Merchant From Earth in the Magical World

In terms of basic attribute values, Human crossbowmen showed no improvement over archers, yet their recruitment cost increased from 50 to 80 gold. The additional 30 gold in cost was entirely for their talent.

The talent of Human Fourth Order crossbowmen was Armor Piercing; as the name suggests, the bolts they shot had greater penetration against armor. When equipped with the Chui Chui-improved military crossbows Yan Xing had prepared, their lethality against heavily armored units was further enhanced.

This solidified Yan Xing's decision to phase out human archers. After all, military crossbowmen had a direct firing range of up to 300 meters. While archers could achieve a similar range with arcing shots, their projectiles lacked the power to significantly damage armored units. He decided to upgrade all archers to crossbowmen, making them the core long-range firepower of his army. The archers' former role could be supplemented by Werewolf Marksmen. To this end, Yan Xing placed additional orders for military crossbow parts.

Yan Xing's major purchasing plan was now basically complete. The goods he had bought were either in transit or on production lines, so it would take some time for them to be delivered to the Eternal Domain. Yan Xing then shifted his focus from real-world procurement to organizing and training the Eternal Domain's army.

In his preliminary plan, Yan Xing intended to take 500 soldiers and more than 1,000 logistics personnel into the Thunderous Swamp. The logistics personnel could be managed by the Werewolf Tribe, with the Southern Camp Militia under Duan'er's command protecting the supply lines.

Regarding the allocation of the five hundred combat troops… I plan to bring one hundred crossbowmen, two hundred Werewolf Marksmen, and an additional 200 Light Armored Werewolf Warriors. If the territory can be upgraded to Fifth Order in time, the Third Order Werewolf Marksmen can be promoted to Fourth Order, and the Second Order Light-Armored Werewolves to Fifth Order. This will further enhance the combat power of the Peacekeeping Forces. At the same time, the Werewolf Tribe allied with the Eternal Domain will provide 15 to 20 Werewolf Beast Tamers to join the army. The Werewolf Tribe must also supply at least 100 Poison Flies to serve as the aerial tactics squad for the Peacekeeping Forces. The Eternal Domain's chicken farms should also do their best during this period to breed 100 to 200 Carnivorous Birds. These will be controlled by Werewolf Beast Tamers and accompany the army on expeditions, tasked with countering the Poison Flies.

Therefore, although the main combat force of this troop was 500 strong, the total number of combat and logistics personnel mobilized might exceed 2,000. This fundamentally changed the traditional tactics of the Swamp Tribe, which had almost no concept of logistics. Added to this were the newly established information and communication network and the combat command system.

The core tactic of the army Yan Xing organized was to rely on strong intelligence-gathering and medium-to-long-range striking capabilities to detect and strike first, destroying the enemy's offensive capabilities before they had a chance to respond.

The specific tactics involved several stages. First, a long-distance surveillance and early warning system would be established using drones and the Air's Eye Spell. This task was entrusted to Chui Chui, who would use her powerful information processing capabilities to analyze all captured footage, ensuring early enemy detection.

Upon detecting an approaching enemy, Poison Flies and Carnivorous Birds would establish aerial and ground barrier zones. These barriers would prevent enemy troops from conducting counter-reconnaissance, using their own Poison Flies for infiltration, or threatening friendly long-range units.

Behind this screen, Light Armored Werewolf Warriors would serve as the last line of defense, providing close protection to the long-range attackers. This setup would enable the long-range units to fire freely in a relatively safe environment, inflicting unbearable damage on exposed enemies with powerful firepower and forcing them to abandon their assault.

Throughout these operations, Werewolf Beast Tamer heroes were tasked with providing magical cover for the entire force and engaging in magical combat with any enemy beast tamers.

The division of labor was clear and straightforward. It shouldn't be too difficult, Yan Xing believed.

However, this combat approach proposed by Yan Xing was still somewhat too complex for the Swamp Werewolves. The Swamp Werewolves' traditional combat method was much simpler: tactics revolved entirely around Poison Flies. If their sneak attacks succeeded, the war was half won. The rest was a full army assault to complete the other half of the victory—even more clear and straightforward. But formulating strategies around ranged units, having Poison Flies play a defensive role, and having Werewolf Warriors defend... this represented a tactical chasm that was difficult for the Werewolf Tribe to bridge. Not to mention, Yan Xing's tactical arrangements also included transitions between offense and defense, and the layered progression of formations during advances and retreats. Added to this was the introduction of a brand-new troop type: carnivorous chickens.

This was truly asking too much of the werewolves. The tactical mindset of the Werewolf Warriors was simple: offense meant a full army assault. Retreat meant scampering away at full speed.

These conflicting ideas caused the Werewolf Warriors and heroes to stare wide-eyed as Yan Xing explained his tactics, as if they were listening to something utterly incomprehensible. Yan Xing racked his brain but couldn't understand. How can something so simple be so hard for you all to grasp?

