Chapter 24: The Threat of Green Dragon Stronghold

The mountain stronghold located to the northwest is called the Azure Dragon Stronghold. It is comprised almost entirely of soldiers and warriors, with very few elderly, women, or children among them. It is a peculiar place; initially, the stronghold maintained a friendly relationship with the Qingyun Stronghold, but lately, for reasons unknown, it has become insatiably greedy, imposing increasingly harsh and frequent demands.

Azure Dragon Stronghold... could it be that Azure Dragon Stronghold?

Lin Mu recalled a regional plotline from his past life set in Kuaiji Commandery, Yangzhou. Could this be the very same rebellious Azure Dragon Stronghold?

In his previous life, there was a man of great talent in Kuaiji Commandery named Xu Zhao, courtesy name Wenjian. A native of the commandery seat, Shanyin City, he harbored grand ambitions and launched a rebellion against the Han Dynasty, declaring himself King of Jiangdong and renaming Kuaiji Commandery the Kingdom of Jiangdong.

This was a regional campaign event triggered by the system, occurring in Kuaiji Commandery, Yangzhou. Such regional events occurred in other provinces as well, designed by the system to encourage players to participate and experience the brutality of a world plagued by war, helping them acclimate to the bloody and visceral reality of this mythical world.

The regional plotline that took place in Kuaiji Commandery was known as the "Rebellion of Xu Zhao."

Xu Zhao was a third-rate historical general, yet even a general of such standing was beyond the reach of most players. They had to rely on the power of the imperial government, acting merely as cannon fodder while the officials reaped the majority of the benefits. Ironically, the corrupt government officials were so bullied by this third-rate historical general that they were driven out of the capital, Shanyin City, like stray dogs.

Lin Mu was intimately familiar with this plotline and had already marked it as a key step in his own blueprint. He intended to profit immensely from this regional event.

According to intelligence provided by Gao Hai, the Azure Dragon Stronghold boasted a force of 120,000. Excluding logistics personnel, there were 100,000 elite troops. Based on Gao Hai’s scouts, 80,000 were Tier 3 soldiers, and approximately 20,000 were Tier 4.

Upon hearing this, Lin Mu deduced that this Azure Dragon Stronghold was likely just one of several hidden military bases cultivated by Xu Zhao. There must be other "Azure Dragon Strongholds" elsewhere; when the regional event officially triggered, Xu Zhao would claim to have a million elite troops!

Even allowing for exaggeration, he surely possessed hundreds of thousands of troops; otherwise, the situation where half of Kuaiji Commandery fell during the event would not have occurred. In the game, Kuaiji Commandery was as vast as the combined area of all the southern provinces of China, which spoke to the true scale of Xu Zhao’s influence.

Listening to Gao Hai’s report, Lin Mu calculated in his mind. He felt a flicker of trepidation—100,000 elite troops! That was half the size of the entire army he had commanded in his past life.

After Gao Hai finished speaking, a system notification sounded in Lin Mu’s ears:

"Ding!"

"System Notification: Lord Lin Mu, do you accept Gao Hai’s request—[The Threat of Azure Dragon Stronghold]—to resolve the crisis for Qingyun Stronghold?"

Lin Mu pondered for a moment before responding firmly, mentally confirming, "Accept!"

Aloud, he said, "Very well, I accept your request, Gao Hai. I will help you overcome this crisis and eliminate the threat posed by the Azure Dragon Stronghold."

"Excellent! Haha, thank you, Village Chief Lin Mu, for helping us, the old and the weak," Gao Hai said happily. He felt a weight lifted from his shoulders, having finally shared his burden. He held a sliver of hope that this "Outsider" might perform a miracle; even if he failed, the worst-case scenario was simply that his stronghold would have to submit to the Azure Dragon Stronghold anyway.

"Village Chief Lin Mu, do not be too hasty; this requires careful planning. However, we fear the Azure Dragon Stronghold may discover the irregularities here, so we cannot provide any material assistance. We will, however, provide you with all the intelligence we have without reservation. I hope you understand our predicament," Gao Hai said, seemingly conflicted, offering only information and moral support.

Lin Mu saw through the ruse. Gao Hai simply wanted him to conquer the Azure Dragon Stronghold, yet feared that if the attempt failed, it would implicate Qingyun Stronghold. It was a classic case of playing both sides. As expected of a leader managing such a large stronghold, he was quite cunning.

But that suited Lin Mu just fine. As long as you issue the subjugation quest openly, I will conquer it with force. Once I do, I will be standing on the side of justice, and taking you over will be child's play.

Lin Mu didn't reveal his thoughts. He now faced an Azure Dragon Stronghold with 100,000 elite troops; how should he proceed?

He didn't linger. After asking Gao Hai for a clever youth familiar with the mountain paths, Lin Mu purchased a few supplies urgently needed in his own territory and set off for home.

He needed to return and consult with Chang Yin and Feng Zhong. After all, one was a god-tier strategist and the other a god-tier general—truly formidable individuals.

In truth, observing Gao Hai’s demeanor, Lin Mu realized that this so-called "recruitment quest" was something Gao Hai had issued offhandedly, without much expectation. Anyone could see the disparity between a large mountain stronghold and a newly established village.

Lin Mu pondered for a while, recalling the attributes of his God-tier Village Building Order, Feng Zhong’s divine skills, and much more. Gradually, his restless heart calmed, and a confident smile touched his lips.

Lin Mu mainly purchased salt from Gao Hai’s stronghold, a resource his territory severely lacked.

Since his territory currently had no saltworks or accessible salt mines, this daily necessity was critical. Gao Hai charged 100 copper coins per unit of salt (one unit being one jin). Lin Mu had only 3,000 copper coins; after buying 20 units, he spent the remainder on seeds—rapeseed, green vegetable seeds, and the like. Once back in his territory, he would arrange for farmers to plant these, solving the initial need for oil and vegetables.

He decided that once he had more money, he would return for more salt and other goods. Having browsed the trade market of Qingyun Stronghold, he realized there were many items he desperately needed. He resolved to return and sweep the market once he was wealthier, as he knew he wouldn't be able to complete the [Threat of Azure Dragon Stronghold] quest in the short term.

Along the way, Lin Mu, accompanied by Xiao Hu and the clever youth, began the journey back to the village.

At Qingyun Stronghold, Lin Mu had repaired his worn-out weapons and armor, making them fit for battle once again.

During the journey, both Lin Mu and Xiao Hu reached level 10. Xiao Hu hit level 12, and Lin Mu had just reached level 10—the requirement for changing professions to a general—though he still lacked the necessary cultivation manual.

For both players and NPCs, changing to a general required three basic conditions: reaching level 10, possessing a Yellow-grade or higher cultivation manual, and having an available slot.

A [Primary Barracks] provided one general slot, a [Intermediate Barracks] provided three, a [High-level Barracks] provided ten, and the ultimate [Drill Ground] provided one hundred.

A [Primary Barracks] could train 100 soldiers, an [Intermediate Barracks] 1,000, a [High-level Barracks] 10,000, and a [Drill Ground] 200,000. The [Drill Ground] was the terminal stage for barracks-type buildings and could not be upgraded by ordinary architects; it required special blueprints.

Lin Mu had not yet obtained any cultivation manuals from monster drops. He wondered if Feng Zhong had found any. He himself hadn't received a single piece of equipment from the beasts he had killed, leading him to grumble once again about the game's notoriously low drop rates.