MTLNOVEL Chapter 148 Training Soldiers_1
The Magic Tower's policy of only recognizing "money" made Yan Xing realize that his territory had finally begun to consistently consume Rare Alchemical Resources. This was just the beginning; as the territory developed, the daily operational consumption of these resources would only increase.
Thus, it was necessary to upgrade the market and construct a God-gifted Item Shop.
Currently, the economic model of Eternal Domain was still unified distribution and supply. After all, the territory didn't have much output, and Yan Xing procured and transported most materials from the real world. No external merchant caravans were visiting either. Therefore, the constructed market was still just for show, a place for the territory's children to play.
The God-gifted Item Shop cost 10,000 God-given gold coins to construct and didn't appear as a physical building. After Yan Xing paid for its construction, anyone entering the market area would see a "God-gifted Item Shop" option appear in their hero's system panel. Heroes could sell their God-gifted items through this shop. If other heroes needed these items, they could use their God-given gold coins to purchase them. The Lord would take a ten percent tax from each transaction, which would be added to the weekly quota of God-given gold coins the territorial city provided for him.
Additionally, the God-gifted Item Shop would also refresh its stock with some God-gifted items for heroes to purchase. However, these items were generally not very good, while their prices were exorbitantly high. In comparison, the Rare Alchemical Resources needed for daily consumption seemed quite affordable. They cost 1,000 God-given gold coins per unit. It essentially turned heroes and lords into a sustainable source for "harvesting."
However, when Yan Xing decided to construct the God-gifted Item Shop, he had already accepted his position as one of the "harvested crops." Ignoring the prices of other God-gifted items and resisting temptation, he quickly bought five units of each of the four types of Rare Alchemical Resources. Twenty thousand God-given gold coins were spent just like that. Adding the 20,000 for constructing the Magic Tower, 10,000 for the God-gifted Item Shop, and nearly 10,000 more for upgrading the Fourth Order territory in bits and pieces, the total came to a significant sum. In less than a day, Yan Xing had poured 60,000 God-given gold coins into his territory. One-third of the God-given gold coins earned from selling ceramic plates was gone.
Good heavens... he thought. This is only a Fourth Order territory, and it's already such a huge drain. In the future, developing the territory will be a bottomless pit. If development relied solely on the territory's own income, who knows how long it would take to save up the 60,000 God-given gold coins I just spent.
This realization made Yan Xing even more determined to pursue active external trade routes. He needed to develop more and better trade channels and create a favorable trade environment. The products of Eternal Domain not only had to be exported but also had to reach distant markets. This would allow him to earn more money to invest in Eternal Domain's construction.
For now, I'd better save, Yan Xing decided. The few God-given gold coins I have left can't sustain this level of investment into the territory's development. I'll use regular resources to construct some standard buildings first. Once Nuta City's chamber of commerce opens and provides a continuous source of funds, then I can spend more freely, but still within my means.
The next essential constructions for a Fourth Order territory were definitely the Bow and Crossbow Camp and the Crossbowman Training Ground. The Bow and Crossbow Camp was an expansion and upgrade of the existing Archer Camp. Every week, a new batch of Archers and Crossbowmen would become available for recruitment there. The Crossbowman Training Ground allowed Archers to be trained. Once they met the standards, they could be upgraded to Crossbowmen within the Bow and Crossbow Camp using God-given gold coins.
Compared to Archers, Crossbowmen using crossbows dealt significantly higher damage. In terms of armor penetration, crossbows were also superior to bows. Yan Xing had already prepared the weapons for these Crossbowmen.
Crossbows were not easy to purchase in the real world. Even if one placed an order, no one could supply them in large quantities. But once Yan Xing had Chui Chui, he had her simplify the blueprints for modern military crossbows and break them down into individual components. Any single one of these components, if viewed separately, wouldn't be readily associated with a crossbow. This allowed them to order the parts from different manufacturers without raising suspicion. The ordered components were then delivered to the Eternal Domain Blacksmith Shop to be assembled into crossbows.
According to Chui Chui's calculations, the crossbows she designed had an effective range of 300 meters. If equipped with specially made armor-piercing arrowheads, they could penetrate the Half Body Plate Armor—which Yan Xing equipped his Light-Armored Werewolves with—from a distance of 100 meters. They could achieve effective lethality even against heavily armored spearmen. In other words, once Eternal Domain's Crossbowmen were equipped with these modern military-grade crossbows and used the special armor-piercing arrows, these Fourth Order ranged troops would possess the capability to confront Twelfth Order Holy Knights. If they could contend with Twelfth Order Holy Knights, they naturally posed a threat to other factions' Twelfth Order troops and creatures as well.
「One month later.」
Yan Xing was set to lead his troops deep into the Thunderous Swamp. In such a short time, it was impossible for him to form advanced units to combat the high-level magical beasts within the swamp. What he could do was arm his lower-order troops with asymmetrical weaponry, giving them the offensive power to kill higher-order units. Furthermore, in this type of asymmetrical combat, he needed to minimize his own losses as much as possible. Therefore, high-lethality, high armor-piercing ranged attacks became the optimal choice for Yan Xing's army. Yan Xing even planned to make Crossbowmen the tactical core of Eternal Domain's army for a long time to come.
For this purpose, Yan Xing had specifically prepared two types of arrowheads for the Crossbowmen. The first type involved ordering standard molds and special steel from the real world. These would be manufactured by his own Blacksmith Shop, maximizing the arrows' armor-piercing capability through material composition and design. The second type consisted of specially ordered armor-piercing arrowheads and standard arrow shafts, also from the real world, intended for use against specific, high-value targets.
Yan Xing ordered Gao Sipa to allocate resources and Lao Hansi to organize personnel for the immediate upgrade of the Archer Camp and the archers' training grounds.
Then, Yan Xing went to the militia training camp.
Venturing deep into the swamp will require Swamp Werewolves as the main force, he mused. Since I've found a method to advance werewolf ranks, I need to train more promoted Werewolf Warriors.
Eternal Domain had an abundant food supply. Daily training and patrols also ensured that the physical condition of the local Werewolf Warriors was superior to their initial state. The five Werewolf Warriors training at the militia training camp had four-dimensional attributes not much different from the militia. Consequently, with a little more training, they all reached the standards necessary for rank advancement.
Yan Xing took the five Werewolf Warriors who had completed their training into the barracks adjacent to the training camp.
The expected prompt followed:
"You have unlocked a new advancement system for the Werewolf Race..."
"Second Order Werewolf Troops are infantry units. Please select equipment for the Second Order Werewolf Infantry Unit. Note: Your choice will determine the initial attributes and talents of the Second Order Werewolf Infantry Unit."
The initial equipment for Second Order Great Werewolves was leather armor and iron flails. The initial equipment for Second Order human militiamen was cloth armor, Short Swords, and spears. The armor options provided by the system for Second Order troops did not include any high-end varieties; they were all items like leather armor, cloth armor, or thin chainmail...
Yan Xing chose leather armor. After all, Eternal Domain's troops didn't rely on initial equipment for defense, and having a set of basic leather armor as lining wasn't a bad idea. He didn't change the weapon either, opting to continue using the flail. Since there was a natural progression from First Order to Second Order troops, rashly switching to a vastly different weapon would undoubtedly cause unnecessary complications. Thus, Yan Xing created a new Second Order Werewolf Troop that looked exactly like the Great Werewolves.
Since it's a new troop type, it definitely needs a new name, he thought.
"Please name your new Second Order Werewolf Troop."
"Light-Armored Werewolf."
This time, my Light-Armored Werewolf Mobile Force truly lives up to its name!