Chapter 244 - 236: Ghost Warrior
Luh Yao clicked on the entry for the Flower Boat.
...
[Flower Boat]: A sophisticated vehicle created by the Wuzi Race, led by Uluu, based on the Earth Traveling Boat. It can move slowly on flat ground. Can be loaded with [Gentle Green Rose x3].
Life Value: 803/803
Mana Value: 0/0
Damage: 5 (x3)
Defense: 2
Speed: 4
...
The Flower Boat was based on a medium-sized, shuttle-shaped Earth Traveling Boat, but with three Green Roses planted on its hull, making them look like some sort of bizarre chimneys.
On its stats panel, apart from its Life Value representing its durability, which was decent, everything else was very mediocre: its speed was slow, its defense was low, and its damage relied entirely on the three loaded Rose Cannon Towers.
The (x3) on the panel meant there were three roses capable of dealing damage, not that their attacks stacked.
Luh Yao observed its performance in the field and found that it worked quite well.
Although the Flower Boat was slow, it moved steadily outside of Crystal City, and was not clumsy when turning, advancing, or retreating. This was thanks to the excellent Wuzi People drivers and the Crow Element in its core structure.
The Slaughter Flying Locusts had attempted to attack this large, suspicious entity.
They charged straight for the most conspicuous Green Roses. Under threat, the roses instantly transformed into cannon towers, continuously firing out thorns that shot the locusts out of the sky one by one. A large number of the insects fell to the ground with a RUSTLE.
After suffering heavy casualties, the locust swarms had to abandon their attack and instead scrambled to snatch up the corpses of their dead kin—for the swarms, wasting food was a shameful matter.
The birth of the Flower Boat gave Crystal City a mobile safe house that could extend its reach outward. Farmers took the Flower Boat to the abandoned farmlands outside the city, where they began to cultivate the land again, sowing rose seeds and waiting for the Green Roses to grow.
As one Gentle Green Rose after another grew branches and bloomed, the roses reclaimed the land from the locust swarms, bit by bit. They also became the most reliable guards and barriers.
The only drawback was that Crystal City currently had only one Flower Boat.
It was not easy to build such a sophisticated vehicle. A team of Wuzi People was working on the second one, but progress was slow.
Luh Yao was optimistic about the Flower Boat’s future prospects.
As the Earth Traveling Boat technology continued to expand and Pinkman cultivated more diverse types of roses, their combination into Rose Cannon Carriages would have a grand stage to shine on in this world.
Uluu invented the first sophisticated vehicle, pioneering a new Chapter for the Yao Race Civilization.
The notifications on the simulator continued.
[The Crystal City Ghost Lighthouse has shown the beginnings of an evolution.]
[Would you like to evolve this wonder?]
[Yes] [No]
Luh Yao immediately clicked yes.
After a flash of white light, the magnificent lighthouse, which had been converted from the Emperor’s Palace with a Divine Palace at its peak, immediately gained new abilities.
...
[Ghost Academy LV2]: A special wonder born in Crystal City. It is the residence of Ghosts and can resist the pull of the Sea of Mourning.
In its city, humans have a certain chance to comprehend the [Spirit Communication] ability, and the city’s public order is slightly increased.
The Ghost Academy has a certain chance to produce [Ghost Scholars] and [Ghost Warriors].
...
The last time a wonder had advanced was when the Beast Fighting Arena evolved into a theater.
The Ghost Academy was the advanced version of the Ghost Lighthouse. The lighthouse’s abilities were fully retained, and it now had new outputs.
Luh Yao gained some new insights from these two examples.
The evolution of a wonder was based on its audience; they would evolve in whatever direction their audience desired. Ultimately, wonders were masterpieces of an era, created by groups of Believers.
Thus, the Beast Fighting Arena became a theater based on the needs of the people of Yao City, while Crystal City was the main base for Ghosts, so the Ghost Lighthouse went a step further and became the Ghost Academy.
Luh Yao clicked on the two new professions in the Learning Hall’s entry.
