Chapter 116 - 113: 211 Tactics and Special Service

Chapter 116: Chapter 113: 211 Tactics and Special Service

Two days later, at noon.

The Stone Language Ruins, thirty miles southeast of the Dome Pillar.

The forest, like a giant sponge with a powerful capacity for storing water, had long since erased any trace of the rainstorm from two days ago. Everything had returned to its vibrant, lively state.

Sunlight pierced through the sparse canopy, transformed by the Dindari Garden Effect into thousands of pathways of light, like a sacred glow. It fell upon the moss-covered stone formations, creating a scene of serene sanctity.

Standing amidst it all, one felt a sacred sensation, as if on the verge of ascending to the heavens.

As the closest landmark in the Northern Forest to the Lost Basin, the Stone Language Ruins had a history of at least several hundred years.

But its specific purpose was still a matter of debate.

Some said it was a sacrificial site for the forest’s previous native inhabitants.

Others claimed it was an abandoned settlement of the Dark Elves.

And still others believed it was a Teleportation Gate to other planes.

In short, the theories were endless.

However, people only discussed it when they were bored. In reality, no one really cared about such historical questions.

No great scholars, archaeologists, or other authorities ever came to take a look.

The reason for this was that there were simply too many similar ruins on the Falanis Continent.

The Undersea City, the Cloud Kingdom, the God-Binding Mine, the Giant Dragon Remains Mountain... The list was practically endless.

The names all sounded more and more impressive, and there was no shortage of Adventurer Squads who went to explore them, but the result was usually just wasted effort.

So over time, all that remained of these ruins in people’s minds were legends of dubious authenticity.

"It’s said that someone once heard these stones speak on the night of a full moon. They prophesied a great five-year chaos in the north of the continent, which would only end when a warrior riding a lion appeared."

"And soon after, the third all-out war between Octavia and Lotherland broke out."

"After that, this place came to be called the Stone Language Ruins."

"Before, it was just called the Stone Labyrinth."

A fire was built atop a toppled stone slab. Bai Ya slowly stirred the soup with a wooden spoon as she explained the origin of the Stone Language Ruins’ name.

Lu Wei and Mirana were completely uninterested in such stories. Only Furen asked excitedly,

"What happened next? Did the warrior on the lion appear? Didn’t the Third Northern War end because the old King of Lotherland suddenly died?"

"The books don’t say, but it seems the lion on the Royal Court’s banner today comes from that story."

"Really? So the prophecy came true?"

"Perhaps. But many other people later claimed to have heard the stones speak, and very few of those prophecies were ever fulfilled."

"Oh, it’s a shame it’s not a full moon yet. Otherwise, we might have been able to hear them too."

"Huh? No way, that sounds super creepy..."

Gathered around the pot, Bai Ya and Furen—one cooking, the other adding firewood—were dressed in clothes stained with mud and grass, but they were otherwise clean and tidy.

This suggested they hadn’t been in any intense battles over the past two days.

And that was indeed the case.

In two days, the four of them had only encountered a few lost Kobolds and a small Goblin race.

There was no Leader Level Big Greenskin, just eight weak, old, sick, or crippled ones.

Lu Wei didn’t even have to act before Furen and Mirana finished them all off.

Even Bai Ya killed two.

As for the loot... it wasn’t that there was none, but it was barely better than nothing.

Lu Wei had no interest in the few broken weapons. He didn’t even bother cutting off their ears, only taking the few Silver Coins and a small bag of Copper Coins they found.

However, these two small encounters had greatly improved the Mushroom Squad’s "cooperative combat capabilities."

That’s right. Since they were now an "experienced" standard four-person squad, they naturally needed a certain degree of professionalism.

So, based on his previous assessment of each person’s role, Lu Wei formulated a set of Tactics called "211"—a name that sounded highly academic just by hearing it.

The specific arrangement was as follows—

Furen and Mirana would act in sync as the team’s front line. One would be primarily responsible for dealing with minions, while the other would focus on charging any potential elite monsters.

Bai Ya would stay in the back row, equipped with a Crossbow and a Strong Acid Bottle, but she was only allowed to shoot at monsters more than three meters away from Furen and Mirana.

And Lu Wei was the "Free People," who would adapt to the battlefield situation as needed.

Currently, after two trial runs, the 211 tactical system was beginning to take shape.

At the very least, everyone knew what they were supposed to do the moment a fight broke out.

But aside from those two battles, there was little else to report.

It was basically just traveling, eating, playing cards, and sleeping.

