Chapter 210: Stone Gargoyle Swarm, Return to the Territory
Carrying such a vast amount of resources, encountering any accident along the way could spell disaster.
Although Zong Shen was quite confident in his and his warriors' strength, he knew that the longer he stayed out, the more risks he faced. Only by swiftly returning to his territory could he feel truly secure.
Over two hundred Kobolds were following Zong Shen's team, creating a sense of grand migration.
The journey was smooth, and everyone returned outside the mine.
Zong Shen took out the [Intermediate Illusion Magic Crystal (Blue)] and began to create a large-scale illusion, masking the mine entrance with the appearance of an ordinary rock wall.
Then he hid the Magic Crystal in a nearby corner of the ruins, leading everyone away from the ruins to an open area on the grassland.
In one go, he took out six Burden-Bearer Mechas, infused each with magic energy, and tasked the Goblin Driver Carlos to begin teaching the Gun and Shield Warriors how to operate them.
Each Magic User Mecha could carry twenty to thirty farmers.
The smaller stature of the Kobolds meant that with a bit of squeezing, each Mecha could carry forty to fifty Kobolds. Only five Burden-Bearer Mechas were needed to carry all the Kobolds.
The remaining Burden-Bearer Mecha was used to store the materials, guarded personally by Zong Shen's warriors.
Goblin Driver Carlos, along with five Dragonized Spear and Shield Warriors, were responsible for piloting the mechas.
The operation of the Burden-Bearer Mecha was not difficult; within a few minutes, Carlos had taught them how to drive.
Before the Burrow Monsters could be drawn in, the magic core engines of the six Burden-Bearer Mechas roared to life.
The treads rolled, tearing up the grass and soil as they sped in the direction of the territory!
The sky was somewhat dim, though not yet completely dark.
The Kobolds seemed somewhat photophobic; under sunlight, their pupils changed subtly, slightly impeding their vision, but they could still maintain normal life and labor on the ground.
The six Burden-Bearer Mechas roamed the grassland, aggressively crushing smaller groups of Burrow Creatures fewer than a hundred strong, while circumventing larger swarms.
A squad of twelve Wolf Riders paved the way ahead, rapidly advancing toward the territory.
However, there were not only monsters on the ground; Gargoyles began to hover in the sky as well.
These Gargoyles were captain-level monsters with Tier Three strength attributes, elevating these Burrow Monsters from an initially weaker state to a competitive level against same-tier creatures.
The Gargoyles congregated into a swarm, flying dark and heavy in the sky, casting expansive shadows. They had spotted Zong Shen's convoy and were now deliberately tailing it.
These Gargoyles looked terrifying with their dark red, hairless skin, their eyes a blood-red glow of malevolent light, with uneven, keratin-covered foreheads.
Their bodies were sleek, lacking any excess fat, with limbs ending in sharp talons akin to eagle claws, complemented by a tail as long as their body, its skin bumpy like a crocodile's tail.
In addition, their backs bore massive fleshy wings, joint-pronged and angular, appearing very menacing. They flapped their wings to maintain flight, closely following the Burden-Bearer Mechas, waiting for the right moment to strike.
Zong Shen raised his head, squinting as he gazed at the Gargoyles, assessing their attributes.
[Gargoyle lv15 (Blue)]
[Race: Undead Race]
[Piercing Damage: 66~69]
[Life Value: 580]
[Armor Value: 25]
[Magic Resistance: 15]
[Skills: Ghost Blade lv10 (Throws ten Ghost Blades consecutively, each dealing 0.5 times piercing damage, cooling time 30 minutes)]
Stone Statue Form (Transforms into Gargoyle form, enters magic immunity state, increases armor value by 20 points, regains 4 life value per second, unable to attack, move, or fly in this state)]
(Although the Gargoyle's level is low, they are equally fierce and troublesome. You might attempt to communicate with the Demon's Heart to issue Demon Deterrence, driving them away, a relatively effortless method.)
The Gargoyle swarm obscured the sky, exerting a heavy sense of pressure. Their attack method involved slashing with black light blades within a hundred-meter range, dealing piercing damage to targets. While there was no additional damage bonus, their attack speed was swift, particularly when amassed, making their light blades rain down like a downpour.
Especially since Zong Shen was eager to hurry, he had no wish to halt and battle them. Furthermore, with vast swarms of Burrow Creatures wandering the grassland, any delay could easily lead to encirclement, plunging into a monstrous ocean.
Zong Shen glanced at the strategy hint and did not intend to engage in a direct confrontation. He began to try using his intention to communicate with the Demon's Heart.
With a shift in his thoughts, he surprisingly received a response. Within the Demon's Heart, a terrifying will lurked, but this consciousness was firmly suppressed by the Lord's Rules, transformed into a certain skill and trait, unable to make any waves.
The Lord's Rules are the foundation for all Lords who arrive, almost equivalent to the world rules, not something that the will of a small Demon Overlord can shake.
