Reincarnation of The Strongest Sword God

1201-1220

Chapter 1201 - Tier 2 Class

Initially, the Flower of Seven Sins members were about to blow up in rage at Shi Feng for looking down on them.

However, when they saw Angry Tyrant's Attributes, they were all stupefied.

"How is this possible?!"

"Aren't these Attributes too overpowered!?"

Everyone present was surprised by Angry Tyrant's Attributes. Although the bracers did not possess any Active Skills, their two Passive Skills were practically tailored for Berserkers. An increase of 20% in Strength and 30% in Attack Speed when the wearer's HP was below 50%... Just thinking about this gave everyone the shivers. Not to mention, there was also a certain chance for the wearer's Strength to double when attacking.

It was practically impossible for any other Epic Equipment to surpass the Angry Tyrant bracers. Angry Tyrant was definitely the best among Epic Equipment. Only equipment at the Fragmented Legendary rank and above would be better.

When Brute Spear saw the bracers' Attributes, he could no longer hide the greed in his eyes.

He was a Berserker. Moreover, he preferred Strength-oriented equipment. In fact, every piece of equipment below Epic rank that he had equipped right now focused on Strength.

Strength-oriented Epic Equipment was something he always dreamed of obtaining.

However, just being able to obtain Epic Equipment was already plenty difficult. Wanting to get Epic Equipment that perfectly suited him was practically a dream.

How could such excellent equipment for Berserkers possibly fall into the hands of a Swordsman!? I must obtain it!

Unfortunately for Brute Spear, although he wanted Angry Tyrant, just like Shi Feng said, he indeed could not produce any top-tier Epic Equipment that was equal or superior to the bracers.

No matter how he thought about it, he had only two items on hand that were worth more than Angry Tyrant.

One was an item that the Flower of Seven Sins wanted, while the other was the Epic-rank tool Soul Orb.

Eventually, Brute Spear gnashed his teeth as he said, "Do you think I can't take out something of even higher value? I have an Epic tool here. It is definitely more valuable than your Angry Tyrant bracers. If you can defeat me, I wouldn't mind gifting this Epic tool to you."

Epic tools were generally more valuable than Epic Weapons and Equipment because Epic tools did not take up a player's equipment slots. Players could use an Epic tool even if it was in their bag space. Hence, the price of Epic tools was generally double that of Epic Equipment, more if it was an Epic tool with good Attributes.

"An Epic tool?" Shi Feng feigned hesitation as he said so. Inwardly, however, he was extremely excited. "Alright, let's sign a contract!"

He had deliberately exposed Angry Tyrant's Attributes precisely to bait Brute Spear.

Now, he had succeeded.

As for whether the tool Brute Spear would wager was the Soul Orb or not, Shi Feng was 100% sure that it was.

Epic Equipment was already quite rare. The chances of Brute Spear obtaining two Epic tools at this stage of the game were lower than winning the lottery.

"Brother Ye Feng, is there really a need to do this?" Passing Monarch was bewildered as he watched Shi Feng sign a contract with Brute Spear.

Originally, if their whole group fought against Brute Spear, they'd had over a 70% chance of winning. Now, however, Shi Feng was going up against Brute Spear in a one-on-one. Even if Shi Feng was very powerful, in Passing Monarch's opinion, Shi Feng would be lucky to have even a 30% chance of victory. After all, Shi Feng had already used his Berserk Skill.

Meanwhile, Shi Feng was actually gambling Epic Equipment on such low odds. This was simply insane!

"Hahaha! That fool really signed a contract! Boss Brute sure is lucky! Not only did he obtain an Epic tool from completing the quest this time, but he is even going to get a pair of excellent bracers for Berserkers!"

"That's right! I wonder what kind of expression that person will reveal when they see the strength Boss Brute reveals."

"With the addition of these Epic bracers, Boss Brute will have three pieces of Epic Equipment in total. He will definitely become our Sin of Pride's number one Berserker with this!"

...

Brute Spear's several companions began a hushed discussion among themselves as they looked at Shi Feng. They all considered Shi Feng extremely foolish to gift away such excellent equipment.

As a peak expert, Shi Feng indeed possessed the qualifications to be prideful. However, Brute Spear was similarly a peak expert.

In their opinion, if it were before Brute Spear had completed his quest, he would have had roughly a 60% chance of winning. The reason for this bullish evaluation was Brute Spear having been a High Demon. After he transformed, both his Main Attribute and physique would receive a 20% improvement.

If both sides were almost equal in Attributes and combat standards, a 20% improvement to physique would allow Brute Spear to achieve an overwhelming victory. The only way Shi Feng could make up for this difference was through activating a Berserk Skill. However, as far as they knew, Shi Feng had already used his Berserk Skill and wouldn't be able to use it again within a short period. This doomed Shi Feng to a lower chance of winning.

Meanwhile, now that Brute Spear had completed his quest, his strength had received another considerable improvement.

Even if Shi Feng's combat standard was above Brute Spear's, Brute Spear still had a 90% chance of victory.

...

With the contract signed, both sides distanced themselves and provided Shi Feng and Brute Spear with sufficient space for a duel.

As the duel timer began counting down, Brute Spear retrieved the crimson spear slung on his back and slammed the spear's butt on the ground, causing an earth tremor.

"As thanks for gifting me the Angry Tyrant bracers, I'll let you have the honor of witnessing my full strength," Brute Spear sneered. "Originally, I intended to reserve this strength for competing against Bart for the position of number one Berserker in the group."

Saying so, Brute Spear let out a low shout as his entire body began releasing scorching-hot, pitch-black smoke.

This pitch-black smoke quickly wrapped around Brute Spear's entire body. In the next moment, the Berserker began transforming. In the blink of an eye, he had become a Demon.

However, unlike the black-clad Ranger from before, Brute Spear's Demon form had three sets of wings. The aura he radiated was also much stronger than the black-clad Ranger's. There was absolutely no comparison.

"We're doomed..." After seeing Brute Spear's Demon form, the last strand of hope Passing Monarch clung to vanished entirely.

At this moment, Brute Spear's companions likewise had shocked expressions on their faces, having all received a fright from Brute Spear's transformation.

"This is an ennobled Demon?"

"Amazing! High Demons simply cannot compare!"

"With this transformation, Boss Brute will no doubt become the number one Berserker in our Sin of Pride in the future!"

After Demon players transformed into Demons, they would still have ranks, which was also the reason why Demon players were half a tier stronger than ordinary players.

When players first Demonized, they would start out as Low Demons. Afterwards, they could promote to High Demons through hunting for a large number of player souls. However, further promotions after reaching the High Demon rank depended on more than just harvesting sufficient souls. One also needed to possess the corresponding status; in other words, attaining nobility.

Meanwhile, after Brute Spear completed his quest on Demon Island, he had gotten promoted from a High Demon directly to a Baron. As a result, his strength had also undergone a qualitative improvement.

"Hahaha! So this is the power of a Baron Demon? Truly amazing!" At this moment, Brute Spear could not help but revel in this newfound power of his.

Baron ranked Demon players received a 30% increase to both their Attributes and physique when transformed. Currently, both his Attributes and his body's physique were already at the Tier 2 standard. The only thing he lacked now was Tier 2 Skills. Aside from that, he could already be considered a Tier 2 player.

The disparity between Tier 2 and Tier 1 classes was much greater than that between Tier 1 and Tier 0 classes. If a Tier 2 class fought against a Tier 1 class, even without using any Skills and under a situation where both sides were at the same level, the Tier 1 class would be powerless to resist.

After Brute Spear stretched his body a little, his blood-red eyes shifted to the Swordsman before him.

"Alright, I'll let you have a taste of despair now!"

Chapter 1202 - Hidden Ability

When the duel timer came to an end, Brute Spear walked at a measured pace towards Shi Feng. It was as if he was strolling casually through a park right now. He did not take this duel seriously whatsoever.

As expected of a quest that could prompt the Demon God to emerge, it instantly promoted a High Demon to the Baron rank. Shi Feng unsheathed the Abyssal Blade and Killing Ray, his expression turning serious as he looked at the approaching Berserker.

Even after ten years had passed, Demon players that managed to reach the Baron rank had still been uncommon, with the majority stuck at the High Demon rank. If one wanted to get promoted further, they needed to get the acknowledgment of the Demon God or upper-class Demons and have them willingly share a portion of their power.

However, upper-class Demons and the Demon God were allowed to bestow their power on only a limited number of people. As a result, the number of Demon players that could become nobility was extremely low.

Currently, Brute Spear, who was Level 45, already possessed 240,000 HP. On the other hand, even after reaching Level 50, Shi Feng's HP was just slightly over 42,000. The disparity was nearly sixfold.

Moreover, Baron Demons possessed much higher Defense and Magic Resistance than High Demons. Even ordinary Tier 2 expert players would find it hard to kill the current Brute Spear, not to mention that there was not a single Tier 2 player in God's Domain yet.

When Brute Spear was only 12 yards away, Shi Feng abruptly stomped on the ground, leaving behind an afterimage in his original position as he dashed straight at the Berserker.

"So fast!"

The five Flower of Seven Sins members spectating from the side were astonished when they saw Shi Feng appearing before Brute Spear in the blink of an eye.

Shi Feng was definitely the fastest Swordsman they had ever seen. If it were them fighting against Shi Feng right now, they would be caught off guard if they were not careful.

Moreover, Shi Feng's movements and judgment were also considerably acute.

Unlike Berserkers that used greatswords or battle axes, Berserkers that used spears had a longer attack range. Their spears could reach roughly two yards farther than the other weapons. The optimum attack range for a spear-wielding Berserker was between four and eight yards. Meanwhile, a Swordsman that used a longsword had an optimum attack range between one and three yards. Although their sword auras could reach up to five yards, enemies that were standing within four to five yards could easily dodge such an attack by retreating one or two yards.

If a longsword-wielding Swordsman wanted to suppress a spear-wielding Berserker, the best way to do so was to close in and move within one to three yards of the latter. This way, the Berserker could not utilize the spear to its fullest potential.

Conversely, if Shi Feng allowed Brute Spear to gradually approach him, then before he even reached his attack range, Brute Spear would've already begun attacking—a considerably disadvantageous situation to Shi Feng.

Hence, taking the initiative to attack to launch a fast attack was an extremely wise decision.

"You have quick reactions; I'll give you that. Unfortunately, you met me!"

Brute Spear was indeed surprised by Shi Feng's speed and judgment. However, while others might have difficulty keeping up with Shi Feng's speed, he could see the Swordsman's movements perfectly. Moreover, due to his improved physique, he had a much clearer grasp of his surroundings. Right now, he could perceive everything within a 20-yard radius. In fact, the instant Shi Feng prepared to take action, he already knew what Shi Feng would do.

Whirlwind Slash!

Having long since anticipated Shi Feng's attack, Brute Spear swept the spear in his hands horizontally, his move capable of dealing a serious blow to all enemies within a 10-yard radius.

An explosion rang out in the air as he swung the crimson spear, the spear moving so fast that it became invisible to the naked eye. Meanwhile, Shi Feng was currently still six yards away from Brute Spear. By the time he could start attacking Brute Spear, the Berserker's spear would've long since landed on him.

Although the spear was weaker than the greatsword and battle axe when it came to raw power, it was superior in terms of speed.

Peng!

Spear and sword collided, the impact forcing Shi Feng to take a few steps back.

What a high Skill Completion Rate! Shi Feng was slightly astonished as he looked at Brute Spear, who remained unaffected by the impact.

If speaking purely in terms of the Strength Attribute, he should surpass Brute Spear even after the latter transformed. After all, there was a five-level gap between them. Moreover, the quality of his weapons and equipment was also far superior to that of Brute Spear's. Nonetheless, he still got repulsed in the end.

The only explanation for such a situation occurring was Brute Spear's Skill Completion Rate. When a player's Skill Completion Rate reached a certain percentage, the Skills they used would generate some additional effects.

For example, when the Berserker class's Whirlwind Slash achieved a Completion Rate of 99% or above, aside from having greater destructive power, the Skill would also come with a knockback effect.

A Skill Completion Rate of 99%!

This was a Completion Rate that Shi Feng could only occasionally achieve when both his body and mind were in an excellent state.

Despite that, the Berserker before him was able to achieve this feat casually.

Is this a hidden ability of a Demon noble?

Shi Feng did not believe that Brute Spear himself was capable of achieving such a high Completion Rate. After all, the Berserker had just been promoted to a Baron Demon. After transforming, the bonus Attributes he received should be much higher than when he was just a High Demon. He should have great difficulty properly controlling this newfound strength immediately. He would need some time to adapt. Hence, the only explanation was that this high Completion Rate was a hidden ability of a Demon noble.

In the past, Shi Feng had never gotten the opportunity to fight against a Demon noble. Or to put it in another way, he had not possessed the qualifications to do so. As a result, he had only a little information on Demon players. As for the hidden abilities of Demon nobles, there hadn't been any fools that revealed such a secret.

"No wonder Chen Xu said that you're powerful. Your Strength Attribute is actually so high." Looking at his still-trembling spear, Brute Spear could not help but turn to look at Shi Feng. After this brief exchange, he grew even more fond of the bracers on Shi Feng's arms.

Even after transforming into a Demon, he was still weaker than Shi Feng in terms of Strength. If he were fighting against any other Swordsman right now, such a situation would have been impossible. The only explanation for this was Shi Feng's weapons and equipment.

After saying so, Brute Spear directly used Charge at Shi Feng, the spear in his hands stabbing at Shi Feng's heart.

When Brute Spear used Charge, he became like a shooting star. He was not only extremely fast but also exerted powerful pressure on Shi Feng.

However, this pressure didn't come from Brute Spear himself. Instead, it was a deterrent effect that appeared when Charge's Completion Rate reached 99% or above. This hidden effect reduced his opponent's reaction speed by 20% and Movement Speed and Attack Speed by 40% for one second.

When Brute Spear got to within six yards of Shi Feng, the crimson spear in his hands suddenly transformed into a streak of red light.

"Boss Brute is finally using his trademark move," an Assassin familiar with Brute Spear said, chuckling.

This was a combination technique Brute Spear used to gain fame for himself in the Flower of Seven Sins, merging a combat technique with a system Skill to exert even more power.

Lightning Speed!

Originally, Charge had already allowed Brute Spear's crimson spear to move at a frighteningly fast speed. Then, during the time he was using Charge, he would transfer the power of his entire body to his spear, applying additional acceleration the instant it was about to reach its target. This speed made the attack practically impossible to dodge or block.

Peng!

At the critical moment, Shi Feng activated Parry.

When the crimson spear came into contact with his swords, Shi Feng instantly felt both his arms go numb. His entire person also was forced to retreat six steps before he managed to stabilize himself.

He blocked it? Brute Spear was astounded right now. Just how high is his Agility?

The Lightning Speed he executed this time was the most perfect one so far. Logically, after including the suppression effect of his Charge, Shi Feng should not have been capable of executing Parry at all.

"Since it is so, let's see if your reaction speed or my Attack Speed is faster!"

Saying so, Brute Spear flapped the wings on his back and began hovering in midair. His body then split into three, and all three attacked Shi Feng simultaneously from different directions.

The Skill he had used was called Demon Flash, something he had learned after becoming a Baron Demon. It allowed him to attack his opponent from three directions, and each clone mirrored his original body perfectly. There was also no need for him to control his mirror images as they would carry out the same actions as he did. During the attack, he and his clones would also gain an enormous Movement Speed boost. Overall, it was a Skill many times more powerful than Charge.

Chapter 1203 - Difference between Trump Cards

After Brute Spear used Demon Flash, he and his mirror images moved faster than when he used Charge. The surrounding spectators could barely see the three Berserkers' afterimages, much less their real bodies.

Is this his true strength? Passing Monarch was deeply shocked when he saw this scene.

It was no wonder Brute Spear was so confident before.

With that kind of speed and destructive power, even if all of them went at him together, they would be fortunate to land an attack on him, much less shave away one-fifth of his HP.

So fast!

Although Shi Feng's physique had improved a lot after reaching Level 50, in the end, he had yet to obtain his Tier 2 class, which would provide a massive boost to his physique. At this moment, his eyes could no longer keep up with Brute Spear's speed. He could only rely on the changes in his surroundings to determine Brute Spear's movements.

"You should consider yourself fortunate to fall to this move of mine!" Brute Spear executed Lightning Speed on Shi Feng once more.

Compared to the time he attacked with Charge, the speed of his spear this time had increased by a large margin. Moreover, his two clones had also attacked using the same Strength and speed. If attacked at such a speed and from three different angles, even a Domain Realm Assassin expert would not be able to evade properly.

Dang! Dang! Dang!

However, just as the three crimson spears were about to reach Shi Feng, they abruptly stopped in their paths, unable to proceed even an inch farther due to Shi Feng activating the Swordsman class's strongest Lifesaving Skill, Defensive Blade.

Brute Spear was not particularly surprised by this situation. After all, the Swordsman class's Lifesaving Skills were only second to the Assassin class's. Now that he had forced Shi Feng to use both Lifesaving Skills consecutively, he would have a much easier time dealing with the Swordsman.

"So what if you blocked them?" Brute Spear sneered. In a single breath, he rapidly jabbed five times with his spear, targeting Shi Feng's blind spots. Meanwhile, his two mirror images had also launched identical attacks. Demon Flash did not just allow him to launch a charging attack on his target. The clones conjured lasted five seconds, during which, they would carry out the same actions as the main body. Moreover, they also possessed the exact same Attributes as the main body. Overall, Demon Flash was a Skill meant to counter Defensive Skills that could block multiple attacks.