’It was a bit like a senior citizens’ tour group from his previous life.’

[Rock Block]

[Species: Material]

[Level: Ordinary]

[Value: 3 silver and 10 copper coins]

[Introduction: A rectangular stone block approximately 15 feet long, 5 feet wide, and 1 foot thick, engraved with some Blur patterns of unknown meaning.]

’Precise Identification isn’t omnipotent after all.’

Muttering to himself, Lu Wei silently closed the information panel and opened his profession panel to take a look.

His Attributes and Skills were still the same.

Ever since killing the Tree-man Mage and gaining 1 point of Power, the base values of his various Attributes had not changed.

The quest bar, however, was filling up fast.

[1. Earn one hundred Gold Coins through genuine, mutually acknowledged transactions. (37.21/100)]

’It’s already more than a third of the way there!’

It had increased by more than 10 gold coins since he’d set out!

Subtracting the 8 gold coins he got from the Petrifying Lizard Hide Armor, the rest was all from the general store’s income over the past few days!

’Things are looking up! An average daily turnover of almost 1 gold coin!’

’In terms of costs, Anna and Zovir’s wages are almost negligible, and the purchase price for goods is only about 2 silver.’

’So the net profit is as high as 80%!’

Looking at the progress bar in his mind, Lu Wei couldn’t help but start fantasizing about the scene of himself lying back and counting money after the "Golden Sword Hu Commercial Complex" officially began operations.

Until a crisp sound rang out.

"CLANG CLANG CLANG~"

Bai Ya tapped the stew pot with her wooden spoon and announced in a cheerful tone,

"Time to eat~"

"Today’s lunch is grouse and cheese stew with white tree mushrooms~"

"For dessert, we have acorns with Ning Shen flower tea~"

"And there’s fruit, too~"

...

...

’The progress is faster than I thought. That kid Lu Wei will definitely be surprised when he gets back.’

「Meanwhile, at the Dome Pillar.」

While Lu Wei was savoring his delicious meal, Theodore was inspecting the "construction site."

Although he was the supervisor, he actually had to do manual labor too, so his clothes were covered in wood shavings and his hair was a mess.

But fortunately, his efforts had not been in vain.

After the rain caused a one-day delay, he led everyone in working overtime, and today they had finally caught up to the original construction schedule—

the frame for the main body of the general store was complete.

The foundation that Furen had worked so hard to dig had been expanded four or five times. A wooden frame now stood for the two-story, T-shaped building. All that was left was to complete the exterior walls and the roof.

"Alright! Let’s eat first!"

Nodding in satisfaction, Theodore called for everyone to stop, planning to continue working after lunch.

They had brought their own food from town, and had also set some simple traps in the forest, often catching prey like wild rabbits and pheasants, so they had enough to last for seven or eight days without issue.

And since Lu Wei had asked him to help look after Zovir and Anna before he left, Theodore always called the two young slaves over to eat with them.

He would also observe their work ethic from time to time.

He had to admit, they were both very diligent.

When customers arrived, they enthusiastically promoted the products. When there were no customers, they helped with the construction work.

’They really are good kids...’

Turning his head to look at Anna, who was still promoting products to a customer, Theodore thought this to himself, then smiled and shouted,

"Anna, come and eat!"

"Okay, Mr. Theodore! I’ll be right there!"

Not far away, Anna shouted back a reply, then turned to the young man with brown hair in front of her.

"Sir, I’m terribly sorry, but I really can’t give you a discount."

"Uh... then forget it. Here you go."

The brown-haired young man hesitated for a moment, then took two silver coins from his coin pouch and handed them to Anna, stammering a little in embarrassment,

"E-excuse me, is there, um, you know, ahem, special service... after this?"

"Special..."

Anna froze for a second, then remembered Lu Wei’s previous instructions and nodded immediately.

"Yes, there is, sir."

"Huh? Th-there really is?"

"Of course. Please put away your merchandise first."

"O-okay..."

"Alright, I’ll begin now. Ahem."

Under the young man’s increasingly stupefied gaze, Anna cleared her throat very formally, tilted her head back, and began to sing in a deadpan voice:

"La la la, this is the kindest whip~ Its marks are a medal of diligence~"

"La la la, this is the gentlest whip~ It feels weightless on your back~"

"Heave-ho, heave-ho, great Slave Master~ We will work hard~"

"Heave-ho, heave-ho, just so you and your family~ can live a better life~"

"..."

The brown-haired young man: ????