Why is my territory in a 2D anime art style?

Chapter 151 Level 4 Promotion Options

Holy crap!

"It's finally done!"

"Following Wang Hu and Fang Nian's successful promotions, it's finally my turn!"

Sui An stood inside the house and laughed happily.

After Ning Pan's incident, he stopped during one Blood Moon, then opened four more rifts before taking a break for more than ten days without opening any more rifts.

Yesterday, I brought the erhu back, ready to reopen the cracks.

I thought I would need to create more fissures to achieve my goal, but it turns out I won't need them at all.

It seems that the elemental statues automatically killed several wandering source beasts that were lured by the bait last night, and that's how we met the target.

He didn't even notice the unusual activity at the core of the territory while he was asleep, and only discovered it when he woke up.

"What's done?"

The sound of an erhu playing came from outside. Sui An had been laughing hysterically inside the house all morning, which he found very strange.

Although this kid often acts crazy, this is the first time he's done it this early.

Sui An casually opened the door of the stone house, revealing Erhu and Wang Hu's large faces on either side. Sui An grinned, flashing his bright white teeth, and declared, "My territory's core advancement standard has been met!"

"Holy crap, how did we suddenly reach the target? There were no Blood Moon Rifts yesterday. Was it a wandering Source Beast we caught last night?"

After a brief moment of stunned silence, Erhu suddenly exclaimed in surprise, stretching out his fingers to begin calculating.

"Today is February 9th, and you arrived in the wasteland on September 1st. That means you only spent five months and you're already at level four?"

"Almost at Level 4~ Almost at Level 4~"

Sui An smiled as he pointed out the flaws in Erhu's words, but he couldn't hide the smile on his face.

"Congratulations, Xiao An!" Wang Hu's face also lit up with a smile. Although he had just caught up to level three and it seemed even more difficult to catch up with his brother now, he was still happy for Sui An.

"Quickly take a look at the promotion requirements." Erhu didn't care about the taboos of architects at this time, and stepped directly into Sui An's bedroom, arriving in front of the Origin Realm Core Tower with great curiosity.

"Yes, yes, I haven't had a chance to look at it closely yet either."

Sui An quickly looked at his territory's core control interface again.

[Soul essence has been detected to meet the requirements; your territory core has been granted advancement privileges.]

This is a phase upgrade; you will receive three random phase evolution items.

[Special blueprint detected; you have obtained the fourth stage of evolution.]

[Plant Territory: All plants within the territory will receive a 20% base growth boost, and all plants outside the territory within a radius equal to one territory radius will receive a 10% base growth boost.]

[Forging Academy: Forgers within the territory will gain a small amount of additional insights when forging.]

[Secret Realm: The energy concentration within the territory is 20% higher than the outside world. Every so often, there is a small probability that a certain amount of crystals will condense within the territory. The higher the energy concentration, the higher the probability of condensation, the higher the quality of the condensed crystals, and the greater the number of crystals condensed.]

[Expedition (Designated Blueprint): All attribute attack buildings in the territory will be enhanced with source energy. When attacking, there is a small chance to trigger attribute resonance, causing a special attribute source energy destruction effect. The higher the source energy concentration in the territory's environment, the greater the probability of triggering this resonance effect. Grants the right to build an expedition expansion building once. The area inside the expedition expansion building is considered part of the territory.]

"Special blueprints, Expedition... what is this?"

Erhu keenly noticed the differences in this information. This thing was clearly unique to Sui An, and the evolution effect even looked very special.

"Hey, I can't tell you now. I'll tell you after I get promoted. And remember, don't tell anyone else, okay?"

Sui An still did not reveal the information about this blueprint, because it was too special, and in some ways, it was just as alluring as his own cheat system.

"Hey, you know how to keep good stuff to yourself, huh?"

Erhu pursed his lips, not really intending to ask any further questions, but he was trying to understand the meaning of those words, what it meant to build an expeditionary and expansionary structure.

The more you think about it, the more something seems off. As we all know, territory is very difficult to move. There are rumors that there are secret treasures that can move it, or that major advancements can allow for a slight adjustment of the location.

But can your territory be expanded outwards through expeditions?

It's hard not to let the erhu evoke a sense of wonder.

Sui An ignored the erhu. It was the first time he had heard that the major stage advancement of the territory gave the "Evolution" option instead of the "Enhancement" option.

Judging from these three evolutionary items, they are all special effects, and most of these effects target [territory] instead of the usual [buildings].

"To be honest, this third secret realm effect is really good. It increases source energy concentration, condenses crystals, and it's an effect that can be improved. If I combine it with my level 3 enhancement, wouldn't that directly increase source energy concentration by 35%?"

