Chapter Twelve: Divine Strategy, Chang Yin!

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Moreover, a person’s aptitude sets the maximum level cap they can reach. For example, if a player’s aptitude is at level 4, they can upgrade up to level 49 without bottlenecks. To break past level 50, they must overcome internal constraints by undertaking an advanced trial. Although challenging, the path forward still exists. Compared to those with aptitude above level 6, the advantage is much less, but if someone’s aptitude is at level 9, they face virtually no bottlenecks before level 99—this is a significant difference.

However, the difficulty of leveling up in the Huaxia region’s game "Mythical Three Kingdoms" is downright hellish for players.

...

While aptitude limits level and increases core attributes, fate configuration determines the quality of one’s innate talents.

A person’s fate configuration, when aligned with different fate palaces, activates different talents.

In Lin Mu’s view, the Central Fate Configuration and the Changing Heaven Fate Configuration are among the better ones, while the Eastern Fate Configuration is common, the most frequently activated among ordinary players and NPCs, and also constitutes the largest proportion overall.

Lin Mu’s past life fate configuration belonged to the Eastern Fate Configuration, aligned with the Noon Horse Fate Palace. The talents it activated were mediocre and not worth mentioning.

He hoped for a stroke of luck this lifetime to activate a superior fate palace and talents. As for aptitude, taking some spiritual pills or using mystical treasures from heaven and earth could also improve it.

Lin Mu’s thoughts returned from Feng Zhong’s astounding attributes, and he eagerly clicked on Chang Yin’s profile:

Name: Chang Yin, styled Yuanjian
Aptitude: Level 9 [Heavenly Phase] (Sealed)
Loyalty: 100
Profession: God-level Scholar
Divine Title: None
Vitality: 1.16 Yuan
Status: Village Officer
Merit: 0
Level: 0 (0%)
Leadership: 10 Martial Power: 10 Intelligence: 10 Politics: 15
[Derived Attributes]:
Combat Power: 1000
Command Power: 1000
Divine Strategy Power: 1000
Internal Affairs Efficiency: 295% (100% [Special Scholar Profession Bonus] + 15% + 180%)
Stamina: 200
Speed: 26
Defense: 100
Morale: 100
Talent: [Trailblazing Innovator]
Skills: Bumper Harvest, Favorable Weather, Cultural Harmony, Prosperous Living

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Specialties:
Specialty 1: Advanced [Field Farming] specialty, increasing grain production by 10% during farming operations.
Specialty 2: Master-level [Territorial Expansion] specialty, doubling the overall effectiveness when leading settlers in land reclamation and similar efforts.

Inner Skill: "Book of Nature"—a god-level cultivation technique with twelve tiers. Each tier studied increases political attribute by 2 points. Successfully mastering this greatly enhances strategist and scholar skills, providing special bonuses to territorial tasks such as farming, afforestation, mountain excavation, lake digging, and mineral gathering. Currently studied up to the ninth tier, increasing political attribute by 9 points, territorial work state bonus at 180% (20% per tier), and scholar skill bonus at 900%.

Equipment: Cloth robe, straw sandals, [Ancestor’s Protection]
Wealth: 191 Vitality Gold, 39 Gold

After reviewing Feng Zhong’s stats, Lin Mu felt less excitement looking at Chang Yin’s attributes. Chang Yin’s skills and equipment were relatively ordinary, and Lin Mu was already very familiar with the territorial state skills Bumper Harvest, Favorable Weather, Cultural Harmony, and Prosperous Living, so he did not examine them in detail.

Lin Mu clicked on the special equipment [Ancestor’s Protection] and talent [Trailblazing Innovator] for more information:

Item Name: [Ancestor’s Protection]
Rank: Legacy Artifact
Type: Accessory
Attributes: Contains all the legacies of the ancient sage [Chang Xian], only inheritable by his descendants.
Description: Said to be a heritage artifact of the Chang scholar clan, carrying the clan’s legacy, usable only by descendants of the Chang bloodline. Contains the "Book of Nature" and other revolutionary strategies and cultivation techniques.

