Chapter 372 – Miraculous Battle, Hall of Heroic Souls

When Mu Yuan woke up, he glanced at the bear-shaped alarm clock on his bedside table and realized only two hours had passed.

He hadn’t slept long.

With the great battle just concluded, Tianyuan City still had numerous affairs awaiting handling, and the territory’s crisis might not be completely over… Preoccupied with these many concerns, Mu Yuan couldn’t rest peacefully. As soon as he recovered enough to overcome his body’s instinctive need for sleep, he woke up on his own.

“My head still throbs with occasional stabs of pain, and my body still feels drained.”

Mu Yuan held his forehead, carefully assessing his condition for a moment. “It’s manageable. I still feel somewhat unwell, but it doesn’t interfere with daily administrative tasks. At most, I just can’t engage in combat—not that there’s any need for fighting right now anyway.”

While Isloria and the others were probably so busy they barely had time to set foot on the ground, how could he, Lord Mu, rest completely at ease?

…Although, resting while his subordinates worked seemed to be the proper role for a lord.

He was probably just concerned about the territory’s situation.

As the lord, he couldn’t remain absent for too long during such critical times. When dealing with alliances like Shen Linglong, Nature’s Garden, and Boulder Mountain Ridge, his personal presence as the lord was often required.

In truth, if not for his capable subordinates—Deadbone, Lu Liu, Isloria, and others—each performing their duties and handling affairs and various unexpected situations in an orderly manner, the territory might have encountered numerous troubles during these two hours he slept.

Mu Yuan condensed a droplet of water at his fingertip, but after a moment’s thought, he walked into the adjacent washroom instead. He turned on the tap, splashed water on his face, wiped it with a tissue, and tossed the tissue into a distant trash bin before finally leaving the rest room.

Outside the rest room lay the entire research area.

Isloria had connected various laboratories and purchased numerous instruments and equipment, making the entire research area appear somewhat crowded and… cluttered.

A half-empty cup of coffee that had probably been left there for a long time sat two meters away; a pile of unidentifiable materials were haphazardly stacked in a corner; a white lab coat in the distance bore scorch marks.

Fortunately, there was still a spacious path wide enough for two people to walk side-by-side between the rest room and the Mage Tower’s entrance.

Mu Yuan walked straight toward the door.

Beside the door, by the window, stood a petite pink-haired doll. Her appearance was about seventy percent similar to Isloria’s, but the clear joints at her arms and legs made the doll appear less realistic.

The doll had no life aura, standing like a decoration next to the entrance.

As Mu Yuan approached, it was as if he had triggered some switch. The doll’s previously motionless eyelashes began to flutter gently. The next moment, the impression the doll gave him completely transformed.

From inanimate to living.

“Why are you still using the previous generation doll Clone? Don’t you have the more perfect Starlight Avatar?”

Mu Yuan certainly knew what this was.

He could also create such dolls, and within a certain range, he could channel his consciousness into these Starlight dolls crafted by his own hands, activating them for use.

“Only because the Starlight Avatars aren’t enough,” Isloria said with clear annoyance. “I’ve already split myself into over a dozen parts, and it’s still not enough! Lord, why do you think that is?”Mu Yuan looked up at the sky.

The main reason, of course, was… the severe shortage of clerks in Tianyuan City.

Isloria had long since begun expanding the clerical workforce. She could recruit specialized units called ‘Starlight Scholars’ who excelled at documentation and administrative tasks, and she continuously selected suitable talents from the populace for training.

But…

With Tianyuan Territory embroiled in intense warfare and facing constant danger over the past few months, Mu Yuan had no choice but to allocate vast resources to combat units or combat support units.

Most talents were funneled into the forging department, alchemy department, and scroll department. The recent establishment of an intelligence agency also took higher priority in talent recruitment than the municipal administration.

While large numbers of new settlers flooded in, the workload of the municipal department skyrocketed. This imbalance inevitably led to a critical manpower shortage.

This situation wasn’t unique to Tianyuan City among Miracle Territories.

Many Miracle Territories faced similar, if not more severe, problems.