"They are indeed quite good, and the first two are also good, but they are too focused. Unless a future development path for the territory has been chosen, their effectiveness will be difficult to fully realize."

Erhu stroked his chin and commented on the information: "Actually, the first and second evolutionary attributes are more suitable for those territories that rely on large territories. With the help of special building blueprints, they can transform themselves into specialized living and professional areas to supply the large territories and obtain a higher territorial status."

"The third type is the mainstream approach. With a higher concentration of source energy, professionals recover their source energy faster, and plants grow better. It also comes with attribute crystals, making it a versatile option."

Sui An smugly admired the fourth message: "That's right, but I'm different. I'm the protagonist, and I have a fourth route!"

""

This fourth route is actually designed to serve the purpose of the expeditionary fortress, and of course, it also provides some enhancements to the main character.

However, the amplification effect of the main body is likely not as good as that of the Expedition Fortress.

The reason is simple: most of the territory's main body is located in relatively safe areas, far from mountains, forests, and lakes, and lacks various resources for gathering energy.

Source energy trees, source energy ores, special source energy treasures, and so on. These things are born from high concentrations of source energy, but once they form a large scale, they will in turn gather source energy, increasing the source energy concentration in the surrounding area even higher.

However, it will also attract various powerful source beasts, increasing the danger.

Expeditionary fortresses will most likely be placed in these locations, so their building attack power should be enhanced more than that within the main territory.

However, he had never heard of the attribute resonance and attribute source energy destruction effects.

"What does this attribute resonance mean? Have you heard of the erhu or the tiger-shaped percussion instrument?"

Wang Hu shook his head violently, indicating that he didn't know.

Erhu's lips curled up slightly: "Never heard of it, and I don't understand your options at all, even if I did, I wouldn't dare to."

He already had a guess in his mind, but he dared not guess, for fear that he might be right.

"Alright, we'll know what the effect is once it's done!"

Sui An clicked on the fourth item, and the control interface in front of him changed again, this time it was still different from the screen when advancing to level two or three.

[Based on your promotion path, the prerequisites for promotion have been unlocked]

【Prerequisite ①: Unlock any Expedition Expansion Building (1/1) and Empty Crystal Energy Stone (1/1)】

【前置条件②：共鸣核心（0/1）、金/木/水/火/土/雷/风/光/暗/无属性结晶各一（0/10）、中级源质材料（4200/10）、4级源石（3283/10）】

Once you complete the prerequisites and choose to advance, a Source Rift will open near your territory. The strength of the rift is positively correlated with the number and level of professionals within the territory, but the strength will fluctuate within a certain range.

The upgrade will take 20 minutes to complete, and the territory core will not restart during the upgrade process.

"Good heavens, nine elemental crystals plus one of each elemental type, that must be six or seven thousand source stones!"

Erhu was dumbfounded; he had never heard of territory promotion costing so much money before.

Sui An didn't care about the few thousand source stones. After purchasing 100 sets of wall materials and exchanging them for level 4 source stones and intermediate source materials, he still had nearly 40,000 source stones left. This amount of money was nothing.

As expected, condition one is the blueprints and core materials for the expeditionary fortress, and it shows that he has already completed them.

Furthermore, the requirement for the number and type of buildings in the three-into-four structure has been removed; only the materials are required, perhaps because it is necessary to open the cracks.

After all, at this point, the number and variety of buildings are no longer important; the goal is simply to survive the Source Rift assessment.

As for the materials needed for promotion, he was more curious about the resonance core than the attribute crystals. He had never heard of it before, and it might not be easy to find.

"It's probably because of the special enhancement, but that's a minor matter. The real question is, have you ever heard of this resonance core?"

Erhu shook his head: "I haven't heard of it either. Maybe Wang Zhen knows."

"Resonance core? I don't know either, I've never heard of it."

The surprise on Wang Zhen's face gradually faded. He shook his head, clearly having never heard of it before. Moreover, he was even somewhat puzzled as to why the materials required for Sui An's promotion were so strange and unusual.

"Let me check when I get back; it might be easy to find."

"Alright, then, Erhu and Fang Si, you two go back to Jiangcheng with Wang Zhen today. If you have any materials, bring them back to me directly."

Sui An was not surprised. Wang Zhengang had only been the squad leader of the transport team for a short time, and the territories he usually dealt with were mostly low-level territories. Most of the materials he traded were low-level materials. The materials required for the promotion of these territories were most likely mid-level materials, so it was normal that he was unaware of this.

Wang Zhen raised an eyebrow and sat up straighter: "So urgent? Don't you need us to help you defend the city?"

Sui An quickly shook his head: "No need. The territory core has already reminded us that the difficulty of the Origin Rift assessment is calculated based on the number of professionals in the territory. If you and Aunt Zhao come, I'm afraid we'll have to fight another tough battle."

