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

Attila captured nearly half of the expeditionary soldiers, who were originally followers of the great patriarch Theodore, and were naturally incorporated into his ranks after being defeated by Luke.

They are neither loyal enough to defect to our side in order to rebel against Luke, nor are they necessarily truly loyal to Luke.

Although surrendering and submitting after defeat is their cultural tradition, it is unlikely that these people would serve Luke wholeheartedly.

It's more likely that he was forced into the war because Luke had taken control of his family and property.

Therefore, as long as we cleverly persuade them by offering to help them reclaim their family's property, we can get these prisoners to turn against us and join our side.

After skillfully deflecting the enemy's offensive with a combination of force and flexibility, Attila even dug a large tunnel leading to the enemy lines in order to launch a counterattack; he couldn't have been unaware of this tactic.

After winning a hard-fought victory, Attila rallied the people's hearts by offering sacrifices to Linmiao, and then began to persuade the prisoners to join them.

Thanks to the overwhelming combat power and awe-inspiring sacrifices they had just displayed, Attila's persuasion was indeed highly effective.

Driven by self-interest and a desire for honor, the prisoners began to defect to our side in twos and threes.

"It works well, doesn't it?"

In Lin Miao's eyes, this scene was so clear it was almost blinding.

People who were originally neutral or hostile are becoming allies with green borders at an astonishing speed, persuaded by Attila.

Since they are recognized by the system, it means they have genuinely been won over and become comrades. Those shown as allies have absolutely no reason to worry about betrayal.

The quantity is at least twice ours.

If all of them were assembled, they could form an army of over five thousand men.

Five thousand cavalrymen, rushing out of pre-dug tunnels and pouring out into enemy territory, are a force to be reckoned with in terms of destructive power.

Having led an army of ten thousand on a distant expedition that ended in failure, they should have no strength left to resist our counterattack.

"It seems we won't be launching an attack today or tomorrow."

Lin Miao glanced at the battle situation, relaxed her tense nerves, and stood up from her seat.

To launch a counterattack, thorough preparations must be made, requiring at least a day of preparation time.

In other words, they need to conserve their energy for the next day or two in preparation for a counterattack. The residents are given a chance to rest, and Lin Miao can finally catch her breath.

But he had no right to lie down and rest. Now that things in the game were over, it was time to deal with real-world issues.

"Let's take the things over first thing tomorrow morning."

[Li Sushang: Are you really okay? Even though you say you're fine, you've probably been watching me the whole time.]

"I've been calling GG around lately, saying I want to work with him. I'll just say I saw GG approach me first."

Lin Miao planned to sell the prepared props and potions to Li Sushang as originally intended.

Once she gets the goods, she can resell them to players who need them.

After all, items brought out from the game can be very useful in the real world.

"Don't be afraid, come to us and we'll get through this together."

As Lin Miao stepped out wearing a cloak and carrying a bag, she burst out laughing when she saw the word "GG" on her phone.

The company that Li Sushang established through negotiations with the authorities and with the help of her family's wealth was precisely for serving players like Lin Miao.

She volunteered to take on the role of intermediary manager, helping players in need.

Players on this land no longer need to worry about why they were chosen, what they should do, or how to handle their work.

As long as you go to the company to complete the player certification, you can get help by following the guide written by Lin Miao and Li Sushang, and even real-world problems can be solved at the same time.

The first step has already been taken. According to her, several new players have already approached her.

"It needs to operate smoothly from now on."

Lin Miao lowered the brim of her cloak and walked through the company's main entrance, out of sight of others, toward her office.

The dilapidated commercial building she had previously acquired was quickly renovated and transformed into a respectable office space.

She was sitting in front of the computer, holding her head and humming softly, just like Lin Miao had been earlier.

"Li Sushang, it looks like you've been working very hard."

"Wow, that scared me to death!"

