Chapter 83: Developments After Joining the Organization

Chapter 83: Developments After Joining the Organization

Five years had passed since Li Hongshen joined the Elite Society, and he had already completed his third five-year plan.

Name: Li Hongshen
Rank: Second-Tier Lord (Tribe: Hong)
Gifts: Resource Abundance, Absolute Loyalty
Psionic Scale: 24
Technological Scale: 8
Population: 6,208

Li Hongshen stood on the altar in the central square of Phoenix Rest Valley, reviewing his tribe’s data, marveling at how swiftly time had flown by.

Rossi had not truly deceived him. After joining the Elite Society, his development had progressed at a breakneck pace, almost as if he had soared into the sky. With the Elite Society behind him, Li Hongshen’s advantages came fully to light. The surplus of spiritual resources he once possessed now found reliable markets, and through Rossi’s connections, he had successfully engaged in several rounds of population trade.

Had it not been for Li Hongshen’s cautious approach—requiring a period of integration after each population trade—he could have easily amassed a tribe of ten thousand by now.

Four and a half years ago, after returning from his commercial travels, Rossi escorted Li Hongshen deep into the Hundred-Thousand Mile Mountains, handing over his own camp to Li Hongshen. Though there were no spiritual energy nodes here, its proximity to the inner ring ensured a decent energy concentration—not much inferior to the ruins of the Spirit Bamboo Tribe. Furthermore, being near a river finally allowed Li Hongshen’s imperial crocodile herd to move out of their cramped territory.

Thanks to Rossi’s years of careful management, the local ecology had settled into a stable equilibrium. Before leaving, Rossi provided Li Hongshen with comprehensive information about the surroundings, allowing him to integrate seamlessly and avoid countless hassles.

Not long after Rossi’s departure, another senior member of the Elite Society delivered a second-tier advancement blueprint from the inner ring. However, this was merely a blueprint, unlike the previous conquest of the Lang Tribe, which had yielded something ready to use.

It wasn’t that the inner ring lacked native tribes, but rather that Li Hongshen could not enter. Even if he conquered a native tribe, he wouldn’t be able to access their altar with his own blood. As for entrusting his blood to a senior to do it for him, Li Hongshen was unwilling—blood, in this era, was not something to be handed over lightly, especially for a newcomer like himself.

He had yet to formally step into the World Sea, and his strength was still foundational; he couldn’t “lock” his blood, sealing off the information within. Who knew what someone might do with his blood? He could well imagine himself emerging into the main world, only to have a porcelain-doll child throw himself into his arms, calling him “father”—what then?

Though the Elite Society had only provided a blueprint requiring him to source the materials himself, Li Hongshen didn’t mind at all. His earlier academic rewards had already granted him many of the altar-upgrading resources he’d need. With a bit of help from the Elite Society, he had successfully upgraded to a second-tier altar three years ago. This time, he used his authority to expand his territory, which now spanned nearly two hundred square kilometers.

However, the increased territory inevitably diluted the energy concentration, so instead of a dramatic leap, the energy in his lands only rose by two notches.

But Li Hongshen felt no disappointment. Upon his altar’s advancement, his domain finally generated a strand of energy law, allowing his Lord’s Space to produce its own energy supply, rather than relying solely on the rules of the Wilds and stacking it with the camp’s spiritual energy.

Over all these years, Li Hongshen’s only regret was his almost invisible system. If not for the punctual annual check-in reminders, he would have forgotten he even had a golden cheat at all. Ever since the Mammoth Witch advanced to Earth Witch, his check-ins had stopped yielding tangible items; instead, he only received strands of data law, delivered straight into his Lord’s Heart, bypassing his own hands entirely.

It wasn’t that Li Hongshen didn’t value these data laws, but unlike physical items, they couldn’t rapidly strengthen the tribe. Still, as these rules accumulated, he gradually learned how to use them.

Standing atop the altar, Li Hongshen watched the two rules before him—one thick, one slender; one purple, one pale blue—constantly weaving and surging, sometimes rippling with energy.

Back when he studied this field, he’d thought of rules as plugins, with the Lord’s Heart as the foundational operation platform. This platform, created by a conscious civilization, contained all basic rules and set up a robust, flexible framework, allowing ordinary people to survive, grow, and develop.

