Mist Lord

"Pfft!"

Just as the last Gray Mist Rat was killed, lines of Gray Mist text appeared before Xia Yuan's eyes.

[Successfully quelled the beast tide and passed the territory advancement trial...]

Mingguang Village has been successfully promoted to a Level 2 territory, with 50 merit points and 1 wooden treasure chest awarded.

[Rank promoted to Third-Class Baron]

[Congratulations on becoming the first new lord in the Yanxia Alliance to advance to a level 2 territory! Bonus rewards include 150 merit points, 1 Bronze Chests, and one chance to draw one of three prizes.]

[The Tier 2 territory panel has been updated; please check it yourself...]

"call!"

Looking at the corpses scattered on the ground, Xia Yuan, who was already exhausted, quietly breathed a sigh of relief. The extra reward given by the gray fog was finally worth the adventure; otherwise, it would have been a huge loss.

After a fierce battle, six more Wandering Blade & Shield warriors were killed.

With the addition of the six that have already advanced to the Warrior Swordsman and Shield, only two Wandering Swordsman and Shield are still alive.

Nearly half of the workforce was eliminated...

Although the Blade & Shield Dog has a tenacious fighting spirit and great potential, its path to advancement is destined to be fraught with hardship.

Advance and you will become strong; retreat and you will perish.

[Choose one of the three awards]

1. Ice Beetle (Rare Quality)

2. Fire Beetle (Legendary Quality)

3. Golden Beetle (Rare Quality)

Choose option 2!

They were all beetles; without any prompts, Xia Yuan really wouldn't know which one to choose.

The armored beetle is a unique insect species found only in the Misty Continent. It has no intelligence of its own and needs to form a symbiotic contract with a host to transform into a keratinous insect armor that can cover its entire body.

The armored beetle itself can also continuously advance in rank; the higher the rank, the stronger the armor it transforms into. Rare quality armored beetles can be upgraded to a maximum of rank three, while legendary quality ones can be upgraded to rank four.

Of course, the obvious choice is the second option.

Among the known beetles, the Ice Beetle has frost properties, the Fire Beetle has fire properties, the Gold Beetle can transform into weapons, the Wood Beetle can heal its host, and the Earth Beetle is known for its defense; each has its own unique characteristics.

A flash of white light.

A strange beetle, resembling a cicada and fiery red, appeared in Xia Yuan's palm.

[Name]: Fire Beetle

[Quality]: Legendary

[Rank]: First Rank

[Evaluation]: A rare, legendary beetle, one in a million. It feeds on the host's vital energy and blood, and can advance in rank by consuming mist bud crystals. The beetle's rank should not exceed that of the host, otherwise there is a risk of vital energy deficiency.

In theory, as long as there are enough mist bud crystals, the fire beetles can be stacked to the fourth tier.

But that's no different from courting death.

Although fire beetles spend most of their time dormant, they still need to replenish their energy by absorbing the life force of their host. They especially need to eat a lot after a battle.

Xia Yuan's current strength is only at the first level. To avoid depleting his qi and blood, he can only maintain the status quo for the time being.

Fortunately, the armored beetle has no independent consciousness and poses no threat to its host. Once the host dies, it regresses into its larval form, enters a long hibernation, and waits to be chosen by the next host—very Zen-like indeed.

Pressing the fire beetle against the back of my neck, it quickly embeds itself into my flesh, and I feel no pain whatsoever during the process. Once the neural connection is established, a single thought is all it takes to transform it into the beetle.

Crimson keratin flowed like a liquid, covering Xia Yuan's chest and back, instantly transforming into a crimson breastplate. It looked cold, but felt warm to the touch, its material almost identical to leather.

The protective capabilities of a Tier 1 insect armor are indeed comparable to those of leather armor, with the added benefit of warmth.

"We still need to improve our strength as soon as possible."

Otherwise, even if they obtained a treasure like the Fire Beetle, they wouldn't be able to unleash their true power.

.........

After the battle, Xia Yuan busied himself dissecting the corpses of scorpion-tailed flies, gray mist rats, and gray mist mantises, obtaining several special materials such as scorpion-tailed poison needles, gray mist rat skins, and mantis knives, as well as 165 mist bud crystals.

After taking the Mist Sprout Crystal, the injured sword and shield dogs all returned to the training camp to rest.