As a result, a total of fifteen spears struck at Shi Feng from three different directions—and extremely fast. Even Shi Feng failed to keep up with all fifteen spears.

Meanwhile, these fifteen spear attacks had already exceeded the number of attacks Defensive Blade could block.

Sure enough, a Baron Demon really is difficult to handle. Shi Feng finally understood why Demon nobles were so difficult to kill.

In the past, when he saw certain experts on the God's Domain Experts List successfully killing a Demon noble, he had thought nothing of it. Now, however, it would seem that killing a Demon noble of the same tier was a very difficult task.

Shi Feng immediately activated Killing Ray's Additional Skill, Summon Lightning.

Boom!

In the next moment, arcs of blue lightning shot down from the sky one after another.

Not only did these lightning arcs deal 400% lightning damage to all enemies within a 15-yard radius to Shi Feng, but they could also inflict a Numb effect for 5 seconds on the targets struck. Afterwards, his attack range would even increase by 20 yards for 30 seconds.

However, Brute Spear simply sneered at this attack. He did not bother dodging the lightning arcs at all as he abruptly stabbed his spear at Shi Feng. He intended to compete and see who could deal more damage.

While the fifteen spears struck at Shi Feng, the lightning arcs also bombarded Brute Spear's body.

The block count of Shi Feng's Defensive Blade was instantly exhausted. As for the several spear strikes that got through, Shi Feng used his swords to deflect them, so he did not receive any substantial damage.

In contrast, Brute Spear had over -13,000 damage from the lightning strikes.

What high Magic Resistance! Envy sprouted in Shi Feng's heart when he saw this damage.

If a normal Level 45 player received this move of his, they would either die instantly or have very little HP remaining.

However, a Baron Demon's high Magic Resistance had greatly reduced the damage Brute Spear received.

Brute Spear had over 240,000 HP. By relying on battle recovery alone, he could recover over 2,400 HP every five seconds. In addition, Summon Lightning's Numb effect was ineffective against the Berserker.

As Summon Lightning ended, Brute Spear launched five spear strikes once more.

This time, however, Shi Feng no longer possessed Defensive Blade to protect himself.

"What a pitiful bastard. He actually dared to challenge Boss Brute to a duel. He might have had a fighting chance if he had his Berserk Skill. Unfortunately, he's already used it against Chen Xu."

"However, Boss Brute is also amazing. I feel that the Skills he used all have very high Completion Rates."

When the five Flower of Seven Sins members saw this scene, they all knew that this fight was as good as over.

Originally, Brute Spear already possessed a huge advantage in HP and Defense. Now, he was even using an attack method that trumped all defenses. If Shi Feng wished to deal damage to Brute Spear, he would have no choice but to clash head-on as well. However, Brute Spear still had two clones assisting him. It was simply impossible for a melee player like Shi Feng to stop Brute Spear.

From this scene, Shi Feng also understood what was going through Brute Spear's mind. However, he also had to admit that this was a good plan, as he really did not possess any method of coping with it.

Shi Feng used Silent Steps right away and appeared behind Brute Spear. He then pointed the Abyssal Blade at the Berserker.

Abyssal Bind!

Immediately, black chains materialized in empty space one after another, every one of them shooting straight at Brute Spear.

Seeing this, Brute Spear sneered as he activated a Control Removal Skill without hesitation, causing Abyssal Bind to lose effect. He then charged at Shi Feng and launched another barrage of attacks together with his mirror images.

"You want to compete using HP?" Shi Feng smiled. "Come, then!"

Saying so, Shi Feng activated Phantom Kill and Nine Dragon Slash.

Although his doppelganger only possessed 80% of his Basic Attributes, which made it slightly weaker than Brute Spear, it should have no problems holding off one of the Berserker's mirror images. Meanwhile, the twelve Abyssal Blade phantoms summoned by Nine Dragons Slash could also easily stop the other mirror image. This way, the duel would revert to a one-on-one fight.

At this time, Shi Feng activated Thunder God's Descent, increasing his Movement Speed and Attack Speed by 150%, damage by 50%, and decreasing the damage he received by 50% for 30 seconds.

Without hesitation, he charged straight at Brute Spear and executed Sword's Orbit.

Starlight suddenly filled Shi Feng's surroundings. However, Brute Spear paid no attention to this phenomenon whatsoever as he used all his strength to send out multiple spear strikes.

Immediately, both sides' HP began falling continuously, the rate of decline giving the surrounding spectators a fright.

"How is this possible?!" The five Flower of Seven Sins members were dumbfounded as they looked at Brute Spear's plummeting HP.

At this moment, Brute Spear was losing over 10,000 HP with each attack he received, 20,000 HP with a critical hit. On the other hand, although Shi Feng was similarly losing HP, he was only losing around 3,000 HP with each attack he received. Moreover, the rate at which his HP fell was much slower than Brute Spear's. For each time Shi Feng's HP fell, Brute Spear's HP would fall two or three times.

After just two seconds of exchanging hits, Brute Spear had less than 70,000 HP remaining—down to less than one-third of his HP. On the other hand, although they could not see the exact value of Shi Feng's HP due to him having hidden it with his Black Cloak, the HP bar revealed above his head showed that he had lost only one-third of his total HP so far. The difference between the two sides was obvious at a glance.

However, despite this situation, Brute Spear himself remained unfazed.

Just when Brute Spear's HP fell below the 30,000 threshold, a sinister smile appeared on his face.

"Backtrack!" Brute Spear roared. Immediately, a blood-red magic array appeared in the air. A red light then shone out of the magic array, enveloping a radius of 30 yards around Brute Spear.

This was the strongest Skill Brute Spear obtained after becoming a Baron Demon.

Blood Backtrack!

As long as he was not dead, the Skill would allow him to regain the HP he had six seconds before.

This was the reason why he dared to exchange damage with Shi Feng.

In the next moment, Brute Spear's HP directly recovered to full. In contrast, Shi Feng had less than half of his HP right now.

"Despicable! He can actually recover his HP!" Passing Monarch could not help but curse out loud when he saw this scene.

Brute Spear simply sent a contemptuous glance at Passing Monarch.

Sure enough, he really does have a trump card hidden. Shi Feng was not particularly surprised by this scene.

In reality, he also knew about Blood Backtrack. This was a move that all Demon nobles knew. Even monsters like Great Demons had used it frequently since it was a Skill specifically used to trap others.

Hence, he also held back a trump card.

Suddenly, the two swords in Shi Feng's hands released a blinding light.

Flame Burst!

Sword's Orbit!

One sword light after another flew at Brute Spear.

"A Sure-kill Skill?" Remaining unfazed, Brute Spear activated the Additional Skill of his Epic Equipment, Magic Shield, which reduced the damage he received by 30% for ten seconds.

He promptly brandished his spear to deflect the oncoming sword lights.

Although Brute Spear failed to deflect all the attacks, with his body's extraordinary physique, he still managed to deflect the majority of them. In the end, he got struck only three times. However, these three hits shocked him as each one actually took over 60,000 HP from him. In just three blows, he had lost over 180,000 HP.

When Flame Burst ended and Brute Spear was preparing to counterattack, Shi Feng activated Dragon Breath.

Dragon Breath was an AOE Skill that was impossible to block. Moreover, it dealt much more damage than even Flame Burst.

Instantly, Dragon Breath devoured Brute Spear's remaining HP.

At the same time, Shi Feng emerged the victor of this duel!

Chapter 1204 - Treasure Secured

After the duel was over, Brute Spear had a look of horror on his face as he looked at Shi Feng.

How could he have such a high explosive power?!

Brute Spear could not at all believe that he had just lost.

He was a Baron Demon. He also had two pieces of Epic Equipment equipped. He himself was a peak expert in God's Domain. With his 240,000-plus HP, even if he just stood still and did nothing, it would take a Berserker of the same level quite some time to kill him, yet he had been killed almost instantly.

How could he possibly accept this loss?

Nonetheless, there was no way the duel result announced by the system could be fake. It was also an inescapable fact that he only had one HP remaining right now.

Unlike the duels in arenas, the system would leave players with one HP when they were defeated in a duel held in the fields, preventing them from dying.

"The match is over. You can hand over that Epic item of yours now," Shi Feng said as he looked at Brute Spear, who currently had a dazed expression on his face.

Although Brute Spear possessed the transformation bonuses of a Baron Demon, the difference in levels and equipment between the two of them was simply too massive. It was not something a single Demon transformation could offset.

Powerful weapons and equipment not only improved a player's Basic Attributes but also strengthened a player's Skills.

"Just who are you?" Brute Spear asked after taking a deep breath. "Anyone capable of steamrolling right over me can't be someone unknown."

In terms of HP and Defense, he indeed possessed an absolute advantage. However, Shi Feng was leaps and bounds above him in Skills and other Basic Attributes. Meanwhile, needless to say, the reason for Shi Feng's advantage in Attributes was definitely the Swordsman's weapons and equipment.

Any player that could surpass a player like himself in terms of weapons and equipment could not be an ordinary expert. Most likely, Shi Feng was a peak expert from a superpower. Moreover, far from just any ordinary peak expert, Shi Feng was no doubt a peak expert heavily nurtured by his Guild.

"What? Want to take revenge on me? Not willing to accept defeat?" Shi Feng asked.

"That's only one part of the reason." Brute Spear nodded in acknowledgment. "The other part is that I don't want to lose without even knowing whom I lost to."

He had indeed thought of taking revenge on Shi Feng. After all, the reason he lost this time was not due to techniques, but rather weapons, equipment, and Skills. This result greatly frustrated him.

He was actually killed instantly by two Sure-kill Skills.

If news about this spread, he would definitely become a laughingstock.

After giving the matter some thought, Shi Feng walked up to Brute Spear and said quietly, "Fine, I can give you a chance. You can call me Frost Eye. In any case, this is a name others have given me. If you wish to have a rematch, then you must wager Epic Equipment at the very least, just like this time. As for the venue of the match, let's set it at the imperial capital of the Fire Dragon Empire. Once you're ready, you just need to spread the message in the Fire Dragon Empire. When the time comes, I'll naturally find out."

"You're Frost Eye? The number one person on the Bounty List?" Brute Spear's heart began racing when he heard this and stared incredulously at Shi Feng.

Frost Eye was very famous in God's Domain.

After all, Frost Eye had managed to enter the main headquarters of the Super Guild King's Return and kill Hell Fiend all by himself—then escape with his life. This incident had long since become a legend in God's Domain.

Even now, King's Return was still hunting Frost Eye. Moreover, the bounty the Guild had placed on Frost Eye had increased from the initial 20,000 Gold to the current 50,000 Gold. King's Return was even offering a reward of several hundred Gold to anyone that could provide some clues leading to Frost Eye.

This incident had also prompted the various superpowers in God's Domain to search for Frost Eye, because of Frost Eye's ability to enter places with heavy security like the Divine Colosseum and pull off an assassination. Since Frost Eye had killed an expert like Hell Fiend, he was naturally capable of killing other Guild upper echelons as well, perhaps even the Guild Leaders of superpowers. A Guild Leader's assassination would deal a massive blow to the Guild's reputation.

Hence, the various superpowers in God's Domain were searching for Frost Eye. The Flower of Seven Sins was no exception.

As an organization that dealt in assassination work, if the Flower of Seven Sins could recruit such an expert, its fame would undoubtedly rise significantly.

"Mhm, that's right. Since you already have the answer to your question, you can give me my item now, right?" Shi Feng nodded.

"It seems I have not lost in vain." At this moment, a trace of admiration flashed across Brute Spear's eyes as he looked at Shi Feng. He then took out the Soul Orb from his bag and passed it to him.

In reality, Brute Spear did not place any particular importance on the Soul Orb.

After all, Epic items like the Soul Orb were not particularly rare. Practically every superpower possessed one or two of such items. Take the Epic tool the Dark Arena had auctioned for example. The tool could be used to brew Magic Wine that had a calming effect when consumed. The calming effect was similar to when a player was in a high Mana density environment.

The Soul Orb was similar to that Epic tool. However, unlike the Magic Wine, which required rare materials to brew, the Soul Orb needed players to willingly offer up a portion of their souls to produce Soul Water. Moreover, the souls of 100 players were needed to produce one drop of Soul Water. Rather than doing something as tedious as collecting souls, gathering raw materials would be much faster. Hence, Brute Spear felt that the Soul Orb was somewhat useless; otherwise, he wouldn't have used it as a wager.
-

[Soul Orb] (Epic Rank Item)
An orb crafted by Demon God Paimon using the fragments of a destroyed powerful soul treasure.

Additional Active Skill-
Soul Water: Creates Soul Water from the souls willingly contributed by players. No Cooldown. (Every 100 souls of players absorbed will produce one drop of Soul Water.)

Currently, this item has been sealed by Demon God Paimon. Item will drop upon death. Those without the power of Demons are unable to use this item.

-
"If you're not interested in this Epic item, I can use 7,000 Gold to buy it back," Brute Spear said, grinning as he looked at Shi Feng.

Although items like the Soul Orb were indeed rare in God's Domain, there were still a few of them, which usually sold for around 20,000 to 30,000 Gold. However, since only Demon players could use the Soul Orb, its value was much lower.

For someone like Shi Feng, who was not a Demon player, even if he obtained the Soul Orb, he would not be able to use it. In other words, it was no different from a piece of junk.

"At the end of the day, it is still an Epic item. Keeping it as a decoration isn't a bad idea, either." Although a surprised expression had indeed appeared on Shi Feng's face after he read the Soul Orb's Attributes, he still stored the item away. He then turned around and left.

The corners of Brute Spear's mouth twitched involuntarily when he heard Shi Feng's words.

Most likely, only the number one person on the Bounty List could say something like using an Epic item as decoration.

As for preventing Shi Feng and the others from leaving, Brute Spear did not think he and his companions had this ability.

If Shi Feng was capable of leaving King's Return's main headquarters unscathed back then, it would be child's play to get away from the six of them.

Following which, Shi Feng led Passing Monarch and the others away from Demon Island.

Brute Spear and the others had failed to notice that the reason for Shi Feng's surprised expression was not the fact that only Demon players could use the Soul Orb. After all, this was something Shi Feng had long since known.

Instead, he was surprised because the instant he touched the Soul Orb, the Golden Stigmata on him had reacted.

Chapter 1205 - Kingdom Transformation

The Golden Stigmata was originally a tool for Shi Feng to search for the Seven Treasures.

Previously, when he went to Lake Heart City, a clue relating to one of the Seven Treasures had appeared. However, the signal had been brief, disappearing after a moment. Fortunately, he had already gotten a lock on the NPC wielding that treasure.

Only, as Countess Katie Green was too powerful for Shi Feng right now, he did not want to alert the NPC any more than he already had.

Since entering God's Domain, Shi Feng had already been to quite a few places. However, he had managed to find only one clue relating to the Seven Treasures so far. Despite that, the instant he touched the Soul Orb, it had actually triggered a reaction from the Golden Stigmata. How could he not get excited over this?

This was also the reason behind Shi Feng's decision to give up on entering Demon Island for now and return to White River City first.

After all, the Soul Orb was an item that dropped upon death. The ancient ruins on Demon Island were extremely dangerous. With the Demon God's aura causing the monsters on the island to go berserk, the risk of death was simply too high right now. It was much better if he returned to White River City for the time being.

Following which, Shi Feng said his goodbyes to Passing Monarch and agreed to meet up with him tomorrow at the Sea's End.

...

Meanwhile, on Demon Island, the black-clad Ranger Chen Xu, who had just met up with Brute Spear's group, nearly had his eyes fall out of their sockets when he saw Brute Spear sending off Shi Feng and the others.

"Boss Brute, are you letting them go, just like that?" Chen Xu could not believe this was true. "We lost a lot of men to them."

As Demons, they lost three levels each time they died. Just the number of Flower of Seven Sins members killed by Shi Feng alone numbered over 70. If their superiors were to find out about this, they would no doubt receive severe punishment. After all, turning ordinary players into Demons was not an easy task.

"We can only consider ourselves unlucky this time," Brute Spear replied.

"Boss Brute, even you weren't able to defeat them?!" Chen Xu asked in shock.

Brute Spear was a peak expert in the Flower of Seven Sins. Moreover, every one of the five others in the Berserker's party was stronger than Chen Xu. They should be more than capable of dealing with Shi Feng, whose Berserk Skill was on Cooldown. Moreover, Brute Spear had already been ennobled into a Baron Demon. In terms of overall strength, he could already be considered a Tier 2 player. How could he possibly not be a match for Shi Feng?

Brute Spear turned around and asked, "Do you know who that peak expert is?"

Chen Xu shook his head in response. Shi Feng had been wearing a Black Cloak the entire time. Hence, Chen Xu had failed to discern any information about the Swordsman. Pinpointing his identity through his class was also impossible. After all, there were just too many Swordsman experts in God's Domain. Not to mention, many of the Swordsman experts that entered God's Domain were not that famous.

"He is Frost Eye!" Brute Spear smiled bitterly.

"What?! That's the guy the higher-ups have been searching for all this time?!" Chen Xu could not help his surprise.

