The glint in Ethan's eyes was unmistakable as he beheld seventy merit points. These were not just points but keys to formidable upgrades—enough to enhance the Fei Shen Temple or to boost the vampire sisters to a new echelon of Bronze 2 stars. This revelation shed light on the zeal of countless races for conquest: a path paved with merit towards unparalleled strength.
In a moment of contemplation, Li Yun devised a strategic upgrade path that sought balance. The Fei Shen Temple was destined for another elevation—to the esteemed rank of Black Iron four stars. The surplus thirty experience points were earmarked for personal and troop advancements, marrying necessity with ambition.
With resolve, Ethan translated thought into action. Navigating to the attribute panel of the Fei
Shen Temple, he unhesitatingly initiated the upgrade process. A translucent query materialized, probing his intent to ascend further. With a decisive gesture, he affirmed.
In an instant, the Fei Shen Temple was enshrouded in a luminescent aura, its dimensions burgeoning with visible urgency until it spanned nearly a thousand square meters. Its stature too, reached skyward, peaking at an impressive twenty meters.
Ethan's scrutiny of the updated attribute panel revealed a fortified defense, a testament to the temple's newfound resilience. Notably, the artillery's reach had extended dramatically, now capable of striking targets 20 li away (roughly 10 kilometers), heralding a new era of dominion.
The progression to personal and martial elevation commenced forthwith.
At the status of Black Iron three stars, ascending to the fourth echelon demanded a mere four merit points. Advancing further, from Black Iron four stars to the fifth, required an additional five merit points. This pattern of ascension, demanding incrementally more merit points with each step, mirrored the progression system for his legions.
Ensconced within the temple's sanctity, Ethan prioritized the evolution of his vampire wards. Having ascended to Black Iron 4 stars himself, he then allocated the remaining merit points judiciously, elevating Vampire No. 1 and No. 2 to the prestigious tier of Black Iron 9 stars. This strategic deployment of resources underscored a new pinnacle of power, setting the stage for legends yet to be written.
In this tapestry of ambition and strategy, Ethan's decisions were more than mere upgrades; they were a dance of foresight and wisdom, painting the path towards an untold legacy within the annals of the myriad races. The Fei Shen Temple, now a bastion of unparalleled might, stood as a beacon of his burgeoning saga, a testament to the virtues of strength, strategy, and the indomitable will to ascend.
Ethan's method of elevation caused the two vampires to marvel once again in sheer astonishment.
"Indeed, Lord Count wields powers beyond the ordinary, effortlessly facilitating our ascent!" Celia's eyes, shimmering with admiration, conveyed her awe. She voiced her praise, her tone laden with wonder and respect.
"Truly, we must commit ourselves wholeheartedly in service to Lord Count," Vampire No.2 reflected with a deep sense of duty.
"At this juncture, the magical beasts under our dominion, particularly the lesser ones, find themselves utterly powerless under the sun's gaze. Only the formidable among them can muster the strength to act, though their might is notably diminished," Celia shared, her voice tinged with concern.
The magical beasts they commanded could formerly confront two Black Iron 9-star zombies without succumbing to utter disarray.
The diminished might of these beasts under the daylight spelled the primary cause for their swift defeat.
Within the sanctum of the Avalon Continent, Ethan's endeavors were far from cessation. Having empowered the vampires, he set them on a new quest—to forge a vampire legion that would span the breadth of a hundred miles.
He dispatched two golden eagles into the sky, their wings cutting through the air, tasked with the vigilance of patrol and reconnaissance.
He decreed that these avian sentinels, upon encountering any beast of notable might, were to relay their findings directly to the vampire cadre. This stratagem promised efficiency, a conservation of precious time.
Moreover, he bade the golden eagles to scout for neighboring territories, a move that would enable him to anticipate and prepare for any unfolding scenarios.
It was only after these arrangements that he afforded himself the luxury of perusing the world chat group.
Upon his entry, the chat was a tempest of voices and opinions.
"What have we here?" Ethan murmured, his gaze piercing through the flurry of messages, discovering a trove of strategies for advancement.
