Reflecting on the war against the Outworlders at the Black Tower: all the Outworlders in that battle were annihilated. Their physical bodies were completely destroyed, and having no way to return, they were forced to find new bodies (a "new set of clothes"). This was because a Soul (Divine Soul) remaining outside for too long would gradually weaken, becoming emotionless, mindless, and devoid of desire—much like a tree or a stone. Thus, they possessed surrounding objects such as sabers, swords, hammers, shields, helmets, and armor. Exhausted after the long war, they all fell into a deep slumber, both to rest and to hide their Divine Souls.

  The participating groups began to divide the spoils: whatever one could grab, they kept, bringing it back to refine into personal Magic Treasures or sealing it away if the Soul within was too powerful. Most high-level souls equivalent to the Nascent Soul (S-Rank) were collected, while lower-level souls were gathered based on compatibility. Consequently, a vast number of low-level souls were lost or scattered, as these were the common soldiers and minor commanders.

  The Dragon Race did not participate in the war, so they waited until all other factions had retreated before arriving to scavenge. They primarily collected Outworlder Dragons and Outworlder Aquatic tribes. A portion was used to equip the "Dragon Slaves," while others were handed over to the Wild Dragons along with gold, silver, and precious gems to increase the "attractiveness" of hunting Wild Dragons. The Dragon Race wanted to use these Wild Dragons as sacrifices so that the entire Human Race would carry Dragon Blood in their bodies (similar to Dragon Slaves). This way, when necessary in the future, they could control the Human Race to side with them.

  During the time after being chosen by King Chau Ng?c as the City Lord of the minor city T?n Thành, Doanh Th??ng Hi?n (Prince Hi?n) began to work diligently. He used his private fortune to develop and protect this small city. Over half of his assets were poured into it, while the other half was left for his son to continue developing. He even thick-skinnedly sent a letter to his father, Doanh Th??ng Nhan, asking for money to develop the city. His father was not upset but instead rejoiced; the son he thought was dead was now alive and living strongly. Thus, he gave all of his retirement savings to his son.

  When news reached them that Prince Hi?n was still alive, Grand General Silverbeard rushed over, repeatedly apologizing for the hardships the Prince had endured. Because he had been too focused on the search, he failed to protect Prince Hi?n’s second wife; from then on, he followed the Prince's every step. Silverbeard was a Grand General with a Core Formation (A-Rank) cultivation, specializing in the control of earth and stone. Therefore, his participation in building the city was incredibly fast; as long as there were enough resources, he could build immediately, saving the commoners a great deal of labor.

  Prince Hi?n also invited Noe to handle the management, construction, planning, and protection of the city. Although he knew Noe was the mentor of Doanh Th??ng Quan—the one who indirectly drove him away to take the throne—he trusted Noe's character and personality. Noe was of the Immortal Race; if an Immortal says they will help, they help and will never betray.

  When things were relatively stable, Prince Hi?n focused on cultivation to upgrade himself. He believed one should not depend too much on anyone and must always prepare a replacement, a Plan B, or even a Plan C.

  Prince Hi?n asked his Military Star Lord - Wu Qu: "Give me an evaluation of all types of combat talents."

  The System displayed a notification and spoke: "Combat capability is a very broad category, making it difficult to provide a general assessment for all. The development systems are also very diverse and hard to cover entirely.

  The criteria for good combat require a long time of practice and research in a specific field; the deeper one goes, the stronger the combat power. However, it requires many conditions—from time and supporting resources to finally reaching the Great Dao, where a single intent, a single thought, or a single action is enough to destroy the world.

  But considering your limits, where combat targets are ordinary battles—which in your understanding is from Core Formation (A-Rank) and below—the System temporarily divides development into 6 main directions:

  

  
1. Physical Offense Specialist (Full STR)


  
2. Physical Defense Specialist (Full VIT)


  
3. Magic Offense Specialist (Full INT)


  
4. Magic Defense Specialist (Full KNO)


  
5. Mental Offense Specialist (Full WIS)


  
6. Mental Defense Specialist (Full LUC)


  

  There is another way to divide by range (over 1000m):

  

  
1. Longest Range: Magic Offense (Full INT), no distance limit, requires extremely high innate talent.


  
2. Second Longest Range: Using the mind to control objects (Telekinesis) (Full WIS). The higher the WIS, the further the control. Under 100km for the Mortal Realm; requires high innate talent.


  
3. Third Longest Range: Physical Archery (Full STR).


  

  And a division for close combat (under 1000m):

  

  
1. Strongest Close Combat: Physical Offense (Full STR), requires extremely high resources and vast amounts of time.


  
2. Second Strongest: Mental Offense (Full WIS), controlling the opponent; high resource cost.


  
3. Third Strongest: Magic Offense (Full INT).


  

  There are two other types: Defense and Support..."

  The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  Prince Hi?n's head throbbed from absorbing such a massive amount of information. Too many things made him uncomfortable, so he snapped: "Enough, enough! Just focus on me. How should I develop?"