The moment Lin Miao spoke, she suddenly jumped up, her knee slamming into the corner of the table with a thud, but she didn't seem to feel any pain at all.

After all, she, like Lin Miao, is growing together with the residents.

"This is HP potion. As you know, it's a miraculous medicine that can quickly heal wounds."

"Don't worry, I've already set up the protective shield."

Seeing Lin Miao's stiff tone, she secretly touched the staff placed beside her and activated the magic.

In the blink of an eye, the blue barrier enveloped the two of them.

Upon discovering that even radio waves were being blocked, Lin Miao chuckled, "I just finished something big, and I can finally catch my breath."

"We're about to be extremely busy here."

Seeing that she also smiled, Lin Miao naturally started talking about the residents on the table, just like others talking about their own children.

I heard that her village is also about to face war, and the neighboring territory has come to provoke her by betting its territory.

"It's infuriating! Everyone's working together to fight the malfunction and we're already overwhelmed."

"The faulty components, the surrounding forces, and real life... Fortunately, this company can help solve the real-world problems, which is a blessing in disguise."

"You must have worked so hard," Lin Miao replied with a wry smile and a nod.

To be honest, the burden that the system places on players is far too heavy.

Only the player can take care of the residents on the screen, but the monsters that crawl into the real world cannot be ignored either.

At least now the military can be deployed to deal with malfunctions, but Lin Miao intuitively felt that this was just the beginning.

"Actually, our country's defenses are pretty good. The problem is, if malfunctioning entities that have fled from other countries establish a nest, a large-scale attack that would only happen on a screen could actually happen in reality, right?"

"That's right, malfunctions also grow over time. Those that originally appeared alone will increase in number and even build multiple nests to reproduce."

The number of faulty entities on Earth has not decreased, but rather increased.

Lin Miao's strict defenses alone are useless. If malfunctioning entities from other countries open rifts or build nests, the creatures they breed will eventually come after the players.

Is it really possible to completely defend against this?

No matter how you look at it, it seems that patiently training residents to resist malfunctions from scratch is by no means easy, as there are simply too many variables.

If this continues, the faulty entities will inevitably proliferate in the real world. Even the military is helpless against these fissures or nests, so it's simply unrealistic to expect busy users to deal with them one by one.

Moreover, user growth isn't necessarily a good thing. The more users there are, the more failures there will be.

"Perhaps this is some kind of arrangement. Let's wait and see."

Lin Miao did not believe that the system could be built with such a malfunctioning system.

He suggested to Li Sushang that they deal with their current tasks first and wait a while. After all, they could still rely on the army to hold out for a while.

But things developed faster than expected. On the very night they met, just as Lin Miao finished showering and was about to go to sleep, an urgent message popped up on her screen, sent through the forum function.

[Li Sushang: A special group of people has appeared; they claim to be chosen beings.]

"...What did you say?"

Immediately afterwards, a link popped up on the communication software shared by Lin Miao and Li Sushang, which was a recently released foreign media news article.

"An unseen force has led us into a mysterious space to fight monsters. Defeating them grants us superhuman abilities—this is divine decree. Our mission is to eliminate those monsters known as malfunctioning entities."

A man who appears to be of Islamic origin is giving a speech in front of the media, demonstrating his acquired superpowers by spewing flames from his empty palms.

Lin Miao and Li Sushang could also do similar things, but that was because they received rewards through the system's management of residents.

"Could it be..."

An absurd thought flashed through Lin Miao's mind.

There are only two types of entities that can fight against a faulty entity: the user and the residents managed by the user.

But those who live in the same world as him may not necessarily be unable to become those residents.

It doesn't seem impossible that users in an unknown world would take in some Earthlings as their residents and manage them.

[Li Sushang: So who exactly are the users? Following this logic, would there be people like us on the screens we manage?]

"That's unclear. Considering the local residents were completely unaware of the faulty device, there shouldn't be any other users in the area..."

