Reincarnation of The Strongest Sword God

1461-1480

Chapter 1461 - Abyssal Blade Evolves

Only after the system had announced the duel's outcome did the audience react.

"He won, just like that?"

"So fast! I couldn't even see what he did!"

"Is this really a Balanced Mode PvP duel? Why do I feel like that guy is much stronger than Lifeless Thorn?"

Most people weren't surprised by the battle's outcome. After all, both Shi Feng and Lifeless Thorn gave the city's large Guilds headaches. It wasn't surprising to discover that one was stronger than the other. Rather, they were shocked over the battle's process.

After watching the duel, the expert players that had hesitated over joining the Asura adventurer team swore that they would join.

...

"Just who is this guy?" Despair tore at Thundering Sky's heart as he watched Shi Feng descend from the stage.

He had hoped that even if Lifeless Thorn weren't a match for the Swordsman, the difference between them wouldn't be so great.

However, that clearly wasn't the case.

Even an amateur could tell that Shi Feng and Lifeless Thorn were on completely different levels.

Thundering Sky could already foresee the Asura adventurer team lording over Cold Wind City within a short time. His only choice was to rein in his members, avoiding provoking Asura's members as he bided for time until Hecate arrived. He had no other options.

...

"The commander is so amazing! I want to see what Wave Heart intends to do now!" Yan Ya and the other Asura members were ecstatic.

They had personally watched as Lifeless Thorn's undefeated legend was shattered, and a new legend was born in Cold Wind City.

Asura could become one of the top adventurer teams in the Ice Crystal World, not to mention becoming Cold Wind City's overlord.

...

Below the stage, Lifeless Thorn wore a blank look as he resurrected.

"I lost?"

He couldn't help but recall the final scene of the battle. Although Shi Feng had used the opportunity to attack while he had been stunned, he wasn't sure that he could have blocked all ten attacks as they aimed for his blind spots even if he hadn't been dazed. Even with his Adjudication Spears, he would've been lucky to block half of those attacks.

In the end, nothing would've changed. He would've died all the same.

He now realized that, aside from inferior Basic Attributes and combat standards, he didn't even have enough combat experience to stand against Shi Feng. The man had the kind of combat experience that only came from risking one's life in one battle after another.

Taking a few deep breaths, Lifeless Thorn approached Shi Feng.

"I sincerely accept my defeat. I will adhere to my promise and join Asura. However, I'd like to ask you about something. Of course, you may also refuse to answer," Lifeless Thorn said.

"Ask away. I'll answer as best as I can," Shi Feng offered.

"If I'm not mistaken, you should be...a player from another region, correct?" Lifeless Thorn asked, a hint of excitement coloring his voice.

"That's right. I'm not from the Cold Wind City region," Shi Feng acknowledged, not bothering to hide the truth.

The conclusion was easy to reach if one watched carefully. God's Domain had launched some time ago, and experts who were capable of becoming famous had already made a name for themselves. Even if they weren't well-known, there should be some news of their achievements. It simply wasn't possible for such a terrifyingly powerful, unknown expert to pop in out of nowhere.

The only explanation was that he had come from another region.

If an ordinary player's arrival from another region were discovered, it could cause the player a lot of trouble. Shi Feng, however, wasn't worried. Cold Wind City didn't have a player who would dare cause him trouble.

"I knew it!" Eagerly, Lifeless Thorn asked, "Are there a lot of experts where you come from?"

"A lot. Too many to count," Shi Feng responded after giving the matter some thought.

Shi Feng realized what Lifeless Thorn was trying to say. To put it simply, the Berserker wanted to know if there were a lot of experts who were stronger than him. In reality, Lifeless Thorn was a Refinement Realm expert. However, he lacked combat experience. There weren't enough experts in Cold Wind City to spar with. As a result, his combat style was monotonous. Although it was effective against weaker players, experts of the same caliber could easily overcome his attacks.

Of course, Lifeless Thorn wasn't the only person in such a predicament. Solitary Nine and the other experts faced the same problem. Unfortunately, there was nothing they could do about it due to the Ice Crystal World's unique rules.

Fortunately, if Lifeless Thorn and the others were trained properly, they could increase their strength in a short amount of time.

Currently, Zero Wing was expanding on two fronts. Although the Guild seemed strong on the surface, it sorely lacked experts. Recruiting Lifeless Thorn and these other experts would be of great help.

"Then, can you take me there? I promise that I'll fully devote myself to the Asura adventurer team; I won't join any other power." Hearing Shi Feng's words, fighting spirit burned in Lifeless Thorn's gaze. He wanted to rush out of the Ice Crystal World and face those experts as soon as possible.

"Not now. I still have some matters that I need to deal with. Once I've finished, I'll lead the top-ranking experts in Asura to develop elsewhere," Shi Feng said, shaking his head.

In reality, he wanted to leave this place as soon as possible as well, but he couldn't return to God's Domain until he collected the Eternal Ice Crystals. And unfortunately, he didn't have a strong enough team to raid the Snow Rift's Ancient Shrine yet.

"We'll leave once you finish your task?" Lifeless Thorn's excitement grew. "Commander, just tell me what you need. My team will accomplish it for you!"

"I need to collect a sufficient number of Ice Crystal Fragments. The more, the better. Only the Snow Rift's Boss monsters, Great Lord rank and above, have a chance of dropping them," Shi Feng explained.

"Understood. I'll lead a team and kill those Bosses right away." Lifeless Thorn nodded, turning to prepare to depart.

"Hold on a minute. Before you go, take a look at these." Shi Feng snatched the impatient Berserker's collar. First, he added Lifeless Thorn as a friend. He then sent the man a tutorial video for Void Steps. "This is only a tutorial. How much of it you learn depends on you."

Void Steps was an advanced footwork technique, which Shi Feng taught Zero Wing's core members. Even if a player failed to learn the full technique, they could grow stronger by studying it.

Now that Lifeless Thorn had officially joined Asura, it was best that he learn the technique as quickly as possible.

"This is..." Shock colored Lifeless Thorn's face as he watched the tutorial video. He had never expected Shi Feng to give it away so nonchalantly. His heart warmed, and his respect of this Swordsman grew.

After the duel, Cold Wind City's experts surged towards Asura's Residence.

In a few short hours, Asura's member count shot past 5,000. Although only 1,000 or so were official members, the rest became reserve members.

Even so, so many experts made it easier for Shi Feng to kill the Snow Rift's Field Bosses easily.

He split the 5,000-plus Asura members into 50-man teams and sent the teams to various locations of the Snow Rift. Any team that encountered a Great Lord or higher Boss was to contact him immediately. This way, he could use Space Movement to transport Lifeless Thorn, Solitary Nine, and the others help.

Their grinding efficiency was leaps and bounds above what Shi Feng could accomplish on his own.

In addition, he activated Divine Providence before landing the final blow, using the Skill to increase the drop-rate for Ice Crystal Fragments.

He had to admit again that Icarus's Heart was a godly tool. With Divine Providence, he claimed one Ice Crystal Fragment from every six or seven Great Lords. He also obtained a fragment from every three or so Grand Lords he killed. Unfortunately, Snow Rift had a limited number of Grand Lord ranked Field Bosses.

On the bright side, since no one had pioneered the Snow Rift yet, plenty of Bosses were available in the forbidden land. Their spawn rate was incredibly fast as well. As a result, Shi Feng constantly slaughtered Bosses.

Shi Feng only gathered 100 Ice Crystal Fragments after three days of grinding. By relying on Divine Providence, he transformed those 100 fragments into 10 Eternal Ice Crystals.

During this period, Shi Feng had also risen from Level 57 to Level 58. Naturally, Lifeless Thorn and the others' levels skyrocketed, rising from Level 45 to Level 48 in just three days, pulling far ahead of Cold Wind City's other experts.

Although Shi Feng had achieved his goal, he didn't rush to turn in his quest. Rather, he ventured to a deserted location and took out the Abyssal Blade. He then attempted to evolve the Magic Weapon with the Eternal Ice Crystals.

"I hope this will work."

Shi Feng took in a deep breath and clicked the "Evolve" button on the Abyssal Blade's Attribute Panel. He chose the Eternal Ice Crystals as the evolution material. 

Chapter 1462 - Tier 2 Magic Weapon

Even after Shi Feng selected the evolution material, the Abyssal Blade didn't react.

"Must it be Mana Crystals or nothing?" Shi Feng frowned.

The last time he had found a Mana Crystal, it had been a coincidence. They were practically impossible to hunt down.

As Shi Feng was about to give up, the sound of a system notification reached his ears.

...

System: Replacement evolution material detected - Eternal Ice Crystal. Do you wish to abandon the power of frost contained within the Eternal Ice Crystals and evolve the Abyssal Blade?

...

"Abandon the power of frost?" Although he was confused, Shi Feng ecstatically clicked 'Continue.'

Suddenly, the ten Eternal Ice Crystals in Shi Feng's hands shattered, two clouds of smoke, one black and one white, emerging from their remains. Following which, the black smoke entered the Abyssal Blade. In response, the Abyssal Blade leaped from its sheath and hovered before Shi Feng, trembling as it released dragon roars that echoed throughout the wilderness. At the same time, blood-red runes began to surface around the weapon.

When the blood-red runes covered the sword entirely, the weapon began to release a rapidly growing pressure. Rather than a sword, Shi Feng felt as if he stood before an angry Dragon. The pressure was so great that he even struggled to breathe.

The phenomenon only began to weaken after about ten seconds. Eventually, the Abyssal Blade returned to its peaceful state.

After evolving, the Abyssal Blade's appearance had transformed slightly. Now, the sword was entirely pitch-black. It also radiated a faint trace of black miasma. A black dragon coiled around the sword's hilt, and blood-red runes had carved themselves into the blade. Overall, the Abyssal Blade's new appearance looked evil.

"What powerful Attributes!" Shi Feng exclaimed when he inspected the Attribute Panel.

...

[Abyssal Blade] (One-handed Sword, Magic Weapon)
Attack Power +1,720
All Attributes +130
Attack Speed +24
Ignore Levels +18

Attacks have:
60% chance to cause 220% damage.
37% chance to cause 300% damage.
Every attack increases damage by 2% to a maximum of 20%.

If wielder belongs to a Swordsman-related class, all Skill Levels +5.
Increase Free Ability Points received for every increase in Level by 2 points.

Equipment Level 45. Can be upgraded (Devour one hundred Level 50 Fine-Gold Weapons and thirty Level 50 Dark-Gold Weapons to upgrade to Level 45).
Equipment Tier 2. Can be evolved (Devour 100 Mana Crystals or Eternal Ice Crystals to evolve to Tier 3).

Additional Active Skill 1: Phantom Kill (Tier 2). Instantly creates a doppelganger under the wielder's control. Doppelganger has 90% of the wielder's Attributes and all Skills. The wielder can swap positions with the doppelganger at any time.

Duration: 1 minute, 30 seconds

Cooldown: 5 minutes

Additional Active Skill 2: Abyssal Bind (Tier 2). Binds up to 3 enemies simultaneously and prevents movement, reducing Defense and Magic Resistance by 100%. The higher tiered the target is, the weaker its the effect will be.
Duration: 5 seconds
Cooldown: 40 seconds

Additional Active Skill 3: Nine Dragons Slash (Tier 2). Instantly creates 16 phantoms of the Abyssal Blade for wielder's use; each phantom sword deals up to 80% damage.
Duration: 30 seconds
Cooldown: 5 minutes

Additional Active Skill 4: Abyssal Curse (Tier 2). Prevents all targets within a radius of 50 yards from moving or attacking for 6 seconds and reduces their Attributes by 20% for 10 minutes. Effect doubles if there is only one target in range.
Cooldown: 20 minutes

Additional Passive Skill: Abyssal Will. Improves wielder's physique depending on the surrounding Mana density. The higher the Mana density, the greater the improvement.

Additional Profound Inheritance: Black Emperor (Tier 2). When activated, every critical hit will accumulate one stack of Death Aura. Each stack can be used to increase all Attributes by 2% and Attack Speed and Movement Speed by 1% for 12 seconds or to reduce the Cooldown of a skill by 4 seconds. Maximum of 30 stacks of Death Aura.
Duration: 10 minutes
Cooldown: 8 hours

The Famed Smith Olysses personally created the Abyssal Blade using the Black Dragon King's fangs as material. It is one of thirty-six Famed Swords, ranking 31st. However, the Black Dragon King himself has cursed this sword. Beyond the immense strength the blade offers, the wielder must face a Backlash after a certain amount of time. However, after Jack had remodeled the Abyssal Blade with a Star Crystal, the strength of the Backlash has been reduced greatly. If the wielder is unable to suppress the Backlash, the wielder will receive the Black Dragon King's curse, permanently reducing all Attributes by 50%.
Unable to be dropped.
Unable to be traded.
Unable to be destroyed.

