Chapter 276 – Expanded Border Area, Reflection of Blue Star

Tianyuan Prison, South District of the Territory.

The prison was constructed two or three months ago, with a modest scale and few inmates. After all, most convicted residents were assigned to resource sites outside the territory to atone for their crimes through labor.

Tianyuan Prison couldn’t detain players either—it was merely an ordinary earthen structure, not a Miracle Building. Containing players with formidable strength capable of shattering walls effortlessly was impractical, and Tianyuan Territory had no need to imprison any players anyway.

Official strongholds like Stone Ridge Town featured specially constructed prisons made from unique materials and fortified with sophisticated barriers, designed to confine individuals with supernatural powers.

Meanwhile, in the underground level of Tianyuan Prison.

The recently captured players were consumed by regret. They had merely intended to plunder a small territory to secure enough wealth for their remaining years, so how had they stumbled into an official stronghold?

They had been heading north the entire time!

Could their directional tool have malfunctioned? Counterfeit equipment truly spelled disaster!

Yet, upon reflection, an official Taixuan stronghold should have been teeming with players. Instead, they had encountered mostly patrol soldiers clad in standardized gear along the way, which didn’t quite match the profile of such a place.

Their still-conscious leader’s mind raced with chaotic thoughts. “A misunderstanding, this is all a misunderstanding!” he wailed.

His cries stemmed partly from genuine pain—his injuries were severe—and partly from a performative display of misery, clinging to the slim hope of survival. After all, they hadn’t even revealed their intentions yet; their crimes surely didn’t warrant death.

“We’re merchants from Taixuan, upstanding citizens through and through! You can’t just kill indiscriminately!”

Isloria paid them no mind. After instructing several Garrison Legion captains to guard the prisoners, she turned and departed.

She didn’t venture far, waiting just outside the prison.

Closing her eyes completely, she entered a standby mode.

Before long, Lord Mu arrived on the scene.

“What happened?” he inquired.

Isloria briefly recounted the events. “Their demeanor doesn’t quite fit that of merchant players,” she noted.

Her uncertainty stemmed from limited exposure to merchant players, leaving her with insufficient experience in this area.

“Whether they’re genuine merchant players isn’t particularly crucial,” Mu Yuan stated.

Since they had struck first, any malicious intent rendered their identities irrelevant. In the past, some small guilds had occasionally exploited merchant player disguises to engage in plundering.

However, those who entered private territories with ill intentions and immediately resorted to violence were exceedingly rare.

Casual players almost never engaged in such behavior.

Those who did were typically powerful figures from external forces with specific agendas.

This was also why Isloria had slightly lowered her guard after assessing the players’ Ranks.

Meanwhile, troops who had achieved self-awareness Awakening had already searched through the goods and storage equipment the players carried, uncovering a large assortment of items.

They could perform detailed tasks beyond the capabilities of ordinary troops, but their limited common sense and knowledge restricted their capabilities to basic operations.

They struggled to identify these objects and couldn’t conduct further analysis based on them.

Mu Yuan personally examined the findings. “Hmm? These are all raw Materials?”Merchant players aren’t completely opposed to transporting raw materials, but it’s impractical to ship raw materials—especially diverse types mostly consisting of agricultural products and gathered items—to sell in peripheral territories.

The reverse scenario would make more sense.

Typically, the goods merchant players dump in peripheral territories are weapons, potions, treasures, and Two-Star or Three-Star Remnant Souls.

“These individuals are indeed suspicious,” Mu Yuan mused, stroking his chin.

Isloria shrugged indifferently. “Well, it’s not a major issue anyway. Shall I take my leave? There’s a pile of work waiting at the Town Hall. I only came because I heard about visiting merchant caravans needing reception—these fellows wasted quite some time.”

Though she was merely Incarnation No. 2,

the main body, Incarnation No. 1, and Incarnation No. 3 each bore different responsibilities and couldn’t be spared.

“Go ahead, I’ll keep an eye here for now.”

In truth, Mu Yuan was busy too—having just returned from Blue Star where he’d been handling affairs. Most Tianyuan Generals were also occupied, either exploring and eliminating monsters or stationed at Blue Star. The latter group particularly included Rakshasa Red Robe and others assisting Sophia with procurement and transportation, while Dolai moved between the Interdimensional Zone.

Though Tianyuan Territory had numerous capable commanders, Lord Mu often lamented the shortage of manpower. As an independent lord, he lacked the resources of official lords or corporate lords who could appoint players from their organizations as territory executives. While these players were far less loyal, trustworthy, or manageable than his own generals, their competence was undeniable.