Yet for lords, protecting their territory and repelling enemy attacks remained the top priority. Compared to military expansion and troop training, poor territorial governance was at most temporary chaos. Weighed against each other, the latter seemed a minor issue.

“Next time for sure—no, this time I really mean it.”

“In the coming period, our Tianyuan Territory should enter a relatively peaceful development phase. You’ll have plenty of opportunities to expand our personnel.”

Isloria massaged her temples.

She glanced at Mu Yuan, considered recent events, and sighed, “Never mind, never mind. These are ultimately my responsibilities anyway. What more can I say? Though you, my Lord…”

“You’ll need to attend the meeting with the legends from Nature’s Garden and Boulder Mountain Ridge later. After that, just make appearances in several key districts in the southern city. I’ve already arranged the route—the entire circuit will only take half an hour.”

“Additionally, I’ve contacted General Lu Liu and two Fearless Warchiefs. They will accompany you to ensure your safety.”

She had completed all itinerary arrangements before Mu Yuan even woke up.

Every lord dreams of having a right-hand person who perfectly handles logistics, saving countless brain cells and making every task ten or a hundred times easier.

Mu Yuan had grown accustomed to this. He could only remark: Truly the chosen workhorse.

“What about the damage status of our legions and buildings?”

After summarizing the general situation, Isloria added, “We expect Tianyuan City’s order to be fully restored before nightfall today, with night shifts resuming normally. However, the damaged city walls and Miracle Buildings on our outskirts will require approximately two days for complete repairs or reconstruction.”

“A few buildings within the city were also struck by falling large monsters and need repairs. Overall, our public morale index has actually risen compared to pre-war levels—excellent news for which you deserve most credit, my Lord.”

“Furthermore, the monster waves haven’t completely ended. Many hordes that advanced within 300 kilometers continue moving toward Tianyuan City. But without legendary-tier coordination and outside the Crimson Mist disaster month, these waves gradually fragment during their advance. By the time they reach our territory, only small groups remain.”

“Our forces aren’t waiting to engage them at the city defenses. Instead, we’re taking proactive measures to eliminate the monster hordes.”After all, the Tianyuan City defense line at this point was practically non-existent.

Isloria had also arranged for the Scepter of Heavenly Authority to begin crafting new large-scale spells. They had already produced one ‘Thousand-Prism Mirror Reflection’ and were currently creating a ‘Nine-Headed Roaring Thunderflame Dragon’.

Mu Yuan realized that Isloria had already thought of and arranged everything he had considered, so he felt reassured.

Now, he truly only needed to make a brief appearance before he could rest.

Simple.

Easy.

Perfect.

Wait, it seemed he had forgotten something, something rather important.

Where was General Dolai?

……

Dolai was still fighting.

It had been battling the Blood Tree King for several hours, fighting until the heavens and earth shattered and the Dao itself was worn away, yet still no victor had emerged.

The Blood Tree King was rooted in the earth, spreading a blood-tree Sea of Trees spanning over a hundred miles. It had an endless supply of resources—the surrounding natural energy, the earth itself, and even monsters served as its nourishment.

Its energy was limitless.

Its life was deathless.

It was absolutely certain that no one, no Legendary, could outlast it in a war of attrition.

But…

Wave after wave of Blazing Suns erupted over the Sea of Blood Trees, destructive storms tearing down and shredding vast swathes of blood trees.

In the next moment, the blood trees regrew, rapidly recovering.

And high in the sky, Dolai once again cupped a Great Sun in its hands and hurled it down fiercely.

The Blood Tree King’s mission was to ambush and kill this human Legendary. If the ambush failed, as a last resort, it was to trap this Legendary.

And it had indeed succeeded in that.

However, several hours had passed, and the two Legendary Realm beings from Dragon’s Slumber Valley had already met their fate—one dead, one fled. What reason did the Blood Tree King have to fight to the death anymore?

It wanted to make a strategic retreat. It had wanted to retreat for a long time, but…

The Blood Tree King glared furiously at Dolai in mid-air, its blood-red tendrils hundreds or even thousands of meters long whipping through the air.

Yet they could hardly reach.

Occasionally, when it found an opening, those blood-red tendrils would shatter as if crashing into spatial rifts.

Fighting led to no resolution.

