IMC Chapter 101

With great excitement, people eagerly rushed outside the city, unable to wait to catch a glimpse of the legendary figure.

Accompanied by swirling gusts of wind, three enormous dragons, each in a different color, slowly descended to the ground. The overwhelming aura of the dragons made many people instinctively lower their heads, but their curiosity drove them to steal glances upward, hoping to spot the rumored deity.

Soon, someone leaped off one of the dragons. However, the moment their feet touched the ground, their legs gave way, and they fell to their knees.

The crowd exchanged puzzled looks. Could this person be the deity? Were they bowing so deeply right upon meeting everyone? Should they return the gesture? At that, the front row of people quickly knelt down, facing the figure and shouting, “Lord Deity!”

But Yu Lingqi, whose legs had gone numb from days of riding on dragon backs, was utterly baffled. Huh? Why are people nowadays so enthusiastic?

It wasn’t until someone whispered, “That’s a captive taken by the deity.”

The crowd collectively fell silent. …So this weakling couldn’t possibly be the deity!

They all hurriedly got back to their feet and resumed their search for the divine figure. There weren’t many people on the dragons’ backs. The half-mechanoid clearly couldn’t be Xia Wang’s deity, leaving only two possible candidates.

One of them had an unusual appearance, with strikingly unique eye and hair colors. The other, however, was truly eye-catching. Whether it was their build or features, they embodied the very essence of the word “deity”.

Sure enough, the high priest Xia Wang and the high priest White Bear arrived riding flying magical beasts. Their mounts landed at the forefront of the crowd, and the two high priests—typically calm and composed—were so thrilled that their eyes seemed to glimmer with light.

They briskly made their way toward the tall man and bowed deeply, their voices trembling with excitement as they spoke, “Lord Deity, you’ve finally returned!”

Behind the two high priests, those who couldn’t see the scene clearly assumed that the direction of their bows confirmed the deity’s identity. They followed suit, bowing and shouting, “Lord Deity!”

Because Shu Bao was standing right by Fu Qing’s feet, those familiar with Shu Bao didn’t find anything amiss. They, too, were overwhelmed with excitement, craning their necks to catch a glimpse of the adorable deity.

Amidst the crowd’s reverence, the group began to make their way toward Xia Wang City. The new members of the group kept their eyes fixed on the tall man, thinking to themselves that if a deity looked like this, perhaps pledging their faith wouldn’t be so bad after all.

After all, this deity not only looked extraordinary but also seemed very approachable. Even a mouse could walk ahead of him, and even the two high priests were walking ahead of him as well…?

Wait, isn’t there something wrong with this order?

Those two high priests, what exactly are you doing? Why are you bowing your heads around a mouse? Shouldn’t you turn around and look at Lord Deity? Weren’t you acting all longing and devoted before the deity’s return?

Just as the new members of the group were utterly baffled, high priest Xia Wang spoke to the mouse: “Lord Deity, was your journey smooth this time?”

The new members, who had been joyously welcoming the deity: ???

Shu Bao took small steps forward, replying, “It was fine, though I didn’t expect to be away for so long this time. But it seems like you’ve made quite some progress.”

“Indeed, a lot has happened during your absence,” High Priest White Bear said with deep emotion, looking as though he wished he could sit and talk with Shu Bao for three days straight.

The two high priests followed closely behind Shu Bao, step by step. Meanwhile, many familiar faces were arriving one after another. They pushed their way to the front of the group, shouting loudly toward Shu Bao.

“Lord Deity! You’ve finally returned!”

“Lord Deity! I missed you so much!”

“Lord Deity! Lord Deity!”

The growing number of cries finally forced the new members of Xia Wang City to confront a shocking reality: Xia Wang City’s deity was a mouse!

Though it was a talking mouse, over the years, they had encountered all sorts of magical beasts. Even a talking mouse wasn’t particularly surprising.

The massive crowd followed Shu Bao as he moved farther away. Those who stayed behind slowly recovered from their shock. Looking at their equally stunned companions, they couldn’t help but whisper among themselves.

“The legendary Xia Wang Deity is actually a mouse?!”

“Can a mouse even become the deity of a tribe?”

“Good thing I don’t believe in deities. Honestly, this is kind of funny.”

“Shh! Keep your voice down. If those believers hear you, you’re in trouble!”

“And what if they do? They said belief wasn’t mandatory! I didn’t believe before, and now there’s no chance I’ll ever believe!”

“All this time, the deity I’ve been worshipping turned out to be a mouse?”

…

Outside the city walls, the residents of Xia Wang City were in turmoil. For those without faith, it was easier to brush off, finding the idea of a mouse deity simply ridiculous. But for the faithful, seeing the deity’s true form for the first time was a revelation they found difficult to accept.

Of course, among the crowd, there were also devout believers who, after regaining their composure, immediately followed the masses to continue pursuing their faith.

This day was truly an eye-opening one for the residents of Xia Wang City. They witnessed the legendary dragons and met the rumored deity, though the deity’s identity far exceeded their expectations of what a tribal deity could be.

