Occupy the Mine, Upgrade the Bonfire

Though it hadn't managed to kill it in one blow, this strike had still dealt it a fatal wound.

The black wolf's head hung halfway off its neck, blood gushing out like a spring.

It staggered two steps, swayed, and finally fell with unwillingness.

"Boom..."

The heavy corpse slammed into the black ground, spilling several glimmering items.

Chapter 11: Occupy the Mine, Upgrade the Bonfire

The orange light drove away the mist within a ten-meter radius and illuminated the enormous wolf corpse on the ground.

Hellscream's battle axe dripped with blood. He stood with one foot on the loot dropped by the black wolf, radiating killing intent.

"Help the wounded up and treat their injuries immediately." Shen Xing sat in his wheelchair and gave the order in a low voice.

The orcs who could still move hurried into action, lifting their injured companions off the ground and administering emergency treatment.

This fight had been somewhat difficult, after all, the difference in level had been so great.

If other players had faced it, even if they had won in the end, their troops would have suffered heavy losses.

But Shen Xing had used [Hand of the Void] together with Hellscream's flanking assault to deliver a fatal blow.

Taking down this black wolf at the cost of only two injured orcs was already very good.

At the same time, Shen Xing looked back at the loot on the ground.

Besides a pile of Soul Stones, there was also a scroll glowing with a dark green light.

He had an orc infantryman go over and pick up the items.

[Obtained: Soul Stone*5]

[Obtained: Worg Recruitment Scroll (Common 2-Star)]

"A two-star recruitment scroll? And it's a beast, too. Sounds pretty good."

Shen Xing was satisfied. He prepared to have the orcs carry the black wolf's corpse back.

After all, it was loot, too. The wolf meat could replenish their food supplies, the wolf pelt could keep them warm, and the other materials might be useful as well.

When he looked away and turned his gaze back to the Black Iron Vein before him, its status had already changed to [Available to Occupy].

[Would you like to occupy the Small Black Iron Vein?]

"Yes."

A flash of light shone from the mine before a notification appeared.

[Occupation successful! You can now send workers here to mine Black Iron.]

After occupying it, Shen Xing directed the orc squad into the mine.

The space inside wasn't large, and it was filled with the stench of wild beasts. Many rusty pickaxes and mine carts lay scattered across the ground.

He took everything he found, stowing it all in his backpack in case it came in handy later.

After proceeding a little over ten meters down the narrow passage, they reached the end.

Then Shen Xing looked toward a corner of the mine, and his eyes immediately lit up.

A pile of assorted junk lay there. Most of it had rotted away, but there seemed to be a few good things left.

He rummaged through it and stowed everything usable in his backpack.

[Obtained: Bone Fruit*1]

[Obtained: Black Iron*74]

[Obtained: Level 1 Arrow Tower Blueprint*1]

[Obtained: Phantom Clone Scroll (Blue)*1]

[Obtained: Repeating Crossbow (Blue)*1]

[Obtained: Arrows*12]

Looking at the notifications for the pile of loot that appeared before him, Shen Xing felt a surge of delight.

But when he saw that there was barely any lamp oil left in the lantern, he could only suppress his excitement and return to his territory first.

The eerie green light moved through the mist, like a submarine in the depths of the ocean, quiet and lonely.

A little over ten minutes later.

Several figures emerged from the mist at the edge of the dilapidated village and stepped into the firelight.

The warm glow brought waves of warmth, making people feel relaxed without even realizing it.

"We're back."

Shen Xing first surveyed the village. Seeing that nothing had changed since they left, he felt a little relieved.

It seemed no monsters had attacked the village while they were out exploring.

At that moment, the five green-skinned orcs left behind were lying beside the Bonfire, sprawled out with their snores shaking the heavens.

Shen Xing felt speechless. He had taken his people out to risk their lives, while these guys had slept through the day in their territory.

But orcs were like that by nature, and this was a newly recruited group whose intelligence was about the same as that of three-year-old children.

"Thud!"

Hellscream dropped the enormous wolf corpse onto the ground, waking the orcs who had been sleeping beside the Bonfire.

"B-Boss... back..."

They hurriedly scrambled to their feet, staggered over, and lined up.

When the orcs saw the wolf corpse on the ground, their eyes widened and drool uncontrollably dripped from their mouths.

Even the few orcs beside Shen Xing were restless, the sound of them swallowing their saliva rising again and again.

Orcs were carnivores, and eating meat could quickly restore their strength and heal their injuries.

The food the system had rewarded them with earlier had all been coarse flatbread, completely unsuited to these fellows' tastes.

Now that they were looking at fresh, bloody meat, it was like goblins seeing a Saintess in the buff.

"Why are you staring? Afraid you won't get any?" Shen Xing said, staring at them speechlessly.

Under their lord's gaze, the orcs lowered their heads sheepishly and scratched their heads.

"Get to work. Cut up the wolf and distribute the meat," he instructed. "Don't damage the pelt. Be careful."

The orcs' eyes lit up at his words. "Praise the boss!"

As soon as he finished speaking, seven or eight orcs lunged at the wolf corpse and started working on it.

Shen Xing pushed his wheelchair over beside the Bonfire, ready to tally up the loot.

This expedition had yielded a bountiful haul.

Next, he would need to put the loot to use and increase his strength.

As usual, he would first tally up the amounts.

[Soul Stones]*61

[Vinar Silver Coins]*58

[Shattered Souls]*25

[Complete Dim Soul]*1

"Sixty-one Soul Stones. That's enough to get all the orc infantrymen to level 3, with some left over to upgrade buildings."

To survive in the Land of Mist, buildings were just as important as troops. He had to develop both.

Take the territory's core building, the [Bonfire], for example. Upgrading it would not only expand the firelight's range, but also unlock more buildings.

There was also the [Orc Barracks]. Once it reached 'Common 2-Star,' the orcs it recruited would all be two-star as well, saving a great deal of resources.

"Let's upgrade the Bonfire first. The territory is too small right now."

Shen Xing made up his mind and opened the building interface.

[Would you like to spend Soul Stones*5 to upgrade the 'Bonfire' to level 2?]

"Yes."

[Upgrading in progress. Estimated time: 2 hours 32 minutes...]

With a flash of light, five Soul Stones were deducted from his backpack.

The black base of the Bonfire before him gradually expanded, and its flames burned more vigorously.

"Two and a half hours? That's not too long."

He then took twenty [Shattered Souls] out of his backpack and clicked combine.

"Hmm..."

Two clusters of fragmented light gradually came together, turning into two complete balls of light.

That meant Shen Xing now had three [Complete Dim Souls], equivalent to three chances to raise a star rating.

"My [Life-Sacrifice Evolution] will be available again in a few hours."

"I'll save this chance for Hellscream. He's already reached 'Common 3-Star,' so his next step will be advancing to [Elite 1-Star]."

"According to what people on the forum say, the increase in power from Common to Elite is enormous."

"As for these three complete souls... I'll concentrate them on one orc and see if I can get another three-star out of it."

Shen Xing had a plan in mind. Then he looked at an orc nearby, who was clutching his shoulder.

"You, come here."

The orc grunt who had been singled out immediately walked over.

"B-boss..." He also tried to flatter Hellscream like Hellscream had, but his words were still a little unclear.

Shen Xing didn't waste words. He directly handed him the two [Dim Souls].

The orc's eyes immediately widened, and he said delightedly, "Th-thank..."

"All right, all right. Hurry up and absorb them," Shen Xing cut him off.

The orc nodded in his simpleminded way, then raised his fan-sized hands and forcefully slapped the souls into his chest.