Chapter 586.5: Strength Up
Tyrael clearly saw a flicker of something unusual in Sera's eyes.
He immediately realized that psionics had special significance in Bay Territory.
But before he could think more, Sera waved and said:
"You'll soon be a part of Bay Territory. Even if just temporarily, there's no need to be so reserved."
"Here, apart from the Lord, everyone is equal."
Everyone is equal?
Everyone who heard this blinked in confusion and disbelief.
Hearing it from a powerful drow made it sound extremely bizarre.
But they couldn't refute it, nor dare to!
They simply remembered it silently.
None of them were young, and they had their own judgments.
Seeing that Tyrael wasn't treated specially and went to line up just like the others—
Everyone finally relaxed and truthfully disclosed their own information and status.
Interestingly, when asked about life or crafting skills—
Almost everyone had at least one decent specialty.
Especially elves with mediocre combat strength often knew tailoring, cooking, music, or similar skills.
Famir knew why they were so cooperative.
Because they believed that the more value they showed, the less likely they'd be discarded.
This behavior was likely the result of Tyrael's careful communication with them earlier.
Which made Famir let out a slight sigh of relief.
That fool was at least somewhat useful!
Once everyone finished registration, they noticed that the rest of Bay Territory's soldiers had dispersed.
Only 40 to 50 staff remained, working amidst the ruins.
Tyrael watched wide-eyed as over a dozen 5-meter-tall golems mixed strange soil with water.
Then poured it into wooden-framed molds.
Within just dozens of breaths, the special soil hardened rapidly.
In under two hours—
A 4-meter-tall, 10-meter-wide, 30-meter-long concrete warehouse was built.
Prepared staff began placing supplies inside.
Everyone in line received their identity tags.
Each tag listed their basic info and a temporary ID number.
"Everyone take a set of clothes."
"Go to your designated washroom to bathe and change."
"Everyone must bathe. If you refuse, report to staff."
"They'll use a Cleaning Spell on you."
"Next, you'll receive your first meal."
"You have one hour to eat."
"Take this time to consider your first job and task here at the ruins base."
Famir posted multilingual notices outside the warehouse and called to the temps lining up to change:
"For your chosen task direction, you'll receive corresponding Professional training later."
"During this time, you have one chance to switch jobs, with free food and housing."
"But once training ends, you'll pay for your food and housing yourself."
"All debts will be recorded."
"Of course, Bay Territory will reclaim all valuable items you collect and offer fair prices."
"Due to the dangerous environment, teleporting supplies here is costly."
"So please complete your tasks quickly to earn more merits and enjoy greater food discounts—even free meals and lodging for life."
Tyrael read the notices carefully. The expected scenario of them being sent to die didn't happen—instead, it all felt strangely structured.
"Clear rubble, 5 silver/day, requires Level 6, 200 spots."
"Build walls, 20 silver/day, requires Level 8, 300 spots."
"Explore ruins, 30 gold/day, requires Level 16, 100 spots."
"Cook food, 2 silver/day, requires intermediate chef, 10 spots."
"Process magic materials, 60 silver/day, requires intermediate skinning/gathering, 30 spots."
"Forge workers, 50 silver/day, requires intermediate forging, 50 spots."
"Magic item crafters, 10 gold/day, requires advanced magic item craft, no limit."
"Engineering team, 10 silver/day, requires intermediate golem command training, 500 spots."
"Agricultural workers, 12 silver/day, requires intermediate agriculture training, no limit."
"Arms factory hires, 3 silver/day, requires factory training, no limit."
"Potion factory hires, 4 silver/day, requires potion processing training, no limit."
"Golem factory..."
"Druid research institute..."
"Magic item research institute..."
The unexpectedly rich job options left everyone momentarily stunned.
It was just ruins outside, wrapped in mist—could it really support this many jobs?
While most were confused, Tyrael thought deeper.
Bay Territory's dedication to this ruin was evidently immense.
So many job posts and factory plans clearly meant they were gearing up for something big.
While they pondered, they unknowingly entered Bay Territory's washroom.
Even Tyrael, though mentally prepared, was amazed by the many items inside.
Powerful soap that removed dirt and bacteria.
Water heaters that sprayed comfortable warm water.
Drying devices for hair cleaning.
And the simplest and most convenient: Cleaning Spell generators.
Tyrael didn't linger long. After all his unusual behavior today, he didn't want to stand out further.
Even so, when he put on the dark gray work uniform, he couldn't help but caress the tightly woven cotton.
