Chapter 68: Pre-Battle Mobilization

During the school conquest, aside from the identical buildings and zones on both sides, the neutral area also contained several special structures. Capturing the NPCs within these buildings would grant them Level 1 status, and they could be upgraded to Level 2 without being limited to ten units. However, if the building changed hands, all previous investments would be lost, and reclaiming it would not restore them.

[Magic Tower: A magical research institution, capable of mastering magical shields and temporal-spatial magic.]
[Magician: Level 1 grants all buildings a one-time 1,000 HP defense shield; Level 2 allows a daily activation of a portal, teleporting five players to any location on the map.]
[Great Beast Den: A beast nest capable of producing combat beasts and beast mounts.]
[Beast King: Level 1 produces combat beasts (wolves or bears); Level 2 produces beast mount war lions or raptors. (Special: occasionally sells rare mounts.)]
[Dense Forest: A mercenary camp where assassins and archers can be hired.]
[Hero: Level 1 hires an assassin to eliminate a designated target; Level 2 hires an archer legion, with one legion comprising 100 members.]
[Marketplace: Allows the sale of surplus materials and forcibly purchases enemy faction materials.]
[Merchant: Level 1 sells surplus materials and issues collection quests; Level 2 purchases enemy faction materials and issues supply raid quests.]
[Stone Mason Guild: Increases building HP and defense.]
[Stone Mason: Level 1 increases building thickness, enhancing HP and defense; Level 2 installs defensive weapons, boosting building attack power.]

Aside from these statistics, Liu Zong also saw data on various wild monsters, task completion criteria, and so forth. He diligently reviewed all the figures, forcing himself to memorize them, knowing these details would be crucial—being informed in battle made a significant difference compared to being ignorant.

After committing this information to memory, Liu Zong checked the time and returned to the shadow-aligned space he had rented. There, he continued processing his sea dragon corpses. A week later, he finally left the space to attend the meeting for shadow-aligned students.

Upon reaching the designated classroom, Liu Zong noticed Liu Chun had arrived early, and about half the students were present; the large room was already crowded. Soon, the other shadow-aligned students trickled in. At Yangcheng Third High School, the shadow department was a small one, totaling 173 people, with 21 freshmen this year, all now present.

Once everyone was seated, Teacher Zhang began explaining the school conquest. Most students were already aware, except for a few who paid little attention to school affairs and whispered among themselves.

After clarifying the details, Teacher Zhang continued, “This school conquest will last ten years, a critical period for all players. The school believes that even in battle, your growth should not be neglected, so arrangements have been made beforehand.

All students will alternate between half a year of assigned tasks and half a year of free tasks. During assigned tasks, students will be organized for in-game learning, striving for a balance between study and missions. In the free period, students may leave the game to seek specialized instruction from teachers or freely form teams to complete quests.

The school also encourages employment during the battle period. Those who attain Level 1 jobs will receive additional rewards.”

At this, Teacher Zhang straightened with pride. “Though our shadow department is small, we have advantages. I have obtained a full guide for cemetery missions from the principal. Our main tasks in the conquest will be cemetery capture and patrol.

The cemetery will also be our area for research and learning. Both myself, Teacher Li, and Teacher Lin will join you in the game. While we cannot participate in combat or assign tasks, we can provide guidance, ensuring your development during the battle.”

Hearing this, the students of the shadow department cheered enthusiastically.

Teacher Zhang gestured for quiet, then announced, “This time our department has 173 members in total, with 32 players reaching Level 1 this year—17 with magical affinity, 15 with martial affinity, and one with both. They will be our main force. I have applied to the school for temporary designations: Yangcheng Third High School Necromancer Corps and Yangcheng Third High School Death Knight Corps. Let’s applaud.”

After everyone finished clapping—and grumbling about the awkward names—Teacher Zhang added, “I believe others will soon reach job level and join these honorable groups.”

With the formalities complete, Liu Zong and the others followed Teacher Zhang to the department office, where each received three cards based on their circumstances.

According to Teacher Zhang, these were school-issued benefits, providing students with combat power. If anyone acquired better equipment, they were to return these items to the school, as they were loans rather than gifts.

Liu Zong was a special case among shadow-aligned players, as he possessed both magical and martial affinity. Originally, Liu Chun shared this trait, but Liu Chun had already chosen his profession, making it clear what gear the school should provide him.

Liu Zong, however, had not yet decided on a profession, so selecting his equipment was easier, but the final item proved more complicated.

Nevertheless, Liu Zong knew his path. He explained his direction to Teacher Zhang, who pondered and replied, “Your weapon equipment is relatively straightforward, but I cannot provide you with professional gear. The career you’ve chosen has not been pursued for many years. If not for your luck in acquiring that item, perhaps no one would have thought of this profession for a century. So I can only offer you the minimum for dual affinity: three necromancer contracts.”

“These three necromancer contracts will let you randomly summon three undead, their quality ranging from white to green, roughly Level 0 (8 stars), type uncertain. You can freely control them, and whether they can level up or advance depends entirely on your arrangements. If they die in battle and you wish to replace them, you must complete tasks for the cemetery master. Remember, according to the rules, you may not have more than three undead attendants on the map; any excess must be rotated at the cemetery master’s domain.”

With that, Teacher Zhang handed Liu Zong his cards and turned to instruct the next student.