When the Lord’s Heart was bestowed, it was as if the source code of this platform was given to the lord, who at first only held basic permissions, little more than a regular user. With further advancement, the lord could access more functions and add “plugins”—unique rules such as Data, Energy, or the Gate of Truth.

Just like installing new plugins, these rules could be integrated into the Lord’s Heart, enabling the people to learn how to use them and access their functions, ultimately producing unique effects.

With long-term management and use, once a lord fully understood his Lord’s Space, he could flexibly add suitable rules, forging his own path and developing a territory with distinctive features.

Finally, upon ascending to the Extraordinary level, the core of the Lord’s Heart—the foundational rules—would begin to reveal themselves, and the lord would gain permission to modify the core, tailoring it to his own needs.

Li Hongshen observed the data law before him—once as thin as a hair from his parents, now, after two rounds of advancement and the supplement of his golden cheat, as thick as his forearm.

He had seen displays of rules from true experts in tutorial scrolls—their rules as thick and vast as bridges, far surpassing his in both width and length. Nonetheless, Li Hongshen was content with his own; the data law now allowed him to embark on more sophisticated designs.

While examining the data law, he glanced at the spears arrayed before him. Each was different—material, length, sharpness of the tip—every detail varied.

Sharpness lv1
Sharpness lv2
Tenacity lv1
Tenacity lv2
...

This lineup of spears had been crafted specifically by Li Hongshen to calibrate his data. He classified the weapons’ basic attributes and divided them by level, enabling his people to craft arms with greater precision.

He also categorized the states and advancement levels of martial techniques, drawing on a wealth of information from his warriors, making it easier for them to track their progress.

Name: Li Li
Level: 21
Gifts: Tenacity-lv2, Strength-lv3
Skills: Golden Bell Iron Shirt-lv5, Dragon Elephant Wisdom-lv5, Five Tigers Gate-Sundering Saber-lv4, Yang Family Spear-lv3, Hunter...

Li Li, captain of the hunting teams and Li Hongshen’s long-time right-hand man, had, a week prior, become the Hong Tribe’s first naturally advanced second-tier warrior (not counting Zhao Yunlai, who was already second-tier when he arrived).

This delighted Li Hongshen, and the key to Li Li’s progress was the very interface before him.

By leveraging the data law from the Gameworld, Li Hongshen had succeeded in digitizing his warriors’ information, allowing his people to view their stats and monitor their advancement.

Moreover, inspired by system features from online novels of his past life, he tossed the golden cheat’s secret manuals into the altar, linking them to the data law.

Now, as long as one was a member of Li Hongshen’s tribe, they could receive skill infusions via the data law. When using these skills, the data law would guide each individual according to their unique circumstances.

After all these innovations, Li Hongshen felt like a system architect, developing a “system” and loading it en masse onto his people—pure satisfaction.

His tribe now numbered over six thousand, with a gender ratio of fifty-three to forty-seven, slightly more men than women, though this included infants and young children. Among adults, the ratio was fairly balanced.

There were over two thousand warriors. After several adjustments, the hunting teams had merged with the patrol squads—no longer were the two distinct. All warriors were now divided into ten squads of two hundred each: six squads would rotate on expeditions, three would rest at home, and one would patrol.

In contrast to the surge in warriors, only four new spellcasters had appeared: two newborns of the Hong Tribe—Li Xinghu (female, 14), Li Xunsi (male, 14)—and two purchased through population trade, Shaliang and Fang Yu.

This was a great relief to Li Hongshen. As the population and number of warriors swelled, the three witches—responsible for inscribing runes and maintaining equipment—were increasingly stretched thin, especially with Li Hongshen’s ever-wilder ideas demanding their attention. Of the three, Chawu, the only female spellcaster, was especially harried, her receding hairline causing even Li Hongshen some guilt.

Now, with four new spellcasters coming up in succession, the efficiency of rune equipment production had finally improved. Once the three witches had taught the newcomers how to inscribe runes and craft rune gear, they could be freed from repetitive labor, able at last to devote time and energy to exploring and realizing some of Li Hongshen’s more ambitious concepts.

I’ll keep writing, no matter how things go. If in the end no one is reading, I’ll stop. Still, I hope you’ll let the author know each day that you’re still here, so I can keep going.

(End of chapter)