Wow! The item-dropping rate is really high!

"He's here, he's here!"

Dai Lian's spirit jolted as he paid close attention to the distance.

The shadow emerging from the horizon was undoubtedly the figure they most wanted to see.

Familiar posture, familiar figure... It's the Lord!

A brief separation like a honeymoon, even the composed Dai Lian couldn't help but have slightly moist eyes at this moment.

Lord, you have finally come! How could I live without you!

...

After finishing the basic training for mecha operation and having lunch, Bai E rushed over.

He now stepped calmly in front of the three players, his smile unchanged despite the days apart.

"You've met the people I arranged, haven't you?"

The missing refugee elder Gilder hadn't truly been taken by the spider that night; the disappearance was merely a "defection" agreed upon in secret by the two.

The elder didn't trust the city, and Bai E needed development—it was a perfect match.

A huge refugee camp could hardly be managed by just a dozen soldiers, not to mention counting them accurately.

How many exactly, wasn't it ultimately up to the elderly man managing the refugees?

And not just he himself, a few refugees hadn't actually entered the city...

The missing elder, on Bai E's instructions, was shown the way to the underground warehouse constructed by the players.

An elder with many years of life experience, even upon arriving at an unfamiliar place, wouldn't suffer due to a lack of life skills.

With directions from Bai E, the elder easily and inconspicuously found the players' secret base, and with his rich life experience, he would only need some time to get acquainted and should easily take up the role of "warehouse manager."

This was the responsibility and task Bai E had temporarily given him.

"Signboard... the old grandfather is really nice and quite capable," Dai Lian answered on behalf of the trio.

He wasn't just being polite; the grandfather was indeed very nice and quite capable.

As a signboard grandfather, he could even issue quests to the three: [Side Quest – Stock Food].

He could also impart abilities not offered for exchange in the Faction Shop: [Technology – Management, Knowledge – Conventional Vehicle Maintenance].

Whether they were used or not, this was his unique function.

As a signboard grandfather, what he could do had already far exceeded their expectations, they couldn't ask for more.

Bai E nodded with satisfaction, "That's good..."

Gilder managed to keep a group of over four hundred people together without disbanding, which naturally showed his strengths and advantages.

Keeping a few players in line shouldn't be a problem.

"Let's go down and have a look," Bai E gestured with a tilt of his chin.

Due to the affiliation of his power, the moment he saw the three players, Bai E could see from the floating text over their heads exactly how many faction tokens each owned.

[Gong Yan: 320 points of faction contribution, 1650 faction funds.]

[Dai Lian: 310 points of faction contribution, 1650 faction funds.]

[Kuang Xin: 250 points of faction contribution, 1850 faction funds.]

This meant that since Gilder's arrival, he had distributed 250 points of faction contribution to each of them, more than double the total of 110 points previously given by Bai E himself.

Before Gilder took office, Bai E had told him about his management policy for these… members, hoping that Gilder could take over some of his judgment and reduce some of his workload.

If he decided to develop a power, then it was inevitable he couldn't handle everything himself... Delegating authority was both an inevitable and necessary decision.

Gilder made a good impression on Bai E, who also trusted Gilder's judgment.

But the rewards he issued still had to be fulfilled by himself. Such a large number of rewards released at once always gave him some concerns.

What if… what if Gilder, being new, didn't "fully" understand the value of these tokens?

He needed to issue contribution points for the legitimate purpose of reaping players' experience, but at the same time, he needed the faction tokens he had set to hold enough "value" in the eyes of the players.

...

'Wow!'

The changes were quite significant.

Down in the cavern, spacious and regular.

The original passageway had been neatly cemented.

A patch of iron-gray ground was the first thing to catch the eye, its cemented surface exuding a sense of smoothness and grandeur.

Bai E's gaze widened, and it was apparent that the entire underground "cave" could no longer be called a "cave"; the semblance of a base was taking shape, and perhaps the construction of a power had truly begun on the right track from this moment...

A faint realization arose in Bai E's mind. Gilder, sitting behind a table, stood up to greet Bai E immediately, "Lord..."

In his aged eyes was a profound and sincere respect.

'The Lord is being far too modest…'
Find more adventures on empire

Before his arrival, Bai E emphasized repeatedly that his power was just getting started with scarce personnel, limited materials, and underdeveloped infrastructure, all requiring his attentive care.

He was prepared to develop from the ground up, with nothing at hand and even felt somewhat apologetic for his self-interest that had involved the Lord's desire to develop.

Had it not been for the intention to take care of himself and so many refugees, the Lord probably wouldn't have considered starting a major power on his own. It was due to his own defection that the Lord had embarked on this path, probably out of necessity.