Ordinary players might not be familiar with Frost Eye, but he was a famous existence among the superpowers of God's Domain. Even the old monsters of the Flower of Seven Sins had praised him endlessly, wishing to recruit him into the organization.

"No wonder he was so strong!"

When Chen Xu recalled the scene where Shi Feng had instantly killed Hammer and the others, he found the idea plausible. After all, Frost Eye was someone capable of assassinating the upper echelon of a Super Guild right in the middle of the Guild's main headquarters and even getting away safely. It would be a piece of cake for someone like that to kill experts of Hammer's standards.

"Alright, go inform the higher-ups. Tell them that I already have a way to make contact with Frost Eye. Also, send in a detailed report regarding the previous battle. As for the matter regarding Demon Island, the rest of us will handle it," Brute Spear commanded.

...

Star-Moon Kingdom, White River City:

After returning, Shi Feng immediately noticed that the atmosphere within the city had become slightly tense.

"Those Red Players are simply too arrogant! They actually dare take action within NPC towns now! Thanks to that, the loot my team got from the Boss we killed is all gone!"

"Your team is simply too careless. However, after the new expansion pack was implemented, the Dark Guilds and Red Players have indeed become more proactive. Several other teams have likewise gotten ambushed and suffered severe losses."

"I wonder which bastard triggered this expansion pack. I heard that the other kingdoms and empires are in similar situations. New dark towns and cities have also been popping up one after another throughout God's Domain, allowing Red Players to exchange for many nice items there."

"Exchange items?"

"That's right. Although the exchange rates are very fraudulent, requiring three Secret-Silver Weapons to exchange for one Secret-Silver Weapon or Equipment of the same level, the exchanged weapons and equipment are more suited to oneself. Some normal players have even begun commissioning Dark Guilds and Red Players to help exchange items for them now."

"Isn't that awesome? Our team has many weapons and equipment we can't use. Rather than sell them for money, it will be much better to exchange for items that are more appropriate for us."

"Do you really think it's that easy? So far, the only place that has such an exchange center in Star-Moon Kingdom is Evernight City as the only dark NPC city within the kingdom. Those who aren't Red or Dark Players are prohibited entry. Moreover, if you want to exchange for high-ranking weapons and equipment, you'll need to have enough Reputation with the city as well as fulfill certain conditions. Ordinary Red Players can exchange for Bronze Weapons and Equipment at best. I heard that only Dark Players can exchange for Secret-Silver Weapons and Equipment."

"It seems we'll have to be more careful in the future. Now that these Dark Guilds and Red Players have such a convenient source for items, they will surely become more proactive in the future."

"That's right. Currently, some NPC towns are no longer safe from Red Players. I don't know what kind of item those Red Players have managed to get, but they're actually able to evade detection by NPC guards for a short time. Unless they're standing very near an NPC guard, the latter won't sense them at all."

...

Many independent teams and players were discussing the recent expansion pack and its consequences in the open-air bar of White River City's Teleportation Hall, and they were unanimous in hating the new expansion pack.

Initially, the range of activity of Dark Players was not particularly large. After the implementation of the new expansion pack, however, new dark towns appeared in the vicinity of the various NPC cities. Moreover, these dark towns were all very powerful. The NPCs ruling them were usually above Level 100—existences that current players couldn't go up against. As a result, this situation immediately expanded the range of activities of Dark Players significantly.

They've begun moving already? Shi Feng had never imagined that these Dark Players would take action so quickly.

While the Demon God's Disturbance expansion pack was indeed a blessing to Dark Players and somewhat of a disadvantage to ordinary adventurer players, it wasn't as though the expansion pack was a pure liability to adventurer players. Adventurer players similarly had a way to benefit from this expansion pack: crusades!

Along with the rise of the dark forces, many Dark NPCs that had previously hidden themselves would become active. As these NPCs were considered enemies of normal players, normal players could kill them without suffering any repercussions.

As long as players managed to kill these NPCs, aside from being able to obtain weapons and equipment just like the loot from a Boss, there was also a certain chance for these NPCs to drop Seven Luminaries Crystals, an extremely valuable item to both players and NPCs. Unlike Field Bosses, some powerful NPCs would collect Seven Luminaries Crystals.

This source of Seven Luminaries Crystals could also be considered the greatest reward to normal players from this new expansion pack.

After Shi Feng was done eavesdropping on the conversations of other players, he returned to the Candlelight Trading Firm and entered a Special Forging Room before carefully taking out the Soul Orb.

"Please don't disappoint me." Shi Feng then activated Omniscient Eyes on the Soul Orb. Omniscient Eyes was one of the two Active Skills of the Golden Stigmata, and it allowed one to see through everything and discover certain things that were not visible on the surface.

Chapter 1206 - Treasure Fragment

Star-Moon City:

Due to the Demon God's Disturbance, Star-Moon City's player population exploded. The majority of these newcomers were former inhabitants of the nearby towns.

With the rise of the dark forces, the surrounding NPC towns were no longer safe. The safest locations right now for normal players were NPC cities.

This development also prompted many adventurer teams, which were originally active in NPC towns, to move their main base of operations to NPC cities. Consequently, the prices of Land in NPC cities also increased as a result of competition among many adventurer teams. This was especially true for Land in the outskirts of Star-Moon City.

Although the Land of a capital city was much more expensive than the Land of other cities, the capital city was also much safer and more convenient.

Moreover, Star-Moon City was the closest NPC city to Evernight City, the sole city controlled by the dark forces in Star-Moon Kingdom. This proximity also drew many hidden Dark Players to Star-Moon City.

Players couldn't teleport to Evernight City; Dark Players were no exception to this. If players wished to visit the city, they could only do so on foot. Meanwhile, Star-Moon City was undeniably the best place to stay for convenience in exchanging for items.

For a time, the situation within Star-Moon City became very complicated.

Meanwhile, inside Heaven's Burial's Residence, a meeting of the highest order was currently being held.

"Fog, how are the contacts on your side?" Singular Burial asked as he looked at the female Elementalist standing beside him.

"Those Dark Guilds have already agreed to our conditions. When the time comes, we just need to exchange some of the weapons and equipment we don't need for those rare tools in Evernight City. At the same time, they've also agreed to secretly kill the players that visit Stone Forest Town," Daybreak Fog said, giggling softly.

Although the new expansion pack had driven the rise of the dark forces, only minor powers like small Guilds, adventurer teams, and independent players were actually affected. Large Guilds like Heaven's Burial were entirely unaffected by this situation.

After all, if the various Dark Guilds wished to thrive in Star-Moon City, they would have to gain the permission of Heaven's Burial.

"Excellent. Now that we have the support of these Dark Guilds, we'll have a much easier time hindering Stone Forest Town's development. Fog, you'll be responsible for handling our relationship with the Dark Guilds in the future," Singular Burial said with a nod. He then turned to look at the Cleric Flame Blood and asked, "How are preparations coming along on Abandoned Wave's side?"

"Guild Leader, rest assured, I've already covertly leaked information that a secret land has been discovered over at that place. Many strong adventurer teams and small Guilds have already begun taking action. Afterwards, if we release additional fake news about finding treasure there, even more players should head over to their deaths. It won't be long before we hit the number Abandoned Wave needs. Moreover, due to this new expansion pack, the dark forces have already killed a large number of players. Thus, we won't attract any suspicions even if many players die," Flame Blood explained. "However, if we supply so many players to Abandoned Wave, what if he turns his sword against us, once he is done dealing with Zero Wing?"

"You don't have to worry about this point. We've already signed a contract. He won't dare go back on his word. Besides, the more sacrifices we supply Abandoned Wave, the more returns we'll obtain from Evernight City. As long as we help Abandoned Wave achieve his target requirement, Heaven's Burial will become the first Guild to reside in Evernight City. By then, we'll be unstoppable." Singular Burial laughed nonchalantly at Flame Blood's worries.

He was helping Abandoned Wave because he stood to kill two birds with one stone.

The first was weakening Zero Wing. Once Abandoned Wave was done dealing with Zero Wing, even if Heaven's Burial could not become Star-Moon Kingdom's number one Guild, it could still occupy half of the entire kingdom.

The second was the position in Evernight City.

As the only city belonging to the dark forces in Star-Moon Kingdom, Evernight City offered simply too many benefits. Heaven's Burial could already make a hefty profit just by reselling the items bought or exchanged for there.

Currently, the majority of the players in God's Domain were under the impression that only Dark Players could enter Evernight City. In reality, though, that was not true.

As long as one attained a certain status within the city, they could even purchase Land to construct a Guild Residence in Evernight City. Only, achieving this status was tough. However, Abandoned Wave just so happened to provide the Guild with a good way to do so. Once Heaven's Burial entered Evernight City, they could begin reselling the city's rarities.

Meanwhile, although the various Dark Guilds could also exchange for plenty of rare items, at the end of the day, Dark Guilds were shady existences that few ordinary people wished to do business with. Not to mention, Dark Guilds thrived on killing players. If one did not possess a certain degree of strength, who would dare to trade with Dark Players? As a result, the number of channels they could sell their rare items through was limited.

However, Heaven's Burial was different. Needless to say, players would prefer to trade with Heaven's Burial over the various Dark Guilds. In addition, Dark Guilds were usually of relatively small size, so how could they possibly compete with Heaven's Burial?

As for the threat of the Blackwater Guild, there was no need to worry about that. The Guild had already officially withdrawn from Star-Moon Kingdom not long ago and diverted its attention towards the various empires of God's Domain. After all, the Blackwater Corporation was extremely ambitious. Abandoned Wave was but one of the corporation's many pawns.

Abandoned Wave's current actions were simply his final struggle. If he succeeded, he might regain the Blackwater Corporation's trust and be put to use elsewhere. If he failed, he would definitely be discarded. In either case, the outcome would not affect Heaven's Burial.

Hence, Heaven's Burial's operation this time would only reap benefits.

...

At the same time as Heaven's Burial was holding a meeting, an earth-shattering incident was also taking place in the distant White River City's Candlelight Trading Firm.

What a powerful aura! Shi Feng had a look of astonishment on his face as he looked at the floating Soul Orb.

Currently, the Soul Orb was emitting frightening pressure. This aura was similar to what he felt from Demon God Paimon on Demon Island. However, while the aura Demon God Paimon released back then had indeed been frightening, it had also been calm.

On the other hand, the aura released by the Soul Orb was berserk, as the Soul Orb contained a holy aura aside from Demon God Paimon's aura. Meanwhile, these two auras were currently in conflict, making it seem as if two Gods were fighting each other right now.

At this moment, the entire Special Forging Room was already a mess. Even the magically strengthened walls cracked at the might of the two divine auras.

The strength of these two auras exceeded the Special Forging Room's suppressive ability. As a result, the auras had leaked outside, paralyzing everyone within the Candlelight Trading Firm.

"What's going on?!"

"Why can't I move?!"

"This aura... Could there be a monster inside the trading firm!?"

...

The Lifestyle players that had been toiling in their respective workshops were all frightened. This was definitely their first time to encounter such a situation. Just sensing the two divine auras made their souls shudder in fear.

Shi Feng did not doubt that the clash between these two auras would have caused a tremendous commotion in White River City if not for Candlelight Trading Firm being a 3-star Shop. This was also the reason why he had chosen to appraise the Soul Orb there.

After a short moment, the two clashing auras finally weakened and eventually reached a balance.

As a result, half of the Soul Orb turned black and the other half, white. Meanwhile, the Divine Might the orb was exuding right now gave even Shi Feng, who was Level 50, difficulty in moving his body.

"Wonderful! It really is a treasure fragment!"

Shi Feng revealed a look of ecstasy when he took a look at the Soul Orb's Attributes once again.

Chapter 1207 - Treasure of Illusion

An indescribable excitement filled Shi Feng as he held the Soul Orb.

The Seven Treasures were bona fide Godly Relics.

Mere Legendary items could not compare to these. Not even Ancient Gods would necessarily possess a Godly Relic, much less mortal humans.

In the past, Shi Feng had never even heard of a player owning a Godly Relic.

Of course, it was possible that someone had obtained a Godly Relic but had hidden the fact. After all, news of something like this would cause a huge commotion throughout the game if it got out.

Hence, in the eyes of God-ranked experts, Legendary items were already considered Godly Relics.

After all, Legendary items were already capable of enabling players to challenge opponents of a higher tier. If a God-ranked expert really got their hands on a Godly Relic, the outcome would be simply mind-boggling.

Although the Seven Treasures were neither weapons nor equipment, they were still powerful enough to suppress Dark Abyss.

However, now that Shi Feng thought about it, he found the idea reasonable.

The Soul Water the Soul Orb produced helped players reach an unprecedented serenity and mental clarity. This was no longer something achievable by simply raising an area's Mana density. How could an Epic item possibly possess such an amazing ability?

Only a Godly Relic could produce something so unbelievable.
-

[Soul Orb] (Epic Rank Item)
Originally a fragment of the Treasure of Illusion. However, due to being refined by Demon God Paimon, the fragment's true power has been sealed.

Additional Active Skill-
Soul Water: Creates Soul Water from the souls willingly contributed by players. No Cooldown. (Every 100 souls of players absorbed will produce 1 drop of Soul Water.)

Additional Active Skill 2-
Divine Power Absorption: Absorb divine power to recover the Soul Orb itself. (There are a total of three seals. The removal of the first seal requires 10 God Crystals. Current absorbed number: 0)

Currently, although the Soul Orb has been sealed by Demon God Paimon, it has been awakened by the Golden Stigmata. The seal can be removed by absorbing divine power. Item will drop upon death. Demonic power will devour non-Stigmata Bearers.

-
Not long after Shi Feng began to celebrate, the sound of a system notification reached his ears.
-

System: Demon God Paimon has discovered the Soul Orb's awakening and has issued a recovery order to all dark force players. If more than three yards separate the Soul Orb and the Stigmata, it will be teleported back to Paimon's hands.

-
Must the system be so serious? Shi Feng was speechless when he heard the system notification.

This system announcement had declared that the Soul Orb could not leave his person; he had to carry it with him constantly. However, the Soul Orb dropped upon death. If he died, the orb would return to Demon God Paimon. The recovery order was also a vicious threat.

Since it was a recovery order, Dark Players would definitely be given a special method to find the Soul Orb. In other words, as long as he was outside of an NPC city, his chances of encountering a Dark Player ambush were quite high.

He was at a huge disadvantage.

He had prioritized secrecy when moving about to prevent others from discovering his intentions. Unfortunately, the Soul Orb was a beacon for trouble, yet if he didn't hold on to it, he would lose the treasure fragment.

"Do I really have to head to the War God's Temple?" Shi Feng felt a headache brewing.

The War God's Temple had tasked him with collecting the Seven Treasures. While he might be able to complete his quest by handing them over, he would lose the ability to use the treasures for himself.

Those were the Seven Treasures they were talking about!

Although they were neither weapons nor equipment, they possessed abilities that no Epic or Legendary item could compete with. Simply handing the treasures over after obtaining them wouldn't be worth his time.

As Shi Feng tried to plan his next move, Aqua Rose contacted him.

"Guild Leader, Phoenix Rain has arrived with her people. She hopes to use the Secret Tablet right now," Aqua Rose said anxiously. "However, we haven't decided who to send yet. Should we have them wait for a little bit longer?"

She's here already? Shi Feng could not help his surprise. The Dark Auction had only ended a short time ago, yet Phoenix Rain was already here. "Tell her that I have some issues to deal with for now and that I'll need to have her wait three hours. Also, gather Summer, Violet, Rain, and Yueru. You five will enter the tablet first."

The Secret Spellcasting Technique was a massive boost to magical class players. Although Zero Wing had quite a few magical class experts, people with great potential like Aqua Rose would have priority for learning the technique.

Only, before these five entered the tablet, he needed to prepare.

Now that the Soul Orb had changed, he had to put it to good use, stockpiling as much Soul Water as possible, before handing it over to the War God's Temple.

"Understood."

Aqua Rose nodded happily when she heard that she had received a slot as well. If she entered the tablet, she might be able to join the ranks of Zero Wing's Refinement Realm experts.

After Aqua Rose disconnected the call, Shi Feng considered contacting Melancholic Smile to gather a group of the Candlelight Trading Firm's ordinary Lifestyle players, particularly the firm's reserve members. As long as these players were willing to part with a fraction of their souls, they would receive an official member's benefits for five days.

The Candlelight Trading Firm was the number one trading firm in Star-Moon Kingdom. The benefits one could enjoy in Candlelight could not be found in any other trading firm in the kingdom. Hence, a large number of players wanted to join Candlelight every day. However, not everyone could become an official member. Only those with potential could become reserve members. After becoming a reserve member, players still needed to pass Candlelight's test to become an official member.

Meanwhile, reserve members did not receive any particularly valuable benefits. They were only slightly better off than certain independent Lifestyle players.

Even so, droves of Lifestyle players wanted to join.

Furthermore, EXP was secondary to Lifestyle players. Not being able to kill monsters wouldn't affect them in any way, and the Weakened state only lasted four or five days. There should be plenty of reserve members who were willing to accept his offer.

"How could I have forgotten about Sharlyn?" Shi Feng suddenly remembered the Tier 5 Red Official Sharlyn.

Sherlyn had both extraordinary strength and status. She had even scared away the mysterious youth that had used a Super Spell.

That mysterious youth had dared to steal the golden tablet right in the middle of Blackwing City. Even Tier 5 players were likely no match for him. Moreover, Sharlyn knew a lot about God's Domain. She might have some method to help him keep the Soul Orb.

