Chapter 180: Harvesting Battle Merits, Can Farming Really Make One a Marquis?!

"You guessed it right," Zhao Xing nodded with a smile.

"It was really stolen?!" Even Han Bing, usually with an emotionless face, displayed clear shock.

"How could a seventh-rank officer possibly break through the defenses of an Underworld Flame Warship?" Wang Ji was equally astonished.

"Zhao Xing isn't foolish. He wouldn't attack head-on. Of course, he waited for the perfect moment to ambush. He's always been good at this," Han Bing commented.

"Han Bing, you're falsely accusing me," Zhao Xing retorted, "How could a Military Shennong's actions be considered an ambush? It's not my fault their spells didn't have as wide a range as mine!"

"Exactly! Do you even understand what a Military Shennong does?" Wang Ji added indignantly. "Did you see that, Zhao? He slandered me in the same way earlier."

"..."

"What's all this excitement about? I could hear you from afar," Long Xiao called out as he jumped down from the Underworld Flame Warship.

"Greetings, Brave Captain Long."

"Greetings, Lord Long."

Han Bing and Wang Ji greeted him with evident respect. They were noticeably more formal in front of Long Xiao.

"We were just guessing how this Underworld Flame Warship was obtained."

"Oh, that?" Long Xiao replied, "On the way here, Zhao Xing spotted some foreign raiders attacking one of the Zhenhai Army's cities, so we followed them."

"It was a group of Shapa tribesmen, but Zhao and I dealt with them."

Wang Ji frowned, "Such a large Underworld Flame Warship, and the city's defending commander just gave it up?"

Long Xiao scoffed, "The commander of the Zhenhai Army... well, let's not mention him."

He recalled Zhao Xing already befriending Chen Lu and didn't want to criticize him further, but in his mind, Chen Lu was nothing but incompetent.

"Anyway, he suffered heavy losses. Without us, their corpses would've gone cold. He was too embarrassed to ask for a share of the spoils, but Zhao Xing, being kind, insisted on giving him a tenth."

Zhao Xing shrugged, "In the battlefield, it's better to make friends than enemies."

Without Chen Lu's help, who knew how long it would've taken to get this warship to their base? Delays in deploying personnel could lead to too many uncertainties. Giving Chen Lu a tenth of the spoils was a reasonable price, and it was just a share from the storeroom, not the ship itself.

Now that Zhao Xing had some accomplishments under his belt, he was beginning to emulate Chen Shijie, acting as a small-scale venture capitalist. Chen Lu was just the start.

The Southern Barbarian War attracted many powerful talents from Da Zhou. Zhao Xing planned to invest in promising talents who might rise to prominence in the future. This was a crucial part of his long-term plan.

"Let's go inside and continue talking," Long Xiao suggested.

"Wang Ji, arrange some people to man the Underworld Flame Warship. From now on, it's ours," Zhao Xing instructed. "Also, distribute compensation to the people Chen Lu sent, according to their rank."

"Got it." Wang Ji eagerly agreed, rubbing his hands in anticipation. "I'll handle it personally."

He had long been itching to explore the warship. He'd only ever been aboard a fifth-rank ship once, and never had access to its core.

Knowing that Zhao Xing was entrusting him with this warship made him happier than if he had just married.

And it wasn't just any warship—it had an exotic flair! Wang Ji had seen many things, but never anything quite like this.

"Everyone be careful aboard! If anyone breaks even one part, I'll have their heads!" Wang Ji barked. Replacing parts for an exotic warship was far more difficult than for a standard Da Zhou ship.

"Ninety-Second Grain City is built to county-level standards," Han Bing explained as they walked to the City Lord's Mansion. "It was only half completed, but yesterday, they started expanding the outer city, planning to turn the original area into the inner city."

"Here's a list of all the main officers. The Engineering Division has the most personnel, followed by the Shennong Division. The Martial Division originally had more, but after Liao Rulong's repeated deployments, they now have fewer than the Shennong. The Priest and Strategist Divisions have the least."

"Here are the names of the officers."

On the way to the mansion, Han Bing provided Zhao Xing with a detailed overview of the situation in Ninety-Second Grain City.

Though the city was small, all five divisions were present.

In total, there were around 5,000 people.

