Battle Merits Secured-Can Farming Really Earn You a Marquisate?
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"You guessed right." Zhao Xing smiled and nodded.
"It really was stolen?!" Han Bing's usually expressionless face showed obvious shock.
"How could the Seventh Grade defense of the Netherflame Warship be penetrated?" Wang Ji was also very surprised.
"Zhao Xing isn't stupid. Why would he fight head-on? Of course, he'd launch a sneak attack when the enemy isn't looking... He's best at that," Han Bing said.
"Han Bing, how can you slander me out of thin air?" Zhao Xing argued. "How can the Military Sima Nong be called a sneak attack? Their spell range is not as large as mine, so you can't blame me for a sneak attack."
"Exactly! Don't you even know what the Military Sima Nong!" Wang Ji said indignantly. "See, Brother Zhao? That's exactly how he slandered me."
"..."
"What are you chatting about? It's so lively. I can hear your voices from far away." Long Xiao jumped off the Netherflame Warship.
"Greetings, Captain Long."
"Greetings, Lord Long."
Han Bing and Wang Ji bowed in unison.
They were noticeably more Guest Qi to Long Xiao.
"We're trying to figure out how this Netherflame Warship got here."
Long Xiao said, "Oh, this. On the way here, Zhao Xing discovered a group of alien races attacking Sea Pacifying Army's city, so he and I followed them."
"They were a group of Sand Tribe People, but Zhao Xing and I took them down."
Wang Ji asked in confusion, "Such a large Netherflame Warship, did the commander of the Sea Pacifying Army just hand it over?"
Long Xiao snorted, "The garrison commander of the Sea Pacifying Army... never mind, let's not talk about it."
He remembered that Zhao Xing had already become sworn brothers with Chen Lu, so he didn't say anything more. But in Long Xiao's mind, Chen Lu was an incompetent person.
"In short, he suffered a great loss. If it weren't for us, his body would be cold by now. So he was too embarrassed to share the spoils. Zhao Xing was kind-hearted and insisted on giving him 10%."
Zhao Xing shrugged. "In a war zone, having more friends means having more options."
Without Chen Lu, it would have taken who knows how long for his Netherflame Warship to arrive, and the back-and-forth manpower transfers would have been too unpredictable.
Giving Chen Lu 10% only means 10% of the storage space, not 10% of the Netherflame Warship.
Zhao Xing has achieved some success, and he has started to follow in Old Chen's footsteps and become an angel investor.
Chen Lu did it just as a matter of convenience.
The Pacifying Barbarians War to Pacify the Barbarians attracted many powerful and talented individuals from the Great Zhou. He also plans to focus his investments on those talents who are likely to rise to prominence in the future, which is a very important part of his future plans.
"Let's go inside and talk," Long Xiao said.
"Wang the Engineer, arrange the manpower to take over the Netherflame Warship. This thing will be ours from now on," Zhao Xing said. "Also, give each of the people Chen Lu sent a small tip, according to Official Rank."
"Okay." Wang Ji rubbed his hands together. "I'll go myself."
He had been itching to get started for a long time. He had only ever been on a Tier 5 warship once, and he had never even been inside the core cabin.
Zhao Xing said he would give it to him to use, and he was happier than if he had gotten a wife.
The Netherflame Warship is an exotic version!
Wang Ji had seen everything, but this was something he had never seen before.
"Be careful once you're on board! If you break even one part, I'll eat you alive!" Wang Ji shouted. Replacing missing parts on this thing was much more difficult than replacing parts on the Great Zhou's warships.
"Ninety-Second City was built to county-level standards."
"Only half of it was built before, but yesterday we started expanding the outer city, planning to designate the original part as the inner city."
"Here is a list of the heads of each department. The Engineering Office has the most people, followed by the Agricultural Official. There were originally quite a few martial artists, but Liao Rulong has been transferring them one after another, which has resulted in the Department of Martial Office having fewer people than the Agricultural Official. The Department of Sacrifices and Strategists have the fewest."
"This is a list of officials from each department."
On the way to the city lord's mansion, Han Bing was also introducing the situation of Ninety-Second City to Zhao Xing.
Although the city is small, it has Five Offices departments.
The Five Offices together have a staff of around five thousand.
Among them, Mechanism Master and Agricultural Official accounted for 70%, warriors 20%, and Priest 10%.
There are only a few advisors, so they can be ignored.
As for its strength, it's neither good nor bad.
The list provided by Han Bing included training records for officials from various departments.
Apart from Wang Ji and Han Bing, no one else completed the training with Grade A rating.
There were 35 people who received Grade B rating, 10 of whom received Grade D, but they were not from the same cohort as Zhao Xing.
