Chapter 680, The Earth is Round
Island Lord's Mansion.
After the last trace of energy was absorbed by "Benny."
The energy rippled out instantly, stirring up fine dust.
Benny returned to her original form, looked around with a puzzled gaze, then looked at Wu Heng and Xiaoxiao in front of her.
Before Wu Heng could speak, Xiaoxiao flew up first, her tone full of concern. "Sister Benny, are you okay?"
"I'm fine. I feel a bit different, but I can't say exactly how." Benny floated out of the magic circle.
Xiaoxiao looked at her and continued asking, "What's 38 plus 24?"
Benny was stunned.
Xiaoxiao turned to Wu Heng. "It's over, there's a problem."
Benny quickly said, "62. I know. What's the problem?"
Xiaoxiao let out a sigh of relief and said to Wu Heng, "Don't worry, everything's fine."
Wu Heng looked at the mischievous Xiaoxiao, then at Benny. "This ritual gives a ghost the ability to see other people's levels. Try using it and see if it works."
Benny turned her gaze to the human and the ghost, stared for a moment, then smiled happily.
"I can see it. The two of you emit different glows."
Wu Heng said, "Right. This ability is helpful for scouting and avoiding conflicts with high-level Professionals."
"Seems quite useful," Benny said.
"As for how to use it, let Xiaoxiao explain it to you."
Xiaoxiao flew to Benny's side. "Come on, let's take a walk around the island. You'll see the differences right away. It's actually pretty simple."
Benny looked at Wu Heng.
Wu Heng said, "Go ahead. There's nothing going on this afternoon. Go explore and check how far they've disassembled the bicycle."
The two ghosts nodded and phased through the wall.
Disappearing from sight.
Wu Heng opened the door to let skeletons in to clean the room.
Then he went back upstairs to the study.
......
Back in the study.
Glenda, floating midair reading a book, turned her head. "Where'd those two go?"
"Out testing their ability," Wu Heng entered and sat nearby.
"Spirit Vision?"
"Yeah. You can't just test the other abilities randomly."
"True enough," Glenda nodded.
Wu Heng used [Animate Object] to bring a cup of tea to his hand, took a sip, and glanced at the book in her hand.
"How's it going?"
"No results yet. Are you sure I can learn these skills?" Glenda asked doubtfully.
"There shouldn't be a problem. It's just a matter of time," Wu Heng said.
He confirmed she could learn skills because of the [Legendary Heroic Spirit] on her panel.
The description stated it could learn and cast relevant abilities.
Not all skills can be learned, but those of the necromancy school should be fine.
Plus, ever since unlocking the panel, the hints had never been wrong. If it said Glenda could learn skills, then she should be able to.
Besides, learning skills also takes time.
Glenda certainly had enough intelligence—already level 20—but learning still required time to understand the knowledge.
Being around Wu Heng gave the illusion that reading a skill book once should mean mastering it.
"I'll follow your lead," Glenda turned her attention back to the book.
After sitting in the study for a while—
Xiaoxiao and Benny returned from outside.
"All good now."
Benny also said, "The effect is great. I can see everyone's level at a glance."
"I still have a few rituals in my notebook. Once we find the materials, I'll enhance your abilities further," Wu Heng said.
"Didn't you say at level 20 we can learn skills? Isn't the ritual unnecessary now?" Xiaoxiao asked.
Wu Heng paused, "Better to have more skills than less."
"True. If Aunt Glenda, Sister Benny, and I all reach level 20 and learn powerful skills, it'll be like three carriages pulling you forward, uncle."
Wu Heng sipped tea and smiled. "What if they pull the wrong way?"
"Don't worry about that. The earth is round."
Wu Heng chatted with the three ghosts for a while.
Xiaoxiao and Benny opened the tablet to watch movies. Glenda continued studying.
A maid's voice came from outside, calling them for lunch.
Wu Heng went downstairs too.
......
In the afternoon, Wu Heng flipped through blueprints.
Robe slid down the stair railing and said upon landing, "Master, Sister Wen Mansa sent a message. Seems like something's up."
"Got it." Wu Heng closed the blueprints and headed upstairs.
He entered the radio room, picked up the microphone, and asked, "Wen Mansa, can you hear me?"
"I can hear you, Master." Wen Mansa's voice came through.