Let's give it a try. If it isn't possible, it won't be too late to trade it for a reward in the War God's Temple after I've stockpiled some Soul Water.

Thinking up to this point, Shi Feng contacted Melancholic Smile and had her collect the required members. This way, once he returned from the library, she should have gathered enough people.

Although Shi Feng wanted more sacrifices, the Flower of Seven Sins already knew about his acquisition of the Soul Orb. If he tempted fate, the Flower of Seven Sins would connect him with Frost Eye.

In other words, they would learn that Frost Eye was a member of Zero Wing.

If this news reached King's Return, the consequences would be unimaginable.

If that happened, King's Return would do everything in its power to annihilate Zero Wing. After all, the Guild's reputation was at stake.

Hence, he needed to maintain a low-profile while collecting souls. Moreover, he needed to do it quickly.

The longer he held the Soul Orb, the closer the Flower of Seven Sins would come to discovering his identity. After all, the Demon God Paimon had already issued a recovery order for the orb. If it were discovered on one of Zero Wing's members, the result would still be the same.

Following which, Shi Feng snuck out of the Candlelight Trading Firm and rode an advanced carriage to the library.

Chapter 1208 - Dark Sanctuary

On the foggy Demon Island, Brute Spear directed the Flower of Seven Sins members to carry away blood-red broken pillars secretly. These broken stone pillars radiated a faint Divine Might, and aside from the Mana directly around the pillars, they attracted all nearby Mana, increasing the density significantly.

The smaller stone pillars were roughly three meters long; a single Berserker could barely carry one. The larger pillars were seven to eight meters high, and transporting one required several players.

These blood-red pillars littered the Demon Altar.

"Hurry up! We need to move these before the other powers discover this place!" Brute Spear commanded.

If Shi Feng were present, he would instantly recognize these blood-red pillars.

In the past, these pillars had been used to form the magic array that had protected the Flower of Seven Sins' city.

This magic array was known as the Dark Sanctuary.

Under the cover of the Dark Sanctuary, the Mana density within the enveloped area would reach heights that even the Tower of Four Elements could not compete with. However, this wasn't the Dark Sanctuary's greatest purpose. Rather, it was its ability to help players grow.

Players could fight system-generated copies of themselves in the Dark Sanctuary's core as long as they spent enough Magic Crystals. Moreover, their copies could execute Skills at 100% Completion Rate. Fighting such an opponent would help players realize their flaws and improve rapidly within a short period.

Due to this magic array, countless experts had tried to join the Flower of Seven Sins.

Only, the magic array Brute Spear and the others had just secured was damaged. It could not be used right away. Even so, just by gathering the blood-red pillars in a location, they could increase the area's Mana density.

As Brute Spear and the others transported the stone pillars, the Flower of Seven Sins' members received a system notification.
-

System: Demon God Paimon has issued a recovery order for the Soul Orb. Anyone who kills the Soul Orb's wielder will receive a bountiful reward from Demon God Paimon. You will need to pay 500 Magic Crystals to accept this quest. Do you wish to accept this quest? This quest is valid long-term. It can be accepted at any time and does not have a time limit.

-
The Soul Orb? Brute Spear was shocked when he heard this system notification. Isn't that the item Frost Eye took from me?

The Demon God Paimon had bestowed the Soul Orb to him as a treasure. Brute Spear had never thought that this treasure would be this important.

Brute Spear suddenly regretted his decision to wager the orb.

"Boss Brute, doesn't Frost Eye have the Soul Orb?"

"This is interesting. The Demon God's reward will certainly be impressive. Many players will accept this quest. Frost Eye is in for a lot of trouble now."

"That's not possible, right? After all, that's Frost Eye we're talking about. Killing him is easier said than done."

"Boss Brute, should we accept this quest?"

"We know that Frost Eye has the Soul Orb. We have an advantage over the other groups."

"That's right. Even if we can't get it, those from the Sin of Wrath and Sin of Greed will try for it. After all, there are a few among them who are close to becoming Baron Demons."

...

The Demon God's "bountiful reward" sorely tempted the Flower of Seven Sins' members. They might get ennobled after completing the quest. Even if they didn't, they would still gain a significant amount of Reputation, allowing them to reach the Baron rank more easily. This was a very rare opportunity for Demon players.

"Let's not accept the quest for now. We should tell Big Sis about this first. We'll let her decide what we should do," Brute Spear said after giving the matter some thought.

The others nodded in agreement.

At the same time, the various dark forces in God's Domain began to take action.

"A bountiful reward from the Demon God?"

"Just who is the unlucky fellow that provoked the Demon God? Anyways, this is good news to us."

Both the various Dark Guilds and the independent Dark Players accepted the Demon God Paimon's quest without hesitation.

Dark Players had access to fewer quests than normal players. As a result, it was extremely difficult for Dark Players to raise their Reputation with the dark forces. They would likely earn a ton of Reputation Points by completing this quest, let along the potential reward from the Demon God.

...

Elsewhere, Shi Feng arrived at the library of White River City.

More players crowded the building than during his previous visits. Many magical class players were practicing their Spells in the main hall, and some were even learning from the NPC instructors to improve their spellcasting accuracy.

Unlike physical classes, magical class players needed a considerable amount of training to hit monsters with their Spells. This was especially true after so many God's Domain evolutions. Players that had recently joined God's Domain would have a very difficult time fighting even Common monsters. Hence, they needed to practice a lot more to improve themselves.

Although the various starting towns had their own combat instructor NPCs, the combat basics these NPCs taught were only useful to newcomers. If one wanted to grow more powerful, they had to enter a city. Physical class players could find their instructors in the War God's Temple. As for magical class players, their combat instructors were in the city's library.

These locations were the easiest places for ordinary players to enter and train. After all, locations such as the Divine Colosseum cost Magic Crystals. This was a price that ordinary players could not afford. This was especially true for players that had just joined God's Domain.

Hence, ordinary players often visited both the War God's Temple and the library.

If players wished to receive guidance from a senior instructor, they had to pay 1 Silver per hour, whereas a junior instructor only cost 30 Copper per hour. Even ordinary players could afford this. Hence, most ordinary players came here to train at night while spending the day in the fields engaged in battle. By doing so, they could grow stronger faster than simply fighting monsters all day.

Zero Wing's members were far better off. As Zero Wing now had a 3-star Guild Residence, it had its own Training Room. Not only could the training room teach players to utilize their Skills and Spells, but it also taught players basic combat techniques. Neither the library nor the War God's Temple offered as much.

After entering the library, Shi Feng headed to the top floor.

The guards have grown stronger again? Shi Feng was slightly surprised when he saw the two black armored Knights guarding the Star-Moon Hall's entrance.

Every time he visited the Star-Moon Hall, the Knights were stronger than before.

Originally, the guards had only been Level 180, Tier 3 Knights. Now, they were Level 210, Tier 3 Knights. Even Level 180, Tier 4 NPCs would have trouble dealing with these Knights. After all, the higher one's level was, the more Attributes one received with each level up. A gap of 30 Levels at such a high level was no trivial matter.

These two Tier 3 Knights did not block Shi Feng's path into the Star-Moon Hall. Rather, they opened the doors when Shi Feng came within 10 yards as if they had been instructed to do so.

Seated on the throne in the middle of the hall was a golden-haired, saint-like woman. When this saintly woman saw Shi Feng, the corners of her lips curled up slightly.

"After some time apart, you seem to have collected a lot more treasures and Coins."

Chapter 1209 - Promotion Quest

Currently, Sharlyn wore a set of exquisite, red-white robes. Although Shi Feng did not know exactly what rank the robes were, they added a hint of divinity and charm to her appearance. They also exuded a fierce Divine Might.

Divine Might!

Not just any random weapon or piece of equipment possessed this kind of power. It needed to be an item once worn by a God. Moreover, the item must have absorbed some of said God's power to radiate Divine Might.

Legendary mage robes? Shi Feng guessed.

Take the Seven Treasures for example. As Gods had created these items personally, the exuded Divine Might.

The fact that Sharlyn's robes radiated Divine Might proved that they were extraordinary.

Most Legendary items in God's Domain did not exude Divine Might.

However, when Shi Feng saw the faint smile on Sharlyn's face after hearing her comment, he shuddered involuntarily.

Only now did he recall that Sharlyn possessed a very high-rank Identification Skill that could even observe the contents of a player's bag space. He currently had more than 10,000 Gold on him...

"Why are you giving me that look? Do you think I covet your 15,739 Gold Coins?" Contempt laced Sharlyn's words as she spoke. "After so much time, you sure have a lot more secrets. You've even gotten your hands on a treasure fragment. I wonder how angry Demon God Paimon is right now. After all, he spent hundreds of years to seal that orb."

Shi Feng's heart began to pound.

The War God's Temple had been searching for the Seven Treasures constantly, yet based on Sharlyn's tone, it seemed as if she had known the Treasure of Illusion's whereabouts all along.

"Do you think I'm working for the War God's Temple?" Sharlyn said as if she had read Shi Feng's thoughts. Chuckling, she said, "You've sought me out to find a way to prevent Paimon from taking the treasure fragment back, right? Unfortunately, I have no way of shielding the fragment from Paimon's detection."

"Is there really no way?" Shi Feng sighed dejectedly.

If he couldn't hide the Soul Orb from Demon God Paimon, then he would have no choice but to hand the item over to the War God's Temple. Even a Demon God couldn't reach the orb inside the War God's Temple. However, simply handing the orb over would be a huge waste.

"I never said there wasn't a way. If the treasure absorbs a sufficient amount of divine power, you can remove Paimon's seal. Even Paimon won't be able to do anything about it. If you wish to keep the treasure fragment, you should find more God Crystals quickly. There is nothing else anyone can do to help you. After all, we are only mortal. We have no hope of resisting Gods," Sharlyn explained.

"God Crystals?" Shi Feng smiled bitterly.

He wanted to obtain a lot of God Crystals. After all, he had many items that needed divine power to evolve. However, God Crystals were extremely rare, even rarer Epic items. Obtaining a single God Crystal was extremely difficult, yet removing the first seal on the Soul Orb required ten crystals. Where was he supposed to find so many God Crystals?

As if she had predicted Shi Feng's concerns, Sharlyn giggled and said, "Others might have a hard time finding God Crystals, but for you, it shouldn't be a difficult task."

"Not difficult for me? Why?" Shi Feng asked curiously.

"Five thousand Gold consultation fee," Sharlyn demanded, smiling as she stretched out her hand.

Shi Feng rolled his eyes at the woman, inwardly cursing her for being black-hearted. However, he still handed over the 5,000-Gold consultation fee.

God Crystals were of utmost importance. Unfortunately, he had yet to discover any clues about their whereabouts.

After receiving the 5,000 Gold, Sharlyn's smile become all the more charming.

"It's very simple, actually. Don't you have that Ancient Document[1] on you? As long as you ask the Ancient Document, you'll find clues regarding God Crystals." Sharlyn waved her hand, and in the next instant, the Ancient Document in Shi Feng's bag appeared before him. "Of course, this is only one of the clues you can use to find God Crystals. The other one is the most important.

"Now that you've reached Level 50, you can consider your Tier 2 promotion quest. I suggest you complete it as soon as possible as you don't have much time left."

Initially, Shi Feng wanted to curse at the woman. Of course, he knew that the Ancient Document possessed such an ability. After all, he had bought it from the Dark Auction. However, the Ancient Document would only provide a clue to one God Crystal. He needed ten for the Soul Orb. Moreover, he had a greater purpose for the Ancient Document. It would be wasteful to use it to find God Crystals.

"What does my Tier 2 promotion have to do with God Crystals?" Shi Feng asked.

He simply needed to complete a quest for his Tier 2 promotion. Meanwhile, the Gods themselves had used God Crystals. The two were not related in the least.

"Have you forgotten that you own of one of the Ten Great Saint Legacies?" Sharlyn smiled as she took out an ancient book. She then explained, "This ancient book contains records of the Ten Great Saint Legacies. Every time you complete a promotion quest, you'll be sent into a different space. The Ancient Gods had left these spaces behind. Gods would have certainly stored items there. Hence, for you, it isn't a particularly difficult task to obtain God Crystals."

Hearing Sharlyn saying so, Shi Feng thought back to the Eternal Courtyard he had visited in the Origin Sword Domain. An Ancient God had indeed once lived there. Moreover, he had discovered the Holy Grail in that space.

However, as his strength had been limited then, he had been restricted to certain areas. Just surviving and completing his quest had been extremely difficult. He had only obtained the God Crystal due to luck.

As Sharlyn had said, the sooner he completed his Tier 2 promotion, the better. This way, he would have more time to focus on other things. Once he had his Tier 2 class, he could explore new areas and find new treasures.

"Lady Sharlyn, may I know how I should go about completing my promotion?" Shi Feng asked.

Previously, he had completed his class-change with the assistance of a Legacy item. However, his Legacy item had disappeared. If he had a normal class, he could simply go to the library or War God's Temple and seek out a high-tiered instructor for his Tier 2 promotion. However, hidden classes didn't have that option. They needed Legacy items to show the way.

"I can send you there. I charged you a friendship price the last time. This time, it will cost you 10,000 Gold and an additional 188 Mana Stones," Sharlyn said, stretching out her hand as she revealed an expression that stated, "You should be thankful I am offering such a low price."

When Shi Feng heard this, he very much wished to say, "Why don't you go rob a bank or something!?"

Others only needed to pay 50 Gold for their Tier 2 promotion, yet his required 10,000 Gold and 188 Mana Stones. Even if he had the Philosopher's Stone, he still needed 9,400 Magic Crystals to synthesize that many Mana Stones.

If it an independent player stood in his place, they wouldn't even be able to afford their Tier 2 promotion after reaching Level 100.

"I am giving you a great deal here. If you went to find someone else to assist you, they'll have to be a Tier 5 magical class, and you'd need three of them. Hiring three such existences will cost you a fortune. On the other hand, I'm only charging 10,000 Gold," Sharlyn explained.

"Alright, then. However, I don't have that many Mana Stones on hand right now, and I need to prepare." When Shi Feng heard that he needed three Tier 5 magical class NPCs to help him, he understood that this promotion quest of his was nothing ordinary. Most likely, only an NPC like Sharlyn could help him. Any other NPC with the required strength would be incredibly rare.

Following which, Shi Feng left the library, rushing back to the Candlelight Trading Firm.

On his way, Melancholic Smile contacted him, an excited expression on her face as she said, "Guild Leader, good news! Abyss has successfully constructed the first Advanced Transport Carriage!"

TL Notes:
[1]Ancient Document: In Chapter 1171, ancient book -> Ancient Document.

Chapter 1210 - Modified Advanced Transport Carriage

"He's done already?"

Shi Feng grew ecstatic when he heard Melancholic Smile's report.

Advanced Transport Carriages were not that easy to construct. Even with all the required materials, it was possible that certain parts wouldn't meet the system's standards, which would result in failure during the final assembly. These faulty parts would need to be remade, and the carriage would have to be reassembled. These various processes were extremely taxing in both time and energy.

However, as long as the Advanced Transport Carriages were complete, they would massively assist Stone Forest Town's development.

Stone Forest Town's reconstruction was already complete. However, the Transport Carriages, the key to unlocking the Intermediate Town's true potential, were still missing.

Although it was possible to rent ordinary carriages from NPCs, those carriages could hold up to four players at a time. Moreover, the rental price was relatively high. The amount of time one could save with these carriages was also minimal as their speed was on par with Common Mounts. If ordinary players were asked to spend 40 Copper just to save five hours, they would likely choose to walk the entire way. Hence, for the moment, Shi Feng had set the fee for using the rented carriages at 30 Copper per player. With this, he may not make a profit, but he wouldn't lose money, either.

If they could have a fleet of Advanced Transport Carriages now, they could solve many problems. First, the speed of an Advanced Transport Carriage was on par with a Mysterious-Iron Mount. Second, it was capable of carrying up to twenty players at a time. With these two factors, they would make quite an income by just offering players transportation. Furthermore, Advance Transport Carriages could carry cargo.

An Advanced Transport Carriage could carry up to 60 non-bag space items.

In player towns, a wandering NPC merchant's stock depended on the town's transportation services. This was because the majority of a wandering merchant's goods were non-bag space items.

The more non-bag space items a town could transport, the more rare items wandering merchants would bring to said town. Moreover, more wandering merchants would visit. This was considered a hidden benefit.

This hidden benefit had only been discovered after many Guilds had established their own Advanced Towns or Basic Cities in the past. When the news spread, the various Guilds regretted not establishing a transportation system early on. Otherwise, they would've attracted far more players with the wandering NPC merchants.

Moreover, as a town or city attracted more wandering merchants, it would unlock another hidden benefit—a Mystery Shop!

The Mystery Shop mainly sold Mystery Treasure Chests. As its name suggested, one had a random chance of obtaining all sorts of items from the Mystery Treasure Chest such as potions, weapons, equipment, Magic Scrolls, food, beverages, and far more. If one were lucky, they could even obtain Dark-Gold Weapons and Equipment. It had been very popular among players. However, while the Mystery Shop had an unlimited number of Mystery Treasure Chests in stock, players could only purchase five Mystery Treasure Chests per day at most. Each treasure chest sold for two Silver Coins.