Retreat? But it was just a tree.

How could a tree possibly outrun a human with wings?

“Human, cease this! Neither of us can kill the other this way.”

Dolai remained silent, continuing its relentless bombardment.

“Human, this king is enraged.”

Dolai continued its bombardment.

“Human, you leave me no choice.”

The Blood Tree King severed its limbs to survive.

By the time the Sea of Blood Trees had turned to ash under the burning Great Suns, the Blood Tree King had already vanished without a trace.

Dolai stood firm in mid-air, staring at the ground.

It had actually been at a disadvantage at the beginning.

It was only by relying on its body’s furnace ability, continuously using Whale Swallow to devour the natural energy, that it managed to bombard the Blood Tree King into a position where it couldn’t leverage its advantages.

But even by the end of the battle, Dolai couldn’t claim to have the upper hand.

“Whatever, I’m holding a grudge anyway.”

It opened its mouth wide, swallowing vast amounts of natural energy like a black hole, rumbling as it refined and converted it within its belly, before turning to fly back toward the territory.

“I hope I can pick up a few small Legendaries along the way. Otherwise, this General’s combat record would be too pathetic.”

……

Mu Yuan closed the communication with Dolai and, using the spiritual seed on the Slime, roughly determined its approximate location.

It was still quite far from the territory.

How did it end up so far away?

Dolai had been complaining nonstop that the Blood Tree King had no sense of honor, that it just wouldn’t die no matter how hard it was hit… Wait, was that really a lack of honor? Thinking about it, wasn’t it Dolai who lacked honor instead?According to Dolai, this Blood Tree King is roughly a powerhouse at the legendary Heaven-Earth Realm peak.

It might be slightly weaker than the Crimson Dragon, but it’s still a top-tier Heaven-Earth Realm existence.

If Dolai hadn’t fought dirty, dealing with such a powerful foe wouldn’t have been so easy. After all, Dolai is still a legendary newbie—its ‘Body Forge’ and ‘Whale Swallow’ techniques are only newly mastered, and its application of the legendary Domain is rather ordinary.

Its three epic abilities still have much room for improvement.

In reality, Dolai only dared to bite the Blood Tree King to death because it knew the territory’s crisis had been resolved. It had considered calling Dead Bone Boss for a righteous gang-up.

Unfortunately, Dead Bone was busy reviving his own undead forces.

The importance of reviving the undead far outweighs slaying a single great legendary being.

Mu Yuan emerged from the Mage Tower and, after meeting with Shen Linglong and the legendary beings from the elves and giants, took a brief stroll around the city district.

The monster corpses in the city had already been cleared away, and most flesh residue had been cleaned up, leaving only some bloodstains, shattered floors, and cracked building walls that testified to the brutality of the recent battle.

“Actually, the damage in the city is relatively minimal,” Shen Linglong remarked.

Mu Yuan understood this well.

Not to mention distant examples, Stone Ridge Town during the Crimson Mist disaster month suffered far worse than now, with numerous monsters breaking into the city.

During the defense of Tianyuan City, very few monsters actually managed to enter the urban areas.

Or rather, any monsters that broke through typically didn’t survive more than twenty seconds before falling to the arrows of the Polar Star Arrows. Seventeen and the other Polar Star Arrows were undoubtedly the MVPs of this battle, though their sniping went largely unnoticed—not only by powerful fighters like Shen Linglong who battled outside the city, but even the high-tier monsters that breached the city walls often died without understanding what happened.

Mu Yuan walked onto the city walls.

The cleanup of monster corpses outside the city had already begun.

These contained large quantities of Soul Sand and Remnant Soul loot, while valuable Materials could be harvested from high-tier and large monsters.

The total value of loot from this battle likely amounted to several thousand Soul Crystals.

Of course, these spoils didn’t all belong to Tianyuan Territory.

Shen Linglong, Nature’s Garden, and Boulder Mountain Ridge each received a share.

“I’ll just take a symbolic amount,” Shen Linglong said. “After all, I didn’t contribute much to the effort.”

The legendary beings from the elves and giants also expressed reluctance to accept their share of the loot.

There was no doubt that Tianyuan Territory had contributed the most to this battle and had ultimately secured the victory.

