novelhome Chapter 169: Muster
Chapter 169: Muster
‘Huff…Huff…that was exhausting.’
Zyrus massaged his temples while he jogged towards the main entrance. He was so mentally exhausted that even his horns were aching. Causing a dungeon’s collapse was more draining than he’d thought. Thankfully, his recovery rates did their jobs in the meantime. He managed to gather his wits by the time he arrived at the reception counter.
‘She’ll dry my pockets if I’m not sharp enough.’
“Hmm…were you thinking something rude?” An elegant voice made its way to his ears.
“Of course not.”
“If you say so. I assume everything went well?” the elf receptionist asked after tallying his contribution points. The rewards were generous since he was done with the mission.
“Well indeed. Can I exchange for more Altar of Order and Spatial Pikes?”
“Sure. How many would you like? Note that if the targeted area is not recorded then you can only buy general model. They are more like half-finished products, priced at 70% of the original.”
“Can I learn how to complete them?” Zyrus asked, though he already guessed the answer.
“Yes, but not with your current access level.”
“I’ll take five of each then.” Zyrus made the purchase without hesitation. If he succeeded then he should be able to find a way back to earth without being so passive.
“I see. Do you want anything el-, oh, never mind. You have 5 points left,” the elf shooed him away with disinterested eyes.
Zyrus tucked badge in his pocket and exited the tower. No one had told him how to go back to the sanctuary, but he had figured that out all the same.
He closed his eyes and perceived the laws that governed this place. He didn’t have the mastery to influence the nature’s laws, but this place was different.
The laws here were ‘alive’.
‘Return me to the sanctuary,’
There was no response. Nothing changed except the sounds around him had disappeared.
‘As I thought….’
Zyrus opened his eyes and surveyed the tent he was in. As he had predicted, he was once again back in the sanctuary. The lack of commotion proved just how advanced the means of Streit bastion were. Regardless, now was the time to focus on the sanctuary until the flag march was over. Only then would he think about going back to earth.
‘A lot has changed.’
Zyrus’s soul threads perceived the entire island he was on. It had been a while since he was away. In the eyes of the players, he had been training in his tent for all this time. While strange, it wasn’t unexpected. No one had the free time to gossip about their leader.
*Flap*
The leather parting gave way to brilliant sunlight. The familiar salty wind and dry soil greeted him once again.
“Humans sure are amazing,” Zyrus muttered as he looked around the campsite. Or rather, it should be called a military outpost.
Brick walls surrounded a city from all sides. Mud houses, stone roads, and carts driven by goat-like monsters were reflected in his eyes. It had been no more than three years, but his was the only tent that remained on this whole island.
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
The hill he was staying on was the highest vantage point. Zyrus overlooked the entire area with a surge of pride. Without using any skills, just the eyes of Sylvarix were enough to look over the entire outpost.
This was the city built based on his imparted wisdom. It might look like a random village in the medieval era, but Zyrus knew that the whole area would awaken like a beast at a moment’s notice. Hundreds of formations and soldier deployment were taken into account. The city had the capacity to defend against ten times their numbers despite its brick walls and feeble houses.
This was the power of mana.
Zyrus needed to get up to date with everything that’d happened in the past three years. He caressed the flag that had grown taller in his absence and opened the menu of 'Flag march'.
How many resources were gathered? How strong was their army? How many ships did they have? These were just the most basic questions that were answered by the tab.
Using the system might give him an idea, but it was nowhere near enough to draw a clear picture.
‘It’s time I held a proper meeting.’
Zyrus clicked on the message icon and executed one of the authorities he had as the leader.
[Zyrus Wymar has ordered a Muster]
[All players not on tasks are to gather at the nearby conquered territory]
[Time remaining– 06:00:00]
200,000 players received the golden text at the same instant.
The first to contact him were Ria, Kyle, and Lauren. After that were Shi kun, Jacob, Druv, Strongfist, and Stephen. All of them had greatly improved their strength and management abilities. What satisfied him the most though, was the fact that all of his main subordinates had learned to properly wield their powers.
Even someone like Stephen who was in charge of management had reached lv 35. They were the elites of the elite in the sanctuary.
Their present strength was more than enough to challenge the field boss of the second zone. Zyrus greeted everyone back and had a long talk with Ria and Stephen. After everyone’s reports, the progress of their army was like this:
-100,000 Combat players, with the majority being subdued monsters.
-1000 ships, of which 10 were galleon class. All of them were equipped with ballistas and torpedoes.
-A minor base on every conquered island and the main city that he was at.
These were just the surface-level numbers. 85% of the materials required for the altar were collected. The researchers from human, goblin, and kobold camps were summoned from the first ring to aid in their development. With their contribution countless big and small items were created each day.
From toothbrushes and sanitary items to transportation carts and low-rank weapons – everything was progressing towards a brand-new civilization.
This was different from before his regression. Even throughout the history of the sanctuary, Zyrus was sure that the foundation he was building was one of the strongest.
‘And now, it’s time to add one more page to our Epic.’
Zyrus held the Twilight crusher and connected to every camp under his territory. For an epic item to become a legendary, more than just materials were needed.
The first and most important requirement for that was precisely the word– Legend. ‘Create your own legend and only then would your items have a chance to evolve,’-this was a famous saying among the arcanists.
Various events like the crown hunt and flag march were also important for a multitude of reasons. Gathering more players, developing an army, and conquering the world. This was the core concept of the sanctuary. Even after seeing the awe-inspiring Streit bastion Zyrus wasn’t planning to neglect the sanctuary.
‘This might not be the best place to grow your power, but it’s definitely the safest.’
Numerous green dots appeared on the flag march’s menu. All of them represented a conquered island. Now, only six red dots remained on the entirety of Pisces Archipelago.
[Time remaining– 00:30:00]
Zyrus went through his speech before the last few minutes. Not only did he have to decide his army’s growth, his own training had to be taken into account as well.
His inability to go to the earth had changed a lot of his plans. For one, he no longer had the ability to cheat time by traveling to Earth. This would’ve caused his progress to stagnate, but thankfully, the mission on the plains of Ilios had solved that issue.
He didn’t need any more serious battles to work on his skills. All that remained was polishing what he had learned and accumulating ‘experience’.
‘My overall power is halved, but I’d be able to get more achievements in return.’
His title, trait, and talent were restricted as he had guessed. However, his biggest gain this time was his merging of the martial arts and mana. He couldn’t get any achievement from his 13 curses of void, but the power structure he created using the void refinement was different.
‘If everything goes well, then I’ll be able to create a brand-new subclass.’
That was a feat a scant few had achieved since the creation of this sanctuary. This was also his biggest goal in the next 5 years.
[Time remaining– 00:05:00]
Conquering the final six islands, getting the best possible result for flag march, and developing his own achievements…everything was tied together by his sharp wits.
And at the same time, it would also change the destiny of countless worlds
[Time remaining– 00:00:00]