Chapter 377 – The Historical Achievements of Tianyuan

Three days after the defense of Tianyuan City.

Mu Yuan had already recalled most of his forces, leaving only Deadbone to lead hundreds of elite undead troops in continued assaults, sweeping through the remaining monster tribes.

By this point, the gains from clearing and sweeping operations were quite limited. However, exterminating monsters was a necessary duty. The more high-level monsters they eliminated now, the fewer dangers exploration teams would face during future expansion and reconnaissance.

Shen Linglong had been launching successive attacks, her spirits so high she seemed capable of staying awake for three days and nights.

The reason was her recent expedition, where while subjugating a large monster tribe, she unexpectedly encountered a newly advanced monster legend. It was likely the tribal chief had obtained some opportunity and secretly achieved a breakthrough.

Then she slew him.

Her legendary kill count increased by one, bringing her a step closer to the milestone of a hundred legendary kills.

For several consecutive days, Shen Linglong had been searching for and hunting legendary monsters, sometimes setting out again shortly after returning to Tianyuan City for brief rests. Her diligence rivaled that of Tianyuan Territory’s most exemplary 007 employees.

Since she was willing to work without compensation, Mu Yuan was naturally pleased, instructing Chef Pao Tu to prepare fine dishes to entertain her.

“Although we’ve defeated the monster overlords, our current area of operations remains largely confined to the territories of the Jackal Fang and Blood Serpent Embrace overlords.”

“To the west, the Bloodtree Forest remains perilous. Both elf and giant legends advise against entering. North of Jackal Fang’s territory, other monster overlords are said to exist. However, those overlords worship the Fallen God, making them fundamentally different from the flesh-immortality worshipping Jackal Fang and Blood Serpent Embrace.”

Mention of the Fallen God reminded Mu Yuan of the Serpent Attendant who had encountered his family on several occasions.

It had been a long time since he last saw the Serpent Attendant, and thinking of it now evoked a slight sense of nostalgia.

The Serpent Attendant could manifest through numerous monster tribes that worshipped it, with its complete manifested form being only at the super fourth-order level. Currently, Tianyuan Territory had no fewer than eight to ten experts capable of single-handedly defeating such a perfect manifestation.

However,

The true forms of attendants like the Great Serpent were extremely terrifying, at least at the second realm of legend, the ‘Soul Realm.’ Only with such power could they achieve cross-domain manifestations.

The Jackal Fang and the northern Fallen God Force had previously engaged in conflict, and now it seemed the claws of the Fallen God Force were moving south.

Mu Yuan sat at his lord’s desk, sipping from a glass steeping with calming leaves and heart-nourishing herbs, his brow furrowed in contemplation.

“Now is not the time to continue fighting.”

He had repelled the Jackal Fang and Blood Serpent Embrace, obtaining abundant resources and numerous treasure lands awaiting development. This was a critical period to convert resources into their own strength. Of course, they couldn’t afford to risk another battle with monster overlords.

Moreover, to the south of Tianyuan Territory, beyond the Blood Serpent Embrace lay the southernmost edge of this great domain—the passage to the Twilight Plains.

To their north, beyond the Jackal Fang was a certain Fallen God Force, but the distance was also considerable.

Even with elite troops marching at full speed, it would take two to two and a half days to traverse the Jackal Fang’s territory.

They already possessed substantial strategic depth.

The resources in this nearby region were also sufficient for their exploitation.To put it bluntly, his Tianyuan Territory simply didn’t have enough manpower or military forces to exploit every mining site. The personnel from the three major powers—Tianyuan City, Nature’s Garden, and Boulder Mountain Ridge—were far from sufficient to fully utilize all the treasure lands in the Jackal and Blood Serpent regions.

He could prioritize developing high-value treasure lands that were closer to the territory.

“Here lies a damaged medium-sized Soul Sand mine. Although it was ravaged by the monster forces’ violent extraction methods, its reserves remain abundant. During mining, there’s a small chance of obtaining ‘Soul Essence’—a treasure that can replace Soul Sand and significantly boost cultivation speed.”

“This location contains a ‘Sharp Crystal’ vein. This rare-grade material is essential for crafting many weapons. Tianyuan City has considerable demand for it, and any surplus can be sold externally without worrying about marketability.”

“And here…”

“There are too many treasure lands, yet our manpower remains insufficient. Which ones should we prioritize?”

Mu Yuan stared at the stream of reports from the expedition and survey teams, falling into the paralysis of choice.

…

Meanwhile, the Wind King’s Wings soared through the skies.

Minister Qin and two other Legendary Lords gazed down at the vast wilderness rapidly passing beneath their vision.

There did appear to be few monsters visible.

Of course, this didn’t necessarily mean anything.

The Wind King’s Wings itself traveled at extreme speeds, with the expansive landscape blurring past so quickly that even Legendary Realm experts could hardly discern finer details on the ground.

The legendary aura radiating from the Wind King’s Wings also scared away intelligent monsters long before their approach.

By now, Legendary Realm monsters might have noticed them, but caution kept these creatures from revealing themselves to intercept. Many Legendary Realm monsters valued their lives too highly to act without certainty of success.

