Chapter 66: [066] Crystal Of Authority Fusion (1) Birth Of The White Tempest Of Ironside

The whole crew arrived at Ironside in the early hours of the night.

Floki was immediately welcomed by his troubled villagers, who could not go through the day without seeing him. After all, the last thing they recalled was him fighting the calamity.

Seeing neither him nor the corpse of the calamity had made them imagine that something bad might have happened to him.

One could only imagine the scale of their relief when they saw not just him, but also their families who had been captured by Blackstone.

Their joy knew no bounds when they heard that their chief had defeated the chief of Blackstone, their greatest tormentor.

At the field located in the middle of the small village, the people gathered together, piling into the open space as they set campfires and began to reconnect with their loved ones one after another.

The ex-followers of Blackstone could not stop themselves from being touched by the care everyone showed for one another here. It felt euphoric.

Despite how they had tried to connect with one another in Blackstone, they had never shared this much joy upon seeing each other. This deeply moved them, allowing them to realize that choosing to become members of Ironside was not a bad decision at all.

On the other hand, while the people jubilated,

Floki found a quiet spot and began the crystal of authority fusion.

It cost an astonishing one thousand skill points to begin, and the process would take two hours.

[ Fusing...80%, 24 minutes remaining ]

The process moved slowly.

Far slower than Floki had expected.

He had assumed it would be fast.

He could not wait for the three special skills in his possession to be upgraded, as well as for his territory to evolve.

Out of eagerness and curiosity, he questioned the system about it several times, but it gave him no answers, urging him to remain patient, which was simply impossible.

Nonetheless, to end the torture of silence, he went to join his people.

Once he was spotted, he was quickly surrounded by the crowd, including young children.

"It is he who defeated the vile chief Floki and the calamity that terrifies the night."

"Chief Floki, the great conqueror!"

"The White Tempest of Ironside!" Jabba lifted his fist and cried out loudly, giving his leader a new nickname.

"The White Tempest of Ironside!" Anton picked up the words from his brother and echoed them.

Soon, the people began to chant the new nickname.

"The White Tempest of Ironside!"

"The White Tempest of Ironside!"

Their voices tore into the night sky without restraint, filled with vigor, loyalty, adoration, and worship.

Jabba and Anton approached Floki and lifted him into the air while the people continued to chant his name.

From up there, he could see all their faces clearly. There was no trace of fakeness.

He noticed the longing looks of the young women as they gazed at him, some biting their lips.

’I am handsome after all.’

Floki muttered to himself, amused.

Raising his hands, he controlled the chants. Slowly, the voices began to lower, though the people’s eagerness did not fade. They continued to feast their eyes on him, waiting for his words.

Floki began by thanking those who had not given up on him despite his weakness at the beginning, as well as those who had endured suffering because of him and still did not lose faith.

He deliberately stretched his speech, keeping track of the crystal of authority fusion. He had something interesting planned.

[ Fusing...95%, 6 minutes remaining ]

It was getting closer.

He tapped the two brothers, and they gently lowered him to the ground.

The crowd encircled him as he stood at the center, close to the campfire, which provided enough light for everyone to see his face and for him to read their expressions.

"In a few minutes, you will all witness the beginning of a new regime, one where everything we once thought impossible will begin to take shape."

"It will be magical, unlike anything you have ever seen. It will be peaceful, life-changing."

As he continued speaking, their eyes widened with anticipation, eager to witness the change he spoke of.

[ Fusing...98%, 3 minutes remaining ]

It was getting closer.

The dawn of a new transformation for his territory.

[ Fusing...99%, 30 seconds remaining ]

[ Fusing...100%, 10 seconds remaining ] 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

Floki lifted his hand into the sky and spoke clearly.

He raised both hands, risking all his dignity for this moment.

"Good people of Ironside, witness the birth of the new Ironside."

[ Fusion complete. Territory upgrade has begun ]

The moment the notification appeared before his eyes, the changes began swiftly.

A pillar of light, similar to the one that had erased Blackstone from existence, shot through the territory and spread across every corner of it.

The people gasped in amazement as the light bathed them in a euphoric sensation, one that was difficult to put into words.

Even more astonishing were the changes taking place across the land.

Right before their eyes, the ground beneath them seemed to stretch outward. The territory was expanding at a visible pace.

Not far from where they stood, a house-like glowing white structure appeared. Within seconds, it transformed into a large brick house, far superior in quality to any house found in both Ironside and even Blackstone.

While they were still marveling at the structure, another change occurred.

On the opposite side, on a plain field that had formed earlier, rows of tables appeared in neat arrangements. It was a marketplace.

As the physical transformation unfolded, so did the changes within the people.

Everyone in the village felt their bodies surge with strength and vitality unlike anything they had experienced before, including the ex-followers of Blackstone.

At that moment, more than three hundred people who now made up Ironside could be seen examining their bodies with excitement.

Meanwhile, as all of this happened, Floki was being flooded with dozens of notifications every second.

[ You have unlocked Small Marketplace. Currency has been introduced, news of your marketplace would spread across, and interested merchants would patronize you. ]

Floki’s eyes flicked toward the marketplace before moving quickly to the next notification.

[ You’ve unlocked Town Hall. In this place, the potency of your authority skill is stronger. ]

’This is very interesting. I never expected that structures like this would appear on their own.’

[ You’ve unlocked Territory Inventory. The basic start-ups have been sent there; you can access them later. Since it is a reward, 50x has already been applied. ]

He wanted to check it immediately, to see what he had received, but he restrained himself.

[ The mana in your territory has become slightly purer and denser. The likelihood of your people forming mana cores and becoming mages is now higher. ]

’This explains why I could sense them more clearly just now,’ he thought, pleased. ’How interesting would it be to have my own mages?’

[ Your territory size has grown by 5x. The current capacity can accommodate a thousand new buildings and up to two thousand people. ]

[ Due to the current lack of materials, new huts have been constructed to house your new followers. You should upgrade these buildings once you acquire the necessary resources. ]

[ Your personal dwelling place has been upgraded into a Basic Lord’s Manor ]

[ Your title has been upgraded from Chief ----> Baron ]

[ Special skill (Quest Provider (E)) has been upgraded to (Quest Provider (D)) ]

[ Special skill (Knight Summoning (E)) has been upgraded to (Knight Summoning (D)) ]

[ Special skill (Stone Reinforcement (E)) has been upgraded to (Stone Reinforcement (D)) ]

[ Each of your followers has gained two levels. Children only gained slight increases in strength and vitality, as rapid leveling would leave their bodies crippled. ]

[ Congratulations on upgrading your territory to D-rank, Town ]

[ You have reached 10% progress in your quest. You have received the following rewards: 100 Gold Coins, 10,000 EXP, 1,000 Skill Points ]

[ 50x reward multiplier applied. 5,000 Gold Coins, 500,000 EXP, 50,000 Skill Points have been transferred. ]

[ Total EXP: 11,600,000 ]

[ Total Skill Points: 615,250 ]

[ Coin Balance: 5,000 Gold Coins ]