Tianyuan Territory had also suffered the heaviest losses.

Not counting the sacrificed warriors or damaged urban structures, just the consumed strategic reserves and ultimate techniques used in this battle far exceeded the value of this loot.

They felt undeserving of their shares.

Mu Yuan eventually persuaded them to accept some loot, otherwise he would owe them significant favors. He preferred to adhere to the original agreement.

“This batch of loot is just the appetizer. The truly high-value spoils will come later, when we counterattack and subjugate the monster forces.”

Not to mention conquering Jackal Fang itself, just the various large Tribes within the territories controlled by Jackal Fang and Blood Serpent Embrace could yield substantial gains.

While eliminating a monster horde might yield minimal returns—just some ordinary Soul Sand and Remnant Souls—subjugating and purifying a large Tribe would undoubtedly bring rich rewards.He could obtain quite a few rare and exceptional Treasures.

Previously constrained by Jackal Fang, he had limited opportunities to conquer large Tribes. Now, he could likely eradicate all the subordinate claw-and-tooth Tribes under these two major Overlords.

Of course, he wouldn’t monopolize these chances to eliminate large Tribes. Instead, he planned to join forces with Shen Linglong, Nature’s Garden, and Boulder Mountain Ridge to conquer and share the spoils together.

Firstly, hogging everything would be unseemly. Mu Yuan had always advocated for shared development. In the future, there would undoubtedly be more opportunities for cooperation with Nature’s Garden and Boulder Mountain Ridge. Moreover, the locations of many large Tribes were provided by these two major forces.

Shen Linglong had traveled a great distance and taken risks to come here—she was a true comrade. He couldn’t possibly shortchange her.

Secondly, conquering and eliminating these large Tribes was no easy task. They also had to guard against possible retaliation from the Monster Overlords. By pooling their military forces, the pressure on his Tianyuan Territory would be more manageable.

Thirdly, the chieftains of these large Tribes might flee. If Tianyuan Territory were to conquer them one by one, it was likely that many large Tribes would be deserted, with their Blood Pools drained and destroyed.

“In that case, I won’t stand on ceremony, sister. I wonder what can be extracted from purifying the Blood Pool—just thinking about it gets me a little excited,” Shen Linglong said.

At that moment, in the distance, the undead squad led by Bone Two had wiped out the last small wave of monsters within sight.

Thus, within the entire territory of Tianyuan Territory, there were no more organized groups of monsters. At most, there were only scattered stragglers awaiting final clearance.

Suddenly—

Hum—

The entire sky became extraordinarily radiant, bathed in glorious light and accompanied by the sound of string music, as if the heavens were celebrating a territory Rank upgrade.

But his territory hadn’t leveled up?

He had just leveled up not long ago—how could it level up again? Besides, whether it had leveled up or not, he would certainly know.

“This is…” He looked at Shen Linglong. Logically, Shen Linglong would have broader knowledge, even if she didn’t appear particularly erudite.

Shen Linglong stared blankly at the sky, stunned for two or three seconds.

She actually recognized it. “This is the sign of a Miracle battle!”

“Legend has it that if we achieve a victory where the weak triumph over the strong—a victory that can be called a Miracle—the heavens will bestow gifts upon the warriors and Lords who performed exceptionally in that battle. This is an extremely rare heavenly blessing! In our entire Taixuan Alliance, there are very few Lords who have received the glory of a Miracle.”

Mu Yuan’s first thought was…

Was it possible to replicate such Miracle battles? Triumphing against the odds—he was good at that. Of course, it depended on how the rules of heaven defined “strong” and “weak.”

But he guessed that exploiting loopholes in the heavenly rules wouldn’t be easy. As for a war like this one, where Tianyuan City was on the brink of collapse, he never wanted to experience it a second time in his life.

He was a Lord who yearned for peace.

Ding!

Prompt: You have completed a Miracle battle. You have received a gift from the rules of heaven.

Warm, radiant light showered down upon him.

In an instant, much of the fatigue and exhaustion on Mu Yuan dissipated. His muscles, cells, and Soul were slowly transforming.

He was improving.