Perhaps these monsters sensed their extraordinary nature.

And indeed, the group feared no ambush from legendary monsters. After all, even the most ordinary among them riding upon the Wind King’s Wings boasted battle records of slaying multiple monster legends.

They specialized in hunting legends.

Yet for ordinary territories, even a single Legendary Realm existence—even the most mediocre among them—could bring catastrophic destruction.

No matter how powerful Tianyuan was, he couldn’t oppose a legend.

Of course, forget about legendary beings—even ordinary monster overlords typically commanded numerous subordinate tribes, and some powerful tribes among them posed lethal threats to common territories.

Crushed Rock Lord maintained his original view: their stay could only be brief, and their assistance to Tianyuan would be limited.

Tianyuan Territory’s location was simply too disadvantageous.

Ultimately, they could only rely on themselves.

“I heard Tianyuan once represented our Taixuan in the Dragon Court competition?” he asked.

This information wasn’t publicly announced but had become an open secret.

After all, many major nations knew about this, having witnessed Tianyuan’s presence in the Dragon Court Land. After the Dragon Court competition concluded, Taixuan hadn’t deliberately concealed the matter.

But they had hidden the fact that Tianyuan achieved the highest honors in the competition.

“How long had Tianyuan established his territory back then? To emerge victorious from that competition—truly remarkable, far surpassing even the Cold Moon City Lord of those days.”

No sooner had Crushed Rock Lord spoken than he received an expressionless stare from a certain lord nearby.

He offered an awkward chuckle.

This Flying Flame Lord happened to be a follower of the Cold Moon City Lord, having once followed her into the depths of the Land of Red Mist.He added, “Of course, the past is the past, and the present is the present. It’s hard to make direct comparisons across different eras.”

Flying Flame Lord said, “I’ve also heard of Tianyuan’s achievements. He… is indeed quite remarkable, having personally nurtured one general after another, many of whom excel in different paths. When we meet Tianyuan, perhaps we can discuss his approach to cultivating generals.”

“Tianyuan’s achievements… what other accomplishments does he have?”

Crushed Rock Lord asked.

As a lord who had long been stationed on the front lines, his access to information wasn’t very smooth. This time, he was originally heading to the frontline fortress but was pulled aside by Minister Qin for this task.

The last time he returned to Taixuan City, Tianyuan might not have even entered the Eternal World yet.

Flying Flame Lord: “The One-Punch Martial Maniac, ranked 16th on the Dragon Gate List, is a powerful expert cultivated by Tianyuan. Additionally, two other experts under his command have made it onto the Dragon Gate List. One is the Giant Spirit God, ranked 67th, though his achievements haven’t been updated for a long time and he has been pushed down by other rising experts.”

“The other is the Blazing Sun Controller, ranked 9th. It’s said that her displayed combat power far exceeds this ranking, but evaluators speculate it might be achieved with the help of certain artifacts or treasures. Combined with limited information, she is temporarily placed at 9th. In reality, her ranking could likely rise a few spots higher.”

Three listed experts!

Crushed Rock Lord was somewhat surprised.

Even if he gathered all the Fourth Order Peak experts from his own territory to fight and be evaluated, it wasn’t certain that three could make the list.

Without sufficient potential and combat power, even Fourth Order limits couldn’t qualify for the Dragon Gate List.

“So, in a few months or a year or two, the Tianyuan Territory might produce one or more Legendary Realm experts?”

“If nothing unexpected happens, indeed so.”

The Dragon Gate List wasn’t without surprises.

Combat power and potential couldn’t be completely equated.

However, experts who could rank at the top of the Dragon Gate List, possessing combat power far surpassing their peers—almost as if they were different life forms—must have remarkable potential.

Crushed Rock Lord finally understood why the higher-ups placed such importance on Tianyuan.

Tianyuan, who could cultivate such invincible generals, certainly couldn’t be weak himself. What kind of extraordinary talent and wisdom did he possess?

These three achievements were only what Tianyuan had publicly disclosed, the ones on the surface.

As the logistics head of the Pioneer Group, Qin Guohua knew more information.

For example, Tianyuan had a subordinate called ‘Seventeen’ who also possessed combat power worthy of ranking in the top ten or twenty of the Dragon Gate List. Moreover, this Tianyuan expert had assisted in defending Stone Ridge City, making significant contributions in its defense battle, single-handedly reducing the city’s losses considerably.

Another example: Tianyuan had another subordinate named ‘Mu Fei’ who led a large number of elites in defending Baijiang City and ensuring the safe evacuation of the White River’s people, making immense contributions.

In the final period before Blue Star’s fusion, crime rates increased noticeably across the Xuan Nation, yet White River could be called the country’s safest city in terms of public security. It seemed Tianyuan had also made indelible contributions to this.

Tianyuan was someone who cared deeply for his country and its people.It was precisely for this reason that the nation placed great importance on Tianyuan. If a lord possessed extraordinary potential but was selfish and self-serving, they naturally wouldn’t value them as much.

…

The Wind King’s Wings flew northward.

Since they encountered no obstructions or dangers, the Wind King’s Wings flew at an extremely high speed.

