Strategy game? Then I'll have to control you properly.

"It actually succeeded!"

The unexpectedly high returns don't seem to be all bad.

Lin Miao grinned as she looked at the extra few thousand yuan in her account. Although it wasn't a huge sum, she was still in a good mood.

"That money really is yours, cousin, isn't it? Shouldn't you tell Auntie?"

Lin Miao's cousin, who was helping to dispose of the stolen goods, was giving her a strange look.

"Of course it's mine. I just bought it a few years ago and now that the price of gold has gone up, I want to sell it."

Lin Miao realized at this moment that the convenience brought by family members is often accompanied by equal inconvenience.

There was nothing to be ashamed of, after all, the gold ring I just sold didn't belong to this world; it was a consumable item, just like my life, charged by the hour.

Although the problem wasn't just about money, at least one issue was resolved.

If we continue down this path, we might be able to overcome those problems that consume too much time one by one.

After all, with enough points, you can even buy firewall programs that can immediately block virus intrusions.

"Oh, right, since you're here, can you do me a favor?"

Just as Lin Miao was about to go home, her cousin suddenly stopped her, saying he wanted to help move goods from the warehouse.

Since it was a trivial request from my close cousin, I had no reason to refuse and agreed. The luggage I needed to move was a heavy-looking wooden crate in the corner of the warehouse.

"Wait, that's really heavy, it takes two people to carry it..."

But Lin Miao tried lifting it with one hand and actually managed to lift it up easily.

Lin Miao's cousin, who had even prepared gloves in case she got hurt, was speechless upon seeing this scene.

Only then did Lin Miao recall the trait he had recently acquired, namely the special power that Lillie possessed.

It was this power that allowed her, with her slender frame, to wield a heavy iron sword like a windmill and confront monsters head-on.

"Cousin, have you been working out lately?"

"Haha... I'm always at work, I don't have time."

"Did someone who vowed never to exercise suddenly change their mind?"

Lin Miao's cousin, who regularly goes to the gym and is a head taller and muscular than her, looked at her suspiciously as he carried boxes.

I have indeed felt a significant reduction in physical fatigue recently, but I didn't expect it to be so obvious. It seems I need to be more careful about curbing it.

"Let's rest today."

On her way home, Lin Miao sighed as she opened the door, thinking about having to sit back down at her computer.

The residents who returned from their expedition have only recently come back, and the new members need time to adjust. Lillie's fatigue level should have accumulated quite a bit by now, so we won't be taking her into the game world today.

"really."

As expected, the villagers were busy with their own tasks in the village when the monitor was turned on.

The new residents are building tents with wood and animal hides, seemingly prioritizing the construction of their own homes.

With the help of experienced people providing tools and materials, progress was quite fast.

"——"

Lillie, who replaced Attila, is now managing the village with the natives. The village, which was smaller than a fingernail before it was expanded, has now more than doubled in size.

"What's going on? An attack?"

Just as Lin Miao was about to enjoy the peaceful scene while sipping coffee, she suddenly discovered that there was a problem with the game "Minecraft" that Attila and the villagers were playing.

In the game, skeleton raiders attacked the villagers. Although the skeletons were repelled and fled by the villagers' fighting power, according to the game's system settings, their attacks will not only happen once.

We must continue to monitor this situation.

Lin Miao hurriedly logged into the game, regretting that she had neglected this place recently because she was focused on playing Dark Souls with Lillie.

This land is vital to the villagers' livelihoods, and the resources that can be obtained from here are far more than just iron ore and food.

It is precisely because there is no predetermined path and it is so free and unrestrained that it contains infinite possibilities. Even though other games have predetermined endings to some extent, Lin Miao instinctively felt that he had to persevere to the end in this game.

"—!"

As Lin Miao approached, he found his residents wide-eyed with surprise as they came to greet him.

Understanding their sentiments, Lin Miao nodded in acknowledgment and waved in response to their greetings.

"We can't just stop at the level of making items."

Seeing their expressions, Lin Miao realized that it was time to formulate specific business strategies.

It's too inefficient to handle every incident personally.

While this place, which is responsible for resource production, is important, it is equally important to strengthen the game of other residents, including Lillie. This place should be managed autonomously by the residents.

Upon closer examination, with the increase in activation procedures and the frequency of incidents, resident allocation and training will become increasingly important, and we must start paying attention to this now.

Should we increase the number of people?

The current game activation level is Tier 2, with a total of 8 configurable residents. Paying 2000P to upgrade the tier will not only increase the number of configurable residents but will also unlock more features.

