Name: Wei Huan (Pseudo-Divine Artifact +50%) (Title +25%)
Age: 20 years old
Gender: Male
Class: Gatekeeper of the Underworld (Sequence 5)
Endurance: 10098
Strength: 1120
Agility: 966
Nether Power: 8880
Special Status: Accelerated Dark Energy Erosion
Summon Count: 110000+
This Summon Count does not include summons summoned by the summons. In other words, the number of "Dot Mom's" summons is not listed under Wei Huan. Of the entire Burrow Beast creature lineage, only Dot Mom counts toward his total, but after Dot Mom upgraded to a Hero unit, she could spawn nearly 100,000 Undead troops. This is also related to the Facehuggers being unrated Undead, but Wei Huan can upgrade them through the Undead Pasture if he wishes. Previously, Dot Mom's lineage had mostly reached Sequence Four when Wei Huan was bored, which contributed to their strong combat power.
Shura Horse Count: 21,000.
Tier 5 Upgrades Completed: 21,000.
The Shura Horse are the main fighting force and have all been upgraded to Tier 5.
Flying Ape Count: 2,200.
Tier 5 Upgrades Completed: 800.
Elite: 1.
Flying Apes primarily apply buffs and share damage during kiting maneuvers. 800 are currently sufficient.
Kobold Count: 500.
Tier 5 Upgrades Completed: 200.
Normal Hero-grade: 1.
Elite: 30.
Kobolds grow by consuming each other. Wei Huan chose not to nurture them when his strength was insufficient, so their numbers have always been low. However, even this occasional nurturing produced a Hero-grade Kobold.
This led Wei Huan to discover the unique nature of the Hero-grade Kobold. Not only does it carry over 30 smaller Kobolds, but when the Hero Kobold is at the edge of Wei Huan's summoning range, its smaller Kobolds can ignore Wei Huan's summoning distance and teleport an additional 30 kilometers outward. In other words, the Hero-grade Greater Kobold acts as a base station, extending Wei Huan's teleportation ability to a formidable 90 kilometers. With proper arrangement, his Undead army and crew can easily traverse 90 kilometers in the shortest time, allowing him to effortlessly command troops within a hundred-kilometer radius from the vehicle.
Demon Eye Lord Count: 10,000.
Tier 5 Upgrades Completed: 10,000.
Normal Hero-grade: 1.
Elite: None.
The Demon Eye Lord's upgrade method is unique, requiring Wei Huan's vision to frequently descend upon them. But since the Hero-grade Demon Eye Lord is very handy, and Wei Huan dislikes the lack of senses other than sight when descending, he has not specifically cultivated other Demon Eyes. However, Wei Huan prioritized the Demon Eye Lord for upgrades, as it is his only air combat unit, and air strikes at the current stage still rely on the Demon Eye Lord. Additionally, the Demon Eye Lord has decent movement capability in the sea.
In contrast, the upgrade of the Ghost Crow was placed last.
Ghost Crow Count: 6,000.
Tier 5 Upgrades Completed: 1,000.
Normal Elite-grade: 1.
Elite: None.
After reaching Sequence Five, the Ghost Crow's Soul Shriek became somewhat useful. However, in Wei Huan's view, there is no need for too many control-capable Ghost Crows; a thousand are enough. The Ghost Crow's main purpose is still scouting and "ploughing the land to open chests." As long as it can cover a 60-kilometer diameter to his left and right, it is sufficient. The rest will be upgraded slowly when resources are abundant.
Similarly, the Dire Bear and swift Wolf legions had fewer upgrades.
The Dire Bear Walker and Bear Skeleton are two different summons. The Bear Skeleton and the Invisible Cat Skeleton were abandoned by Wei Huan from the start; they were too poor in all aspects, and recruiting more was a waste of resources. The Dire Bear Walker, however, is tough-skinned and requires low Nether Power consumption to recruit, so Wei Huan recruited 20,000 of them.
Dire Bear Walker Count: 20,000.
Tier 5 Upgrades Completed: 10,000.
Epic Hero-grade: 1.
Normal Hero-grade: 3.
Elite-grade: 10.
The Elite grade of the Dire Bear Walker unit is highly desirable, especially the Great Bear, which is close to advancing to Legendary Hero level; when it stands in front, it's essentially a small Boss.
The Challenger World does not have the "Taunt" mechanic of games, but if a monster encounters the Great Bear and is attracted to tank its blows multiple times without killing it, the monster will likely be surrounded by the Undead army from above and below, making it difficult to recover. Therefore, the durable Dire Bear Walker is necessary, and Wei Huan completed half of the upgrades for the ordinary Dire Bears. This is highly useful both for fighting monsters in the Challenger World and in large-scale battles. Wei Huan has long been looking forward to the Great Bear becoming a Legendary Hero.