...

After evolving to Tier 2, both the Abyssal Blade's Basic Attributes and Skill effects had become much stronger than an Epic Weapon's.

The Abyssal Bind's strengthening made it particularly effective against Tier 3 Bosses. Although it would be weaker against Tier 4 Bosses, the Skill would at least be somewhat effective now that it had reached Tier 2.

With this, my chances of clearing the Ancient Shrine have increased by 10%. Shi Feng was very satisfied with the Abyssal Blade's upgrade.

As for upgrading the Abyssal Blade to Tier 3, he decided not to worry about it for now.

Even with Icarus's Heart, gathering 100 Eternal Ice Crystals would require more than a month of effort. Besides, it was only a matter of time before more players raided the Snow Rift. Their grinding efficiency would fall.

Now, all he had to do was collect the required ten Eternal Ice Crystals for his quest. Once he had them, he needed to help his adventurer team's members level quickly to prepare them for the raid on the Ancient Shrine.

After Shi Feng returned the Abyssal Blade to its sheath, he noticed that the white smoke had gradually crystallized, eventually becoming a shard of clear crystal.

When Shi Feng held the crystal, he felt a chill passing through him. He began to lose 1,000 HP each second.

"What is this thing?!"

Shi Feng was shocked. Hurriedly, he stored the crystal in his bag. Despite the brief moment he had held the crystal, his right arm had completely frozen. Had he held it for a few more seconds, the ice might have consumed his entire body.

Fortunately, only his arm had frozen. Without the crystal present to absorb heat from his body, his arm quickly recovered.

What a strong frost power! Fortunately, my Ice Resistance is high. Anyone else might have frozen to death instantly. Shi Feng looked at the crystal in his bag. He then clicked to inspect the item.

Although Shi Feng could not say for certain if he had the highest Ice Resistance of any player in God's Domain, there was no doubt that he was close. Moreover, he had an Intermediate Azure Source Stone equipped. Tier 1 ice-type Spells and Skills shouldn't affect him whatsoever. Only Tier 2 ice-type attacks should harm him.

Yet, this measly crystal had nearly turned him into an ice sculpture, devouring 1,000 HP every second. An ordinary player would likely lose over 10,000 HP per second just by touching the crystal. If held for four or five seconds, even a Level 45 MT with 100% of their HP would freeze to death.

After Shi Feng clicked to inspect the crystal's Attribute Panel, a loading bar appeared, notifying him that he needed to wait for 10 seconds to inspect the crystal.

After the loading bar filled, one system notification after another reached his ears before Shi Feng could even glance at the Attribute Panel.

...

System Announcement: A player has activated the new expansion pack 'Ice Crystal Awakening.'

System Announcement: This new expansion pack requires a system upgrade. Please prepare to log out. The estimated duration is 4 hours.

System: You have five minutes to log out. Please prepare to log out.
...

"What is this item?" Shi Feng was stunned.

No matter how he looked at it, this new expansion pack had to be related to this strange crystal. There was no way for the system to announce a new expansion pack the moment he tried to inspect it otherwise. Moreover, this expansion pack required an offline update.

However, Shi Feng didn't give the matter too much thought. He then clicked to inspect the item's Attributes, hoping to discover what kind of amazing item this crystal was. 

Chapter 1463 - Origin Weapon

When Shi Feng tapped on the crystal, a brief introduction opened before him.

As he read the text, Shi Feng was stunned.

"This is an Elemental Source?!" Shi Feng couldn't believe his eyes.

...

[Source of True Frost]
Contains the purest frost power.

...
Although the introduction was simple, almost everyone had known about Elemental Sources in the past. Any Elemental Source was valued more than an Epic item; in fact, most people offered two Epic items for a single crystal. However, players almost never sold them.

The elemental Mana within Elemental Sources was even purer than Seven Luminaries Crystals, and these items had a wide variety of uses.

They could be used in forging, alchemy, engineering, magic arrays, and so on.

If one used an Elemental Source while crafting a weapon or equipment, said item would obtain the power within the Elemental Source. Not only would this strengthen the item's Attributes, but it would also carry a powerful Original Skill.

If one could produce an Epic Weapon or Equipment with an Origin Skill, its value would only be second to Fragmented Legendary items.

Fragmented Legendary items were extremely rare in God's Domain. Even first-rate Guilds were lucky to have a handful, much less second- and third-rate Guilds. Hence, in the past, Epic Origin Weapons and Equipment became some of the best the various large Guilds could procure in large quantities.

The Epic Weapon Shi Feng had used in the past had been refined by a Grandmaster Forger who used an Elemental Source. To obtain the weapon, he had spent more than half of the wealth he had accumulated throughout playing God's Domain. Although hiring a Master Forger would've been cheaper, it was much safer to hire a Grandmaster.

He had never expected to get his hands on an Elemental Source this early.

Shi Feng now understood how he had activated a new expansion pack that would require a four-hour-long update.

When Elemental Sources had made their appearance in the past, it had started a new era for Lifestyle players. That had been due to the various uses for these crystals. Elemental Sources could even help Lifestyle classes improve their abilities. Hence, a lot of changes had to happen to the game.

After the first Elemental Source had appeared in the game, the crystals became more common. If one were lucky, they could even obtain one from a Dark-Gold Treasure Chest.

No one knows the Elemental Sources' true value yet. I can use this opportunity to send Melancholic Smile to purchase them. Thinking up to this point, Shi Feng realized that he had to purchase the crystals in bulk.

At first, everyone would treat the Elemental Source as some kind of rare material, selling it for several hundred Gold a piece. By the time they realized its true value, they'd regret selling the items. Conversely, many large Guilds would make a huge profit from hoarding the Elemental Sources.

Shi Feng then found a safe location and logged out of the game.

The new expansion pack had been too sudden. When Shi Feng opened his eyes inside the virtual gaming cabin, the sun outside the window was just beginning to set.

Before Shi Feng had the chance to climb out of the gaming cabin, a series of notifications bombarded his senses. They only stopped after the notification sound repeated several dozen times.

Taking his time, Shi Feng left to get something to eat and drink. He only read through the messages after settling down to eat at the table.

Contact between the Ice Crystal World and the continent of God's Domain was not possible. Hence, he had instructed Melancholic Smile and Gentle Snow to keep him up to date via offline messages. However, to obtain the required Elemental Ice Crystals as quickly as possible, he had remained in the game for three days straight.

"They're finally willing to let go, huh?" Shi Feng smiled as he read a message from Gentle Snow.

Recently, nothing major had occurred in God's Domain. The most noteworthy development was that Gentle Snow had finally captured Hidden Fog Town. Meanwhile, Zero Wing's Branch Guild in the Black Dragon Empire had recruited 70,000 additional members. The number might not be significant for a first-rate Guild, but it was a different story for Zero Wing. After all, Zero Wing's recruitment requirements were quite strict. Players capable of passing the entrance test would be elite players in the public's eyes. It was impressive that a Branch Guild had recruited so many members so quickly.

But Shi Feng wasn't surprised. What made him smile was the news that the companies that had supported Ouroboros had finally agreed to sell the training center to Gentle Snow. She had already begun the price negotiations.

Once both sides finished signing the necessary contracts, Ouroboros's training center would become Zero Wing's main headquarters. In the future, Zero Wing could recruit large batches of internal members without worrying about space.

As Shi Feng browsed through the other messages, his virtual gaming cabin's offline communicator rang. The caller ID belonged to Phoenix Rain.

Shi Feng reconnected to the game and entered his Offline Rest Space. After doing so, he accepted the call. Immediately, a virtual screen appeared before him. The screen showcased Phoenix Rain, who currently wore a set of exquisite, blue mage robes. She had already reached Level 48, and excluding Zero Wing's members, she could hold the top position on the Black Dragon Empire's Ranking List.

"Phoenix Pavilion Master, to what do I owe the pleasure? Has something urgent happened?" Shi Feng asked curiously.

"Indeed, something has happened. I've been competing with Nine Dragons Emperor on a quest, but for some reason, something has changed on his side. Not only did he complete the quest before I did, but he's also completed the quest much sooner than expected. Many of the Guild Elders have begun to side with him. Now, the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion just so happens to be activating some ancient ruin. I hope that Guild Leader Black Flame can lend me a few experts on the raid," Phoenix Raid said straightforwardly, not bothering to hide anything from Shi Feng. "As for the remuneration, I'll sell you a high-potential Shop in the Apocalypse Empire's capital. What do you say?"

She had an acute understanding of Zero Wing's experts. This was especially true for Zhao Yueru, who had participated in the Black Dragon Empire's ranking competition. There was also Aqua Rose to consider, who had put on a shocking performance during the siege war in Green Rain Town.

If experts like these women joined her team, she'd have a much higher chance of successfully raiding the ancient ruin her Guild had found.

Shi Feng was surprised to hear Phoenix Rain's offer.

He had never thought that this woman would be generous enough to sell an imperial capital Shop for a handful of experts. Such Shops were incredibly hard to come by. Many organizations offered two or three times the market price for them, but only a fool would willingly sell an imperial capital Shop so early in the game.

"Ancient ruins? Can you tell me which ancient ruins you intend to Raid?" Shi Feng asked after calming down.

"We've activated the Apocalypse Empire's Sunset Forest," Phoenix Rain answered, confused as to why he'd ask such a question.

"I see." Realization immediately dawned on Shi Feng. After giving the matter some thought, he said, "If you wish to borrow some manpower, then you shall have it. However, I have a better proposal. I'll help you clear the ruins. In return, I want 20% of the resources we obtain during the raid."

God's Domain had countless ancient ruins, many of which stored various items and materials that had been hidden since before the Great Destruction. Normally, these items wouldn't surface on the market. Meanwhile, the Apocalypse Empire's Sunset Forest had been particularly famous in the past due to its Ancient Origin Wood, a top-tier material used in ships' construction.

Phoenix Rain couldn't help but frown when she heard Shi Feng's counter-offer. Seeing the man's confidence, she had to ask, "That's a Level 50 to Level 60, Grade 1 ancient ruin. Are you confident in clearing it?"

"Will you believe me if I say that I'm 60% confident?" Shi Feng understood that she had many questions, but he had no solid explanation. After all, he couldn't possibly tell her that he had learned about the Sunset Forest during his previous life, or that he knew certain tricks to raid the ruin. 

Chapter 1464 - Mutated Magic Array Scroll

Phoenix Rain hesitated for a moment after hearing Shi Feng's answer.

Nine Dragons Emperor had activated the quest for the ancient ruin before she could, so he had a considerable advantage in the raid. Hence, she had decided to borrow experts from Shi Feng. After all, the resources inside the ancient ruin would be of considerable help to the contest on Thunder Island.

An ancient ruin was like a land of treasure. It was a type of secret land. By completing special quests, one could obtain a key to open the secret land's gates. Since Nine Dragons Emperor had completed the activation quest, he had obtained the first key. As a Grade 1 ancient ruin, the Sunset Forest only allowed each team to enter with 1,000 members. In addition, there was a time and level limit. The ancient ruin hid bountiful treasure, and one could obtain as many items as they wanted within the allotted time.

Players raiding the ancient ruin for the first time would gain the most.

Only, Shi Feng's asking price was a little too high.

She had already invested a lot of manpower and resources, yet this man wanted 20% of the harvest...

Most importantly, the Sunset Forest was a Grade 1 ancient ruin. It would be far more difficult to raid than a 100-man, Hell Mode Team Dungeon of the same level. She wasn't confident that Zero Wing had the strength to raid the ancient ruin.

"Take some time to consider the matter. In any case, Sunset Forest will activate on the same day as the contest for Thunder Island, with one in the morning, and the other at night. There's still some time," Shi Feng said.

"You know the activation time?" Phoenix Rain asked, confused.

Sunset Forest's activation time was a secret. The Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion had only learned about it after obtaining the secret land key. The activation time was also the reason that she was so anxious. If she could claim the ruin's treasures, she could boost her forces' combat power, increasing her chances of success on the island. Otherwise, she wouldn't be in such a rush to gather experts.

"I've read about it in an ancient tome. The tome also mentioned something about the final Guardian Boss," Shi Feng said casually.

In reality, he had never read about the ancient ruin in any book, but certain ancient tomes did mention various ruins in the game. He had used the lie as a way to convince Phoenix Rain that he had a method to raid the Sunset Forest.

"An ancient tome?" Realization dawned on Phoenix Rain. The Great Pavilion Master had learned about the Sunset Forest from some ancient book, as well. Only after his research had the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion investigated the ancient ruin and its activation quest. It wasn't unusual to learn that Shi Feng had learned about the Sunset Forest in the same way. "Alright, I agree to your offer. However, the precondition is that you can actually raid the Sunset Forest."

