Chapter 78 – Involution

The troops in Mu Yuan’s household all held promising futures, though their current ranks were rather unremarkable.

Of the 180-plus rare troops, over half were below Level 6. Of course, even at lower levels, they could still effortlessly crush common-tier troops at the peak of the apprentice stage.

If several dozen Skeleton Warriors simultaneously performed Charged Throws, even powerful beings like Deadbone and Dolai would have to steer clear.

“It doesn’t matter much if most of the core forces have low levels, but it’s frustrating when the main elites can’t level up.”

In recent days, he had purchased a batch of Pure Crystal Dust to help Deadbone absorb Soul Sand more quickly.

That kid Deadbone was estimated to break through tonight, advancing to the first-tier Professional Tier.

And with its incredibly luxurious configuration—surpassing even the generals of many veteran lords—once it reached the Professional Tier, it would undergo a earth-shattering improvement!

Or rather, it wasn’t an improvement, but the Undead Emperor “unsealing” more of its power.

It had been restricted by its excessively low level!

“However, Bone Two and Bone Three only reached LV9 two days ago. No matter how hard they try, it’s too late unless I spend heavily on auxiliary cultivation treasures, but that’s not worth it.”

He wasn’t the only one in this situation. Many pay-to-win second-generation gamers also couldn’t cultivate the rare troops they acquired or recruited in the “late stage” in time. For example, among the rare troops Tan Moumou deployed yesterday, two were only Level 7.

For these pay-to-win players, their trump cards were still their initial rare troops…

Or so one would think!

「The eldest son of White River Real Estate has invested heavily in purchasing auxiliary cultivation materials, vowing to promote more Professional Tier experts before the trial begins to compete fiercely for the rankings!」

「The son of the Northern Court Wang Clan, a top-tier second-generation heir, has already cultivated two rare Professional Tier experts and claims this is just the beginning.」

「The head of the Red Lotus Group revealed that they have invested far more resources than in previous years to cultivate the newcomers signed this term.」

「The prices of auxiliary cultivation materials have skyrocketed recently. Experts advise against excessive involution.」

In previous years, there indeed wasn’t such intense involution. Even top-tier second-generation heirs wouldn’t receive endless investments from their families.

The cost-effectiveness was too low.

However, this year, with the appearance of the Crimson Mist and the early trial, veteran lords and Great Lords with more insider information understood that a wave was about to hit.

The future situation for newbie lords would be more difficult and dangerous, yet also full of opportunities.

Thus, they increased their investments.

Even if some parents or elders felt it unnecessary—believing it was enough to pass the trial steadily—they couldn’t resist the pressure when other lords in their circles were involved. If they didn’t join the involution, wouldn’t it imply they were inferior? How could they save face!

“With all these second-generation heirs involved like this, how are we ordinary, weak, and pitiful commoner lords supposed to survive? How infuriating!”

“Never mind, never mind. It’s just the Professional Tier. The Undead Emperor and General Dolai can easily take on several of them without breaking a sweat.”

He wasn’t jealous at all, really!

…

Mu Yuan continued preparing war supplies. The Blacksmith operated clang-clang-clang twenty-four hours a day, producing crate after crate of arrows and Bone Spears.

As for items like energy recovery potions and supplies, he couldn’t produce them himself and had to purchase them externally.

He needed to prepare extensively so that his Skeleton Warriors and Sharpshooters could unleash their firepower freely.

He certainly didn’t neglect daily tasks like exploration and monster subjugation.

While the second-generation heirs were spending heavily, as a commoner player, he could only rely on grinding.”There are still over three days left. While it’s difficult to cultivate Professional Tier experts, obtaining rare blueprints or rare-grade war machinery can still significantly boost the territory’s combat power. Their role in city defense might even far surpass that of ordinary Professional Tier experts.”

Mu Yuan turned his gaze toward the Snakefolk Tribe deep in the swampland, and the mysterious, alluring shrine structure near the tribe.

Over these days, Mu Yuan had repeatedly scouted the Snakefolk Tribe through the Hurricane Falcon.

His conclusion was clear: they were strong and vast.

While he dared to control the Hurricane Falcon for quick glimpses into the Goblin Camp outside the Secret Realm Gate, he wouldn’t risk it with this tribe-level Snakemen settlement.

Asun would definitely not return if forced to go in—no need to ask how he knew, the answer was in the past.

The Snakefolk Tribe frequently harassed his territory as well. Whenever Deadbone led an exploration team into the Southwest Swampland, they would inevitably face Snakemen ambushes.

In short, their entangled grudges had lasted for days, but it would soon end.

He declared it!

The night was deep, with hoarse cries occasionally echoing through the swampland. The distant Snakefolk Tribe lit bonfires, illuminating their surroundings.

They were the dominant force in the area, and no foolish monsters dared provoke them.

In the profound darkness, a Slime descended from the sky. The Hurricane Falcon, serving as a transport, remained on standby in the periphery, while the airdropped Dolai transformed into a small turtledove, peering from afar under the cover of night.

Before the campaign began, Mu Yuan had airdropped Dolai for one more reconnaissance, leveraging its small size advantage.

The innate talent Mental Link connected his and Dolai’s thoughts. Of course, the Mental Link only provided a vague sense of the linked being’s surroundings, far less clear than Vision Sharing.

But Dolai wasn’t a fool; it had eyes, intelligence, and could describe things—that was enough.

This was General Dolai!

“Guji guji guji…”

There were Snakemen that looked like this, Snakemen that looked like that, and huge serpent monsters.

After hearing Dolai’s description, Lord Mu fell silent for a moment. He resolved to enforce nine-year compulsory education for Dolai when he had time. No, he could simply establish schools in the territory and universalize compulsory education—even Skeleton Warriors could learn.

…

Dolai’s descriptions were rather abstract, but Mu Yuan managed to deduce that the entire Snakefolk Tribe not only had a variety of monster types but also included massive serpents.

These seemed to be some kind of war machinery, usually staying submerged in the swamp and only occasionally surfacing for air. Dolai had only noticed them after wandering around for a while.

However, Mu Yuan didn’t dare let Dolai venture too deep, only allowing it to observe from the periphery before withdrawing.

After some thought, he sent Dolai to the nearby Mysterious Shrine.

“Guji~”

Dolai acknowledged the order, its entire body morphing into a dull gray sphere that rolled along, quickly arriving next to the tribe, before the ancient and enigmatic shrine.

Mu Yuan had observed this unique structure from afar before. It wasn’t located within the Snakefolk Tribe, but elite Snakemen from the tribe were always stationed in front of the shrine.

They wielded sabers, shuffling and patrolling before the shrine, blocking all prying eyes.

But a very inconspicuous, shrunken blob of coagulated fluid, now only half a palm in size, inched and sidled its way along, secretly infiltrating the shrine.The interior of the Shrine was spacious, with thick pillars lining both sides of the path—each so large it would take two or three humanoid Dolais to encircle them. At the far end, what appeared to be divine statues were enshrined.

But they were damaged versions.

This was the conclusion Mu Yuan painstakingly pieced together based on Dolai’s descriptions.

Moreover, as soon as Dolai infiltrated the Shrine, it noticed…

In the distance, several Snakemen stood before the statues, murmuring indistinctly. The next moment, a mysterious radiance descended upon them, and the Snakemen’s bodies grew noticeably stronger.

(End of Chapter)