Chapter 225 - Buying Resources

Suddenly, Sun Qingnian’s eyes lit up. “

Aiya

, I just remembered something important!”

Qin Shuang and Han Wu exchanged puzzled looks. “What is it?”

“We need to buy everyone’s resources! Right now, there’s a surplus. If we offer them some money, they’ll definitely sell.”

The two slapped their foreheads in sudden understanding. The students preparing to leave couldn’t take their resources with them. All they had to do was name their price, and no matter how low, they would sell.

The three quickly checked the group chat. Only 3,000 students remained, many still hesitating whether to stay or go. They immediately sent a flood of messages urging them to make a decision.

[We are purchasing resources. Sell us all of your resources for two Divine Essence. We will sign an agreement.]

Among the 3,000 students, only 1,000 had gained the powers of the Nine Martial Castes and could not leave. The other 2,000 had the chance to escape. The trio’s messages convinced those 2,000 to depart, and they earned two Divine Essence each simply by exchanging their resources.

Many contacted the trio to sign agreements. A few tried to raise prices, but the trio ignored them. They had plenty of clients and could afford to lose a few.

Other students stuck behind attempted to copy the trio’s strategy, offering two or three Divine Essence to buy resources. The prices stayed low overall. However, since the trio moved first, they secured the lion’s share.

One hour later, the passage closed, leaving only 1,000 people in the group chat. Each remaining member was now bound to face the unknown challenge set forth by the Will of the Warring Kingdom Civilization. Nervous anticipation filled the air as everyone awaited the mysterious trial.

In contrast, the trio counted their newly acquired resources with satisfaction. The supplies they had secured easily exceeded a value of 5,000 Divine Essence, yet they had spent only 224 Divine Essence. With such an abundance, Han Wu could have upgraded all their shelters to Level 11 or higher.

However, Qin Shuang proposed a different plan. The three were allies who had to depend on one another to survive. They trusted each other completely, so it was a matter of all living or all dying together. She suggested pooling all their resources into upgrading a single shelter to an unprecedented level. This way, the three could stay together and face the challenge united. It was far safer than each occupying separate shelters.

Sun Qingnian agreed. Since Han Wu’s shelter was already the highest-ranked, they chose to concentrate all resources there. Before proceeding, Sun Qingnian needed to gather all nine castes and unlock the Nine Martial Castes’ powers. This would dramatically improve their survival chances.

He sifted through the resources and selected the castes that matched his fighting style. Once he collected all nine, the lightning tribulation struck. The thundercloud spread over a 50-kilometer radius, mirroring Qin Shuang’s lightning tribulation.

Time was of the essence, so Sun Qingnian took out every last dose of medicine he carried to withstand the lightning tribulation. He downed the doses one after another and successfully withstood the lightning tribulation, gaining the Nine Martial Castes’ powers. He was now as strong as a High Lord, and their chances of survival soared.

Han Wu then poured all available resources into upgrading his shelter. As if responding to the erratic Will of the Warring Kingdom Civilization, the Approval Rating no longer blocked his progress. He needed only to gather the required resources.

He invested hundreds of millions of resources to boost the shelter from a City to a County at Level 11. Then, with 1 billion resources, he elevated it from a County to a Prefecture City at Level 12. Ten billion resources transformed it into a Level 13 Capital City. Unfortunately, they still lacked enough resources to reach Level 14.

Fortunately, they were close. Qin Shuang and Sun Qingnian dismantled their own shelters and converted them into resources to support Han Wu’s upgrade. They also tore down every remaining shelter in the region and gathered enough resources to complete the transformation.

The Level 14 shelter now stood as a Royal Capital spanning the entire region. Towering fifty-meter-high city walls enclosed the space, isolating it from the outside world.

Qin Shuang and Sun Qingnian gazed at the majestic scene in awe. Turning a small city into a thriving royal capital felt like a miracle. The Level 14 Royal Capital boasted numerous facilities and could house 5 million residents.

Naturally, Han Wu was officially recognized as the king of this royal capital. He held absolute authority over this domain. Every citizen and soldier within the walls answered to his command.

His first decree as king appointed Qin Shuang as Grand General and Sun Qingnian as Grand Chancellor. Both wielded command over any soldier in the capital, ranking just below Han Wu in authority.

He then entrusted them with his remaining altars and tokens to upgrade their altars. The combined tokens and altars from over 100 students barely sufficed to elevate all 27 altars to Eternal Altars.

After doing so, the three could use resources to summon soldiers endlessly for battle. Unfortunately, they had already drained most resources upgrading Han Wu’s shelter. To replenish their supplies, he ordered his skeletons to gather resources tirelessly from every available facility. These resources were vital for their combat readiness.

The trio started deploying units across the region, preparing for war. The sea around them teemed with Deeptide Whales and Deeptrench Frogmen, all primed for battle. They marshaled every available asset to face the third calamity.

As the units spread out, Han Wu’s magic map revealed its true value, becoming an indispensable tool of war. Through the map, he could track how many ruins and altars remained unclaimed beneath the ocean around them. Each ruin promised an Eternal Altar and a training ground. The Eternal Altar granted a source of infinite soldiers, while the training grounds provided facilities to gather resources endlessly.

Han Wu longed to clear them all immediately, but time was not on his side. The third calamity, the one the Divine Civilization had deemed devastating, arrived that very evening.