"Click!"
The treasure chest opened, revealing three items inside.
A scroll, a token, and a pearl floated serenely within the chest, enveloped in a soft glow.
The vines swiftly coiled around the items, but the pearl, being too round, slipped away and fell to the side.
Alex didn't have time to worry about it. He immediately commanded the vines to retract, pulling them back into the forest.
Only then did the remaining people snap out of their daze, their expressions shifting in unison.
"Quick! Stop him! He's taken the treasure!"
With the treasure snatched, they had no time to think. They immediately led their units in pursuit, hoping to intercept the vines.
But the vines retracted with astonishing speed, almost instantly pulling back, and their defense was incredibly robust.
As soon as the units got close, attempting to sever the vines, they were flung back, their bodies covered in wounds from the thorns.
"Such high attack and defense!"
"Third-tier, it must be third-tier!"
The lords exclaimed in shock, awed by the overwhelming strength of the vines. They could only watch helplessly as the vines carried the treasure further and further away.
"Judgment Arrow!"
At that moment, a loud shout rang out.
From the crowd, a figure clad in pure white rose into the air, unfurling a pair of magnificent wings.
"Angel-type! It's an angel-type unit!"
The crowd was stunned. Many had thought it was a humanoid unit since the wings were hidden, but it turned out to be the legendary angel-type unit.
The angel drew its bow and, with a swift motion, shot an arrow of immense power toward the vines.
The arrow was incredibly fast, arriving in an instant.
"Boom!"
The arrow exploded, severing the vines into two. The two items they carried fell to the ground.
Seeing this, a haughty young man in the crowd smirked and commanded another angel beside him, "Yana, go retrieve those two items."
As soon as he spoke, the angel spread its wings and swiftly flew toward the crater left by the explosion.
The others watched, unwilling but not daring to provoke the young man.
After all, he possessed what was hailed as the strongest angel-type unit, and from the power it had just displayed, it was undoubtedly third-tier—far beyond their ability to challenge.
The young man, confident in his strength, looked down on everyone else with an arrogant expression.
Meanwhile, the angel named Yana had already reached the explosion site and bent down to pick up the two treasures.
But she failed to notice that the severed vines nearby had suddenly moved.
Red spores began to rapidly expand.
"Boom!!"
A violent explosion, accompanied by a powerful shockwave, instantly engulfed Yana, hurling her body through the air and slamming her to the ground.
Seizing the opportunity, the vines reappeared, coiling around the scroll and token before swiftly retracting, disappearing into the dense forest in the blink of an eye.
From start to finish, no one had seen the face of the person behind the attack.
"Escaped?"
The young man frowned, quickly moving to Yana's side.
Even the others nearby were stunned.
A third-tier angel-type unit had been blown away by the explosion. The power was undoubtedly stronger than that of an ordinary third-tier unit. Weren't plant-type units supposed to have limited offensive capabilities in the early stages?
Could the opponent be fourth-tier?
Or perhaps some high-tier plant-type monster?
Everyone began to speculate.
"Not good! The pearl's been taken!"
Just then, a cry of alarm from behind snapped them back to reality.
Without a second thought, they immediately joined the fray to seize the treasure, and the plain descended into chaos once more, with everyone commanding their units to fight desperately.
Meanwhile, Alex, having secured the two items, raced through the dense forest.
He didn't stop until he finally returned to his territory.
"Huff—huff—"
Alex's chest heaved, but his face was filled with delight.
He couldn't believe his luck—he had managed to snatch two items from so many people. It was worth the long journey.
Recalling the two angels he had encountered earlier, if it hadn't been for his Thornvine Flower's Explosive Spores skill, he might not have been able to handle them.
Moreover, he hadn't expected someone with an angel-type territory to be nearby. He'd have to be more careful in the future.
With that thought, he turned his attention to the scroll and token in his hands.
[Name: Territory Upgrade Scroll (Lower Tier)]
[Effect: Directly upgrades your territory by one tier without consuming materials. Can only upgrade up to the third tier.]
[Name: Unit Token (Rare)]
[Effect: Randomly unlocks a third-tier rare unit.]
[Usage Requirement: Third-tier territory, 50 Mana.]
"Great finds!"
After reading the descriptions, Alex's eyes lit up.
He had been planning to start gathering resources to upgrade his territory upon his return, and now he could save a lot of effort.
As for the unit token, it was an even more pleasant surprise.
Unlocking a new unit, and a rare one at that, was clearly a valuable opportunity.
It was common knowledge that the units unlocked after territory upgrades were random.
Having an additional unit meant an extra chance.
Moreover, Alex had the Mutation skill.
More units meant more skill options, allowing him to create even stronger units!
With this in mind, Alex picked up the scroll and slowly unrolled it.
[Do you wish to use the "Territory Upgrade Scroll (Lower Tier)" to upgrade your territory to the third tier?]
"Yes!"
In the next moment, the entire territory was enveloped in light, rapidly expanding. The stone pillars and fences grew taller and thicker, and the Tree of Life finally broke through the 20-meter mark, reaching 30 meters in height.
At the same time, a surge of power flowed into Alex's body, continuously strengthening him.
[Congratulations, your territory has been successfully upgraded. Current level: Third Tier]
[Randomly assigning units…]
[Assignment successful. Unlocked third-tier unit: Poison Thornvine.]
This time, luck was on his side. Upon reaching the third tier, he directly unlocked the third-tier Poison Thornvine.
This meant he could immediately recruit this unit without having to slowly train it up from a lower tier. It was better than nothing.
Given Alex's usual bad luck with random unit assignments, he had stopped expecting much. Getting a decent unit was already a win.
What he was most looking forward to was the unit token.
Unlocking a third-tier rare unit.
Take note! A rare unit!
This meant it was different from the ordinary units.
Alex couldn't help but feel a bit nervous, wondering what kind of unit he would get.
Taking a deep breath, he picked up the token and gently tapped it.
[Do you wish to spend 50 Mana to use the "Unit Token (Rare)"?]
"Yes!"
As soon as he confirmed, the token in his hand transformed into a stream of light, merging into the Tree of Life in his territory.
In an instant, the Tree of Life trembled, showering the ground below with radiant light.
[Congratulations, you have unlocked the third-tier rare unit: Spirit of Flora.]
"Spirit of Flora?"
Hearing the voice in his mind, Alex hurried to the base of the Tree of Life and spent 10 Mana to recruit a Spirit of Flora.
For him now, 10 Mana wasn't much. Even after deducting the 50 Mana he had just spent, he still had over 70 left, so he didn't feel the pinch.
Soon, a glowing orb composed of green light appeared before Alex, fluttering in the air.
The attributes of the new unit immediately appeared before his eyes.