In just half a day, they had already covered thousands of kilometers.

At this point, the Wind King’s Wings began to descend, and its flight speed slowed considerably.

The vast earth, scattered trees, and flowing streams… grew increasingly clear in the eyes of the great bird and the few riders on its back.

“The Tianyuan Territory should be around this area,” Minister Qin said.

Of course, “this area” was quite vast. He was relying on information provided by Shen Linglong’s… subordinates, so there was bound to be a significant margin of error.

The Wind King’s Wings landed in front of a mountain hollow.

Minister Qin gazed into the distance. “There are signs of a monster tide passing through this region.”

“It’s not currently the Crimson Mist disaster month, so monster waves don’t usually form.”

He looked at Crushed Rock Lord.

Crushed Rock Lord understood Minister Qin’s meaning. “Understood.” He extended his hand, and the Lord’s Mark appeared in his palm. Soon, he summoned one of his subordinate commanders, a powerful expert.

A Peak Fourth Order ‘Astrologer’.

Astrologers were of the Zhuo Second Rank, possessing extraordinary astrological talents and naturally awakening one or two divination skills.

Without a ritual site or coordinated assistance, the Astrologer couldn’t perform detailed divinations. But with sufficient clues, he could narrow down the search area for Minister Qin’s group.

After the Astrologer completed the ritual, the group continued their flight on the great bird.

Minister Qin had initially thought they might need to search for most of the day to locate Tianyuan City. Unexpectedly, the clues were more numerous and obvious than anticipated.

“A major battle took place here. Flesh war machines were destroyed, and wreckage remains,” Crushed Rock Lord stated with certainty, looking at the solidified brownish-red substance in the distance.

“Here… there are remnants of a legendary battle. Was it Shen Linglong or another legendary being?” Flying Flame frowned slightly as he stared into the distance.

“Here too, there seem to be traces of legendary combat.”

“Look here, an entire mountain peak has been blasted into a crescent shape. The intensity and ferocity of the battle are evident.”

They had yet to encounter any legendary monsters.

However, they had already found two or three sites with suspected traces of legendary combat.

The situation appeared quite tense.

Linglong Lord’s words were not exaggerated in the slightest.

They couldn’t help but grow tense.

They pressed forward, continuing onward, their expressions gradually turning wary, preparing for enemies that could appear at any moment and battles that could erupt suddenly.

But still, nothing.

The imagined scenes of soaring flames, black tides, and earth-shaking roars—none of these appeared.

All they found were pockmarked craters and a city standing at the edge of the scarred land.

“The Tianyuan Territory… it seems we’ve arrived. Did they withstand the monster faction’s assault?”

…

Tianyuan City was still under Level Two alert.

The Heavenly Eye of the Scepter of Heavenly Authority continuously enveloped the skies above Tianyuan City.

When Minister Qin and the others entered the vicinity of the city, Mu Yuan received the alert.

At first, he thought it might be a Monster Overlord attacking, but he breathed a sigh of relief upon recognizing the newcomers.

“Reinforcements?”

He remembered Shen Linglong had called in some favors from her friends for him.Although he hadn’t managed to recruit many, Mu Yuan was still deeply grateful for the sentiment. It was just that the reinforcements had arrived rather late.

Moreover…

Hadn’t the great battle ended three days ago? Why were there still reinforcements coming?

He remembered that the frontline battles in Taixuan were still fiercely contested, and the big shots shouldn’t have been this free.

At this moment, Shen Linglong had just returned to Tianyuan City for resupply. Hearing Mu Yuan’s question, she froze for several seconds before awkwardly saying, “Well, it seems… I might have… probably… forgotten about it.”

How could anyone forget something like this?!

…

Mu Yuan brought this ‘reliable comrade’ along as they went out of the city to welcome the few people who had traveled thousands of miles.

When she saw Flying Flame, Shen Linglong gave an embarrassed smile.

When she saw Rock Crusher, she showed no particular expression – they weren’t familiar.

But when she saw Minister Qin, Shen Linglong began sweating profusely.

Mu Yuan also recognized Minister Qin, though only from his portrait among the main leaders of the Pioneer Group. This was a big shot, and more importantly, the big shot responsible for distributing funds and supplies.

“Hello, Old Qin, I’m Mu Yuan.”

“Not bad, not bad. You’re indeed a remarkable talent, no wonder several Pioneering Generals are competing for you.”

Mu Yuan felt embarrassed.

Qin Guohua introduced, “This is Lord Crushed Rock, and this is Lord Flying Flame. Both are lords from the Pioneer Group. You might be working together in the same warzone in the future, so you young people should communicate more.”

Qin Guohua then pointed to the remaining two among the group of five:

“These two are also powerful members of our Pioneer Group – the Dragon Warrior Monk and the Gale Wind Envoy. They’re mainly responsible for transport security in our logistics department.”

Of the two, one was a muscular monk with a strong dragon aura, bare-chested. The other was a young man wearing cyan-blue mage robes.

They didn’t seem to be lords.

But they also didn’t appear to be subordinates of Minister Qin, Lord Crushed Rock, or Lord Flying Flame.

What kind of lineup was this?

(End of Chapter)