Survival of the Nation: My luck was a tiny bit worse.

"That's what I think too."

Chen Hao nodded. "So I've kept the patrol range in the north and south within three kilometers for now, so it doesn't expose itself too far. This gives them the illusion that our defense range is limited—that we can expand the encirclement at any time if we really need to take action."

"Good." Leng Ruolan agreed and specifically praised him. "Keep a vigilant attitude. Also, have Hassan and his men speed up the deployment of early warning traps, ensuring that all possible approach routes within a two-kilometer radius of the camp are covered."

"Haha, I knew you'd say that!" That's the bond between them!

Chen Hao pushed up his glasses with a smug look. "One-third of it has been set up, and it is expected to be completed by tomorrow evening."

Leng Ruolan smiled, "Not fast enough. We'll work overtime tonight and it has to be finished by noon tomorrow."

"Okay!"

After hearing the order, Chen Hao grabbed his laptop and ran off.

*

Ou Yun and Leng Ruolan slowly made their way towards the house.

Leng Ruolan suddenly asked, "Do you think there are any new contestants from the US among those three groups?"

Ou Yun said it was unlikely, "The last batch of American athletes just died not long ago, and the new candidates haven't been deployed yet."

But then I thought again—

"They are most likely from other countries, either newcomers who don't know our background, or established teams who think they have the strength to challenge us."

Regardless of which one, the result is the same.

Ou Yun watched as Captain Leng had somehow pulled out a short knife and was carefully wiping it with a dangerous expression, as if he were protecting his most cherished treasure—or like a mother leopard sharpening her claws.

"Captain Leng..."

Mr. Ou took two deep breaths. "You look like a major villain, you know that?"

"In forbidden areas, villains live longer."

Leng Ruolan's smile deepened. "Let's go and prepare for tonight's bonfire meeting."

*

Night fell faster than expected.

The campfire in the camp was burning brightly, and nine people sat around a large wooden table. On the table were the usual three dishes: grilled fish, wild vegetable soup, honey pancakes, and several fruits that the White Fox Prince had personally presented as tribute.

After seeing the waffle, Ou Yun's heart finally settled down—then he picked up the fruit and took a bite without expression.

"Huh? Why didn't it add any attributes?"

Chen Hao chimed in from the side, "Oh, I forgot to mention, it's added randomly!"

"..."

Everyone started eating.

Leng Ruolan gave a detailed account of what she had discovered today in the basin west of the circular valley.

Chen Hao used a large wooden board as a tactical board, on which he drew the approximate terrain of the basin, the location of the pillars, and the general direction of the purple mist's transmission using charcoal.

"There are three conclusions from the current analysis."

Leng Ruolan pointed to the rough diagram on the wooden board and said, "First, this pillar is very likely a device for collecting and converting abyssal energy, similar in function to the abyssal veins we have seen, but on a much larger scale."

"Secondly, it is very likely that it was not formed naturally, but was built by some kind of awesome creature—most likely a lord-level thing."

"Third, the energy it transmits to the west is likely related to lords in other regions."

Alexander crossed his arms, frowned, and asked, "So, the abyssal energy in the forest isn't independent, but part of a larger network?"

"Yes, and this network may cover the entire forbidden area."

Leng Ruolan drew seven circles on the wooden board, representing seven areas, and then connected them together with lines.

"If each area has similar pillars, then there may be some kind of energy transfer relationship between these pillars."

"The reason the Forest Lord chose to operate in this area is likely because it is related to these pillars."

"Then why did it retreat last time?"

Maxim asked, "Since the pillar is a lord-level entity, why doesn't it just kill us?"

"Because of the sword in my elder brother's hand."

Leng Ruolan said slowly, "Last time, the Forest Lord was quite wary of Big Brother's Abyss Sword."

At that moment, everyone's eyes turned to the longsword at Ou Yun's waist, which gleamed with a dark red light.

Ou Yun looked down at the sword, then pulled it out and placed it on the table.

The firelight reflected off the sword, making the dark red patterns seem to flow slowly, emanating a subtle sense of oppression.

"So our plan is to strike first."

Leng Ruolan continued, "Since the forest lord is wary of this sword, then we will use this sword to deal with it. Before that, we need to do two things."

She held up two fingers.

"First, strengthen the camp's defenses and block any players attempting to approach. The area interaction function has been activated, and our camp's coordinates will be discovered sooner or later... well, rather, they've already been discovered."

"Therefore, in the coming period, more and more people will come to probe, and some may even unite to attack. What we need to do is make sure they don't leave alive."

"Second, take the initiative and find out the forest lord's lair."

"The pillar we see in the basin today is likely just one node in an energy network. If we can find the core of this network—or directly locate the lair of the forest lord—we can strike before it has a chance to prepare."

"Fighting a lord-level monster head-on..."

It was impossible not to be nervous. Ivan subconsciously swallowed. "Last time, it trapped three S-class behemoths and the two of us with just a flick of its finger—"

"Last time is last time, this time we are prepared."

Leng Ruolan didn't really care. In war, isn't it just a matter of who's stronger? Besides, this was a war that had to be fought.

She stood up, walked to the weapons rack, and took down a few items, placing them on the table.

"These are all the equipment Brother Chen has been training intensively for recently. With the added weapons, it should be enough for you to strengthen your own training."

She paused, her expression twitching slightly.

"Plus my brother's Abyss Sword and my 9999999999 damage-boosting Purple Gold Wolf Blazing Gale Flame Dragon Descends Frenzy Chasing the Sun and Moon Severing Cliff Green Eternal Courage Demon Slayer Battle Blade."

Hassan: ...

Alexander: ...

Hold on, try your best to hold on.

Chen Hao covered his mouth, trembling, "It's not easy for you to memorize this name..."

The atmosphere eased a bit.

"Ahem... In short..."

Leng Ruolan slapped the table. "Starting today, the camp will enter a state of war."

"Normal production cannot be stopped during the day; we should farm when it's time to farm and hunt when it's time to hunt."

"Patrols and vigilance have been doubled, and all weapons must be in a state of readiness."

"Brothers from the Xiong Kingdom and the Pakistan Kingdom, you have more experience in defensive fortifications than we do, so you will take the lead in this matter."