Promoted to high-level professionals
The Golden Oasis lay shrouded in the night's embrace. Under the canopy of darkness, the sound of a massive tree crashing down echoed through the oasis. Nearly a hundred royal knights worked in unison, felling trees with impressive efficiency. In less than an hour, the wood piled up at the Royal Knights' Training Grounds exceeded a thousand units.
Haotian wasted no time in upgrading the Village Hall. As brilliant golden light descended from the void, the wooden structure transformed, becoming taller and more exquisite, radiating an aura of grandeur. The Golden Oasis expanded once more, with green vegetation swiftly spreading outward, covering vast stretches of yellow sand and numerous dunes. More sturdy trees appeared within the territory, and a diverse array of flowers blossomed, creating a breathtakingly beautiful scene.
To the south of the oasis, an area that had been a sand dune was now covered in verdant grass, with glistening black metal protruding from the ground. Haotian hurried to inspect it and discovered iron ore—a fortuitous find that appeared out of nowhere. This was an unexpected boon, as refined iron from these ores could be used to forge equipment and was a critical resource for upgrading certain territory buildings, far more valuable than wood or stone.
However, Haotian's domain view indicated that the iron mine was not yet fully formed and could not be mined immediately.
"Clearly, upgrading core buildings and enhancing the territory's level will accelerate the formation of this iron mine, making it viable for extraction," Haotian mused. "And it won't just be iron... As the territory grows, more mineral resources will appear."
With wood and iron ore already present, Haotian felt optimistic. Perhaps gold and gemstone mines would surface in the future. Elated by the prospect, he reviewed the upgraded Village Hall's information.
Village Hall Level: Advanced Unlocked Buildings: Fence, Residential House, Arrow Tower Next Level: Town Hall Upgrade Requirements: 3,000 units of wood, 3,000 gold coins
"No new buildings unlocked, but that's not important," Haotian noted. "What's crucial is that with one more upgrade, my territory will become a town, completing the main quest!"
"Three thousand units of wood are easy to obtain; our territory is filled with trees. But the 3,000 gold coins... That's enough to upgrade the Royal Knights' Training Grounds to level three! It has to be done."
Checking his current gold reserves, Haotian sighed. After upgrading the Village Hall and constructing the Lucky Altar, he had only a little over a hundred gold coins left. It felt like a return to square one.
"I'll have to rely on the limited-time hunting mission for a windfall."
Under a large tree, the bound gnoll watched Haotian, standing on a high vantage point, with growing reverence that bordered on fanaticism. He now regarded Haotian as a divine emissary, wielding the power of the gods—a perception reinforced by the miraculous events unfolding before him.
After upgrading the territory, the royal knights gathered several hundred more units of wood before Haotian called them back, assigning them rotating duties of rest and patrol. Haotian then went to an open area near the Village Hall and constructed five Arrow Towers.
The resource expenditure totaled 250 units of wood and 100 units of stone. The rewards for this task were 250 gold coins and 3,000 silver-tailed fish fry. These fish, prized for their superior nutritional value, were more popular than even the evolved magical fish in the Kingdom of Stanlo due to their better taste and beneficial effects.
Haotian released the fish fry into Sapphire Lake, noting that their growth cycle was one month. Although a month felt long, Haotian knew there were ways to expedite the process, such as obtaining items like Plant Growth Accelerant from quest rewards.
"We'll need to ensure a breeding population remains during harvests to maintain a steady fish supply," Haotian planned.
Returning to the Village Hall, Haotian opened the task menu. No new tasks had refreshed yet, but he still had three active tasks: upgrading to the Town Hall (main quest), forming a 100-strong territorial army (side quest), and the limited-time hunting mission (special quest).
As midnight approached, Haotian recruited 30 more royal knights from the training grounds, completing the side quest. His total force now numbered 124 royal knights, with nine resting due to severe injuries. The previously lightly injured knights had already recovered remarkably fast, and the severely injured ones would soon be back in action as well.
Congratulations, you have completed Side Quest 1. Rewards: 200 gold coins, one level increase for your profession.
A powerful surge of energy coursed through Haotian, rapidly increasing his magic power. In an instant, he advanced from level six to level seven, entering the realm of high-tier professionals. Like the steward Hoden, he could now wield more potent high-level magic. However, Haotian preferred to wait for skill books to learn these abilities, saving time and effort.
He had inquired with the Lord System about skill books, which could drop from humanoid monsters, with higher-level monsters offering better chances.
"Two tasks completed, and my gold has increased to 600. Not bad!"
Though no new side quests had appeared, the special hunting mission had commenced. Over the next 48 hours, every monster his units killed would yield additional gold coins. Whether he would strike it rich depended on the outcome of this mission.