Chapter 21: The Lord's Altar and the Resource Pack

Chapter 21: The Lord’s Altar and Resource Pack

Li Hongshen’s chosen location lay at the outermost edge of the Boundless Wilderness, near the primary hunting grounds of the Hundred-Thousand Mile Mountains—a perfect spot for a new lord just entering the domain. This area had previously been occupied by Senior Brother Luo Si, but after advancing his tribe to the first rank, he moved into the mountains, where the energies of heaven and earth were far more abundant.

Yesterday, during their conversation, Luo Si had disclosed the details of this territory to Li Hongshen, both as a gesture of friendship and an investment of sorts. Li Hongshen accepted this goodwill, and upon arriving at the site, he engraved this kindness in his heart, intending to repay it when the opportunity arose.

The area had become a small plain, large enough to accommodate the entire Phoenix Perch Valley with plenty of room to spare. After a brief inspection, Li Hongshen noticed the land was occupied by a herd of zero-tier deer; faint traces indicated the presence of some carnivorous felines.

He took note of this and then, standing on the plain, produced his Lord’s Heart, expanding part of his domain to manifest the entire Phoenix Perch Valley. The process was wondrous—the Valley still existed within Li Hongshen’s territory, yet it also appeared within the Boundless Wilderness. Where people once passed through the valley gate into the cultivated plain, now they entered directly into the wilderness.

Li Hongshen opened the newcomer resource pack provided by the academy, withdrew a blueprint for a special building, and walked to the center of Phoenix Perch Valley. After instructing people to clear a large space, he laid the blueprint on the ground and placed the Lord’s Heart atop it.

A cascade of silvery light rose from the blueprint, forming a framework in the air, gradually sketching out a simple altar from the void. This was the Lord’s Altar, a spatial anchor point, meant to house the Lord’s Heart—the core of every domain.

As the lord grew in power, the altar would serve many additional purposes. Every lord possessed such an altar, though its size varied. Only with the construction of the Lord’s Altar could one truly call oneself a lord and embark upon the path of personal power.

Subjects who benefited from the altar’s empowerment became more loyal to their lord; their strength would also lend a trace of support to their lord. Of course, this loyalty was relative—should the lord prove unworthy, rebellion or passive resistance would still occur.

There had been cases of foolish lords, emboldened by the altar, declaring the right of first night within their domain. After several rounds of oppression, the subjects rose in revolt, toppled the altar, destroyed the Lord’s Heart, and thus the lord in question became a textbook cautionary tale.

After establishing the altar, Li Hongshen was first to step inside. A violet light enveloped him, and various data slowly unfolded before him.

“Name: Li Hongshen”
“Domain Name: Hong”
“Tribal Population: 128”
“Lord’s Gifts: Absolute Loyalty, Abundant Resources”
“Rank: Zero-tier”

Beyond this data panel, a map of Phoenix Perch Valley appeared before him—the work of a thread of the law of data. Absolute Loyalty was a mystical rule-type gift, compelling subjects to pledge unwavering fealty; in effect, their loyalty value was maxed out. Yet it did not render them mere puppets—subjects still harbored their own thoughts and rivalries, but the lord’s interests would always come first.

Such a gift was not unprecedented in history, and there were surely more unrecorded cases. Whether one could reach the summit, however, depended on the lord.

Next, Li Hongshen took the two resource spheres he had previously received and activated one before the altar.

“Name: Spirit-Gathering Tree (Sapling)”
“Tier: First-tier”
“Info: Rapidly gathers spiritual energy, increasing its concentration within a set radius.”

Ten spirit-gathering tree saplings tumbled from the sphere onto the ground, while the sphere itself dissolved into energy, converging around the saplings before dissipating.

Spirit-gathering trees were common plants, known for their ability to concentrate spiritual energy, but served little other purpose. Ordinarily, Li Hongshen would have exchanged for medicinal herbs to cultivate, or defensive plants to bolster tribal security.

Heeded Old Liu’s advice, however, and chose these spirit-gathering trees because the ten saplings were propagated from two colossal spirit-gathering trees at the gates of Pengcheng No. 1 High School. They were rare, their spirit-gathering effect several times stronger than ordinary trees, approaching the power of a typical energy array. If properly nurtured, they could ascend alongside the domain.

Li Hongshen assigned people to plant eight saplings before the altar, the remaining two within the camp.

Using mountain spring water from Phoenix Perch Valley to irrigate the saplings, they quickly took root. The air throughout the valley felt noticeably fresher—proof that the spirit-gathering trees had begun to work.

After transplanting the trees, Li Hongshen went to a nearby compound—the beast park he had ordered his subjects to establish. The land had been leveled, and several wooden sheds stood near the edge, filled with sun-dried thatch, clean and tidy.

Entering a shed, he opened the other resource sphere. Twenty white, furry animals tumbled onto the thatch, some rolling about before lifting their heads to look around curiously.

“Name: Battle Wolf (Juvenile)”
“Tier: Zero-tier”
“Info: A rare bloodline of wolf, gifted with keen scent and hearing, immense strength and bite, and combat instincts etched into their bones by generations of inheritance.”

These were the land beasts Li Hongshen had redeemed—a superb breed of wolf. While they lacked the speed of Swift Wolves or the nocturnal power bonus of Howling Moon Wolves, Battle Wolves were unmatched in endurance, defense, and physical strength, ranking among the top three wolf breeds in combat prowess.

Most important, Li Hongshen’s father had also acquired Battle Wolves before. By studying his father’s notes, Li Hongshen gained clear understanding and breeding experience to draw upon.

Battle Wolves are weaned at about two months, then enter the juvenile phase, reaching maturity after a year; sexual maturity occurs at twenty-four months. They breed each February, producing four to six pups per litter.

Upon maturity, Battle Wolves attain peak first-tier strength, with bodies stretching three to four-and-a-half meters, shoulders two to three meters high. With proper training, second-tier is easily reached, and elite wolves in the pack may even advance to third-tier.

After tending to these resources, Li Hongshen sought out the elder.

“Are we ready?”
“Reporting, Lord, the message has been sent. The clan is already gathering.”
“Good, let’s wait a moment then.”

(End of Chapter)