Chapter 478 - 187: "Jiangbei Mortal Realm, Chen Fan... Ranks First.

Chapter 478: Chapter 187: "Jiangbei Mortal Realm, Chen Fan... Ranks First.

"Domain Lord."

Chen Fan was standing on the defense line, gazing out at the coast, when the Sound Transmission Talisman in his pocket chimed with Xiaoyu’s voice. "Elder Wang has received his orders. He’s heading to the Mortal Realm Yellow Springs Entrance Defense Line to assume his post."

"Good."

Chen Fan replied, acknowledging the message.

After some discussion, it had been decided that Elder Wang would be the one in charge of the Mortal Realm Yellow Springs Entrance Defense Line.

This was the very same man who had made Wang Kui the Wang Family Patriarch for thirteen years.

He was the one Wang Kui had recommended. According to Wang Kui, he’d been secretly observing the former patriarch for some time. The man possessed excellent management skills and ran his station exceptionally well. While it was true that being backed by the Mortal Realm made things easier, it was still a testament to his abilities.

After weighing the options, he seemed like a good fit for the position of defense line commander.

After a moment of thought, Chen Fan also decided to give Elder Wang a try.

The Mortal Realm was desperately short on talent at the moment.

’I’ll throw him onto the defense line to test his mettle, see if he can handle the responsibility.’

The former commander of the Yellow Springs Entrance Defense Line, Zhangqiu Ba, still needed time to develop. At the very least, he needed to gain a better understanding of the situation in the Mortal Realm.

’Xuanwu Cannon...’

With a wave of his hand, he commissioned five more Xuanwu Cannons along the 170-kilometer-long Jiangbei Defense Line, at a cost of twenty-five million Ghost Stones.

Frankly...

The Xuanwu Cannon’s power wasn’t actually bad. He’d never seen any other Blue Level City Defense Buildings, but he felt the Xuanwu Cannon was surely weaker than other buildings of the same grade.

The main issue was that its Max Level Effect was practically zero.

It was essentially missing a Max Level Effect.

The Max Level Effect was that after collecting all Four Great Divine Cannons, one would obtain a Celestial Dao Cannon.

’Celestial Dao Cannon...’

’The name alone hinted at its immense power. That must be the Xuanwu Cannon’s true ultimate form.’

A light drizzle began to fall from the sky.

The new year’s rainy season had arrived.

A cold wind, carrying the smell of the sea, blew across the City Wall, and his hands, resting on his Jade Staff, felt a slight chill.

Chen Fan muttered to himself, glancing at the bare-chested members of the Battle Pavilion bustling about on the wall. ’I need to find some time to go cultivate in the Yunling Pavilion... At least with a higher cultivation, you don’t feel the cold as much.’

He’d been so busy these past few years.

It was hard to find any time to spare for cultivation. His cultivation was still only at the level of a Level 3 Cultivator, a completely unremarkable rank across the entire Eternal Night Continent.

Whenever he did get a moment of free time, all he wanted to do was rest; he could rarely bring himself to train.

’If only someone could cultivate in my place.’

The main issue was the poor return on investment. If reaching a certain Cultivation Level meant he could split mountains and rivers with a single sword strike, he’d be more motivated to train than anyone. But in this world, Cultivators weren’t the main event. Even reaching a level in the teens wouldn’t be enough to stand against the Ghost Tide.

...

「The heartlands of the Eternal Night Continent.」

「In a city under the jurisdiction of the Eternal Night Hall.」

"Alright, time to go."

The drunk, stubble-faced old man stood up and swayed as he looked at Qiu Yisi. "We’ve been drinking until dawn. I really have to get going."

"I won’t see you out."

Qiu Yisi was also quite drunk, his eyes barely open and his face beet red. "But I have to say, it’s a bit cold of you to just dump all those people on the Mortal Realm. You’re not giving them any supplies at all?"

As he spoke,

the old man’s gaze darted about awkwardly. "Well, Domain Lord Chen asked for people, didn’t he? I can’t just give him the two people in charge, so what was I supposed to do with the others? Disband them on the spot?"

"They’re all seasoned veterans. They’ll surely be an asset to the Mortal Realm."

"If he really can’t afford to keep them... well, then they’ll just have to disband."

"Alright, alright. Go on, get out of here."

Qiu Yisi said no more, simply giving a hazy wave. The old man waved back and staggered out of the room.

Not long after the old man had gone,

the drunken look on Qiu Yisi’s face vanished in an instant. His eyes were perfectly clear, without a trace of intoxication, and he stared down at the Jade Scroll in his hand with a furrowed brow.

Just then—

Tian Yi emerged from behind a screen.

"Master."

"Mm."

Qiu Yisi nodded slightly. As if reading Tian Yi’s mind, he gestured with the Jade Scroll. "That fellow came to make his stance clear. To tell us he’s not a traitor."

"The Eternal Night Hall’s Strategy Hall should have a higher status than the Action Team, right? Why would he declare his loyalty to us?"

"It has nothing to do with status."

Qiu Yisi shook his head. "He just wants to prove that he’s trustworthy. He’s worried that if we don’t trust him, we won’t pass along timely information, which would impact the situation at the front."

"Then Master, is he trustworthy?"

"He is."

Qiu Yisi stood up, walked to the window, and sighed softly. "If even he can’t be trusted, then the Eternal Night Continent truly has no future."

He then smiled and tossed a token to Tian Yi.

"The Identity Token for the Vice Group Leader of the Eternal Night Hall Western Action Team."

"Catch."

...

’One, two, three...’

「Jiangbei Mortal Realm.」

Chen Fan was on the rear slope of Nameless Mountain, staring at the number of Max Level Buildings on the Eternal Night Lord Panel within his soul. The Mortal Realm now had nineteen Max Level Buildings.

Originally, there had only been fourteen.

However, he had since obtained many low-grade, White Level Building Blueprints from the defense line and the front—all for buildings the Mortal Realm hadn’t possessed. After upgrading these to their max level, he now had a total of nineteen Max Level Buildings.

They were mostly just everyday structures.

They didn’t have a significant impact on the Mortal Realm.

He gazed at the White Level Building Blueprint in his hand. If he could upgrade this building to its max level, the Mortal Realm would have twenty Max Level Buildings, allowing him to claim that reward again.

「Exotic Treasure Name」: Brick Kiln.