Lin Miao shook her head in frustration.

Thinking about it calmly, it's not a big deal. In fact, logically speaking, it's a good thing that someone shares the burden.

Although society will be thrown into chaos as a result, it will be meaningless to those who are already at the center of the storm.

"Let's deal with the immediate issues first."

Putting down his phone and exiting the chat interface, Lin Miao patrolled the silent village late at night.

Just a short while ago, a fierce battle was raging right before our eyes, but now only deathly silence remains.

The night grew ever deeper as the watchman peered intently around.

"The North is safe for now. If we can weather this war, we can launch our expedition."

My gaze shifted to the second monitor.

Those soldiers who gritted their teeth and did not participate in this war are now holding their ground alongside numerous defensive turrets, preventing the Zerg, who occupy the northern lands, from advancing south.

If something had happened in the north during the war, Lin Miao's head would probably have been blown off first. Fortunately, that didn't happen.

I just hope they stay quiet so that we can launch a successful counterattack.

If Attila successfully counterattacks and absorbs most of Theodore's forces according to his plan, our army will multiply several times in an instant.

We have the technology and ability to support everyone. Although we'll be extremely busy, Lin Miao needs their strength.

At that time, he will be able to lead tens of thousands of soldiers to defend the city walls and even launch surprise attacks on the Zerg nests.

If we can discover the potential talents among the many, the group's combat power will increase exponentially.

As someone who witnessed the entire process, Lin Miao firmly believed it.

"Will this... be the end of it?"

He muttered to himself, unable to believe it. Through Attila's distress, Lin Miao understood why Paul, a magician from the Southern Kingdom, had attached himself to Luke.

It was all for the purpose of establishing a new power in this area to counterbalance the empire; he even said that he couldn't survive without doing so.

I couldn't feel at ease after hearing that.

Even though we still have to fight the Zerg, we always feel that the Empire will not let us off the hook in the future.

"Delaying will only be detrimental to us. Many people have already escaped alive and returned; we must launch a surprise attack before the news spreads further."

No matter what changes occur in the outside world, this is the world they depend on for survival. Attila is methodically preparing for the expedition.

The shift from a defensive to an offensive stance.

However, during the fierce battle with the expeditionary force, most of the expeditionary force had already scattered and fled.

They will surely spread the word about what happened here when they return, so we must launch an attack before the enemy gets wind of it and sets up defenses.

"There won't be any problem. There aren't such tall and sturdy city walls over there."

"That being said, I just want to minimize the sacrifices."

The soldiers who joined Theodore's forces were in high spirits and were certain of victory. Attila could only smile helplessly at their words.

Having successfully repelled the expeditionary force's attack, he had no doubt about the possibility of victory.

However, a battle is inevitable, and the sacrifices made in the process should not be underestimated.

Because for them, each person is irreplaceable.

"If I achieve great feats in battle, will the guardian deity truly bestow miracles? Can I become a warrior too?"

Furthermore, this battle carries many expectations.

Upon learning that Theodore's soldiers were guarding the miracle, they naturally longed to receive that blessing as well.

It's much more than simply accepting them as members of the tribe.

"Of course. That lord is always watching us and will reward each person according to their abilities and merits."

The indigenous people, led by Attila, made full use of this fact.

This was not a lie to begin with. Judging from Lin Miao's performance so far, he genuinely wants to cultivate talented people and unleash their potential.

"Everyone, let's go! Mount up!"

Soon the army was fully equipped and mounted their warhorses. The five thousand troops, formed by the merger of the Chinese forces and the surrendered Theodosian forces, began to gallop towards the plains where the sun rises.

"We can't afford to delay any longer; we don't know when those black monsters will attack."

Attila looked at the densely packed soldiers around him, his expression turning serious.

As a commander, he couldn't blindly boost morale to satisfy his vanity like others.

Attila only wanted a quick victory and a safe return.

"We've discovered a hole in the ground!"