[Configurable number of players: 8/16]

[Increased server uptime]

[Increased available features]

After actually activating to the third stage, several new features were added, which almost used up all the points earned from winning the war.

Although the plan to save up 10000 points to buy desktop destruction will have to be postponed, Lin Miao now feels it's worth it.

The task now is to assign the new residents to the newly added slots. There are quite a few new residents joining, so Lin Miao clicks on each of them to check their information.

Lin Miao didn't have high expectations for this. There were neither any capable warriors among them, nor anyone who seemed particularly outstanding.

"Screenshot apps are quite convenient, aren't they?"

The screenshot app that was previously activated to diagnose Lillie's condition was a great help because it could reveal potential characteristics that were not currently visible.

This eliminates the need for individual testing as before; residents with a high likelihood of awakening can be directly selected for resettlement.

◆◆◆

"Let's eat first, everyone. We can just set up a roof and make do for the night."

"Oh, oh... how do you manage to put so much meat in white rice?"

By the time he finished dealing with the gold rings offered as tribute, it was already dusk, but the noisy village was only now lighting its lights and starting to eat dinner.

The newlyweds, who had worked so hard to build houses so they wouldn't have to sleep outdoors, were amazed when they saw the food prepared by the older residents.

After all, these are delicacies that are hard to come by normally.

"How did you manage to get all this food? I don't see any decent farmland around here, and there don't seem to be many livestock either," one of them asked Rick with an incredulous look.

"I told you during the day that we were able to obtain these thanks to the blessings of the guardian spirits of this place."

Rick chuckled and pointed to the teleportation portal in the village square.

"Although I've never been there, I've heard that there's a new world there, a world where everything is made of blocks. Day and night alternate very quickly there, plants mature in the blink of an eye, and wild animals roam everywhere."

"Then...can I go over there and take a look too?"

"I don't know. Only those chosen by that great one can go there to obtain special powers."

Rick also mentioned that his companions who had been there had all awakened amazing abilities, such as the ability to dig quickly, easily chop down trees, and carry or stack heavy stone bricks.

The evidence is already piled up like a mountain before our eyes; there's no reason not to believe it.

"Um?"

However, an unexpected change suddenly occurred at that moment.

As the meal was drawing to a close, someone suddenly felt something was wrong and began to grope their body.

"Huh?! Whoaah!"

"It's flying! It's flying!"

Immediately afterwards, several people were suddenly pulled into the air.

Faced with this completely unexpected situation, the frightened people screamed, and the surrounding crowd, panicked, hurriedly threw ropes or grabbed sticks to try to pull them back.

But the force that lifted people up was too strong, and even the combined efforts of everyone were ineffective.

"Please calm down, everyone. They've been chosen by that great one!"

In the midst of the chaos, Lillie stepped forward to calm everyone down; she had experienced similar situations many times before.

"It...it disappeared..."

"Choice? What does that mean?"

Soon, the people who were sucked into the air disappeared like phantoms, and they were transported into the game world.

Lillie instinctively felt that they must have already encountered Attila from the game, so she explained to the panicked villagers, "I understand that lord's intention. The tribe has gained population; this is a natural arrangement."

……

Half an hour passed.

"Everyone's exhausted today, so let's call it a day. We'll set off again at dawn after we've had some rest. Remember to bring all your weapons."

Attila did indeed reappear in the village with the eight missing tribe members. Attila had already realized the purpose of the great man's extra arrangements for the villagers.

"We have launched a preemptive strike against the nearby raider tribes. No one escaped alive, and the news should be kept under wraps, but as their range expands, they will inevitably encounter us sooner or later. We must prepare for that day."

Lillie frowned: "But we've already done more than enough."

"Not enough. Far from enough, Lillie. To become stronger, to accept the power bestowed upon you by that lord." Attila, his beard trembling slightly, pressed down on the panicked Lillie's shoulder and continued:

"Just like me, who was originally powerless, I gained the ability to manipulate magic thanks to that great man's grace. In that world, nothing is impossible, so I plan to take advantage of the opportunity to replenish manpower and start pursuing that power from tomorrow."

"Father, the cave monsters I've fought are no ordinary creatures. Let me help you."

"You need to follow that person elsewhere; there's no need to waste your energy here."

Attila announced that he would use his experience to hunt down boss-level monsters in an attempt to awaken new powers.

Lillie tried frantically to dissuade him, but Attila's resolve was unwavering.

What I can do...

Lillie, a warrior who has always fought only for her tribe, now feels the need to change her mind.

After all, for the sake of everyone, she had to become a warrior serving a greater being, not just a warrior of the tribe.