In conclusion, although the overall population has doubled compared to the time in Cloud City, the number of geniuses has decreased.
This is normal, though; the strong ones were all taken to the front lines by Liao Rulong.
Of course, this does not mean that the supply city is weak.
Their overall strength surpasses that of the Cloud City era, given their rank; the combined number of Seventh Grade officials across all departments exceeds fifty.
Although Liao Rulong's tactics were aggressive, he was not a reckless brute. Even without Zhao Xing, the defense level of the supply city was much higher than that of Chen Lu's city.
If the Sand Clan had chosen to launch a surprise attack on the Divine Might Army's City No. 92, they might have been able to drive them away without Zhao Xinglong and Xiao taking any action.
Zhao Xing is now the commander of Ninety-Second City, but he doesn't actually have many things to consider.
"The expansion of the outer city will proceed as planned by Wang Ji; no changes are needed," Zhao Xing said. "The other three chief officials will be summoned for a meeting, and a brief report on the progress of their missions will suffice."
"However, the tasks of the Agricultural Supervisorate need to be adjusted."
"Okay, tell me how to change it."
To immediately change the direction of the Agricultural Supervisorate is tantamount to implying that Han Bing, the head official, did not perform his duties properly. In other words, it was Zhao Xing who was in charge; if it were anyone else, Han Bing would be cursing.
"Let's talk about it after the meeting. I still need to take care of some things on the Netherflame Warship," Zhao Xing said. "You'll find out later."
"Okay, I'll make the arrangements." Han Bing got up and left.
Long Xiao sat in a chair eating fruit and watching Zhao Xing make arrangements.
He was not part of the military commanders of Ninety-Second City. After a short rest, he would wait for the Yin Spirit in the temple to send him the location of the front line before he went to find Liao Rulong's main force.
The Mountain Cat stood on the table, munching away with relish. It ate faster than Long Xiao, almost one bite at a time.
After finishing its meal, it meowed at Zhao Xing.
"You seem to be enjoying yourself." Zhao Xing waved his hand and rolled out a plate of fourth-tier fruit from the Wen Bamboo Box. "We came here to fight, you came here to enjoy yourself."
"Heaven Defier, ignore him, eat." Long Xiao smiled and fed the fruit to the Mountain Cat.
Zhao Xing shook his head and began to take out the Earth Mirror to check his battle achievements.
Since the Netherflame Warship has entered the interior of Ninety-Second City, it is already within the temple's coverage area.
In addition, Chen Lu has already reported the situation to the Military Realm through the temple regarding the Sea Pacifying Army.
Therefore, the Military Realm has already made a judgment on this battle.
Chen Lu and all the surviving officials had varying amounts of their battle merits deducted, according to their Official Ranks.
Chen Lu had the most points deducted. He had accumulated more than 30,000 battle merits over the past half month, but 22,000 of them were deducted!
Chen Lu's superior, Li Que, the commander of the Sea Pacifying Army fighting on the front lines, also had 10,000 battle merits deducted from his account.
Why? Because Li Que diverted too many troops to the front lines to attack the alien tribes, neglecting the defense of the cities in the rear.
If he hadn't mobilized so many troops... even if Zhao Xing hadn't come, the One Hundred Ninth City of the Sea Pacifying Army might not have been able to be breached.
Therefore, how fierce a general can fight depends on the stability of the rear. If the rear is not stable, you may make a great contribution one day, but lose it the next, which is a waste and may even result in a huge loss.
"Chen Lu and the others had their battle merits deducted, but Long Xiao and I gained them."
Zhao Xing looked at the information in the Earth Mirror.
Because it is within the city, the Earth Mirror can also receive messages from the Military Realm through the "Heavenly Craft Workshop" base station.
[Zhao Xing, Equitable Transport Magistrate the Divine Might Army, on June 21st of the 17th year of the Jingxin Calendar, you repelled a sneak attack by the Sand Tribe, killed one Seventh Grade enemy, and saved the City 109 of the Sea Pacifying Army. You have earned 15,000 battle merits.]
Killing Unranked alien race always grants 1 battle merit point.
Killing Ninth Grade enemy earns 10-40 battle merits, corresponding to four tiers: Ninth Grade official, subordinate, upper and lower ranks.
Killing Eighth Grade enemy grants 100-400 battle merits.
Killing Seventh Grade enemy grants 1000-4000 battle merit points.
Killing Sixth Rank official earns 10,000-40,000 battle merits.
The above are the normal statistical standards for military achievements. Sometimes there may be fluctuations, and there may even be special circumstances that cause this limit to be exceeded.
Capture, subdue, and obtain intelligence can also earn you military merits.
