The developers still haven't forgiven the players.

In the damp crevices under the shade of a tree, a tiny, thumb-sized insect with a long tail crawled on all fours and quickly disappeared into the shadows.

The line of sight is raised.

You can see ancient trees with gnarled roots, strange rocks standing tall, and a trickling stream flowing across the riverbed.

A figure sped by, quickly passing over this ancient and unchanging mountain range.

There's no magical ability to shrink distances; it's simply that the speed is fast enough, as fast as a whirlwind passing by.

Jiang Chen took a step forward, landing on a tree stump that had been struck by lightning. He bent his knees and exerted force with the momentum.

A violent force emanated from beneath their feet, causing the tree stump to split open as if by an explosion.

Using this reaction force, he once again roared forward for nearly a hundred meters, appearing to onlookers like a god or demon.

At his rapid running speed, he could reach the Ministry of War in just one day.

In fact, Jiang Chen had been moving at this high speed for more than five hours.

Not long after the new player logged in and confirmed that everything was progressing smoothly, he quietly left the Creekstone Tribe.

Incidentally, he also buried new clay figures in certain locations within the tribe to ensure that deceased players could obtain new bodies on time.

Of course, his trip to the Ministry of War is not expected to take too long; this is more of a precautionary measure.

After all, he wasn't going to stay at the Ministry of War this time; he just planned to buy some things there.

Whether it's military strategy manuals or equipment, he'll buy some.

Anyway, low-level military skills and equipment aren't expensive, so we can buy more like we're stocking up on goods to prepare for the players.

Oh, and I also need to buy some grain seeds.

Everyone who embarks on the path of spiritual practice will become a glutton.

While it's true that people who live near mountains live off the mountains and rivers, the problem is that once the number of players increases, relying solely on wild animals from the nearby mountains and forests won't be enough to feed them all. We need to make preparations in advance in this regard.

……

In a desolate stone village, two wary Hou tribe soldiers exchanged a glance, their expressions simultaneously turning serious.

They sensed powerful creatures rushing towards them like bulldozers.

"What is it?"

"Should we notify the centurion?"

The two Hou tribe warriors hesitated.

Their main concern was whether this unknown creature was targeting their camp.

Fortunately, the ferocious creature quickly passed by, not paying attention to the two small Hou tribe warriors.

A moment later, a Hou tribesman with a few strands of golden hair appeared in the stone village.

Two Hou tribe warriors immediately came out to greet him: "Yunhou Centurion."

The centurion, known as Cloud Hou, was tired of these formalities and simply waved his hand, saying, "Have you all clearly seen what the other side looks like?"

The two Hou tribe warriors immediately shook their heads.

Faced with such an imposing presence, the two warriors, who were not even at the mid-stage of the Blood Refining Realm, dared not approach to investigate. They both concealed their auras and hid in the stone fortress, fearing that they would be discovered.

Speaking of which, this stone village was originally built by the human race, but it was abandoned a long time ago.

"Can you determine what race it is?" the Cloud Crow centurion asked again.

One of the Hou tribe warriors thought for a moment and said somewhat uncertainly, "Their aura seems to be that of a human."

"Impossible, absolutely impossible."

Yunhou instinctively retorted, "There are only three human tribes here, how could there be such a powerful expert?"

Before the two Hou tribe warriors could argue, he suddenly thought, "Could it be someone from the Ministry of War?"

Unable to make up his mind for the time being, Yunhou decided to go back and report to the centurion.

Perhaps we could suggest that the centurion lie low for a while and ignore the invitation from the Beastman warriors.

Once we're sure there's no real danger, we'll look for an opportunity to act.

……

Jiang Chen did not slow down his pace. He was unaware of the shadow his all-out sprint had cast on the Hou tribe soldiers.

He did notice two alien soldiers on the road, but he couldn't be bothered to pay them any attention.

Just like when you're walking down the street, you wouldn't intentionally step on an ant you see on the roadside.

Strength is often revealed through comparison.

Strictly speaking, his strength is not weak at this level.

Ever since he was taken in by the chief of the Xishi tribe and began to engage in cultivation, he realized that he had great talent.

Leaving aside his talent in combat, his training speed alone is astonishing.

The speed at which players level up by circulating their blood energy is a testament to this. Practicing the Yellow-level "Tiger Fiend Technique" allows the experience bar to increase after just one cycle of blood energy circulation.

For players who are used to killing monsters and leveling up, they may find this kind of tedious leveling up too boring and too slow.

But if other humans in this world heard about this, they would probably be green with envy.

After all, to refine and absorb the blood essence of other races, one must go to the battlefield to fight and risk one's life.

The vast majority of battles are fought to protect the tribe or to survive, rather than to absorb blood essence to become stronger.

The most common and orthodox path to becoming stronger is still through dedicated cultivation.

The problem is that ordinary humans might need to cultivate patiently for several months before they can even generate a wisp of blood energy.

And what about the players? If they have enough patience, they can level up in a day or two by simply practicing the military strategy.

Jiang Chen deliberately concealed this monstrous talent once he became aware of it.

When the Xishi tribe still existed, he was known to other tribesmen as having good talent, but unfortunately, he started cultivating a little too late.

When he secretly grew stronger to the same level as the chief of the Xishi tribe, he took the opportunity to go to the Ministry of War with the chief's granddaughter. They did not encounter the combined forces of the Gou and Hou tribes attacking the tribe.

It's no exaggeration to say that if he had been there, the outcome of the battle would have been very different.

Ultimately, if he hadn't been strong enough, he wouldn't have chosen to stay behind alone.

After all, even if he could gather a group of players, they wouldn't be of much help to him in the early stages.

"We're almost there."

A magnificent pass came into view.

Jiang Chen's heart stirred, and he silently slowed his pace and concealed his aura.

The Ministry of War was ahead of him.

The city wall, which is hundreds of feet high, is made of stone, yet it gleams with a faint metallic luster, leaving no doubt about its sturdiness.

Inside the city walls stands a towering ancient mountain, with thousands of densely packed steps that wind and spiral straight into the clouds.

Even from this distance, one can still see human figures moving about on these steps.

Soldiers wielding weapons, elderly people carrying supplies in baskets on their backs, and children climbing and playing—they are like diligent worker ants, each performing their own duties.

Jiang Chen had been to the Ministry of War before, so he knew very well that the top of this mountain was not the residence of some high-ranking official, but a battlefield stained with countless blood.