4: Chapter 4 Using War to Sustain War

"Cough..." Lin Tian quickly reined in his wandering thoughts. "Be serious, be serious. It's better to be realistic. In jungle combat, vision and agility are crucial."

"The female soldiers are naturally lighter and have sharper senses; it's perfect to have them all undergo Fusion into Archers! Long-range fire suppression and jungle guerrilla tactics—that's where they can best utilize their strengths. As for the lads, they're tough and durable, so they'll continue to bolster the front line and the core force."

As he controlled it with his mind, materials, light, and shadow intertwined once more. One male Militia fused with rock, transforming into a steady Rock Armor bastion; two male Militia donned iron armor, becoming sharp spearmen; and three female Militia transformed amidst an emerald glow, their bodies becoming lithe, their eyes as sharp as an eagle's, as longbows imbued with the aura of nature coalesced in their hands.

With this, Lin Tian's initial troop formation was officially complete:

5 Rock Armor Soldiers, like mobile fortresses, forming an indestructible front line;

6 Iron-Armored Spearmen, combining offense and defense, serving as the backbone;

6 Archers, hidden in the rear, becoming precise and lethal long-range hunters.

Although their level was still only black iron 1-Star, their rare-Low grade already set them worlds apart from ordinary Militia.

Looking at the squad before him, which was starting to look like a proper military unit, Lin Tian clapped his hands in satisfaction, his eyes shining with confidence and anticipation. "Alright, warriors! Our prototype 'Iron Barrel Formation' plus 'Firing Squad' is finally set up."

"It doesn't matter if our level is a bit low; our quality is high! Come on, let's go 'hunting' in the woods again to add some hearty dishes to our dinner, and incidentally... see which lucky monsters can help our brothers and sisters level up!" His humorous mobilization sparked a hint of battle intent and a smile in the soldiers' eyes.

This mixed unit he had personally created, possessing defense, assault, and long-range strike capabilities, gave him great confidence in the safety of exploring the surrounding jungle.

After a brief thought, Lin Tian dismissed the idea of continuing to explore forward. The faint scent of blood lingering in the air made him keenly aware of potential risks.

"The wolf pack died here, and the scent will spread. I'm afraid it's only scared off some timid herbivores; what it might really attract are even more ferocious 'predators'."

Rubbing his chin, a glint of caution flashed in his eyes. "Steady development during the novice period is the way to go. There's no need to push my luck right now."

"Since there's a seven-day protective shield, the base is absolutely safe. It's better to concentrate our forces and explore the area behind the territory first. Then, once I've earned the Spirit Crystals for the next recruitment, I'll expand the troops and continue exploring."

Acting on his thoughts, he decisively issued orders, organizing all the unit types under his command into an exploration formation and sending them to conduct a careful scout and clearing within a five-hundred-meter radius behind the territory. "Let's secure our rear first, taking it step by step."

Watching the team disappear into the depths of the jungle, Lin Tian finally had time to carefully take stock of his assets. He brought up the resource panel and went through them one by one:

Wood × 4, Iron Ore × 5, Stone × 4, Low-grade Spirit Crystal × 0, Wolf Hide × 5, Wolf Meat × 25.

"The ones given at the start were indeed the most basic units." Looking at the "Low-grade Spirit Crystal × 0" display, Lin Tian curled his lip. "It seems that killing monsters of different levels produces Spirit Crystals of different qualities."

"The Mutated Wild Wolves gave the most Common low-grade Spirit Crystals. If I can take down higher-level monsters or beasts in the future, I might get intermediate, high, or even top-grade Spirit Crystals! Those are the good stuff." He already began to imagine scenarios of using high-grade Spirit Crystals to recruit or strengthen even more powerful units.

After taking stock of his wealth, his gaze turned once more to the three basic buildings within the territory. Aside from the core Lords Cabin and that crude Barracks, the most eye-catching was the militia recruitment altar.

"Hmm?" Lin Tian suddenly noticed something different. He stepped closer for a careful look, a look of surprise and joy appearing on his face.

The stone altar, which had originally looked quite crude and even somewhat mottled, was now faintly shimmering with a soft glow. The whole thing looked much newer, as if it had been meticulously wiped and maintained.