  The System announced in a mechanical voice: "According to the preliminary assessment, you have:

  

  
1. Dual Spiritual Roots (Fire, Light): Your innate talent is White Fire. The cultivation limit is Core Formation (A-Rank); going higher is a waste of resources. However, if you have a surplus, you can attempt Nascent Soul (S-Rank). The chance of success is less than one in a thousand, though there are always exceptions. Due to your ancestors, your Immortal Race bloodline is quite good and can support your cultivation.


  
2. Bloodline: You possess the White Dragon King Bloodline (10% Dragon Blood), inherited from your father. To develop in this direction, you need to hunt dragons and find Dragon Blood cultivation methods to grow stronger.


  
3. Equipment: Outworlder Dragon Mask. Compatibility is equivalent to your Dragon Blood percentage. Contract status is 100%. The Outworlder Dragon’s emotion is 0 (Extreme Hatred).


  

  Summary: To become stronger in a short time, you need more high-quality equipment and to refine Dragon Blood to increase compatibility."

  Prince Hi?n said: "Understood. So I need to go dragon hunting to take their Essence Blood and enhance my strength."

  The System replied: "Correct, specifically for the role of a General in ordinary battles. The System suggests you choose a Comprehensive Defense method, as battles often last many days and hours, which is very taxing on physical strength, energy, and spirit.

  ‘A good General is not the one who kills the most enemies, but the one who survives until the very end’."

  Prince Hi?n then asked: "Where is the Dragon Blood refining technique?"

  The System said: "This technique is already available, compiled by Vong Tr?n, the Commander of King Chau Ng?c’s Royal Guard. You can find and read it to save your Merit Points."

  Prince Hi?n said: "Ah, I know that book. But I’m too lazy to read it. Why waste time when I have a System? Read the entire content and give me the parts suitable for me."

  The System reported: "Requires 30,000 Yang Merit to load this knowledge into the System."

  Prince Hi?n said: "Agreed."

  The System reported: "From now on, the System will have the additional capability of Dragon Appraisal."

  Prince Hi?n began researching where to find small dragons to hunt, most of which were Earth Dragons (Dinosaurs). Thanks to the System, he could quickly check whether he should hunt them or not. Dragon meat and blood are extremely toxic, but if one knows how to refine them, they become excellent medicine, especially for physical tempering. Prince Hi?n’s bloodline was White Dragon, which conflicted with Black and Red Dragon bloodlines; eating those would surely lead to death or severe poisoning, so he had to avoid dragons of those two bloodlines.

  But it would be a waste to just leave them. He fed them to his 300 soldiers, dividing them into different groups where each group would eat a specific type of dragon. Over time, this group of soldiers became incredibly powerful—one man could fight ten, and the commanders could each fight a hundred, appearing extremely valiant and strong. The strongest members were taken along on subsequent dragon hunts. Because Dragons are lustful by nature, these members married many wives and sired many descendants, all of whom were strong.

  The Northern Di nation was different from the Chau Ng?c Kingdom. They were a migratory people, moving with their herds to find fresh grass. Their villages were like oases on the Steppes, with no city walls, only small partitions to block the flying dust. This land was vast, no smaller than the Chau Ng?c Kingdom, but mostly consisted of deserts and grasslands with few rivers. It had low agricultural value and no strategic value for occupation. However, these difficult and miserable conditions had forged an extremely strong and resilient race. There were no "civilians" here; from the old to the young, everyone was a warrior, proficient in at least one type of weapon.

  One day, Prince Hi?n, dressed as a grain merchant from the Western Lang Kingdom, entered a Northern Di village with a dozen carts of food. Commander Ngu Bá Chi was the guide, so they entered the village to investigate. In front of the village sat an elderly man enjoying the breeze. The commander approached to greet him and gifted him a bag of grain.

  Prince Hi?n asked: "What have you found out? Who is that old man?"

  Ngu Bá Chi replied: "There is a lot of good information. I used the identity of a horse trader to ask many things. This year the weather is good, the grass is lush, and the herds have grown. Thus, our border will be peaceful this year; the Northern Di will not lead their army down to attack us.

  They are strange—every time there is a natural disaster or famine, they head south to pillage, showing no regard for etiquette or education."

  Prince Hi?n laughed: "Part of the reason is because of us.

  ‘The rule of nature is that things flow from high to low, from where there is much to where there is little, to find balance’.

  But the people of our Great Chau Ng?c Kingdom hate the Northern Di; they won't sell grain to them, or they sell it at extremely high prices. Sometimes they use all sorts of tricks in trade to deceive them, which is why they hate us."

  Ngu Bá Chi replied: "But not all of us are like that, only a few."

  Prince Hi?n sighed and said: "I understand. I was once like that too. My short-sighted eyes saw a group of bad people and thought everyone was the same."

  Ngu Bá Chi laughed and said: "Haha, you’re remembering how you used to be!"

  Prince Hi?n gave a light smile and said: "Anyway, back to the main topic. We need information about dragons. Is there any news here?"

  Ngu Bá Chi said: "It’s great here; there’s even a Dragon Hunters' Association that trades everything. They accept exchanges from gold, silver, gems, and energy stones to salt, spices, and especially food. Everything can be traded."

  Prince Hi?n said: "Good. You go into the village and find a place for us to rest, with some grass and water. I will go to that Dragon Hunters' Association to check if there is anything worth buying."