Half a day later, Red Robe—freshly returned from Blue Star—descended through the prison ceiling.

“Are these the ones for interrogation?” Her sudden voice echoed as crimson skirts drifted downward.

Mu Yuan: “…”

Had he not sensed her arrival earlier, he might have been startled.

“Must you always use such… unconventional entrances?”

“But this method is perfectly efficient—saves time and effort. I even enter my tomb resting place this way. Didn’t you advocate for workplace efficiency? This embodies it.”

Fine, she had a point.

Red Robe floated before the bandana-wearing players, intangible energy spreading as their eyelids drooped into slumber.

“Reading their memories, correct? But I can’t guarantee results, nor whether their brains might go ‘boom’.” Her previous attempts at mental interference against Eye of Divine Radiance players had all failed, shaking the young woman’s confidence.

She manifested the Netherworld Market as a spectral door, summoning several powerful ghosts she’d meticulously selected—entities skilled in consciousness invasion, illusion weaving, and memory fragment extraction.

While their abilities were sound, she couldn’t be certain they could breach the mental sea defenses.

Instead of simultaneous soul-reading, she began with one “lucky” player, then proceeded to the second, third, and fourth.

Completion arrived without incident—so effortlessly that Red Robe questioned her ghostly existence.

“Lord, there does appear to be something noteworthy,” she reported, transmitting the information directly through illusionary projections rather than struggling to describe it.

Now this was workplace efficiency.After a long while, Mu Yuan opened his eyes. “So that’s how it is, the Border Zone.”

He pondered.

Judging by the location, this Border Zone that had appeared in the Gloomy Forest area was very close to Tianyuan Territory.

For ordinary Elite-ranked players, it might take one or two days to travel there, but for General-ranked and Commander-ranked powerhouses, it could be done in just half a day or even a few hours.

And whenever a Border Zone appeared, it was always accompanied by turmoil.

“Of course, it also comes with Opportunities. Aren’t we searching for Interdimensional Treasures? The probability of finding them in this newly appeared Interdimensional Zone is definitely higher than in those old Border Zones.”

Out of desire for Treasures, they had to go.

Out of consideration for the territory’s safety, they needed to investigate the situation in this Interdimensional Zone even more.

From the memories he saw, the Serpentfolk Tribe that had occupied Blue Star’s cities seemed quite powerful.

Additionally, there might be other dangerous factors.

For example, people.

…

Mu Yuan successively recalled Dolai, Rakshasa, and other Tianyuan Generals who were on Blue Star.

He raised the alert level of Tianyuan Territory.

A large Border Zone appearing in the nearby area wouldn’t bring the direct danger of the Crimson Mist disaster month, but sometimes, more sudden and unpredictable crises could strike.

The territory needed more powerful figures to guard it.

In comparison, while procurement matters were also important, they couldn’t occupy too many generals anymore.

He even considered recalling Sophia as well, for no other reason than that her Black Crow ability made her an expert at reconnaissance and intelligence gathering.

He didn’t directly order her back, but instead chose to ask and respect Sophia’s wishes. After all, it was no exaggeration to say that Blue Star Company had been developed entirely through Sophia’s efforts, having poured much of her heart and soul into it.

“Ah? No problem, caw! If the Boss gives orders, Sophia will definitely give her all, caw~!”

Since that was the case, Mu Yuan temporarily handed Blue Star matters over to Daisy, leaving her with two or three powerful members.

Mu Yuan himself, accompanied by Sophia and Uta, headed west toward the Gloomy Forest.

Generals like Dolai were still on their way back from transporting goods or exploring – there was no way to hurry them, which was also why Mu Yuan needed to recall the powerful figures back to the territory.

Returning to the territory required passing through the ‘medium’ he had left in the small villa in Baijiang City.

There was only this one entrance and exit.

If they waited until an emergency occurred to recall the generals, it might be too late.

…

West of Tianyuan Territory.

Bone Four led a group of Bone Buriers, Skeleton Generals, and Wraiths and Specters, clearing a path through the wilderness.

The trees here were unusually tall, and the environment was dim.

Sometimes when looking up, one could see spiderwebs woven by spiders as large as cars overhead, eerie and terrifying.

Of course, such experiences only existed in the past. As for now…

Whoosh whoosh whoosh—

Heavy Bone Spears tore through the air, shooting down the spiders coiled on the giant webs. Sometimes, Bone Four would command several Skeleton Mages to ignite faint will-o’-the-wisps, burning the spiderwebs to ashes.