Engineers and Shennong personnel made up 70%, warriors 20%, and priests 10%. There were only a handful of strategists, barely worth mentioning.

As for their strength? It was mediocre at best.

The training records Han Bing provided showed that, apart from Wang Ji and Han Bing, none of the officers had achieved top-tier evaluations during their training.

There were 35 with second-tier evaluations, ten of which were at the higher end, though none were from Zhao Xing's cohort.

In general, compared to their time in Yun City, while the overall number of people had doubled, the number of true talents had decreased. But that was to be expected—Liao Rulong had taken the strongest fighters to the front lines.

Still, it wasn't fair to call the supply city weak.

Its overall strength exceeded what Yun City had once possessed, with over fifty officers at the seventh rank or higher.

Though Liao Rulong fought aggressively, he wasn't reckless. Even if Zhao Xing hadn't arrived, the defenses of Ninety-Second Grain City were far superior to those of Chen Lu's.

If the Shapa raiders had chosen to attack Ninety-Second Grain City instead, they might not have even needed Zhao Xing or Long Xiao's help to fend them off.

Now that Zhao Xing was the commander of the city, there wasn't much he needed to worry about.

"Continue the outer city expansion according to Wang Ji's plans. No need to make changes," Zhao Xing instructed. "Summon the three other main division leaders for a meeting to get a quick update on their progress."

"However, the Shennong Division's tasks will need some adjustments."

"Alright, how would you like to modify them?"

Altering the Shennong Division's tasks was essentially suggesting that Han Bing, its leader, hadn't done his job well enough. In most cases, this would be cause for offense, but Han Bing didn't take it personally. He knew Zhao Xing had his reasons.

"Let's discuss it after the meeting. I still need to handle the spoils from the Underworld Flame Warship," Zhao Xing replied. "You'll understand soon."

"Fine, I'll get things ready," Han Bing said, leaving the room.

Long Xiao, sitting comfortably and eating fruit, watched Zhao Xing manage the city's affairs. He didn't belong to Ninety-Second Grain City's military command structure, so he was simply resting until the Yin God in the temple could relay the front-line location, where he would rejoin Liao Rulong's main forces.

The mountain cat, Long Aotian, stood on the table, devouring fruit even faster than Long Xiao. It was practically inhaling the food, meowing at Zhao Xing for more.

"You've got it easy," Zhao Xing chuckled, waving his hand to summon a tray of fourth-rank fruits from the Wenzhu Box. "We're here to fight, and you're just here to enjoy yourself."

"Aotian, don't mind him. Keep eating," Long Xiao smiled, feeding the cat another fruit.

Zhao Xing shook his head, then pulled out the Earth Mirror to check his battle merits.

Since the Underworld Flame Warship had entered the Ninety-Second Grain City's territory, it was now under the protection of the temple. Additionally, Chen Lu had already reported the situation to the Martial Realm via the temple.

Thus, the Martial Realm had already calculated the battle merits for the recent battle.

All surviving officers in Chen Lu's command had been penalized according to their ranks, with Chen Lu bearing the heaviest penalty. Half a month's worth of hard-earned battle merits, over 30,000 points, had been reduced by 22,000.

Even Chen Lu's superior, Li Que, the commander of the Zhenhai Army on the front lines, lost 10,000 battle merits.

Why? Because Li Que had over-deployed troops to the front lines, neglecting the defense of the rear cities. If not for this, the 109th city of the Zhenhai Army might have held out without Zhao Xing's intervention.

A general's ability to succeed depends on the stability of the rear. If the rear falters, no matter how well you fight up front, your merits can be deducted, and you might even suffer a net loss.

"Chen Lu and the others lost battle merits, but Long Xiao and I gained them," Zhao Xing thought as he examined the Earth Mirror.

Since the warship was now within the city's boundaries, the Earth Mirror could receive messages from the Martial Realm through the Tiangong Workshop's network.

[Zhao Xing, Military Shennong of the Shenwei Army, on June 21st of the 17th year of the Jingxin Calendar, you repelled a sneak attack by the Shapa Tribe, killed a seventh-rank enemy, and saved the Zhenhai Army's 109th city. You have earned 15,000 battle merit points.]

Killing an unranked enemy earns 1 point.