After players purchased a certain number of Mystery Treasure Chests from the Mystery Shop, they could become members of the shop. By then, players could enter the shop's second floor, competing for a limited number of up-to-date and rare weapons, equipment, and tools. Even the most inferior among these items was Secret-Silver rank, and players had often found Fine-Gold items. While very rare, Dark-Gold items would also appear from time to time.

After reaching Level 50, it would become very difficult to obtain high-quality weapons and equipment. Obtaining Level 50-plus Secret-Silver Equipment would be as challenging as finding current Dark-Gold Equipment. Hence, getting to compete for up-to-date Fine-Gold Weapons and Equipment every day was a huge opportunity for most players.

This opportunity did not require players to have superb combat techniques. As long as one had enough Coins, they could purchase the items they desired.

Players had swarmed to any town or city with Mystery Shop. Back then, even merchant players had used these Mystery Shops to make a fortune, traveling to the various towns and cities to compete for these items, then reselling them elsewhere for a profit. After all, players rarely sold their Level 50-plus Fine-Gold Weapons and Equipment.

Upon arriving at the Candlelight Trading Firm, Shi Feng hurried to Burning Abyss's workshop.

"Guild Leader, what do you think of this Advanced Transport Carriage?" Melancholic Smile asked as she gestured to the exquisite carriage in the workshop's center.

Unlike the horse carriages gliding down cities' streets, the Advanced Transport Carriage was not pulled by a horse. Rather, it resembled the Bronze Engineering Locomotive, a completely mechanized mode of transportation. Players could operate it simply by purchasing fuel from NPC shops. It was similar to taming Mounts. Living Mounts needed to be fed during fixed times. The higher a Mount's rank was, the more expensive its food needed to be.

"Is this a modified version?" After examining the Transport Carriage, he noticed that it was slightly different from the original design.

"Mhm, Burning is an engineering genius. He modified it slightly using his research from Titan City, enhancing its performance slightly," Melancholic Smile explained.
-

[Advanced Transport Carriage] (Common Rank)
A creation of Master Engineer Burning Abyss.
Maximum capacity: 20 people
Durability 200/200
Item storage when liberated: 8,000 bag space slots and 60 non-bag space slots.

Additional Skill-
Mana Combustion: Increase Movement Speed by 15% by absorbing the Mana of player. Each minute consumes 1,500 Mana. No Cooldown.

-
"Amazing!" Shi Feng said, surprised.

He had seen the Mana Combustion Skill before. However, this Skill generally only manifested on Bronze rank or higher mechanical carriages or Mounts. This was his first time seeing the Skill on a Common Advanced Horse Carriage.

With this 15% Movement Speed increase, the Transport Carriage would rival Secret-Silver Mounts.

However, when Shi Feng looked at this Advanced Transport Carriage, he felt a little helpless.

With the materials they had at hand, they could produce at most two Advanced Transport Carriages. If they could mass-produce the Transport Carriage, the Mystery Shop might open in Stone Forest Town before it even became an Advanced Town.

It would be great if we could find some replacement materials. Shi Feng thought.

Green Ebony was even rarer than Diamond Wood. Moreover, it could only be found in extremely dangerous maps. Procuring a large quantity would be very difficult.

Right! Green Ebony only grows where normal Ebony grows, and only a small minority of Ebony in high Mana density environments grow into the tougher, harder, and more Mana-conductive Green Ebony. What if I use the Philosopher's Stone's Elemental Strengthening on normal Ebony? Shi Feng suddenly remembered the Philosopher's Stone.

Aside from concocting potions, alchemy could convert and strengthen items.

Green Ebony was born from Ebony. It was definitely worth giving the Philosopher's Stone a try.

Ebony was not a particularly rare material in God's Domain. One could even say that it was a very common type of wood. If he could transform Ebony into Green Ebony, he could save himself plenty of trouble.

Mass-producing the Advanced Transport Carriage would no longer be a challenge.

Thinking up to this point, Shi Feng had Melancholic Smile retrieve some Ebony from the Candlelight Trading Firm's warehouse while he retrieved the Philosopher's Stone from his Personal Warehouse.

Chapter 1211 - Soul Water

In the first-floor hall of the Candlelight Trading Firm...

Due to the Exotic Stamina Potion's recent launch, not only had the Candlelight Trading firm become the most popular place in White River City, but it had also become a holy land for Lifestyle players.

Every day, a large number of Lifestyle players visited the Candlelight Trading Firm to take its entry test.

Among the kingdom's trading firms, the Candlelight Trading Firm employed the most Lifestyle players. In addition, it was the only place that had the Basic Meditation Room.

Everyone had thought little of the Basic Meditation Room when it had first appeared. However, shortly after, a large group of Advanced Lifestyle players had suddenly emerged in the Candlelight Trading Firm. Even if they didn't acknowledge that the Basic Meditation Room had anything to do with it, it was difficult to deny the truth. How else would they explain the sudden addition of so many Advanced Lifestyle players in the Candlelight Trading Firm?

Lifestyle players' status rose with each passing day. Advanced Lifestyle players, in particular, enjoyed generous benefits. As long as one worked hard, their income could even rival that of expert players. They could easily live without having to worry about food and clothing. If they reached the Master rank, even owning a mansion and luxury cars were within reach.

To become Master Lifestyle players, joining the Candlelight Trading Firm was undeniably the best option.

"So, this is the Candlelight Trading Firm? Seems like a pretty nice place."

As a large group of independent Lifestyle players lined up by the first-floor hall's staircase, awaiting their turn to be tested, a female player in dark gray robes entered the trading firm and nonchalantly commented.

This female player was none other than Silent Wonder, whom Shi Feng had invited to work for the Candlelight Trading Firm.

Silent Wonder's comment instantly attracted many Lifestyle players' attention as they all turned to look at her.

Very quickly, they noticed the Advanced Alchemist's Insignia on Silent Wonder's chest. Moreover, her level was frighteningly high, at Level 42. Not even many experts had such a high level.

However, despite her level and alchemist rank, the waiting Lifestyle players glared at her contemptuously.

At this moment, an Advanced Enchanter close to Silent Wonder said, "You must have come here from another kingdom, right? If you wish to join the Candlelight Trading Firm, you need to queue up for the test."

"Even Advanced classes need to take the test to join this place?" Silent Wonder asked the Advanced Enchanter standing in the long queue.

The various Guilds were all in desperate need of Advanced Lifestyle players. Practically every Guild treated their Advanced Lifestyle players like their own children.

If an Advanced lifestyle player stated their intention to join a Guild, plenty of Guilds would welcome them with open arms, not force them to take a test.

"Of course. There are at least five Advanced Lifestyle players ahead of me right now," the Advanced Enchanter said as he rolled his eyes. "This is the Candlelight Trading Firm. It isn't like your average Guild. From I've heard, several Advanced Lifestyle players had failed Candlelight's test and had to retake it three times before they managed to pass."

"How is this possible!?" For a moment, Silent Wonder thought she had heard wrong. She suspected that the Advanced Enchanter before her was a prop the Candlelight Trading Firm had placed here to fool people. "Those are Advanced Lifestyle players we're talking about!"

If even Advanced Lifestyle players needed to retake the test several times, how were Basic and Intermediate Lifestyle players supposed to pass?

"It's true. This is already my second time taking the test. Candlelight's testing is different from other Guilds. They set different requirements depending on your rank. Only by achieving their requirement are you allowed to join. The only advantage Advanced Lifestyle players have is that we don't need to become reserve members. As long as we pass the test, we'll be accepted as official members instantly," the Advanced Enchanter explained.

Silent Wonder fell silent for a moment.

She could not understand what was going through these Advanced Lifestyle players' minds.

If an Advanced Lifestyle player joined any other Guild, becoming a core member would be trivial, yet based on the Advanced Enchanter's explanation, one would be lucky to become an official member of the Candlelight Trading Firm...

Were all of these Advanced Lifestyle players somehow tricked to come here? Silent Wonder wondered about her agreement with Shi Feng.

"Have you come all the way here without knowing anything?" the Advanced Enchanter asked, surprised by Silent Wonder's behavior.

In response, Silent Wonder nodded.

"No wonder. In Star-Moon Kingdom and our several neighboring counties, the Candlelight Trading Firm is second to none in terms of the treatment and benefits it provides. Aside from its large number of Special Workshops, there are also the Basic Meditation Rooms that can help Advanced Lifestyle players like us reach the Master rank. I heard that Candlelight already has a Master Engineer. As long as we become Candlelight core members, we can seek guidance from that Master Engineer," the Advanced Enchanter explained.

"A Master?! How is this possible?!" Silent Wonder was stunned. She could not believe her ears.

That was a Master Lifestyle player they were talking about!

Even God's Domain's empires didn't have a Master rank Lifestyle player yet, much less a small kingdom like Star-Moon Kingdom. After all, crossing that final threshold was not a simple thing.

Yet, not only did the Candlelight Trading Firm have an excellent resource like the Basic Meditation Room, but it also possessed a bona fide Master leading it. Any Advanced Lifestyle player seeking to become a Master would be more than eager to learn about a Master's experience.

So, he really wasn't lying.

Silent Wonder suddenly thought back to Shi Feng's words mentioning how her stay in the Candlelight Trading Firm after fulfilling her contract was an unknown. She had assumed that Shi Feng wanted to provoke her. Now, however, it would seem that he had told the truth. After all, with the presence of a Master Lifestyle player and so many Advanced Lifestyle players seeking said Master's guidance, the competition within the trading firm would be intense.

Hmph! So what?! I refuse to submit! At the end of the month, you'll be begging me to stay! Silent Wonder's fighting spirit flared.

She had relied on herself to grow from an Apprentice into an Advanced Alchemist. She believed that, as long as she remained in Candlelight Trading Firm, it would be a trivial task to become the trading firm's Chief Alchemist.

...

As Silent Wonder joined the queue to take the test, a large number of reserve members gathered in the fourth-floor hall. There were over 600 players present. Among these people, even the weakest were Advanced Apprentices, with the majority of them being Basic or Intermediate Lifestyle players. In any other large Guild, they would be official members at the very least. In the Candlelight Trading Firm, however, they were only reserve members.

However, these reserve members were all very excited. As long as they signed a contract, they would become official members for five days. During these five days, not only could they receive guidance, but they could also utilize the trading firm's Special Workshops.

"Guild Leader, due to time constraints, I have only gathered this many people for now. It will take some more time to gather the remaining players," Melancholic Smile said.

"This should be barely enough. If you have the time, try to expand the firm a little more. In any case, Candlelight will have to expand later on. Doing it a little early would be just as beneficial," Shi Feng said as he glanced at the reserve members in the hall. The number of people here barely met his requirement.

Currently, there wasn't enough Ebony in White River City's Candlelight Trading Firm's warehouse; there were only 30 logs or so. It was hardly enough for his needs. They still needed to transfer their stockpile from the other Shops. It just so happened that he could use this time to obtain some Soul Water. After all, Phoenix Rain was in quite a hurry, and it would not help him to delay them.

Following which, Shi Feng began absorbing the reserve members' souls.

The absorption process was very simple. He didn't even need to take out the Soul Orb itself. A simple handshake and an agreement from the contributing party would do.

One reserve member after another clicked "Agree" when a window appeared, asking them to contribute a fraction of their souls.

When the Soul Orb eventually gathered 100 souls, a drop of dazzling, red water formed within.

After a short moment, the Soul Orb absorbed 624 souls and formed six drops of Soul Water.

Alright. It's about time I meet Phoenix Rain. Shi Feng smiled in satisfaction as he stored the six drops of Soul Water in six small bottles.

Chapter 1212 - Respective Preparations

In the Candlelight Trading Firm's seventh-floor meeting room...

As soon as Shi Feng entered the meeting room, several gazes landed on him. The origin of these gazes was none other than Phoenix Rain's group, who had waited for quite some time now.

This time, aside from Blue Phoenix, Phoenix Rain had brought three cloaked men.

These men hid their levels, equipment, and in-game name. Although Shi Feng could not see any information about these men, the fact that Phoenix Rain had chosen them to enter the Secret Technique tablet proved that their combat standards were extraordinary. Otherwise, Phoenix Rain wouldn't have wasted these precious legacy slots on them.

So, these are Phoenix Rain's hidden cards. The Phoenix Pavilion sure has a powerful foundation. Shi Feng was slightly surprised when he saw the three men.

He was surprised due to the men's calm auras. They felt more like plants than humans. Moreover, under his observation and perception, he couldn't find any holes in their defenses.

This was rare. After all, he could even spot three weak points on an expert like Blue Phoenix.

There were only two kinds of people that could hide their weak points from him. The first was those who possessed a higher combat standard than he did, while the second was those who had experienced countless battles and had long since hammered out their weaknesses.

Regardless of which type these three men were, they were extremely powerful experts.

As Shi Feng observed these three men, these men observed him. Once they completed their evaluation, they were astonished.

"Is he that Ye Feng that Rain mentioned?"

"He is even more powerful than Rain said. I never expected an upstart Guild to possess such a young expert."

"Truly amazing. It's been a long time since I've seen a kid that felt dangerous."

...

The three men chatted quietly as they looked at Shi Feng.

As they conversed, Blue Phoenix, who noticed this, smiled and said, "Big Sis Rain, Ye Feng seems to have shocked the Elders."

These men were not actually members of the Phoenix Pavilion. Instead, they were Elders on the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion's Board of Elders. Normally, they only listened to the Great Pavilion Master.

Aside from extensive contributions to the Guild, the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion required sufficient strength to join the Board of Elders. Otherwise, their subordinates wouldn't submit.

However, although the Guild Elders only listened to the Great Pavilion Master, the Great Pavilion Master didn't have any right to manage their free time.

Phoenix Rain had secured these three men's help for Thunder Island.

Of course, the condition for their help was a slot to the Secret Spellcasting Technique.

Phoenix Rain simply smiled in response to the Elders' reactions to Shi Feng.

While part of the reason she had brought these three Elders here was to learn the Secret Spellcasting Technique, another part was to rope them into her faction. After all, the contest over Thunder Island wasn't limited to a single event. The contest would repeat in the future, yet these men had only agreed to help once.

In terms of overall strength, the Phoenix Pavilion and Heavenly Dragon Pavilion were about equal. Hence, both sides' chances of becoming the Great Pavilion Master were fifty-fifty.

As a result, the Elders, who maintained a neutral stance in the Guild, became prime recruitment targets. Not only did they possess great individual strength, but they also had significant influence within the Guild. Every Elder would massively boost their respective factions.

Naturally, these Elders understood that the future Great Pavilion Master would be one of the two current Pavilion Masters. However, while it was important to pick a side as soon as possible, it was also important that they chose the strongest.

Strength came in many forms. For starters, there was the strength of collaborators. The stronger collaborators a side possessed, the more help these collaborators could be.

Many elders had criticized Phoenix Rain for partnering with Zero Wing. However, after Blackwater's defeat and the Evil Dragon Battle Team's annihilation, some of these Elders had begun to see her in a new light.

"Sorry for making you wait. I had some preparations to see to. Now that we're here, let's begin," Shi Feng said as he approached the meeting table. He then took the Bronze Tablet from his bag.

The instant the Bronze Tablet appeared, the three Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion Elders' eyes shone, their yearning for the Bronze Tablet overflowing.

Although the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion had several Secret Technique Tablets of their own, none were for magical classes. While they could not deny the usefulness of those Secret Techniques, in terms of benefits to magical class players such as themselves, those techniques paled in comparison to the Secret Spellcasting Technique.

"Team Leader Ye Feng, I believe you know about the Secret Technique tablets. If you want the best effect from the legacy, it is best if you prepare tools that can assist players in increasing their focus. This way, you can earn twice the reward with half the effort," Phoenix Rain suggested. "If your side hasn't prepared, I have a few bottles of Magic Wine that I can share. When consumed, one experiences similar effects to being in the Trial Tower, and each bottle has a duration of 30 minutes."

As Phoenix Rain said so, she removed several bottles from her bag.

She had produced these bottles of Magic Wine with the Epic tool she had won in the Dark Auction.

"I didn't expect Rain to be so generous. The materials needed to brew the Magic Wine are very rare, and she has only brewed a small number. If she gives away some of her own share, she'll miss plenty of opportunities later inside the Secret Technique space."

"This can't be helped. Tools capable of increasing a player's focus are simply too rare. At the end of the day, Zero Wing is still an upstart Guild with weak foundations. I have heard that Zero Wing intends to participate in the contest for Thunder Island. Now that Rain is helping them, they will be more useful on Thunder Island."

"Previously, I heard that Pantheon's people had sought Rain out to discuss a partnership. If that child had agreed, she wouldn't have to sacrifice her own resources like this."

...

The three Elders discussed Phoenix Rain's actions.

The Secret Spellcasting Technique was the only reason they had agreed to help Phoenix Rain on Thunder Island. Otherwise, they wouldn't have poked their noses into such a troublesome matter.

Phoenix Rain and Nine Dragons Emperor were equally powerful. However, the difference between their collaborators was obvious at a glance. While they did not mean to belittle Zero Wing, Nine Dragons Emperor had partnered with the Super Guild King's Return. Moreover, recently, Miracle had also agreed to a non-aggression pact with Nine Dragons Emperor for the contest on Thunder Island. Nine Dragons Emperor's advantages far outstripped Phoenix Rain's.

Just as Phoenix Rain was about to reveal another bottle of Magic Wine, Shi Feng shook his head and said, "Thank you for your goodwill, but we have come prepared."

