Chapter 124: The Visit of Deaf Yin and Mad Feng

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The Rise of an Empire in an Online Game — No Pop-Up Ads

Ruoyan lifted her head and replied, “Exactly!”

Li Zhan turned to face the direction from which the river wind was blowing. The numerous buildings and surrounding stone walls weakened it somewhat, but it still set his clothes swaying gently. When he turned toward the undeveloped hills to the east, he saw that the higher ground offered no obstruction to the river wind. It roared freely across the land, sending the wild grass and trees rocking without cease.

Seeing how fierce the wind was, Li Zhan nodded happily. He turned back toward Donkey Has Come and Gone. The latter had also heard his conversation with Ruoyan. He had just withdrawn his gaze from the eastern hills when Li Zhan asked him, “What do you think? Confident?”

Donkey Has Come and Gone pondered for a moment before answering, “It should be no problem. Although windmills are a Western monopoly in Single-Player Empire, this is ultimately a virtual online game. So long as it does not affect the game’s balance, the system will tacitly permit it. Take Town Chief Ruoyan’s clothing designs, for example. In theory, only an NPC with tailoring skills should be able to design clothing. But because this has little impact on game balance, the system has tacitly allowed Town Chief Ruoyan to bring her real-world expertise into the game.”

Li Zhan nodded, deeply agreeing with Donkey Has Come and Gone’s analysis. He then entrusted the project to Ruoyan, asking her to put forward the relevant requirements and suggestions while Donkey Has Come and Gone handled the actual design.

After all, the idea had been Ruoyan’s, and it was a particularly ingenious one. He wanted her to experience the joy of seeing her own vision become reality.

By the afternoon, the cattle shed and horse stable had been completed one after another. Built upon the original pens, the new structures were more attractive and sturdier, while also accommodating more horses and cattle. However, since Donkey Has Come and Gone’s design skill was still only at the beginner level, the cattle shed and horse stable were merely of a higher grade than the pigsty and chicken coop. They gained no additional effects.

Once Li Zhan understood the reason, he abandoned the idea of having them redesigned. They would have to wait until Donkey Has Come and Gone’s design level improved.

After completing the various livestock shelters, Donkey Has Come and Gone’s design experience rose by six points, reaching twenty-one percent of the beginner level. The road to advancement was long, but six points of experience were better than standing still. He happily inspected all the shelters he had designed and built, then discussed the design of the windmill and flour mill with Ruoyan.

That afternoon, Cheng Yuan and his party formally packed up and set out. They had stayed in Yanhuang Village for three days, and Cheng Yuan was extremely satisfied with the settlement’s overall development. He was especially astonished to learn that Yanhuang Village possessed war wolves and leather armor.

When they departed, Cheng Yuan patted Li Zhan on the shoulder. He regarded the young man before him with profound meaning, gave a slight nod and a smile, said nothing, and boarded the passenger vessel.

Li Zhan and the surrounding players were somewhat baffled by the wealthy merchant’s behavior. Even so, they stood enthusiastically on the dock to see Cheng Yuan and his companions off.

During his three-day stay, Cheng Yuan had bought all sorts of miscellaneous goods from the players. The bulging bundles carried by his six “house servants” made that clear. The players had earned no small amount of copper from Master Cheng, so their enthusiasm was entirely understandable.

Zhao Ming had somehow learned that Cheng Yuan’s party was leaving. He came running to the dock, breathless, and stood behind Li Zhan, gazing at the passenger vessel as it receded into the distance. Gradually, a feeling of loneliness rose within him. He was dejected that he had not been able to see his honored teacher off in person.

And yet it seemed there was more to it than that. Faced with his teacher’s departure, Zhao Ming felt a strange sensation in his heart. What was it? He could not say.

After watching the passenger vessel disappear into the distance, Li Zhan turned around. Seeing Zhao Ming, he smiled and patted him on the shoulder.

At level thirteen, Zhao Ming had comprehended the Chaotic Dance Sword Technique and had truly become a special NPC. As a soldier whom he had personally promoted from an ordinary villager, Zhao Ming gave Li Zhan an extraordinary sense of satisfaction.

Seeing that Zhao Ming’s expression was unusual, Li Zhan was about to ask what was wrong when someone on the river called out to him.

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“Alliance Leader Li, berths are extremely scarce! Could you please arrange a place for us to dock?”

The voice sounded familiar. Li Zhan turned and saw six tribal chiefs standing aboard two cargo vessels. At the bow of the leading ship stood Deaf, Lewd, and Mad—the man who had just called out to him.

Li Zhan was greatly surprised that the six chiefs who had once caused turmoil had come together to visit him. He quickly told the players occupying the berths with their makeshift fishing boats and rafts to move aside and moor along the riverbank, making room for the two cargo vessels.

Before the ships had even come to a complete stop, Deaf, Lewd, and Mad and the other five chiefs leaped from the bows onto the dock. They came before Li Zhan and bowed in unison at a perfect ninety-degree angle.

Startled, Li Zhan hurriedly helped Deaf, Lewd, and Mad to his feet, then motioned for the other five chiefs to rise as well. He asked what this was about.