"The key lies in elevating our troops first, engaging magical beasts through these upgraded forces to accrue merits. It's through such a harmonious cycle that a territory truly flourishes," advised a lord amidst the digital tumult.
"And what of those whose forces are less formidable, akin to SpongeBob or goblins? Does this strategy hold water for them?" another lord posed, skepticism lacing his words.
"Fear not, for lords themselves can ascend, enhancing their own might. Remember, the lord stands as the pinnacle of their forces. With their potential unleashed, their prowess is unrivaled!" This notion captivated those whose initial forces were deemed weak.
"Can it truly be so?"
"A masterstroke!"
"Lead us, o sage!"
The chat was awash with accolades and admiration.
Ethan, too, found himself stirred, recalling from a past life the potency of such maneuvers.
"Perhaps humanity's fragility is but a misconception. The preceding battle was merely a prelude, a testament to unpreparedness," Ethan pondered, a new resolve kindling within him.
Withdrawing from the digital congregation, Ethan engaged the projection device, casting his gaze over the hundred-mile expanse.
The impending onslaught of the myriad races against humanity loomed but a day away, compelling him to maintain an unwavering vigil.
Under the cloak of twilight, as Ethan's consciousness meandered through the ethereal projection towards the temple's northern facade, his gaze was unexpectedly ensnared by an enigmatic creature. There, amidst the sanctity of ancient stones, grazed a pig, its coat as pure as the driven snow. This creature, evidently a denizen of domestic realms, bore not a single blemish upon its plump figure, foraging with a serene indifference. Its trajectory, curiously enough, was set towards Ethan's ethereal vantage.
"How peculiar! Might this be a creature touched by arcane mutation?" Wonder flickered through Ethan's mind, the pig's uncanny resemblance to the Earthly swine of Blue Star striking a chord of surreal familiarity, its demeanor bereft of the wild's savage breath.
"Huh?" At that moment, as if privy to some clandestine secret, the pig paused, its snout quivering in the air, before it fixed its gaze upon Ethan's spectral presence. A sharp lance of pain stabbed through Ethan's eyes, compelling him to shutter his vision. When he dared again to look, the creature had vanished, as if swallowed by the night.
"How curious indeed! This apparition of a pig seems an anomaly amongst the realm's shadowed denizens." His interest piqued, Ethan redirected his focus, casting his ethereal eyes to new horizons...
As night unfurled its velvet canopy, a beacon of hope flickered to life within Ethan's heart. Dispatches from Vampire No. 1 and No. 2 bore tidings of triumph; his vampiric legions, stretching across the vastness, had bent thousands of beasts to their will. Their burgeoning power hinted at the fruition of their grand design, potentially outpacing the march of days, the victory perhaps awaiting within the span of a mere fortnight...
Buoyed by elation, Ethan surrendered to the embrace of slumber, unaware of the nocturnal saga unfolding beyond his sanctum. In the shrouded embrace of the forest, a red cleaved through the silence with startling velocity, its speed a whispered legend, outpacing even the specter of death that was necromancer Edson.
"Boom!" The night air was rent asunder as an ancient behemoth of a tree succumbed to the unstoppable charge of the white specter, which, undeterred, pressed forward. Its destination? The hallowed grounds of the Flying Temple, now a mere thirty miles yonder.
"Hehe, await your sovereign, o porcine majesty; if a single gulp suffices, then why dally with a second?" In defiance of nature's law, the pig spat human words, each syllable dripping with a brash confidence. The earth trembled under its hooves, a testament to its unyielding spirit.
"Vampire fiends, mere morsels for my appetite, will find themselves undone by but a single bite!" A smirk of anthropomorphic cunning danced upon its visage. As midnight's mantle deepened, the pig's shadow loomed large over the temple, now less than a league away.
"This grandeur, so vast?" Awe mingled with disbelief as the pig beheld the temple's colossal expanse. Its initial bravado of consuming the edifice in one fell swoop wavered before the temple's imposing magnitude. Shielded by the grace of invulnerability granted to neophytes, the temple stood unassailable, prompting a moment of hesitation from the unlikely challenger.