PFC Chapter 10 The Substitute
Chapter 10 The Substitute
When visibility improved, Mahaya was already at the respawn point in the 985 newbie village. He looked around and saw that they were all his brothers, who were currently huddled together complaining.
Soon, Mahaya spotted Zakra and angrily shouted, "Damn it! It's all your fault for coming up with this terrible idea! We were supposed to be going out to sea to find treasure, but we had to go and try to conquer territory. Now everyone's been wiped out, skills are gone, items are all lost, even the Starship is gone! We've suffered such a huge loss, you have to give us an explanation!"
"What kind of explanation can I possibly give?"
Zakra was also frustrated and yelled, "Back then, you were all shouting to get ashore, did I force you? Now that things have gone wrong, you blame me? What kind of logic is that? Don't take your anger out on me!"
When players enter another player's territory, they will receive a system notification and learn the territory's name. Therefore, Mahaya and others know that Wang Jue's territory is called "Xuanzhou," but they do not know more information, such as the lord's name or the territory's status.
One player said, "Yes, yes, yes, let's not fight amongst ourselves. Let's unite against the enemy and find a way to wipe out that little village in Xuanzhou. That's the only way to avenge ourselves."
Mahaya said, "Easier said than done. Those soldiers carrying coffins are so fierce, how can we possibly wipe them out?"
Zakra said, "Give us the money, then hire mercenaries! Our starting village's mercenary barracks has two-star soldiers; hire ten of them, and I reckon that should be enough to wipe out that village!"
"Ten two-star mercenaries, how much would that cost?"
"I think it's a good idea. Let's all pool our money, hire ten two-star mercenaries, wipe out Xuanzhou Village, and take back what's ours!"
"Do we really have to go head-to-head with that village?"
"The game has just begun, why don't we skip the fighting and team up to hunt in the wilderness and find some treasure chests?"
"Trash, you're such a coward even playing a game. You're probably a spineless coward in real life too. If you want revenge, stay. If you're spineless, get lost!"
"You idiot, who are you calling spineless!"
"I don't care whether I destroy this little village in Xuanzhou or not, I just want to kill that idiot pretending to be a scarecrow!"
"In reality, I've endured humiliation and compromise, but now I'm immortal, I don't need to eat or drink, and there are no laws. I just want to be willful and do whatever I want!"
"Let's figure out how to buy a boat first; a boat costs a thousand yuan!"
The adventurers argued for a while, but eventually, led by Zakra and Mahaya, the twelve of them reached a consensus, formed a team, and charged towards the coast with the slogan of annihilating Xuanzhou.
Then they returned dejectedly and went to the NPC to receive the task of digging for wild vegetables.
Foraging for wild vegetables is their only way to make money these days.
You can only earn one yuan by digging up ten wild vegetables!
It's both bitter and depressing!
Players who are capable of going to sea would never do this kind of work.
At this moment, Wang Jue had already emerged from the coffin of the Mad Dog King. A system notification arrived belatedly: "Ding, a valid sea exploration has been completed. Mission complete. Reward: One building of your choice. Please choose from the following two random options."
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Optional Building 1: [Rainbow Fountain], a landscape building, a small building, with a pool and several art sculptures. It can be built in a designated location. The fountain has a circulating water system and a perpetual jet of water. A seven-colored rainbow appears above the fountain, which can beautify the territory environment and improve the happiness index of residents.
Optional Building 2: [Fence], a defensive building, a small building that uses a wooden fence to protect the territory, encircling it and comes with a fence gate. The fence has a certain defensive function, is easy to destroy, but is simple to maintain. After construction, the territory's military attribute increases by 2.
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"Ding! Follow-up quest activated: Reach a population of 4 in your territory. Upon completion, you will receive a building of your choice and unlock follow-up quests!"
Wang Jue was greatly surprised when he saw the selection panel that appeared in front of him.
"A rainbow fountain as a landscape feature? A fence or wall as a defensive structure? An interesting choice! I'll definitely choose... the fence! This thing can encircle the territory, automatically extending as the territory grows—it's amazing!"