"That's only natural." Shi Feng nodded.

"Alright. We'll meet up tomorrow in Apocalypse City," Phoenix Rain responded before disconnecting the call.

Following which, Shi Feng started to prepare. First, he sent Melancholic Smile a message, getting her to send some people around the continent to purchase Elemental Sources, through they couldn't spend more than 300 Gold per item. That price was the equivalent of an Epic ranked material item. If the price exceeded that amount, others could become suspicious.

After taking care of that, Shi Feng notified Aqua Rose to lead a team to a neutral map, the Flaming Rain Mountains to grind for Flame Potions. The potion was necessary to raid the Sunset Forest.

As Shi Feng finished delegating and waited patiently for God's Domain's system update to finish, a call came in from Liang Jing.

"Head Instructor, the White Tiger Dojo has sent someone to see you again. The representative has stated that the White Tiger Dojo has agreed to your conditions and would like to invite you to discuss the details," Liang Jing reported.

"They've agreed?" Shi Feng suddenly remembered his conversation with the White Tiger Dojo's Jiang Tianyuan regarding his price for nurturing their experts. He then revealed a smile and said, "Tell the representative that I've doubled my price. They can take it or leave it."

Even if the White Tiger Dojo had talented members, training them to take on the Trial Tower's sixth-floor wouldn't be a simple task. Nurturing 500 sixth-floor experts for 50 bottles of S-rank Nutrient Fluid wasn't a worthwhile trade.

Had the White Tiger Dojo agreed to his offer earlier, he would've stayed true to his word. However, times had changed.

"Understood." Liang Jing nodded.

Following which, Liang Jing conveyed Shi Feng's decision to Xie Qiwen, who had waited in a reception room.

"What?! Double the price?!" Xie Qiwen was dumbfounded when he heard the decision. He shouted, "Why doesn't he just rob a bank instead?! Does he really doubt that the White Tiger Dojo can train its own experts?!"

"I apologize, but this is our Head Instructor's will. I can't do anything about his decisions," Liang Jing said. In reality, she was curious about what business Shi Feng had with the White Tiger Dojo to warrant one visit after another from a genius like Xie Qiwen.

"Good! Just wait! He'll regret this decision!" Xie Qiwen then left in a fit of rage.

...

After four hours, Shi Feng returned to his virtual gaming cabin and logged back into God's Domain.

Upon entering God's Domain, Shi Feng contacted Lifeless Thorn, Solitary Nine, and the others, having them select experts from the adventurer team to form a 100-man team. He then used a Return Scroll to teleport to Cold Wind City.

He had planned to help Lifeless Thorn and the others level up some more before raiding the Ancient Shrine, opening the teleportation channel.

But Phoenix Rain's request had forced him to move his plans up a few days.

While he had been out killing the Snow Rift's Field Bosses, he has sent some people to the Library to research the Ancient Shrine. Because of them, he now had a better understanding of the area.

After returning to Cold Wind City, Shi Feng returned to the adventurer team's Residence and retrieved a large amount of materials. He then began to produce the Nine-star Polar Domain Magic Array.

He and his team had zero chance of defeating the Guardian Boss in a head-on confrontation. He had planned to use magic arrays to suppress the Boss and rely on zerg tactics to distract it while damaging it with Miniature Ballistas.

However, the situation had changed.

He now had the Source of True Frost, which was also why he had made his promise to Phoenix Rain.

Elemental Sources contained a purer energy than that in Seven Luminaries Crystals. Naturally, said energy was useful in many aspects, the most beneficial of which was in forging weapons and equipment. Similarly, Elemental Sources could be used in crafting magic arrays.

A magic array would receive a massive power boost if crafted with an Elemental Source. Unfortunately, they were one-time use items, and using such a rare material was the epitome of extravagance.

But Shi Feng couldn't care less.

The sooner he opened the teleportation channel, the sooner he could open trade between God's Domain's continent and the Ice Crystal World. Doing so would be far more profitable than Stone Forest Town.

In the quiet workshop, Shi Feng retrieved one material after another. He then began to produce Magic Array Scrolls.

Very quickly, Shi Feng had a stack of nine Magic Array Scrolls. When he reached the final step, adding Magic Crystals to the scrolls, Shi Feng stopped abruptly and took a deep breath. Rather than selecting the Magic Crystals, he retrieved the Source of Extreme/True Frost from his bag.

The moment Shi Feng did so, his arm froze solid. He very quickly placed the Elemental Source in the center of the scrolls.

The Source of Extreme/True Frost gasified rapidly. Streams of cold mist flowed into the stack of Magic Array Scrolls. Following which, the scrolls' power began to increase.

By the time the Magic Array Scrolls absorbed every drop of power from the Elemental Source, the workshop's temperature had dropped drastically. Even with his high Ice Resistance, Shi Feng couldn't help but shiver.

The originally dark-purple Magic Array Scrolls lightened to an icy blue.

Had Shi Feng not been prepared, using Earth Dragon Skin as the scrolls' base material, the Magic Array Scrolls would've exploded from so much energy.

Shi Feng waited until the turbulent power within the Magic Array Scrolls calmed before storing them.

"Magic Array Scrolls produced with Elemental Sources are pretty impressive. I wonder how the effects have changed?" Shi Feng clicked to inspect the new Nine-star Polar Domain Magic Array Scrolls. 

Chapter 1465 - Top-tier, Eight-piece Set

"So, this is the power of an Elemental Source?"

Shi Feng stared at the icy-blue scroll's Attribute Panel in shock.

The Nine-star Polar Domain was an Intermediate Magic Array. Normally, it had no problems containing and suppressing Great Lord ranked monsters. It was even somewhat effective against Grand Lords. Of course, Mythic monsters could easily break free with a few attacks.

However, after improving the Nine-star Polar Domain with the Source of Extreme/True Frost, the magic array had undergone a heaven-defying change, although it still required nine players to activate and maintain it. Now, it could suppress trapped enemies' Attributes by 70%. It could even weaken a Mythic monster by as much as 50%...

Most Advanced Magic Arrays could barely suppress a Mythic monster's Attributes by 30%. Now, the Mutated Nine-star Polar Domain Magic Array could rival a Master Magic Array.

It's a pity that it's only a one-time-use item. It would be great if I could use it a few more times. Shi Feng was slightly disappointed.

With such a powerful magic array, he could lead Zero Wing's main force to a neutral map, hunting its various Mythic ranked Field Bosses. The harvest they could gain from securing the First Kills would be beyond imagination.

However, Shi Feng only played with the idea. He knew full well that the Main God System would not permit such a thing.

After he finished the scrolls, Shi Feng hurried to Cold Wind City's Forging Association, intending to upgrade his team's equipment.

The Forging Association in Cold Wind City was different from those on God's Domain's continent. Similar to Cold Wind City's library, the Forging Association was ancient. It was likely older than Star-Moon Kingdom itself. However, it was due to this Forging Association that the Ice Crystal World's crafting standards were significantly higher than in his home world.

At first, Shi Feng had assumed it was due to the abundance of rare materials in the Ice Crystal World, but in truth, that was only part of the reason.

The real reason for these players' success was the Forging Association!

The Forging Association here could rival Titan City's Lifestyle Association. Only, it lacked the massive databank and high Mana density. In addition, the Forging Association in Cold Wind City had the Forging Guidance System, which allowed players to purchase one-time-use forging designs with Magic Crystals.

For Level 45, Fine-Gold Forging Designs, the prices ranged between 10 and 50 Magic Crystals.

For Level 45, Dark-Gold Forging Designs, the prices ranged between 100 to 150 Magic Crystals.

Although these one-time-use designs were expensive, they gave players an advantage that wasn't available to those who learned from the real forging designs. These players could increase their success rates with Magic Crystals.

For Fine-Gold Weapons and Equipment, players could increase their success rate to a maximum of 25%. As for Dark-Gold Weapons and Equipment, players could increase it to 15%. This was a considerable boon to Advanced Forgers. With the 15% bonus on top of their original success rate, an Advanced Forger could easily achieve an overall success rate of 30% or above when forging a Dark-Gold item.

If one avoided mistakes during the forging process, they could craft one Dark-Gold Weapon or piece of Equipment for every three tries.

However, while mass-producing Fine-Gold items was easy, the same couldn't be said for Dark-Gold items. It was far more difficult to obtain the necessary materials, which generally dropped from high-level Great Lords and Grand Lords. Not every team could kill monsters of such caliber. It was also more difficult due to the required amount of Magic Crystals.

To increase one's forging success rate with Dark-Gold Weapons or Equipment by 15%, they'd have to pay an additional 100 Magic Crystals. Including the cost of the forging design, each attempt could easily cost anywhere from 200 to 250 Magic Crystals, and that was excluding any Magic Crystals required to produce the item itself.

While Coins were easy to earn at this stage of the game, Magic Crystals were not.

Although Cold Wind City's players had an abundance of Fine-Gold Weapons and Equipment, they lacked Dark-Gold ranked items. Only the city's two large Guilds had a substantial stock.

Fortunately, Shi Feng wasn't concerned about either issue. During the last three days, he had spent his time killing Level 50-plus Great Lords and Grand Lords, obtaining a large stock of materials. As for Magic Crystals, he still had over 30,000 on him. That was more than enough to produce weapons and equipment.

"Hello, sir. How may I be of service?" an NPC receptionist greeted Shi Feng sweetly.

"I wish to rent a Special Mana Forging Room for two hours," Shi Feng stated.

The Mana Forging Rooms had greater Mana density than the average Forging Room. Though they weren't on the level of a Meditation Room of the same Rank, they could improve a player's concentration.

"Understood, sir. That will be 50 Silver," the NPC receptionist said as she offered Shi Feng a key.

Handing over the 50 Silver Coins, Shi Feng grabbed the key and went to the Forging Association's top-floor.

The Ice Crystal World's Forging Guidance System is amazing, Shi Feng thought as he opened the Forging Guidance System for the Special Mana Forging Room.

Previously, he had thought that the Forging Guidance System only offered Fine-Gold and Dark-Gold Weapon and Equipment Designs. Now, he discovered that it also sold Set Equipment Designs.

As Shi Feng wondered why he hadn't seen anyone in Cold Wind City wearing Fine-Gold or Dark-Gold Set Equipment, his eyes fell on the designs' price-tags.

The designs for Level 45, Dark-Gold Equipment only cost 100 Magic Crystals. To purchase the designs for six pieces, one would have to spend 600 Crystals. However, the design for a six-piece, Level 45, Dark-Gold Set Equipment cost 1,800 crystals; 2,500 crystals for an eight-piece version. Moreover, the design was a one-time-use item; it would disappear regardless of the player's success. Not even a first-rate Guild's Leader would mess around with so many Magic Crystals, much less Guilds like Centurion Dynasty and Matchless Family.

Based on Magic Crystal's market price, each attempt to forge an eight-piece, Dark-Gold Set Equipment would cost over 700 Gold. Moreover, the forging success rate for Set Equipment was much lower that of individual items of the same level and rank.

Even the Forging Guidance System only allowed players to temporarily increase their forging success rate by 7% for a price. An Advanced Forger would be lucky if their base success rate reached 8% with Level 45, Dark-Gold Set Equipment. Most would have a total success rate of only 15%. With such a low chance, it'd be a miracle if a forger succeeded once with every ten tries. Even wealthy Guilds and players wouldn't dare waste their money so extravagantly.

With this, my trip has definitely been worth the trouble. Shi Feng's eyes glittered as he gazed at the various Dark-Gold Set Equipment Designs the Forging Guidance System displayed.

It would be very difficult for an Advanced Forger to produce a Dark-Gold Set Equipment, but to a Master Forger such as Shi Feng, it'd be easy. His base success rate had already reached 20%. Including the Book of Forging, the Mysterious Flame, the Master Forger's Insignia, and the Blacksteel Insignia, he could easily achieve a success rate of more than 35%. With the Forging Guidance System, that would put his forging success rate at over 42%.

Following which, Shi Feng bought the design for an eight-piece, Level 45, Dark-Gold Set Equipment for Shield Warriors and began to craft.

Shi Feng started to refine and shape one material after another. Due to the Abyssal Blade, the density of the ambient Mana rose even higher, increasing his concentration.

Before Shi Feng knew it, he had produced the Protector Set.

This set's Attributes are really powerful. No wonder it costs 2,500 Magic Crystals per attempt. Shi Feng was astonished as he inspected the Protector Set's Attributes.

The set's Basic Attributes could already rival that of individual Level 50, Dark-Gold Equipment. The set effects would greatly enhance a Shield Warrior's Skills as well.

