Chapter 154 - 115: Massive Infrastructure, a Skyrocketing Ranking

Chapter 154: Chapter 115: Massive Infrastructure, a Skyrocketing Ranking

After testing the cannon’s power, Shen Xing gathered his troops again and rushed to the Black Heaven’s Wings Mountain Range to begin his daily grinding trip.

WHOOSH—

The orange Horse Lantern ignited in mid-air, dispelling the Fog.

Fried Chicken flapped its wings and soared high, carrying him as it sped away.

On the way, Shen Xing used [Sacrificial Evolution] to raise Fried Chicken to Boss★★★.

Its Agility Attribute broke through nine hundred, and it also activated the large-area AoE skill, [Vortex Storm].

This skill allowed it to spin at high speeds, whipping up a massive Vortex Storm that dealt tearing damage to nearby enemies and had a knockback effect.

More importantly, Fried Chicken could still move while casting the skill.

This meant it could transform into a mobile storm, tearing across the battlefield with outstanding effect.

’I wonder which is stronger, Fried Chicken’s Vortex Storm or Hellish Roar’s Blade Tornado Storm?’

Shen Xing mused, thinking he’d have Fried Chicken and Hellish Roar spar some other day.

Then, as usual, he opened the [Points Ranking] to take a look.

[First Place: Lachlan Dowton, Total Points: 9354]

[Second Place: Dolores Jones, Total Points: 8724]

[Third Place: Asada Hitomi, Total Points: 8524]

[...]

[21st Place: Shen Xing, Total Points: 7336]

...

Overnight, his rank had dropped from 15th to 21st.

As he’d noted before, everyone in the top twenty was a king of grinders. For them, playing twenty-four hours without rest was standard procedure.

Someone like him, who still needed a full six hours of sleep, was the odd one out.

But it didn’t matter. Shen Xing had advantages that other Lords lacked.

Besides, the monsters from the Hell Teleportation Gate weren’t endless, nor would they run away.

So even if they didn’t rest, the number of monsters they could kill each day was more or less the same.

Half an hour later, the main force arrived again.

Without any unnecessary talk, Shen Xing led them into the cavern and began the day’s point grinding.

On the Points Ranking, his rank began to soar once more.

20th place...

18th place...

15th place...

In just two hours, he had returned to his previous day’s rank and was continuing to climb rapidly with astonishing momentum.

Perhaps Shen Xing’s sprinting pace was putting pressure on the other Lords, or maybe it was something else.

Everyone could feel that the top twenty on the Points Ranking were earning points even faster today.

They were all gritting their teeth, braving the heavy rain deep in the dangerous Fog to hunt wandering monsters for more points.

Amidst this tense atmosphere, the time quickly reached 00:00.

The fifth day officially ended.

And Shen Xing, with a score of 9042 points, had charged up to 7th place!

He had officially entered the top ten, even surpassing Wu Wen to become the highest-ranking player from the Celestial Star Country!

On the forums, discussion threads about Shen Xing once again saw explosive growth.

Even the upper echelons of various countries began to take notice of this newcomer from the Celestial Star Country.

After all, such an astonishing rate of increase was extremely rare in the entire history of the Points Ranking in the Land of Mist.

Shen Xing didn’t pay much attention to all of this.

As always, after finishing the day’s battles, he leisurely led his Soldier Types back to the village.

Moreover, because he had taken the [Giant Bear Enhancement Potion] and the [Swallow Potion], he felt his physical constitution had improved significantly.

His Spirit was excellent, and his appetite was hearty.

He could even down five loaves of Moonlight Wheat Bread a day now.

’Today’s haul wasn’t bad.’

Shen Xing looked at the growing collection of materials in his inventory, satisfied. ’Next, I’ll take stock of the territory’s total resources.’

He opened his inventory and tallied up the quantities.

[Large Soul Stone x3]

[Soul Stone x4812]

[Vinar Silver Coins x5162]

...

’Excellent. My Soul Stone reserves are almost at six thousand. That’s more than enough for the second wave of expansion!’

Shen Xing moved around in his wheelchair, circling an area about five hundred meters from the Campfire.

He began construction as he moved.

Soon, a total of 4,680 Soul Stones and 3,120 Silver Coins were spent.

At the edge of his territory, a ring of wall foundations appeared, enveloped in a halo of light as they underwent automatic construction.

Shen Xing stared at the hundred-odd Soul Stones he had left and took a deep breath. ’Don’t feel bad, don’t feel bad.’

’If resources are gone, I can just earn more. Developing the territory comes first.’

He comforted himself, then distributed the remaining resources before logging off to rest.

「The next day...」

Today was the sixth day since the Points Ranking began, and also the second to last day.

The players in the top one hundred had grown even more frantic.

Overnight, they had pushed Shen Xing out of the top ten, down to fourteenth place.

He wasn’t bothered and continued to maintain his own pace.

First, he used [Sacrificial Evolution] to raise Dahou to One-Star Boss as well.

Then he led his Soldier Types to the underground cavern and began the pleasant task of grinding.

Shen Xing’s rank once again shot up at an astonishing speed.

Thirteenth place...

Twelfth place...

Eleventh place...

In less than two hours, he had charged back into the top ten.

His momentum showed no signs of stopping, and his rank continued to soar.

Half a day passed, and with an astonishing score of 11,000 points, he forcefully broke into the top five!

...

...

"Elder Wang, Shen Xing made it into the top five, and he’s about to surpass fourth place!" Jiang Rong’s voice trembled with a rare excitement as she stared at the points on the ranking board.

