Is the closed beta test of King of Loque over? The official release is here!

Murong Jiao didn't hesitate and stood up gracefully.

"The Wood Clan has four tasks."

She held up four slender fingers and said in a clear voice, "I helped with logging, irrigating farmland, making medicine, and also worked at the carpentry shop."

She paused for a moment, her gaze sweeping over Song Chen's group, a sly smile playing on her lips.

"By the way, here's a free tip for you—we use pets to do logging and irrigation. It's very efficient."

Upon hearing this, the eyes of several people in Song Chen's team lit up instantly.

Pets can perform auxiliary tasks, and they certainly understand their value. This is equivalent to having several extra laborers for free.

It seems that the Wood Clan is accumulating points much faster than expected.

"Where is the Stone Clan?" Murong Jiao asked Song Chen.

Song Chen suppressed his emotions and maintained a calm demeanor as he spoke: "Four tasks. Mining stone, repairing the wishing wall, carving totem statues, and forging and polishing stone tools."

He glanced at his teammates and added, "Our pets can also help with quarrying. They can just use their skills to smash the rocks."

The three parties have completed the exchange of intelligence.

The firewood crackled and sparks flew as it burned in the campfire.

An eerie silence fell over the square.

On the surface, everyone was exchanging goods and services, appearing harmonious. But beneath this quiet surface, everyone's mind was racing with calculations.

Niu Kuang frowned deeply. The Bone Clan's mission currently relied entirely on manpower, despite the high points awarded. Could they truly compete with others who used pets for support? He didn't dare ask how many points the other two teams had accumulated, fearing it would undermine morale. He might be a bit rough around the edges, but he wasn't stupid.

Song Chen's eyes flickered, his gaze shifting back and forth between the Murong sisters. The Wood Clan has two quests that can utilize pets, while the Stone Clan only has one. This gap must be bridged.

Lin Sen then spoke up: "Those missions for the Wood Clan and Bone Clan. If other clans were to do them, without any clan bonuses, how many points would they get?"

Lin Sen's question weighed on everyone's mind.

The campfire crackled, but no one spoke immediately.

Fang Xu subconsciously touched his nose, his mind racing: This person's question... does seem to be a very crucial one.

Although they already knew they could do quests in other tribes, some quests wouldn't have the exclusive bonuses of that tribe.

But what the actual results will be is still unknown.

However, it seems to be done to make things easier for them.

The task panel refreshed automatically the next moment.

Almost simultaneously, a new notification appeared on the panels of all the players present.

[System Notification: Players can travel to any tribe to perform missions, but players who are not from the same tribe will face score reduction in some missions. Details are as follows—]

Then, a dense array of rules and regulations were laid out.

Fang Xu stared at the panel, his eyes practically glued to it, scanning line by line.

木族任务：伐木、农田灌溉——外族玩家仅得60%积分。制药——无衰减，100%。木匠前台售卖——60%。木匠后台制作——80%——100%。（因手艺而异）

Bone Clan Quests: Quest 1 (Processing Skeletons), Quest 2 (Polishing Bone Tools) – 60% for outsiders. Quest 3 (Carving Bone Patterns) – 80% to 100%, depending on skill level.

Stone Clan Tasks: Mining stone and repairing the wishing wall – 60% for outsiders. Carving totem statues and polishing stone tools – 80% to 100%, depending on skill level.

Chapter 203 The First Day Passes

(PS: There might only be one chapter today. I went home, ate a meal cooked by my mom, and ended up with diarrhea all night. It's ridiculous. Now I also feel a slight fever. Sigh.)

Looking at the densely packed decay rules on the panel, everyone fell silent for a moment.

The campfire crackled and sparks flew, illuminating each face with its own thoughts, casting both light and shadow.

After much deliberation, everyone had come to roughly the same conclusion.

These tasks may seem like they can be done by other races, but in reality, they are not very practical.

The reason is very simple.

Tasks that are clearly best suited for pet assistance, such as logging, farm irrigation, and mining, will only yield 60% of the points if performed by a different tribe.

Such a discount is actually less worthwhile than simply staying in one's own tribe and working.

Of course, Niu Kuang and his group were an exception. The Bone Clan's missions relied entirely on manpower, and they couldn't use pets to help out anyway. Perhaps they could find an opportunity to do it in a different location.

As for the tasks that can earn 80% or even the full score, without exception, they are all meticulous and laborious manual tasks that require a lot of thought and effort, and even depend on individual talent. These are not things that just anyone can do.

Everyone was making their own plans, but it was getting late, and the fire was gradually dying down. So no one said anything more, and they all got up and returned to their respective groups' quarters.

-

Inside the log cabin of the Wood Tribe, Chief Flying Axe had laid out soft animal hides and hay for them. Although it was not luxurious, it was clean and comfortable, with a faint woody scent.

Murong Jiao and the other three pushed open the door, and one of them picked a spot to sit down. Instead of resting immediately, they naturally gathered together and began to discuss.

"What are your thoughts?" Murong Jiao hugged her knees, her yellow pigtails casually draped over her shoulders, and glanced around with her almond-shaped eyes. "Do you think the missions of other tribes are worth doing?"