However, at present, the Military Realm relatively low for such cases.
Because the current level of the war is relatively low, and the main purpose is to destroy the basic combat power of the Southern Barbarians and reduce the probability of the Southern Barbarians producing high-end combat power.
Therefore, killing was the primary objective, while capturing and subjugating were not the main goals, so the merits awarded were naturally low.
As for intelligence, the highest-ranking personnel on the battlefield are no more than the Sixth Rank. What important intelligence could they possibly have?
With the Creation Disc in place, the value of intelligence gathering and battle merits is very low.
"Killing Seventh Grade soldier grants 4,000 points. Some of the soldiers killed by Long Xiao are credited to me because I covered for him. The value of those alien soldiers is roughly the same."
"Saving the city, 10,000 points. It's like transferring some of the battle merits deducted from the Sea Pacifying Army officers to me and Long Xiao," Zhao Xing thought to himself.
Long Xiao earned a little over 20,000 battle merits, mainly due to his high kill count.
However, in the "Saving the City" category, Long Xiao, like himself, also had 10,000 points.
The amount deducted from Chen Lu's side was far greater than the battle merits Zhao Xing gained, in order to prevent the manipulation of battle merits.
"If I hand over the Netherflame Warship, my battle merits will increase dramatically, and I might even be able to jump into the top 100 of the Seventh Grade list."
"However, handing it over is not worthwhile."
Keeping the Netherflame Warship would be more useful to Zhao Xing, and as for military merits, he would have many opportunities to earn them.
Take, for example, missions that reward merit.
Logistics units have their own unique method for measuring combat merits.
One does not necessarily have to kill enemies to achieve merit.
For example, Wang Ji led people to build a city.
A level one city is worth 100,000 battle merits upon completion.
The completion of a level-two city will earn you 200,000 battle merits.
Currently, Ninety-Second City is a level 3 city under construction and has not yet been fully completed.
If completed, it will earn 500,000 battle merits.
However, the Military Realm will also settle accounts in stages, and everyone who participates will receive a share.
In the half month since he arrived here, Wang Ji has accumulated fifty to sixty thousand battle merits, and among the Seventh Grade, he has already ranked within the top ten thousand.
The Mechanism Master was credited with building a city, and also with defending it.
If the enemy attacks and you successfully defend your position, you will earn merit points. However, if you fail, you will lose merit points, and the losses will be substantial.
In addition, those who build and repair equipment for the front-line troops can also earn merit.
Tasks are divided into "core tasks" and "general tasks".
Merit is awarded based on the number of enemies killed and rank. Mechanism Master can also earn merit by killing enemies; this is an additional general task.
Whether you do something or not, it's fine.
If a task is assigned but not completed within the specified time, merit points will be deducted.
Some tasks can be repeated, such as the Mechanism Master's "Spirit-Breaking Crossbow Bolts" and "God-Breaking Crossbow Bolts", and items like the Sky Net and the World-Breaking Glazed Pearl.
These are consumables!
At this stage, the Great Zhou is rapidly advancing and conquering cities, and all armies have a great need for these items, which can be farmed almost infinitely.
Even if you've produced enough for your own army, you can still continue to produce more to earn battle merits, provided it doesn't affect your primary duties.
Because of the existence of the "Transportation Envoy", resources of various armies can be allocated in a reasonable manner.
Once the Transportation Envoy's Tower Ship arrive, any excess treasures can be taken away and supplied to the rest of the army.
Needs differ at different times, and tasks are not static.
The same applies to the Agricultural Official.
"These days, the daily tasks are all about farming 'Energy Supply' food."
"The soldiers need plenty of food to replenish their strength and restore their vitality."
"However, as time goes on, the Insect Witch, Poison Witch, and Blood Witch of the Southern Wilderness will take action, leading to a surge in demand for antidotes and blood-replenishing herbs!"
"In addition, when you enter the extreme regions of the Southern Wilderness, such as the 'Purple Cloud Swamp,' which is full of highly poisonous miasma, ordinary fourth-order antidotes cannot last long. Only pills made from 'Heavenly Heart Grass' can maintain their effects for a long time."
"There is also the 'Fire Demon Tribe' that attacked the Purple Dragon Royal Court. The Fire Demon Tribe lives in an environment filled with fire poison. They are used to living in such a place, but the soldiers of the Great Zhou are not used to the local environment."
"The Fire Resistance Robe made from the Earth Fire Lotus has become the most cost-effective fourth-tier battle armor... All the general and basic missions that the Military Realm gives to the Agricultural Official are this thing, and the battle merits are also very high."
Zhao Xing recalled the scenes from his previous life when he was analyzing the case of "Emperor Jing's Pacification of the Barbarians".
