Chapter 66
Here, it’s not far from Bai Ye Village. When the Creation Tree blooms, this herd of wildebeests will be drawn to the territory in no time. Isn’t this two-way rush faster than going back to Mei Luo City to find someone to tame them?
...
After crossing the grasslands, they entered a forested area.
On the morning of the fourth day since the caravan set out, after traversing a hill, they spotted a small village with curling smoke rising in the distance.
At that moment, Ye Bai felt a long-lost sense of satisfaction and stability.
“Everyone, we’ve arrived at our destination.”
**Chapter 45**
On the 29th game day of establishing the territory, Ye Bai’s caravan reached Bai Ye Village, one day earlier than the expected five days.
As soon as they stepped into the area 700 meters from the Creation Tree, before even officially entering the dirt road of the territory, Ye Bai received a series of system notifications:
【The trade route between ‘Mei Luo City and Bai Ye Village’ has been opened.】
【As the perceptive lord, you have successfully established the first external road for your territory, granting an additional 5 productivity!】
【You have opened trade with a major city of a magic academy (Mei Luo City), and your territory will receive an extra 3 points of productivity each month. The magic academy inclination of your territory increases by +10.】
Upon receiving the notifications, Ye Bai smiled. With the productivity she had accumulated during her absence, she could soon make a flurry of upgrades on the tech tree.
Establishing external trade routes for a territory is no easy task; it takes time and effort. Therefore, every time a new trade route is successfully opened from scratch, there’s a productivity reward. However, aside from the first route, which grants 5 points, subsequent routes only provide 2 points of productivity.
Additionally, depending on the towns with which the trade routes are established, the territory will receive extra productivity rewards each month as long as the trade routes are maintained.
Now that Ye Bai’s first trade route has opened with a major city of a magic academy, she will receive the maximum of 3 points of productivity each month. In comparison, ordinary towns yield 2 points, while villages provide just 1 point.
In the later stages, upgrading tech books often requires over 10 points of productivity, making the establishment and maintenance of trade routes a significant source of productivity for the territory.
Similarly, if a territorial war occurs, disrupting and cutting off the enemy’s external trade routes will effectively damage their productivity.
As for the magic academy inclination, it relates to the advanced technological development of the territory, influencing many aspects. The higher the inclination towards a particular academy, the greater the chance of special talents from that academy appearing in the territory. Moreover, the surrounding monsters and plants are also likely to evolve in ways that align with that academy.
The inclination value is a very useful metric. In the later stages, to acquire advanced technologies from an academy, the territory’s inclination must reach a certain threshold.
To put it metaphorically, it’s like the ‘potential value’ of the territory in a specific technology.
In this regard, Ye Bai hadn’t decided to pursue the magic academy route for her territory; it was merely a coincidence that she encountered Mei Luo City first. Each of the three major academy routes has its advantages, and the biggest difference between player territories and NPC towns is that players can choose all of them!
Lost in thought, the caravan had already stepped onto the dirt road of the territory, and ahead, villagers were seen working.
Upon spotting Ye Bai, the villagers excitedly greeted her, “My lord!”
“I’m back!” Ye Bai waved back at the villagers.
“My lord has returned!”
As the caravan entered the territory’s warehouse with supplies, the news of the lord’s return spread throughout the territory like wildfire.
When Ka Li arrived from the Source Crystal Mine, Ye Bai was busy directing the villagers and the transport team in unloading the goods.
“My lord, you’re finally back.”
Ye Bai hurried over, “Ka Li, you’ve worked hard during my absence. Has anything happened in the territory?”
Because she needed to keep that rascal Dennis thinking about the wildebeest team, indicating he would leave right after delivering the goods and that the mercenaries needed protection on the way back, Ye Bai had to deal with the caravan’s matters first and hadn’t had the chance to check on the territory’s situation near the Creation Tree.
After all, she couldn’t let anyone dig a hole in her own backyard. If she didn’t manage to convert the mercenaries into villagers this time, they might not return after heading back to Mei Luo City.