"It’s truly incredible." Elder Wang was also a little surprised. "Could it be that our Jiang City is about to produce a top-five supreme genius this time?" he remarked with emotion.

"The way I see it, with his current momentum, Shen Xing might even have a shot at the top three," Jiang Rong said excitedly.

However, when Elder Wang heard that Shen Xing had a chance at the top three, he wasn’t as excited as one might expect. Instead, his brow furrowed.

"’The top three... I’m afraid that might not be a good thing for him,’ Elder Wang said in a low voice. ’It might even bring him a lot of trouble.’"

"’Trouble...’ Jiang Rong realized what he meant. ’Are you referring to those people on the international stage?’"

"Hmph. If they dare to cause trouble in our Jiang City, I’ll have them all chopped up and thrown into the Bailong River to feed the fish!"

The gentle expression on the mature woman’s face vanished, and her eyes gradually grew cold.

"’It’s not that simple,’ Elder Wang said gravely. ’Do you still remember the incident with the Jin Family ten years ago?’"

"’The Jin Family’s young talent also had a chance to enter the top three back then. His family anticipated that, given the international situation at the time and the appearance of that palace at sea in the architectural style of the ancient Celestial Star Country...’"

"’...some people might not want to see a newcomer from the Celestial Star Country rise to prominence, and might even resort to certain extreme measures.’"

"’For this reason, the Jin Family took many defensive precautions, and the Celestial Star Country also provided a great deal of assistance.’"

"’But none of us expected that those people would actually send a Master Level expert to intervene.’"

"’That incident almost led to a multi-national war, but due to international pressure, it was ultimately swept under the rug.’"

After a pause, Elder Wang continued in a low voice, "And our Jiang City doesn’t have a Master Level expert to hold the line. If the other side is as insane as they were ten years ago, things could get troublesome."

Hearing this, the killing intent in Jiang Rong’s eyes gradually subsided, replaced by a grave expression.

She also realized that the situation was getting out of their Control.

At first, they had thought Shen Xing’s limit was making it into the top one hundred.

While that rank was dazzling, it wouldn’t have attracted too much attention.

But now that he had a shot at the top three, or even higher, the implications were completely different.

It was important to know that no one from the Celestial Star Country had entered the top three for two consecutive seasons.

Even when promising seeds emerged, they would be suppressed by various means or eliminated prematurely.

This was practically an international consensus.

The main reason was that the Fog palace that appeared overseas bore too strong a resemblance to some of the ancient architecture of the Celestial Star Country.

Furthermore, they had sensed numerous terrifying auras inside it.

Some even said that it was an inheritance prepared specifically for the people of the Celestial Star Country.

"What’s there to worry about? Let him charge up the ranks. I’d like to see who dares cause trouble in Jiang City."

Just as the two were worrying, the conference room door opened automatically, and a burly man in a gray combat suit walked in.

Seeing this figure, both of them turned their heads at the same time, pleasant surprise appearing on their faces.

"Bureau Chief!" Jiang Rong stood up from the sofa, exclaiming excitedly, "When did you get back?"

"Just a few hours ago," the burly man replied. "I was planning to return yesterday, but an S-class anomaly occurred at sea, which caused a bit of a delay."

Elder Wang’s eyes lit up. "Did you rush back specifically because you heard about Shen Xing?" he asked.

"Yes. I didn’t expect such a good seedling to appear in Jiang City this time."

The burly man chuckled. "If I didn’t come back, I’m afraid I wouldn’t be able to keep those restless fellows in check."

After a pause, his voice grew heavy. "From now on, I will personally hold the line in Jiang City."

"Anyone who dares to stick their hand in here will be chopped to pieces and thrown into the Bailong River to feed the fish!"

Elder Wang and Jiang Rong looked at each other, and a relieved smile gradually appeared on their faces.

...

...

「Meanwhile, overseas, on a man-made island.」

A group of handsome men and beautiful women were lying on wicker chairs in a garden, all with their eyes closed as if in a deep sleep.

On each of their arms was a Fog Flower, somewhere between illusion and reality, slowly rotating.

A moment later, the woman with wheat-colored skin startled awake and turned to the blue-haired man beside her to warn him:

"La... Pride, that Shen Xing has reached 11,000 points! He’s pushed Asada Hitomi down and charged into third place!"

The blue-haired man slowly opened his eyes and glanced at her with his icy gaze. "What’s there to worry about? He’s only one person, after all."

"The Dothan Clan has prepared for so many years, spent so much, and even had you all give up your status as Lords to join my territory, all for the sake of this ranking."

"Do you really think that with so many of us, we’ll be surpassed by him alone?"

Hearing this, the woman thought he had a point and closed her eyes again.

The garden fell silent once more. Everyone was concentrating, racing against time in a final sprint.

About half an hour later, the woman spoke up again. "Pride, he’s already charged into second place. The point gap between you and him is closing."

The blue-haired man frowned, then sneered. "Don’t worry. We still have a backup plan."

"Go. Slaughter that infected village."

The woman nodded again and re-closed her eyes.

Time slowly passed until it was ten o’clock at night.

"Pride, look... look at the Points Ranking!" the woman’s voice trembled as she spoke. "I think... he’s surpassed you!"

The blue-haired man’s brow tightened as he opened the Points Ranking.

When he saw the rank displayed on it, the calm expression on his face gradually vanished, replaced by an unprecedented coldness.

...