Even more peculiar, the once-blurry patterns on the altar's surface had now clearly evolved into three designs: on the left was a heavy figure standing on the earth, its body fused with rock (Rock Armor Soldier); in the middle was a sharp image of a fully armored figure poised to thrust a spear (Iron-Armored Spearman); and on the right was the silhouette of a lithe hunter drawing a bow (Archer).

The three patterns were lifelike, perfectly matching the characteristics of the three unit types under his command!

"Ha! So my recruitment altar isn't an unchanging, lifeless object!" Lin Tian's eyes lit up. He walked around the altar twice with great interest, lightly touching the glowing patterns with his fingers. They felt warm to the touch, as if carrying a faint resonance.

"Does it 'upgrade' along with the evolution of my units? Or rather, does it record and reflect the 'unit templates' I've mastered? This is an unexpected surprise. It looks much more impressive now, finally not looking like a broken stone platform."

Rubbing his chin, a curious and somewhat teasing smile curled on his lips. "I wonder if other lords' altars are like this too? If only mine changes, doesn't that mean... my talent isn't just strong in Fusion, but even the supporting buildings have such 'personality'?"

"Well, keep it low-key, low-key. Let's see if this 'personalized' building will have even more 'personalized' functions in the future."

This discovery made him even more expectant of the territory's future development. He simply sat down on the stone steps by the altar, keeping an eye on the exploration team's movements while starting to plan the next resource usage and construction priorities in his head. His expression of "life is getting more and more hopeful," set against the altar's faint glow, appeared exceptionally bright.

Having finished taking stock of the spoils, Lin Tian's curiosity was piqued. With a thought, he entered the Regional Chat Channel within the panel. On the light screen, text scrolled like a waterfall, vividly displaying the myriad states of the world less than a day after the start.

["The starting novice resources aren't enough at all! For my Elite-grade unit, I could only recruit 8 for free; the rest cost 4 Spirit Crystals to summon one! How do you get Spirit Crystals? Any big shots out there for guidance? Thank you so much!"]

["What's yours compared to mine... For my rare-grade unit, I could only recruit 5 for free. The rest not only cost 5 Spirit Crystals to recruit one, but I can only recruit 5 at a time. After recruiting one batch, I have to wait an hour of recruitment time before I can recruit the next! Right now I only have 5 soldiers in total, and two more are currently being summoned; I don't have a single Spirit Crystal left."]

["To the brother upstairs asking about Spirit Crystals, I know! My units just went out and hunted a wild boar and got one Spirit Crystal. It should be obtained from these wild monsters. Take this useful info, no thanks needed!"]

["Sigh, for my excellence-High grade Naga Snakeman, only 3 were given for free! When I looked at my recruitment requirements, I was dumbfounded. It's 10 Spirit Crystals each, I can only recruit a maximum of 3 soldiers at a time, and the recruitment wait time is 2 hours. I'm crying my eyes out!"]

["Like I said, the pain of the big shots is built above us! I'd rather endure a big shot's pain if only I could get a high-grade unit."]

["Right, right, me too! For us with Common-grade units, we're given 10 right at the start, it's 1 Spirit Crystal to recruit one, no time required, and unlimited recruitment. But what's the use? Won't they just be cannon fodder in front of high-grade units? An army of ants can't bite an elephant to death; it'll just let the elephant stomp a few more times. So sad..."]

["Wuwuwu, someone be kind and take me in! I'm a cute girl; as long as you can take me in, I'm willing to do anything! Big shots, please add me, my cat can do a backflip!"]

["Holy crap, the one upstairs is real! I just added her, and her figure is really nice! Too bad I can't take her in; I don't even know how hard it'll be to survive the Beast Tide."]

["You upstairs are so confident, be careful not to trip up and find yourself unable to even save yourself!"]

["Che! None of your business! I have plenty of strength. You're just a sour grapes person! Little sister, hurry up and accept; I've sent you a friend request."]

["Okay, big brother~ Don't listen to their nonsense. I'm very well-behaved and obedient, I promise I won't let big brother regret it~"]