He carefully examined its fabric, a flash of disbelief in his eyes.
Bay Territory's manufacturing capability far exceeded his expectations.
He had a hunch that this seemingly trivial information was more important than what he had learned from the Mind Flayers.
However, it was unlikely to draw the attention of the Elven Council.
In the Netheril Empire, Arcanists held the power, and the development of commoners was ignored.
The Elven Kingdom of Cole, modeled after the Netheril Empire, was even worse.
Even commoners with talent in spellcasting rarely received proper training.
High-ranking elven mages treated them merely as tools.
Only Legendary-level Grand Mages—
And high-level materials and techniques in spellcasting—
Would be valued by the Elven Kingdom of Cole.
That is also why the Netheril Empire wasn't targeted until it developed the High Arcanist system and floating cities.
But Tyrael was certain—
Even if Bay Territory currently had no Legendary mages—
And no mage towers at all—
Its real production capacity and threat level were already incredibly formidable.
Unfortunately, only he knew this, and he lacked the ability to "escape" from here.
More precisely, he still needed Bay Territory's protection to survive.
Most elves naturally grasped how to use the magical tools in the washrooms.
They expressed admiration, finding Bay Territory's creations very practical.
However, when they tasted dinner, a faint bitterness crept onto their faces.
Bay Territory hadn't assigned any great chefs—just served lean meat porridge, bread with bone broth, and a fist-sized piece of meat.
Of course, larger individuals like ogres and minotaurs received more bread and dried fish.
It was the best meal they'd had since being captured by the Gray Dwarves.
After dinner—
Bay Territory gave them no time for discussion or reflection.
They were asked to choose their jobs, positions, and tasks.
They quickly discovered that the most suitable job for Professionals—"combatant"—wasn't available.
However, they received an explanation from Sera:
"During professional skill and job training, everyone will also undergo Professional and combat coordination training."
"The main goal of the training is to ensure that everyone survives while completing tasks."
With Sera's strength and authority, everyone began obediently training.
The temps reluctantly began learning all sorts of knowledge and skills.
Unexpectedly—
The knowledge Bay Territory provided was not only highly practical but also easy to learn.
And incredibly beneficial to Professionals.
High-level Professionals especially felt the impact.
Bay Territory had a unique teaching method—first checking each Professional's existing skills and feats.
Once their current grasp was assessed, basic techniques and feats were assigned accordingly.
After learning—
They were surprised to discover they could rapidly master these and fill gaps in their foundation.
With that foundation filled, they felt renewed motivation and insight to advance further.
Their feelings toward Bay Territory quickly changed from fear and coercion to anticipation and complex hope.
What truly got all Professionals engaged was Bay Territory's announcement of the conditions for learning higher-level skills and feats:
More gold coins, more merits!
Simply put, complete more tasks and create more value for Bay Territory!
Want to get stronger?
Just complete more tasks for Bay Territory!
Thus, the temp Professionals at the ruin base, willingly or not, joined Bay Territory's operations.
Soon, the base became much busier.
Large swaths of ruins were cleared.
One ruin after another was emptied.
Piled-up stones turned into soil.
Mixed into magical concrete in shapes Bay Territory needed, they became parts of walls and buildings.
Many valuable things remained hidden in the ruins.
Weapons and gear left behind in Gray Dwarf houses.
Some leftover magical gear and artifacts.
All could reward the temp explorers with considerable loot.
Of course, given their current strength and numbers, Sera didn't let them go alone.
Each group of temps was assigned two or three gray elf modified Warriors from Bay Territory.
The unlucky liar didn't survive.
He became the first temp to die—and the one everyone would remember.
Don't die stupidly!
Through ruin excavation, most temps realized that the area wasn't that dangerous for now.
To earn more coin and merit, they decisively accelerated construction at the ruins base.
A small fortress rose amidst the ruins.
In less than ten days, it was built.
A large teleportation array had been completed, and the first batch of transported machinery and factory equipment was being assembled and activated.
The first to go into production: the arms factory for Bay Territory's army and all temp workers.
But both equipment and manpower were sufficient for the arms factory.
Gray Dwarves and Dwarves were excellent blacksmiths—after some quick training, they could run the factory themselves.
However, the lack of raw materials was the biggest problem facing the ruins base.
"So, those earlier patrol missions were just to ease us in. Now the real combat missions begin?"
Tyrael flipped through the map, recalling past encounters with weak undead, and smacked his lips.
