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Chapter 181: Is His Battle Merit Growth Speed Reasonable?
🕑 Added 2024-10-30 16:52:52 +0000 UTC[Shenwei Army Zhao Xing, you have completed the task of planting ‘Shayuan Fruit’ (20,000 pieces), earning 10,000 points of battle merit (this task cannot be submitted again this month).]
[Shenwei Army Zhao Xing, you have completed the task of planting ‘Golden Pillars’ (1,000 pieces), earning 10,000 points of battle merit (this task cannot be submitted again this month).]
...
The notifications from the Earth Mirror flashed by quickly, and in just a blink, the total tally showed that Zhao Xing had gained 71,000 battle merit points.
"Patty, you really gave me a generous gift," Zhao Xing said with a smile, "I'll find an opportunity to send more members of the Sha Tribe down to accompany you."
As he looked at his rapidly increasing battle merits, Zhao Xing couldn’t help but feel deeply moved.
Patty, a member of the Sha Tribe, had raided two cities, looting everything from the inner warehouses, including the Military Shennong's reserves.
These materials, originally meant for other Military Shennongs completing their tasks, now all fell into Zhao Xing’s lap.
"Seventy-one thousand battle merits!"
To kill a Seventh-Rank peak Earth Fiend, you would need to kill 18 of them to get that many points!
If you were killing early-stage Earth Fiends, you would need to kill 71!
At this stage, a Seventh-Rank expert is a second-tier force, either a general or a deputy, often stationed in heavily fortified defensive positions, so killing them isn't easy.
But Zhao Xing had just made a huge score.
"Robbery really is the fastest way!"
Zhao Xing laughed, seeing his battle merit points soaring.
Normally, even if you raided various tribes in the Southern Wilderness, you wouldn't be able to gather so many merit points, and killing people wouldn't be this efficient.
It was only thanks to Patty and his two brothers who first looted two other Great Zhou cities. Before they could process their spoils, Zhao Xing had slain them.
"Let's see where I rank."
When the Earth Mirror's task notifications stopped refreshing, Zhao Xing immediately opened the battle merit ranking list.
[Shenwei Army Zhao Xing: Lower Seventh Rank]
[Battle Merit: 86,000]
[Overall Ranking: 65,712]
"I'm ranked over 65,000?"
"Before this, I was ranked in the millions. I've jumped over 500,000 people in one go."
"To be ranked over 65,000 overall, even surpassing some Sixth-Ranks, although the court is continuously sending reinforcements, so competition is fierce," Zhao Xing mused.
When the pacification campaign started, the number of participants was about seven million.
At that time, Zhao Xing hadn’t yet come out of seclusion.
Now, one month later, that number had doubled, reaching nearly fifteen million.
The numbers kept growing, and at its peak, the total number of participants surpassed fifty million!
The effects of the campaign were impressive, and the efficiency of training soldiers was high. The military realm added many new soldiers to expand the scale of the battle.
Although it was still nominally the five great Cave Heavens, many new people had been added to fill in the ranks.
Everyone wanted to join a winning fight, and the kings and nobles from various regions also requested to send their troops to the battlefield.
This led to the number of participants increasing rapidly.
"Soon, the number of Sixth-Rank officials will increase from 50,000 to over 60,000."
"The number of Seventh-Rank officials has increased from 200,000 to 1.5 million."
"Combined, the number of Eighth and Ninth-Rank officials has exceeded 30 million."
"By the end of the 18th year of the Jingxin Era, this number will surpass 50 million."
"From Ninth-Rank to Seventh-Rank, they are all low-tier forces. Only the Sixth-Rank can be considered mid-tier, so the increase in Sixth-Rank numbers isn’t as fast. Even at its peak, it never exceeded 80,000," Zhao Xing thought to himself.
"Let’s check the Seventh-Rank leaderboard."
[Shenwei Army Zhao Xing: Lower Seventh Rank]
[Battle Merit: 86,000]
[Seventh-Rank Battle Merit Ranking: 4,524]
"I've already made it into the top 5,000," Zhao Xing thought. "The first in the Seventh-Rank leaderboard, Qiyuan Army, has over 330,000 battle merit points. It's truly astounding. In just one day, he’s gained over 60,000 battle merit points."
The strong remain strong, and those ranked at the top of the Seventh-Rank are mostly frontline generals, commanding elite forces.
Fighting on the frontlines in a favorable battle allows them to gain merit quickly.
"I’ve already dropped twelve ranks in the blink of an eye." Zhao Xing noticed as his ranking fell by twelve spots in an instant.