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[Trailblazing Innovator]: Level 9 [Heavenly Phase] talent. When aligned with the Heavenly Phase star, increases research and development success rate by 30% in the led R&D department.

Lin Mu was not surprised by [Ancestor’s Protection]. After seeing Feng Zhong’s attributes, he guessed that Chang Yin might be a descendant of the ancient sage [Chang Xian].

However, upon seeing the level 9 [Heavenly Phase] talent [Trailblazing Innovator], Lin Mu’s mind was blown! This was unbelievably powerful—an R&D success rate boost of 30%! Once an R&D institution was established, how many new skills, blueprints, and items would be created? That R&D department would be a goldmine! Lin Mu already imagined the future of effortlessly collecting wealth.

He recalled that the R&D department’s previous maximum boost was about 5%, granted by an expert-level building—a very impressive figure then. Compared to [Trailblazing Innovator], it was like Mount Tai versus a feather.

Previously, Lin Mu thought Chang Yin was simply a god-level scholar focused on increasing territorial production. Unexpectedly, this talent would transform the territory into a city of innovation, endlessly generating breakthroughs and enriching the land’s foundation. Lin Mu was stunned by the enormous surprise.

Technology is the primary productive force, and innovation is the source of technology.

As an ambitious man, Lin Mu immediately began envisioning detailed plans upon seeing this talent.

Ha! Like adding wings to a tiger!

Now Lin Mu set aside everything else and immersed himself in this great excitement.

Chang Yin’s level 9 [Heavenly Phase] talent was already so formidable. He wondered what Feng Zhong’s level 9 [Martial Tune] talent [Power to Subdue the Gods] might be like.

He eagerly anticipated it!

Both Feng Zhong and Chang Yin cultivated god-level techniques. Lin Mu was unsurprised, having heard of god-level cultivation techniques before. As a player familiar with the mythological Three Kingdoms world, he knew that gods like Lü Bu and Zhao Yun used such techniques. They wielded divine weapons, rode epic mounts—resplendent and grand.

The two NPCs granted by his system as assistants were of their caliber—extraordinary. He also marveled at the sheer power of the god-level village building token.

If someone else got this token, it would be a nightmare for Lin Mu. Luckily, he was the one becoming the nightmare for others. How satisfying that felt!

Many of Feng Zhong and Chang Yin’s skills were unfamiliar to Lin Mu, but judging by their descriptions, their effects must be extraordinary. He resolved to pay attention to them in the future.

For players, weapons and equipment, especially divine weapons, remain the ultimate pursuit. In ordinary games, players’ greatest desire is for equipment—to defeat various bosses and conquer dungeons—all for gear.

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In "Mythical Three Kingdoms," equipment is ranked in five tiers: Divine, Heaven, Earth, Mysterious, and Yellow. That is, Divine-tier gear, Heaven-tier gear, Earth-tier gear, Mysterious-tier gear, and Yellow-tier gear. Then there are ordinary items. The cloth shoes Lin Mu had were common, low-quality gear—fine for walking around but would quickly wear out in fierce battles.

However, Lin Mu recalled a special kind of straw sandal made by Liu Bei!

Before his rise to prominence, Liu Bei’s secondary occupation was as a tailor, specializing in crafting straw sandals. But these were no ordinary sandals—Lin Mu clearly remembered their attributes were nearly godlike: Speed +5, Speed +100%, and Durability that auto-restores.

All three attributes were precious—these were the legendary indestructible straw sandals!

...

Divine-tier equipment being sealed was understandable. Haha, too powerful—system-imposed restrictions were a mark of strength. Lin Mu held no grudge against the sealed gear. The stronger, the better. Haha...

After reviewing Feng Zhong and Chang Yin’s attributes, Lin Mu felt like a child utterly satisfied, trembling with excitement, his face beaming with a broad smile, laughter growing louder.

Lin Mu’s laughter caught Chang Yin’s attention, who asked, “My lord, my lord… Lord of the territory, do you have joyful news? Would you share it with your humble servant?” Chang Yin was speechless after several calls but remained immersed in Lin Mu’s great happiness.