Mo Fan sat against the log wall, his expression calm. After a moment's thought, he said, "Among the tasks that can be assisted by pets, the only exception is the Stone Clan's mining task. But in that case, players need to supervise and direct the task, and pets cannot complete it independently."

He paused, his gaze falling on a corner of the wall, his tone neither hurried nor slow.

"As for the other tasks, we can give them a try. Who knows, someone might just happen to have the talent for them."

“Mo Fan is right,” Murong Sha replied, her voice as steady as ever. “For tasks that can be done by pets, it’s most efficient to keep them within our own clan. As for the others, we can try, but don’t put too much effort into them.”

“But now that you mention it…” Fang Xu rested his chin on his hand, frowned, and looked puzzled, scratching his head. “It feels like the points each team will get in this competition were basically determined from day one. If we just keep going step by step, we can pretty much guess the outcome in the end.”

He paused, then muttered to himself, "I wonder if anything unexpected might happen along the way..."

"Alright, alright." Murong Jiao waved her hand impatiently, interrupting Fang Xu's attempt to delve deeper into his thoughts. "Stop thinking so much! I've been busy all day, I'm exhausted. Let's get today's matters settled first, we'll talk about the rest tomorrow, go to sleep!"

Fang Xu opened his mouth, but ultimately swallowed the rest of his words and obediently shrank back to his seat.

Mo Fan didn't speak, but simply put away the panel and closed his eyes.

The room quickly quieted down.

-

the other side.

The atmosphere in the Bone Clan players' residences was much more lively.

Niu Kuang leaned back on the animal hide with an air of nonchalance, crossed his arms behind his head, and stared nonchalantly at the wooden beam above him. His new team members were gathered together, their faces etched with worry.

“Brother Niu,” one of them spoke, his tone clearly unease, “you saw the panel too, right? The other two tribes’ quests have pets that can help, but ours…”

"It's all done by hand," another person added, their voice bitter.

"What can we do? If this continues, won't we fall behind in points?"

The four of them talked amongst themselves, appearing increasingly worried.

"What's there to be afraid of?" Niu Kuang scoffed dismissively, his loud voice booming through the room. "Our tribe's missions pay a lot of points! Those bone tools aren't rare jobs that you can just find anywhere. Can they be compared to logging?"

He sat up abruptly, glanced at the group of people, and spoke with a strange sense of confidence.

"Besides, it's not like we can't do their missions! Do any of you have water-type or winged pets? If so, try the Wood Clan's logging and irrigation tomorrow. Even if you only get 60%, the quantity is plentiful and it's better than just sitting around doing nothing!"

Upon hearing this, the men's expressions softened slightly. They exchanged glances and began to mentally assess their own assets.

"Boss is right!" Tie Dan was the first to slap his thigh and stand up, looking eager to try, waving his thick arms. "And!" he whispered mysteriously, his eyes wide, "I've discovered a mission that's especially, especially perfect for my pet! You'll see tomorrow!"

His demeanor piqued the curiosity of several people, who were about to press him for more information.

"Alright, alright, let's go to sleep. You've been up all day, aren't you sleepy yet?"

From the corner, Er Mao's voice rang out at just the right moment, ruthlessly cutting off the discussion that was about to escalate.

He had turned to the side, curled up on the animal skin, his back to the crowd, his tone revealing a detached weariness.

He had spent the entire day working on his bones, and his hands were still slightly sore.

Talent, strategy, tomorrow—none of that matters as long as you fall asleep first.

After hearing what Er Mao said, everyone was tired and stopped talking.

The room gradually quieted down.

-

Inside the Stone Clan player's residence.

The atmosphere was much calmer in comparison.

Song Chen sat upright at the head of the table, his face calm, but his eyes held a scrutinizing gaze as they swept over the crowd. He waited until everyone had settled down before speaking, his tone unhurried and deliberate, maintaining his usual air of authority.

What do you all think?

This question was like a stone thrown into the air; the team members looked at each other, hesitant to speak immediately.

Lin Sen, on the other hand, calmly pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses, his thin lips slightly parted, his tone gentle yet resolute.

"At present, there is no doubt that we have the greatest advantage."

His voice was steady, as if he were simply stating a fact that did not need to be disputed.

“Both we and the Wood Clan have pets that can assist in completing tasks, so we're on equal footing in that respect. But the difference is—their team only has four people, while we have seven.” He paused for a moment, a subtle smile playing on his lips. “We have a greater advantage in both manpower and the number of pets.”

Song Chen nodded slightly, a hint of satisfaction in his eyes.

Lin Sen continued, "We can also try the missions for the other two races. But if it's not worthwhile in practice, there's no need to waste our energy."

After he finished speaking, he lowered his gaze and thoughtfully fiddled with the edge of the task panel beside him, the gentle smile on his face unchanged.

But beneath that calm expression, Lin Sen was calculating something else entirely.

Currently, the points belong to the individual, but how will they be used in the end? What if Song Chen, using his position as team leader, tries to keep them for himself...?

He lowered his eyelids slightly, and the lens reflected the last bit of light from the campfire.

Song Chen's voice continued to ring in my ears, outlining the division of labor for tomorrow. It sounded meticulous and well-organized.

Lin Sen listened, occasionally humming in agreement, always maintaining his proper demeanor.

But he knew perfectly well that he was simply waiting for a more suitable opportunity.

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