Nightfall, Colby is injured

"Luna, you will have to work a little harder."

"These farmers need protection, so please patrol the area outside the small courtyard where they are gathering resources."

Zong Shen instructed Luna.

"As you command, my lord!"

Luna did not have a single complaint; she pressed a fist to her chest and saluted Zong Shen.

Riding the Black Panther, she slowly walked out of the small courtyard.

Today's task was to build at least six Tier 1 Thatched Sheds before nightfall.

The thatched sheds were not only used as resting structures, but they were also basic buildings capable of restoring health points.

They were very useful.

As for the basic barracks, there was no rush for that yet.

Because Zong Shen did not have a large population of farmers.

With the Wolf Cavalry, the Night Huntress, and himself, he had enough to handle the combat needs of the early development stage.

Zong Shen did not intend to stay idle either; with a flick of his hand, he took out an Iron Axe and walked quickly out of the small courtyard.

Outside the yard, Gou Dan's Tier 1 Thatched Shed had already been completed.

Since there were exactly 10 units of wood left in the territory's reserves, Zong Shen placed another Tier 1 Thatched Shed next to Gou Dan's.

He patted him on the shoulder.

"Keep working, Gou Dan, I believe in you!"

Gou Dan's face collapsed instantly, but he could not show his displeasure in front of Zong Shen, so he could only force a smile.

He turned and headed toward the phantom of the thatched shed to continue hammering away.

However, the smile he left behind looked like it had the word "miserable" written all over it.

Zong Shen did not mind, merely nodding slightly.

These buildings could be placed anywhere for now, but once the territory expanded and the city walls were built, they would need to be properly planned and organized.

Lord permissions allowed for one-click relocation without spending extra resources, but it required assigning people to spend time rebuilding them.

There was no rush for that at the moment.

The construction of the few buildings instantly filled up the open space adjacent to the small courtyard.

It finally looked a bit like a territory.

Zong Shen nodded in satisfaction and walked toward the nearest tree.

He picked up his axe and began to hack away forcefully at the base of the tree!

Perhaps because his strength was high, he didn't find it very strenuous; he only needed to swing five or six times to completely fell a tree as thick as a thigh.

Then, he only needed to drag the tree for a short distance to easily pull it into the small courtyard for conversion.

[Wood +4]

As soon as the tree entered the small courtyard, it was converted into wood and automatically deposited into the Territory Storage Box.

The actual quantity of wood and other gathered resources that could be converted was related to the amount harvested.

For instance, the thigh-thick tree Zong Shen dragged back could be converted into 4 units of wood.

The arm-thick trees that the farmers dragged back usually only converted into 2 units of wood.

Zong Shen's overall efficiency was equivalent to the gathering output of four farmers over the same amount of time.

The Strength attribute certainly had a very obvious effect.

At the very least, Zong Shen didn't feel much of a burden while working.

"Let's continue!"

He twisted his neck and headed back outside the territory.

His targets were those thigh-thick trees!

His efficiency was high, and he barely took any breaks or slacked off.

Such a lead-by-example performance couldn't help but make the farmers speed up their own pace.

In this busy atmosphere, an hour and a half passed by.

Night was approaching, and the orange-red sunset glow stained the western sky.

"It's getting dark soon. Bring back the resources you have on hand, and then we'll call it a day!"

Zong Shen dragged back the final tree.

Standing outside the small courtyard, he wiped the sweat from his forehead and shouted to the farmers.

"Long live the lord!"

"The lord is mighty!"

The farmers cheered one after another, returning to the small courtyard with the gathered wood.

This wave of collective labor had yielded quite a harvest.

During this time, Zong Shen had added two more Tier 1 Thatched Sheds, and there were now 33 units of wood remaining in reserve.

In just a short hour and a half, he and the other farmers had gathered 53 units of wood.

His individual efficiency alone was equivalent to that of four or five farmers.

However, after working at full capacity for so long, Zong Shen also felt a bit fatigued.

All the buildings had been fully completed.

Six thatched sheds were enough to accommodate 12 farmers.

As for Colby and Luna, including Zong Shen himself, they served as the military backbone of the territory and would need to take turns standing guard at night.

"It's time to cook."

"But why hasn't Colby returned yet?"

Zong Shen walked over to the stove, a faint sense of unease stirring in his heart.

He began to cook.

Due to the lack of seasonings and ingredients, he could only prepare Roasted Wolf Meat based on the ingredients he had on hand.

[Roasted Wolf Meat]

[Requirements: Wood ×1, Wolf Meat ×1]

[Cooking Time: 3m]

In one go, he submitted ten portions of wolf meat and ten units of wood to begin the process.

He decided to wait another half hour.

If the food was finished after half an hour and Colby still hadn't returned, he would send Luna out to search for him.

In the sky, the last traces of twilight vanished.

Night fell, the stars filled the firmament, and a sliver of a silvery crescent moon hung high overhead.

The night seemed to be Luna's home turf.

All she had to do was stand perfectly still.

She could remain in a state of near-invisibility.

It was difficult to spot her with the naked eye.

This was the innate ability of the Night Elf race, Hide!

It was truly powerful!

"Awoo~"

Suddenly, a melodious wolf howl drifted over.

"Awoo..."

"Awooo..."

Following that, wolf howls erupted one after another from all directions of the pasture.

The pasture under the cover of night was pitch black.

It was like a giant abyss, capable of swallowing everything.

"Roar!"

"Awoo!"

"Boom!"

After the wolf howls, another burst of bestial roars echoed out.

These howls and roars reverberated under the night sky, making it impossible to distinguish their specific locations.

All the farmers revealed expressions of terror, instinctively huddling together in a group.

Zong Shen and Luna both focused their attention outward.

They both sensed that there were many obscure, prying eyes surrounding the territory.

At this moment, a massive figure slowly passed through the night.

Two eyes reflecting blue light in the darkness appeared before everyone.

Luna had already gripped her Moon Glaive tightly.

Zong Shen also drew his sharp Germanic Sword.

They prepared for battle!

The figure's speed was not slow, equivalent to an Old Travel Horse at full gallop, and thus, it quickly arrived at the edge of the territory.

In Zong Shen's field of vision, a name suddenly appeared above the dark shadow.

[Wolf Cavalry Colby]

Zong Shen breathed a sigh of relief and waved his hand at Luna.

"Relax, he's one of our own."

The next moment, Colby, riding the Giant Wolf, arrived outside the small courtyard.

He gradually slowed down, then came before Zong Shen, flipped down from the back of the Giant Wolf, and knelt on one knee toward Zong Shen.

"My Lord, Colby has returned!"

Zong Shen looked at Colby and the Giant Wolf, his eyes narrowing slightly.

An arrow was embedded in Colby's shoulder, and there was a slash wound on his right hand, dripping with blood!

Fortunately, the bleeding from the wounds had already stopped, having crusted over into scabs.

Colby had actually been wounded!