"You already have them?" Phoenix Rain could not help her astonishment. She hadn't expected Zero Wing to have such a foundation.

Before she had won the Epic tool that produced Magic Wine, the Phoenix Pavilion had only had a few tools that improved a player's concentration.

Meanwhile, Aqua Rose and the others, who stood by the side, weren't surprised in the least.

If one wanted to discuss tools that improved focus, nothing throughout Star-Moon Kingdom and its several neighboring kingdoms and empires could compare to the Hundred Berry Wine.

The Hundred Berry Wine's effects were simply wondrous. Unfortunately, the supply was limited. To improve their efficiency with learning the Secret Spellcasting Technique, Shi Feng had given each of them five bottles.

"Aqua, you guys take these. Each person only gets one bottle," Shi Feng said before revealing five bottles of Soul Water.

The crimson droplet within the glass bottles immediately attracted everyone's attention.

The instant Shi Feng took out these glass bottles, everyone present thirsted for the Soul Water.

Even a fool could tell how amazing the Soul Water was.

When Aqua Rose and the others held the Soul Water, they could not help but take a deep gulp, their minds practically shouting at them to consume the Soul Water.

"How could such a frightening tool actually exist?"

The three Elders were dumbfounded as they stared at the Soul Water in wonder.

Chapter 1213 - Super-sensitive State

Phoenix Rain was similarly shocked when she saw the Soul Water.

There were plenty of delicacies in God's Domain. However, those were only attractive in terms of taste and smell. However, the Soul Water was different. It emanated a powerfully attractive aura.

"It seems that I really have underestimated you." Phoenix Rain chuckled as she shook her head.

Previously, she worried that Zero Wing's five members would waste the legacy slots. However, that concern seemed unfounded.

Following which, Shi Feng activated the Bronze Tablet for the Secret Spellcasting Technique while everyone else began to draw a copy of the magic array that had appeared on the tablet.

As the Basic Magic Arrays began taking form, they resonated with the array on the Bronze Tablet. A black hole then formed on the tablet, pulling everyone but Shi Feng into it.

In the blink of an eye, Shi Feng was alone in the meeting room.

I've done all I can. How much you grow will depend on you now. Shi Feng glanced at the now empty space where Aqua Rose and the others had stood before turning and leaving the room.

...

Elsewhere, after being pulled into the black hole, Aqua Rose and the others were transported to the entrance of a nine-story-tall, golden temple.

The temple was nearly 600 meters tall, looming like a large mountain. Its appearance alone shocked Aqua Rose and the others. This temple also radiated a suffocating pressure, making everyone's movements extraordinarily sluggish.

"So, this is the Secret Technique space?" Aqua Rose and the others looked around curiously.

The pair of bronze doors before them was tightly shut, and it did not seem as if they could enter the temple at the moment. Two, large words had been carved into the doors.

Bronze Temple!

Suddenly, the figure of an old man with a hunched back appeared before the doors. This old man wore a kind expression. However, as these players inspected the man carefully, they discovered that, despite only being a phantom, he was incredibly strong.
-

[Bronze Temple Guardian (Phantom)] (Grand Wizard)
Level ? ? ?
HP ? ? ? ? ? ?/ ? ? ? ? ? ?

-
A Grand Wizard was the Tier 5 class of an Elementalist. Even in empires, a Grand Wizard was an apex existence. Even emperors had to treat these powerhouses with respect. Although the Grand Wizard before them was only a phantom, he was still an invincible existence compared to Tier 1 players like Aqua Rose and the others.

"Heaven-blessed individuals, welcome to the Bronze Temple. You are only allocated six hours of legacy time. However, you can extend this legacy time with your performance. The Bronze Temple has a total of nine floors, and each floor has numerous sets of Secret Techniques. You are only allowed to pick one set from each floor each time you enter the Bronze Temple. However, as you have come to this place through an incomplete tablet, there is only one complete set available inside the Bronze Temple. The rest are incomplete.

"Of the temple's nine floors, you have one chance to learn one aspect of the complete legacy from each floor. Although you may acquire the complete legacy on the first floor for free, you will have to defeat a predetermined opponent to obtain the complete legacies on the remaining floors. The more floors you clear, the longer you may visit the Bronze Temple.

"When you pass the second floor, you will gain one extra hour inside, two hours for passing the third floor, four hours for the fourth floor, and so on. You only have one chance to learn from each floor. Regardless of how many times you return here in the future, if you cannot pass the last floor you reached, you cannot obtain more legacies. Please keep this in mind."

When the Bronze Temple Guardian finished speaking, he vanished. Following which, the bronze gates slowly opened.

"So, this is how it works." Realization dawned on Aqua Rose.

It was no wonder why it was mentioned that the first entry into a Secret Technique Tablet was the most effective, while subsequent entries would be less so. After all, the higher a player's skill level, the more difficult it would be to improve. This was similar to Skill Completion Rates. The closer one was to reaching 100% Completion Rate, the more difficult it would be to raise it.

If a player reached the fourth floor on their first attempt, but couldn't reach the fifth floor during their second attempt, then they wouldn't obtain any legacies. They would've wasted a trip.

Aqua Rose and Phoenix Rain's group of ten entered the Bronze Temple.

The Bronze Temple's first floor had a similar setup to a football stadium. A massive, magic water ball dominated the center of this stadium. It was obvious that the players were supposed to receive their legacies from this liquid orb.

As this wasn't the first time Phoenix Rain's group had entered a Secret Technique space, they habitually retrieved their Magic Wine from their bags and drank it. Without hesitation, they approached the water ball in the center.

In the next moment, Phoenix Rain's group of five entered the water ball and disappeared as if they had been transported to a different space.

"Big Sis Aqua, let's go, too," Violet Cloud said excitedly.

The Secret Spellcasting Technique was a combat technique tailored for magical classes. If she could grasp it, she could definitely improve her techniques.

"Mhm, let's enter as well." Aqua Rose nodded. She then took out the Soul Water from her bag and drank it.
-

[Soul Water]
When consumed, increases player's focus for two hours.
Cooldown: 10 hours

-
The instant Aqua Rose drank the Soul Water, she felt as if she had somehow left her body.

Her mind experienced a calm like never before, and she felt physically stronger and more agile than ever. When she tried to recall the Void Steps she had previously learned, countless thoughts and inspiration bombarded her mind.

Aqua Rose hadn't been aware that consuming the Soul Water placed one in a super-sensitive state. This state was far beyond what players experienced even in absurdly high Mana dense environments.

"The Guild Leader really is impressive. This Soul Water is at least ten times stronger than the Hundred Berry Wine," Alluring Summer commented in astonishment.

When she had first joined Zero Wing, she had been thoroughly impressed by the Hundred Berry Wine. The beverage had helped her improve significantly within a short time, allowing her Skill Completion Rate to rise from 80% to 82%, yet after so long in Zero Wing, she had only reached an 85% Skill Completion Rate. Although this increase seemed minute, in reality, her Spells had undergone a qualitative transformation.

As for Zhao Yueru, she was at a loss for words.

The more she knew about Shi Feng, the more mysterious he seemed. Shi Feng was a Pandora's Box, hiding countless secrets.

When she had discovered that Ye Feng and Black Flame were actually the same person, she had been shocked. After all, she had understood what kind of background Ye Feng had started with. He had nothing to lean on, yet now, he was the Guild Leader of Star-Moon Kingdom's number one Guild.

Once Aqua Rose's team had familiarized themselves with the super-sensitive state, they entered the magic water ball.

...

Inside one of the Candlelight Trading Firm's Special Forging Rooms, Melancholic Smile walked in with over 2,000 logs of Ebony. Each Ebony stack contained 20 logs. Although the Special Forging Room was quite spacious, it was not enough room to store so many logs. Shi Feng had no choice but to store them in his bag space for now, leaving 300 logs out to experiment on later.

"Why isn't it succeeding?" Shi Feng wore a confused expression as he held the crimson Philosopher's Stone and stared at the pile of ash on the floor. "Is it really impossible to transmute Ebony into Green Ebony?"

So far, he had performed Elemental Strengthening on more than 200 logs of Ebony. However, every attempt either did nothing or tuned the wood to ash.

If others knew that Shi Feng had wasted over 200 logs of Ebony, they would have fainted from anger.

Although Ebony was not a rare wood, it wasn't available in large quantities. Each log could sell for 20 Silver on the market, only slightly cheaper than a Magic Crystal. One could purchase a Common Mount for the price of 200-plus logs...

Following which, Shi Feng tried using the Philosopher's Stone's three other Skills—Alchemical Conversion, Elemental Refinement, and Alchemical Synthesis. However, the results were the same. Though, surprisingly, when Shi Feng used Alchemical Synthesis on 50 logs, he obtained Purple Origin Wood rather than Green Ebony.

Purple Origin Wood was a rare wood. Similar to Diamond Wood, it was an excellent component for crafting ships. However, using 50 logs of Ebony to obtain one log of Purple Origin Wood was obviously not worthwhile. Each log was only worth 6 to 7 Gold, yet synthesizing it from Ebony would cost 10 Gold per log.

"No, it must be that my approach is wrong." Shi Feng suddenly thought of something after seeing his repeated failures.

The reason Ebony could become Green Ebony was its Mana density. Green Ebony only manifested where the Mana density was quite high. This was also why Green Ebony was so rare.

"If there isn't enough Mana, I'll have to supply it." Shi Feng smiled. He then took a large pile of Magic Crystals from his bag and used them to fuel Elemental Strengthening.

On his first try, he used one Magic Crystal. Although the strengthening failed, the Ebony remained intact.

On his second try, he used two crystals; the results were the same.

...

It's no good even with 29 Magic Crystals?!

Shi Feng was speechless. However, he had no choice but to grit his teeth and continue trying. He then used 30 Magic Crystals to strengthen the log of Ebony before him.

As the Magic Crystals began to disintegrate, the Mana within them surged into the log of Ebony. Immediately, the sound of a system notification reached Shi Feng's ears.
-

System: Congratulations! Strengthening successful. You have obtained Green Ebony.

Chapter 1214 - Raising Fame

"Finally."

Shi Feng released a sigh of relief when he saw the Green Ebony log on the stone table before him, a hint of excitement flashing across his eyes.

Although the Magic Crystal cost had been high, strengthening Ebony into Green Ebony would save him a lot of time. His only other option would be harvesting Green Ebony, and he had no idea where to find the large quantity he needed.

A single Advanced Transport Carriage required 15 logs of Green Ebony. Even if he sent Blackie and the others to grind Trolls in the Crying Ghost Ridge, they'd be lucky to obtain eight or nine logs per day. Furthermore, the Crying Ghost Ridge was currently home to the ancient abyssal monsters. The risk was simply too high. A single mistake could claim Blackie and the others' lives.

In Shi Feng's opinion, trading 30 Magic Crystals and one log of normal Ebony for a log of Green Ebony was worthwhile.

However, Magic Crystals are going to be a problem. I can't mass-produce Green Ebony just yet. Shi Feng looked at the Magic Crystals in his bag and felt a headache brewing.

Currently, with the 40,000-plus Magic Crystals left in his bag, he could create plenty of Green Ebony.

However, if a Guild wished to develop, it needed to invest resources in various aspects. If he wanted Zero Wing to advance by leaps and bounds within a short time, he needed to invest even more. This was especially true for the Guild's elite members. Their training in the Divine Colosseum could not be forsaken. Considering this, Shi Feng somewhat lacked Magic Crystals.

Although he had made a fortune in the Dark Arena, he had already spent his earnings. Moreover, he owed Phoenix Rain a monstrous debt of 250,000 Magic Crystals, which he needed to pay off within the next five days...

The majority of his earnings from the Dark Arena consisted of weapons and equipment. If he traded these excellent items for Coins and Magic Crystals, he could pay back the Magic Crystals he owed Phoenix Rain with a sizable stock to spare, enough to begin his city's construction.

However, Zero Wing was expanding rapidly and in urgent need of excellent weapons and equipment. Unless he had truly run out of options, Shi Feng wanted to avoid selling those items.

It seems that I'll have to increase Stone Forest Town's fame, Shi Feng pondered.

Currently, Stone Forest Town was an Intermediate Town. Not only did it occupy a massive area, but it also had three Magic Towers, increasing the town's Mana density significantly. Although the town had only reopened shortly after the war, far more players now occupied the town.

However, if he wanted to earn a fortune from Stone Forest Town, attracting Star-Moon Kingdom's players wasn't enough.

After all, there was a limit to how many players in Star-Moon Kingdom could afford a membership for the Battle Arena. However, there were plenty of players available in the neighboring kingdoms and empires. Unfortunately, these players either didn't know about Stone Forest Town, or it wasn't an attractive enough reason to make the journey.

Considering his options, Shi Feng began to strengthen the Ebony he had.

If he wanted Stone Forest Town's fame to reach more players, he needed a convenient transportation system. Mass-producing Burning Abyss's modified Advanced Transport Carriage would solve that problem.

The nearest teleportation point to Stone Forest Town was roughly ten hours away on foot. If one used a Common Mount, they could reach the town in half the time. Even so, five hours was still a very long time.

The Advanced Transport Carriage increased a player's Movement Speed by 150%. It was similar to a Mysterious-Iron Mount. However, with Mana Combustion, the Transport Carriage's Movement Speed could be increased by another 15%. Moreover, this 15% increase was based on the 150% base Movement Speed. In other words, the Advanced Transport Carriage would increase a player's Movement Speed by a total of 172.5% when using Mana Combustion. That speed could already rival a Secret-Silver Mount.

A journey that originally took ten hours on foot would now be complete in a little over three hours.

To high-level players, who frequently traveled for five or six hours to reach their grinding spots, three hours of travel was acceptable.

Moreover, Shi Feng intended to offer even more bountiful rewards for the Battle Arena.

Top-tier weapons and equipment were not particularly attractive to powerful independent experts. Hence, if he wished to attract more people, he needed to offer items that those independent experts wanted.

He might not have previously had such items, but now he did.

As long as independent experts wanted them, they were fully capable of obtaining top-tier weapons and equipment. However, combat techniques were a different story.

Originally, Shi Feng had thought of offering the Secret Sword Technique's slots as a reward. However, now that he had the Secret Spellcasting Technique, he could offer those. Although he would lose two slots as a result, this reward would definitely drive God's Domain's independent experts crazy.

Time passed quickly. Before Shi Feng had realized it, he had spent the entire night creating Green Ebony.

After the long night of work, he had produced 600 logs of Green Ebony. Unfortunately, Elemental Strengthening's success rate wasn't 100%; he had spent over 20,000 Magic Crystals to obtain these 600 logs.

Fortunately, with 600 logs of Green Ebony, they could manufacture 40 Advanced Transport Carriages for transporting goods and players too and from Stone Forest Town. With a large number of rental carriages as well, they would have more than enough carriages to meet the town's needs. Now, he just needed to manufacture the Advanced Transport Carriages.

Manufacturing the Advanced Transport Carriage was incredibly tedious. Fortunately, he had employed the help of the NPC Master Engineer Rodney. With Burning Abyss and Rodney working together, they could craft the Advanced Transport Carriage relatively quickly. As for the advanced speedboats, he would have to set that aside for now. After all, they hadn't even dealt with the Diamond Wood issue yet. How could they possibly begin building ships?

Shi Feng had also produced plenty of Magic Array Scrolls and Advanced Mana Armor Kits.

Shi Feng now had two more sets of Double Protection Barrier Magic Array Scrolls and two sets of Divine Beast's Descent Magic Array Scrolls. If not for his limited materials, he could've produced even more.

As for the Advanced Mana Armor Kit, Shi Feng had forged over 600. Aside from a fraction reserved for Guild members, he intended to use the remainder to lure customers to the Candlelight Trading Firm and as daily rewards for the Battle Arena's tournament.

"Time sure flies by. However, these Advanced Mana Armor Kits should last us for quite some time. Now, I just need to inform players in other countries," Shi Feng said as he smiled in satisfaction.

The Advanced Mana Armor Kit was exclusive to Zero Wing and the Candlelight Trading Firm. It was also one of the best available armor kits currently. With the addition of the Secret Spellcasting Technique, he could already imagine the commotion Stone Forest Town would cause.

Neither the Advanced Mana Armor Kits nor the Secret Spellcasting Technique could be purchased with Coins. Most likely, even independent experts would not be able to hold themselves back from joining the Battle Arena's tournament.

As Shi Feng was about to write a post on the official forums, Melancholic Smile contacted him.

"Guild Leader, the Phoenix Pavilion Master has emerged from the Secret Technique space and said she wishes to discuss something with you. She is waiting in the top-floor meeting room."

"She's out already?" Shi Feng could not help his surprise.

From what she had heard from Phoenix Rain, even a powerful expert could easily remain in a Bronze Secret Technique space for over 12 hours, much less an expert like Phoenix Rain, yet only ten hours had passed. Logically, she should not be out so soon.

Chapter 1215 - Super-large-scale Team Dungeon

The Candlelight Trading Firm's top-floor meeting room:

As soon as Shi Feng entered the room, he noticed the change in Phoenix Rain, who was currently sat beside a french window.

If Phoenix Rain had radiated a calm, collected feeling with the aura of a superior, she now felt free and natural.

Although there was only a slight change to her temperament, Shi Feng could tell that Phoenix Rain's harvest from the Secret Technique space had been significant.

