A few miles from Xia Tian's territory, by a gurgling mountain stream, a group of people were drinking water.
There were old people and children, but mostly young and strong men and women. Their ancient-style clothes were covered in mud and had many scratches from tree branches!
"Captain Wu is back."
At this moment, a commotion arose in the crowd.
A burly man with thick eyebrows and long black hair walked over.
In one hand, he carried a `pudao` for clearing paths, and in the other, he single-handedly carried a wild boar, weighing at least three hundred catties, with blood gushing from its mouth and nose. He strode powerfully, showing no signs of effort.
After the black-haired man threw the wild boar to the ground, a short, extremely small man took out a `cuibing` from his Pregnant and handed it to him.
"Uncle, have some water."
Another woman, though dressed in simple cloth and wearing a plain hairpin, with almost no makeup on her face, still possessed remarkable beauty. She used a large leaf to scoop some water from the nearby mountain stream and offered it to him.
"Thank you, sister-in-law!"
The black-haired man took the water with both hands and gulped it down. Droplets of water rolled from the edge of the leaf onto his broad chest, causing the woman's face to flush slightly as she quickly turned her head away.
"Captain Wu, have you found a way out of the jungle?"
At this moment, an old man with graying hair stepped forward and asked tremblingly.
"No, this place is all mountains and trees, there's no way out. However, I ran into this wild boar on the way and killed it with two punches. We have food for today!"
The black-haired man shook his head, and his words brought a look of dejection to the crowd.
They had been living well in their own world when suddenly the earth shook. In their panicked escape, they were swallowed by a chasm and fell into this jungle, encountering all sorts of strange creatures: black scorpions with tails over three feet long, golden bees the size of a baby's fist, small green-skinned monsters wearing skulls as hats, and giants made of stone that could move... If it weren't for the leadership of "Captain Wu," who served in the yamen, a large portion of them would have probably been eaten by the ghosts and beasts of the mountains after landing!
But if they couldn't find a way out and kept struggling, even if the strong adults in the group survived, the elderly and children wouldn't be able to hold on.
"Huh, did you hear that?"
Suddenly, the group seemed to sense something and looked up in a certain direction.
"I heard it! It's like 'Heaven's Will' is guiding us to a nearby 'human territory.' It can shelter us, has houses to live in, and plenty of food!"
The group's eyes widened. After processing the information that appeared in their minds, their dejected expressions turned excited.
"Captain Wu! Should we follow Heaven's Will's guidance?"
However, they quickly all turned their heads to the black-haired man leading them.
After all, this jungle was mostly dangerous. Even with the "guidance," if this fierce man who could kill a wild boar with two punches didn't lead the way, not many of the others would likely remain even if they reached the destination!
"Let's go, let's take a look!"
Captain Wu, with his long black hair and resolute eyes, nodded after a brief moment of thought.
So, with anticipation in their hearts, the group forged ahead through thorns and brambles in the direction of the "guidance"!
"What? Refugees don't just 'spawn' directly? They need to be recruited from those people who come from the 'Sea of Illusions'? And it depends on the distance and travel time?"
Xia Tian looked at the message, "Refugees are on their way," with a disappointed expression in his territory.
"Alright, considering this isn't a game, it makes more sense this way."
Then, he shook his head helplessly.
He had originally thought he would immediately have manpower for territory construction, but now it seemed he would still have to rely on himself first.
He just hoped those refugees would be strong in combat, otherwise, encountering creatures like golden wyverns or black-and-white feathered chickens and suffering heavy losses would be too much of a disadvantage!
"Forget it, don't think about these things. Hmm, I remember I just opened a golden skill book?"
With a flash of light, Xia Tian took out an ancient thread-bound secret manual from his lord's space.
Like the "Refugee Recruitment Scroll," it was one of the three golden items.
【Five Animal Play (Gold)】
【Level】Mortal-grade
【Description】The crystallization of two thousand years of wisdom from an ancient Eastern country. After learning, you can master the Grandmaster-level cultivation insights and experience of the "Five Animal Play." Through practice, you can continuously strengthen your physique and soul attributes, up to your Mortal-grade limit!
【Remarks】The might of the tiger, the comfort of the deer, the steadiness of the bear, the agility of the ape, and the swiftness of the bird—these five are called the "Five Animals"!
"By the way, how are colors and qualities divided?"
Xia Tian asked with some curiosity.
【Quality can be divided into gray, white, green, blue, silver, and gold.】
【Among them, gray represents defective, white represents common, green represents fine, blue is very rare, silver is extremely rare, and gold is precious and also the current limit of the heaven and earth rules.】
The Earth's Will's response appeared in his mind.
"So, the Five Animal Play is already the strongest cultivation method a new lord can obtain! I wonder what skills others have received?"
Xia Tian scanned the "Regional Chat" channel with some curiosity.
"Haha, I actually opened the 'Taekwondo' secret manual from a treasure chest, white quality, which can double my physique. As expected, my Three-Star Empire's martial arts are extraordinary and have been recognized by the Eternal Land."
"Hehe, that's hilarious. Lord of a certain country, where do you get your confidence? You're showing off a white-quality, flowery martial art. Green-quality 'Judo' contains the insights and experience of a proficient cultivator and can increase physique by a full two times!"
"Sawadee krap. Ancient Muay Thai, green quality, proficient-level insights and experience, increases physique by two times, and soul by one time!"
"Yoga, green quality, increases soul by three times... Love from India."
"Eighteen Black Dragon Hands..."
Many lords in the regional channel began to show off their "initial cultivation methods."
This was mainly because these initial cultivation methods were clearly related to their cultural backgrounds on Earth, such as Taekwondo from the Three-Star country, Judo from the Cherry Blossom country... However, it was probably because their treasure chest levels were not enhanced, most of them were only white and green quality, and at most, they only gained the experience of a "proficient" level cultivator!
"So... what exactly are you proud of and showing off?"
Xia Tian looked at the "Five Animal Play" in his hand again, especially the words "Grandmaster-level experience, human body limit" in the description.
As for the "physique, soul" attributes, Xia Tian also knew the standard from his personal attributes.
【Xia Tian (Green)】
【Level】Fifth-tier (Mortal-grade)
【Physique】1.1 (Includes strength, endurance, speed, etc., the average for adult Earth humans is 1)
【Soul】1.6 (Includes soul, spirit, will, etc., the average for adult Earth humans is 1)
【Talent】Not yet acquired (Activates after becoming a "Hero")
【Trait】Knowledgeable and Strong-willed (Learning and memory abilities exceed ordinary people)
【Skills】None (A skill will only be displayed when it reaches 'Proficient,' subsequently divided into 'Expert, Master, Grandmaster')
"Physique, soul, the meaning of these two words is not difficult to understand. My physique is relatively poor, after all, I spent a long time reading novels during college and didn't exercise much, so I estimate it's on the lower side among human males!"
"But my 'soul' attribute is relatively high, reaching 1.6 times the average, much stronger than the average person. Moreover, my strong memory since childhood has also been reflected, which is quite accurate!"
Xia Tian was quite satisfied with his attributes; although not high, they should be above average.
The most important thing was that with the "Five Animal Play," he would be able to make both reach the "Mortal-grade limit" of his own body.
"I wonder how high my limit will be?"
Xia Tian opened the secret manual in his hand with anticipation, and then a golden stream of light burst out from it, merging into his mind.
And as the golden light integrated, as if enlightened, Xia Tian found that a large amount of practice experience, key points, and tricks regarding the "Five Animal Play" appeared in his mind.