"Enter now! Don't hesitate, go in quickly!"

In the blink of an eye, they were as if sucked into a large underground passage that suddenly appeared in the wilderness.

The tunnel, carefully dug by numerous miners and a few porters, was spacious and comfortable, large enough for horses to gallop in formation.

The luminous stones embedded in the walls illuminated the tunnel, and this unobstructed, direct highway could take them directly to the vicinity of the enemy's core territory.

"They've all gone in."

It didn't take long for all five thousand people to enter the cave.

Watching this scene from the other side of the screen, he turned the camera around, and the new screen showed the entrance on the other side of the tunnel.

Although this area is frequently patrolled and hunted by the enemy, and can be called enemy-occupied territory, no one has discovered this underground tunnel with its entrance sealed by mud and grass blocks.

The large number of people made moving them one by one with the mouse both time-consuming and cumbersome.

However, by utilizing the miners' ability to alter the terrain and create such tunnels, a large number of soldiers can be deployed at once into enemy-occupied territory that cannot be controlled with a mouse.

"Look over there, friendly forces are coming."

"It's time to break down the wall! Everyone, stand up!"

Even for the most mobile steppe tribes, a distance that would normally take two or three times longer to traverse was quickly covered by these troops advancing in a straight line.

The miners who ate, slept, and were responsible for maintenance at the end of the tunnel hurriedly grabbed their picks and got up when they saw the approaching main force, and began to dismantle the soil blocking the entrance.

When they swing their pickaxes, the heavy, massive mounds of earth break down into small cubes that fall to the ground.

The porters quickly picked up the blocks, leaving no crumbs behind, and opened the entrance completely.

After completing their mission, they quickly hid in the prepared passageway nearby.

"That's quite a lot."

As soon as he finished speaking, countless cavalrymen swept past and charged onto the ground in unison.

A continuous line of soldiers. Those who didn't even know the outcome of the battle, and were merely responsible for guarding the tunnel, couldn't help but smile bitterly.

"Chieftain! Everyone has come out!"

"Our objective is to rescue people; begin the attack on the nearest tribe!"

The large number of Aurora troops that rushed to the ground immediately began their operations.

Begin by attacking the nearest tribe, suppressing the rebels, and rescuing the Theodore tribe, who have been enslaved by Luke, and relocating them to their own village.

Attila left some troops to guard the tunnel entrance and led his forces in a surprise attack on Luke's soldiers, who were completely unprepared for the attack.

"Ah, how could it be so fast..."

They were utterly powerless to resist. News of the defeat had barely begun to spread among the deserters when enemy troops suddenly appeared in the rear, before they even had a chance to regroup.

In stark contrast to Aurora's ability to keep track of the expeditionary force's movements and respond calmly, the Theodos tribes, which were dispersed and managed by Luke's soldiers, fell into Aurora's hands one after another, as if swept away by a tidal wave.

"It seems that High Chief Luke has left all affairs to Jill and returned to the central heartland."

Upon hearing from the prisoners that Luke had retreated to the central headquarters, Attila completely lost his composure: "How arrogant! Didn't he even consider that his loyal general would be defeated?"

He began to gradually erode the Theodore tribe and territory that Luke had painstakingly conquered, using less than half the number of his enemy troops.

"Maintain formation and advance slowly!"

"There are outposts set up along the way where you can rest!"

At the same time, he issued a relocation order to tens of thousands of people.

The tunnel leading directly to the village was crowded with refugees pouring in from all directions, and the remaining staff had to do their best to maintain order.

"A truly great tribe has been born. No, perhaps it's much more than that."

All the witnesses knew perfectly well that the Cinnabar, having absorbed Theodore's power, was no longer a weak tribe on the frontier.

This vast group, which rules over tens of thousands of subjects, is using its immense power to unite everyone into one.

The grassland kingdom that Chief Luke dreamed of has already begun to sprout here.