Erhu suddenly leaned over and asked with a smile, "Are you in such a hurry to advance to level four? Once you advance to level four, given the number of professionals in your territory, even if all of us plus Aunt Zhao come, we probably won't be able to trigger a rift. You'll lose a way to make money, and you might not even have the money to build anything."

"I have considered this, but I have basically finished my preparations. I think that once I get promoted, the gains from one Rift might be enough to outweigh the gains from a regular month. Besides, I already have a lot of resources saved up."

""

Sui An smiled and explained that he had actually thought about staying at level three and farming the Rift for a year, then advancing to level four to unlock the new blueprint library, which would allow him to draw blueprints at will, right?

If this were a game, then becoming a sword master of Shili Slope might not be impossible.

But this is reality. A level increase will provide stronger combat power to protect oneself from the apocalypse, let alone a major advancement like level 4.

Sui An did not choose to stay here for too long, as he had already accumulated a lot of resources.

After the promotion, once the city walls are built and the purple buildings are upgraded to level 4, I should still have over 0 Originium left to use.

The miscellaneous materials should still be worth 10,000 to 20,000. If all else fails, I can sell the two sets of level 4 and 5 blue armor that I got from the He family. They'll last me a long time.

Even if a new blueprint library is released, there should still be plenty to draw.

He doesn't expect to drain the pool every time a new blueprint is released; he just needs enough!

If all else fails, I can always just spend money to exchange for it later.

I have already prepared all the materials for my level 4 core buildings. Upgrading to level 4 will not reduce my combat power. On the contrary, it will increase it. After all, with the Rift Artifact Illusion Altar, I am invincible before level 5.

To deal with a level 4 source beast, I have illusions to use. With the Sword Star Totem advancing, I can't guarantee level 6, but level 5 is definitely achievable.

If a Level 6 Source Beast appears, and the Sword Star Totem is no match for it, it also has its own spirit.

Most importantly, once you advance to level 4, you'll have new tools and can start developing rapidly.

By conquering the fortress, one might be able to obtain twice as much Soul Essence, and developing the secret realm would also yield more resources, without significantly reducing one's speed.

Blueprints are important, soul essence is important, and the sense of security that a level brings is also important.

So what's the point of dragging this out!

The only thing I need to consider is how to select suitable people to recruit into my territory. Now that I'm level four, there are some things I don't need to be too afraid of being seen by others.

"Erhu, how many people have you contacted that I asked you to help contact?"

Erhu paused for a moment, but quickly realized what was happening.

"About a dozen or so, they all said they could come. These are people I knew in Jiangcheng before. I can't guarantee they're all good people, but they're definitely not the kind with bad tempers."

"Then you should prepare to contact ten people for me first, ten level three and two level four. When Aunt Zhao comes over, I will invite Uncle Ye again. This number is probably close to opening the rift to a level four territory."

Erhu nodded: "Okay."

The reason so many people were able to be gathered was not only because everyone was offered roughly the same salary, but also because Sui An had Erhu reveal the existence of the Girls' Stage. With this, they could save a lot of money on energy recovery potions, which was a huge temptation for level three professionals.

Sui An's offer was that the people in his territory would be paid at cost price, and he wouldn't add any extra money.

Speaking of this, Sui An suddenly remembered something else.

"As for the rifts, Fang Si once told me that even if a mid-level territory does not actively open a rift, it will be passively opened during the full moon after a certain period of time."

"Is that so?" Erhu was stunned for a moment, and Wang Zhen also looked at Fang Si in surprise. Obviously, neither of them had paid attention to such news before.

Fang Si nodded: "That's true, but the time for forced activation is hard to determine, but one or two months is normal."

Sui An added from the side, "Captain Zheng came a few days ago, and I consulted him. It is true that there is such a saying. Generally, the time limit will not exceed three months. Moreover, although the capacity of a level four territory is high, if I recruit some level four or five professionals, I can still reach the standard for triggering a rift."

"Have you already decided to expand enrollment?"

Upon seeing Sui An bring it up, Wang Zhen's eyes flickered slightly, and he took the initiative to ask.

"Yes, that's an idea!"

"But what are you going to do with all these people you've recruited?"

Erhu moved his chair closer and smiled, spreading his hands: "We can't help you dig the ground every day like we do, can we? Besides, you've dug almost all the ground, there's basically no place we need to dig anymore."

Sui An didn't rush to answer. Instead, he went back into the house, took out his notebook, and opened one of the pages. On it was a sketch of his territory, which seemed to be based on the boundaries of a level four territory.

He ran his hand across the west side of the sketch, where there was a mark indicating the dimensions.