Following which, Shi Feng forged one of each of the following sets: Burning Fire Set, Courage Set, and Icicle Set. All three were eight-piece, Level 45, Dark-Gold Set Equipment and were meant for the Berserker, Guardian Knight, and Swordsman classes, respectively. After producing the four sets, Shi Feng couldn't bear to push his luck. Producing the four sets had already cost him over 15,000 Magic Crystals.

If he tried to forge more, he'd run out of Magic Crystals.

He could only select a few Level 45 Dark-Gold Weapons and Equipment to craft at this point. After forging over 40 items, Shi Feng noticed that his two-hour session was almost over. He packed up and hurried to the Snow Rift to meet up with Lifeless Thorn and the others.

The Snow Rift's core was in the middle of a mountainous region. Solitary Nine, Lifeless Thorn, and the other team members had gathered there.

"Commander, I've selected the required members. We are ready to move out on your command," Solitary Nine reported upon seeing Shi Feng approach. "We have also investigated the cave entrance's Guardian Boss. It is a Level 67 Grand Lord. Its speed, Attack Power, and perception are extraordinary. We sent one of our scouts ahead, and the Boss discovered him before he was within 150 yards of the monster. He died instantly. Even though our MTs tried to tank it, we only lasted two hits. With our team's current strength, I'm afraid..."

Fear filled everyone's hearts. The strongest Boss they had ever fought was only a Level 60 Grand Lord, and they had already witnessed this Level 67 Boss's power.

To put it simply, its destructive power was terrifying!

"I understand," Shi Feng said after watching the battle video Solitary Nine had sent him. He then took the weapons and equipment he had forged from his bag and said, "For now, put these on. We'll raid the Boss once you've gotten used to them."

"We're replacing our equipment?"

Every member of the team stared at Shi Feng in confusion. They didn't understand why he wanted them to replace their equipment. The already wore the best in Cold Wind City, and they were used to their old weapons and equipment.

"These are..."

"Commander, how did you get these?!"

However, when these players saw the items Shi Feng had given them, their eyes widened in shock. 

Chapter 1466 - First Kill Jackpot

"How is this possible?"

Both Lifeless Thorn and Solitary Nine were stupefied by the items Shi Feng had brought them.

If Shi Feng had revealed a bunch of Level 45, Dark-Gold Weapons and Equipment, they would've only been surprised at how many Dark-Gold items he had obtained.

But when they saw the four Dark-Gold Sets.

As far as they knew, Cold Wind City didn't have a single, available Dark-Gold Set, not to mention Level 45 Dark-Gold Set Equipment. Not even Centurion Dynasty or Matchless Family had succeeded to forge a full set, yet Shi Feng had brought four. Moreover, they were all eight-piece sets.

"Nine, Lifeless, Whistle, and Madness, you four will be the team's main force, so put these sets on," Shi Feng instructed his players after glancing over the team.

After the Asura adventurer team had developed for some time, Lifeless Thorn had finally persuaded Dark Madness, Wave Heart's commander to join. As a result, the rest of the Wave Heart adventurer team had followed his lead, helping Asura become Cold Wind City's bona fide number one adventure team. At this point, Asura had over 2,000 official members with over 10,000 reserve members. Not even Centurion Dynasty or Matchless Family had so many experts.

Moreover, due to Dark Madness becoming a member, they had solved the problem of Asura's main force lacking MTs.

Dark Madness, the city's number one Guardian Knight, was the reason Wave Heart had become Cold Wind City's number one adventurer team. Due to his presence, Wave Heart had easily raided one powerful Dungeon and Field Boss after another.

Hearing Shi Feng's orders, the four nodded enthusiastically before joyfully replacing their old equipment with the eight-piece sets.

No one on the team complained. After all, these four players' strength was irrefutable. If their team wanted to get the most out of the Dark-Gold ranked Sets, the best players among them should use the items.

"Don't be jealous. I will reward whoever reaches the Refinement Realm with even better Dark-Gold Set Equipment," Shi Feng said, smiling when he saw the other team members' envious expressions.

"Commander, are you serious?" Everyone breathlessly turned to Shi Feng.

These eight-piece Dark-Gold Sets were the best available in Cold Wind City. They dreamed of obtaining such a set, not to mention even better equipment.

"Of course. I always keep my word. As long as you reach the Refinement Realm, you can come to me directly," Shi Feng said, nodding.

He wasn't lying. The sets he had given to Lifeless Thorn and the others were merely Level 45, Dark-Gold Set Equipment. Meanwhile, he could head to Titan City and purchase the Level 50, Dark-Gold ranked Magic Light Set Equipment Design. In the past, he had only been an Advanced Forger, so it would've been very difficult to forge the set, but no he was a Master Forger. It'd be easy as long as he had enough materials.

When the team member's heard Shi Feng's confirmation, an intense fighting spirit burned in their eyes. They were even more inspired to reach the Refinement Realm.

After a quick break to switch out the old equipment with the new, Shi Feng prepared his team to raid the Three-headed Frostwolf, the cave entrance's Guardian Boss.

...

[Three-headed Frostwolf] (Elemental Creature, Grand Lord)
Level 67
HP 130,000,000/130,000,000

...

Despite the upgrade to better weapons and equipment, these players stared anxiously at the Three-headed Frostwolf, standing over 20 meters tall, as their hearts began to pound.

Although their Basic Attributes had increased, defeating a Grand Lord that was over 20 levels higher than they were was unrealistic.

"Nine, Dark, you'll be on support. Everyone else, spread out alongside the Boss," Shi Feng commanded the team as he watched the sleeping Frostwolf. He then took out the Bible of Darkness and activated Demon Summoning.

With the team's current strength, it was impossible to raid the Ancient Shrine. However, he had the Bible of Darkness, so he could, more or less, make up for the lack.

Following which, a massive Demon Gate appeared before Shi Feng. A Tier 3 Demon wielding a dark-blue greatsword then emerged.

...

[Fear Demon] (Dark Creature, Demon)
Level 73
Hp 23,500,000/23,500,000

...

When the Fear Demon arrived, Lifeless Thorn and his companions gasped, wary of the human-like creature.

Although the Fear Demon wasn't as powerful as the Three-headed Frostwolf in terms of Attributes, its intellect was much higher. To players, a high-intellect monster with low Attributes was far more frightening than a dumb monster with high Attributes.

"Don't be afraid. This Demon is under my control," Shi Feng hurriedly explained. "The Fear Demon will tank the Frostwolf. You just need to deal as much damage as possible."

"Commander, this is your summoned creature?" Solitary Nine and the others were astonished.

Shi Feng had already impressed them when he had defeated Matchless Family's 10,000-man army by himself, and now they found out that he could summon such a powerful demon.

These players only recovered their wits after some time. They then moved into position.

Once everyone was where they needed to be, Shi Feng commanded, "Charge!"

Suddenly, the Fear Demon's wings shuddered. It moved within the Three-headed Frostwolf's perception range in the blink of an eye.

Taking advantage of the opportunity while the Frostwolf woke, Shi Feng's directed the Fear Demon to use the Tier 3 Skill, Darkness Blade.

Three massive blades of shadow appeared above the Guardian Boss, smashing into the drowsy Grand Lord's heads a moment after.

-1,576,487!

-1,754,374!

-1,945,344!

Each subsequent blade dealt more damage than the previous, slamming the Boss, who had just stood up, back to the ground.

"So powerful!"

"Why does it seem like the commander doesn't need us to deal with this Three-headed Frostwolf?"

The team members gasped when they saw the damages above the Frostwolf's heads. In a single attack, the Boss had lost nearly 5% of its HP...

"Awoo!"

The Three-headed Frostwolf opened its eyes after it hit the ground, revealing three pairs of menacing, crimson eyes. Glaring at the Fear Demon, the Guardian Boss spread its jaws.

Each of the Three-headed Frostwolf's mouths fired a beam of frost simultaneously, freezing everything before the Grand Lord. The Fear Demon froze instantly, losing over 2,000,000 HP. To Demons, who possessed very high Magic Resistance, the damage was horrific.

The Three-headed Frostwolf then advanced, quickly reaching the Demon and swiping its claws.

Boom!

As the dust cleared from the explosion, it revealed a massive crater where the Fear Demon had stood. The Frostwolf's attack had shaken the Asura member's willpower. Fortunately, the Fear Demon had broken free from the ice and used its greatsword to defend itself in time, only receiving several tens of thousands of damage.

Seeing this, Asura's members grew nervous.

Compared to the battle before them, their previous fights had been child's play.

Only a few players on the team had remained calm. Lifeless Thorn had even made his way to the Three-headed Frostwolf's rear, using Chop with his Thunder Spear.

As Lifeless Thorn attacked, one instance of over -10,000 damage appeared above the Grand Lord's head after another. Meanwhile, Solitary Nine, Dark Madness, and Cleansing Whistle dealt around -8,000 damage with their attacks. Although they couldn't compare to the Fear Demon's damage, theirs was better than their companions, who only dealt around -4,000 damage.

Meanwhile, Shi Feng arrived by the Three-headed Frostwolf's side.

Thundering Flash!

Thunder Flame Explosion!

Shadow Blade!

Flame Burst!

Shi Feng landed a series of Skills, each of his attacks dealing over -100,000 damage. His damage was only second to the Fear Demon's.

For a time, the Three-headed Frostwolf and Fear Demon fought fiercely. Although the Fear Demon was no match for the Grand Lord, it received constant healing from the healers at the rear and could continue to tank the Guardian Boss, allowing everyone else to chip away at the Grand Lord's HP.

70%... 50%... 30%...

Time passed quickly. From the beginning of the battle to its end, the Fear Demon kept the Three-headed Frostwolf occupied, preventing the Grand Lord from dealing any significant damage to the rest of the team. Even when the Boss entered its Berserk state, the team easily coped, with the Guardian Knights casting Protection Blessing on the Fear Demon. When the Three-headed Frostwolf had less than 1% HP remaining, Shi Feng activated Divine Providence and ended its life with Flame Burst.

When the Three-headed Frostwolf's HP reached zero, its three heads released agonizing wails that echoed throughout the canyon. The Boss then disintegrated into countless particles of light, leaving behind over a hundred items in its place. The Grand Lord's death also granted more EXP than Shi Feng had expected, and several team members leveled up on the spot.

...

System: Congratulations! You have obtained the First Kill of the Three-headed Frostwolf, the King of the Ice Fields. Rewards doubled. 

Chapter 1467 - Skill that Overcomes Tiers

"The Boss dropped so many items!"

"We hit a jackpot!"

"Is this for real!? This is the first time I've seen a jackpot!"

"Look! There are weapons and equipment among the loot!"

"Centurion Dynasty and Matchless Family will die from envy when they hear about this."

...

Everyone gaped at the miniature mountain of items. Although they were shocked that they had actually killed the Three-headed Frostwolf, its loot was even more astounding.

In God's Domain, monsters at level 50 and above would have drastically reduced drop-rates. Even the monsters in forbidden lands like the Snow Rift usually dropped four or five items. Moreover, the majority of those items were materials. When they had farmed Level 60 Grand Lords, they had only obtained ten or so items from each Boss.

Yet, this Grand Lord ranked Three-headed Frostwolf had dropped over 100 items. Why wouldn't they be surprised?

"Everyone, rest up. We'll enter the cave soon," Shi Feng said. He could not help but shake his head and chuckle when he saw his team members' excited expressions.

The weapons and equipment a Level 67 Grand Lord were about as tempting as a Level 45, Dark-Gold Set Equipment.

It was common knowledge that monsters beyond Level 50 rarely dropped good weapons or equipment. This was particularly true for the Ice Crystal World. Although the Forging Guidance System offered forging designs for Level 50-plus items, they were far more expensive than the Level 45 variants. Most importantly, one's forging success rate would drastically decrease when attempting to craft such high-level items. It was already far more difficult to forge Level 50, Fine-Gold Equipment than it was to forge the Level 45 version, much less Level 50-plus, Dark-Gold Equipment.

Among the 100-plus items, over 60% consisted of materials for forging Level 50-plus weapons and equipment. There were also over a dozen Master Mana Recovery Potions, Master Recovery Potions, and Attribute Gemstones of various kinds, five Tier 2 Magic Scrolls, and two Tier 3 Magic Scrolls. One of the Tier 3 Magic Scrolls was a Group Instantaneous Teleportation Scroll, and the other was a Defensive Magic Scroll

Five pieces of Level 60, Fine-Gold Equipment and two pieces of Level 60, Dark-Gold Equipment had also dropped.

However, among these dropped items, one caught Shi Feng's eye: a thick, golden book.