Killing a ninth-rank enemy earns between 10 to 40 points, depending on their exact rank (lower, middle, upper, or true ninth-rank).

Killing an eighth-rank enemy earns between 100 to 400 points.

Killing a seventh-rank enemy earns between 1,000 to 4,000 points.

Killing a sixth-rank enemy earns between 10,000 to 40,000 points.

These are the basic standards, though there can be variations. In special cases, the points awarded may exceed these limits.

Capturing, converting, or obtaining intelligence also yields merit points, but currently, these are generally low.

For now, the main objective is to eliminate the basic forces of the Southern Barbarians, reducing the chances of high-level warriors emerging from their ranks. Therefore, killing is prioritized over capturing or converting, and intelligence rewards are minimal.

"4,000 points for killing a seventh-rank enemy. Long Xiao's kills counted partially for me because I provided cover. The value of those Shapa soldiers contributed to that."

"Saving the city earned me 10,000 points. Essentially, the battle merits deducted from the Zhenhai Army officers were transferred to Long Xiao and me," Zhao Xing mused.

Long Xiao received over 20,000 battle merits, having killed more enemies.

However, for "saving the city," both Zhao Xing and Long Xiao were awarded 10,000 points each.

The total battle merits deducted from Chen Lu and his officers far exceeded what Zhao Xing and Long Xiao received. This was done to prevent abuse of the system for artificially inflating merit points.

"If I turned in the Underworld Flame Warship, my merit points would skyrocket, maybe even propelling me into the top 100 of the seventh-rank rankings."

"But turning it in isn't worth it."

Keeping the warship would be more beneficial for Zhao Xing. As for merit points, there would be plenty of other opportunities to earn them.

For example, by completing merit-based tasks.

Support units, like Shennong, have their own system for earning merit points.

One doesn't necessarily have to kill enemies to earn merits.

Take Wang Ji, for example. He led the construction of cities.

Finishing a first-level city earns 100,000 merit points.

A second-level city earns 200,000 merit points.

The current Ninety-Second Grain City is a third-level city under construction and, when completed, will yield 500,000 merit points.

The Martial Realm also settles merit points in phases, meaning that everyone involved gets a share.

In just half a month, Wang Ji had already accumulated 50,000 to 60,000 merit points, placing him within the top 10,000 seventh-rank officers.

Engineers earn merit points for building cities and defending them.

If the city is attacked and successfully defended, merit points are awarded. But if it falls, the penalties are severe.

Additionally, building or repairing military equipment earns merit points.

Tasks are divided into "primary tasks" and "general tasks."

Killing enemies for merit points is considered a general task. Engineers can earn merit points this way, but it's not required.

Primary tasks, on the other hand, have deadlines. If they're not completed in time, merit points are deducted.

Some tasks can be repeated. For example, building "Spirit-Breaking Arrows" and "God-Breaking Arrows," as well as Heavenly Trap Nets and Realm-Breaking Orbs.

These are consumables!

Da Zhou is rapidly advancing and breaking through enemy defenses, so there's a huge demand for these items. They can be endlessly produced.

Even if you've made enough for your own army, as long as it doesn't interfere with your primary tasks, you can continue making them for extra merit points.

Because of the existence of Transport Officers, resources across all armies are managed efficiently.

When the Transport Officer's ship arrives, any surplus items can be shipped out to supply other armies.

At different times, different things are needed, so tasks aren't set in stone.

The same goes for Shennong.

"Currently, the daily tasks focus on producing 'vitality-replenishing' food."

"The soldiers need a large supply of food to replenish their strength and recover their vitality."

"But as the war progresses, Southern Barbarian shamans, poison masters, and blood priests will take action, and the demand for detoxifying and blood-replenishing herbs will surge!"

"Moreover, when we enter extreme regions of the Southern Wilderness, like the 'Purple Cloud Swamp,' which is filled with toxic miasma, ordinary fourth-rank detoxifying pills won't last long. Only pills made from 'Tianxin Grass' can provide lasting protection."

"Then there's the attack on the Fire Demon Tribe of the Purple Dragon Court. The environment there is filled with fire toxins. While the Fire Demons are used to living there, Da Zhou's soldiers will suffer from acclimation issues."