"During this time, I led you to level the open space in the west and dig the pits that needed to be dug. This is the location of my territory that I plan to adjust after my promotion. I have already calculated the distance. This distance is the limit that my territory can move to, just enough to cover the secret realm dimensional gate. I will seal this location with a barrier when the time comes."

"The teams in the territory are divided into two groups. One group consists of the absolute core members who usually go to develop the secret realm. Now that Aunt Zhao is level five, you have a better grasp of combat power. Once the treants mature, I will take them in to mine Yinghua Stone for me. I'm still waiting for materials to build roads and repair the land."

"The other group will start sweeping around my territory in the coming period. Now all the territories around my territory are gone, and no new people have come recently, so there is almost no development within a 20-kilometer radius of me. Although I don't plan to explore that much, it is still okay to let them explore the nearby resource areas. This way, neither group will be idle."

After speaking, Sui An took out a map from the house. The map was quite simple, only marking the terrain within a radius of 100 kilometers centered on Jiangcheng. It was bought from a merchant and was not cheap.

He pointed to a location several dozen kilometers southwest of his territory and said with a smile, "Although the wasteland can't compare to lakes and forests, and resources are scarce, there are still some."

"Last time Captain Zheng was chatting, he told me that a level 4 territory next to Line 6 discovered a gray steel rock mine just one kilometer away from their territory. Although it's difficult for a typical territory to provide much military support at this distance, the territory's advantage is still too strong."

"After all, without the protection of territory, if you want to set up a camp in the mine, you have to spend several times the manpower to build a fortress to ensure safety. It's too cost-effective to use that manpower to compete for this gray steel rock mine."

"However, he was lucky that he only found a gray steel rock ore. If he had found a medium-grade rare ore vein, he probably still wouldn't have been able to keep it."

"Of course!"

Erhu looked up from the map and said with a smile.

"These days, you have to keep your money-making resources hidden tight. After all, the arrival of a high-level professional is enough to raze an ordinary level 4 territory."

"Okay, since you already have a plan, then let's go with your plan. I won't drive this train anymore; I'll turn around and go back to the city to get the materials sorted out for you as soon as possible. If I come back too late, it will delay your business."

Without further ado, Wang Zhen took the sheet containing the materials from the table, stuffed it into his pocket, and stood up.

"Erhu Fangsi, you two drive a car with me. It's not safe for you to go alone."

"Can you manage if you don't run today?" Sui An glanced at the brothers resting in the back of the truck outside the yard.

Wang Zhen didn't care at all, waving his hand at Sui An: "Don't worry about it. We usually eat our fill here, and you're complaining about missing even one day? Then I'll kick them all out and let them enjoy a life of leisure on another team!"

"Old Wang is awesome!"

Erhu clapped his hands with a smile. In just over half a year, Wang Zhen had become so authoritative.

Wang Zhen curled his lip and spoke without any politeness.

"With the profits from these past three months, I've already ranked first in sales among mid-range transport vehicles three times in a row. What do they have to complain about?"

"Even Captain Zheng has to think highly of Sui An. After all, with the strength and frequency of your fissures, he has to give you a thumbs up."

Wang Zhen, who had reached the door, suddenly stopped and lowered his voice: "Let me tell you, Captain Zheng now has acquisition quotas."

Erhu rubbed his fingers together, and everyone laughed: "How novel! Don't all migrant workers have quotas?"

"You wouldn't know this, would you?" Wang Zhen placed his hand on the doorframe, glanced outside, and continued, "It's not a trading quota, it's a quota for collecting source beast meat. Now, Xiao An, you understand your position with Captain Zheng, right?"

"Source Beast Meat Collection Quota?"

Sui An was a little confused. Wasn't this a normal thing?

If you won't accept source beast meat, what else can you accept?

Looking at the stunned Sui An, Wang Zhen shook his head. This kid's perception is still not sharp enough.

"This didn't exist before; it was issued starting in January of this year."

"You mean someone's stealing Captain Zheng's source beast meat resources?"

Sui An came to his senses. In the past, people would beg the transport team to buy these things, for fear that the meat would spoil if the person didn't come one day.

Now, the transport teams are being asked to collect more meat, which clearly indicates that many people who originally relied on Ping An Trading Company to convert source beast meat into resources are no longer using Ping An Trading Company.

After all, in the long run, the source of source beasts will not decrease for a long time in most cases, and the output of Line 7 is relatively stable.

"Is this a quota for Captain Zheng's line, or is it for every line captain?"

"Don't overthink it. They definitely have the quotas, but someone is stealing business on Line 7 too aggressively. Could it be Crescent City? Which city lord has Crescent City allied with? They're so arrogant. The incident with the Zhao family father and son last time was left unresolved."