After connecting with the Demon's Heart, he purposely began to activate the power of the Demon's Heart.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
The heart beat powerfully, pumping blood throughout Zong Shen's body, while a black phantom also began to tremble.
A demonic deterrence emanated from within, and the gargoyles in the sky suddenly hesitated, beginning to turn and flee without looking back.
The surrounding Burrow Monsters did the same, no longer chasing Zong Shen and his group, but instead fearfully making way, as the demon's pressure was immense on these Undead Race and Burrow Creatures.
Unfortunately, this deterrence could not be sustained for long; within moments, Zong Shen's face turned bright red, his whole body flooded with blood, and his blood pressure soared.
Originally, his blood flowed like a gentle stream, but after activating the Demon's Heart to release deterrence, it turned into a rushing river, straining his entire being immensely.
After dispelling the Gargoyle Swarm, Zong Shen interrupted his communication with the Demon's Heart, and his heart and blood supply returned to normal, with discomfort beginning to fade away.
The Gargoyle Swarm earlier consisted of hundreds, mostly all the gargoyles in the vicinity gathered. The remaining journey became much smoother, and even if encountering other Gargoyle Swarms, Zong Shen could skillfully release demonic deterrence briefly to drive them away.
When Zong Shen released the demon's pressure, the Necromancer Tasuya would show admiration, while the Holy Light Priest Aisha would reveal a hint of resistance, and those kobolds would instinctively feel fear.
Burrow Creatures and the Undead Race almost inherently fear demons, though other warriors showed no reaction.
Only the Necromancer and Holy Light Mages were relatively sensitive to this, but the loyalty of both women was already at full value, so this wouldn't cause any changes.
Full loyalty value grants additional privileges, so even if Zong Shen transforms into a demon to fight, Aisha's loyalty wouldn't decrease, unless Zong Shen maintains the demon state and does things that Aisha strongly dislikes, only then would loyalty decrease.
Relying on the unique skill of demonic deterrence, over an hour later, they finally returned to the territory, where six Burden-Bearer Mechas crossed through the passage left in the city wall midsection, stopping in the open ground at the eastern side of the territory.
Upon returning, Zong Shen saw the arrow towers and an Ancient Guardian attacking the gargoyles in the sky; a group consisting of a dozen gargoyles hovered over the territory.
They hadn't approached the Attack Range of a hundred meters yet but were confused by the longer range arrow towers and the Guardian Tree Spirit, fell into Stone Statue Form to the ground, then surrounded by the patrolling Wolf Rider Squad Two, swiftly eliminated with the help of defense buildings.
Zong Shen was very satisfied with the territory's defense. Once he builds the Defense Blueprint exchanged with points, the territory's counterattack ability will ascend to a higher level, definitely ranking among the Lords as one of the strongest defended territories.
The advantages accumulated bit by bit in the early stages had begun to manifest gradually, the strong became stronger, setting an example for the weak, coupled with the pressure of the survival crisis, ultimately forming an era where everyone strives for advancement.
Zong Shen divided the warriors into two groups, one stayed in the territory, while the other went to support the front lines.
He personally led over two hundred kobolds, starting to unload, transferring those precious minerals and Magic Energy Crystals to the Territory Storage Grid, as for iron ore, the quantity is so large it temporarily has to be carried personally until upgrading the Territory Storage Box to store it.
After storing the materials, Zong Shen began arranging for the kobolds.
Now in the territory, there are a total of 258 kobolds, all managed under Dutra's Command.
He allocated 14 Command Value for Wenresa, then he started to temporarily build grass huts and houses.
He added a few rows beside the houses, placed 35 grass huts, while upgrading the 6 grass huts placed before departure today to houses, and upgraded 10 houses to construct as Tier Three Stone Houses.
This wave of upgrading and constructing houses consumed a total of 780 units of wood, 690 units of stone, 168 units of iron, and 785 units of Ma.
For Zong Shen now, it's just a drop in the ocean.
He called San Pang to lead farmers to start construction, telling Dutra to go to the kobolds while he walked to the "market," extracting the resources exchanged for the 8 units of "Moon Holy Water" put up for sale before leaving this morning, gaining 1200 units of wood, 1200 units of Ma, and 800 units of stone.
He then began to sell new items, this time neither equipment nor Moon God Spring, but rather iron resources, as he has a surplus of iron resources.
After the temporary points exchange, Zong Shen believed many Lords' resources were somewhat affluent again.
He sells iron in batches of 300 units, exchanged at a ratio of 1 to 2.5 for 750 units of wood/stone/Ma.
Any of these three resources can be exchanged with 750 units to purchase his 300 units of iron.
This price is very favorable compared to the market price, almost equal to the points exchange ratio, because he wants to sell more iron resources.
To Zong Shen, being able to quickly convert some iron resources into other resources is maximizing benefits, as single iron resources cannot meet the construction needs of the territory, only by converting them into multi-dimensional resources can the territory's stable development be ensured.
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