The book's cover didn't offer any clues about its contents. However, when Shi Feng examined the book, he was ecstatic.

What a surprise! I never thought that a mere gatekeeper would drop this thing. My trip to the Ice Crystal World has been pretty profitable. Shi Feng's eyes shone as he gazed at the golden book.

The book was neither a design nor a recipe. It wasn't some sort of treasure map or special item, either. It was only a Skill Book. However, despite being only a Skill Book, it was even more valuable than the super-rare Berserk Skill Books. Players had collectively referred to this kind of book as a Combination Skill Book in the past.

Combination Skill Books had been as valuable as Epic items.

Shi Feng had tried to bid for a Combination Skill Book in the past, but in the end, a first-rate Guild had won the book for 50,000 Magic Crystals. Shadow had only saved 30,000 Magic Crystals...

Shi Feng had never expected to obtain a Combination Skill Book from killing the Three-headed Frostwolf.

Multiple players could learn from a single Combination Skill Book; some only allowed two players to learn the Skill, while three to five players could learn from others. If players activated a Combination Skill with the specified number of players, they could exert frighteningly destructive power with the Skill. In the past, this had been the various large Guilds' main method of dealing with powerful Bosses.

After all, God's Domain had many incredibly powerful monsters. Even with the aid of magic arrays, players were no match for these Bosses. During these situations, Combination Skills worked wonders.

However, Combination Skills' strength and effects varied. For example, Combination Skill Books that could sell for tens of thousands of Magic Crystals generally contained Skills that required four or five players to activate. With such Combination Skills, even Tier 1 players could severely injure Mythic monsters, becoming far more powerful than Tier 3 Magic Scrolls.

Generally, one could only obtain Combination Skill Books from Mythic monsters or Dark-Gold Treasures found in Level 60 maps and above. He never thought that he would actually get one from a Grand Lord.

Following which, Shi Feng inspected the Skill Book.

...

[Triple Frostmoon] (Combination Skill)
Requires three melee classes to activate.

...

A single-target, attack Skill that requires three players? Shi Feng's excitement grew after reading the introduction.

Normally, two-man Combination Skills only allowed players the power to overcome a single tier. Meanwhile, Tier 1 players could even injure Grand Lords with a three-man Combination Skill. Based on the market prices in Shi Feng's previous life, the Triple Frostmoon Skill Book could easily sell for over 20,000 Magic Crystals.

Combination Skills were different from Magic Scrolls in that they were not one-time-use items. They could be used indefinitely, although they did have a Cooldown. Three Tier 1 players using a Combination Skill were as powerful as a Tier 3 Spell. The Skill could even be used multiple times during a Boss battle. A Skill like this could significantly increase a team's overall combat power.

However, Shi Feng had no intention of learning this Combination Skill himself. Instead, he gave it to Lifeless Thorn, Solitary Nine, and Dark Madness.

"Commander, if we learn this Skill, what about you?" After Solitary Nine read the Triple Frostmoon's introduction, he realized how powerful the Skill was. It was the equivalent of Tier 1 players being able to use Tier 3 Skills limitlessly. If Shi Feng took the lead during the activation process, he could exert even more power with the Skill.

"I have a Tier 3 Demon. Moreover, I can't always accompany you in Dungeon and Boss raids. If you three learn the Skill, the team will be even stronger. So, it's better if you learn it," Shi Feng explained.

The Triple Frostmoon needed three people to activate; it wouldn't work if one of the players were missing. Meanwhile, he frequently operated solo, which made it impossible for him to exhibit the Combination Skill's true potential. He had no choice but to pass the Skill up.

Lifeless Thorn and the others were already considerably strong. Their lack of suitable weapons, equipment, and combat experience were the only things holding them back. However, after spending time under his guidance and watching his demonstrations over the past few days, Lifeless Thorn and the others had significantly improved their monotonous attack methods, raising their combat standards by leaps and bounds.

Right now, Lifeless Thorn's combat standards were nearly on par with Aqua Rose and Gentle Snow's. With a Combination Skill, his ability in Dungeon raids might surpass the two women's.

Hearing Shi Feng's explanation, Solitary Nine and the others finally agreed. To someone who could summon a Tier 3 Demon, a three-man Combination Skill was superfluous.

...

After everyone in the team had rested, Shi Feng led them into the cave and followed the map towards the Ancient Shrine.

The shrine's exact location was hidden. Although the map indicated that it was within the cave, the cave's interior was complex. The cave system was like a natural maze. If not for the map, Shi Feng might not have found the Ancient Shrine's cave in the first place, much less locating the shrine itself.

The team frequently ran into frenzied monsters that attacked without hesitation after they entered the cave. They even ran into the occasional Grand Lord. Although these Grand Lords weren't as strong as the Three-headed Frostwolf, they weren't easy to deal with. The team had to bide their time as they slowly whittled down the Bosses' HPs.

After ten hours of exploring the cave system, Shi Feng and the others finally reached a dark cavern. During their journey, they had killed eight Level 65 Grand Lords and countless Chieftains and Lords. These monsters had done nothing but provide an abundance of EXP. At this point, Lifeless Thorn and a few others were Level 50, and Shi Feng was only a step away from reaching Level 59. However, this was all due to the team securing these monsters' first kill.

Disappointingly, these monsters hadn't dropped as much loot as the Three-headed Frostwolf. They had only dropped Level 60, Secret-Silver and Fine-Gold Weapons and Equipment. Combined, these items' total value was nothing compared to the Guardian Boss's loot.

A towering, purple-gold shrine sat in the center of the dark cavern. It radiated a sacred aura, and as players gazed up at the shrine, the shuddered.

When Shi Feng and his companions moved within 500 yards of the shrine, they heard the sound of a system notification.

...

System: You have discovered an Ancient Shrine.

...

As they were alerted of the system notification, a magic array appeared on the ground in front of the shrine, illuminating the cavern. Following which, a 10-meter-tall, humanoid robot emerged.

The instant this humanoid robot appeared, everyone, including Shi Feng, felt a stifling pressure weigh them down. Even an expert like Lifeless Thorn paled under this pressure. The weaker team members nearly lost their footing.

...

[Titan Warrior (Ancient Shrine Protector)] (Mechanical Lifeform, Mythic)
Level 70
HP 360,000,000/360,000,000 

Chaptering 1468 - Raiding a Mythic

"Mythic..."

Before they even checked the Titan Warrior's statistics, the pressure it radiated overwhelmed the team. Now that they had seen it's information, they were shocked.

No one throughout Cold Wind City, not even an expert like Lifeless thorn, had ever seen a Mythic monster.

Now that they stood before one, they were terrified to stand within 500 yards of the Titan Warrior, not to mention attempt to fight the thing. This was the first time they had felt anything like this since they joined God's Domain.

Their minds screamed at them, warning that if they proceeded, they would dance with death.

"Commander, this monster is too powerful. We can't afford to provoke a monster like this yet. Do we have to fight it?" Solitary Nine asked, his complexion ashen.

Before he had encountered the Titan Warrior, he had thought that it might be possible for their team to defeat a Mythic monster. However, after experiencing the Titan Warrior's near-tangible killing intent and absolute power, he knew that Tier 1 players had no hope against it.

The Titan Warrior's battle recovery alone would regenerate 3,600,000 HP every five seconds. If their team couldn't deal over 720,000 damage each second, their team would never kill it, even if the Titan Warrior stood there and watched them try.

This wasn't a battle. This was a suicide mission.

A Mechanical Lifeform? Shi Feng fell into deep thought as he watched the Titan Warrior.

Although he had known that the final Guardian Boss would be a Mythic monster, he hadn't expected it to be a Mechanical Lifeform.

Mechanical Lifeforms were famed for their high Defense, Strength, and Magic Resistance. Because of these stats, they were known to be the best guard monsters available. Even Super Guilds struggled against Mechanical Lifeform Bosses since they couldn't take advantage of their collection of high-tiered Magic Scrolls and Mana Pulse Cannons.

Even magic arrays had little effect against these creatures.

Players could only defeat a Mechanical Lifeform with brute strength; there simply weren't any loopholes.

"Commander, are we still going to fight that thing?" Lifeless Thorn asked hesitantly.

Before they had come here, Shi Feng had told Asura's upper echelons that they could travel to another world if they finished this quest. They wouldn't have to stay cooped up in Cold Wind City, but as they faced an insurmountable Mythic monster, even Lifeless Thorn felt helpless.

This wasn't some random Dungeon. If they died in this cave, they would lose an entire level. At their level, recovering the lost EXP would take a lot of time.

"Let's make an attempt," Shi Feng said after giving the matter some thought.

"The attempt?" Lifeless Thorn and the others were slightly confused.

Shi Feng took a Tier 2 Summoning Scroll from his bag and summoned a Tier 2 Gale Cheetah. He then used Phantom Kill, sending his doppelganger forward while he directed the Gale Cheetah to circle the Boss.

He wanted to test the Titan Warrior's reaction and turning speed.

Although Mechanical Lifeforms had high Defense and Strength, they also had a glaring weakness: slow reaction and turning speed. Of course, this was only compared to monsters of the same rank. A Mythic ranked Mechanical Lifeform's reaction and turning speed should be higher than a Grand Lord's of the same level.

As his doppelganger approached the Titan Warrior, Shi Feng sat down and focused on controlling his summoned twin.

Four hundred yards... Three hundred yards...

When the doppelganger moved within 200 yards of the Guardian Boss, the previously immobile Mythic monster abruptly opened its eyes, revealing two dazzling, crimson orbs. It advanced on the doppelganger so quickly that by the time the watching crowd reacted, the Boss had crossed 40 yards. When the Boss had moved, it had created a massive crater where it had originally stood; it looked like a cannon had bombarded the area.

"So fast!" Upon seeing the Titan Warrior approach, Shi Feng immediately had his doppelganger activate Defensive Blade.

In the blink of an eye, the Boss reached the doppelganger, swinging its colossal greatsword down at the invader. The moment the greatsword began to descend, the doppelganger jumped out of from the weapons' path.

However, the Titan Warrior nimbly adjusted its attack trajectory halfway through the swing, slicing at the doppelganger, who had yet to land.

Boom!

Immediately, a deep gash over 30-yards-long tore through the ground. Although Shi Feng's doppelganger had nullified the attack with Defensive Blade, the Boss's strength was overwhelming. The impact threw the doppelganger over 20 yards away.

Asura's members gasped.

Even Lifeless Thorn wore a grim expression.

It was just too fast!

His eyes couldn't keep up with the Titan Warrior's speed. Even against the Three-headed Frostwolf, Lifeless Thorn had been able to keep up with the Grand Lord's attacks, but he couldn't even see the Titan Warrior's afterimages. He had no doubt that he wasn't capable of dodging an attack if he were on the receiving end of that Mythic monster's greatsword.

Its reaction speed is quite impressive. At the very least, our reaction speed will have to be on part with a Grand Lord to block and dodge its attacks. The outcome hadn't particularly surprised Shi Feng, and he continued to analyze the Titan Warrior.

After he tested the Boss's reaction speed, he controlled the Gale Cheetah to attack the Mythic monster from behind with the Tier 2 Skill, Gale Blade.

Numerous blades of wind assaulted the Titan Warrior's backside, each dealing over -10,000 damage. The Guardian Boss instantly shifted its attention to the Gale Cheetah.

The Titan Warrior spun around in less than half a second. It raised its weapon, cleaving down at the summoned creature.

Although Shi Feng had tried to direct the Gale Cheetah to circle the Titan Warrior as soon as it finished its attack, he was too late. He couldn't even control the feline to defend itself in time. In the next moment, a streak of white light struck the Gale Cheetah, throwing it and devouring several millions of HP...

Shi Feng's doppelganger then appeared behind the Titan Warrior, activating Shadow Blade. After landing a barrage of attacks, the doppelganger reclaimed the Boss's aggro. After a split second, the Boss tossed the doppelganger again. After reaping this process several times, the Titan Warrior killed both the doppelganger and the summoned creature. After killing the trespassers, the Titan Warrior calmed and returned to its original position.

Everyone was stunned speechless. The Titan Warrior was too fast and too powerful. Even with their Lifesaving Skills active, this Guardian Boss would likely kill Solitary Nine and Dark Madness instantly...

We'll need to be roughly as fast as a Grand Lord to avoid its counterattacks? After watching the monster for some time, Shi Feng had analyzed all of the Titan Warrior's aspects. He then turned to his team. "Although raiding this Titan Warrior will be dangerous, our chances of defeating it aren't nonexistent."

He then pulled ten Miniature Ballistas from his bag. Unfortunately, since the war weapons were precious to his Guilds, he hadn't brought too many with him.

