Mist Lord

"If we can make good use of the brambles and thorny vines, we should be more than 80% confident."

"How so?"

Xia Yuan was indeed intrigued.

Satir's suggestion was to adjust the positions of the thorny grass and bramble vines in a timely manner.

Under normal circumstances, it's perfectly fine to evenly distribute thorny grass and brambles around the wooden city walls, mainly serving as an early warning and initial defense. Wartime is different; maximizing lethality is paramount.

The best approach is to dig numerous traps along the enemy's likely route to the south, and then transplant spiked grass into the traps. Once a mist monster steps on a trap, the suddenly emerging spikes will kill it.

Therefore, the traps do not need to be dug very deep, which can greatly improve digging efficiency.

The thorns and vines were all transplanted behind the wooden city wall on the south side, forming a wall of devouring, a wall of thorns.

Meanwhile, it would be best to urgently produce a batch of javelins and have the sword-and-shield dogs practice throwing them behind the wooden wall, marking the landing points on the south side. Although it's a bit rushed, it will at least be somewhat effective.

With wooden city walls serving as defensive fortifications, launching an offensive would be the most foolish approach; the advantage of the city walls should be utilized to the fullest extent.

"sure."

Xia Yuan was also impressed, not expecting Satir to possess such knowledge and wisdom. No wonder she carries the blood of the Elf King; she must have received an excellent education from a young age. "In that case, let's challenge the Hell difficulty."

Since we've already become the target of public criticism, there's no need to hide our talents. If we can't make a splash at first, then we'll make a splash again, and again, until the truth is revealed.

One can be low-key in life, but must be high-profile in work.

With the plan finalized, Xia Yuan personally led the digging of traps, transplanting brambles and thorny vines, making javelins, and marking the javelin throwing positions, working up a flurry of activity.

.........

While Mingguang Village was busy preparing for war, several new lords ran back to Yunyang City early in the morning.

For example, Xiao Xiong.

As Li Mingyu's subordinate lord, he had to inform Li Mingyu of Xia Yuan's promotion to level 2 lord as soon as possible, otherwise it would be a serious dereliction of duty. He also wanted to use this opportunity to ask Li Mingyu for some support in preparation for the upcoming novice trials.

Xia Yuan has already made such a big splash. As the only newcomer among Li Mingyu's subordinate lords, Xiao Xiong can't possibly be overshadowed by Xia Yuan again during the novice trial, can he? Have they no shame?

Xiao Xiong was even silenced by Xia Yuan for this, so he's definitely going to try and recoup his losses.

Wu Qianqian and Zhou Kui also had similar plans.

They were originally thinking of competing for second place, but who knew that a dark horse would suddenly appear, so they definitely had to increase their stakes.

Even Song Jing wasn't arrogant. He took the initiative to go to the City Lord's Mansion to seek the support of Alliance Leader Tang Ce so that he could pass the hellish novice trial and completely overwhelm Xia Yuan.

"A level 2 lord? Interesting."

Upon receiving the news, Tang Ce generously gifted Song Jing a third-tier archer slave and over a dozen second-tier archer slaves to compensate for Song Village's lack of ranged attacks.

This also included a precious contract scroll.

It's not that Tang Ce can't send more soldiers and slaves, but the more external aid there is, the lower the territory's score will be during the novice trial, which isn't necessarily a good thing. Besides, the support a great lord can give to his subordinate territories is also limited.

The ultimate goal is to cultivate helpers and train newcomers, not to frantically pile on resources to raise a spoiled brat. No matter how many resources are invested in the early stages, if the lord cannot establish himself, he will eventually fail.

While cheating is possible in the Novice Trials, the Civilization Trials match you with opponents of similar strength. The more support you receive, the stronger the opponents you'll be matched with. If the lord can't handle the situation, it will only do more harm than good.

Of course, we need to be more cautious.

Another very important point is that Tang Ce basically agrees with Song Jing's judgment. Xia Yuan was able to advance to level 2 first mainly due to that third-tier elven archer, plus a bit of luck.

In essence, he is still no match for Song Jing, let alone a threat.

There's no need to make a big fuss about it.

.........

