6: Chapter 6 A Fulfilling First Day

He helplessly pulled up the Barracks panel:

[Level: 1 (Capacity: 5 people per room. Can be upgraded to Level 2, increasing capacity to 10 people per room. Cost: Wood ×100)]

[Barracks Configuration and Specs: Dormitories ×3 (20 square meters each, equipped with one wide wooden bed, optimal capacity 5 people)]

[Current Status: Crude, poor insulation, only provides basic shelter]

"Five people per room... that means the 17 people I have now can just barely squeeze in. But if I keep recruiting later and the numbers go up, there definitely won't be enough space."

Lin Tian rubbed his chin and thought, looking at the conspicuous [Wood ×100] upgrade requirement, then at the pitiful wood reserves in his resource bar, he sighed: "I have the heart to upgrade, but not the wallet to pay. This price is enough to buy so much wolf meat in the Trading Platform..."

However, this small difficulty clearly wouldn't stump him. After a brief complaint, he quickly adjusted his mindset. "Forget it, forget it. It's only natural for things to be tough during the early stages of a startup."

"Back when the late emperor started... uh, anyway, everyone goes through this!" After cheering himself up, he turned his gaze toward the depths of the jungle, the direction where the exploration team had been sent.

"When the brothers return fully loaded, let alone 100 wood, maybe we'll even have 200! At that time, I'll upgrade directly into standard wooden houses—no, into two-story buildings!"

He could almost see the brand-new barracks rising from the ground, and even began planning: "I need to leave some space. Maybe later I can set up 'Unit-Specific Rest Areas.' Rock Armor Soldiers can sunbathe their stones, Iron-Armored Spearmen can polish their armor, and Archers can maintain their bowstrings... Hmm, there's something to look forward to!"

As for tonight? "We'll make do," Lin Tian shrugged, a mischievous smile appearing on his face. "Just think of it as strengthening comrade bonds and building chemistry. Maybe after squeezing together for a night, the Rock Armor Soldiers and Iron-Armored Spearmen will research a Fusion skill tomorrow?"

Thinking to himself, he temporarily put the barracks' predicament out of his mind. After all, on this first night in the Eternal Continent, having a place to huddle together for warmth was probably already better than many unlucky souls shivering in the cold wind or the desert.

Resources will come; houses will come too.

After watching the trading panel and group chat interface for a long time, Lin Tian, who was calculating his next development plans, suddenly felt a warm current surge through his body without warning.

This power wasn't violent; instead, it was as gentle yet firm as a stream, spreading to his four limbs and hundred bones. His bones made faint, crisp snapping sounds, and his spirit was refreshed.

He subconsciously pulled up his character panel and saw several lines of prompts popping up one after another:

[Prompt]: Your unit 'Iron-Armored Spearman' has been promoted to black iron 2-Star!

[Prompt]: Your unit 'Rock Armor Soldier' has been promoted to black iron 2-Star!

...

[Prompt]: Your Lord Level has been promoted to black iron 2-Star!

"Eh? What's going on? I leveled up too?" Lin Tian looked bewildered. He had clearly stayed inside the safe protective shield and hadn't done anything.

He hurriedly typed his question into the Regional Chat Channel. Soon, from some scattered information and the explanation of a lord who seemed somewhat knowledgeable, he pieced together the truth: A lord's own strength growth is linked to and synchronizes with the strength of the strongest individual among their subordinate soldiers.

"So that's how it is! It's a 'Linked Level-up' mechanism!" Lin Tian realized, and then his face lit up with joy. "So, my soldier brothers are killing enemies and getting stronger at the front lines, and they've 'carried' me along too? This is great. I can level up even by lying... ah, no, by commanding wisely!"

He blissfully felt the increased strength in his body. Although the boost wasn't massive, even mosquito legs are meat. More importantly, it meant he didn't need to risk himself personally; as long as his subordinate legion kept growing, he could steadily become stronger. "This setting is way too friendly for a 'steady-going' lord like me!"

About half an hour later, the exploration troops finally all returned safely. Seeing all seventeen figures appear at the edge of the shield, Lin Tian's heart finally settled.

