Chapter 175: System Announcement, Upcoming Server Merge Update

Cao Xing took a large pile of Jungle Boar bones, tusks, and Face-Tree bark out of his backpack.

These materials were all dropped by monsters of Tier 3 or higher.

They could be used to craft Tier 3, or level 20+, equipment.

Furthermore, since this pile included materials dropped by many elite and boss-level creatures, it could be used to craft quite a few blue, or even purple, pieces of equipment.

Seeing the pile of materials on the ground, a hint of surprise appeared in Harold's eyes.

"My Lord, it seems your haul from this excursion is quite astonishing!"

"If I finish crafting all these materials, there is a high probability I will reach the rank of Advanced Blacksmith."

Cao Xing smiled again. "That's great, Harold. I'll leave all these materials to you; feel free to work your magic."

He added a reminder: "However, with so many materials, it might take a long time to craft everything."

"If you get tired, feel free to rest or read a book. There's no need to force yourself to work too late."

Harold replied, "I understand. Thank you for your concern, My Lord!"

"Let me first see what these materials you brought today can be used for."

"Alright, take a look."

Harold picked up the pile of materials from the ground, nodding as he inspected them.

At the same time, a look of contemplation flashed in his eyes.

He seemed to be considering what would be best to craft with these materials.

A moment later, he had his answer.

"My Lord, let's follow yesterday's method: use all the beast bones to craft light armor."

"As for these tusks, we will use them to craft spearheads or daggers."

"As for this bark, to be honest, it is my first time seeing such a material…"

Cao Xing smiled.

It was normal for Harold not to have seen it; after all, creatures like the Face-Tree were rare on this continent.

Or rather, aside from the Witch Forest, one basically couldn't find Face-Trees anywhere else.

Harold mused, "This Face-Tree bark is most suitable for making leather armor."

"I can sense the aura of life within it; I imagine it should be quite good."

Cao Xing nodded, as the system description for the Face-Tree bark also stated it was for crafting leather armor.

At this moment, Harold continued to ask, "My Lord, do you have any blueprints? If not, I will craft them based on the knowledge in my mind."

Cao Xing pondered for a moment after hearing this.

Naturally, crafting equipment in a smithy required blueprints.

But as mentioned before, this was a real world.

Those blacksmiths had encountered many pieces of equipment in their time and already had memories of many blueprints in their minds.

Therefore, they could forge them by relying on the memories in their minds.

And the two blueprints he had just received were both Tier 2.

It would be a bit of a waste to use these Tier 3 materials to craft Tier 2 equipment.

Thus, Cao Xing said, "Harold, just forge them according to your own ideas."

"As you command, My Lord!"

At this moment, Cao Xing took out a large pile of vines.

From Green-grade Tough Vines, to Blue-grade Resilient Vines, and finally Purple-grade Elder Vines.

There were nearly seven thousand of them in total!

Cao Xing could only transfer them to the storage box next to the smithy first.

Otherwise, the entire smithy wouldn't be able to fit so many vines.

Looking at the vines in the storage box, a look of surprise appeared in Harold's eyes again.

He tried pulling on one, only to discover that with his Tier 2 strength, he couldn't even break the most basic Tough Vine.

Harold exclaimed in shock, "What tough vines!"

"My Lord, did you wipe out a Tree Spirit tribe?"

Cao Xing smiled and shook his head. "Not quite. These vines and that bark are materials from the same creature."

"Harold, check if these vines can replace ropes to make grappling hooks."

Harold said excitedly, "Yes! With these vines, the grappling hooks will be even more resilient, and could even capture stronger monsters!"

Cao Xing felt pleased upon hearing this. "Very good. Then you can put other equipment aside tomorrow and prioritize making a large number of grappling hooks."

Cao Xing planned to give every single Ascalon Warrior, Wild Boar Warrior, and archer a [Grappling Hook].

This thing was a good item.

Especially when dealing with large beasts; firing over a hundred grappling hooks at once could firmly trap the opponent.

The combined strength of over a hundred Tier 2 Ascalon Warriors could even drag Tier 3 or 4 bosses, or even Leader-level creatures!

Then Cao Xing could safely deal damage.

Harold nodded. "Understood, My Lord. However, making grappling hooks will also require a significant amount of copper…"

"Feel free to use it, Harold."

"However, it is already very late today, so remember to rest early as well."