Shu Bao hadn’t expected such a massive commotion upon returning. Wherever he went, he was surrounded by crowds, so he quickly fled to the mission hall. Fortunately, as the hall was considered sacred ground, only the high priests dared to follow him inside. The others stopped at the entrance.

Even as Shu Bao and the high priests entered the mission hall, the fervent crowd outside lingered for a long time. It wasn’t until dusk, when they had to prepare for the evening defense battle, that they reluctantly dispersed and returned to their homes.

The gradually fading noise from outside finally allowed Shu Bao to relax. Being surrounded by so many people had made the little mouse nervous. He darted back into the room through a crack in the door, grabbed a round, plump date, and started munching on it while motioning for the high priests to continue their report.

The two high priests took turns recounting the development of the tribe during the thirty-plus years of Shu Bao’s absence, occasionally interspersing their narration with effusive praise for him. By now, Shu Bao was thoroughly desensitized to the compliments, focusing instead on extracting the key points from their account.

In summary, when Shu Bao left the tribe, its basic infrastructure and buildings were already well-established. With the presence of a magical academy and a military training base, Xia Wang Tribe’s strength grew rapidly.

After annexing the Long Tribe, there were no remaining threats in the surrounding areas. Gradually, Xia Wang became a center of trade, power, and influence.

While the residents of the tribe couldn’t replicate Shu Bao’s systematic construction methods, they had their own ideas and creativity.

Workers in the wood processing factory eventually developed new architectural styles. With the help of wood-element mages, buildings in the tribe began to feature a variety of designs. Not to be outdone, earth- and metal-element mages started experimenting with stone structures. Inspired by the magical academy’s design, Western-style architecture began to flourish in the tribe.

Though mages from other disciplines didn’t construct buildings, they excelled at adding decorative or functional elements. This led to structures adorned with beautiful plants and flowers, with some beast trainers even building nests on their balconies for their magical beasts.

Over time, the number and diversity of buildings in the Xia Wang Tribe grew, creating a unique blend of Eastern and Western styles and a harmonious coexistence of humans and magical beasts.

Thanks to the existence of magic, the city walls became taller and the buildings grew higher, eventually surpassing even the magical academy and the electric towers. During this construction boom, the wood processing factory underwent two upgrades due to unlocking an abundance of architectural blueprints.

Beyond the wood processing factory, other facilities also upgraded over time. With these resources, the Xia Wang Tribe continued its rapid development.

Furthermore, at night, merchant caravans would often appear at the tribe’s gates, delivering supplies provided by Lan Qing. Occasionally, Lan Qing himself would return to participate in base construction. Over time, many new structures were unlocked under his direction, including a steel refinery, a dam, hydroelectric and wind power stations, solar power systems, and even a shipyard.

In most team-building scenarios, the main administrator wouldn’t grant teammates full permissions. But Shu Bao was an exception. Lan Qing had complete operational control. Because he hadn’t been able to accompany Shu Bao on an expedition due to an unforeseen incident, Lan Qing always felt he owed him. As a result, the snake worked tirelessly, splitting his efforts between the chaotic world and reality, running himself ragged to make up for it.

After Shu Bao left, Lan Qing took on the role of a truly exceptional teammate. He mined ores, ran a tavern, crafted potions, accepted missions, and managed base construction all at once.

Listening to this, Shu Bao was so touched he almost cried. He immediately regretted not leaving more talent books for his snake teammate before departing. If he had, Lan Qing wouldn’t just be a master alchemist now—he could have been so much more!

In short, over the thirty years, the base never stopped growing. It even developed subsidiary cities, the largest of which was the Long Tribe. After all, their deity had insisted on joining Xia Wang as a captive, even if it meant being knocked unconscious.

Yu Lingqi, who was munching on some nuts nearby: “…” It’s fine to talk about history, but was it really necessary to mention the knocking unconscious part?

For thirty years, much had happened. The two high priests recounted event after event, even forgetting about dinner as they reminisced.

The rest of the team listened intently, thoroughly enjoying the stories, as though they were witnessing the transformation of Xia Wang from a small tribe into a thriving city. By now, Xia Wang City had a population of nearly 100,000. Among its residents were those who had migrated for a better life, refugees rescued by Ru Su, and those drawn by the city’s reputation, aspiring to become mages or knights.

These residents included ordinary people seeking stability, adventurers with a passion for exploration, and, of course, a fair share of geniuses.

As they listened to the stories, not just Yu Lingqi but even Fu Qing felt a twinge of bitterness. What kind of divine residents were these? Not only were they hardworking and diligent, but they also actively pursued self-improvement and sought progress on their own. They were nothing like Fu Qing’s subordinates, who seemed to think about rebellion every other day.

While chewing on his nuts, Yu Lingqi suddenly had a revelation. Whether in the past or the future, it would be impossible for him to conquer Xia Wang Tribe. The tribe’s core was Shu Bao, and yet, it wasn’t just Shu Bao.

The tribe’s growth didn’t depend solely on Shu Bao being at the base. His absence didn’t hinder Xia Wang’s development—perhaps this was what a true base should be like.

Even if one day the competitors left, the base would continue to thrive. It wouldn’t collapse just because it had lost its so-called deity. It would still have a future.

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