No wonder why the various superpowers are desperate for Secret Technique tablets. Their effects are truly extraordinary. Shi Feng was inwardly surprised.

If a Bronze Tablet was already so effective, Shi Feng found it hard to imagine what kind of effects the Golden Tablet, which the mysterious NPC youth had stolen, would have.

"Phoenix Pavilion Master, you sure are early. I had assumed you would be in there for at least 30 hours," Shi Feng said as he sat down. "May I know what urgent matter you wish to discuss?"

"Although this might sound a little blunt, I need to know. Do you have any of that Soul Water left?" Phoenix Rain asked, her expression stern as she looked at Shi Feng. A faint hint of anticipation glittered in her eyes. "If you still have some, I am willing to purchase it for 50 Gold per bottle or Magic Crystals of equivalent value."

Shi Feng was, more or less, surprised to hear Phoenix Rain's question.

Even the most expensive consumable item that could improve a player's focus did not exceed 20 Gold. In Zero Wing, Guild members could purchase the Hundred Berry Wine from the Dark Den for around 8 or 9 Gold.

Yet, Phoenix Rain had offered to buy Soul Water for 50 Gold per bottle without hesitation.

"Phoenix Pavilion Master, why are you suddenly so interested in the Soul Water?" Shi Feng asked curiously.

It was impossible to determine the Soul Water's effects based on its description. Only by testing it personally would one understand its benefits.

He had obtained a total of six drops of Soul Water and had stored them in six separate glass bottles, five of which he had already given to Aqua Rose and the others. He had saved the last bottle for himself in case he needed its effects. Logically, Phoenix Rain shouldn't have any way of knowing the Soul Water's true value.

"It's difficult not to notice the Soul Water's effects even if I don't want to. Team Leader Ye Feng, you've never entered a Secret Technique space; so you might not fully understand the situation. Inside a Bronze-rank Secret Technique space, anybody capable of reaching the fourth floor in six hours on their first attempt should be able to comprehend the legacy they chose easily. Those with talent might even be able to reach the fourth floor in less than six hours. As for reaching the sixth floor in six hours, extremely few geniuses have ever managed the feat." Revealing a bitter smile, Phoenix Rain continued, "However, among Aqua Rose's group, even the weakest one among them reached the sixth floor within six hours, while the other four reached the seventh floor..."

Although she acknowledged that Aqua Rose and the others were quite talented, the fact that the weakest among them had reached the sixth floor within six hours was something she could not accept.

Throughout the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion, the number of people that had managed to reach the sixth floor in a Bronze Secret Technique space in six hours could be counted on one hand. Every one of these people was a monster that had already reached the Domain Realm. But what of Aqua Rose and the others?

Even the strongest among them had only reached the Refinement Realm and wasn't even close to the Flowing Water Realm, much less grasping a Domain.

Yet, Aqua Rose and the others' performance was astonishing.

She would never believe that someone could rely on their own abilities to achieve such a result.

The only possibility Phoenix Rain could think of was the Soul Water Shi Feng had given the girls before they entered.

"So, that's the issue." Realization dawned on Shi Feng. "I do still have some Soul Water. However, it's far too valuable. I don't have a lot on hand right now. If you would like some, I can trade them to you, but I want neither Coins nor Magic Crystals. Rather, I would like to borrow the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion's strength to help me with something. Once the task had been completed, I'll give you ten bottles of Soul Water."

Selling the Soul Water was the most foolish thing he could do.

He wouldn't even sell the liquid if someone offered him 300 Gold per bottle, not to mention 50 Gold. One hundred souls were required to make a single drop of Soul Water. This limited the Soul Water's production. He didn't even have enough for his own Guild members, not to mention selling it to others. Moreover, if he mass-produced the Soul Water, the Soul Orb would be exposed.

"Ten bottles?" Phoenix Rain pondered.

Ten bottles of Soul Water wasn't nearly enough. She wouldn't even be able to supply her direct subordinates.

However, after giving the matter some thought, she found it reasonable. The Soul Water could enhance a player's comprehension and allow them to reach the seventh floor of a Bronze Temple within six hours. How could such a treasure be available in large quantities?

Although a Bronze Secret Technique was the easiest Secret Technique to learn, it was still extremely difficult to complete all nine floors. Not one player throughout the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion had comprehended an entire set of Bronze-rank Combat Techniques.

If she could get her hands on the Soul Water, however, someone in the Guild might.

Comprehending a combat technique to the seventh floor would already massive boost one's combat power. If one fully comprehended a complete Bronze Combat Technique, their combat power would soar.

"May I know what you wish to use the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion's strength for?" Phoenix Rain asked.

"It's very simple. You just need to help me raid a Dungeon," Shi Feng said, chuckling.

"Raid a Dungeon?" Phoenix Rain asked, confused, "Zero Wing already has so many experts. Are they not enough?"

Zero Wing indeed had a vast collection of experts. Raiding a Level 45, 100-man Team Dungeon shouldn't be an issue. While Hell Mode might be challenging, once the team reached Level 45, even that shouldn't pose as a problem for Zero Wing.

"No, they are not enough. I want to borrow at least 100 people," Shi Feng said after considering the matter.

"One hundred!? Are you trying to raid..." Phoenix Rain suddenly recalled a specific Dungeon.

"That's right! The Level 50, super-large-scale Team Dungeon, Flaming Ruins!" Shi Feng nodded.

In God's Domain, the largest Team Dungeons before Level 50 were 100-man Team Dungeons. However, after Level 50, super-large-scale Team Dungeons would unlock. The minimum number of players required to enter these super-large-scale Dungeons was 200, while the maximum was 500. There was only one Level 50, super-large-scale Team Dungeon throughout Star-Moon Kingdom–the Flaming Ruins.

If he wanted to turn Stone Forest Town into a holy land for players, obtaining the First Clear of the Flaming Ruins was of the utmost importance.

The various large Guilds in God's Domain were also preparing for such Dungeons.

If one could obtain the First Clear of a Level 50, 100-man Hell Mode Team Dungeon, they would obtain a 3-star Guild Residence Promotion Order. If one managed to obtain the First Clear of a Level 50, super-large-scale Hell Mode Team Dungeon, they could obtain a Town Relocation Order.

The Town Relocation Order was even more valuable than a Town Building Order. It allowed players to move a town they owned to any location they desired.

Chapter 1217 - Naval State

Star-Moon City:

Due to the appearance of Evernight City, Star-Moon City had been undergoing transformations practically every day for the past few days. The capital had become so prosperous that one could easily spot Level 40-plus players roaming its main streets. Now, however, the city bustled even more than before.

Only, the players coming to Star-Moon City now were not here for Evernight City but for Stone Forest Town.

While excellent weapons and equipment were indeed tempting, the allure of combat techniques was much greater.

The God's Domain Experts List had no lack of experts that possessed combat techniques. The list even had introductions on the combat techniques of certain experts. Hence, combat techniques were not foreign to independent players and were something many independent experts very much wished to learn.

However, combat techniques were different from system-made Skills, which were readily obtainable as quest rewards or monster drops. Players needed to learn the techniques by themselves. Moreover, combat techniques were not easily learned. Unless one was the core member of a large Guild that possessed the legacy of a combat technique, the Guild would not be willing to teach them at all.

Although one could also mimic the combat techniques of true experts from watching the latter's combat videos, ultimately, it was just a poor imitation. Without understanding the true meaning of a combat technique's movements, one would not be able to unlock the true potential of the said technique. And the more powerful a combat technique was, the more difficult it would be to understand it fully.

As for creating their own combat technique, that was easier said than done.

Even if a person had someone teaching them the legacy of a combat technique, learning it completely was not guaranteed. Meanwhile, creating an entirely new combat technique was something only geniuses among geniuses could accomplish.

Hence, now that Zero Wing had publicly announced that it was using the legacy of a combat technique as the reward for the Battle Arena's tournament, how could independent players not be tempted?

Not to mention, one could also get their very own house, aside from the combat technique, through the tournament. As long as they set up a magic array in their own houses, they could easily teleport back to Stone Forest Town, forgoing many wasted hours traveling to the town. With this, even if they were leveling up in an entirely different country, their leveling speed would not be affected whatsoever. On the contrary, they could even improve their strength through the Battle Arena, killing two birds with one stone. With such excellent benefits, even players operating in another country would find it worthwhile to visit Stone Forest Town.

Meanwhile, at the second-floor bar of Star-Moon City's Teleportation Hall, several cloaked players were currently observing the situation inside the establishment.

"Zero Wing sure is capable. They've even managed to come up with such a method, generously letting outsiders learn combat techniques. Leader, if we continue letting Zero Wing develop like this, we'll be disobeying the commander's orders. Should we take action now?" an elegant, cloaked female Assassin asked, smiling as she looked at the refined-looking male Elementalist before her.

If Shi Feng were present, he would definitely find this Elementalist very familiar, as this Elementalist was none other than Cleansed Maple, one of Miracle's peak experts.

"It is indeed about time for us to take action. Those useless Dark Players don't pose any threat to Zero Wing whatsoever. Since we can't locate Zero Wing's upper echelon right now, let's strike at their elite teams instead. However, Stone Forest Town is still a big problem for us, so let's have the others disguise as Dark Players and hunt the players operating around the town. When the time comes, those hidden Zero Wing experts will have no choice but to reveal themselves," Cleansed Maple said slowly.

"What about the Super Guilds that are paying attention to Zero Wing?" the female Assassin asked as she sent a glance at several cloaked players present in the first-floor hall.

Zero Wing's performance at the Dark Arena had simply been too eye-catching. This was especially true for the weapons and equipment the Guild possessed. Hence, the superpowers targeting the items Zero Wing's experts wore definitely weren't limited to Miracle alone. So far, they had already discovered three superpowers, in addition to many first-rate Guilds, targeting Zero Wing. To Miracle, though, their only opponents were still the three superpowers, as first-rate Guilds were no different from ants to them.

"Don't worry about them. The more, the merrier. When the time comes, leak some information to them. In any case, we aren't aiming for weapons and equipment. We only want the disbandment of Zero Wing." Cleansed Maple laughed nonchalantly.

Thousand Miles had already clearly stated that what he wanted were the talents of Zero Wing, not the items they wore. Of course, it would be good if they could obtain those as well.

"Understood. I'll have the others take action right away." The female Assassin nodded before activating Stealth and disappearing from the bar.

"What a pity. An upstart Guild that has managed to climb up to this point will have to disappear just like that. However, if you have to blame someone, blame yourselves for being too conspicuous." A hint of pity flashed across Cleansed Maple's eyes as he studied the reports on Zero Wing in his hands.

The various superpowers in God's Domain never really had any interest in small Guilds. They rarely even paid attention to first-rate Guilds. After all, these Guilds were negligible existences to them. It was also nearly unheard-of for a superpower to use assassination tactics to deal with such Guilds. Normally, they reserved such methods for other superpowers.

However, Zero Wing had truly angered Miracle this time.

Since Zero Wing had ignored their goodwill, they had no choice but to eliminate it from God's Domain.

...

Just as the matter regarding Stone Forest Town was causing a commotion in Star-Moon Kingdom as well as its neighbors, Shi Feng himself had stealthily arrived at the Sea's End.

The Sea's End was like an independent empire. It had very little contact with the kingdoms and empires on the main continent.

The first reason for this situation was the long distance separating them. Just teleporting from the mainland to the Sea's End cost 5 Gold, 20 Silver per person. Hence, Shi Feng was surprised when he encountered the Freedom Alliance at the Sea of Death. Of course, there was another travel method that was cheaper, but more time-consuming, than teleportation, which was riding a Flying Ship. One would pay only 5 Silver per person to get from the Sea's End to the NPC island closest to the Sea of Death in a little over 30 hours. However, many people disliked wasting so much time on travel.

The second reason was the different attitude each region had towards the various forces in God's Domain. On land, the various kingdoms and empires were absolutely hostile towards the dark forces. The Sea's End, on the other hand, maintained a neutral stance in this regard. Hence, Dark Players and ordinary players were treated equally in the NPC cities located in the Sea's End. Red Players and Dark Players would not be barred entry into NPC cities or captured by NPCs—so long as they did not cause trouble within the cities. One could say that the Sea's End was a paradise for Dark Players.

The third reason was the different lifestyles players adopted. Players that were born at the Sea's End had fought naval battles ever since they started out in the game. If they were abruptly sent to fight land-based monsters, they would have great difficulty adapting. Likewise, the opposite was also true for land-based players. Hence, players of both sides rarely associated with each other. Only after mainstream players reached Level 100 would interaction between these two sides of players begin to increase.

Meanwhile, the city Shi Feng had teleported to this time was called Blue Jade City, one of the twelve major cities located within the Sea's End. It was also one of the cities under the rule of the Freedom Alliance.

The management style at the Sea's End was different from that of the main continent. There was no concept of a country here, or rather it leaned more towards city-states. Every city was its own kingdom, and every kingdom managed a large sea zone. Moreover, unlike on the main continent, where players could not take control of an NPC city, no matter how much effort they put in, players could take over an NPC city here at the Sea's End.

In other words, players could become a city lord at the Sea's End—far more convenient than on the mainland, where players had to establish their own towns and cities if they wished to become a lord.

Chapter 1218 - Sea God's Blessing

As soon as Shi Feng exited the Teleportation Hall, the sight of an azure sky greeted him. Beneath the hill that the Teleportation Hall sat on, he could see various ships docked around the island. There were also a large number of players at the port, shouting for parties.

"Team looking for Level 40-plus players to hunt Giant Armored Beasts for a quest! We already have four advanced speedboats prepared! Veterans only! Noobs, stand aside!"

"Forming a party to Red Reef Bay to farm Red Corals! Level 39 and below, do not disturb!"

"Level 41 Shield Warrior looking for a party for the Underwater Temple! I own an advanced speedboat!"

"Fleet heading to Black Mist Sea to grind for Magic Crystals! We have a Bronze Speedboat leading the fleet! We're currently still missing two advanced speedboats! Those with advanced speedboats, come apply quickly!"

...

Over 4,000 players crowded the port, looking to form parties. The scene resembled a lively market. Moreover, unlike land-based players, the players here put more importance on levels and the quality of the speedboats they possessed rather than combat standards when forming parties.

As long as a player owned an advanced speedboat, they would be highly sought after by parties. Advanced-speedboat owners here were the equivalent of expert players on land. If one possessed a Bronze Speedboat, they would be the equivalent of a famous celebrity and become the center of attention.

There sure are a lot of players who own advanced speedboats here. With a glance, Shi Feng discovered that roughly 10% of the ships docked at the port consisted of advanced speedboats. In contrast, one could rarely see even ordinary speedboats over at the Apocalypse Empire, much less advanced speedboats.

Moreover, aside from the much-higher standards of the ships here, the players were also considerably high-leveled. Shi Feng could spot plenty of Level 40-plus players roaming the streets. At such a level, players would already be considered an expert in Star-Moon Kingdom. Here, however, they were only average.

However, although the players here were very high-leveled, the local businesses were not very developed. As Shi Feng walked through the streets of the city, he did not spot many Shops operated by players. There were even fewer items produced by players. Instead, he sawd many players setting up stalls along the streets. The situation here was completely different from the NPC cities on the main continent, which barred players from randomly setting up stalls on the streets. On the main continent, if players wished to sell the items they had, they could only do so by shouting out the name of their products. Stalls, on the other hand, did not require players to do so, as they allowed customers to view the vendor's products.

After taking a look at several dozen stalls, Shi Feng noticed that the merchandise were either items dropped by monsters or harvested materials. There was not a single item made by Lifestyle players at all.

Sure enough, the development of subclasses for maritime players is much slower. Shi Feng smiled faintly.

In the past, he had practically spent his entire career in God's Domain playing on land. Hence, he was not particularly familiar with the situation at the Sea's End. His knowledge consisted of general information.

Moreover, in the past, by the time he arrived at the island cities of the Sea's End, many of these island cities had already been developed. The island cities back then were completely different from the current impoverished state before him. After all, there were much more resources available out at sea than on land, as well as plenty of unique resources. Hence, the NPC island cities in the past had all flourished magnificently, and one could see all sorts of naval merchant fleets and luxurious Shops.

However, after giving the matter some thought, he found the situation reasonable. In reality, the development of subclasses of naval players was not slower than those on land. It was just that, due to the butterfly effect from his having developed the subclasses in his Guild early on, the players on the main continent started shifting their focus towards subclasses a lot sooner than the maritime players.

While Shi Feng was investigating the prices of products in Blue Jade City, a large crowd suddenly formed in the business district. Many players who saw this scene revealed excited expressions on their faces before promptly rushing into the crowd as well.

Shi Feng grew curious at this situation.

"Buying Runic Fragments in bulk today! Buying each stack for 6 Silver! First come, first served!"

In the next moment, a slightly chubby, middle-aged man with a small mustache on his face walked out of a three-story Shop, a smile on his face as he shouted a series of words.

Immediately, the surrounding players flooded into the Shop.

"Damn it! We're too late again!"

"There are just too many competitors here. Can't the House of Seas buy a little more Runic Fragments each day? I've already been waiting here for an entire day now, yet I still haven't managed to sell my stockpile."

"There's no helping this. Only the House of Seas is willing to buy those fragments at a high price. If we sell the fragments to NPC merchants, we'll only get 40 Copper per stack."