Finally, there is the Swift Wolf Army. Led by the Gut-Bro, the Swift Wolf Army is Wei Huan's preferred summoning unit. They form up quickly and have low summoning consumption, allowing Wei Huan to rapidly achieve an "army of one" on the battlefield. Unfortunately, the Tier 5 and Tier 6 worlds involve more sea battles. In comparison, the Facehuggers, which can swim quickly in the sea, ultimately replaced the Swift Wolf Army as the main combat force.
Swift Wolf Count: 50,000.
Tier 5 Upgrades Completed: 303.
Epic Hero-grade: 1.
Normal Hero-grade: 13.
Elite-grade: 289.
The Swift Wolves are organized into legions. Their pack breeds elites quickly, and the Gut-Bro, their commander, also nurtures Elite Swift Wolves, resulting in over 300 elites.
This is also one of the main reasons why Wei Huan was delayed for so long and didn't even have resources to upgrade ordinary Undead. He prioritized upgrading all Undead of Elite level and above to Sequence Five, including the 303 elite backbone units of the Swift Wolf Legion. The remaining 50,000 Swift Wolf Army units were not upgraded at all.
Before his seclusion, Mu Dehao had conducted an analysis with him. Humanity is currently engaged in skirmishes with the Dark Beast Clan on the large battlefield, and neither side intends to engage in a decisive battle. Firstly, both sides have only recently entered the Tier 5 world. Based on past experience, the exploration of the Tier 5 world will take no less than three years, so there is no need for large-scale battles now. Furthermore, humanity has concealed information about Wei Huan. Therefore, rather than Wei Huan going to the large battlefield now, it is better to accumulate enough strength to charge into the Tier 6 world. There will inevitably be an "Opening Battle" then, and if Wei Huan's strength is at its peak at that time, catching the Dark Beast Clan off guard would be better.
Thus, the Swift Wolf Army and Ghost Crow Army, which are temporarily less useful in the Tier 5 and Tier 6 worlds, were placed at the end of the upgrade priority list. He focused on upgrading the powers he needed most right now.
The "pasture grass" durability is at rock bottom. It will take a month or so for the Tier 5 pasture grass to fully recover, and then another half a month to complete the upgrades, after which Wei Huan will reach his peak condition. Now, it's time for an intermission; he is indeed hungry.
Leaving his room, he saw Jones guarding the elevator door. Jones stood up when he saw him, silently and respectfully following him to take the elevator downstairs. During the elevator ride, Wei Huan quickly scanned Jones's attributes with his Data Glasses and asked: "Haven't you been cultivating recently?"
Jones replied: "I have. Even on your floor, I receive the World Tree's blessings, and with Lord Liu's food therapy, I feel stronger than before."
Wei Huan nodded: "Very good. Keep it up."
"Yes!" Jones's voice was sharp and clear, having received approval.
They deliberately walked through the plaza route to the cafeteria downstairs. As expected, the news of his emergence quickly spread. The war machine seemed to be injected with vitality, and all the necessary people came over.
Captain Xue and Mu Zirui came to report on their work while Xu Qingqiang smoked nearby. Their strength has all noticeably increased during this time. Afterward, Mu Zhong talked about Commander Mu building Azure Dragon City, and Wei Huan ate continuously. Liu Chengzhi cooked non-stop for two hours until Wei Huan's body felt fully replenished.
Furthermore, his consumption of Liu Chengzhi's food resulted in a short-term increase of 17 points of Nether Power, 10 points of Strength, 8 points of Agility, and 110 points of Endurance. This significant increase was due to Liu Chengzhi's "private additions" using the best ingredients, and because Wei Huan ate a huge amount, which meant he wouldn't need to eat again for about a week. Liu Chengzhi's ability is quite powerful. While a one or two-point increase might seem small in the short term, everyone must eat, and eating increases attributes. Over time, the people on Wei Huan's war machine will be stronger than Challengers on other war machines. This is one of the reasons why some established Challengers try everything to be transferred to Wei Huan's vehicle. Increasing attributes just by eating? That's incredible!
After Wei Huan finished eating, Mu Zhong said: "Another hundred people boarded the vehicle after you went into seclusion. I decided to absorb them."
Wei Huan wiped his mouth and nodded: "You make the decision."
Mu Zhong smiled: "Don't you want to take a look?"
Wei Huan raised an eyebrow: "Someone special?"
