Zhou Yan opened his territory panel and spotted an overlooked notice.
[Territory Prompt: "Your territory meets upgrade requirements. Proceed?"]
Upgrading required his active confirmation—a step he'd nearly missed. He clicked to proceed.
[Territory Prompt: "Territory upgraded to level 2."]
[Territory Name: Heavenly Court]
[Lord: Zhou Yan (details)]
[Quality: White (Color · Hidden)]
[Territory Talent: Special Items +10%]
[Territory Level: 2 (Next level requires 5 buildings at level 3+)]
[Area: 1,000 square meters]
[Special Attribute: Human race within territory, all attributes +10%]
[Buildings: King Crystal (Level 1), Spiritual Bamboo House (Level 1), Bronze Sparrow Terrace (Level 1), Mystery Store (Level 1), Flame Tower (Level 1), Thorn Vine Fence (Level 1)]
[Villager: 1]
[Resources: Soul Coins: 1,820, Spirit Coins: 398,264]
The expanded details pleased him—a perk of the "server" upgrade. A new special attribute caught his eye: +10% to all human attributes within the territory. Shock rippled through him. Such bonuses typically emerged at level 10, tied to quality, yet his level 2 territory defied norms. He wondered if future upgrades would yield more. The area doubling to 1,000 square meters—standard for others at level 10—underscored the colorful lord space's edge.
Flush with nearly 400,000 spirit coins, he turned to his buildings. With a decisive gesture, he began upgrading.
[Territory Prompt: "Consumed 200 spirit coins. King Crystal rises to level 2."]
[Territory Prompt: "Consumed 300 spirit coins. King Crystal rises to level 3."]
[Territory Prompt: "Consumed 400 spirit coins. King Crystal rises to level 4."]
…
[Territory Prompt: "Consumed 1,000 spirit coins. King Crystal rises to level 10."]
"Finally done," Zhou Yan murmured, smiling at the King Crystal. Then, a jolt—its upgrade option lingered. "Wait, it's still upgradable?" Excitement surged. Novice trial rules capped buildings at level 10, but his territory shrugged off limits. Trembling with anticipation, he pushed further.
[Territory Prompt: "Consumed 2,000 spirit coins. King Crystal rises to level 11."]
"What the—?" His jaw dropped. Unbound by trial constraints, his territory offered boundless potential—a game-changer. Post-trial, upgrades demanded specific resources, often elusive, a bane for lords. Yet now, with spirit coins aplenty, he faced no such barriers. The King Crystal, the territory's heart, took priority.
[Territory Prompt: "Consumed 3,000 spirit coins. King Crystal rises to level 12."]
[Territory Prompt: "Consumed 4,000 spirit coins. King Crystal rises to level 13."]
…
[Territory Prompt: "Consumed 11,000 spirit coins. King Crystal rises to level 20."]
[Building: King Crystal]
[Level: 20]
[Upgrade Requirements: 20,000 spirit coins, 10 three-star crystal cores]
[Quality: SS (0/1)]
[Defense: 7,000/7,000]
[Shield: 20,000/20,000]
[Special Attribute 1: Thunder Attack]
[Special Attribute 2: Within territory, all elemental attack +10%, defense +10%]
[Introduction: Core of the lord space, evolved for offense and defense. Attacks hostile entities within 100 meters. Requires one lord crystal to evolve further.]
"Evolution too?" Zhou Yan blinked, stunned. An SS-tier King Crystal—potentially SSS with a lord crystal—set him apart. Lord crystals, sourced from plundered territories or ruined domains, rarely justified the aggro they drew; their boosts were modest. Yet his crystal's unique attack capability, a colorful space quirk, rewrote norms. At level 20, new conditions emerged, but his lead remained vast—twice the cap of peers stuck at 10, despite their wealth.
Satisfaction swelled. The +10% elemental attack and defense boost was a godsend—rare even at level 50 for others. Though favoring magic lords, it hiked his humans' magic resistance too. Magic wasn't his path, though. Past level 10, lords picked professions; as a Dragon Kingdom native, he leaned toward eastern roles—warrior, cultivator, warlock, or Taoist. A hidden class, rarer still, tantalized him, but their certificates were mythical, scarcely traded in the lord world.