Harold said excitedly, "Thank you for your concern, My Lord. I am preparing to rest immediately!"

Cao Xing collected all the equipment and arrows that Harold had crafted.

[Obtained: Beast Bone Light Armor (Green) * 65]

[Obtained: Beast Bone Light Armor (Blue) * 7]

[Obtained: Tusk Armor (Green) * 11]

[Obtained: Tusk Armor (Blue) * 3]

[Obtained: Arrows * 300]

After doing this, Cao Xing left the smithy.

…

Checking the time, it was already past eleven o'clock at night.

Cao Xing thought to himself, "Time to rest. I'll deal with everything else tomorrow."

With that, he walked straight to the entrance of the Lords Cabin and pushed it open.

Then he went to the bathroom on the first floor.

Here, Cao Xing saw a black mechanical device, and next to it was a large water storage tank filled with a large amount of hot water.

This was the [Magic Energy Water Storage Device], which Du An had finished constructing today.

Cao Xing enjoyed a refreshing hot shower.

Then he exclaimed, "This thing is really convenient. Now we don't need to boil water ourselves to take a bath."

After showering, Cao Xing went straight to the second floor of the Lords Cabin.

At this time, Liu Muxue still had her bright eyes open, as if waiting for Cao Xing to return.

As a Survivor, she naturally saw the bustling activity on the chat channel and knew that Cao Xing had been busy trading with other Survivors until now.

Seeing him come in, a gentle smile appeared on Liu Muxue's face.

"You've worked hard, A-Xing. Come back and rest; the covers are already nice and warm."

Then, she took the initiative to lift the blanket and patted the pillow beside her.

Cao Xing smiled. "Alright, I'm coming."

With that, he took off his clothes and slipped under the covers.

In the warm Lords Cabin, the two fell asleep in each other's arms…

…

The next day…

Around eight o'clock, Cao Xing and Liu Muxue both woke up.

Several system prompts appeared.

[Attention, all Survivors: You have survived the third day of the official period.]

[Because your region has reached 100 Survivors at level 10 or higher, the level ranking board has ended.]

[Seven days into the official period, there will be the first small-scale server merge. Ten nearby regions will merge into one, and a new round of updates will be released. Please be prepared…]

[Weather Forecast: Moderate snow turning to light snow today. Not suitable for going outside.]

…

Seeing this series of system prompts, a look of contemplation appeared in Cao Xing's eyes.

Meanwhile, Liu Muxue asked in confusion, "A-Xing, what is a server merge?"

As a woman who didn't play many games, Liu Muxue didn't quite understand the meaning of a server merge.

Cao Xing explained, "It means the people from several regions are combined into one region, so we can travel to farther places."

"I guess the system saw that a lot of people died in every region, so it launched this update."

A look of realization appeared in Liu Muxue's eyes after hearing this.

She asked softly, "Will the server merge have any impact on us?"

"It should."

Cao Xing replied, "A server merge has both pros and cons for us."

"The benefit is that there will be more people, and the resources on the market will also increase."

"The downside is that because there are more people, it will lead to a mix of good and bad, which may trigger conflicts."

"However, I checked the World Channel, and I don't think any other Survivor's territory has developed to our level, so the impact won't be significant."

Hearing this, a smile also appeared on Liu Muxue's face.

She also knew that their territory's development progress was far ahead of other Survivors.

At this moment, Cao Xing handed the three Aurora Knight skill books he traded for last night to Liu Muxue.

After seeing the skill books in her hands, Liu Muxue didn't say much.

Instead, she wrapped her arms around Cao Xing's neck and gave him a 'smack' kiss.

Cao Xing stroked her head and said, "Learn the skill books, and then we'll get up."

"Mm-hmm."

Liu Muxue clapped her hands together and clicked to learn all three skill books immediately.

Like Cao Xing, it took Liu Muxue two or three minutes to absorb all the memories.

Then, the two got dressed, washed up briefly, and pushed open the door of the Lords Cabin.

Whoosh—

The howling cold wind blew past.

Outside, the wind and snow were still filling the sky.

Just as the weather forecast said, it was still lightly snowing today, not suitable for going out.

"A-Xing, it's still snowing. We can't go too far today."

Cao Xing replied, "It doesn't matter. We don't have anything urgent to do anyway."

"We can just take this time to buff all the Ascalon Warriors."

Buffing over a hundred people was a huge project that required a lot of time.