Since they don't understand, we'll forego paper tactics and move straight to practical exercises in a real combat environment, Yan Xing decided. So, Yan Xing chose Stenchwater Forest, governed by Clan Leader Li Zhua, as the training ground for the Eternal Domain's Swamp Peacekeeping Forces. All combat units destined for the depths of the swamp gathered in Stenchwater Forest for live training exercises. Yan Xing resolved, Since they can't understand it through explanation, we'll just keep practicing. We'll drill it into them until it becomes muscle memory and conditioned reflexes. Then these werewolves will naturally know what to do in any given situation.

To achieve realistic combat effectiveness, Yan Xing also invited Li Zhua to bring the Stenchwater Forest Werewolf Tribe to act as the opposing force. The exercises simulated various encounters, ambushes, and sneak attacks that could occur under different conditions and at different times.

While the Swamp Peacekeeping Forces were being organized and trained, Yan Xing visited Nuta City daily. He continued his studies in magic and combat techniques with Count Theodore and Hibel, while also monitoring the Eternal Commerce Guild, road construction, and farmland development. Afterward, he would return to the Eternal Domain. He would spend his mornings managing affairs in Nuta City and his territory, then dedicate most of his day to integrating with the army.

After all, this war was not like the minor skirmishes of the past; proper training and various contingency plans were essential. Otherwise... it's easy to enter the swamp, but hard to get out, he knew.

As reconnaissance into the deeper parts of the Thunderous Swamp commenced, more and more intelligence filtered back. Through this intelligence, Yan Xing gradually gained a general understanding of the depths of the Thunderous Swamp and realized it wasn't as weak as he had initially imagined. The Thunderous Swamp, capable of deterring the three major surrounding powers from encroaching, must have some significant strength and resources after all, he concluded.

Analysis of the gathered intelligence indicated that deep within the Thunderous Swamp, three major powers stood in opposition, forming two distinct camps. These 'three major powers' referred to the three mightiest Swamp Tribes located in the central region of the Thunderous Swamp. They consisted of one Werewolf Tribe and two Lizardmen Clans. All other Werewolf and Lizardman tribes in the area were aligned with one of these three powerhouses, creating an evenly matched standoff between werewolves and lizardmen.

The werewolves, being the relatively weaker faction, exhibited greater solidarity among their tribes. Even when conflicts arose, they didn't fight to the death or aim to absorb one another. If lizardmen encroached on their territory, the Werewolf Tribes would quickly unite out of shared animosity to repel the enemy together. The lizardmen, on the other hand, frequently fought amongst themselves over a Gemstone Mine. This prevented them from forming a united front, leaving them with no effective strategy against the tightly-knit Werewolf Tribes.

Speaking of the Gemstone Mine, Blood Crown Mountain must be mentioned. Blood Crown Mountain, located in the center of the Thunderous Swamp, was a sacred place for the swamp's Lizardmen. Beneath Blood Crown Mountain lay a very rich Gemstone Mine. Several mine tunnels around Blood Crown Mountain led to this Gemstone Mine. These tunnels were controlled by the Red-Eye Lizardman Tribe and the Green-Tail Lizardman Tribe respectively. These were the two most powerful Lizardman Tribes in the Thunderous Swamp.

Both the Red-Eye and Green-Tail tribes had declared their leaders as 'Lizardman Kings' and proclaimed ownership over the sacred Blood Crown Mountain and the Gemstone Mine. Each of these Lizardman Kings controlled some of the tunnels leading to the Gemstone Mine. Both wanted to mine more and constantly accused the other of stealing gems that rightfully belonged to them. They would start with arguments, progress to insults, and ultimately resort to warfare. This was followed by more mining, more arguing, more insults, and more fighting. The cycle repeated endlessly. Neither could eliminate the other, nor did either possess the power to fully control Blood Crown Mountain and legitimize their claim to kingship.

Meanwhile, the Werewolf Tribes situated deeper within the Thunderous Swamp developed quietly and discreetly. They didn't actively compete with the lizardmen for resources, but they also fiercely prevented any lizardman encroachment upon their territories. Without full control over Blood Crown Mountain, neither the Red-Eye Lizardman Tribe nor the Green-Tail Lizardman Tribe would risk an all-out war against the werewolves. Such a conflict could create an opportunity for their rival to eliminate them.

This was the situation in the depths of the Thunderous Swamp: conflicts abounded between the two major species and among their respective tribes. There were constant disputes but no large-scale wars, maintaining a delicate balance of power.

The werewolves Yan Xing had sent out had made contact with many local Werewolf Tribes. These tribes were all extremely interested in the miraculous alchemical slingshots. After witnessing and experiencing the power of the slingshots firsthand, they all expressed a desire to purchase a batch. For Werewolf Tribes that subsisted on hunting and gathering, these slingshots were truly a tool capable of improving their quality of life.

The first batch of slingshots had already been shipped, and the plan to arm the Werewolf Tribes in the depths of the Thunderous Swamp was proceeding smoothly.