"War weapons?" The Asura team members were dumbfounded to see the Miniature Ballistas.

Guilds generally reserved these weapons for Guild wars, yet Shi Feng intended to use them to kill a monster. He had even brought ten of these war weapons with him...

"Let my Demon tank the Titan Warrior. The rest of you will attack from 500 yards away. Try to move around and attack from behind it as much as possible," Shi Feng said. He then pointed to a group of magical-class players and instructed, "You nine, come to me. Each of you will take one of these scrolls and stand in these locations. When the fight begins, move within 100 yards of the Boss and activate the magic array."

Following which, each player began to prepare for the battle. As for Shi Feng, he used the Bible of Darkness to summon a second Demon.

The Mutated Nine-star Polar Domain Magic Array should significantly lower the Titan Warrior's Attributes. With two Tier 3 Demons keeping it busy, they might just be able to kill the Mythic monster.

Of course, it was only a theory. Whether or not they actually succeeded would depend on the magic array's effect.

If the Titan Warrior were still too powerful, he'd have no choice but to give up and wait until his team members completed their Tier 2 promotions.

A moment later, everyone moved into position.

Taking a deep breath, Shi Feng controlled the two Tier 3 Demons to charge at the Titan Warrior from different directions. In response, the Titan Warrior charged towards the first Demon that entered its perception range as quickly as a violent gale.

"Move out!" Shi Feng commanded.

Following his commands, the nine magical class players closed in on the Titan Warrior. 

Chapter 1469 - Godly Control

As soon as the summoned Tomahawk Demon moved within the Titan Warrior's perception range, the Mythic monster rushed up to meet the Demon, its greatsword rapidly descending.

Even though Shi Feng saw the weapon through the Tomahawk Demon's vision, it was too fast to evade. He could only direct the Demon to lift its battle axe to block the greatsword.

Peng!

The impact instantly threw the Tomahawk Demon over 30 yards away, and although it had blocked the attack, it still lost tens of thousands of HP. Before the Demon could land, the Titan Warrior had appeared behind it, swinging its greatsword once again.

Although Shi Feng had tried to maneuver the Demon to defend itself, it suffered a brief numbness from the first impact. As a result, its reaction speed had fallen considerably, and it couldn't keep up with the Titan Warrior.

As the greatsword descended, the weapon tore through space itself.

Tier 4 Skill, Spatial Rend!

This time, the Titan Warrior's attack struck the Tomahawk Demon squarely.

In a single attack, the Tomahawk Demon, which had over 25,000,000 HP, lost nearly one-fifth of that total. The watching players were stupefied to see such destructive power.

Even a Tier 3 Demon was powerless against the Titan Warrior. If they fought the Mythic monster, the consequences would be unimaginable...

Only Shi Feng remained unfazed.

A battle between monsters wasn't like one between monsters and players. When monsters fought players, their attacks would deal less damage to make up for the difference in HP. However, there was no such dampening effect during a battle between monsters. Naturally, the Titan Warrior dealt horrific damage to the summoned Demon. It was a system mechanic that prevented players from using summoned creatures or NPC guards to toy with powerful Bosses.

Moreover, the Tomahawk Demon was only Tier 3, whereas the Titan Warrior was a Tier 4 Mythic. Due to the tier suppression, the Titan Warrior's attacks were enhanced to a certain degree. There was also the fact that Demons generally had much lower HP than monsters of the same rank. So, he really wasn't surprised to see a Tier 4 Skill destroy one-fifth of the Tomahawk Demon's HP.

Following which, the Titan Warrior dealt one blow after another. Despite the Tomahawk Demon's attempts to defend itself, its HP fell rapidly. In seconds, the Demon had less than 50% of its HP remaining. Fortunately, the nine magical-class players had surrounded the Titan Warrior.

"Begin!" Shi Feng shouted.

With Shi Feng's command, the nine players unfurled the Magic Array Scrolls and began to chant the required incantations.

Suddenly, an icy-blue magic array appeared above all, enveloping the Titan Warrior inside it completely. The cavern's Mana rampaged as it surged towards the array's core. Following which, a blue magic barrier manifested, enclosing the Titan Warrior within.

Boom!

The instant the barrier took shape, a layer of mist wrapped around the Guardian Boss's body. Its joints began to freeze, and its Basic Attributes rapidly decreased.

90%... 80%... 70%...

So, this is the power of an Origin Magic Array? Shi Feng could not help his surprise at seeing how much the barrier weakened the Mythic monster.

In the blink of an eye, the Titan Warrior's Basic Attributes had fallen to 60%. Although it wasn't as high as the stated 50%, it was impressive. After all, Mechanical Lifeforms had very high Magic Resistance. In fact, Shi Feng hadn't expected to reduce the Titan Warrior's Attributes by as much as 40%. Even better, the magic array's freezing effect had slowed the Boss's movements.

Unfortunately, despite the suppression, the Titan Warrior still overwhelmed the Tomahawk Demon. Only, its HP didn't fall as fast.

"That didn't even do much?" Lifeless Thorn and the others stared at the Boss, dumbfounded. At this rate, it was only a matter of time before the Tomahawk Demon died.

As expected of a Mythic monster. Even with the suppression, a Tier 3 Demon still can't put up much of a fight. Shi Feng smiled bitterly. However, this wasn't unexpected. Following which, he took out the Ring of Gospel and fed it 5,000 Magic Crystals to activate World Projection.

The Ring of Gospel's Skills were not considered magic arrays and could stack with the Nine-star Polar Domain.

The Titan Warrior's Attributes fell further. However, the decrease wasn't as significant as the first. In the end, the Titan Warrior still had 50% of its original Attributes.

...

[Titan Warrior (Ancient Shrine Protector)] (Mechanical Lifeform, Mythic)
Level 70
HP 180,000,000/180,000,000

...

Continuing its assault, the Titan Warrior brandished its greatsword, sending several sword lights at the Tomahawk Demon.

Suddenly, the Fear Demon flew into the fray, meeting the Titan Warrior's greatsword with its own.

Dang! Dang! Dang!

A series of clangs shook the cavern. Although both the Tomahawk Demon and the Fear Demon were forced to retreat over a dozen yards, they had blocked the Boss's attacks. The two Demons had only lost a few tens of thousands of HP, which wasn't considerable when their maximum was over 20,000,000.

"They blocked every attack?" Shocked gripped Solitary Nine as he watched the battle between the Demons and the Mechanical Lifeform.

Logically, the two Tier 3 Demons shouldn't be able to keep up with the Mythic monster, even if the Titan Warrior's Attributes had been suppressed by 50%, yet they had blocked every one of its attacks.

"The commander is awesome!" Lifeless Thorn glanced at Shi Feng in shock, watching him control the two Demons from afar.

The other team members might not have realized what had just happened, but he had caught a glimpse.

Although the Tier 3 Demons weren't a match for the Titan Warrior and even began to show signs of momentary paralysis after blocking the attacks, Shi Feng had controlled them to alternate. Doing so had allowed the paralyzed Demon a split second to recover.

Although the technique sounded simple, without a precise grasp of the Titan Warrior's timing and perfect control of the two Demons, it was impossible to perform.

Shi Feng's control was godly!

Lifeless Thorn had neither seen nor heard of such a combat technique.

After training under Shi Feng and improving drastically, he had thought he was close to reaching the Swordsman's standards, but seeing the man in this fight, he realized that the gap between them was much larger than he had expected.

What he didn't know was that blocking the Titan Warrior's attacks was impossible for the Demons if they simply alternated. Their performance had only been possible due to World Projection weakening the Mythic monster's physique, slowing its reaction speed. If not for World Projection, the Demons would've been defeated despite working together.

Once the Demons secured the Titan Warrior's aggro, Shi Feng commanded, "Everyone, attack!"

Immediately, Lifeless Thorn and the others, who operated the Miniature Ballistas, fired one Exploding Arrow after another at the Guardian Boss.

Xiu... Xiu... Xiu...

The arrows crossed the 500 yards between the Miniature Ballistas and the Boss in a breath. In the end, all ten Exploding Arrows pierced the Titan Warrior's back and sides.

Damages of over -100,000 appeared above the Titan Warrior's head, significantly reducing the Mythic monster's HP.

Although the sight overjoyed Asura's members, Shi Feng couldn't bring himself to celebrate the outcome.

Even after losing 50% of its Attributes, the Titan Warrior's battle recovery restored 1,800,000 HP every five seconds. Although the Miniature Ballista attacks had dealt more damage than that, it hadn't been by much. At this rate, it would take the team hours to whittle down the Titan Warrior's HP.

Meanwhile, World Projection only lasted ten minutes...

While Shi Feng tried to think of a solution, the Titan Warrior didn't wait around. Abruptly, it thrust its greatsword into the ground. Four-meter-tall figures then began to rise, one after another.

...

[Earthen Spirit] (Elemental Creature, Grand Lord)
Level 70
HP 10,000,000/10,000,000

...
In seconds, four Earthen Spirits stood before the team.

"Crap! How is this even fair?!"

"Is this a joke?!"

"We're doomed!"

Asura's members gaped when as the Boss summoned reinforcements.

The Titan Warrior was already terrifying on its own, yet it could summon four Grand Lords.

Suddenly, the four Earthen Spirits dashed for the Miniature Ballistas 500 yards away.

Sure enough, the Main God System won't let players easily exploit a loophole. Shi Feng frowned at the Earthen Spirits. Gritting his teeth, he took two Summon Guard Scrolls from his bag. 

Chapter 1470 - Slaying a Mythic Monster

Anna and Kite appeared shortly after Shi Feng activated the Summon Guard Scrolls.

Although it had been some time since Shi Feng had last summoned the NPCs, neither Personal Guard had leveled up much. Anna was only Level 76, whereas Kite was Level 75.

"Kill those Earthen Spirits!" Shi Feng commanded.

Although Anna and Kite were only Tier 2 NPCs, one was an Epic guard, and the other was Dark-Gold rank. On their own, they were more than capable of soloing a Great Lord of the same level.

Although the Earthen Spirits were Grand Lords, with the Nine-star Polar Domain and World Projection's suppression, they were only as strong as ordinary Great Lords. Neither of his Personal Guards should have any issues dealing with the Earthen Spirits.

Following their master's command, Anna began to chant an incantation while Kite dashed towards the closest Earthen Spirit.

While inside the Nine-star Polar Domain, the Earthen Spirits were trapped. They could only bombard the magic barrier, but even the Titan Warrior would struggle to destroy the strengthened Nine-star Polar Domain, much less these weakened elementals.

When he arrived before an Earthen Spirit, Kite swung one of his longswords. Dozens of wind blades bombarded the Earthen Spirit, each dealing -40,000 damage. By the time Kite's attack ended, the elemental had lost one-tenth of its HP.

As a result of this attack, all four Earthen Spirits shifted their attention to the NPC. Although Kite's combat standards were superior to the Earthen Spirits', the latter had the advantages of higher Attributes and numbers. Kite had no choice but to focus on defense.

As he was forced to retreat one step after another, Anna finished her chant. Suddenly, a Tier 3 Golden Giant and ten Tier 2 Rock Guardians appeared around Kite. These summoned creatures easily pulled two of the Earthen Spirits' aggro, alleviating the pressure on the NPCs.

With both guards working together, they quickly got the upper hand in the fight. It was only a matter of time before the four Earthen Spirits died.

"Just what rank are those Personal Guards?! They can actually suppress four Grand Lords!"

"How are those NPCs' levels so high?"

"Just who is the commander?"

Asura's members, who had begun to despair, were dumbfounded.

Although they had seen players with Personal Guards in Cold Wind City before, those NPCs had been very weak and of little use to players. They couldn't compare to Anna and Kite's strength.

"Everyone, prioritize the Earthen Spirits! We'll deal with the Titan Warrior afterward!" Shi Feng hurriedly instructed as he glanced at the elementals. "Lifeless, move your group forward and use your Combination Skill from the side!"

Tier 1 Skills and Spells were almost no threat to the Earthen Spirits and the Titan Warrior, but the Combination Skill was a different story. If Lifeless Thorn, Solitary Nine, and Dark Madness used Triple Frostmoon, the Skill would be as powerful as a Tier 3 Spell. It should be able to deal a considerable amount of damage to the weakened Mechanical Lifeform, let alone the elementals.

The players manning the Miniature Ballistas turned the weapons towards the Earthen Spirit Kite tanked, launching a volley of Exploding Arrows at the Great Lord. When the Exploding Arrows struck, the Earthen Spirit instantly lost one-fifth of its HP.

Meanwhile, Lifeless Thorn, Solitary Nine, and Dark Madness led three healers as they advanced.

Unlike ordinary Skills, a Combination Skill had an optimum formation. The closer the users were to that formation, the stronger the Skill would be.

