Secondly, many resource production points in the Ascension Sea are already under the control of the Mingwu Clan, limiting the development speed. In the eyes of Ye Ming, it is nothing but a trapped beast that will eventually be devoured by the Mingwu Clan. However, recent situations have seen some changes.
The Ascension Clan has also received assistance from the Gold Coin Chamber of Commerce.
Although it didn’t reverse the decline of the Ascension Clan, it significantly increased the losses of the Mingwu Clan in the war.
As the war continues to this day, the Gold Coin Chamber of Commerce is the biggest beneficiary.
The more intense the battle among the three forces, the more war resources need to be procured, and the higher the profit the Gold Coin Chamber of Commerce earns from it.
Secondly, it’s the Mingwu Clan.
They have occupied large islands once belonging to the Ascension Clan and underwater resource extraction channels.
But during the war phase, the Mingwu Clan’s core focus must remain on war suppression, making it impossible to immediately invest in human and material resources for large-scale extraction.
Once the war ends, these occupied resource production channels will quickly thaw and convert into development momentum.
It will bring the Mingwu Clan a period of rapid rise.
During this phase, the Gold Coin Chamber of Commerce can still earn profits from it, as the Mingwu Clan would choose them for resource extraction handling.
So, whether in war or stable development periods, the Gold Coin Chamber of Commerce can remain steady.
Among the three forces battling in the sea area, Qi Sheng has the highest hopes for Shuyan.
In its initial stage, Shuyan was thoroughly suppressed by the Ascension Clan, but has now become a force surpassing the Ascension Clan.
The "story Chapters" included have already established 293 war systems.
Turning a page casually reveals a brand new War Corps.
This growth refers to the complete system of troops from the Black Tide, which is also Shuyan’s future direction.
Shuyan even went as far as to create a corps possessing Life Devouring Ability to devour the beings of enemy forces through war, thereby gaining additional growth.
The "pen, and book" held by Shuyan possesses the ability to freely reshape systems.
Therefore, it has the strongest growth potential among the three forces.
When a force faces new challenges, it needs to study the opponent’s system and then formulate a counter plan, costing time, energy, and even extensive resource investment.
Shuyan does not have this trouble.
With the Inspiration World as a channel for system optimization, Shuyan receives a substantial amount of inspiration daily for optimizing war models.
They can materialize it for testing and application in the Domain at any time.
In the face of the Mingwu Clan’s assault, the pressure on Shuyan isn’t significant.
The main battlefield has the Ascension Clan at the forefront, and Shuyan’s task is to extend the Mingwu Clan’s battle lines and alleviate the pressure on the Ascension Clan.
During this period, Shuyan’s growth accelerates again.
Qi Sheng observed that Shuyan’s progress involves not only optimization in the war system but also updates in the distribution model of Small World stories.
The reading, thinking, and other behaviors of Small World readers enable Shuyan to extract Rule-derived Reading Power.
The fame of works and the discussion heat are one of the channels through which Shuyan acquires resources.
Previously, Shuyan relied on storytellers and cultural disseminators within the Small World as a medium for story dissemination.
Recently, to allow better spread of works, Shuyan tested new dissemination channels in different Small Worlds.
For example, in a Small World called Momentrealm.
Shuyan tested a "short video combined with story" model.
The text attraction in this world is far less than that of videos, especially fragmented short videos.
Observing this world, Shuyan considered a question.
Is it possible to use this Small World’s strongest dissemination mode, short videos, to assist in spreading stories?
In response, Shuyan conducted tests.
The model involves having beings endowed with "inspiration" by Shuyan create edited videos and pair them with stories created by Shuyan, along with simplified scripts for dissemination.
The specific content of short videos doesn’t need to be complex.
Shuyan aims for the audience to immerse in the story, not the video.
Thus, the video scenes are generally atmosphere-type blank shots, such as scenery or other content not containing specific narratives.
The main objective is to draw the audience into the atmosphere needed for the story.
