserable. Let's observe a moment of silence for her...]
...
Ignoring the flood of comments, Shen Shuyi stared at Xiao Wen's reply.
She froze for a moment.
Bitterness filled her heart, and disappointment appeared on her face.
Quietly, she replied with a single word.
"Okay."
Then she closed the chat window, opened the parchment map in her hand, and looked toward a Level 3 village near her territory.
“Attack!”
...
Xiao Wen closed the chat window and sat alone inside the main hall of the Lord's Manor, stretching lazily.
Not long afterward, Ma Chao entered and bowed.
“My Lord, the bandits have been interrogated. The scouts we dispatched have already located the headquarters of the Black Fiend Stronghold.”
“How strong are the bandits?” Xiao Wen asked, raising an eyebrow.
“At present, the Black Fiend Stronghold still has two chiefs and one strategist remaining. Their realms are approximately at the early Second-grade Realm (Levels 21–23).”
“Not particularly strong. If the General and I work together, we should be able to kill them.”
“In that case, General, I must trouble you to gather the troops. I will accompany you personally to eliminate the bandits!”
“This general obeys!”
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