[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-universal-lord-the-zero-troop-building-maniac":3,"chapter-universal-lord-the-zero-troop-building-maniac-universal-lord-the-zero-troop-building-maniac-chapter-53":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Universal Lord: The Zero-Troop Building Maniac",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":20,"prevChapterSlug":21,"totalChapters":22,"novelImage":23},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":16,"volume":17,"translator":18,"content_hash":19},1942035,2690,"Chapter 53","universal-lord-the-zero-troop-building-maniac-chapter-53",53,"\u003Cp>A black shadow shot forth from the gray mist ahead!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It tore a rift through the air, and a fully armored shield soldier was instantly hurled backward!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His shield exploded midair, and the arrow pierced straight through his chest!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Damn it!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This damn thing’s power!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Is it really a Legendary Leader?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Charge!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A massive, dark mass surged forward into the War Fog!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One soldier after another fell dead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They cleared patches of land, dispelling the War Fog.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This arrow’s range… is it really this far?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After advancing several hundred meters, over twenty soldiers had died,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Meng couldn’t help but complain,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>and this familiar, terrifying range stirred up unpleasant memories deep in his heart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he was no longer the novice lord he’d once been,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>he was now extremely powerful!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Take down the Legendary Leader—get rich quick!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Zhuo let out a sharp cry, fearing someone might back out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’ll do it!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A lord, gripping a massive shield, strode to the front line.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He cultivated an advanced martial arts technique,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>and his physical body was even sturdier than that of high-tier heroes at the same level.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Bang—!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The arrow struck the man-sized great shield,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>sending him stumbling backward several steps, a trickle of blood appearing at the corner of his mouth,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>but he’d barely managed to block it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Healers—apply healing magic now!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The group advanced steadily.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet they’d already pushed forward one kilometer,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>and the War Fog ahead remained bottomless,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>with arrows still piercing through.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The shield-wielding lord could no longer hold on—he didn’t want to die here.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He retracted his shield and leapt backward, and a soldier took the hit instead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bang!!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The arrow struck a shield soldier like a high-speed car.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Could he be running away?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One lord couldn’t help asking.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“All Leader Bosses possess territorial awareness—they won’t stray too far!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Zhuo reassured everyone,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>and if they failed to kill this Legendary Leader now, their losses would be devastating.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With the 【Global Human Civilization Lord Selection Tournament】 approaching, he wanted to take a risk!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Xu Meng!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’ll compensate you for your losses!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Zhuo looked up at the airborne forces and shouted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Flying units were exceedingly rare in the Ten Thousand Realms Battlefield.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Among these seven lords,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>only Xu Meng possessed flying troops—the griffins.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Flying troops held a natural advantage of 2.8 in attacking territories.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They could choose to carry troops and land at a weakly defended point within an enemy territory to seize it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Flying troops could not claim territory while airborne.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only upon landing could they begin territorial occupation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even so,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>flying troops held enormous advantages over ordinary troops.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whether for scouting War Fog or for transport,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>they could completely ignore terrain,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>and that alone made them incomparable to any other troop type.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing Yu Zhuo promise compensation, Xu Meng gritted his teeth and replied: “Fine!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instantly, over thirty griffins,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>flapped their wings and shot forward at top speed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They launched a desperate, all-or-nothing assault!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They wanted to see what that Legendary leader actually looked like!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One after another, griffins died before they could even cry out — blood sprayed across the sky, feathers shot in all directions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Patch after patch of war fog was driven back, revealing a land of grassy hills and knolls.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Meng clenched his jaw, gazing into the distance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His griffins’ loyalty was plummeting rapidly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even his hero’s loyalty had dropped by 5 points.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At last, riding on his griffin’s back,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Meng made out the Legendary leader launching those ferocious attacks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A Legendary… leader?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>An arrow defense tower entered Xu Meng’s field of vision.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A buzzing filled his head, then everything went blank.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He plummeted straight off the griffin.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>What the hell kind of boss is this?!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It’s clearly an arrow defense tower!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What level of arrow defense tower packs this kind of power?!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Is a standard arrow defense tower really worth upgrading to Level 40+ in the early game?!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or did you use some utterly insane territory items on it?!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Xu Meng, what’s wrong with you?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Watching Xu Meng suddenly plummet from the sky.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone rushing here froze in place.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Run!!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Meng let out a wailing cry.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Extraction\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>: 86\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>10\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>647\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>46\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Escape? It was utterly impossible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They had advanced here holding shields, suffering heavy losses among their troops.