Chapter 17

After the Great Cataclysm, in the process of humanity's resurgence, besides various natural disasters, there were also the tribulations brought by many fierce ethnic groups.

The subterranean Lizardmen were one of humanity's opponents, a branch of the subterranean races.

This ethnic group was just as their name suggested; they lived entirely underground.

Lizardmen were one of their most famous troop types, with a typical group size ranging from two hundred to five hundred.

Chen Ping estimated that the number of Lizardmen appearing around his territory should not exceed three hundred.

After all, it was an initial trial; it couldn't be too difficult.

A well-trained human soldier could easily take care of three Lizardmen.

Except for some high-level individuals, most of these guys were relatively thin and weak, making them easy to deal with.

"Do you have any plans?"

Chen Ping looked at Milan.

As the military leader of the territory he had personally appointed, Milan possessed the authority to train and command the territorial army.

He also wanted to see exactly what Milan's talents were in this regard.

It would be too much of a waste to simply use an S-rank Hero as a bodyguard.

"The territory currently has 5 cavalrymen, 20 infantrymen, and 10 archers."

"All of them have mastered their corresponding professional skills, and their combat power is quite impressive once formed into squads."

"I will set up a defensive line on the north side of the territory now, and then personally lead a team to scout."

Milan said one point after another, her logic sound and clear.

Chen Ping thought for a moment and approved of Milan's arrangement.

But he then added:

"After the magic brick refinery is established, I will use the first batch of finished products to build the territory's city walls."

"At that time, you should first feign weakness to lure the main force of the Lizardmen out and draw them into attacking the territory."

"We will defend from behind the city walls, and only after wiping out the main force of the Lizardmen will we go to explore their territory."

Chen Ping picked up a pen and drew on the map; Milan's eyes lit up as she watched.

She picked up the magic stone that Mai Er had left on the table and sensed it carefully.

This kind of brick generated by magic fusion possessed both physical properties and a certain degree of magic resistance; it was indeed excellent.

Although its pure hardness was not as good as granite, it was sturdier than ordinary sintered stone bricks.

Chen Ping's territory did not have many stone mines, so this was currently the most suitable building material.

She knew that Chen Ping was worried that rashly invading the Lizardmen's territory would lead to unpredictable accidents.

And by drawing the enemy's main force out to fight, the chances of success would be relatively much higher.

"Does the territory's army have the confidence to hold them off?"

"Rest assured, no problem."

Milan gave Chen Ping her word, her tone sounding extremely confident.

In fact, she believed that in the early stages of the trial, the strength of the soldiers in Chen Ping's territory was absolutely second to none!

When everyone else was still a Level 3 territory, other people's soldiers were still struggling to master professional skills.

The soldiers on Chen Ping's side were already growing rapidly, and some with good talent had even mastered multiple skills.

For example, the squad that was pulled out to transfer into cavalry had all mastered the "Stamina Enhancement," "Physique Enhancement," and "Knight Charge" skills.

The former two were breakthroughs realized during daily training, while the latter was learned after studying the textbook in the cavalry camp.

With Chen Ping's talent, everyone's progress was simply unimaginable to ordinary people.

Compared to the busy laborers, the soldiers were so idle they were bored, spending their days lifting weights and training.

Sometimes Milan herself felt it was quite unchallenging, so she couldn't wait to start a war with the Lizardmen.

Chen Ping smiled and waved for Milan to go scout for intelligence first.

With Milan's individual attributes, this group of Lizardmen could not hold her back at all.

The office in the Lord's Hall returned to calm.

Chen Ping took out a booklet from under his desk; it was the one Mai Er had given him earlier regarding his intelligence.

It recorded who had purchased his information from Mai Er.

Lu Fei, Wang Ke, Natasha, and Chen Ya.

Mai Er had thoughtfully provided Chen Ping with a brief introduction to the information on these four people.

Three of them were encountered at the Hall of Knowledge, and one was an old rival.

A faint smile appeared on Chen Ping's face.

He hadn't expected to be so well-regarded; under the information for Lu Fei and Wang Ke in the booklet, hostility was clearly marked.

While under Natasha and Chen Ya, it was marked with goodwill; Mai Er was quite cautious.

"Lu Fei and Wang Ke both have family support behind them; they will definitely build up their forces in the early stages."

Chen Ping tapped his fingers on the desk, pondering matters regarding the first assessment in the future.

In the end, he decided to ignore it for now and focus on upgrading the territory to Level 5 before the first assessment.

By then, the territory's functions would be fully opened, and many things would become different.

And his knowledge system would also usher in a small burst of growth at that time.

As for now...

"Heh, let's level up myself first."

21: Chen Ping levels up, the feeling of power is truly good

From the moment he started the assessment until now, Chen Ping had still been Level 1.

At first, it was because he was waiting for Mai Er's arrival to exchange for the opportunity to enter the Hall of Knowledge.

So he had suppressed his experience and did not level up.

After coming out of the Hall of Knowledge, he needed to digest the knowledge initially, so he kept suppressing it.

Until now, he had initially sorted out the nine branches of knowledge, and it was time to start leveling up.

He opened his personal panel.

At the bottom, there was a storage bar, which was now full of experience energy.

A Lord is actually also a profession, but compared to ordinary professions, a Lord has one extra source of experience.

That is territorial construction.

The higher the level of the territory, the more experience gained daily.

Chen Ping directly digested the experience, and a brilliant halo immediately appeared under his feet, with energy added to his body.

【Experience digested, Level +1, LV2】

【Experience digested, Level +1, LV3】

【Insufficient experience, experience required for next level 125/2500, current level LV8】

Leveling up to 8 in one go, Chen Ping gained 80 attribute points, and at the same time, each branch of knowledge fed back 800 attribute points to him.

Besides that, there were 8 skill points.

He opened the skill list; the nine branches of knowledge he had mastered formed nine systems, with dozens of skills available for him to choose from.

If it were anyone else, they would probably be so happy they would faint upon seeing so many skills, not knowing how to choose.

But Chen Ping had a plan in mind; without much thought, he directly converted all the skill points.

Source Studies: Source Core LV5, establishes a connection between the soul and the world source, can increase the power of other skills by 10%;

Magic Studies: Magic Energy Perception LV1, the foundation of all magic, adds a magic attribute column;

Evolution Studies: Evolutionary Path LV1, masters one's own evolutionary path, all attributes +10%;

Command Studies: Commander's Art LV1, increases the operational efficiency of the territory or subordinates by 10%;

The skill conversion was complete, and Chen Ping opened the panel again, focusing the attribute points on Physique and Soul.

【Chen Ping, Apprentice Lord, LV8】

【Attributes】

Life 500 (50), Physique 220 (22), Attack 10 (1), Defense 8 (1), Soul 290 (29), Magic 10 (1).

【Special Attributes】

Energy 40 (100 attributes converted to 10 points of energy, 100 soul converted to 10 points of energy)