After a while, he saw the first Ghost Scholar.
This Ghost, named [Bo Sheng], was giving a lecture by a bonfire on the top floor of the Learning Hall.
"The establishment of a city is based on its most important structure, that is, a Divine Statue or a Divine Palace. Based on the Order and blessings brought by the divine architecture, various ritualistic buildings gradually appear in the city. This is also the prototype of the earliest traditions and urban order..."
Bo Sheng had gained an additional personal ability.
...
[Ghost Scholar]: A Scholar who has mastered a great deal of knowledge in the Ghost Academy and is willing to teach and share it.
...
Luh Yao was delighted to see this.
’This is great!’
Now, the Ghost Academy’s public lectures were being broadcast simultaneously to Yao City, Yan City, and Saniluo, which was equivalent to the Ghost Scholar continuously giving TED Talks.
This would have long-term benefits for all groups willing to learn.
Luh Yao periodically clicked on the Ghost Warrior entry. After quite some time, he finally saw the first one appear.
This pixelated little person was named [Nong Lei], a pure-blooded Yao Clan Person.
His Personal History showed that an illness had wiped out what little property Nong Lei possessed, and he had also lost the farmland he had cultivated for many years. As a result, Nong Lei came to Crystal City to seek opportunities.
Unfortunately, the Farmer was not very lucky; he encountered a swarm of locusts the very first time he left the city. He managed to desperately run back in the end, but his injuries were too severe, and he still died.
...
[Yao Race LV5] Nong Lei
Life Value: 61/61
Mana Value: 12/12
Damage: 3
Defense: 2
Speed: 5
[Evasion]
Can evade some damage from attacks. This probability is higher against life forms weaker than oneself.
[Ghost Warrior]
Has learned many combat techniques in the Ghost Academy. In the early stages, can grow rapidly through combat and training.
[Avenger]
Damage +1 against the target of vengeance. Target of vengeance is [Slaughter Flying Locusts].
...
As soon as he left the city, Nong Lei began his path of revenge, easily killing several Slaughter Flying Locusts. But he was soon swarmed and beaten by a locust swarm, and in the end, he fled back to Crystal City in a sorry state.
He then entered another wonder, the [Underground Drill Ground], to train hard.
In less than ten minutes, an "LV up↑" icon actually appeared above Nong Lei’s head, and he reached LV6.
Luh Yao realized that the greatest value of the [Ghost Warrior] was this rapid early-stage advancement.
’So, does that mean he can keep improving as long as he trains continuously?’
Luh Yao soon discovered that was not the case.
Nong Lei trained all the way to LV10, but after that, there were no further effects.
A thought bubble also appeared above the little person’s head.
"It seems this is the limit. To advance further, I’ll have to use other methods."
Nong Lei left the city again and began to cautiously hunt the locust swarms.
Luh Yao checked three Ghost Warriors in a row and found their process was the same. Sooner or later after being created, they would enter the [Underground Drill Ground], level up to LV10, and then leave.
Simply put, the [Ghost Warrior] Trait allowed this group of Ghosts to quickly reach LV10. But from then on, there were no more bonuses. Just like Martial Cultivators, they needed all sorts of opportunities to advance further.
Just as Luh Yao was checking on the current situation in Crystal City, a notification popped up on the game interface.
[This world is about to undergo an Era Update. All Gods in this world will be forcibly ejected and put to sleep. Estimated update time: 72 hours.]
[Update Countdown: 60:00.]
A new Era was about to arrive.
Luh Yao immediately made the necessary arrangements.
During the last Era Update, he had been anxious, but this time, he felt more anticipation and relaxation.
’It’d be best if more Races show up, strong or weak, it doesn’t matter. And the world’s borders should expand a bit more. A little bit of everything, the more the merrier.’
He didn’t know if it was because the Yao Race World’s power level was too high, but no Apprentice Divine Players had spawned here for a long time.
Luh Yao kind of missed the days of interacting with them.