Camp Upgrade

"Huh? The camp can be upgraded now?" With a sudden thought, Lin Xu looked at the camp level label, and the previously grayed-out "Upgradeable" label had become an option.

"Upgrading a level 1 camp requires 50 Source Fire points?" He glanced at the mere 17 Source Fire remaining in his resource inventory and frowned slightly. "Adding the cost of recruiting three rounds of Fallen Demon, it seems we need to clear out the outer perimeter of Azure Cloud Mountain first."

The consumption of Source Fire increases exponentially, and after more than three rounds, the premium becomes too high, making it unprofitable.

Monsters from the Spirit Realm are ubiquitous. Just half a day after Lin Xu led his troops to conquer this place, large and small groups of monsters appeared on the outskirts of the foot of the mountain.

These Spirit Realm monsters come in a variety of types, from spirits to flesh and blood, from the bizarre to elemental beings; the sheer variety broadened Lin Xu's horizons.

After several hours of recovery, the Ghost Bride Yan Jingshu's soul had stabilized and was no longer a bubble that would burst at the slightest breath.

"Master, I'll go with you..." Knowing that Lin Xu was going to sweep through Azure Cloud Mountain, Yan Jingshu was about to get up.

"No, you stay and continue healing. Your speedy recovery is the greatest help you can give me." Lin Xu reached out and pressed her hand down. "I 'Wedding Procession Ghosts with me first."

Yan Jingshu's choice at the critical moment of life and death made him regard her as one of his close associates.

In fact, the number in the Faith section of the Ghost Bride's personal panel has already been quietly updated: "Faith: 33".

According to the classification of faith levels, shallow believers are 1-30 and true believers are 31-60. Yan Jingshu's faith in him has reached the stage of a true believer.

The "Lamp Kindling Spirit Transformation Chapter" has the effect of locking in loyalty and faith. Although it is not absolute, once faith reaches this level, one can be considered a confidant.

Lin Xu, along with a group of Dharma protectors and Red-Robed Ghosts, began sweeping through Azure Cloud Mountain.

With the Dharma Protector Evil Eye clearing the way, the area within several miles was under his observation. With the advantage of information and strength, Lin Xu commanded his ghost troops to fight without any scruples.

The advantage of ghosts is their speed and rapid recovery.

The group of ghosts possessing paper figures suffered considerable losses in the previous battle, but they have all recovered after a few hours thanks to the nourishment of the Spiritual Qi in the cave.

Lin Xu took out a roll of Yin Soul Plain Paper, used the Glazed Spirit Lamp to imbue and refine it, and repaired the paper figures' bodies for the ghosts. Then, he embarked on a grand patrol of the mountain.

"Phew~"

The wind howled, ripping open a group of gnolls; the bloody scene instantly shattered the fighting spirit of these wilderness bandits.

But when they fled, they discovered that their once-proud speed had become a disadvantage.

As the paper figures were bound by the red rope, the jackal-men fell to the ground and were then slashed and killed by the paper figures one by one.

By the time the battle ended, the corpses scattered everywhere had dried up, and even the splattered blood had dried.

Post-battle sweeps are a favorite pastime of the demons; the blood, flesh, and essence of fresh corpses on the battlefield, as well as wandering spirits and remnants of souls, are all resources for their growth.

Lin Xu looked at the wooden treasure chest that had appeared on the battlefield. As expected, it contained a money bag, along with a longsword used by gnolls and a wooden shield.

He glanced at the Source Fire stat; it had already reached 51 points.

"Good, you can upgrade now." He nodded in satisfaction, opened the Fallen Demon Camp, and selected to upgrade.

"Boom!"

The ground trembled slightly, Fallen Demon in the camp scattered in fright, only to be restrained by Bilusi.

In just over ten seconds, the monster camp was stabilized again, and the originally somewhat cramped camp had been completely transformed.

The original 300-square-meter camp has expanded to about 500 square meters.

Seven or eight pointed tents occupied most of the campsite, which was now quite empty.

"A blacksmith shop? These little dwarves can forge iron?" Lin Xu thought of the Fallen Demon's scimitar and iron shield, his gaze falling on the recruitment screen. "I can recruit again. Two more Fallen Demon can be recruited each month..."

In the blink of an eye, 1100 Dharma Coin were consumed, and 7 more Fallen Demon appeared in the camp.

At this point, there were already 62 Fallen Demon in this small monster camp.

According to the camp upgrade information, this camp only needs 75 population members to upgrade to level three.

"Recruiting Fallen Demon with Source Fire costs 2 points, while recruiting a Wizard costs 6 points. One round of recruitment requires 18 Source Fire points, and the second round costs 36 points..."

Lin Xu frowned as he calculated the data, "We're 13 units short of the upgrade, one unit less after two rounds. Considering the population requirements for subsequent upgrades, three rounds of recruitment will require a total of 126 Source Fire points..."

If you include the costs of building blacksmith shops and leather workshops, the total is close to 200 points, which is not a small number.

"Take your time, I still have time..." His gaze turned towards the depths of the mist, where the Xuanwei Monastery's front-line camp was located.

After capturing Azure Cloud Cave Abode, the frontline camp, Peach Tree Village, and Azure Cloud Cave Abode formed an inverted triangle, pointing towards the underground city.

Back in the quiet chamber of the cave, the Ghost Bride had fully recovered.

"Master." Yan Jingshu bowed.

"Jingshu, you stay and guard the cave. I'll return to Peach Tree Village for now," Lin Xu earnestly instructed her. "If you encounter a strong enemy, don't fight them head-on; preserving the cave is the priority. If there's danger, immediately seek help from Peach Tree Village. If necessary, we can temporarily evacuate; we can always fight our way back."

"Yes, Master."

Before leaving, Lin Xu glanced at Hu Da. This black tiger demon was quite clever; it had mined over a thousand catties of black iron ore in just half a day.

At this rate, the forging furnace can be completed tomorrow.

Under Chen Yuanfu's management, Peach Tree Village developed in an orderly manner. Lin Xu discovered that although NCP lacked initiative, they completed the tasks assigned to them without any compromise.

So even though he was away, the village's development did not stop. Right after the first rice harvest, the second round of planting began, and a new 100-acre reclamation project was launched.

"Take the supplies and spirit rice, and move to Azure Cloud Cave!" The first thing Lin Xu did upon returning was to make a major move.

During his rest time back in the village, Lin Xu refined over a thousand catties of spirit rice into Spirit Grain Pill.

The next morning, he delivered the military supplies to the camp and then returned with the wounded soldiers.

"The number of wounded soldiers at the front-line camps is increasing, the battle with the dungeon is intensifying, and a major war is not far off..."

Lin Xu saw a true disciple in the camp today, and the increase in the number of patrolling Daoist soldiers and Daoist disciples made him feel that a storm was brewing.

"Within a week."

Back in the village, with the packed supplies, Lin Xu led the convoy straight to Azure Cloud Cave.

With the expansion of Azure Cloud Cave Abode, Peach Tree Village transformed from a dangerous area near the front lines into a relatively safe second-line location.

Lin Xu left behind over a hundred militiamen to reclaim wasteland and cultivate the land under the command of Chen Yuanfu and Wang Yue, while also protecting the villages. He then transferred the outer disciples of the temple, the remaining Daoist soldiers, and the militiamen to Azure Cloud Mountain to make final preparations before the battle.