Of course, the returns are also very high.

Over a hundred soldiers with various permanent status effects, combined with the bond skill: Fearless Charge, are extremely ferocious!

Besides that, Cao Xing also plans to use the 106 Wild Boar Warrior recruitment scrolls in his backpack today to form a Wild Boar Warrior legion.

Then, he also needs to exchange for Hearts of Strength, exchange for Gold Treasure Chests, and so on.

These are all things that need to be done.

Therefore, even if they don't go out today, they are very busy.

After hearing what Cao Xing said, Liu Muxue nodded and said, "Mm, I will also do my best!"

The two of them walked out of the Lords Cabin together.

Just like before.

The villager Cao Yi, along with Da Zhuang and the other Arctic People, were waiting in the open space at the center of the territory.

Seeing them approach, they all bowed and said.

"Lord, may you be in good health."

"My Lady, your beauty is like that of an ethereal fairy, becoming more beautiful with each passing day."

Cao Xing was already accustomed to these greetings from the villagers.

He then called Cao Yi over directly.

"Cao Yi, looking at the weather today, can we still continue to extract resources?"

The villager Cao Yi respectfully replied, "Of course you can, Lord."

"Most of our villagers work inside the mine and will not be disturbed by the wind and snow."

"As long as we clear the snow from the tracks, we can operate normally."

Da Zhuang from the Arctic People chimed in, "That's right! Lord, we Arctic People work regardless of wind or rain!"

Cao Xing said, "Very good, then you can continue to extract resources today."

"Cao Yi, take a group of people to lay the tracks near that forest, and I will send people to clear out the monsters inside."

"As you command, Lord!"

After saying this, Cao Yi led Da Zhuang and the others out.

Although it was still 'light snow' outside, this still couldn't dampen their enthusiasm for work.

"Kantor, Kandaer, you two lead a few Imperial Soldiers to the forest discovered yesterday and clear out the monsters."

"If you encounter danger, remember to contact me immediately via the communication device on your ears."

The two Centaurs straightened their bodies and nodded in unison, "As you command, Lord!"

"The Centaurs are going to show off their skills again!"

After saying this, they also led a few soldiers and walked out of the territory.

Then Cao Xing looked at Du An of the Arctic People.

"Du An, I've kept twenty Arctic People here today because your tasks are quite heavy."

A look of seriousness flashed across Du An's resolute face, "Lord, please give your orders!"

"Du An will definitely do his best to complete the tasks you have assigned."

"Very good."

Cao Xing continued, "Your tasks for today are to first upgrade the 10 Elemental Arrow Towers to intermediate level, then upgrade the Cow Shed to intermediate level, as well as the Bonfire to level 15."

"Prioritize upgrading the Alchemy Workshop to intermediate level."

"Besides that, you also need to build the Training Grounds, Hot Spring, and Medical Room."

"Oh, that's right, also upgrade all of our toilets to intermediate level."

"There are quite a few tasks, it doesn't matter if you can't finish them all, you can take them one by one."

Du An carefully noted down every task Cao Xing assigned on the side.

Then he solemnly replied, "As you command, Lord!"

The other Arctic People were also full of energy.

"Rest assured, Lord, we will definitely go all out to complete the things you have assigned!"

Cao Xing nodded, "Very good, then go to work now."

After receiving the orders, all the Arctic People and staff had work to do.

But at this moment, Cao Xing fell into deep thought.

Because he was considering one thing.

That is, whether or not to spend 100,000 Ice Dragon Marks to exchange for 100 Primary Hearts of Strength, allowing all the Ascalon Warriors to break through to the second tier…

Although he had an idea last night, he was still a bit reluctant.

After all, 100,000 Ice Dragon Marks are enough to exchange for an Ice Dragon Gold Treasure Chest.

And there is a high probability of getting golden items from a Gold Treasure Chest.

After pondering for a moment, Cao Xing decided to exchange them!

By comparison.

One hundred second-tier Ascalon Warriors provide a greater boost than a Gold Treasure Chest.

And since it is currently the Ice Nest period, the earlier they break through, the better; they will soon be able to reach level 20 as a group.

Thinking of this, Cao Xing shouted directly, "All Ascalon Warriors, assemble!"

After hearing Cao Xing's call.

In less than thirty seconds.

All the Ascalon Warriors came to Cao Xing's side, lining up in a neat and uniform formation.

The quality of the soldiers was fully displayed.

