Qin Ziwen took out the dark red Card.

’Use,’ he thought.

The Card shattered, dissolving into innumerable red specks of light that fused into his body.

[Function Activated: Level 2 Node]

[Authority Upgraded. Current Authority: Level 3 Authority (1/8)]

[Level 2 Node: You can establish three spatial Nodes outside your Home. You can travel directly to a Node’s location via a one-way channel from within your Home. Two-way travel is not currently supported. Once set, a Node cannot be changed for 7 days.]

[Your authority has increased. Challenge Function unlocked.]

[Your authority has increased. Those with authority lower than Level 3 cannot use Insight on your possessions.]

[Your authority has increased. Those with authority lower than Level 3 cannot challenge you.]

He quickly figured out how to use the challenge function: he could challenge any Lord of the Homeland. With his current Level 3 Authority, he could set a challenge duration of up to seven days. Once a challenge was issued, it would first enter a one-day public notice period, during which the opponent would be unable to use their Nodes. When the challenge officially began, not only would their Node access remain frozen, but even functions like the safe house would be disabled as well.

If the safe house was the shield for a Lord of the Homeland away from their Home, then the challenge was the spear that could shatter that shield.

A thought suddenly occurred to Qin Ziwen. ’If someone gains Level 2 Authority in the future and thinks their safe house is an invincible turtle shell, what would happen if I just toss a challenge their way? The world would certainly quiet down.’

Just then, the sound of the daily settlement notification echoed in his mind.

"Authority increase detected. The daily settlement can be upgraded and optimized. Do you wish to optimize?"

The voice came from the daily settlement system.

Qin Ziwen asked mentally, ’What are the benefits of optimizing?’

A light screen quickly materialized before his eyes.

[After Optimization: Daily Settlement → Weekly Settlement. Ratings can be accumulated, the event timeline will be optimized, low-level Cards can be stacked, and the probability of obtaining high-quality Cards will increase.]

Qin Ziwen pondered for a moment, then continued to ask, ’If I don’t like the rewards after optimizing, can I reverse it?’

The daily settlement system seemed to lag for a moment.

It simply repeated the question: "Do you wish to optimize?"

After some thought, Qin Ziwen agreed. ’Fine, optimize it.’

When he went outside, his younger brother was getting ready to rest. Qin Ziwen waved him over.

"Brother." Qin Ziwu jogged over. "What’s up?"

"Close your eyes and turn around."

"Okay." Qin Ziwu closed his eyes and obediently turned around.

Qin Ziwen took out the Enhancement Card and tapped it against his back. "You’ve been enhanced."

The Enhancement Card dissolved into innumerable green specks of light that fused into his body.

Qin Ziwu’s body jolted. He could feel it...

...a brand-new vitality, originating from the depths of his marrow and bursting forth from the core of every inch of his muscle.

He clenched his fists and extended his arms. Only now did he truly, tangibly feel it—the immense difference in strength that had always existed between his former self and the others, like his older brother, Instructor Du, and Cao Biansheng.

This was a level that could never be reached through mere exercise. It was pure, extraordinary talent, representing the physical peak of a natural human being.

"Alright, that’s enough. Just keep it to yourself and remember to get used to your new strength," Qin Ziwen advised him.

Qin Ziwu turned back around and nodded vigorously, the delighted surprise still plain on his face. "I will!"

’We have about four Xiang Yus on our team now,’ he mused, ’and they might even be slightly superior to him in some respects.’

’Hmm... no, that’s not quite right. Xiang Yu’s strength wasn’t just his physique; it also included his Combat Skill.’

’That’s something they still need to work on. Still, with the Celestial Star Arrow Gallery and the Martial Arts Arena, their proficiency with Arrow Skill and long weapons is improving at a decent pace.’

"My Lord, are these two Bows new acquisitions?" Du Yu asked while examining the two new Grassland Longbows. "This Bow is excellent. No wonder everyone says Grassland Bows are good. It’s just a bit heavy; an ordinary person probably couldn’t even draw it."

Judging by its appearance, the Longbow was very well-maintained. Its previous owner must have cherished it.

The body of the Bow was crafted from multiple layers of material, including horn, sinew, and wood. Du Yu gave it a light pull and found its tension and elasticity to be excellent.

He slowly eased the bowstring and took out the dozen or so Heavy Arrows from the accompanying Quiver. These were also Spoils of War from the same trade; otherwise, a Bow without Arrows would be little more than a fire poker.

"These Arrows are heavy," Du Yu said, weighing one in his hand. The Arrow shaft was nearly a meter long and tipped with a three-edged point forged from pure iron. Paired with that Longbow, he estimated it could pierce light armor at a hundred paces and heavy armor at thirty.

’Too bad the Hunting Celestial List mission requires us to forge our own weapons,’ he thought.

’If we could use a Heavy Bow, it would make things much easier. It takes too long to craft a Bow, so we’re out of time for that. Forging a few more short Javelins, however, should be no problem.’

At this thought, Du Yu felt an irresistible urge to head to the Blacksmith Shop.

Sensing his eagerness, Qin Ziwen nodded. "Go on."

After Du Yu left, Qin Ziwen picked up the Longbow and went to the Celestial Star Arrow Gallery to try it. He found its draw weight was several times greater than the Compound Bow’s—at least 150 pounds.

But for him, it was an easy draw. After a few tries, he discovered that the Longbow’s armor penetration and range far surpassed those of the 50-pound Compound Bow.

The Compound Bow’s advantages lay in its higher accuracy at short to medium range and the fact that it was less strenuous to use.

For him, however, the Longbow was now the more suitable weapon.

’Now that I have the Bow, I need to start making Arrows right away.’

Qin Ziwen then used the Micro-sized Blank Expansion Card to make a small adjustment to the space inside his Home, creating a 30x30 empty plot of land.

’Use Level 1 Nan Bamboo Forest.’

A flash of light flared and then faded. Before him, a large patch of ground had sunk into a funnel-shaped depression. The nan bamboo was thickest and tallest near the center, growing shorter and thinner toward the edges.

As far as the eye could see, the lush Nan Bamboo Forest, with its bamboo of varying heights and thicknesses, was brimming with a potent life force.

"It’s just... why is the ground sunken like this?" Qin Ziwen was exasperated, but he quickly guessed the reason. Mature nan bamboo could grow five or six stories tall, while his Home was currently only five meters high.

’Since it couldn’t expand upward, the only other option was to expand downward.’

That was why this strange terrain had formed.

’It’s fine, I’ll just use it for now,’ Qin Ziwen silently reassured himself. ’Once the Home’s ceiling is higher, I can find a way to fill in this pit.’

Qin Ziwen then found Jia Liangcai and had him organize a group to plan the harvesting of the Nan Bamboo Forest. The bamboo was to be cut in batches: stalks thick enough for spear shafts should be cut and made into shafts, while those suitable for Arrows should be cut down for fletching. The young bamboo was to be left to grow. And if there were any bamboo shoots, they could pick some; he was suddenly craving some stir-fried pork with bamboo shoots.

Upon receiving his orders, Jia Liangcai nodded in acknowledgment.

It was at times like this that Qin Ziwen truly felt how much of a relief it was to have a sincere and capable steward.

He didn’t have to do everything himself; he only needed to set the general direction, and the details would be taken care of.

...

...