"Now, with this batch of materials, I've completed most of my main tasks."
"Next, I’ll quickly finish my remaining tasks for this month, max out my basic battle merits, and then focus on completing ‘common tasks’ to gain additional merit. Common tasks are the key to widening the gap; they’re difficult but can be completed infinitely."
South of Canglan River, in the Hujiao Army war zone.
City No. 162.
Zhuang Zhiqing was planting 'Lingyi Bamboo' in the city. This bamboo was one of the main materials used to create 'Silver Wing Battle Armor,’ which allowed martial artists to fly.
Each Fourth-Grade Lingyi Bamboo would give Zhuang Zhiqing 100 points of battle merit. He was currently planting a bamboo grove, although only a small portion of the bamboo had reached the Fourth Grade.
Previously, Zhuang Zhiqing had followed the Hujiao Army’s Wei Hong unit in two blockade battles, but afterward, he was assigned to oversee farming tasks in the city.
The Hujiao Army was a powerful force, and while Zhuang Zhiqing had good talent, he still couldn’t compare to the veteran Seventh-Rank Military Shennongs. Seeing that he couldn’t gain much merit in battle, he voluntarily requested to return to the city and tend to the fields.
"Li Feng, Feng Qiu," Zhuang Zhiqing called out to his two deputies. "Take a break; there’s no need to push yourselves so hard. You’ve been working for twenty-four hours straight without rest."
Li Feng and Feng Qiu were both part of the Hujiao Army and had come to assist Zhuang Zhiqing. As for Shi Yong, he was still fighting on the frontlines with the Hujiao Army.
"I can still manage," Feng Qiu said calmly.
Li Feng also didn’t stop, continuing to cast his spells.
Both of them had previously fought two battles alongside Zhuang Zhiqing, only to be sent back afterward.
Unlike Zhuang Zhiqing, who had returned voluntarily, Li Feng and Feng Qiu had been urged to retreat.
Their abilities weren’t enough to make an impact on the frontlines.
The Hujiao Army was filled with talented soldiers. While Li Feng and Feng Qiu were considered geniuses during their training in Ten Sun Cave-Heaven, on the battlefield, they struggled to compete against the veteran Seventh-Rankers.
The Hujiao Army had given them opportunities, but both had failed to seize them, so now they were back with a renewed determination to work hard.
"You two may be able to hold out, but I don't want to overwork myself," Zhuang Zhiqing said helplessly. "If you don't rest, how can I rest?"
"I have an idea," Feng Qiu said, taking out his Earth Mirror and handing it to Zhuang Zhiqing.
"What’s this?" Zhuang Zhiqing asked, confused as he took the Earth Mirror. It displayed a search page showing Zhao Xing’s ranking and battle merits.
"What? Zhao Xing has 86,000 battle merit points?!" Zhuang Zhiqing’s eyes widened. "Didn’t he just leave seclusion three days ago?"
"No matter how fast he travels, it should still take one or two days to reach the battlefield, right? How could he get into the top 5,000 Seventh-Rank rankings so quickly?!"
Feng Qiu and Li Feng said nothing, as they too couldn’t understand how Zhao Xing had managed to advance so quickly.
Both Feng Qiu and Li Feng had one thing in common: they had both been defeated by Zhao Xing in the past.
Naturally, they kept a close watch on his progress.
They had expected Zhao Xing to make an impact, but this was beyond their imagination.
Eighty-six thousand battle merits! Ranked 4,000-something!
Feng Qiu was still ranked in the 70,000s, and Li Feng in the 100,000s. Only Zhuang Zhiqing and Shi Yong had broken into the top 10,000.
But Zhao Xing, having just left seclusion, had already made it into the top 5,000!
Feng Qiu slapped the Earth Mirror into Zhuang Zhiqing’s hands, his message clear: Are you still tired? Can you still sleep? Now do you understand why we’re working so hard?
Zhuang Zhiqing was instantly energized: "Damn, he was so driven in Ten Sun Cave-Heaven, and now he’s the same on the battlefield?"
He tossed the Earth Mirror back to Feng Qiu and barked, "Get back to work! All of you, back to work! No one is sleeping now!"
Meanwhile, on the frontlines of the Hujiao Army war zone.
A hidden military hall nestled deep in the mountains.
Shi Yong, exhausted from battle, dragged his weary body back to his tent.
Just as he was about to rest, he noticed his Earth Mirror vibrating.
It was a message from Zhuang Zhiqing.
[Check Zhao Xing’s ranking. Quickly!]