"I already have 20 stacks collected. If I can sell them all, I can get 1 Gold, 20 Silver. With that money, I can buy myself a nice set of equipment."

...

After a short moment passed, the crowd of players that flooded into the Shop called House of Seas came out, the majority of them with disappointed expressions on their faces, having apparently failed to sell their Runic Fragments.

Runic Fragments? Shi Feng could not help but recall matters regarding the Runic Fragment. I remember that it should be an item dropped by sea monsters. On its own, it isn't of any particular value. The only use it has is the synthesis of Runic Crystals. However, the synthesis rate is considerably low. Even Master Alchemists would have a success rate of only 10%. Could the House of Seas be trying to synthesize Runic Crystals?

The Runic Crystal was an item unique to the sea. It was categorized as an energy crystal and was roughly similar to the Magic Crystal. Only, the amounts of Mana stored in the two types of crystal were different.

The amount of Mana contained within a Magic Crystal was a lot higher. A Runic Crystal contained roughly two-thirds the amount of Mana of a Magic Crystal. However, a Runic Crystal wasn't even worth half of a Magic Crystal. Currently, Runic Crystals should sell for 10 Silver each.

The reason for this was the Runic Crystal's much fewer uses. For example, Runic Crystals could not be used in the Divine Colosseum.

If one had to point out its utility, then it would have to be in exchanges and the production of items.

Out at sea, Runic Crystals could be used to exchange for many items at the Sea God's Temple. However, as the Sea God's Temple restocked only once a week, the number of items one could get using Runic Crystals was limited. Even so, what was available for exchange in the Sea God's Temple was of high quality. Occasionally, there would even be Epic items up for exchange, although it was currently too early in the game for Epic items to appear in the temple.

Aside from Epic items, the next best thing up for exchange in the Sea God's Temple was a potion named Sea God's Blessing.

Five Runic Crystals were needed to exchange for one bottle, which put the potion's price at 50 Silver.

In the past, not to mention naval players, even land-based players were very fond of the Sea God's Blessing. The reason for this was because consumption of the potion increased not only all of a player's Basic Attributes by 10% but also all resistances by 100 points for 12 hours. Moreover, the potion did not have a Cooldown, and its effects could be stacked once.

When a player consumed two Sea God's Blessings, all their Basic Attributes would increase by 15% and resistances, by 150 points for 15 hours.

The further one progressed into the game, the more important environmental factors would become. Certain maps required players to possess a specific resistance for survival. The system would prevent players with insufficient resistances from visiting many special leveling maps. A potion that was capable of increasing all resistances by 100 points could allow players to visit the majority of the locations in God's Domain freely without having to worry about environmental factors.

However, as only a limited amount of Sea God's Blessing was put up for exchange each week, its actual value on the market was a lot higher. In the past, each bottle had sold for roughly two Gold. Moreover, this was only the price at sea. On land, each bottle had easily sold for three Gold.

That's right! Why didn't I think of this? I can use this opportunity to make a fortune! Shi Feng suddenly thought of the Philosopher's Stone.

Others might need to waste a lot of effort into synthesizing Runic Crystals, but he had the Philosopher's Stone. His synthesis success rate was much higher than even that of Grandmaster Alchemists.

Chapter 1219 - Gathering of Warlords

Although Shi Feng had such thoughts, he did not hurry to collect Runic Fragments.

The Runic Fragment was a common drop at sea; hence, purchasing a large amount from players would be straightforward. Besides, his primary objective in visiting the Sea's End this time was not to collect Runic Crystals but the Legacy of the Sea.

Following which, Shi Feng hurried towards the meeting place he had arranged with Passing Monarch.

...

At this moment, hundreds of players geared in Fine-Gold Weapons and Equipment stood guard in front of the most luxurious high-class restaurant in Blue Jade City. These players were all at least Level 42, and just by standing there, they put extremely heavy pressure on others. The passersby only sent a few glances at these players before scurrying away, nobody daring to enter this restaurant.

These players standing guard at the entrance were none other than the members of the Freedom Alliance, the absolute overlord of Blue Jade City. In this city, nobody dared oppose the members of the Freedom Alliance. After all, if they provoked the Freedom Alliance, they would no longer be able to stay in Blue Jade City.

Meanwhile, on the twenty-second floor, which was also the top floor, of Blue Jade Restaurant, every member of the Freedom Alliance's upper echelon was present. Even the commanders of the Alliance's eleven fleets were here today.

At this moment, a beautiful woman dressed in luxurious, red mage robes walked up to Passing Monarch and said in a quiet tone, "Commander Monarch, our independent fleets will be depending on you this month. If we let those Guild-formed fleets surpass us, our fleets' standings in the Alliance will definitely suffer."

Although this woman's appearance was not as flawless as Gentle Snow's, she was the only female commander within the entire Freedom Alliance, Hundred Leaves.

In response, Passing Monarch simply nodded silently.

In reality, he did not fully believe Hundred Leaves's words.

Those capable of becoming the commander of a fleet within the Freedom Alliance definitely shouldn't be underestimated. Not to mention, the rise of Hundred Leaves's fleet had been rapid. Initially, she and her fleet had joined the Freedom Alliance as the Eleventh Fleet. Now, her fleet was already the Eighth Fleet. Her fleet's improvement speed was simply staggering.

Most likely, her fleet would reach the rank of Fifth Fleet or even Fourth Fleet before long, perhaps even surpassing his Third Fleet one day.

However, Hundred Leaves's words were also partially correct. If their fleets, which were formed by independent teams, did not perform well and failed to obtain any legacies, their standings in the Alliance would no doubt suffer tremendously.

The power structure of the Freedom Alliance was very complex. Although it was an alliance, it comprised eleven groups that fell into two main camps: the fleets formed by independent adventurer teams, and the fleets of small Guilds.

Normally, the two camps would compete for the resources obtained by the Freedom Alliance as a whole.

However, due to the small-Guild camp managing to acquire a legacy in their previous joint expedition while the independent camp failed to get any, the independent camp's situation deteriorated significantly. If the independent fleets could not reduce the disparity during this expedition, their position would definitely worsen in the next distribution of profits.

"I heard that the Second Fleet and Fourth Fleet have joined forces and even managed to recruit the help of quite a few powerful experts. Once we enter the secret land, you'll have to help out the Eighth Fleet, Commander Monarch," Hundred Leaves said as she sent a glance at several people seated across her. These people were none other than the commanders of the Second and Fourth Fleet and the experts they had hired to assist them this time. However, as these experts were wearing Black Cloaks, she couldn't determine their identities.

"Commander Leaves, you jest. Once we enter the secret land, I'm afraid that it'll be us who will be relying on you for help. I've heard that Commander Leaves has managed to employ the help of the Super Guild Sacred Temple this time. I expect that even if we united the strength of the entire Freedom Alliance, we wouldn't stand a chance against the Sacred Temple," Passing Monarch said, his gaze shifting to the woman standing beside Hundred Leaves. Although the woman had hidden her identity using a Black Cloak, the aura she exuded was no laughing matter.

He had only ever felt such an aura on Demon Island.

Moreover, his recent trip to the Sea of Death had enlightened him about many things—the fact that God's Domain was massive, and that the various superpowers of God's Domain were extremely powerful. They were far more powerful than he had previously imagined them to be. He had realized this just by watching the battle on Demon Island. When he and his companions went up against the Flower of Seven Sins members, they had been utterly powerless to retaliate.

Yet, now, through some unknown means, Hundred Leaves had actually managed to get help from the Super Guild Sacred Temple. In the next fleet ranking, the fleet Hundred Leaves commanded would most likely rank second out of the eleven fleets in the Freedom Alliance.

As for getting first place, that was unlikely to happen.

The reason for this was the commander of the First Fleet, who was the man that personally formed the Freedom Alliance. The First Fleet was also the first one to obtain the Legacy of the Sea. Even now, Passing Monarch had yet to uncover the identity of the mysterious supporter backing the First Fleet.

Just as Passing Monarch and Hundred Leaves were conversing with each other, the Second Fleet's commander, Identical Summer, and the Fourth Fleet's commander, Heavenly Spider, were likewise chatting together but with sneers on their faces.

"Hahaha! Monarch, that fool! He actually went to the Sea of Death and got all four of his Bronze Speedboats heavily damaged! Even now, the speedboats have yet to be fully repaired. With this, Third Fleet no longer poses a threat to us. The only problem left is First Fleet and Eighth Fleet," Identical Summer laughed as he looked at Passing Monarch.

"The Sacred Temple will be a troublesome foe. Not only is it a Super Guild, but unlike the other Super Guilds, the Sacred Temple also began developing its naval forces very early on. When it comes to the Guild's naval strength, even our entire Freedom Alliance added together won't be a match," Heavenly Spider said, shaking his head.

In response, Identical Summer sent a glance at the woman seated beside Hundred Leaves and said dismissively, "What are you afraid of? Although Hundred Leaves has managed to recruit the help of the Sacred Temple, it is impossible for the Sacred Temple to lend her all of its strength. At most, she'll get only a small portion. With the cards we have prepared, we'll be able to deal with Eighth Fleet easily. Afterwards, our two fleets will definitely secure the position of First and Second Fleet and rule Heavenly Ocean City."

The Freedom Alliance occupied a total of three major NPC cities in the Sea's End: Blue Jade City, White Howl City, and Heavenly Ocean City. As for Sea Dragon City, it was not considered a major city, only a minor city located on a certain island. It was valuable merely because it provided access to a secret land that contained Legacies. In terms of overall value, Sea Dragon City was worth much less than the three major cities.

Moreover, every one of the three major cities had a player population of over eight million. Among them, Heavenly Ocean City's population was the highest, with over twelve million players based there. It could already rival the capital of an ordinary empire.

If their two fleets could obtain Heavenly Ocean City, the wealth they could amass would greatly surpass that of the large Guilds occupying empires on land. After all, unlike the Guilds on land, which only got to live in NPC cities, naval players like them got to control their cities completely.

Chapter 1220 - Discovered

Inside the elegant hall, the Freedom Alliance's various commanders all had their own plans. They were all brimming with confidence about obtaining the Legacy of the Sea this time.

Just as the various commanders were conversing with each other, the female Elementalist Blue Joy led Shi Feng into the hall.

Although Shi Feng's appearance was not particularly conspicuous, as he looked just like the many other cloaked players within the hall, he still attracted everyone's attention.

"This person came in with Blue Joy. He should be the expert Monarch recruited to help, right?"

"Sure enough, Monarch really did come prepared."

"But why is there only one person?"

The various fleet commanders began quietly discussing Shi Feng as they looked at the Swordsman walking towards Monarch.

The fact that Passing Monarch managed to become the commander of the Freedom Alliance's Third Fleet showed that his individual strength was extraordinary. Otherwise, the other fleets would've long since overtaken his fleet.

However, seeing that Passing Monarch had invited only one helper confused everyone.

"It seems Monarch has really miscalculated this time."

Unlike the previous time, when the various fleet commanders had not invited even a single outsider to help out, they had all recruited plenty of helpers for the expedition this time. Even the lowest ranked among them had invited over ten people, while some had actually invited over forty people.

"Brother Ye Feng, did you come alone this time?" Passing Monarch asked quietly, feeling greatly perplexed as he looked at Shi Feng walking over to him.

Although he had invited Shi Feng, he never said that only Shi Feng alone could join. After all, the more people taking control of a speedboat, the more power it could display. A speedboat's ability to endure attacks from monsters would also improve with more players on board. Hence, in God's Domain, the more players a ship could accommodate, the stronger it would be.

In fact, he had even reserved 30 slots specifically for Shi Feng. Despite that, Shi Feng had come by himself.

"The others are all busy, so I didn't bother bringing them over," Shi Feng explained.

Currently, the majority of Zero Wing's experts were still stuck in combat inside the Inferior Legendary Treasure Chest. Only a portion of them had come out so far, and those who had were busy leading expert teams to grind for weapons and equipment. After all, Zero Wing was currently mass-recruiting new members and was in dire need of weapons and equipment. Meanwhile, Aqua Rose and the others were inside the Secret Technique space and would not be coming out anytime soon.

Rather than bring a group of elite members with him, it was much better to let Passing Monarch's other companions, who were much more accustomed to naval warfare, enter the ruins.

Passing Monarch could not help falling speechless at Shi Feng's words. He felt that Shi Feng was underestimating the Legacy competition.

Although he could have his own subordinates take up the missing slots, their coordination with Shi Feng would not be particularly good since neither side had a great understanding of each other.

...

Meanwhile, at the same time as Passing Monarch was conversing with Shi Feng, Hundred Leaves, who sat a short distance away, had her gaze fixed on Shi Feng, shock surfacing on her flawless, white face. However, Hundred Leaves very quickly hid this reaction of hers.

"Leaves, is there something strange about that person?" the cloaked woman seated beside Hundred Leaves asked quietly.

"He is the person I'm looking for," Hundred Leaves said, a hint of excitement surfacing in her eyes as her lips curled up slightly.

At Hundred Leaves's words, the cloaked woman turned to look at Shi Feng despite herself and exclaimed in surprise, "How can this be? The Demon God sent the recovery order to every Dark Player in God's Domain. How could the person holding the Soul Orb possibly appear before us so easily?"

"I can't believe it, either. However, the Detection Crystal I spent 3,000 Magic Crystals to buy cannot be mistaken. As long as the Soul Orb is within 30 yards of me, the Detection Crystal will automatically sense it. Moreover, I've already used Detection on him and have already confirmed that the Soul Orb is indeed on that person's body." Hundred Leaves chuckled. "I never thought that I would be able to encounter the person holding the Soul Orb so quickly. My luck really is too good."

"Then, when are we going to make a move?" the cloaked woman asked.

"No need to rush. We'll have plenty of opportunities once we enter the secret land," Hundred Leaves said as she waved her hand. "Have Scorpion secretly keep an eye on them."

Once players entered the secret land, they would not be able to leave for a certain period. At that time, there would be no escape for Shi Feng.

"Alright, I'll notify Scorpion right away." The cloaked woman nodded.

If Passing Monarch heard the conversation between Hundred Leaves and the cloaked woman right now, he would definitely be shocked. After all, based on the way the two were speaking with each other, the cloaked woman from the Sacred Temple seemed more like Hundred Leaves's subordinate rather than a collaborator.

However, shortly after everyone began talking about Shi Feng, the entire hall fell silent once again as it was nearly time for them to set out for Sea Dragon City.

At this moment, a refined middle-aged man dressed in white robes entered the hall. Walking behind him were two robust men—a Level 43 Ranger with a dark gray longbow slung over his shoulder and a Level 43 Guardian Knight with a massive, white bone shield on his back.

The two could easily rank near the top of the Ranking List of any empire in God's Domain. Not to mention, both the bow and the shield these two men carried were currently radiating the Epic glow effect. The two men looked extremely conspicuous as they entered the hall.

"Since everyone has already gathered, let us begin, then," the refined middle-aged man said unhurriedly after taking a glance at everyone in the hall. "As is traditional, my First Fleet will dispatch 100 members while the other fleets will dispatch 90 members each for a total of 1,000 members. If there are no objections, we'll start right away."

Although the man's voice sounded mild, nobody present dared to look down on him.

After all, this refined man was none other than the founder of the Freedom Alliance. He was also the commander of the current First Fleet, Silent Entropy.

None of the commanders present said anything in response. Instead, they each took out a tablet fragment while Silent Entropy took out two tablet fragments.

When everyone present combined their tablet fragments, the fragments formed a complete circular tablet with an ancient magic array carved on it, and the instant the tablet was assembled, a spatial portal gradually appeared in midair.

When Silent Entropy saw that the spatial portal had stabilized, he took back his two fragments and said, "Alright, everyone, enter according to fleet ranks now."

Following which, the other commanders also stored their tablet fragments and entered the spatial portal together with their own fleets in an orderly procession.

The first ones to enter were the First Fleet's 100 members, followed by the Second Fleet's 90 members and so on. After the 1,000th player walked into the spatial portal, the portal vanished from the hall.

...

The instant Shi Feng entered the secret land, before he could even see where he had been transported to, the sound of a system notification reached his ears.
-

System: You have entered the secret land beneath Sea Dragon City. You are not allowed to leave before six hours have passed. After ten hours have passed, you will be automatically transferred out of the secret land.

-
When the system notification came to an end, Shi Feng was finally able to see his surroundings clearly.

He was currently standing in the middle of a massive cavern with an ink-black lake encircling his location. Moreover, fog hovered above the lake. He could barely make out passages at the far end of the cavern.

While Shi Feng was busy observing his surroundings, the members of the Freedom Alliance began releasing their ships onto the lake in an orderly manner.

Even the weakest ship released was an advanced speedboat. There were also plenty of Bronze Speedboats, which were originally very rare in the outside world. It was an amazing sight to behold.

The secret land did not place any restriction on the number of ships that could be brought in. However, the appearance of over 120 ships on the lake would immediately trigger a massive monster attack. Only after these monsters had destroyed the excess ships would they leave. Hence, the various fleets of the Freedom Alliance had agreed that each fleet could bring a maximum of ten ships each. Any fleet caught bringing more than the agreed number of ships would have their right to enter the secret land in the future taken away. Moreover, as everyone had signed a contract agreeing to this point, there was no escaping the penalty if they broke their word.

At this moment, the cloaked woman, who stood beside Hundred Leaves, covertly observed the distant Shi Feng as she quietly asked, "Leaves, should we take action now?"