“Ah, Yuanjian, it’s you. It’s nothing, nothing!” Lin Mu waved his hand, coming back to his senses from the surprise.

“Seeing your attributes so outstanding, with you and Feng Jin here, I feel like a fish in water, like a tiger with wings! So fortunate, so fortunate! Haha…” Lin Mu used their courtesy names to show closeness. Although it was the first day meeting, Lin Mu felt very familiar with Chang Yin and Feng Zhong—partners in mischief, or rather, comrades sharing the same ideals!

“My attributes are not particularly impressive, just average!” Chang Yin replied modestly, calm as ever.

“By the way, you and Feng Jin both have legacy artifacts. So you must be descendants from the ancient era? Could you tell me about your glorious ancestors?” Lin Mu noted the [Ancestor’s Protection] and [Wind Queen’s Protection] in their equipment.

“Reporting to you, my lord, my surname is Chang. I am a descendant of [Chang Xian], an attendant minister under the [Emperor Xuanyuan]! Feng Zhong and Feng Jin are descendants of [Wind Queen], also attendants under Emperor Xuanyuan! Thus, under the blessings of our ancestors, we stand as we do! We must not be proud or boastful!”

Indeed, Chang Yin and Feng Zhong descended from divine ancestors, with glorious identities and honored bloodlines—truly extraordinary. Having their assistance promised a brighter, easier future.

Who was Emperor Xuanyuan? He was one of the human emperors, who unified the Central Plains and created countless tools and products benefitting future generations. Both [Chang Xian] and [Wind Queen] were his trusted ministers who contributed greatly!

Ancient sages generally passed on their legacies through bloodlines, but sadly, such things seem to have vanished in the current mythological world.

“The [Yellow Dragon Token] you obtained earlier is the heart of the supreme imperial city established by Emperor Xuanyuan!” Chang Yin suddenly revealed a secret, shocking Lin Mu deeply.

Supreme, imperial dynasty, city heart... Lin Mu’s mind spun, realizing it belonged to that person. Suddenly, fear gripped him and he asked urgently, “Is Emperor Xuanyuan dead? Would he want to reclaim the [Yellow Dragon Token]?” Lin Mu could not believe the emperor was truly dead. The mythological world was mysterious; someone with such grand achievements surely would not fade easily. Yet, he still asked.

“Haha, rest assured, my lord. The imperial sovereign won’t reclaim the [Yellow Dragon Token]. It is now your personal property. You have bound it with your blood, and no one can seize or demand it—not even immortals, unless you consent!” Chang Yin understood Lin Mu’s worry and joked lightly. He did not answer about Emperor Xuanyuan’s status, sidestepping the question. Lin Mu was still greatly concerned but did not press further.

“That’s a relief, a relief. I feel much better now!” Lin Mu thought to himself—if the [Yellow Dragon Token] were taken away, he would lose his greatest advantage. Then what chance would he have at world domination or unchecked power? He was not lucky enough to be a divine dragon’s heir or a descendant of gods like Liu Bei, Cao Cao, Sun Jian, or Yuan Shao. He was just an ordinary player gaining 4 points of core attributes per level up.

Ordinary players were like humble commoners in the Han imperial society.

Lin Mu had not fully dispelled his worries. Great gains bring great responsibilities and obligations, though he was unaware of them yet...

Truly, there is no free lunch in this world. It seemed a different path awaited.

Lin Mu did not fear that Chang Yin or Feng Zhong would deceive him. Their loyalty was at 100, an unbreakable state of absolute devotion. Loyalty would not decline for any reason.

Absolute loyalty is a special status—the highest level of NPC recruitment for players. Once attained, NPCs never betray their lord.

No matter what, Lin Mu resolved to develop quietly, avoid arrogance and complacency. As long as he grew stronger and his territory prospered, no one could bully or force him to compromise. This was his silent vow.

After coming to these thoughts, Lin Mu felt refreshed and utterly at ease.

His conversation with Chang Yin had truly shaken him to the core.