"Mhm."
Mu Zhong motioned for the people waiting outside to come in. Wei Huan first saw Captain Wang Ming. Liu Xiaotian followed closely behind, grinning widely: "Hi, Boss Wei, Vice Commander Mu, Brother Qiang, Brother Liu, and Captain Xue and Brother Mu, you are all well!" Liu Xiaotian didn't care that he was older or held a higher military rank; he was sweet-talking everyone, directly addressing them with senior titles, aware that as a newcomer, he needed to show respect to the vehicle's veterans.
Wei Huan stood up when he saw them. He looked at them, then at Mu Zhong. Captain Wang and Liu Xiaotian were Commander Mu's personal guards. What would Commander Mu do if they were transferred?
Mu Zhong seemed to read Wei Huan's mind and smiled: "Precisely because they are close to us, and our vehicle has such great benefits, we must arrange for them to join us. Furthermore, Commander Mu's prestige in the pioneering army is increasing, and he has more people available than he can use. Even Commander Hong's group is coming over now, so I took the initiative to requisition them to join us for the Tier 6 world."
Wei Huan sincerely welcomed Captain Wang Ming and Liu Xiaotian, then asked Mu Zhong: "How is Commander Hong doing recently?"
"Still the same. The spiritual injury needs the Life Angel to heal. But the battlefield waits for no one, and the people under his command can't just be left idle. Since they are all from the Azure Dragon Legion, there's no need to distinguish too clearly."
Wei Huan nodded, also concerned: "What is the progress on the Life Angel?"
Mu Zhong smiled: "This is the person I wanted to introduce specifically: Angel Jiang Yue, temporarily assigned to our vehicle for cultivation. She is the closest Prayer to Sequence Six."
Wei Huan looked at the woman who walked in last, and his heart gave a violent jump. Jiang Yue is on his vehicle? Jiang Yue, one of Daxia's legends in the previous life. She entered the Challenger World two years later but was exceptionally talented, quickly becoming a "Life Angel" and saving countless lives on the battlefield. However, her journey was also filled with tragedy. Throughout her growth, she transferred through 13 war machines, and almost every war machine and its commander met a violent end, until she reached Sequence Six and became a commander herself, at which point the bad luck vanished. Despite her "Team-Wrecker" title, the people she saved numbered in the hundreds.
In the final battle of humanity in the previous life, Jiang Yue went to the front line alone, and after being killed by the Dark Beast Royalty, her soul transformed into the Light of the Life Angel. On the vast battlefield, she healed countless injuries and ailments for the front-line soldiers, lasting three days and three nights until her soul was completely exhausted and dispersed.
Wei Huan was only Sequence Three at the time, but he also went to the large battlefield during humanity's moment of life and death. After humanity's pillars fell one by one, he came to the front line to fight the Dark Beasts desperately. He, too, had been noticed by "Jiang Yue's" gaze. Warm, sacred, firm, and persistent. He still remembers the warmth of the Holy Light that shone upon him.
"Jiang Yue," Wei Huan spoke the two words, looking at the girl who walked at the very back, head bowed, nervously picking at her fingernails.
"Colonel Wei, hello..." Jiang Yue quickly looked up at Wei Huan, then urgently lowered her head, visibly nervous.
Wei Huan subconsciously touched his face. He was unsure how to talk to this girl, who seemed afraid of him, yet whom he deeply respected.
Mu Zhong sensed Wei Huan's awkwardness—a somewhat strange reaction—and said: "No need to be nervous. Just familiarize yourself with him. This is Commander Wei Huan. You will cultivate on this vehicle until we enter the Tier 6 world. You don't need to worry about anything; just focus on your cultivation. The Life Angel is too important to us."
Mu Zhong's legs, Mu Tang's and Commander Hong's mental trauma, and the many Challengers with lost limbs who are still fighting on the front line are all waiting for the birth of a Life Angel.
Seeing Jiang Yue had quite an impact on Wei Huan. For a while, he was lost in thought, recalling the memories of humanity's defeat, the collapse of the nation in the previous life. The memories were like a deep scar, stained red and bloody, remaining in his mind, ready to be inspected at any time. Even though he has changed so much, and the fate of humanity is shifting, he is still unable to completely emerge from that shadow. Perhaps only when humanity truly wins and annihilates the Dark Beast Clan will he be able to regard that period as a nightmare and let it fade completely.
Three days later.
"Something on your mind recently?"