"Need something from me?"
"When we questioned the corpse today, we got another message: the Ekow Kingdom has begun amassing troops and plans to attack Rentam City."
Wu Heng's brow furrowed instantly.
Last time in Rentam City, he'd heard rumors about Ekow Kingdom planning an attack.
But when he investigated, he didn't see increased forces at the border.
And now, this.
"Tell me in detail."
"Okay," Wen Mansa agreed and explained everything.
After Rentam City allied with the Orc tribes, rumors spread about merchants contacting city officials.
Since the city was already on alert, investigations began.
It was found that bribes were being given to officials and city guards.
Once the identities of the culprits were confirmed, people were sent to eliminate them.
After all, Rentam City didn't require a complicated process; they acted decisively.
After killing the targets, the skeleton mage used [Speak with Dead].
They learned that the Ekow Kingdom army was preparing to attack and that these infiltrators were internal agents.
After listening, Wu Heng stayed silent for a moment.
Then said, "Can you confirm the troop numbers and timeline?"
Wen Mansa replied, "I've sent scouts outside the city. We should get accurate intel in the next couple of days."
"Is the city preparing?" Wu Heng asked again.
"We've started searching suspicious people. The city defense and patrol teams have increased the number of skeletons. So far, everything seems fine."
This was where the value of skeletons showed.
Whether for defense, patrol, or city hall.
As long as someone was alive and not bound by a slave contract, there was risk of being bribed or used.
But skeletons were different—Wen Mansa could fully trust them.
In fact, it was thanks to skeletons that Rentam City's control remained firm.
"There's stuff happening on Gold-Silver Island too. I'll have Minnie pick you up. Stay here for a while. Let your steward handle things over there—we can talk over the radio," Wu Heng said after a moment's thought.
Wen Mansa had just given birth, and her stamina and energy surely weren't like before.
Wu Heng was genuinely worried something might happen to the mother and child.
Wen Mansa seemed to have anticipated his suggestion and quickly replied, "Thank you for your concern, Master. But it's too early to leave. We don't know for sure if the army is mobilizing. It could be a ruse. And with our current forces and defenses, Rentam City is not that easy to bully."
Wu Heng was about to say more but stopped.
Wen Mansa was right. While corpses can't lie, enemies might still use them to spread false information.
They couldn't abandon the city every time an invasion was rumored.
If that were the case, the city might as well not exist.
Wu Heng took a deep breath. "Alright. Confirm the intel first. If there's danger, inform me ahead of time—I'll arrange someone to pick you up."
"Understood, Master," Wen Mansa replied with a smile.
"How's our daughter?" Wu Heng asked.
"She's doing great—eats and sleeps well. Chubby and healthy."
"You've worked hard," Wu Heng said softly.
Wen Mansa's voice grew even gentler. "It's nothing. She's my daughter—our daughter."
"Once she's a bit older, we'll choose a profession for her—something powerful."
"Let her choose what she likes. The profession doesn't matter."
"Alright, I'll listen to you."
The two chatted for a while.
Wen Mansa went back to handling city affairs, and Wu Heng ended the call.
He left his residence.
In the afternoon, he brought skeletons to the factory to reorganize the defenses.
He also arranged for the Skeleton Wyvern to join the defense.
......
Late at night, Wu Heng returned to his bedroom.
He lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling.
Thoughts swirled in his mind.
Gold-Silver Island had to deal with the Netare City matter—the report had been submitted, so he couldn't just ignore it now.
Rentam City was also facing instability.
Although Wen Mansa said the border troop buildup wasn't confirmed, with all the reports coming in, it was likely true.
"The Ekow Kingdom really has a death wish. Can't manage their own affairs but always want to start wars."
"What are they thinking?"
He muttered.
Wu Heng opened his panel to check his renown.
[Level: 19 (293741/355000)]
[Renown: 19 (5972/66000)]
The required experience for leveling was close to 300,000. What remained was experience points, which his skeleton expansion teams could handle.
Most experience also came from their expansion efforts.
At this rate, he'd reach the needed experience within a month.
Maybe even less than that.
The remaining issue was renown.
Right now, only 5,900—just a small fraction.
"Damn it, why does leveling require renown too?"
Thanks to 08a for the reward.