And that meant the Lord would likely have to invest much more effort in the future.

However...

Although the base was just starting out, its foundation was complete and robust, the mountains of cement hidden in the unknown sewers displayed the depth of the adult's resources and thorough preparation.

There were only four personnel, but each was a pillar of talent, filled with trust for others yet not losing sight of personal judgment, possessing ample initiative and sufficient strength, easily and efficiently preparing the food that was requested, and most importantly, the internal unity, trust, and enthusiasm were abundant.

This was an excellent team.

The supplies were indeed not plentiful, but the base, with only five people including oneself, truly did not need too much for the time being.

Although the adult had not lied, in a sense, they had also "deceived" in terms of "attitude".

Such an outstanding team was merely described as "primitive conditions." The adult was truly too modest!

Of course, the more central aspect was the management guidelines and strategies set by the adult—

The internal contribution system and financial policies of the faction were simply strokes of genius!

Not only did the adult possess a leadership aura that could stir anyone to follow, but their means of leading the organization were also equally convincing.

With such a wise ruler, what more could one want?

[Lucky Strike energy +3.]

[It's just a clumsy imitation of those gaming dogs' planners...]

Listening to Gilder's embarrassingly flattering praises, especially his heartfelt "admiration," Bai E waved his hand, "Enough of this, I have important matters to deal with them."

"Yes! Sir!"

In the time it took for two sentences, the players had also climbed down.

"Sir..."

"Sir!"

The three stood tall and proud, looking at Bai E.

The vast semi-finished underground warehouse before them was the masterpiece of their ceaseless toil, and seeing the secret underground base they had crafted with their own hands take shape like this, they felt a great sense of accomplishment.

"You've done well, is there anything particularly you'd like?" Bai E asked the three with a smile.

Players, after all... a barrage of words can't outweigh some solid benefits.

The best way to win them over is to directly satisfy their desires.

'I wonder what's on the third level of the Faction Shop?'

Kuang Xin had already learned the advanced physical training from the second level of the Faction Shop, and unlocking the third level required at least two purchases from the second level, all while the Faction Shop refreshed individually for each person.

With these considerations, Kuang Xin, who had secretly discussed with the others beforehand, stepped forward, his eyes eagerly fixed on Bai E, "Sir, I want to learn the master-level Mecha combat specialization!"

The earlier one could master the special attributes as the specialization levels improved, the higher the ceiling for potential would become, this was a gaming trick they had already discovered.

And even without Bai E's command, Kuang Xin had recently been immersed in underground fighting rings, going there every night had become his routine.

In the thrilling close-quarters battles, his physical abilities, reflexes, and fighting skills were rapidly improving.

Of course... as his bouts increased and his "hidden rank" rose, he could distinctly feel the opponents arranged by the arena becoming more formidable.

His strength was barely keeping up with the level of his opponents, and he needed to improve urgently.

Directly leveling up with experience would compromise his future potential, so he was waiting for Bai E to return and learn from him.

"Good."

Bai E nodded, accommodating as ever.

After all, he would be the one to benefit.

Collecting 100 contribution points, Bai E began teaching the master-level... that is, the complete Mecha combat specialization.

He did so by demonstrating each move one by one.

He currently had ample time, no longer like before when he was under pressure.

Being part of the armored forces yet preserving the special forces unit meant he had in a sense become a completely free individual, and he even had proof to leave the camp at any time. Although he was still part of the military's structure, when there were no mandatory missions, he was essentially a free man outside the military.

He had not forcefully left the military, but he had begun to rid himself of the military's constraints.

[Teaching finished, from the feedback of the "teaching" you have altogether gained 130 combat experience points, 1580 general experience points.]

The massive expenditure of experience reserves had just been somewhat replenished through the players...

And it wasn't that Kuang Xin had learned all of Bai E's signature skills, only that was the extent of his experience.

Observing Kuang Xin's look of disappointment, Bai E patted him on the shoulder with a smile.

"Don't be disheartened, there will be other opportunities, and I won't charge you twice for contribution..."

"Yes! Sir!"

Kuang Xin's eyes lit up, his despondency had not been without worry about this very matter.

If he hadn't learned everything from the contribution-based teaching, would he have to pay the contribution again for another lesson? He had no prior knowledge on this matter, and those insidious game developers had scammed people plenty of times on such issues, and the NPC operations in this game were quite disgusting too, like the recently encountered "mission bracelet".

Our organization is so much clearer!

I surely followed the right person!

And more importantly...

[The third level of the Faction Shop has been unlocked...]

Let me see what's in store!