https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-474-Oh-The-Protagonist-is-the-Waster/12851387/
Chapter 475: Arrival at Green Pine Village
Chapter 475: Arrival at Green Pine Village
"Lord Wang, this way, please. We have been waiting for you for quite some time."
As soon as Qin Muye arrived at Green Pine Village, the village chief had been waiting for him. This was a Spirit Summoner, and he could not be treated with any lack of respect.
To those in the circles of fame and fortune, a Spirit Summoner who could only awaken a non-grade potential spirit was of little value. However, to these ordinary people in the countryside, such a person was already a top-tier figure. Just having someone like this in residence would deter bandits and other troublemakers from even attempting to cause trouble.
"Thank you, Village Chief. Here are my official documents. Please take a look," Qin Muye said, handing over the imperial documents to the village chief.
The village chief quickly glanced at them, secretly relieved.
This Spirit Summoner did not seem to have an arrogant or condescending attitude, which would make things much easier for them.
"That's correct. Lord Wang, this way. We have already prepared a house for you. Please don't mind its simplicity," the village chief said as he led Qin Muye to a decent house.
Green Pine Village was a fairly prosperous village, even richer than some county towns. How could they possibly assign a Spirit Summoner to a poor, remote area?
After all, he was still a direct subordinate, and things couldn't be too bad for him.
As for others coveting his position, that was even less likely. The simple reason was that any Spirit Summoner who had achieved a grade would never be assigned to guard a village.
This kind of benefit was mostly given to Spirit Summoners who could only awaken non-grade potential spirits. This arrangement both provided manpower and ensured the safety of these wealthy villages, making it a win-win situation.
Otherwise, it would be like in novels where someone is dismissed because their potential is not good enough. That would be ridiculous. On the contrary, those with lower potential were easier to manipulate and could form a solid core of support.
However, to be honest, the number of non-grade potential spirits was actually quite small. Most were actually at the Soldier or General levels.
Qin Muye had ended up with a non-grade potential spirit due to his own clumsiness.
"What will I need to do on a daily basis, Village Chief?" Qin Muye asked casually, thinking it was unlikely they would make him do any actual work.
"No, no, Lord Wang. You just need to focus on your cultivation. If there are any bandits or wild beasts, we hope you can handle them. Other matters don't need your attention," the village chief hurriedly replied.
He couldn't really expect a Spirit Summoner to do menial tasks. The village had its own defense forces, and Qin Muye was more like an ace in the hole, a deterrent that would not be easily used.
"Isn't that a bit too much?" Qin Muye had to put on an act; otherwise, if he immediately believed that he wouldn't have to do any work, he would seem to lack social skills.
"Lord Wang, your focused cultivation is the greatest help you can give us. I have already prepared a welcome banquet for you at the tavern to wash away the dust of your journey. Why don't you put down your luggage and join us for a few drinks?" the village chief said, offering to help Qin Muye with his luggage.
Qin Muye shook his head. "The welcome banquet is unnecessary and would be a waste of resources. I'll just take up my post directly. Where do I report for duty every day?"
"I think that can be waived, Lord Wang."
"Can't waive it. What should be done must be done. If the superiors come to inspect and find out, it could cause problems. Village Chief, I'm here to guard the area, not to just go through the motions," Qin Muye interrupted.
These words made the village chief understand immediately. Qin Muye was planning to stay, which made his eyes brighten. Their village had never had anyone with the qualifications to be a Spirit Summoner, so if Qin Muye stayed, he might lead their village to prosperity in the future.
"Yes, yes, it's my mistake. Tomorrow, Lord Wang, you can report to the village hall. This time—" the village chief said, explaining everything.
"Since that's the case, I won't keep you any longer."
They chatted a bit more, and the village chief helped Qin Muye unload his luggage and settle it in before preparing to leave.
He offered a few more times to have Qin Muye attend the banquet, but Qin Muye was firm in his refusal.
Fortunately, the village chief did not insist and left, planning to discuss the matter with the village's wealthy families later.
