Chapter Ninety-Two: Launching the Counterattack

Countless villagers went to the town guard camp to ask how they might enlist.

The town guard had always cut a dashing figure, and every one of them was outfitted with a full set of iron armor and an iron sword. On top of that, the families of those who fell in heroic sacrifice received the finest benefits, along with a monthly stipend of five gold coins. The villagers could hardly resist such temptation.

Especially the young and vigorous men, who were all willing to take the risk if it meant a better life for their families.

The town guard needed only to train in peacetime; they need do nothing else and would still be fed and clothed without care. Whenever there was a hunt, they were the first to taste any fine spoil. And if they died in the line of duty, their names could live on in memory, engraved upon a monument, becoming the brave heroes of songs and stories. Most important of all was that stipend of five gold coins.

No one wanted to die, and yet no one could withstand the temptation.

One gold coin was already about half a year’s living expenses for an ordinary family; earning two gold coins in an entire year was already considered quite a good life.

But five gold coins a month? That was enough to make someone rich in an instant.

In this chaotic world, war could break out at any moment. Just as before, when Alex had forced the villagers to attack the city, the many who died along the way had died in vain.

So in truth, the villagers were already mentally prepared. But if they truly had to die, and if their sacrifice could allow their families to live in prosperity, they would accept it.

It was a good thing. Only, Zheng Jin’s thoughts were now entirely on gathering the spoils.

The giant bees seemed to drop no loot, but they could be harvested with a dagger.

Harvesting yielded raw meat and honey.

Honey: after consumption, restores 2 health and 2 stamina per second for 20 seconds.

This was practically a top-tier dual recovery potion! Though it did not restore instantly, it recovered a total of 40 health and 40 stamina over twenty seconds—exactly the sort of treasure Zheng Jin needed most right now.

There were several hundred giant bee corpses inside and outside the city, and half of them had been shot dead by arrow towers, proving the towers were not useless; there were simply too many giant bees. The other half were the achievements of the town guard and kobolds who fought so valiantly.

After all the harvesting was done, Zheng Jin obtained over a thousand portions of raw meat and 567 jars of honey, basically one from nearly every giant bee.

He tried a taste. Though the honey was a little inferior to the nectar made by the forest fairies, it was still wonderfully sweet and delicious. At the same time, as expected, his health and stamina began recovering rapidly.

He gave Tina and Perin a jar of honey each so they could recover as well. Then Zheng Jin went to the town guard camp and handed out a jar to every one of those heroic fighters.

“Lord Keane, what is this?” Badi asked, holding the honey with a puzzled expression.

“This is your reward!” Zheng Jin said. “Honey harvested from those Rurutos. Eat it, and it will do you great good!”

The town guards, half believing and half doubtful, ate the honey. Sure enough, they felt their bodies begin to recover slowly in a miraculous fashion. Though it could not restore them to peak condition at once, it quickly revived their spirits.

They had never heard that Ruruto honey could have such wondrous effects. After trying it themselves, they were quite astonished.

“All right! After a battle, you must all be tired. Everyone, get a good rest today!”

“Lord Keane, what about the Ruruto nest?” Badi asked.

Zheng Jin glanced at him and smiled. “Don’t worry, I’ll handle it.”

“Lord Keane, take me with you!” Badi came over at once. “I feel I’ve recovered almost completely.”

“So have I! Take me too!” Rabi joined in.

“Take me, Lord Keane!”

“Take me!”

“Lord Keane, please take me. I want to keep fighting the Rurutos!”

“Lord Keane...”

Once the town guards had recovered a little of their spirit, they immediately petitioned to join him one after another.

Zheng Jin was quite satisfied with such morale. But he had other plans. “I said, all of you rest well!”

After leaving the town guard camp, Zheng Jin went to the kobold nest. He fed Wolf two honey jars in succession, restoring him completely to peak condition, and then used raw meat to recruit a total of 500 kobold warriors.

Since the kobold soldiers were already exhausted, and he was reluctant to waste honey on these cannon fodder, the best choice was naturally to let them recover on their own in the nest, then take out a force of kobold warriors whose combat strength was slightly less depleted.

He intended to outwit the giant bee nest, not go charging in foolishly.

This outing was originally meant to include only Wolf and 500 kobold warriors. However, Tina refused no matter what to stay at home, insisting she would only feel at ease if she followed Zheng Jin.

Toward this newlywed little wife, Zheng Jin naturally indulged her and brought her along, then had Perin protect her at all times.

“It should be this way!” Wolf used his tracking ability—an nose keener than a dog’s—and quickly found the correct path. Sure enough, less than a kilometer from the city, a giant bee fortress had appeared at some point.

It was like an enlarged giant honeycomb, like the skyscrapers in the city before Zheng Jin’s transmigration, even larger than those towers. The entire nest was spherical, its surface covered in remarkably regular hexagonal openings of enormous size. Tens of thousands of giant bees circled around it, coming and going in a magnificent spectacle.

“So close!” Cold sweat broke out on Zheng Jin’s forehead. A kilometer was only a thousand meters; these giant bees could fly over in an instant. Though he had arrived first, and the giant bees had only just come, they were clearly stronger than he was, and they built their nest far too quickly. If not for today’s sudden attack, he would never have known a giant bee colony had appeared here.

“Lord Keane, what should we do? Charge straight in?” Perin asked expressionlessly.

“You want to go and feed them your head?” Zheng Jin said helplessly. “First, cut some fresh branches and leaves—the softer the better! Gather as many as you can. We’ll light bonfires as we advance toward the nest. Since they’re afraid of smoke, we’ll drive them off with smoke and force every last giant bee away! Then we’ll tear the nest down together, and they’ll have no choice but to build a nest somewhere else!”

“Understood!” Perin immediately set to work, swinging her sword to cut branches nearby.

Wolf and the kobold warriors were not idle either. They had no stone axes, so they used their sharp claws to forcibly cut or snap branches, piling them together.

Zheng Jin told the weaker Tina to rest, and himself took out a stone axe and joined the chopping.

They piled their way forward, and Zheng Jin used torches to set the heaps alight, ringed the fires with stones to prevent the flames from spreading, and step by step drove thick smoke toward the nest.