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How were they supposed to retreat?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Expose their backs to the enemy?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or retreat backward while holding shields?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their speed was simply too slow to withdraw from the arrow defense tower’s attack range in time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only one outcome awaited them—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Total annihilation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What’s that kid thinking? Is he insane?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“He’s running now, of all times?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Zhuo gritted his teeth and led everyone forward in a final charge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Meng’s griffins and hero had all fallen in battle,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>and the others had now reached Xu Meng’s side.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Meng sat dazed and listless on the ground, utterly disheveled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though his level had already reached ten, he showed no will to fight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Brothers—charge!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Zhuo roared furiously, leading by example,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>channeling his physical strength,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>gripping his tungsten-steel alloy weapon and bracing himself to withstand a direct arrow strike.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As a contestant in the Global Human Civilization Lord Selection Competition,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>he naturally possessed some hidden trump cards.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With prior preparation, he wasn’t easy to kill.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“We’re almost there!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I see it—I see it!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That’s…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A 3-meter-tall arrow defense tower—Tower 105—standing there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The charging formation instantly halted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone stood frozen,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>struck dumb with shock like cicadas silenced by cold.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only the hiss of arrows slicing through air,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>only the explosive shattering of shields,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>only the thud of fallen troops collapsing lifelessly—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>a wave of despair surged up from within,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>erupting like a geyser, unstoppable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What is despair?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if it weren’t a Legendary-tier leader,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>but merely an Epic-tier leader,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>it still wouldn’t have driven them to despair.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet it was—just an ordinary, utterly mundane arrow defense tower.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The reward for capturing it was zero.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Troops had died for nothing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instantly, the lords present broke down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They frantically ordered their troops to scatter and flee in all directions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Don’t run!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You can’t escape!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Destroy it! Destroy it!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Zhuo screamed in desperation,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>given the arrow defense tower’s attack range and damage output,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>escape was simply impossible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>at this moment, everyone was panicked and disoriented,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>each hoping just to save themselves—if only one could get away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the very least, the hero must not die here!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arrow after arrow,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>slashed through life like the scythe of Death itself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Your hero has died.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[You have died. Returning to the Lord Crystal for rebirth…]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Rebirth complete.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Reborn in his territory, Yu Zhuo felt his nose sting,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>his throat choked tight—unable to cry out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How can there be such a terrifyingly powerful arrow defense tower?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This makes no sense at all!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Who the hell would boost a single arrow defense tower to this degree?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How many territory items did they spend?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And they even paid a massive price to move it onto unclaimed, no-man's land outside their territory?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What's the point of doing that?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thinking of the fallen rare troops,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>thinking of the fallen heroes,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>thinking that in half a month, the All-Human Civilization Lord Selection Tournament was about to take place.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Zhuo could finally hold back no longer and burst into loud, bitter sobs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Fuck you, fuck you...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tear after tear rolled down in streams.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A grief so deep and unspeakable tore his heart and soul to shreds.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"@Yu Zhuo @Yu Zhuo @Yu Zhuo!! This isn't over between us!!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"@Yu Zhuo! Come out and meet your death!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Motherfucker!! You goddamn team-wrecking noob!!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Inside the group chat, a ceaseless torrent of cursing erupted, wave after wave,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>instantly flooding the screen to 99+ messages.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Over two months of developing troops and heroes, wiped out all at once —\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>who could possibly accept this?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the lord terminal's messages flooded the screen, Yu Zhuo wept even louder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the same time,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Meng sat dazedly on the ground,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>as one arrow after another from the defense tower\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>crashed against his body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ripples spread outward, yet he remained completely unharmed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was the effect of the equipment and item bonuses on Xu Meng.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Hunter's Ward]: Reduces incoming arrow damage by 100 points.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Arrow-Resistance Aura]: Reduces incoming arrow damage by 30% for 1 hour.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Arrowproof Custom Armor]: Reduces incoming arrow damage by 50 points.\u003C\u002Fp>",1388,"2026-06-15T03:53:46.766Z","2026-06-15T04:25:06.961Z",1,"Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite","0119155b4886a7a7ca8f8cd7482c8964d3cfadde1def0ad4324927ccee868789","universal-lord-the-zero-troop-building-maniac-chapter-54","universal-lord-the-zero-troop-building-maniac-chapter-52",312,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Funiversal-lord-the-zero-troop-building-maniac-cover.jpg"]