I Became The Vampire Progenitor

A week had passed, and not much had changed in Dawn City.

The surging tide of Earth players had not affected this city hidden deep within the Far Mountain Range in the slightest.

Inside the Dawn Mage Tower, the moment Li De stepped out of his room, Emi received the news and rushed over.

First-floor hall.

"Good day, Lord Progenitor." Li De glanced at the bright window outside and gave a slight nod.

"Good day, Emi.

How has Dawn City been these past few days? Has anything unusual happened?

Have any strangers speaking incomprehensible languages arrived in Dawn City?"

Although he had learned from the forum that players' birthplace was in the Temple of Life, Li De couldn't guarantee that this applied to everyone.

Dawn City had its own temples too, and although the Dawn Order was his own, it wasn't impossible for players to appear here.

Emi shook his head with a somewhat puzzled expression.

"Lord Progenitor, Dawn City is deep within the Far Mountain Range. It's impossible for strangers to appear without us noticing.

Moreover, we've mobilized all the city's residents. If any strangers or criminal activity appears, they'll report it immediately."

Hearing this, Li De smiled slightly.

A great man once said that enemies must be surrounded by a sea of people. Li De strongly agreed with this and had Harrison implement this powerful strategic thinking to the letter.

City Hall had issued a regulation: if signs of organizations like the former Wild Wolf Gang were discovered, or any form of criminal activity, reporting it to the Security Squad could earn Gold Pucks.

Those who made major contributions could even earn the most precious resource in Dawn City—points.

So for a stranger or criminal to hide in Dawn City was nearly impossible, unless no one saw them.

Otherwise, if anything seemed off, the residents would be more than happy to report it to City Hall in exchange for those valuable points.

"Mm, keep a close eye on this matter during this time. Whether it's the Mage Tower or anywhere else, if someone appears speaking strange words or behaving unlike ordinary residents, notify the Security Squad immediately and report it to me."

Though Emi found this order a bit strange, when he saw Li De's serious expression, he immediately nodded respectfully.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Regardless of whether Li De's decisions were reasonable, everyone was to carry them out unconditionally, there was no room for excuses.

After chatting for a while, Harrison, who had been working at the Dawn Mage Tower these past few days, also arrived.

"Good day, Patriarch."

"Harrison, how's the grain harvest going?" The harvest had already begun when Li De left Dawn City.

In Li De's mind, the importance of food at this stage absolutely ranked ahead of the player issue.

"Patriarch, eighty percent of the grain has been harvested in the past few days. After magical processing, all of it has been placed into the granaries."

Li De nodded in satisfaction. Grain represented the foundational development of Dawn City, so hearing this made him quite happy.

"Has all of it been stored? Did any residents keep grain for themselves?"

Harrison shook his head. "According to City Hall regulations, aside from the 30% tax, residents are allowed to keep 20% of their harvest. The rest must be sold to City Hall."

Li De nodded, curiosity rising.

"Did anyone object?"

Harrison shook his head with a strange look on his face. "Patriarch, we gave them the land for free to farm, what objections could these commoners have?

And we're purchasing all the grain at 4 Copper Pucks per pound, even though we only sell it at 3 Copper Pucks per pound."

At this stage, to maintain stability, Li De had even implemented grain price subsidies, which resulted in grain being sold cheaper than it was bought.

But now that he owned a Magic Factory—the ultimate machine for generating Gold Pucks—he didn't even bat an eye at these small expenses.

Besides, taking from the people and giving back to the people was part of his plan. Once these lambs were fattened up, shearing their wool would be just a matter of his word.

"Very good. Make sure all the grain is controlled by City Hall. Absolutely forbid any private grain trading in the market."

Li De reiterated once again. Grain, as a strategic resource, would not be freely traded by residents until sufficient reserves were in place.

"Notify the Security Squad: if they discover anyone in Dawn City who doesn't belong or has an unfamiliar face, I must be notified immediately."

He repeated the instructions he gave to Emi again for Harrison. When it came to players, vigilance could not be relaxed.

"Yes, Patriarch."

Harrison nodded solemnly, then seemed to remember something and hesitated slightly.

"Patriarch, the Whispering Bats have undergone some unusual changes recently."

Li De's heart skipped a beat. "Explain in detail."

Whispering Bats were currently the most important productive force in Dawn City, practically irreplaceable in the short term.

If something happened to this linchpin, it could deal a huge blow to his plans.

Harrison shook his head. "Not the entire colony, Patriarch, only one of them. To be precise, one Whispering Bat seems to be undergoing a transformation."

Li De was stunned. "Transformation??"

Whispering Bats were a magical beast unique to the Vampire race—no other race could cultivate them.

The entire Whispering Bat colony was created by cultivating ordinary small bats and activating their latent bloodline through Vampire blood, transforming them into Whispering Bats.

But this was the first time Li De had ever heard of a Whispering Bat undergoing a transformation.

Whispering Bats were born at Level 5, matured at Level 7, and elite forms reached Level 9. The very best might break through to Level 10, but that was the limit.

The term "transformation" was not to be used lightly. Simply leveling up from 9 to 10 couldn't be considered a transformation, that was just normal advancement.

Judging from Harrison's expression, Li De keenly sensed this was no ordinary matter.

"Explain in detail."

"Yes, Patriarch.

Five days ago, in Giant Valley, they were mining the veins as usual. Lord Kosso was excavating a new tunnel.

At that time, a Whispering Bat was transporting ore that Lord Kosso had mined.

Then, for some unknown reason, the newly excavated tunnel began to shake and suddenly collapsed.

Lord Kosso didn't manage to escape in time and his arm was pierced by a sharp stone pillar. At the same time, a Whispering Bat behind him was also impaled by the stone."

Li De furrowed his brow. Cave-ins had happened many times before.