Ka Li shook her head, then paused, glancing at the curious mercenaries and Di Li Na observing Bai Ye Village. “They’re new villagers, but it’s not urgent. You can handle your matters first, my lord.”
“Alright, thank you for your hard work.” Hearing this, Ye Bai’s heart stirred. When Ka Li mentioned the new villagers, she immediately thought of special talents. The second batch of refugees hadn’t produced any, but surely the third batch would yield at least one with a 15% bonus!
“That’s what I’m here for.” Ka Li replied, then turned her gaze to Di Li Na, who was approaching. “And who is this?”
“Isn’t my lord going to introduce me?” Di Li Na looked at Ka Li as well.
The positioning shifted, with Ka Li on the left and Di Li Na on the right, leaving Ye Bai sandwiched between them.
On one side stood her reliable right-hand woman, who had diligently stayed in the territory, and on the other was a high-level talent who had already contributed before even arriving.
Ye Bai couldn’t help but feel a twitch at the corner of her eye. How strange! Why did it feel like a mysterious love triangle? “The Advanced Talents of Infrastructure Compete for My Favor”?
It must be an illusion! Definitely just an illusion!
“This is my territory’s important assistant, the senior engineer Ka Li.” Ye Bai stood in the middle, introducing the two. “And this is the senior tailor Di Li Na, whom I invited from Mei Luo City.”
Ka Li smiled brightly at this and extended her hand to Di Li Na. “That’s wonderful! I hope you enjoy your time in our territory.”
Di Li Na’s eyes lit up as she shook Ka Li’s hand. “Thank you, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”
【Villager ‘Ka Li’ loyalty to you +10】
【Senior tailor ‘Di Li Na’ affection for you +10】
【You gained 2 points in ‘Deception’ proficiency】
Ye Bai: … System, don’t be ridiculous!
Unbeknownst to her, Ka Li and Di Li Na were having remarkably similar thoughts at that moment.
Ka Li was thinking: The lord can attract such high-level talents to the territory; she’s truly capable. Bai Ye Village must have a bright future!
Meanwhile, Di Li Na was thinking along the same lines: I can’t believe a small place like Bai Ye Village has a senior engineer. It’s truly a hidden gem! With such a capable lord, my commission will surely be completed!
Ye Bai had no idea that this first meeting had inadvertently led to a self-promotion for her two most valued high-level talents.
Of course… if their affection increases, that’s a good thing! More is better!
On the other side, Dennis and his transport team had finished unloading the twenty boxes of supplies Ye Bai had sent and wasted no time in coming to bid her farewell.
“My lord, the goods have been handed over to your people.” Dennis glanced at the sky. “Since it’s still early, we need to hurry back.”
Ye Bai politely replied, “You’ve had a long journey. Why not rest for a night in my territory before heading back? We’ve built quite a few new houses in our village.”
That last part was indeed true. Before leaving, Ye Bai had instructed Ka Li to assign the new batch of refugees to work on the Source Crystal Mine and the planned residential area to build houses.
Now, looking over at the storage area, Ye Bai could see that the grid-like area of the residential zone was already filled with neatly constructed level 1 houses.
“No need to trouble you; we must return to the guild to submit our tasks.” Dennis quickly declined.
Upon hearing this, Ye Bai didn’t insist further but turned her attention to the mercenaries standing not far from Dennis.
“And what about you all?” Ye Bai asked, looking at the group of mercenaries who seemed a bit hesitant.
Originally, they had agreed to stay a few more days in Bai Ye Village after arriving, waiting for the crocodile materials to be made into equipment before making plans. In fact, many mercenaries had considered staying in Ye Bai’s territory, as following a promising lord was certainly better than being an aimless mercenary.
Moreover, this lord was a powerful mage with both strength and wealth, who had saved their lives.
After the battle at Crocodile Swamp, Ye Bai had established a high reputation among the mercenaries; they were just waiting for the right moment to make their move.
However, with Dennis busy heading back, the offer of extra pay for their services put them in a bit of a bind. Normally, there wouldn’t be any commission for the return trip, and receiving extra pay felt like free money—who wouldn’t want to take advantage of that?
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