Absolute Death Game

Chapter 296 - 68 Activities

"Gold Coins are not a problem; I still have some here," Xiao Buli said, trading another fifty Gold Coins to Han Wenhuan, "Take me to see those soldiers."

Han Wenhuan readily agreed and led Xiao Buli to the Black Mountain military camp.

One hundred and fifty Black Mountain Lackeys had already been upgraded to official troop types: fifty Black Mountain Raiders, fifty Black Mountain Looters, and fifty Black Mountain Hunters.

Black Mountain Raiders are Javelin Soldiers who can fight both up close and at a distance. They belong to a support troop type. Since javelins are much simpler to use than bows and arrows in the complex mountain terrain and have armor-piercing effects, they can also inflict damage on heavily-armored units. Additionally, they possess certain melee capabilities.

Black Mountain Looters are shield and sabre wielders, equipped with a shield-block skill, granting them a forty-some percent chance to block ranged attacks and a twenty-some percent chance to block melee attacks, making them a meat shield troop type.

As for the Black Mountain Hunters, they are all archers. Unlike Black Mountain Archers, each Black Mountain Hunter is accompanied by a Black Mountain Hound.

Black Mountain Hunters? Xiao Buli said, "I haven’t heard of this troop type before. It doesn’t seem like the Black Mountain military camp has this type, does it?"

Han Wenhuan replied, "That’s correct. The Black Mountain Hunter is actually a trainable troop type that emerged after the Mountain Patrol Camp was upgraded. They are an advanced unit of the Black Mountain Scout. Their ranged firepower is slightly weaker than that of the Black Mountain Archer, but each Black Mountain Hunter can tame a hound. When combined, they are a very cost-effective troop type."

The Black Mountain Hunters’ hounds have some anti-stealth capabilities, making them perfectly suited for patrol and reconnaissance in the mountains. Moreover, when Black Mountain Hunters are grouped together, they are very practical, as having hounds by their side means they are not rendered useless after being closed in on, unlike Black Mountain Archers.

Xiao Buli nodded in satisfaction, "You’re doing well. I think these Black Mountain Hunters are very practical. We can train them in large numbers later. It doesn’t matter even if the cost is a bit higher. During war, sending a few hundred dogs to bite the enemy first, followed by a synchronized shooting to kill the enemy should have a good effect. But, why aren’t there any Black Mountain Cavalry? They are a mobile unit. Haven’t you always been advocating for a cavalry supremacy theory before?"

Han Wenhuan smiled bitterly and shook his head, "The problem is the lack of money and horses. The training cost for Black Mountain Cavalry is too high; we simply can’t afford it right now."

Xiao Buli nodded. That made sense; even ordinary travel horses cost one or two Gold Coins, not to mention warhorses. Equipment could be crafted by players, but warhorses couldn’t be.

"Also, I have collected many war resources, but I do not know what your intentions are, whether to continue developing the Black Mountain Stronghold or to siege and expand the territory nearby, so I have kept all those war resources and haven’t used them," Han Wenhuan added.

War resources refer to the resources needed for war. There are five types altogether: stone, wood, metal, Gold Coins, and food.

Stone and wood are most commonly used for construction upgrades. These two types of war resources are by-products of gathering skills. For example, mining might sometimes produce stone, which is of no use to players; they cannot be used for crafting equipment or sold for money, but they are essential for Lords. These materials can be used to build fortifications, upgrade construction, and make stone bullets for Catapults, among other war tools.

Similarly, the Lumbering skill might also sometimes yield huge logs that are only used in times of war.

Xiao Buli considered for a moment and then said, "Let’s first manage the Black Mountain Stronghold properly. In the short term, we probably cannot expand, as we lack a King’s Banner and have not founded a nation. If we were to siege, we would have to pay a tribute to Sky Grass. Each tribute requires spending Gold Coins, and without a good reason, that Gold Coin would just be thrown into the sea. We simply cannot bear this kind of expense right now. Also, we still have too few troops; even if we had the money, we don’t have an army to fight the war. What’s most important now is to gather enough populace and bolster our troop strength."

Han Wenhuan nodded, conceding that amassing troops is indeed the current priority. Although players are somewhat more powerful in battle and can play a pivotal role in wars, their number is small, and their fear of death makes control not easy. Managing them in a favorable battle is fine, but if the combat poses a high risk, who knows, they might just run away, and there would be nothing you could do. Therefore, NPC soldiers are more reliable; they are not afraid of death and there is an ample supply of them.

As for how to gather population, Xiao Buli had some ideas. He saw many refugees leaving the city heading southwards due to unsustainable conditions while he was in Nine Dragons City. Along the way, he encountered several groups of refugees; they are potential soldiers.

Moreover, he discovered that the Lord system includes a quest system that allows for the posting of quests within the domain’s boundaries. So, he said, "We could release quests to Solo Players to help catch the refugees. You could lead a team to establish a recruiting point on the main roads and instruct players to search for refugees in the surroundings, then gather and transport them back to the stronghold."