After the village chief left, Qin Muye relaxed a bit.
"If Xiao Fan were here, he might end up engaging in all sorts of power struggles with these people."
Qin Muye could sense from the other party's scattered emotions that they had no ill intentions towards him, mostly just a desire to please.
After all, he was a representative of the imperial court and a Spirit Summoner. Why would they want to antagonize him for no reason? They would be more than happy to have him on their side rather than immediately suspect him of being a threat.
"However, why is there a tomb mound, or rather, an underground ruin, beneath Green Pine Village?" Qin Muye muttered to himself. "Is this just for setting the stage?"
"If I hadn't gotten involved with Xiao Fan, would I have encountered this thing at all?" For a moment, he couldn't tell whether this underground ruin was triggered by a supporting character or was the center of a vortex. If it was the former, that would be better, indicating that the treasure was meant for him. But if it was the latter, that would be disastrous, and Green Pine Village might be in trouble.
Such a large ruin could erupt at any time, potentially drawing Xiao Fan to it.
After some thought, Qin Muye considered whether he should take the initiative.
"There's nothing of value here."
The things inside might be treasures for local Spirit Summoners, but to Qin Muye, they were hardly worth the effort to retrieve.
"It seems to be a legacy tomb mound. Let me take a look."
Qin Muye quickly bypassed a series of tests, choices, and peculiar mechanisms and retrieved the legacy.
"Interesting, it's a set of advancement methods for a hero spirit, but it's limited to advisor, strategist, and civil servant types of hero spirits." Qin Muye recalled that Xiao Fan's hero spirit was of the advisor type.
"Using it would allow this hero spirit's potential to advance further, but it's limited to the Soldier level, meaning this is Xiao Fan's opportunity?"
Qin Muye casually put the item back.
"Does this mean that before coming here, Xiao Fan could have already advanced his non-grade potential to the Soldier level on his own?"
"That's quite a challenge."
While it was possible to enhance a hero spirit's potential, there were limitations. Particularly, advancing from non-grade to Soldier level was as difficult as advancing from King level to Emperor level. This was a qualitative change, evolving from mindless to intelligent, which was no small feat.
Of course, there were many ways to enhance a hero spirit's potential, such as consuming rare herbs and practicing unique cultivation techniques. However, none of these methods were cheap.
For example, this type of legacy advancement method was a special rule formed after a hero spirit's death, usable only once before it disappeared, making it a one-time consumable.
So, it was definitely meant for Xiao Fan, not for him.
Even if he had the means, he could only get some scraps.
"Never mind, let it be. Given the difficulty of this ruin, at least a Third-Rank Spirit Summoner would be needed to pass through it. Even if Xiao Fan could overmatch and kill enemies of a higher rank, he would need to be at the Second Rank, which would take at least a year to achieve this opportunity," Qin Muye estimated the time frame.
Since there was plenty of time, he could handle it gradually.
If necessary, he could destroy the ruin. After all, Xiao Fan had the protagonist's aura and could find another opportunity.
Then, his gaze fell on his Cavalry hero spirit.
"Raise your left front hoof!"
As soon as he said it, the Cavalry's mount responded to Qin Muye's command.
"So, I'm curious, do the mount and the rider use the same system?"
Cavalry hero spirits were a special type because they theoretically consisted of two living entities. For example, at the Soldier level and above, the rider and the mount were separate beings. If both were well-cultivated, they could provide double the combat power, which was why they were favored by the imperial court.
However, the corresponding resources required were also doubled, as one had to nurture both the rider and the mount.
"Besides, how does the recognition system, binding system, and feedback system work?"
Spirit Summoners were not just summoners. As the hero spirits grew stronger, they would provide various forms of feedback, even granting the summoner their powers.
This would be a normal occurrence for ordinary people, but Qin Muye was different. He wasn't human, and he needed to study how this system connected to him.
Moreover, the fact that it connected to him without any issues was quite peculiar.
(End of Chapter)
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