Free Web NovelChapter 191: Chapter 124: A Life-and-Death War of Species: Turin People and Captives
「The next day.」
Pei Ze rose early. After a simple meal of the food he had on him, he pushed open the stone door and walked out.
Su Ya and Peng Yan were already waiting outside. When they saw Pei Ze emerge, they immediately bowed respectfully.
"We’ll be spending a lot of time together. There’s no need for such formalities."
Pei Ze gave a dismissive wave, then turned and started down the mountain.
"Let’s go. To the Mission Hall."
Su Ya and Peng Yan hurriedly followed.
Although it was still early morning, the plaza was already packed with people.
A constant stream of people flowed through the entrances of the Exchange and the Mission Hall, creating a noisy, bustling scene.
Many weary-looking Wizards hurried in from outside, heading for the Mission Hall. Their followers trailed behind them, reeking of blood, a clear sign they had just survived a fierce battle.
Even more Wizards, their expressions solemn, strode out of the Mission Hall and scattered in all directions.
They had accepted their missions and were now heading off to battle the Turin People.
The entirety of Red Maple City was like a machine that ran twenty-four hours a day, constantly devouring this plane piece by piece until it became nothing more than a vassal of the Wizard Civilization.
Pei Ze strode through the entrance of the Mission Hall, with Su Ya and Peng Yan close behind.
The hall was spacious and bright, no smaller in area than the Exchange. It was ring-shaped, and the half directly opposite the entrance was lined with densely packed counters where many people were registering for missions.
On the wall to the right of the entrance, iridescent lines of text shimmered, listing one mission after another.
’Mission: Annihilate Turin patrol chariots’
’Proof of Completion: Footage from a Recording Ring’
’Reward: 20 Merit Points per fully-staffed chariot; understaffed chariots prorated by headcount’
...
’Mission: Eliminate outposts’
’Proof of Completion: Footage from a Recording Ring’
’Reward: 30–50 Merit Points, depending on the strength of the outpost’s garrison’
’Note: Those who accept this mission may claim one free battlefield map.’
...
’Mission: Destroy Turin defensive fortifications’
’Proof of Completion: Footage from a Recording Ring’
’Reward: 300–1000 Merit Points, depending on the strength of the fortification’s garrison’
’Note: Those who accept this mission may claim one free battlefield map.’
Pei Ze skipped right past the missions to annihilate Turin patrol chariots and eliminate outposts, his eyes going straight to the end of the list.
Those two types of missions were time-consuming and difficult, and the pay was low.
The first one, in particular, didn’t even pay enough to exchange for a single bottle of resonance potion.
’I’m not wasting my time on those.’
Pei Ze turned his attention to the missions to destroy defensive fortifications.
There wasn’t just one of these missions, but over a thousand, each corresponding to one of the thousand-plus Turin defensive fortifications scouted by Red Maple City to date.
If all these fortifications were destroyed, the Turin People’s Scouts would be cut off from their logistical support, unable to operate deep within the buffer zone. This would drastically shrink their strategic visibility.
The buffer zone between the two sides would become an open road, allowing Red Maple City to march its army straight to the Turin Alliance Army’s location, completely unimpeded.
Thus, in this period before the main war erupted, attacking and destroying each other’s fortifications had become the central point of conflict for both sides.
This was evident from the rewards; a single fortification mission paid a minimum of 300 Merit Points, enough to trade for a vial of Unicorn Essence Blood.
The highest rewards reached up to 1,000 Merit Points, which was even enough to trade for a Sacred Spirit Bud.
Pei Ze didn’t deliberate for long before deciding to take on a mission to destroy a defensive fortification.
He strode over to the left wall, where countless interweaving lines of light formed a lifelike, three-dimensional diagram: the battlefield map of the buffer zone.
It was marked with densely packed points of light, representing the various outposts and defensive fortifications of the Turin People.
Next to some of the points of light, the approximate strength of the enemy garrison was noted for reference.
The entire map updated in real-time. Every few moments, a point of light would vanish, signifying that an outpost had been eliminated or a fortification destroyed.
But at the same time, new points of light would appear as well.
It was like a miniature battlefield, monitored in real time.
Pei Ze studied the map intently for a moment before coming to a decision. He whispered a few instructions to Su Ya.
Su Ya nodded and immediately turned to walk toward the counters.
A short while later, she returned, holding a roll of parchment.
"My lord, it’s done as you instructed," Su Ya said, arriving at Pei Ze’s side. "I’ve accepted the mission to destroy Fortification 89. They also gave me a Magic Map."
Hearing this, the surrounding Wizards turned to look, their scrutinizing gazes sweeping over Pei Ze and his two followers. Their expressions were a mixture of surprise and curiosity, as well as disdain and contempt.
Among the many missions offered in Red Maple City, destroying a fortification was definitely of medium-to-high difficulty.
Even a Wizard at the Level 1 Liquid Stage wouldn’t dare accept one casually.
A Wizard who dared to take this mission was either extremely confident in their strength or a clueless greenhorn who had just arrived.
Which was this ridiculously young man before them?
Ignoring the surrounding stares, Pei Ze took the Magic Map, stored it in his Space Ring, and turned to leave.
From the crowd, a Wizard with dark-red eyes watched Pei Ze’s figure disappear through the entrance. He snorted. "What an overconfident fool. A Wizard who was promoted less than two months ago dares to take on a mission like this? He must have a death wish."
A portly Wizard beside him glanced over and chuckled. "I heard Pei Ze advanced using a top-tier Advanced Meditation Technique. You can’t judge someone like that by the standards of an ordinary Wizard. Perhaps he’s confident his strength is up to the task."
