This sudden System Announcement left everyone stunned.
In the Chat Channel, everyone excitedly discussed what the Cloud Realm was, as well as what the Rune Diagrams and Shards of the Strong mentioned afterward were.
Han Xing sat back down on the sofa and rubbed his chin as he pondered. "The Cloud Realm? When I played Sky Island Paradise on my phone, there wasn't anything like this. It should be a new feature that appeared after we came to this world."
Come to think of it, Han Xing had not played the game on his phone for very long.
Back then, he had won a closed beta slot on a mysterious webpage, then downloaded the installation package.
He had played for less than a week in total, and his character had only just reached Level 11.
Then, he came to this world.
Therefore, Han Xing did not know much more about this world than the other survivors.
"As a newly introduced dungeon, the Cloud Realm's rewards should be pretty good."
"But accordingly, it'll also be very dangerous!"
Just then, the second System Prompt arrived.
System: "Attention, all survivors. The survivor regional protection mechanism has been lifted, and the regional map has been changed to an open state. Survivors may now use the coordinates on the map to locate others."
"You may cooperate, compete, or even draw your blades against one another and seize each other's territories!"
"Please note that when too many survivors gather in the same region, high-level monsters will have a greater chance of spawning, and the Cloud Monsters encountered will also be stronger."
"At the same time, the monsters within the clouds have become significantly more aggressive. They may take the initiative to find and invade survivors' territories. Please ensure your territories are properly defended."
The lengthy series of prompts contained a great deal of information in every line.
Next Moment, the Chat Channel erupted once more!
"Brothers! Did you see the update announcement? The regional protection feature has been lifted! That means we can not only meet up, but also form teams and even fight together!"
"I saw it too. Sob, sob, I finally don't have to fight alone anymore."
"Cousin, your little sister is coming to find you right away..."
At that moment, someone also offered a friendly reminder. "Everyone, be careful. Don't gather too many people in one place, or you might attract high-level monsters."
"Didn't you see what the System Prompt said? The monsters in those clouds can attack us on their own now. Be careful not to get yourselves killed!"
Meanwhile, the three of them were also discussing this update in their Discussion Group.
Cheng Jianyong said excitedly, "Brothers, the protection mechanism has been lifted. That means we can meet soon! Send me your coordinates, and I'll come find you."
Shen Yun: "42156, 33247, 69745."
Han Xing: "41784, 24451, 88647."
After hearing that, Cheng Jianyong exclaimed in surprise, "Damn, I'm at 42063, 54223, 48612. I'm pretty far from you guys!"
Shen Yun replied, "It is a little far. At our current travel speed, it'll take at least four or five days to get there. We'll also need to avoid those clouds along the way, so it'll probably take even longer."
Shen Yun asked tentatively, "How about the two of us head toward Xing Ge first?"
Cheng Jianyong was just about to agree.
But Han Xing said, "Don't rush. Don't hurry over yet."
"The regional protection mechanism was just lifted. Other survivors will definitely have the same idea as us. With huge numbers of survivors running around everywhere, combined with the chance of monsters in the clouds taking the initiative to attack, the entire region will become incredibly chaotic."
Shen Yun seemed to understand something and asked tentatively, "Xing Ge, you're worried that...?"
Han Xing replied, "Yes. I'm worried that some people with bad intentions will attack other survivors. With everyone's attributes roughly the same right now, if a fight breaks out, it could very easily end with both sides badly hurt."
"And if those people gather together, that'll be even more troublesome."
The two of them heard the concern in Han Xing's words and knew that he had a point.
In fact, Han Xing's concerns would inevitably come true.
District 107 might appear peaceful on the surface, but there were definitely people here harboring ill intentions.
This was not Blue Star. It was a world without the restraints of law.
For profit, or for the loot in other survivors' hands, such people were capable of anything.
Cheng Jianyong asked, "Xing Ge, then do you have any good suggestions?"
Han Xing pondered for a moment before replying, "My suggestion is that we stay put for the first two days. Once we get through the initial period of chaos, the three of us can head toward the same coordinates to shorten the time needed to meet up."
"Then, whenever we encounter clouds we can handle along the way, we should explore them as much as possible. We need to level up while traveling too, but we must be careful and avoid those large clouds."
After hearing this, both of them felt that Han Xing's plan was more reliable, so they agreed to it.
Just as they were preparing to act, the system's third prompt appeared.
Announcement: "As the territory point rankings in most regions have ended, new ranking challenges are now open."
"Based on regional divisions, the first one hundred survivors in each region to reach Level 10 will receive ranking rewards."
"Ranks 100–51 will receive: Spirit Energy Shield Crystal Tower Blueprint (Basic) *1, Ironclad Automaton *5, Basic Lord's Cabin Blueprint *1, Basic Teleportation Array Blueprint *1, Spirit Core *1000."
"Ranks 50–11 will receive: Spirit Energy Shield Obelisk Blueprint (Basic) *1, Ironclad Automaton *10, Basic Lord's Cabin Blueprint *1, Basic Teleportation Array Blueprint *1, Spirit Core *2000."
"New ranking rewards again?"
Han Xing was also startled by this System Prompt, and he checked the attributes of these reward items.
Spirit Energy Shield Obelisk Blueprint (Basic): Territory-type building. Constructs a crystal tower capable of generating a spirit energy shield. The spirit energy shield can resist physical and magical attacks. Defense value: 200.
Ironclad Automaton lv10: Ordinary defensive automaton. Can only operate within the territory.
Attributes: Strength 53, Agility 34, Spirit 32, Constitution 56.
Skills: Copper Skin and Iron Bones, Flame Jet, Serrated Slash.
"The attributes seem pretty good," Han Xing pondered.
That Spirit Energy Shield Obelisk (Basic) could actually generate a shield directly. In other words, it could enclose the territory so that others could not enter, while also blocking attacks.
The second item, the Ironclad Automaton, was a defensive automaton. Its attributes were roughly equivalent to those of an ordinary Level 10 monster. When danger arose or other Cloud Monsters invaded, it could help survivors fight.
Then there was the third item, the Basic Lord's Cabin: Defense value 500. It could increase the defense value of all defensive buildings within the territory by 10%, increase the attack power of all offensive buildings by 5%, increase the attributes of all friendly units by 5%, and increase the travel speed of the Sky Island Territory by 10%.
Seeing the Lord's Cabin's attributes, Han Xing said in confusion, "This Basic Lord's Cabin seems to have effects similar to my Novice Castle, but its bonuses are far weaker!"
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