"Battle garments made from Earth Fire Lotus will become the most cost-effective fourth-rank battlewear... The Martial Realm will issue these items as both general and primary tasks for the Shennong, with very high merit rewards."

Zhao Xing recalled scenes from his past life when analyzing the "Jing Emperor's Southern Barbarian Campaign."

"These items will be in short supply. I need to prepare in advance."

The Southern Barbarian Royal Courts weren't defenseless. They initially retreated as part of a strategy to use the harsh environment to wear down Da Zhou's forces.

Shennong's cultivation of plants ties into almost every profession. Engineers need a constant supply of wood for building war machines. Priests need yellow paper and incense, and Weavers need materials for magical garments.

In many ways, Shennong is the upstream supplier for most professions.

"I remember that during the Southern Barbarian Campaign, several Shennong officers became marquises simply by cultivating much-needed crops. While farming, they suddenly found themselves with noble titles."

Zhao Xing muttered to himself, "Maybe I can follow in the footsteps of my teacher's ancestors."

Lord Tian, also known as Tian Yan, inherited his marquis title from his ancestors.

Back then, his ancestors followed the Grand Emperor into battle, excelling in agriculture. After the founding of the empire, they were granted a dukedom.

Zhao Xing's decision to adjust the Shennong Division's direction wasn't arbitrary.

He clearly remembered what materials were needed at each stage of the campaign, knowledge drilled into him during his past life's simulations of the Jing Emperor's Southern Barbarian Campaign.

Failing to remember such details would drastically reduce one's chances of success.

"Apart from farming, there are many ways to earn merit points, including plundering."

Zhao Xing stood up and walked to the city gates.

The Underworld Flame Warship had already been transported to the Tiangong Workshop's territory.

However, the spoils from its storeroom remained, and Wang Ji was overseeing the sorting process.

"The loot includes a lot of herbs, food, and materials for crafting war machines."

"Submitting these will earn me a lot of merit points."

Zhao Xing smiled.

The Shapa tribe had looted many items that were on the merit task list.

These were ready-made materials, and submitting them would immediately fulfill some tasks.

Long Xiao didn't want these spoils and left them all to Zhao Xing.

First, because Long Xiao was too lazy to deal with these "small" items. Killing a seventh-rank enemy earned him 1,000 to 4,000 merit points.

Second, warriors had fewer "general tasks." Even if he submitted the loot, the merit points awarded wouldn't be substantial. Converting the loot to merit points yielded little value.

So, he simply gave it all to Zhao Xing.

"Everything's sorted," Wang Ji reported, running over. "There are 14,532 finished armors and war machines, mostly second and third rank, with only about ten fourth-rank items."

"As for the herbs, minerals, crafting materials, and garment materials, there are 53,462 pieces, mostly third-rank, with few second- and fourth-rank items."

Zhao Xing glanced at the inventory and nodded, "Take out one-tenth of the items and send them to Chen Lu of the Zhenhai Army. That's what I promised him."

"The rest, store the finished goods in the various divisions' warehouses for emergencies. If any division encounters a difficult 'primary task,' they can use these to help complete it."

Wang Ji nodded in agreement, his admiration for Zhao Xing growing even more.

All of these spoils belonged to Zhao Xing personally, yet he was willing to contribute them for the collective benefit. It showed his big-picture thinking.

"As for the semi-finished materials, anything related to Shennong's primary and general tasks, divide them between the Shenwei Army's internal warehouse and the transfer warehouse. I'll use them to complete my own merit tasks. I've fallen behind by nearly a month, and I need to catch up on all the merit tasks I can."

"Understood," Wang Ji promptly began carrying out Zhao Xing's orders.

Zhao Xing, meanwhile, opened his Earth Mirror to review his personal merit tasks.

As Wang Ji's men began filing the records, the Earth Mirror soon pinged with multiple task completion notifications:

[Zhao Xing, Shenwei Army, you have completed the task "Planting Ganling Grass" (3,000 pieces), earning 6,000 merit points. This task cannot be submitted again this month.]

[Zhao Xing, Shenwei Army, you have completed the task "Planting Fuziguo Fruit" (1,000 pieces), earning 1,000 merit points. This task cannot be submitted again this month.]

[Zhao Xing, Shenwei Army, you have completed…]