Chapter 47: Great Victory

“Congratulations, Host! You have achieved an epic victory!”

Under your command and leadership, a small force of thirty-six people successfully carried out a night raid and used fire against the Wilderness Tribal Alliance. You secured a brilliant victory, defeating all surrounding Wilderness tribes. You have gained true ownership of this stretch of Wilderness!

Your fearsome reputation began spreading further afield. Small tribes were filled with dread towards you, and your victory made other tribes take notice. Prestige +3.

Battle concluded! You killed two thousand three hundred seventy-five enemies. Three Barbarians in your force were wounded.

You gained twenty-eight thousand seven hundred forty-three Experience Points. Your level increased! You gained the Talent: Iron Will.

Congratulations, Host! You gained two Free Attribute Points and two Skill Points. You obtained a Golden Treasure Chest.

Congratulations, Host! You have defeated enemies over a hundred times your army size three times in a row. You earned the Achievement Title: One Against a Hundred.

One Against a Hundred: After gaining this achievement, the morale of armies led by you and any Hero under your command is permanently increased by +10. Command +10.

From this battle, you obtained: Hundred-Tempered Fine Iron 30. You gained the Skill: Crimson Flame.

Casually spending the two Attribute Points on Strength, Su Lun’s Strength became thirty-three.

Name: Su Lun

Race: Human Level: Lv17 (8241/17000)

Strength: 33

Agility: 29

Spirit: 24

Constitution: 29

Charm: 19

Skills: (Omitted to save space on old skills.)

Iron Will: Harsh environments have tempered your will. Effects of Confusion-type spells are reduced against you. Willpower checks gain +5 bonus to resist.

Su Lun glanced at his status panel. The rewards after this battle were quite generous. Besides basic attributes, he also got an Achievement Title boosting Morale and Command by +10 each. This enhanced his forces’ overall capability and would be highly cost-effective in the long run. The System-rewarded Skill Crimson Flame was also good. Its effect was to summon flames in an area, perfect for setting fires, but the range was a bit small, only about ten or so square meters.

After a moment’s thought, Su Lun used his two Skill Points to upgrade Thunder Spear into Thunder Lightning Spear. The effect was higher attribute bonuses and increased lightning damage.

After using his Attribute and Skill Points, Su Lun deliberately washed his hands with water, took a deep breath, and opened his Storage Space. Inside, besides stacks of Hundred-Tempered Fine Iron, there was a gleaming gold chest.

This was already his second time opening a Golden Treasure Chest. Su Lun had some experience now. Opening the chest, the golden glow faded, revealing a token the size of a palm.

“Congratulations, Host! You obtained one Recruitment Token!”

【Recruitment Token: A token imbued with miraculous power. Using it will assist your Territory in recruiting personnel. The effect depends on the circumstances surrounding your Territory.】

Seeing the token’s properties, Su Lun’s face lit up with joy. This was just what he needed! He was currently struggling on how to recruit more people. Although the Territory had gained a fair population, the number of Freemen was far too low. Relying solely on slaves simply wasn’t sustainable.

He picked up the Recruitment Token and examined it for a while. The material it was made from was neither metal nor wood, quite peculiar. One side was carved with the character ‘募’ (Recruit), while the other side depicted a person. After looking at it a bit longer, Su Lun chose to use the Recruitment Token.

A flash of light burst forth, and the token vanished.

Notification: Host has used the Recruitment Token. For the next month, Host’s Territory will exert greatly increased attraction towards other intelligent humanoid races nearby (excluding hostile creatures like Goblins, Gnolls, Kobolds, Trolls, etc.).

“That’s… it?” Su Lun waited for a good while, but nothing happened afterward. Not a single figure appeared.

“If there are no humans around my Territory, does that mean no one gets recruited?”

“System? Say something!”

“You’re pulling my leg! This Territory is in the Wilderness! Where would one find Freemen in the Wilderness? This is a huge loss!” Su Lun’s face instantly darkened upon hearing the system’s notification.

“System, this is counterfeit junk! Give me back my Golden Treasure Chest!” Seeing absolutely no one appear, Su Lun kept yelling at the System. The system in his mind remained silent. No matter how much he shouted, the system paid him no mind. After messing around for a while, Su Lun had no choice but to reluctantly accept this outcome.

…

The great fire burned until around ten o’clock in the morning before gradually extinguishing. The former camp of the tribal alliance had completely vanished, leaving behind a charred, pitch-black clearing.

The rest was a vast quantity of corpses burned to charcoal. Su Lun, already withdrawing with his Barbarian Guard, noted only a few injuries in the Guard from the late-night battle. The most severe was the one thrown by the Gnoll chieftain Hogg’s flail – broken rib.

Su Lun used Body Healing Art on him. Green life force enveloped the wounded Barbarian, and his injury swiftly healed completely.

Since it was a night raid and fire attack, the spoils weren’t plentiful. Scattered pieces of metal armor and weapons looted from the Gnolls numbered a few hundred. The best set was the one worn by the Gnoll chieftain. Though they killed over two thousand enemies, certainly far more had fled.

In the end, Su Lun’s force captured just over two hundred prisoners during this battle. The future fate of these captives was hard labor at the camp.

The outbound journey by forced march had taken merely five or six hours. The return, hampered by numerous prisoners, took a full day. Only by evening did Su Lun and his party make it back to the Territory. Seeing their return and great victory, those who stayed behind finally heaved a sigh of relief. The survival of this Territory in the Wilderness hinged entirely on the might of Su Lun and the Barbarian Guard.

Upon learning that Su Lun had utterly crushed the allied forces formed by all tribes surrounding the Wilderness, sending them scattering and fleeing in disarray, the entire Territory erupted in celebration. Su Lun, also exhilarated, immediately announced a victory feast that very night. He ordered his men to fetch Ale and stored dried meat from the warehouse, and sent Barbarians to slaughter several Zebra Antelope.

Bonfires were lit in the open ground outside the Lord’s Castle, and a simple bonfire party began. Though the setup was very crude, the band of Barbarians enjoyed themselves immensely. The revelry lasted deep into the night. Dozens of barrels of Ale were drained completely. Then, each of these drunken brutes was bodily hauled away, slung over the shoulder of their respective fierce wives.

Having defeated every tribe within the surrounding Wilderness, Su Lun had finally secured a solid foothold here. With the Territory’s safety ensured, Su Lun began pondering its future development. As a Pioneering Territory, maintaining sufficiently powerful armed forces was essential. This required substantial financial backing.

Historically, Pioneering Territories weren’t unheard of amongst Nobles possessing powerful military strength. They too defeated the surrounding Wilderness tribes. Yet, very few managed to hold onto their Territories long-term. Maintaining a militarily potent force within the Wilderness was an expense that would even sting a Count.