"Good, good, no casualties!" He walked up quickly to check them over. Most of the soldiers were in decent shape, but three Rock Armor Soldiers were covered in crisscrossing claw marks and cracks. One in particular had a deep crack in his chest that almost went through half his rock armor, looking quite shocking.

"This was... scratched by what kind of powerful creature?" Lin Tian frowned slightly. Through the prey the soldiers brought back and simple communication, he learned the details of the battle: The team encountered and successfully hunted ten black iron 1-Star Wild Wolves, five thick-skinned black iron 2-Star Wild Boars, and two extremely troublesome, lightning-fast black iron 3-Star Night Shadow Leopards. The injuries on the Rock Armor Soldiers mainly came from the sneak attacks of those two Night Shadow Leopards.

"My heart would bleed if even a single casualty occurred! You don't know the cost of living until you're in charge; every soldier is a precious seed stock!" Lin Tian thought fortunately.

Fortunately, the Rock Armor Soldiers' talent skill [Immovable as a Mountain] played a huge role. As long as they stood on the ground, they could slowly and steadily recover their status and repair the cracks in their rock armor.

At this moment, the most heavily injured Rock Armor Soldier was standing on the ground. His grayish-white rock skin seemed to wriggle slightly as if alive, and the cracks were healing slowly at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Counting the spoils, the harvest could be called abundant: the seventeen soldiers brought back 10 Wild Wolves, 5 Wild Boars, and 2 Night Shadow Leopards.

What delighted Lin Tian the most was that with the experience from this batch of prey, the original eleven fused units had all successfully promoted to black iron 2-Star! And the six soldiers from the second batch of Fusion weren't far from leveling up either. The aura radiating from the units had clearly become much more solid and powerful.

"Not bad, really not bad!" The more Lin Tian looked, the more satisfied he became. The bit of "unlucky" gloom from not getting any treasure chests earlier was swept away. "What's there to fear from a low initial level? I have the 'Fusion' cheat to change my fate! High growth potential and good unit combinations—that's the real deal."

"In time, my ordinary units might not necessarily be worse than those who started with Excellent or Legendary ones!"

He walked excitedly to the mountain of prey, touched them lightly, and began to perform "One-Click Collection" one by one.

[Collection Successful]: Obtained Wolf Hide ×10, Wolf Meat ×50, Low-grade Spirit Crystals ×10 (Each black iron 1-Star provides 1 crystal).

[Collection Successful]: Obtained Wild Boar Hide ×5, Wild Boar Meat ×50, Wild Boar Tusks ×10, Low-grade Spirit Crystals ×10 (Each black iron 2-Star provides 2 crystals).

...

Total Harvest: A large pile of beast hides, 110 units of various meats, and 26 precious Low-grade Spirit Crystals!

"A bumper harvest!" Looking at the dazzling array of supplies on the ground, Lin Tian was overjoyed. The only regret was still the familiar "zero treasure chests."

"Could I really have been forgotten by the Goddess of Luck? Or is it... that my talent is too strong, so the system deliberately lowered my drop rate for balance?" He thought half-jokingly, not dwelling on it too much. After all, solid resources were what he needed most right now.

Seeing the sunset and the evening glow fading, there was only about half an hour left before the sky turned completely dark.

Lin Tian didn't delay any longer and immediately ordered the soldiers to take out some of the wild boar meat harvested today, light the pitiful campfire in the center of the barracks, and begin roasting meat for dinner. Fat dripped into the fire with a "sizzling" sound, and a tempting aroma began to spread.

"Just meat isn't enough." Lin Tian smacked his lips, remembering that today's exploration hadn't found a stable water source. He decisively opened the Trading Platform again and exchanged 10 units of wolf meat for 20 liters of clean spring water. "Not finding water today was my oversight. I must solve this problem tomorrow!"

After finishing all this, the sky was completely dark, and the time reached six in the evening.

Almost at the exact moment the last ray of light disappeared, the world outside the territory seemed to switch modes instantly!