“My Lord, you’ve arrived.”

Bone Four gave a slight bow, candlelight flickering in its eye sockets. “The boss has already gone ahead to scout the route. Please follow me.”

“Mm.”

Mu Yuan nodded.

What had arrived was naturally his versatile tool Incarnation.In the past, it wasn’t that he didn’t want to personally go to the front lines, but with his Mental Link talent and War Falcon vision, whether he was physically present or not made little difference. On the contrary, when he was on-site, the team had an obvious weakness. Such a weakness was usually inconsequential, but once a major crisis occurred, it could be fatal.

For the stability of his territory, Lord Mu had to suppress his explorer’s spirit and wholeheartedly stay within his domain.

He truly had it tough.

Mu Yuan surveyed his surroundings. They had already ventured over a hundred kilometers deep into the Gloomy Forest, a place the Tianyuan Territory had never set foot in before.

From here onward, the monsters would become more diverse.

Spiders, Evil Eyes, Shadow Hunters, and other monsters lurked within this silent forest, treating passersby as prey, but they could also become prey themselves in the hands of high-level hunters.

“It’s said this place was once a perilous and forbidden land, where the Goblin Kingdom, a dominant force, held the power of life and death. Many monster tribes once pledged allegiance to the Goblin Kingdom, making the Gloomy Forest almost a Forbidden Land for players, rarely visited.”

Although these were all things of the past, and the Goblin Kingdom had fallen, Mu Yuan couldn’t afford to let his guard down.

A centipede may die but never stiffen. Whether it was the Goblin Hero encountered in the Blue Star Border Zone or the Goblin Prince glimpsed by Deadbone while exploring the northern Wilderness, both were remnants of the Goblin Kingdom.

It was entirely possible that other powerful goblins were still hiding within the forest.

“There are signs of battle.”

Not far away was a charred crater, with remnants of equipment scattered inside.

Were they military gear? Or monster remains?

In the distance, loud monster roars echoed, making the entire forest feel even more sinister.

Here, although the vast majority of wandering monsters were no match for the elite undead forces, it was unwise to draw too much attention.

“That’s right, the boss always says the first step to a steady spirit is to lower your presence and keep a low profile.

“Compared to the Lord and the boss, I still have a long way to go in my training.”

Bone Four reflected deeply.

Although ordinary Fourth Order bosses were no match for it, what if, by chance, one, two, or three…

There were many unexpected situations, but only one way to avoid them.

It expanded its Undead Territory, temporarily storing the elite forces within the spatial confines of the domain, leaving only three Bone Generals and two Ghost Generals to guard the team.

They needed to keep some manpower on hand.

Otherwise, what if some monsters disturbed the esteemed Lord?

Mu Yuan took command and proceeded more cautiously through the dark forest. After a while, he glanced at Sophia. “I’ll take the left, you take the right. We’ll scout separately?”

“No problem, Boss.”

Tendrils of black mist emerged around Sophia.

These mists quickly intertwined, forming several black crows that silently flew into the woods, blending seamlessly with the gloomy forest environment.

Mu Yuan also loaded the ‘Sophia 80%’ template, molding several black crows of his own.

The crows became his tentacles, his eyes, spreading out in all directions.

They advanced along the safest route, avoiding combat as much as possible and causing no disturbances.

Soon,

“I’ve found something!”

In one location, a black crow perched on a branch, motionless as if dead, reflected this scene in its eyes.

The forest ahead was thinning.No, it wasn’t sparse, but the tall trees had suddenly become ‘shorter’. Compared to the hundred-meter-tall giant trees of the Gloomy Forest, the trees of Blue Star couldn’t even be described as short.

It was like a person with thick hair suddenly having a bald patch in the middle.

Even so, the surroundings were still a forest, with wisps of white mist drifting about, limiting the field of vision.

There seemed to be no trace of Blue Star’s architecture to be found.

However, when he stared at that clear ‘boundary line’, he could see that the entire boundary was advancing forward at a noticeable pace.

“The Interdimensional Zone is expanding?!”

Mu Yuan murmured.

Suddenly, Black Crow raised its head, and Mu Yuan himself, dozens of kilometers away, also looked up.

His gaze pierced through the dense foliage and the faint white mist, faintly revealing an inverted steel jungle hanging in the sky above.

That was the familiar city of Blue Star.

(End of Chapter)