Han Wenhuan’s eyes lit up. "That’s a brilliant idea. I’ll get right on it," he exclaimed.

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"Be careful, everyone—the tiger’s out!" A Swordsman who had taken up a job as a hunter ran frantically through the gaps between trees, activating Wilderness Rush and even deploying the light body technique ’Flying on Grass’ he had learned recently. His speed was extraordinary, darting out of the forest with the wind at his heels, shortly followed by a ferocious tiger in hot pursuit, just about to catch up. Suddenly, four figures emerged from the surrounding bushes, and a barrage of arrows rained down on the tiger.

Thud! Thud! A series of muffled sounds followed, and the tiger let out a terrible scream, becoming a porcupine skewered with arrows.

"Release the hounds!" A call resounded through the YY channel; four pets immediately pounced from both sides. The tiger roared fiercely and attacked, but after a brief chaotic fight, it inevitably fell amidst the encirclement.

(This is so thrilling—I finally have my own territory and can level up and fight monsters in peace.)

Luo Xiu walked over to the tiger’s carcass, thinking this as it was his turn to reap the rewards. Using his skinning skill, he swiftly collected a pile of materials dissected from the tiger’s body.

Like many solo players, Luo Xiu had chosen a Hunter Series occupation and also branched into a melee occupation—Swordsman. He used a bow and arrows for long-range combat and a sabre for close combat. Together with his leopard pet, he was perfectly suited for wilderness battles.

But just like most solo players, for a long time, Luo Xiu had to act according to the whims of the Great Guilds. He didn’t dare take on quests, enter dungeons, or even fight rare elites without scoping out the area first, for fear of breaking some unspoken rule. Now, all of this had finally changed.

Not long ago, he’d heard from another solo player that a player force had recently taken over the Black Mountain Stronghold and issued orders allowing solo players to grind and level up in the vicinity. Upon hearing this news, Luo Xiu promptly called a few familiar solo players and rushed over.

He had been ready to pay protection money if needed, but the situation turned out to be better than he’d expected. The player force occupying the Black Mountain Stronghold didn’t seem to care about them, nor did they monopolize the leveling resources. He had been living the good life for the past three days, forming a small party with four other players. Together, they killed monsters, leveled up, and gathered materials. The haul had been quite substantial over these days.

"Hmm, we got a pretty good haul today, let’s call it quits here," Luo Xiu suggested.

"I was planning to log off too. I’ve got work this afternoon," said a Swordsman from the team.

Luo Xiu couldn’t help but express his surprise, "You’re still working? Why bother with a job when you’ve got this game?"

"No kidding, if I don’t work, are you going to support me?" the Swordsman replied irritably.

Luo Xiu shook his head, "That’s not what I meant. I’m saying, you never know when you’ll kick the bucket playing this game, why bother thinking so much? I sold my house and am fully focused on this game now. Once I become powerful, making money will be a piece of cake."

The Swordsman fell silent.

A Hunter who doubled as an assassin said, "Yeah, I’m gaming full-time too. I used to work, but ever since I started playing this game, I quit. Playing this game is like risking your neck in a revolution; you never know when you’ll drop dead. Why bother with all the hard work?"

"You’re not wrong, but I’ve got a family to feed. I can’t afford to be as casual as you guys," the Swordsman replied.

"You’ve got a family to support, and you’re still playing this game?" Luo Xiu asked in surprise. Your journey continues with NovelBin.Côm

"Of course," the Swordsman seemed a bit annoyed, "Would you be able to resist not playing a game like this?"

He had a point; Luo Xiu certainly couldn’t resist anymore.

Enough talk. Let’s hurry back to the stronghold and log off.

When the group returned to the stronghold, it was exactly noon. Many other players were also returning from leveling up outside, probably planning to resume after lunch. The gate guards, who were NPCs belonging to that player power, greeted them. Luo Xiu marveled inwardly, wondering when he would reach such heights.

As they arrived at the clearing inside the stronghold, they noticed a crowd around the bulletin board. Most of them were players, and in their midst stood an NPC with a deep blue name—Zhang Zhixi (Black Mountain Deputy Commander).

Zhang Zhixi was originally just a regular rare elite, but after the battle at Black Stone Village, he’d earned enough experience to level up to an Elite Level NPC. Now, he was only one step away from becoming a Silver Name miniboss.

As one of the few elite NPCs under Xiao Buli, Zhang Zhixi was appointed as the Deputy Commander of the Black Mountain Army, with Han Wenhuan serving as Commander, and Li Shuren appointed as the Lord of the Black Mountain Stronghold, responsible for managing and building the territory.

"What’s going on, what happened?" Luo Xiu asked a player outside.

"There’s an event. That guild has started organizing an event,"