They gazed at Cao Xing, their new Lord, with fiery eyes.

Cao Xing first took out the dozens of first-tier green and blue equipment from his backpack.

Although there wasn't that much first-tier equipment forged by Harold yesterday.

But Cao Xing had also looted quite a bit of first-tier armor from killing monsters before.

Adding it all up, he barely managed to scrape together 102 sets.

Cao Xing said, "Come over and collect your new equipment; there are some Excellent-grade armors inside, drawn at random."

"But the difference isn't big."

Hearing this, all the Ascalon Warriors walked over one by one, took off their Imperial standard armor, and put on the brand-new Beast Bone Light Armor.

It took three minutes for them to finish changing their equipment.

At this moment, with the group of soldiers wearing the Beast Bone Light Armor, they looked a bit less like serious soldiers and instead had a bit more of a savage temperament.

But they could all feel that these new armors could better protect them.

And on the battlefield, a good set of armor can greatly reduce the casualty rate.

At this moment, a look of being moved appeared in the eyes of the Ascalon Warriors.

"Thank you, Lord!"

"You are truly a good Lord who cares for your subordinates."

Then, hundreds of loyalty increase notifications appeared in front of Cao Xing.

The loyalty of these Ascalon Warriors all increased by 2-3 points.

A smile appeared on the corner of Cao Xing's mouth.

With the faction favorability at Intimate, this loyalty increases really quickly.

At this time, an Ascalon Warrior named Caris stepped forward and said, "Lord! Please give us our tasks for today!"

"We can't wait to go out and fight!"

The other Ascalon Warriors also chimed in, "That's right, with the Lord's blessing, we feel like we are constantly getting stronger every day!"

Cao Xing laughed, "Don't be in a rush, your current levels have reached a bottleneck, so today's task is to continue improving."

After saying this, he opened the [Dragon Shop] directly and found the Primary Heart of Strength to start the exchange.

A system notification appeared.

[Do you wish to consume 87,000 Ice Dragon Marks to exchange for 87 Primary Hearts of Strength?]

Cao Xing killed quite a few monsters yesterday and looted 15 Primary Hearts of Strength, which saved him 15,000 Ice Dragon Marks.

He clicked directly, "Yes."

[Exchange successful.]

The next moment, the Ice Dragon Marks in Cao Xing's backpack decreased by 87,000, and the number of Primary Hearts of Strength reached 102.

Then, Cao Xing took out all these Hearts of Strength and placed them on the stone slab in front of him.

Seeing so many crimson crystals on the ground, the pupils of the Ascalon Warriors on the field suddenly constricted!

"These are… items that can allow us to advance."

"By the gods, there are actually so many?"

Their eyes were filled with intense disbelief!

Even the dullest person knew how precious the value of so many Hearts of Strength was.

Their Lord must have sacrificed a lot behind the scenes.

For a moment, a look of being moved appeared in the eyes of all the Ascalon Warriors.

Cao Xing said directly, "Same old rule, everyone come over and line up to collect these Hearts of Strength, then advance immediately."

These Ascalon Warriors looked at each other.

The next moment, they knelt on one knee and swore loudly, "Thank you, generous and kind Lord!"

"The glory of Ascalon will be continued through you!"

At this moment, Cao Xing heard a large number of system notifications again.

[Due to your generous gift, the loyalty of your territory member: Amado has increased, current loyalty: 87]

[Due to your generous gift, the loyalty of your territory member: Dwight has increased, current loyalty: 86]

[Due to your…]

Cao Xing's expression didn't fluctuate, but joy had already appeared in his heart.

The loyalty of these Ascalon Warriors had all been raised to above 85.

And there were quite a few that were over 90!

This was definitely worth it!

Then, Cao Xing watched as they lined up one by one to collect the Hearts of Strength.

Under Cao Xing's orders, they then directly used these items to begin advancing.

The next moment, auras even more powerful than before rose from their bodies.

The scene of over a hundred soldiers breaking through to the second tier as a group was quite shocking.

Feeling the power of this group of soldiers surge, a curve appeared on the corner of Cao Xing's mouth.

After all, last time, in the Witch Forest, Cao Xing witnessed the scene of the Ascalon Legion led by Duke Baradin attacking as a whole.

That strength, that momentum—it was off the charts!

It made Cao Xing so envious!

So he wanted to possess his own Ascalon Legion!