Invaders

These harmless monsters are not within the scope of the territory cleanup, and even the Tiger Sha Army doesn't consider these monsters when recruiting soldiers.

But at this point, these monsters found a new purpose.

Soon, across the vast territory from Azure Cloud Mountain to Xuanwei Monastery, countless lesser demons, summoned by some unknown force, rushed toward the temple.

After the territories were merged, Lin Xu's Mountain Lord Authority extended to cover the area belonging to the Daoist temple.

Soon, forty new demon-attribute Heavenly Craftsman Strongman were freshly produced.

Although these monsters did not receive the blessing of a territory to gain near-limitless magical power, they possessed greater potential for growth.

Lin Xu watched as the monsters who had completed their job advancement rushed through the dungeon, constantly expanding the city's territory, and felt a slight pang of regret.

"Spirit Rune Construction" looks like a skill, but it is actually the talent of the Heavenly Craftsman Strongman. Even he cannot analyze it, so he cannot allow more suitable targets to complete the job change.

"I've heard that certain specialized professions require specific talents, perhaps similar to the case of the Heavenly Craftsman Strongman— "

He soon discovered that the monsters who had changed jobs could build faster than the Earth Vein Spirit.

Because some special units among the monsters, such as the rat demon, possess the talent and skill of "Earth Digging," their digging ability is one or two times higher than that of the spirit-type Heavenly Craftsman Strongman.

As the passageway rapidly extended, caves were excavated one after another, and the area of the underground city expanded accordingly.

But soon, new problems arose.

"We don't have enough spirit jade to build spirit-patterned structures—" Lin Xu frowned as he looked at the warehouse.

Spirit jade is a type of jade that can contain Spiritual Qi. It is not a single material, but a general term for a class of materials.

Constructing a spirit-patterned building, even the most basic one, requires a certain amount of spirit materials.

Daoist temples do not produce spiritual jade, but in areas close to Spirit Vein, rocks are transformed into Spirit Marrow Stone under the constant influence of Spiritual Qi.

This is a mutated Shitou that can replace spirit jade in an environment rich in Spiritual Qi. However, once the construction area is far from the Spirit Vein, real spirit jade is needed as the foundation for the inscription array.

"The development of the territory, especially the spirit-patterned buildings in the dungeon, requires more spirit materials."

Lin Xu's gaze swept across the territory. "Territory sweeping, village development, and external exploration all require someone to do them; Li Yingqiu alone is far from enough."

In short, the development of the territory requires spiritual resources, but even more so, it needs talented people.

The best way to achieve these things is to start with reality.

"Rumor has it that lords can anchor themselves to cities in the real world, and I'm starting to sense that connection—" His gaze swept across the gradually expanding territory, "It's time to return to reality."

In theory, adventurers can return to reality from any location in the Spirit Realm, but in reality, it takes several minutes from the start of the return to being completely detached from the Spirit Realm. During this process, the person cannot move or be attacked, so they must be in a safe environment.

Experienced adventurers build their own safe houses in the Spirit Realm, and if they are working in a team, they will build a solid secret base.

This was not a problem for Lin Xu, who simply chose to return to the Daoist temple.

As his consciousness stretched, in a daze, he seemed to sense that the distance between the Spirit Realm and reality was closing—

"Finally arrived—this is the Spirit Realm Li Yingqiu found?" Qi Changhao looked at the lush green grass at his feet, a look of relief on his face. "Luckily, we had that great man's Wayfinding Compass, otherwise we would have been doomed this time—"

Traveling through the Spirit Realm is dangerous; one wrong step and you can lose your way.

"Watch out! The beacon has been destroyed. They're probably already prepared!" Meng Yunxu cautiously looked around. The faintly visible trees indicated the terrain.

However, the more distant areas remained shrouded in mist. This was the rule of the Spirit Realm: different forces could not share the same view of the mist.

Without his prompting, the adventurers around them spontaneously prepared for battle.

After carefully inspecting the tree and confirming it was harmless, the adventurer leaned against it, cautiously observing the surroundings.

In the Spirit Realm, carelessness is synonymous with death; the slightest mistake can lead to death from various dangers.

After a moment, Qi Changhao relaxed slightly. "Perhaps the beacon was damaged by accident?"

For adventurers, the first few minutes after entering an unfamiliar environment are the most dangerous, after which they can slowly explore and expand their safe zone.

"Don't be careless!" Meng Yunxu said cautiously. "We've already entered their territory, and we don't yet know the specific situation here—"

Qi Changhao curled his lip; he had used a "Charm Human" spell to reveal everything Duan Wei knew.

This territory was only recently established and hasn't been developed yet; it's highly likely that some lucky guy stumbled upon it in the Spirit Realm.

Although this situation is rare, most Lineage power in reality has developed in this way.

The fact that this emerging force is trying to recruit untrained adventure teams reveals its lack of resources and foundation.

The only thing to be cautious about is that the other party may have some ability to mass-produce Daoist priests.

"If it really exists, then I'll be rich—" Qi Changhao thought with burning desire.

Mages reign supreme; what kind of divine artifact could mass-produce mages?

The group cautiously explored their surroundings, unaware that they were being watched by eyes that were secretly watching them.

Dark eyes, hidden among the dense foliage, peered through the gaps in the leaves, watching their unsuspecting prey.

This is a killing field, and it is one of its prey. Just a day ago, a nest of three little demons that spawned with it encountered a patrolling demon soldier squad in the mountains, and only it managed to escape in a sorry state.

Having fled all night, they were now starving, only to encounter these even weaker prey.

A few minutes later, a three-person adventurer team was exploring the forest.

Ah~

An archer's vision blurred, and he was sent flying backward, rolling several times before getting up. To his horror, he discovered that his leather armor had been torn open in three places, and blood was spurting out.

"Watch out!" The remaining two adventurers skillfully formed a back-to-back formation.

A gust of wind blew by, and the leaves rustled.

The archer, who had just stood up, froze instantly.

"Watch your back—" His companion's warning was cut short. The archer clutched his bleeding neck and collapsed to the ground in terror. He looked at his companion, wanting to say something, but the blood gushing from his mouth choked him.

"It's a monster!" The two survivors gasped as they looked at the ferocious cat demon behind the archer.

It's a lynx spirit. These large, spirited lynxes only stand 1.6 meters tall, but their speed is astonishing, and their sharp claws make them incredibly powerful in combat.