"That kid actually survived and even became a Level 2 Lord first?"

The Great Territory would set up a fixed contact point in Yunyang City. Although Li Mingyu was not stationed in Yunyang City, he could still receive news from Yunyang City in a timely manner, and his face instantly darkened.

Isn't this a slap in the face for him?

They made a big show of dealing with a new lord, but not only did they fail to do anything, the new lord became even more arrogant.

This is an utter disgrace.

"Send Xiao Xiong a contract scroll, a third-tier soldier slave, and select a dozen or so second-tier soldier slaves. We must make sure to crush Xia Yuan in this novice trial."

The scores can be settled later, but we must save face right now, even if it means taking a huge risk.

Although he is a level 6 lord, how can his wealth compare to that of the alliance leader Tang Ce?

Fortunately, these slave soldiers were sent to Xiao Xiong's territory, serving both as an asset and as spies, allowing them to stay informed about the true situation in Xiao Xiong's territory and report back when the opportunity arose. The more slaves sent there, the stronger the control over the subordinate territories would be.

There is no such thing as a free lunch.

.........

Despite the conspiracies and schemes from the outside world, Mingguang Village continued to proceed in an orderly manner. As preparations drew to a close, it slowly approached noon.

[The beginner's trial has officially begun. Please select the trial difficulty.]

1. Common (1 Mist Fairy Grass)

2. Difficult (2 Mist Fairy Grasses)

3. Hell (3 Mist Fairy Grasses)

"Choose three!"

[Confirm selection, Mist Fairy Grass being deployed...]

In the next instant, three Mist Demon Grasses appeared out of thin air near the Black Stone Altar, emitting an extremely strong aura towards the surrounding misty area, attracting mist monsters to attack.

Every second of waiting was agonizing; everyone returned to their positions, ready for battle.

Xia Yuan, accompanied by Han Bao and Black Armor, sat at the gate tower, directing operations from the center. Satir guarded the arrow tower near the gate alone, ready to provide support at any time. Twelve wandering swordsmen and shieldmen, led by nine soldier swordsmen and shieldmen, lined up behind the wooden city wall, with a pile of javelins at their feet.

Sword and Shield One, along with the remaining five sword and shield soldiers, guarded the gate tower, responsible for protecting the gate and dealing with any who might slip through the wall.

Wang Er, Zhang Tie, and other serfs were responsible for transporting javelins and treating the wounded.

"Buzzing~~~"

"Squeak squeak~~~"

"Hiss~~~"

"Roar~~~"

Accompanied by various hissing and roaring sounds, the gray fog to the south surged violently, and swarms of fog monsters flew out.

Leading the charge were still hundreds of scorpion-tailed flies. On the ground, the gray mist rats naturally served as the vanguard, also numbering in the hundreds, with a gray mist rat leader bringing up the rear.

More than twenty gray mist mantises followed behind, exuding a murderous aura.

On either side of the Gray Mist Mantis were mist monsters they had never encountered before. On the left was a pack of second-tier Gray Mist wolves led by the Wolf King, and on the right were massive second-tier Gray Mist spiders, also known as Gray Widows.

The leaders of the Gray Mist Mantis, Gray Mist Wolf, and Gray Widow were all, without exception, third-tier beings.

The most terrifying of all was the giant worm that made its grand entrance at the end. It was as large as a train carriage and was clearly a peak-level Tier 3 monster.

The sheer oppressive feeling brought about by this group of mist monsters appearing together is unimaginable. Even from afar, they are terrifying, seemingly capable of easily flattening an entire village and merging it back into the mist.

No wonder it's called Hell Mode.

Let alone a level 2 territory, even a level 3 territory might not be able to withstand it.

"Now we really have to fight tooth and nail!"

Xia Yuan's expression was solemn. The fire beetle transformed into crimson armor, covering his original leather armor and adding another layer of protection. The description of the beast tide in the novice trial in the "Lord's Handbook" was far less shocking than what he was seeing now.

The black-armored figure remained silent as always, guarding the sides.

"Buzzing~~~"

Taking advantage of their flight, the scorpion flies launched the first attack on the gatehouse, forming a dark, dense swarm.

War, begin!