"Such items will inevitably be in great short supply, and I must prepare in advance."
The Four Great Royal Courts of the Southern Wilderness were not without the power to fight, but they retreated step by step in the early stages in order to use the environment of the Southern Wilderness to hinder the enemy.
The Agricultural Official cultivates plants, which is linked to almost every profession; the Engineering Office manufactures machinery, and various types of timber are indispensable.
The same materials were used for the sacrificial Yellow Paper, the incense, and the robes of the Weaving Girl.
It can be said that the Agricultural Official is the upstream of most professions.
"I remember that during this Pacifying Barbarians War, several Agricultural Official, relying on their keen judgment of the front-line battle reports, cultivated a large amount of urgently needed materials, and before they knew it, they had been promoted to marquis."
Zhao Xing muttered to himself, "Who knows, I might be able to follow in the footsteps of my teacher's ancestors."
The Nobility Title of Tian Hou of Tian Yan was inherited from his ancestors.
His ancestors were granted the title of duke after the founding of the country because they followed the Grand Ancestor in battle and were good at farming.
Why did Zhao Xing tell Han Bing to adjust the direction of the Agricultural Supervisorate as soon as he arrived at Ninety-Second City?
Because he remembered very clearly what materials were missing at what time, these were essential to remember when he deduced the case of Emperor Jing's pacification of the barbarians in his previous life.
If you can't remember these things, your winning rate will drop significantly.
"Besides farming, there are many other ways to gain military merit, including even robbery."
Zhao Xing got up and went to the gate of the mansion.
At this moment, the Netherflame Warship had already flown into the territory of the Heavenly Craft Workshop in the square.
However, all the spoils in the storage room were left behind, and Wang Ji was leading his men to sort them into categories.
"Among the looted items were large quantities of herbs, food, and materials for crafting machinery."
"Once I submit these things, I'll gain a lot of merit points."
Zhao Xing smiled.
The Sand Tribe People stole many of the materials listed in the mission list.
The materials are readily available here; once submitted, the task will be completed immediately.
They didn't want the Long Xiao; they gave them all to Zhao Xing.
Firstly, he was too lazy to care about these odds and ends; killing a Seventh Grade would earn him between one thousand and four thousand battle merits.
Secondly, martial artists have relatively few 'general missions,' and even if they take the spoils, they won't get much merit after submitting them. If they convert 'spoils of war' into merit, the value is not high.
Let's just hand it over to Zhao Xing to deal with.
"Zhao Xing, it's all taken care of." Wang Ji ran over. "Among the things the Sand Tribe People looted, there were 14,532 finished armor pieces and weapons, mostly second and third tier, with only about ten fourth tier pieces."
"A total of 53,462 portions of various medicinal herbs, ores, equipment materials, and robe materials. Most of them are of the third rank, with very few of the second and fourth rank."
Zhao Xing glanced at the list and nodded, saying, "Take 10% of these items and send someone to Chen Lu of the Sea Pacifying Army. This is what I promised him."
"The rest of the finished products will be put into the internal warehouses of each department for unforeseen needs. If a department encounters a difficult 'core task' and is in urgent need of supplies, these can be used to make up for the shortfall."
Wang Ji nodded, his admiration for Zhao Xing growing even stronger.
These were all Zhao Xing's personal spoils of war, but he was willing to put them into the internal treasuries of various departments for future use, which shows his great vision.
"The remaining semi-finished materials, all those related to the duties and general tasks of the Agricultural Official, should be allocated to the Divine Might Army's internal treasury and transfer warehouse, to be used to submit my personal battle merits. I've been away for almost a month, so let me complete all the battle merit tasks I can," Zhao Xing said.
He wouldn't keep anything related to the Agricultural Official for future use; he had to meet his own needs first.
"Understood." Wang Ji immediately did as Zhao Xing asked.
Zhao Xing then opened the Earth Mirror and looked at his Military Realm as the Equitable Transport Magistrate Order.
When Wang Ji sent someone to archive the records.
Multiple notifications indicating mission completion appeared in the Earth Mirror:
[Zhao Xing of the Divine Might Army, you have completed the 'Planting Sweet Spirit Grass' task (3,000 portions), earning 6,000 battle merits. This task cannot be submitted again this month.]
[Zhao Xing of the Divine Might Army, you have completed the 'Planting Aconite Fruit' task (1000 portions), earning 1000 battle merits. This task cannot be submitted again this month.]
[Zhao Xing the Divine Might Army, you have accomplished...]
There will be another update today, expected at 2 PM. Also, I'd like to recommend a friend's book, "Mythic Heavenly Craft," the link is below.
Everyone can go check it out and leave a comment.