Deaf, Lewd, and Mad glanced at the bustling crowd around them and said to Li Zhan, “Alliance Leader Li, shall we discuss this in the village hall?”

Inside the village hall, Deaf, Lewd, and Mad and the five other chiefs drank a cup of tea brought by a temporarily hired village woman. They had spent the journey marveling at everything they saw, and the tea helped settle their nerves. Only then did Deaf, Lewd, and Mad speak.

“Alliance Leader Li, if you had not shown mercy during the recent civil war and presided over a peaceful resolution, none of us would have a tribe today. We would probably have been reduced to wandering players, roaming everywhere under that title.”

The other five chiefs nodded in agreement.

Li Zhan laughed. “It was nothing. I’ll say the same thing again: we are all young, and everyone has moments when emotion gets the better of them. What is past is past. There is no need to keep carrying it in your hearts. I only hope you can mend your ways, return to the alliance family wholeheartedly, and continue forward with us.”

Deaf, Lewd, and Mad and the others rose to their feet.

“After this incident, if any distracting thoughts remain in our hearts, we would be worse than pigs and dogs!”

“Please rest assured, Alliance Leader Li. We will never rebel again!”

“That’s right! We are willing to follow you forever. We would go through fire and water for you without hesitation!”

Li Zhan also stood and raised a hand, signaling them to stop.

“I am very pleased that you have come to this understanding. But when you say you will follow me, I find those words difficult to accept. Think about it: Danyang County is small, and we have fewer tribes than the surrounding counties. Yet while the fighting around us grows more intense by the day, why have we been able to survive? Nothing more than the strength of our alliance.

“An alliance is not a one-man performance. From now on, everyone must unite their strength and pursue solidarity. Only then will we be worthy of the alliance’s name.”

After hearing this, everyone nodded. Privately, they reflected that Alliance Leader Li always considered the greater good and never sought personal gain. Such a leader was worthy of their wholehearted loyalty. Following a leader like him could not be a mistake.

Deep in their hearts, the six chiefs had already made up their minds: they would follow Li Zhan and contend with him for supremacy over the world.

Once everyone had taken their seats again, one of the chiefs asked cautiously, “Alliance Leader Li, when you first advocated uniting the tribes, you said that once the first tribe advanced into the feudal age, the alliance would automatically dissolve. Yanhuang Village has now been upgraded for more than half a month, so the day of the alliance’s automatic dissolution cannot be far off. After it dissolves, do you intend to organize another alliance?”

The other five chiefs set down their teacups and fixed their eyes on Li Zhan. This question was one of the primary purposes of their visit. If Li Zhan intended to organize another alliance after the current one dissolved, the six tribes could use this opportunity to submit their applications to join in advance.

Li Zhan furrowed his brow and thought for a moment.

“To be honest, I have not given the matter much thought. The settlement is currently burdened with many affairs, all of them urgent, and I truly have no spare time to consider anything else. Let me calculate… There should be twelve days left until the alliance automatically dissolves. How about this? Ten days from now, Thunder Dragon and I will summon all the tribal chiefs and town heads to the Drunken Immortal Restaurant in Danyang City to discuss the alliance’s dissolution in detail.”

It was no wonder Li Zhan had failed to consider the matter thoroughly. Of the seventeen allied tribes, Thunderclap, Yaya, Gale, Wind Chime, Wooden Fish, Tutu, and the four directly affiliated tribes, along with Flowerpot, made a total of ten tribes and settlements that maintained close relations with Yanhuang Village.

Through their long cooperation and constant contact, these tribes and settlements had already established firm bonds of trust. Even without the alliance’s restraints, none of them would start a war. Under such circumstances, Li Zhan naturally had no reason to spend every day worrying about whether the alliance would dissolve while neglecting the many affairs of the settlement.

Only the six tribes led by Deaf, Lewd, and Mad remained uneasy. They had once instigated the civil war, and although everyone had forgiven them, they still felt apprehensive. That was why they had taken the initiative to visit Li Zhan and ask about the alliance. While pledging to follow him, they also hoped to secure their own safety.

Hearing Li Zhan’s answer, Deaf, Lewd, and Mad and the others felt somewhat disappointed. It seemed they could only wait until the gathering of the chiefs ten days later before discussing the matter.

They continued chatting about various topics. During their conversation, Li Zhan’s friends list flashed several times. Dancing Fish was riding a fast vessel downstream. He had already passed Jiangxia and was about to enter the Chaisang region. At this speed, he would reach Yanhuang Village and reunite with Li Zhan by tomorrow dawn.

When the time came, Li Zhan intended to entrust him with communicating with the wandering players. He would use the opportunity to level alongside them, make friends with a group of trusted companions, have the settlement fund their training, and at the same time have them serve the settlement’s development.

With Zhao Guoqing’s natural ability to make himself at home, Li Zhan had absolute confidence that he could complete the task successfully.

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At that moment, one of the chiefs quietly reminded Deaf, Lewd, and Mad of something. Deaf, Lewd, and Mad set down his teacup, cupped his hands toward Li Zhan, and smiled.

“To express our profound gratitude, Alliance Leader Li, we have brought some minerals and local specialties. We hope you will accept them.”