With a thought, Wang Jue's territory was enveloped in light, which quickly coalesced into a half-person-high fence, separating the territory from the chaotic star sea. Only in the south of the territory was there an opening about six meters long, which served as the fence gate.
"This fence is practically useless; it probably couldn't even stop a small fish... It's a bit lacking, but it's alright, I still have my ultimate skill: endless guidance!"
Wang Jue rubbed his chin.
There is a beginner village near his territory, which means that there will be many adventurer players active in the area.
In Wang Jue's understanding, players are strange creatures; some are as reckless as can be, some as cowardly as can be, some as arrogant as can be, some as shameless as can be, some as boring as can be, and some as stupid as can be...
The fact that there is an adventurer's starting village right next to the territory is a major source of instability.
Wang Jue believed that in order to have fun, one must plan ahead and take precautions. He hoped to strengthen the defense of his territory, and now that there was an extra fence, it was better than multiple landscape fountains.
"Before I'm able to launch a proactive attack, I need some means of self-defense... Mad Dog King's coffin is pretty good. With him as my personal bodyguard, it'll be difficult for ordinary adventurers to get close and kill me. But the coffin lid probably won't be good at defending against ranged attacks. In short, surviving is my top priority right now. A fence won't be very effective. What should I do...?"
Wang Jue looked up and saw the adventurer Bandhu, who had been "kidnapped" by the mysterious scarecrow, bouncing around among the spoils dropped by Mahaya and the others.
Perhaps sensing Wang Jue's gaze, Bandhu quickly put on a fawning expression, hopping over and saying, "Big Brother is mighty! Big Brother is awesome! Those blind fools dared to cause trouble in your territory, they were simply courting death! Big Brother did a great job killing them, you looted all their equipment, it was so satisfying! By the way, I also killed a silly player... Big Brother, I've done a good job this time, could you let me off the hook?"
Wang Jue glanced at Ban Dehu and said, "Letting you go would be like releasing a tiger back into the mountains!"
"Brother, you're joking. I'll at most go back to the village; I'd never return to the mountains."
Before Bandhu could say anything more, Wang Jue waved his hand and activated his innate skill, [Infinite Guidance].
The target of this guidance was none other than the mysterious scarecrow.
"A mysterious scarecrow!"
With his skills activated, Wang Jue patted the mysterious scarecrow on the shoulder and said, "As a defensive tower, you're unworthy of your title. What kind of skill is it to find a substitute for yourself? If you're so capable, find a substitute for me too. That's what a defensive tower should be doing, understand?"
"What?"
Bandhu looked completely bewildered.
A mysterious light shone from the scarecrow.
Wang Jue was overjoyed, but then the light on the mysterious scarecrow dimmed.
"Ding, guidance failed!"
"Ding! The mysterious scarecrow, after your guidance, seems to understand but not quite, and is confused. Perhaps you need to give it more guidance!"
"It failed?"
Wang Jue rubbed his chin.
He had 300 soul points left. After a moment's thought, he used [Infinite Guidance] again, and then said to the Mysterious Scarecrow, "Mysterious Scarecrow, your primary duty is to protect, to safeguard me..."
Just as he finished speaking, the mysterious scarecrow suddenly lit up with light.
"Ding, guidance successful. The mysterious scarecrow has been enlightened by your guidance and has taken up its duty as a defensive tower, gaining a new skill: [Substitute Body]."
"Ding! Under the effect of [Substitute], when you suffer fatal damage, the Mysterious Scarecrow will die in your place. The skill effect is permanent until the Mysterious Scarecrow actually dies."
"Ding, [Mysterious Scarecrow] skill updated, territory military attribute +1."
"ah!"
Wang Jue was startled and couldn't help but exclaim, "This is good, this is good! Scarecrow, I wasn't wrong about you, you're awesome!"
"What happened? Is this lord out of his mind?"
Bandhu was completely bewildered, and said with a mournful face, "Big brother, just give me a quick death, kill me already, I can't take it anymore!"