"Zhao Xing’s ranking?" Shi Yong was puzzled. "He’s only just come out of seclusion. What’s so interesting about his ranking?"
Still, since Zhuang Zhiqing had sent the message, Shi Yong opened the leaderboard.
After seeing it, Shi Yong fell silent.
He wanted to reply to Zhuang Zhiqing but didn’t know what to say. In the end, he quietly put the Earth Mirror away and gave up on resting, heading to the military hall to cultivate instead.
As the news spread, Zhao Xing’s rapid increase in battle merits caught the attention of others, including Xia Jing, Cao Shuang, Jiang Tianming, and Feng Qi.
"He’s already in the top 4,000 after just arriving on the battlefield?" Xia Jing stared at the ranking in disbelief. "I’m only ranked in the 3,000s, and I’ve been fighting for half a month!"
"Xia Jing, why are you looking at me?" Guan Junyang asked helplessly. "How can I understand something like this? Maybe it’s just luck?"
"Luck?" Xia Jing chuckled. "You’ve never been in Cloud Gate City. You don’t know Zhao Xing."
"Even if someone else had the same luck and faced a Seventh-Rank foreign army loaded with loot, they might not be able to wipe them out."
"Or even notice them, for that matter."
"Eighty-six thousand battle merit points mean seventy or eighty Seventh-Ranks. A force like that would have hidden in a highly concealed warship," Guan Junyang shook his head. "I doubt I’d even notice them. If I weren’t paired with you in Shenwei Army, I would’ve run away if I faced such a force alone."
Xia Jing didn’t say anything more, knowing it would only discourage Guan Junyang further.
But in his heart, he still regretted not bringing Zhao Xing into Shenwei Army back in Cloud Gate City.
He’d gladly trade ten Guan Junyangs for one Zhao Xing... Xia Jing thought silently, though he patted Guan Junyang’s shoulder with a smile.
"Hahaha, Guan Junyang, you’re amazing! Your potential is endless! Not even ten Zhao Xings could match you!"
In the military realm, Lord Tianyan and Lord Lingde were meditating in the Hundred Weapon Tower.
"Humm~"
Suddenly, Lord Luohou appeared on the top floor.
As soon as he appeared, the air around him seemed to chill. His expression was as cold as a thousand-year-old glacier.
"Hmm? Luohou, what’s wrong?" Lord Lingde asked, puzzled. "Why do you seem so full of murderous intent? Who has angered you?"
"Hmph, who else?" Lord Luohou replied coldly, "None other than our beloved Prince Liang."
"Did Prince Liang approach you?" Lord Tianyan asked, "Was he trying to pull strings with you to get people placed in the army?"
"Yes," Lord Luohou nodded. "He wanted to place 200 Sixth-Rank martial generals into the armies of the five great Cave Heavens."
"He asked me for 500," Lord Tianyan laughed. "It seems he thought you were harder to sway, so he quoted a lower number."
"He asked me for 1,000," Lord Lingde sighed. As a Marquis, his rank was lower than Lord Luohou and Lord Tianyan.
"And did you agree?" Lord Tianyan asked.
"No," Lord Lingde shook his head. "After much persuasion, I managed to send him away."
"What’s there to persuade?" Lord Luohou said with a wave of his hand. "Just say no. The military realm has its rules. What’s there to discuss?"
Clearly, things had not gone well between Lord Luohou and Prince Liang. His tone was cold and unyielding whenever Prince Liang’s name came up.
"Let’s not dwell on that," Lord Tianyan smiled. "Let’s talk about something pleasant, like our previous wager."
Lord Tianyan and Lord Luohou had made a bet regarding the performance of Xia Jing and Zhao Xing, with a Seventh-Grade Divine Weapon as the stake.
Lord Tianyan had bet that the two would be among the first to be conferred the title of Marquis, and not just any marquis, but a second-class one. Lord Luohou had bet that they wouldn’t.
"Zhao Xing has come out of seclusion," Lord Tianyan said with a smile. "And in just one day, he’s gained over 80,000 battle merit points. He’s already ranked in the top 5,000 Seventh-Ranks."
"..."
Lord Luohou had nothing to say.
It seemed that Lord Tianyan’s idea of pleasant news only applied to him.
Still, Lord Luohou wasn’t too upset. He and Lord Tianyan were close, and this lighthearted banter helped him shake off his earlier frustration with Prince Liang.
"Zhao Xing has been out of seclusion for so long, and yet in just one day, he’s gained over 80,000 battle merits?" Lord Luohou asked. "How did he do it? It’s impossible for a Seventh-Rank Military Shennong to complete their monthly tasks this quickly."