Lifeless Thorn's group were among Cold Wind City's top experts. The trio quickly reached Kite's Earthen Spirit, forming a triangle around it. They then activated Triple Frostmoon simultaneously.

Immediately, three crescent beams of light converged on the Earthen Spirit.

Boom!

The moment the three beams collided, they created a towering pillar of silver light that extended to the cavern's ceiling, devouring the elemental. The Earthen Spirit, which had less than a quarter of its HP remaining before the attack, transformed into particles of light and disappeared.

Every player that saw the attack was stunned by its power. Lifeless Thorn's group was no exception.

Only Shi Feng remained unfazed. In fact, he had expected the result. Combination Skills were extraordinarily rare. If a team had one, it would elevate the team's damage output to a whole new level. Needless to say, the effects of such a Skill against the Earthen Spirit, which had been suppressed to a Great Lord's standard, would be marvelous.

However, although Combination Skills were very powerful, their Cooldowns were long. These Cooldowns generally lasted a minute or longer.

The Earthen Spirit's death granted the team members a large amount of EXP. Unfortunately, the Grand Lord hadn't dropped any items. On the bright side, with one Earthen Spirit down, it became much easier to deal with the remaining three.

Less than one minute had passed between the first elemental's death and the last. When the team saw their overall damage, they felt as if they were dreaming.

"Everyone, focus your on fire the Titan Warrior!" Shi Feng shouted once the Earthen Spirits were gone. "Lifeless, only jump in after Triple Frostmoon's Cooldown has ended!"

"Understood!" The team turned towards their last, and largest, target.

With Anna and Kite's help, the team's overall damage output increased by a large chunk. As a result, the Titan Warrior's HP steadily fell.

98%... 95%... 90%...

Time passed quickly. Throughout the battle, Shi Feng focused on controlling the two Demons, distracting the Titan Warrior. When the Demons' HP fell below 30%, he moved forward and activated Life Domain, healing all allies within a 50-yard radius by 10% every second for 30 seconds.

The rest of the team bombarded the Mechanical Lifeform with attacks. While Triple Frostmoon was on Cooldown, Lifeless Thorn's group used Tier 2 Magic Scrolls to attack.

By the time World Projection's duration ended, the Titan Warrior only had 63% of its HP remaining. Shi Feng then fed the Ring of Gospel another 5,000 Magic Crystals and activated the Skill once more. However, with this investment, Shi Feng ran out of Magic Crystals.

When the Titan Warrior's HP reached 30%, the Mythic monster bellowed and tossed its greatsword away. It then retrieved the two crimson sabers from its back and changed its attack pattern. Although its Attack Power had declined, its attack rate had doubled. Shi Feng had already struggled with maneuvering the two Demons to block the Titan Warrior's attacks, but the sudden change overwhelmed him. As a result, the Demons' HPs began to plummet.

Even when Kite and the Golden Giant tried to help, they only slowed the draining HP slightly.

When one Demon's HP fell below 50%, and the other fell below 30%, the Titan Warrior merged its twin sabers. It pointed its weapon at the Demon with less than 30% of its HP.

Suddenly, a scorching, red beam of light shot forward, tearing through the Demon and only stopping after it crashed into the magic barrier. Even the magic barrier trembled when the beam struck.

The Fear Demon died on the spot...

The Tomahawk Demon received some damage from the resulting shockwave as well, its HP falling to 31%.

With only one Demon remaining, Shi Feng had a harder time blocking the Guardian Boss's attacks. The Tomahawk lost 2% of its HP or more every second.

Seeing this, Shi Feng realized that this fight had reached a critical moment. He immediately turned to Anna and commanded, "Activate Angel Summoning!"

The NPC didn't hesitate to start the incantation.

When the Tomahawk Demon's HP fell below 10%, a white-winged Valkyrie descended onto the battlefield. Her wings shuddering slightly, she arrived before the Titan Warrior, her golden spear sweeping towards the Mythic monster.

A golden flash blinded the players, and the impact threw the incomparably powerful Titan Warrior over 30 yards away, a damage of over -1,000,000 appearing above its head. Before the Titan Warrior could react, the Valkyrie stood before it again, thrusting her Spear of Thunder into the Mythic monster's heart, devouring a large chunk of its HP.

"Attack with everything you have!" Shi Feng shouted in the team chat.

Abandoning his control over the Tomahawk Demon, he activated Heavenly Dragon's Power and Blade Liberation before dashing towards the Titan Warrior. Following suit, Lifeless Thorn, Solitary Nine, and Dark Madness also activated their Berserk Skills and charged towards the Boss.

With the Valkyrie as the team's MT, they overwhelmed the Titan Warrior. The Mythic monster couldn't even defend itself, much less retaliate.

The Valkyrie could only join the fray for ten seconds. Hence, holding nothing back, she used one powerful Skill after another against the Guardian Boss. Shi Feng and the other Asura members used every Skill and Spell they had alongside her.

The Titan Warrior's HP fell rapidly.

20%... 15%... 10%...

By the time the Valkyrie disappeared, the Titan Warrior had 3% of its HP remaining. Lifeless Thorn's trio then executed Triple Frostmoon, destroying a little over 1% of the Mythic monster's HP. Following which, Shi Feng activated Divine Providence before he and his doppelganger activated Flame Burst and Shadow Blade.

By the time Shi Feng's attacks ended, the Titan Warrior had stopped moving, its HP gone. 

Chapter 1471 - Mythic Monster's Loot

"Success!"

"We won?"

"We actually killed a Mythic monster!"

Despite their miserable state, when these players looked at the Titan Warrior's corpse, excitement welled within in them. For a moment, they even felt as if they were dreaming.

Even the Snow Rift's gatekeeper had only been a Level 70 Grand Lord. Even so, it was invincible to Cold Wind City's players.

Yet, they had just defeated a monster even more powerful than that gatekeeper. Why wouldn't they be excited?

Shortly after the Titan Warrior's HP reached zero, it collapsed to the ground before transforming into numerous, large particles of light. As the light faded, they revealed many dazzling items.

...

System: Congratulations! You have obtained the First Kill of the Ancient Shrine Protector. Rewards doubled. Rewarding "Shrine Warrior" title.

...

After the announcement, the team members' experience bars rapidly increased.

What bountiful EXP! Shi Feng was astonished at how much his experience bar grew. After all, he had already reached Level 58. He needed a tremendous amount of EXP to level up, yet even after it had risen from 95% of Level 58 to Level 59, it continued to increase.

Level 59, 10%... 30%... 60%...

His experience bar only started to slow after it passed 85% of Level 59. It gradually increased until he eventually reached Level 60.

Shi Feng wasn't the only one to experience the sensation. Everyone else had leveled up at least twice. Both Solitary Nine and Dark Madness had reached Level 53, whereas Lifeless Thorn, who had a peak hidden class, had only reached Level 52.

After so many evolutions in God's Domain, a team's EXP distribution had changed. If high-level players attempted to powerlevel low-level players, the newer players would receive a much smaller share of the EXP. Even with this new system in place, the Asura adventurer team members, who were ten levels lower than Shi Feng, still received so much EXP.

However, Shi Feng was more interested in the Titan Warrior's loot and the title from securing the First Kill than he was in the EXP.

Shrine Warrior? Shi Feng then clicked to inspect the title.

...

[Shrine Warrior]
Grants wielder the Ancient Shrines' favor. Reputation gain increased by 20%, and teleportation fees halved.

...

It halves teleportation fees and increases Reputation gain by 20%? No wonder so many Guilds had eagerly hunted Ancient Shrines' guardians in the past. Shi Feng was slightly astonished.

In Shi Feng's previous life, Ancient Shrines had been very popular as many players loved to visit Otherworlds. Otherworlds had a lot of money-making potential since they all had their own unique resources. Unfortunately, Ancient Shrines' teleportations fees had been quite high. Not even elite players could afford to teleport to and from Otherworlds frequently.

However, traveling to an Ancient Shrine was typically more troublesome than the teleportation fees.

Although Ancient Shrines had teleportation gates, these teleportation gates only allowed teleportation between a specific Otherworld and the continent of God's Domain. They wouldn't teleport players to specific locations like the local NPC cities. Players couldn't travel to the teleportation gates from the cities' Teleportation Halls, either.

If players had wanted to visit or leave an Otherworld, they had to travel to an Ancient Shrine by foot. However, these shrines were usually tucked away in remote locations, and players had to face many monsters on the way. As a result, getting to a shrine had been very time-consuming.

But there was a solution. Players could increase their Reputation with specific Ancient Shrines.

When a player earned 1,000 Reputation Points with a particular Ancient Shrine, they could purchase its Ancient Shrine Emblem. Players could then use this emblem to teleport directly to the shrine, saving a lot of time.

Because of this, many players had tried to grind Reputation with Ancient Shrines. Unfortunately, doing so was no easy feat. Most players had been lucky to earn 500 Reputation Points after one or two months of hard work. Meanwhile, the Shrine Warrior title could increase players' Reputation gain by 20%.

Closing off the title's Attribute Panel, Shi Feng began to organize the loot.

As a Mythic monster, the Titan Warrior dropped far better items than a Grand Lord of the same level. Moreover, the loot was even more impressive since they had gotten the First Kill.

With a quick glance, Shi Feng spotted over 150 items.

Seeing the small mountain of treasure, passion burned in Lifeless Thorn and his companion's eyes. They all wanted to dive into the pile.

How bountiful! Even a Super Guild would be tempted to trying robbing us. Shi Feng's excitement grew as he looked at the items in his bag.

Although he had killed a lot of Mythic monsters in his previous life, the difference between their loot and that of the Titan Warrior was like heaven and earth.

Generally, Mythic monsters had a high chance of dropping Epic items. Some special Mythic monsters could even drop Fragmented Legendary items. For example, the Final Boss in the Dragon's Graveyard, a forbidden land in the Black Dragon Empire, had a chance of dropping a Fragmented Legendary item.

Although the Titan Warrior wasn't as powerful as the Dragon's Graveyard's Final Boss, it's loot was quite impressive.

The majority of the 150-plus items were rare materials for crafting Epic Weapons and Equipment, all of which could easily fetch over 100 Gold on the market. Among them, a particular item was an important component for forging the Epic ranked Broken Steel Set Equipment.

Nucleus of Life!

Epic Set Equipment had been out of Shi Feng's reach in the past. The best he had equipped were individual Epic Weapons and pieces of Equipment. It was common knowledge that Set Equipment was half a rank stronger than individual pieces of the same rank. If he had worn an Epic Set Equipment back then, he would've had an 80% chance of completing his Tier 4 promotion.

If he could forge the Broken Steel Set now, he would become invincible.

Although he had thought of doing so, the materials required to forge the Broken Steel Set were simply too rare. Aside from the required Mana Stones, he had no way to collect the Titan Ore or the Flame, Water, Wind, and Earth Source Crystals. And then there was the Nucleus of Life.

One could only obtain a Nucleus of Life if they were lucky. There was no set method to obtain it. One could say that it was the most difficult material to obtain among the various required materials.

Shi Feng had never expected a Nucleus of Life to drop. Although he knew where he could obtain the rest of the materials, he wasn't strong enough to reach them yet.

The Titan Warrior had also dropped plenty of Master ranked potions and Magic Scrolls of various tiers. Among the most precious scrolls was a Tier 4 Magic Scroll, Titan's Wrath, a Tier 4, large-scale destruction Magic Scroll. In a Guild war, it would be a nightmare for the enemy.

There were also quite a few Tier 2 Skill Books for various classes.

The system only allowed players to learn low-tiered Skills from NPCs during the early stages of the game to help them adapt to the game's environment. Players could only learn Tier 2 and above Skills or Spells from loot or purchasing them with Legacy Skill Points.

Skill Books containing Tier 2 Skills were incredibly rare, and many players in the past had only found a handful after reaching Tier 2, obtaining most from completing their promotion quest. As a result, those players hadn't been able to exhibit the true strength of their Tier 2 classes.

The Titan Warrior had dropped over a dozen Tier 2 Skill Books. It had even dropped the popular Tier 2 Spell for healers, Combat Resurrection. With this Skill, healers could resurrect a fallen companion even while still in combat. It also reduced the normal death penalty by 40%. The only downside was the Spell's 12-hour-long Cooldown.

There were also two Combination Skill Books.

However, one particular item had caught Shi Feng's attention: a shield radiating a faint trace of Divine Might. It was the most eye-catching item among the loot.

A shield? Shi Feng activated Omniscient Eyes and began to appraise the item. 

Chapter 1472 - Titan Guard

In God's Domain, any item that radiated Divine Might was extraordinary, even more so were the weapons and equipment pieces that emitted the energy.