The video itself serves as a setup, with the true content being Shuyan’s provided story content.
Appearing in the form of subtitles or voiceovers, attracting more audiences.
To create this model, Shuyan controlled numerous short video creators, providing them with story inspiration.
They, in Shuyan’s view, are akin to storytellers in the Cultivation World, but producing Reading Power through another mode.
This innovative system, implemented in many Small Worlds, results in a significant increase in Shuyan’s Reading Power income.
As growth accelerates, Shuyan is no longer satisfied with defensive operations.
Qi Sheng deduces from Shuyan’s structured corps system that its next target will revolve around countering the Mingwu Clan.
As for the Ascension Clan.
On Shuyan’s strategic board, the position of the Ascension Clan has already changed.
They are no longer a foe Shuyan needs to fully confront.
Instead, they are a piece used to consume and delay the Mingwu Clan’s main force, as well as a stepping stone to raise Shuyan’s own position.
Shuyan is pleased to see the Ascension Clan struggling under the Mingwu Clan’s pressure, as it can secure the most crucial development and layout time.
At this moment, all of Shuyan’s energy focuses on one task: constructing a new Story Army capable of thoroughly countering the Mingwu Clan’s war system.
What it wants to recreate is the feat of winning against stronger forces, then stepping on the Ascension Clan.
This has always been the path Shuyan chooses.
It regards powerful enemies as Sharpeners, attempting to temper itself with the pressure of dire situations.
The advantage is, every victory over opponents brings leapfrog growth.
The downside is that a slight error can lead to total annihilation.
But Qi Sheng can fully understand Shuyan’s thoughts.
Shuyan has grand ambitions; it wants to become the "Heavenly Dao" of Monster World.
This destined the challenges it faces, long surpassed survival.
In a Monster World where Strong Clans abound, risk is everywhere, regardless of the chosen path.
Conservative stability in one corner might exchange for temporary peace but inevitably faces merciless devouring due to insufficient Strength when an unpredictable crisis arrives.
The shadow of Descent War hangs over all forces, including Shuyan.
Thus, Shuyan chose the path of nine deaths and one life, transforming uncontrollable external risks into controllable internal gambles.
Rather than passively waiting for unknown disasters, it opts to actively choose known strong enemies as foes, controlling survival pressure in its own hands.
Every collision with a "Sharpener," though possibly shattered to pieces, could lead to leapfrog growth if successful.
It can also temper powerful forces specialized for warfare through the grit of war.
This is also why Qi Sheng pays attention to Shuyan.
It is quite similar to Lord of Jile in some respects.
One prioritizes survival, innovation as supplementary, sacrificing development efficiency but avoiding risk.
One prioritizes development, innovation as supplementary, undertaking development risks yet achieving faster growth speed.
Both are growth-oriented on innovation, finding new combat power breaking points in innovation, but traversing two completely different development paths.
Next, the pattern of the Bright Star Sea Area is expected to undergo a reshuffle.
It’s foreseeable that the Ascension Clan will soon become a thing of the past, only existing in the memories of old players.
Future players can only see the Ascension Clan’s related records in the Glory Chronicles.
The backwardness in every aspect predestines the Ascension Clan’s elimination, and this time isn’t far away.
What comes next will be a war between Shuyan and the Mingwu Clan.
The Mingwu Clan has a profound foundation at present.
Shuyan is strong in the future with infinite variables.
The outcome of this conflict is temporarily unpredictable.
Qi Sheng is more concerned about whether Shuyan can complete a comeback under high-pressure circumstances.
Whether the new Corps system being perfected can achieve an absolute advantage in the war system against the Mingwu Clan, aiding in forming an "underdog victory" scenario.
This question will have an answer given by time.
Qi Sheng, after detailed statistics on the intelligence of the Bright Star Sea Area and the Ascension Sea, shifts his gaze to the Illusion Flower Plain region.
Chapter 1574: 401: Maritime Landscape, the Momentum of Two Powers (Part 3)
7 min read