"According to the battle report," Lord Lingde explained, "this kid, along with Long Xiao of Shenwei Army, discovered a group of Sha Tribe members who were about to raid a Zhenhai Army supply city."
"They caught them off guard and wiped them out."
Lord Luohou waved his hand, and an Earth Mirror floated before him, displaying Zhao Xing’s merit records.
The Swordfish Airship had a mirage-like recording function.
Even outside the borders of Great Zhou, beyond the surveillance range of the military realm, the methods for recording battle merit were highly accurate.
"Hmm? A Fifth-Grade Nether Flame Warship, hidden in the wind layer, and he managed to detect the lingering tail flame from the warship?" Lord Luohou muttered as he examined the records.
"His strength has increased significantly since his time in Cloud Gate City."
"Luck played a part as well," Lord Tianyan said. "Had they been delayed by just a quarter of an hour, no matter how powerful Zhao Xing is, he wouldn’t have been able to detect the Nether Flame Warship in time."
"Luck is also a form of strength," Lord Luohou replied. "There are three types of people in this world: the first kind are fools who miss every opportunity, whose luck may change but whose lives remain largely unchanged, unaware of how many opportunities they’ve squandered. When their luck turns bad, they suffer greatly."
"The second kind are geniuses who seize every opportunity, turning them into great successes."
"Zhao Xing belongs to this second group."
Lord Lingde chuckled, "And the third type?"
"The third type are the supreme geniuses who create opportunities even when none exist," Lord Luohou replied.
Lord Tianyan smiled, "Luohou, in your opinion, are there any supreme geniuses in the Seventh-Rank rankings?"
Lord Luohou shook his head, "Not a single one in the Seventh-Rank. However, in the Sixth-Rank, Lu Yuanwei can be considered a supreme genius."
"In just twenty days, he’s earned a million battle merit points. Looking at his expansion route, Shenlei Army had no way of achieving such great results."
"The Golden Feather Court withdrew quickly, and there weren’t many enemies in his direction."
"Yet Lu Yuanwei led a small force across the Blazing Flame Desert, luring the Golden Feather Court’s prince, Hal, into chasing him."
"In the end, Hal fell into his trap, and 200,000 soldiers were slaughtered, including Hal himself."
Lord Lingde nodded, "Indeed, by killing Hal, not only did he gain immense merit, but he also disrupted the Golden Feather Court’s plans."
"Another 3,000 miles forward lies the ‘Green Gang Crystal’ mining area, which the Golden Feather Court hasn’t had time to exploit yet, and now Lu Yuanwei is threatening them."
"Now, the Golden Feather Court has to divert their forces to slow down Lu Yuanwei’s advance."
"The western route originally didn’t have much opportunity for merit, but Lu Yuanwei managed to carve out a path. He’s not short of heads to cut now."
Lord Tianyan interjected, "We were talking about the Seventh-Rank, how did we end up discussing Lu Yuanwei? What about the talents like Qiyuan Army’s Qiyuan Jun, Peng Zheng, and Yuanhua Army’s Yi Rong? Aren’t they supreme geniuses? They also have impressive records."
Lord Luohou shook his head, "They are strong armies with good opportunities. They are indeed geniuses, but not supreme ones."
"How do they compare to Zhao Xing?" Lord Lingde joined the conversation.
"In terms of talent and strength, those people are naturally stronger," Lord Luohou replied. "In terms of army strength, Qiyuan Army and Yuanhua Army are also superior to Shenwei Army."
"Zhao Xing is stationed in City No. 92. Opportunities to gain merit are limited."
"Unless he’s incredibly lucky, consistently encountering such events and seizing every opportunity, only then will he have a chance to surpass these geniuses from the elite armies."
Lord Tianyan nodded in agreement, even though he had bet on Zhao Xing being among the first to be conferred a marquis title, he still agreed with Lord Luohou’s analysis.
"That may not be the case," Lord Lingde suddenly said. "Look, his merit points are rising again."
"According to the Earth Mirror from the military realm, two hours ago, he submitted a common task and earned 5,000 battle merit points."
"Now, two hours later, he’s submitted another one, and again gained 5,000 battle merit points!"
Lord Luohou and Lord Tianyan stared at the Earth Mirror in surprise. Sure enough, Zhao Xing’s battle merit points had now reached 96,000!
Lord Lingde was puzzled, "Isn’t it said that the common tasks assigned to Military Shennongs by the military realm are usually very difficult? His speed... is it reasonable?"
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