Stroking his glowing staff, Trist remembered the high-level staves in the Explorers' Guild and nodded expectantly:
"Exactly. We might run into magical creatures hunting here—or even leftover Mind Flayer troops..."
Wolf-Fang, who was sharpening his blade nearby, slowly closed his eyes, recalling the combat techniques he had learned recently.
It was his first time realizing—
Combat was not just about strength and killing intent, but also technique and experience.
As long as he completed tasks—or turned in extra rewards during them—
He could learn higher-level combat techniques and skills.
Wolf-Fang suddenly felt that staying in Bay Territory offered far more promise than going elsewhere. He shrugged and said:
"We're going to face them sooner or later. Might as well do it while the gray elf lords are around. If we fall short, we can still improve later."
Trist nodded too, thinking of all the spellcasting techniques provided by Bay Territory, and said excitedly:
"Exactly. With them around, we might just get injured at worst. As long as we're careful, we'll survive. So why not grow stronger now?"
Hearing their words, Tyrael quickly realized—they were gradually accepting Bay Territory's employment.
The reason was simple: the rewards were just too good!
For Professionals with no family backing, no guild inheritance, and little wealth—
A faction like Bay Territory, where you could grow strong just by completing tasks, was irresistibly attractive.
The next morning—
They joined a ruin exploration task organized by Bay Territory.
And indeed encountered a group of ogre slaves left behind by the Mind Flayers.
But after killing two completely berserk ogres—
They were stunned to see Bay Territory trying to recruit the remaining dozens with food.
There were plenty of examples of ogres becoming mercenaries.
But since most ogres weren't very bright, the successful ones were usually exceptions.
Moreover, everyone knew that Bay Territory's ruins base had food shortages. Adding dozens of big eaters—could they really manage?
The result surprised everyone. Bay Territory not only recruited dozens of ogres—
But also gave them generous pay.
More than what others earned from killing magic beasts or turning in magical gear.
After learning this, many temp workers became interested in capturing magical and intelligent creatures.
In just a few days, they cleared the surrounding area.
They even discovered a branch of an iron ore vein.
Some temps struck it rich!
Not only did they receive tens of thousands of gold in rewards—they were exempted from four years of forced labor and earned enough merit to learn advanced skills and combat techniques.
Wealth moves the heart!
As all temps swarmed into factories or joined ruins exploration—
Sera, well-prepared, reported the situation to Yaya, who had been clearing dangerous magical beasts nearby.
Excited, Yaya was pleased with their "growth"—but decided to increase the difficulty!
Thus, a month after the ruins base was established—
A major event disrupted the temp workers' plans.
A new batch of captives, caught by the Gray Dwarves, was teleported in by Bay Territory's army.
Seeing over 2,000 more elven and Gray Dwarf captives, noticing their bewildered expressions—
The now-acclimated temp workers smiled faintly.
They all looked up to the sky in anticipation.
Yaya, radiating majestic presence, slowly descended and said to everyone watching:
"The final batch of supplies will arrive soon—just enough for one month."
"To improve your strength quickly, everyone will need to work and fight even harder."
"A 10,000-strong Mind Flayer army has already noticed us."
"The first wave will arrive in two months!"
"Because the Mind Flayer Empire has deployed the war equipment 'War Curtain,' large teleportation arrays are failing."
"So everyone must arm up quickly. I will do my best to slow them down."
Yaya's commanding voice shattered the calm of the base.
Under everyone's watchful gaze, she flapped her wings and flew into the darkness.
The temp workers preparing to welcome the newcomers were instantly dumbfounded.
"Ten thousand troops? There could be a Mind Flayer Tyrant..."
"At least 2,000 high-tier elites—we don't even have that many people!"
"Are we doomed in two months?"
"Even if the great true dragon is strong, she can't fight the entire Mind Flayer Empire..."
"Unless we deal with all enemies first, the great master should avoid joining the battle..."
"We must build taller walls fast..."
"Arming up is the priority. We need more troops and soldiers."
"What are you all standing around for? Get moving!"
The first batch of temp workers had already resumed work.
They naturally believed all manpower and resources should now focus on military production.
But within a few days, they noticed the base's entrance updating daily resource and supply data.
Sure, weapon and armor numbers were increasing.
But the rapidly dwindling food supply was the real crisis!
Seeing the life necessities gradually disappear—
Temps who only sought factory jobs or high-paying tasks panicked.
No food left?
That can't happen!
The Mind Flayers don't even need to attack—we'll starve first!
What now?
A well-prepared Sera smiled and addressed everyone:
"Now announcing the new development plan for the ruins base!"