He saw elite warriors, under the gift of light, continuously rise several Ranks. He estimated that he was already at the Peak of the Fourth Order, making it difficult to achieve any significant further improvement.Beside them, Shen Linglong was also bathed in the radiant light. She exclaimed, “What a bargain! I can vaguely sense my Domain expanding—this will save me months of arduous cultivation! An absolute win!”

In the distance, Elf Mirena and the Frost King were also astonished as they experienced the changes within themselves.

Veteran legends like the Frost King were particularly thrilled to discover that the bottleneck of his “2,999-meter radius,” which had stalled him for years, was showing signs of loosening.

His future looked promising!

Even General Dolai, far out in the Wilderness, was bewildered as it received the heavenly radiance. “Gurgle?” What just happened?

This upgrade baptism was merely the appetizer.

Soon, strands of divine light descended one after another, materializing in Mu Yuan’s hands as three special light orbs swirling with indescribable hues.

「Prompt: You have obtained ‘Miracle Light Orbs × 3’.」

「Prompt: Opening a Miracle Light Orb can grant gifts from the Miracle.」

……

Night fell.

After finishing his tasks, bathing, changing clothes, and burning incense, Mu Yuan finally retrieved the three Miracle Light Orbs in his City Lord’s Mansion. Surrounding him were Dolai, who had recently returned to the territory, along with Isloria and Sophia.

They looked as if they had nothing to do.

Dolai: I really don’t have to work.

Isloria: This is within my office radius.

Sophia: Working, working—just taking a quick look.

These Miracle Light Orbs seemed quite precious, and Mu Yuan was eagerly anticipating them.

He rubbed his hands together and opened the first Miracle Light Orb. A blue light burst forth.

「Prompt: You have obtained the special item ‘Hero’s Token’.」

Not bad, but perhaps not impressive enough?

Mu Yuan opened the second orb, and again, blue light erupted.

「Prompt: You have obtained the special item ‘Secret Realm Key: Dragon Mound Fertile Land’.」

It didn’t seem particularly valuable either?

Perhaps the Miracle Light Orbs weren’t as rare as he had imagined, but since they were unexpected gains, Mu Yuan wasn’t dissatisfied.

Just as he was about to open the third orb, Dolai spoke up, “How about letting me give it a try?”

Mu Yuan thought it was a good idea.

As a Hero, Dolai was also capable of opening such orbs. It stepped forward, clasped its hands together, and prayed with apparent sincerity.

Watching this, Mu Yuan wondered if he should summon Laney’s Sisterhood to chant prayers before opening such treasures in the future. Perhaps it would bring better luck?

After a few seconds of prayer, Dolai snapped the Miracle Light Orb open.

A purple light shot out.

Purple light… Wait, purple light? Epic?!

The purple glow grew increasingly dazzling, illuminating the entire inner hall of the City Lord’s Mansion. It was only because Isloria promptly manifested the River of Stars that the pervasive purple radiance was concealed. Otherwise, the brilliance might have shot skyward, lighting up the night.

「Prompt: Your Hero Dolai has opened a Miracle Light Orb and obtained the complete Miracle Building ‘Hall of Heroic Souls (Epic)’.」

——

「Hall of Heroic Souls (Epic)」

「Description: A complete building that can be placed immediately upon selecting a location, requiring no additional Materials.」

「Ability: Heroic Souls Immortal」

「The Lord and the troops within this territory can perform a soul binding at the Hall of Heroic Souls. If a bound individual falls in battle and meets the conditions, they can reshape their Physical Body and resurrect within the Hall.」

「Note ①: Only troops who have undergone Awakening and possess self-awareness can bind their souls at the Hall of Heroic Souls. Additionally, soul binding consumes 10 Soul Crystals.」”Note ②: Resurrecting fallen warriors and reconstructing their bodies consumes Soul Crystals. The number of Soul Crystals required ranges from 1 to XXX, depending on the Rank of the resurrected individual.”

“Note ③: The souls of those who die in battle must be within a certain range of the territory to be guided back and resurrected. The current resurrection range is 10 kilometers. Upgrading the Hall of Heroic Souls Rank can increase the resurrection range.”

6K!

(End of Chapter)