There were also over two hundred pounds of gray mist rat meat. It seemed like a lot, but as the number of sword-and-shield dogs increased and their appetites grew, it was barely enough to sustain their daily needs, and they couldn't store much meat in reserves.

After the monster fragments were broken down, Xia Yuan did not continue to feed them to the ground thorn grass.

That was enough for them to digest.

The key point is that both of the reward chests this time yielded great items.

[Woodworking Workshop Building Blueprint]: This blueprint allows you to build a woodworking workshop, capable of crafting common furniture such as tables, chairs, and benches. Construction Requirements: 50 units of wood, 50 units of stone. Construction Time: Half a day.

【Thorn Vine Seeds】: A mutated plant native to the Misty Zone. It feeds on corpses and rotting flesh, usually disguised as an ordinary vine. When enemies attack, it will take the initiative to attack, and its flower buds will devour people.

Both being mutated plants, unlike the ground thorn grass which is more suited for early warning, the thorn vine is a defensive weapon, somewhat similar to a manned arrow tower.

The seeds of thorn vines are also rare, with only 24 seeds in a bag. Xia Yuan planted them all in various defensive corners inside the fence, especially in the four blind spots and near the gatehouse.

The remaining scraps can be fed to the thorny vines; they might even be of some use tomorrow.

.........

After finishing up the war, Xia Yuan finally had time to check the updated territory panel.

[Territory Name]: Mingguang Village

[Lord]: Xia Yuan (Third-Class Baron)

[Territory Level]: Level 2

[Territory Population]: 41 (including 13 goblin cubs)

[Territory Troops]: Elf Archer *1, Warrior Swordsman *15, Wanderer Swordsman *2

[Territory Area]: 4 square kilometers

[Territory Funds]: 79 Silver Coins, 30 Copper Coins

[Territory Resources]: 122 Mist Sprout Crystals, 100 Wood, 150 Stone

[Existing Buildings]: Sword and Shield Dog Training Camp, Basic Blacksmith Shop, Woodworking Workshop, Simple Arrow Tower *1, Well

[Upgradeable Buildings]:

[Blackstone Altar]: Level 2, the core structure for defending against the invasion of gray fog; if destroyed, the territory is destroyed. Consumes a fixed 2 Mist Sprout Crystals daily. Upgrade requirement: 12 Low-grade Black Crystals.

[Lord's Lodge]: The lord's residence and the core council chamber of the territory. Upgrade requirements: 100 units of wood, 50 units of stone. Upgrade time: Six hours.

[Wooden Wall]: A basic defensive fortification with a circumference of 4 kilometers. It offers some defensive capability and can block attacks from low-level mist monsters. Upgrade Requirements: 500 units of wood. Upgrade Time: Half a day.

[Buildable Structures]:

【英雄殿堂】：召唤类建筑，领地等级达到2/4/6/8等时，可获得一次免费招募英雄机会。建造条件：木材50单位，石材100单位。建造时间：半天。

[Miniature Fog Lighthouse]: Observes activity within a 5-kilometer radius of the lighthouse using a super fog light. Construction Requirements: 100 units of wood, 150 units of stone. Construction Time: Half a day.

[Basic Slave Camp]: Used to hold prisoners of war, effectively reducing their resistance. Maximum capacity: 200 people. Construction requirements: 150 units of wood, 100 units of stone. Construction time: 1 day.

[Territory Upgrade Requirements]:

① Complete all basic construction

②The territory's population reached 160

③ The lord's title reaches the rank of third baron

④ The territory covers an area of ​​16 square kilometers.

Reaching level 2 in your territory does indeed bring about a small transformation. Not only can the Blackrock Altar, Lord's Hut, and Wooden Fence be upgraded, but three new basic buildings have also been added: the Hall of Heroes, the Mist Beacon, and the Slave Camp.

The Blackrock Altar has been automatically upgraded.

The remaining resources should be prioritized for building the Hall of Heroes. Wang Er, Zhang Tie, and the others continued chopping trees and moving stones; they should be able to build the Fog Beacon and even upgrade the wooden city walls before nightfall.

The lord's cabins and slave camps, however, can be postponed.

When the novice trial begins tomorrow, Mingguang Village will undergo a major transformation.

Having finally settled down and had some free time after arranging the territory's development plan, Xia Yuan found Satir resting in the lord's cabin.

This meritorious individual deserves some extra reward...