Mu Zhong walked out, draped in clothes, holding a glass of plain water. He was very thirsty and drank the water in one gulp. Transparent water droplets flowed from the corner of his mouth, rolling down his Adam's apple, mixing with salty sweat, and disappearing into the loose collar of his shirt. He put down the glass and looked at the man opposite him, his voice still a little hoarse: "Is cultivation not going smoothly?"
Wei Huan was sitting on the balcony under the cover of night. From here, he could see the vast ocean shrouded in darkness. A constantly rotating pitch-black portal stood behind Wei Huan, making the man dressed in black silk appear noble and divine. The man's face held a hint of lazy satisfaction after indulgence, his lips unusually rosy, adding a touch of sexiness to his otherwise cold and severe countenance. Mu Zhong's eyes were glued to the man, unable to look away. Because of this, he knew too well that Wei Huan had been in a bad mood recently.
Wei Huan would naturally not talk about his previous life. He said: "Just a bit bored."
Mu Zhong was amused and explained: "We are just waiting for the research team. Once we leave, the research on the World Tree in Vermillion Bird City will have to stop. The new batch of research personnel will take another two months to reach the Tier 5 world, so the ideal scenario is for us to stay here for another two months before leaving."
Wei Huan raised an eyebrow: "So you're unhappy. Staying anchored on the island every day is a loss because there's no income."
Mu Zhong said: "How about this? Let's not wait for them to send a vehicle to pick them up. We'll send the people over ourselves, and then we'll depart immediately?"
"That's a good idea." A smile touched Wei Huan's eyes. "My strength will be fully recovered in another month, but we can't waste this time either. We should head into the uninhabited zone to open chests, and the treasure can also be explored. We must do something."
"Alright," Mu Zhong nodded. "I'll notify them to depart tomorrow."
Wei Huan asked: "Today. Now."
"Now?"
The crew members in the war machine were all notified that the war machine was about to leave the base and head to Vermillion Bird City. After temporarily dropping off the research team, they would venture into the uninhabited zone for an adventure. The warriors, who had been cooped up for nearly a month, suddenly became excited. Some lost their sleep and went to the plaza to chat, while others simply sat cross-legged next to the World Tree sprout to cultivate.
"We are finally leaving!"
"I just realized I don't dislike adventure; I just dislike actually risking my life."
"On this vehicle, adventuring is a pleasure. I haven't been happy for a month now."
"Hahaha!"
The war machine instantly became lively, although the research personnel were somewhat disappointed. However, some comforted themselves: "It's only temporary research in Vermillion Bird City. Once our replacements arrive, we will follow Commander Wei into the Tier 6 world. The higher the world, the closer we are to the essence of power. Warriors use it, and we analyze it. This is the meaning of our existence on this vehicle."
"Exactly! The emergence of the Rune Tablet is the result of our work, destined to benefit humanity and be recorded in history!"
The war machine finally set off. Wei Huan and Mu Zhong changed into their battle suits and went downstairs, followed closely by four Challengers from Congo, including Jones, who were inseparable from him. Coming out of the elevator, Captain Xue and Mu Dehao were already waiting at the door. Xu Qingqiang was smoking by a flowerbed, with Zhou Yong and Lin Xu behind him. Seeing Wei Huan emerge, he jumped off the flowerbed, extinguished his cigarette, and squinted his peachy eyes at Wei Huan.
"We're finally moving out. My body is almost rusting."
"The legendary 'ploughing the land to open chests' is about to begin, isn't it?" Liu Xiaotian, standing by the roadside, smiled broadly, his eyes curving. Next to him were Captain Wang Ming and his team of veteran crew members.
"We've only heard legends these past few days. Now we finally get to experience it ourselves."
Looking at the people already waiting here, wide awake despite the late hour, more energetic than during the day. A smile touched Wei Huan's eyes: "Let's go."
"Wait, wait for me, boss!" Liu Chengzhi called out from behind, carrying Dou Lin on his neck, followed by the dispirited Old Soldier. He ran over and stood behind Wei Huan, grinning mischievously.
"We ran out of ingredients, so we need to stock up this time," Liu Chengzhi chuckled. Ding Qi and the twins initially stood casually, but upon seeing Liu Chengzhi arrive, they stood directly behind him, following silently.
Wei Huan glanced over. The core management of the vehicle was all here this time. Currently, the vehicle has a total of 306 people: 66 research and technical staff, 37 logistics personnel, and 203 combat personnel.
Commander: 1 person, Wei Huan.
Vice Commander: 1 person, Mu Zhong.
Senior Management: 5 people, Xu Qingqiang, Liu Chengzhi, Mu Tang, Captain Xue, and Mu Zirui.
General Management: 11 people, including