After Shi Feng scanned the shield with Omniscient Eyes, the system informed him of appraisal time.

Twenty seconds? Shi Feng rejoiced.

Normally, Epic items only took a dozen or so seconds to appraise. Since the shield had a 20-second appraisal time, it must be particularly high-quality.

Shields were very important to a team. If a team's MT had a powerful shield, the team would have a much easier time against Boss monsters. Because of their importance, they were hard to find on the market. Furthermore, these shields were generally worth twice as much as a weapon of the same level.

Once Omniscient Eyes finished appraising the crescent shield, the shield's Attribute Panel revealed itself to Shi Feng.

What an awesome Growth-type shield! Shi Feng was ecstatic when he saw the shield's statistics.

...

[Titan Guard] (Shield, Bronze Rank [Can grow])
Minimum Equipment Level: 50
Equipment Requirement: Strength 800
Attributes adjust according to user's level.
Defense +3,550 (Level 50)
Block Rate: 32%
Strength +33, Endurance +47, Agility +29
Defend Skill +1 Levels

When equipped:
All magic damage received reduced by 30%;
Reaction speed increased by 20%;
Paralysis effects reduced by 30%.

Additional Passive Skill 1-
Guardian Shield: Automatically generates a layer of Guardian Energy, which can block an attack, every 30 seconds.

Additional Passive Skill 2-
Iron Wall: Reduces the impact from incoming attacks by 30% and damage received by 10%.

Additional Active Skill 1-
Titan's Heart: Generates a layer of Protective Energy that absorbs damage equivalent to five times of wielder's maximum HP for 30 seconds. During this time, player's battle recovery improved by 500% and healing received increased by 50%.
Cooldown: 5 minutes

Additional Active Skill 2-
Titan's Will: Becomes immune to all control effects. Reduces all damage received by 80%. Increases Attack Speed by 50% and Movement Speed by 20%. Starting Movement Speed set at 70% of maximum Movement Speed.
Duration: 15 seconds
Cooldown: 3 minutes
(Cannot stack with other Defensive Skills.)

Additional Active Skill 3-
Titan's Domain: Every non-friendly target within a 30-yard radius will increase wielder's Basic Attributes by 1%, reduces damage received by 1%, and heals wielder by 0.1% HP every second.
Duration: 1 minute
Cooldown: 2 hours
(Maximum number of targets: 50.)

This shield can grow to Fragmented Legendary rank. Currently at Bronze rank. Growing to Mysterious-Iron rank requires 1,000 Magic Crystals.

...

This was the first time Shi Feng had ever seen a Growth-type shield that could reach Fragmented Legendary rank.

Although the Titan Guard was a Bronze ranked shield right now, its Skills were even more powerful than a Dark-Gold shield of the same level. And these Skills would become even more formidable as the shield's rank rose.

Just thinking about how powerful the Titan Guard would become once it reached Fragmented Legendary rank made Shi Feng shudder with anticipation.

Fragmented Legendary shields were extremely rare, arguably more so than Legendary items. Any team with a shield of that rank would become famous throughout God's Domain. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that the team would be akin to an unkillable cockroach in Boss raids.

A Tier 1 MT wielding a Fragmented Legendary shield could easily tank a Mythic monster ten levels lower than them. After reaching Tier 2, said MT could even solo a Mythic monster five levels higher.

With an MT of that caliber, raiding a 100-man Hell Mode Team Dungeon would be a piece of cake even if the team's DPS and coordination were lacking. It might even have a chance of raiding high-difficulty, super-large-scale Team Dungeons...

With this, we won't need to worry about raiding super-large-scale Team Dungeons. Shi Feng's lips curled into a grin as he gazed at the Titan Guard.

Following which, Shi Feng examined the other weapons and equipment that had dropped.

The next best item was an Epid ranked Cape, the Titan Mantle, which focused on Strength. There were also eight pieces of Level 60, Dark-Gold Equipment.

Since Shi Feng already had the Nightwalker's Cape, he gave the Titan Mantle to Lifeless Thorn. Now, the Berserker's equipment could rival that of peak experts in God's Domain.

"Commander, what about you?" Lifeless Thorn asked, giving Shi Feng a concerned look. If he had claimed not to be excited about obtaining the cape, he would've been lying. Every expert dreamed of Epic items, after all.

"Mine's even better. Besides, this is a loan. It'll only truly be yours after you've accumulated enough ACPs," Shi Feng said, chuckling.

Nurturing powerful experts was more important than some Epic cape right now. Had Solitary Nine or Dark Madness reached the Refinement Realm, he might have given them the item.

"I understand. I won't disappoint you." Lifeless Thorn nodded, not arguing.

Shi Feng then awarded the rest of his team with the corresponding Contribution Points, which they could use to purchase various weapons and equipment from the Asura adventuring team.

Now that the Titan Warrior was dead, Shi Feng could finally breathe. Once the team had rested, they proceeded to the Ancient Shrine itself.

When the team entered the shrine, they felt as if they had just stepped into another world. The shrine's interior was resplendent, a stark contrast to the bleak cavern. They spotted Elves and mechanical NPCs going about their business. The place looked nothing like a desolate location.

Aside from NPCs, the Ancient Shrine had various Shops selling all sorts of items. There were even places for players to rest and repair their weapons and equipment.

Asura's members excitedly looked around, but Shi Feng didn't give his team time to digest their new environment. Instead, he led them to the Teleportation Hall on the shrine's second floor.

When the team reached the Teleportation Hall, they were greeted by rows of mechanical NPCs guarding the Space-time Teleportation Gate. These NPCs were all Level 200, and the weakest among them was Tier 3. Anybody that dared to cause trouble here would die instantly.

"Hello, sir. If you wish to leave the Ice Crystal World, each member of your party must pay one Mana Stone or 100 Magic Crystals," the NPC Elf standing before the teleportation gate explained, smiling when he saw Shi Feng's group. "However, since you are one of our Ancient Shrine's Shrine Warriors, your travel will only cost 50 Magic Crystals."

How expensive. Shi Feng frowned slightly.

Among the various Otherworlds he had visited in the past, the most expensive had cost him 80 Magic Crystals, yet leaving the Ice Crystal World cost 50 after his 50% discount...

Asura's members, who had been elated to leave Cold Wind City's region, were stupefied by the price. Although they could afford it, they would only have a few Magic Crystals left.

"Here's 50 Mana Stones." Shi Feng didn't hesitate to hand over the Mana Stones he had prepared to trade for the Temporal Sand.

As for the Countess's quest, he could send the Asura adventurer team to grind for the remaining Ice Crystal Fragments. He still had enough time before the deadline.

After Shi Feng paid the teleportation fees for 100 people, the Space-time Teleportation Gate slowly opened. Under Shi Feng's lead, the team entered the gate and vanished from the Ancient Shrine's Teleportation Hall. 

Chapter 1473 - Shocking Wealth

Black Dragon Empire, Black Dragon City:

Inside the congested Teleportation Hall, a constant stream of players appeared and vanished via the teleportation arrays. With every passing moment, new players arrived in Black Dragon City. The city's population grew by the day.

As one of the teleportation arrays lit up, a 100-man team emerged.

"Why are so many people here?"

"So, this is Black Dragon City? The players here really are well-equipped. Cold Wind City is no match for this place."

These new arrivals stared at the gorgeous and spectacular Teleportation Hall as if they had just arrived in a new world.

These people were none other than the Asura adventurer team's members, who had just crossed over from the Ice Crystal World.

"You must be tired after grinding for so long. We'll disband, for now, so get some rest. You can also use this opportunity to explore. I'll notify you through the team chat when it's time to meet back up," Shi Feng said, chuckling as he watched his curious teammates.

After leaving the Ice Crystal World's Ancient Shrine, their group teleported to an Ancient Shrine in the Great Thorn Forest, a neutral map not far from the Black Dragon Empire.

Although that shrine had lacked a Guardian Boss, players couldn't teleport while in the Great Thorn Forest. They had no choice but to fight their way out of the map. Fortunately, the Great Thorn Forest was only a Level 60 to Level 80 map, so the enemies they encountered hadn't been ridiculously powerful. Even so, they had fought for over ten hours before they reached the empire.

The team then arrived in a border town in the Black Dragon Empire with the help of Shi Feng's Space Movement. From the border town, they teleported to Black Dragon City.

After such a long fight, every team member was mentally exhausted. Since there was still some time before his agreement with Phoenix Rain, Shi Feng let his adventurer team get some rest.

Besides, he still had a few matters to see to, and moving as a group was too troublesome.

"Alright, we'll do that."

"I wonder how many experts are here? I'm going to the Divine Colosseum to take a look."

After Shi Feng's dismissal, the team members excitedly left the Teleportation Hall. Lifeless Thorn, in particular, dashed straight towards Black Dragon City's Divine Colosseum.

After the team split up, Shi Feng hailed an advanced carriage and made his way to the city's Auction House.

During his time in the Ice Crystal World, he had purchased many of the Otherworld's unique, rare materials. Including the items his Asura adventurer team had gathered, his bag space and Epic ranked Spatial Bag were full to the brim.

Although he had been absent from God's Domain's continent for some time, Gentle Snow and Aqua Rose had sent him regular reports.

The various large Guilds had been busy trying to equip their members with Mounts by offering their elite and expert members subsidies.

Mounted players could explore distant resource maps, gathering more resources for their Guilds. They could also level up faster due to fewer competitors.

Naturally, Zero Wing couldn't fall behind.

Although Zero Wing earned a lot from Stone Forest Town's Battle Arena and Auction House and White River City's Candlelight Trading Firm and teleportation house, it didn't have much to spare to purchase Mounts for its elites due to its expansion on two fronts.

Hence, this was a good opportunity to earn a quick buck from selling the Ice Crystal World's rare materials and set some aside for Guild Mounts.

Many of the materials he had gathered during his trip were ice-type items. Not only could they be used to craft weapons and equipment, but they would also be useful in brewing potions that increased Ice Resistance and ice-type damage, both of which God's Domain's continent sorely lacked.

Mainstream players had already begun to encounter leveling maps with various environments, and as a result, increasing one's Resistances had become a necessity. Without those Resistances, players' leveling speed and combat power would suffer.

Frost Steel Ore, in particular, was the main material to produce Ice Resistance Armor Kits and Mysterious-Iron and Secret-Silver with Ice Resistance. In the Ice Crystal World, a stack of 100 Frost Steel Ore only sold for 1 Gold. In God's Domain, a stack could go for more than 5 Gold.

Shi Feng had intentionally collected a large stock of the material.

He had planned to sell the materials in Zero Wing's Auction House, but at the end of the day, Stone Forest Town didn't see enough traffic. It was no match for Black Dragon City. Moreover, only a high-population city like Black Dragon City could exhaust his stock. If he tried to sell the materials in Star-Moon Kingdom, he'd saturate the market, and the prices would eventually fall.

Half an hour later, Shi Feng arrived before the Black Dragon Auction House. He saw far more players than his visit a few days ago. There were several times more merchant players from other kingdoms and empires specifically. These merchant players hawked their wares outside the building in an intense competition.

After entering the Auction House, Shi Feng found a secluded corner and took a seat. He then called up the Auction House's system interface and began to place various items up for sale. He had bought almost every ingot of Frost Steel Ore Cold Wind City had to offer, collecting over 5,000 stacks.

Aside from the Frost Steel Ore, Shi Feng had over 3,000 stacks of Ice-capped Grass, a required component for brewing Intermediate Ice Resistance Potions. Each stack had sold for 60 Silver in Cold Wind City, but in the Black Dragon Empire, they could sell for 3 Gold...

Overall, Shi Feng had over 16,000 stacks of materials. Among them, over 13,000 stacks were common materials in the Ice Crystal World. For now, he only sold the common materials, saving the more valuable items for the Candlelight Trading Firm.

"Someone's selling Frost Steel Ore for 5 Gold per stack?! That's so cheap!"

"I finally found the Ice-capped Grass I've been looking for!"

It wasn't long before players bought out the first batch of materials Shi Feng had scheduled in the Auction House. Due to the intense competition for the items, Shi Feng made more than the market place even after deducting the processing fees.

Overall, just the first batch of materials had earned Shi Feng a net profit of over 3,000 Gold. At this rate, he should be able to earn over 30,000 Gold. And this was his profit after a single visit to the Ice Crystal World...

If the various Super Guilds learned his secret, they'd pop a blood vessel in envy.

After he finished dealing with the common materials, Shi Feng used a Guild Transfer Scroll and teleported to Stone Forest Town. He stored the remaining materials in the town's Candlelight Trading Firm. He also collected the Magic Crystals the town had stockpiled while he had been gone to upgrade the Titan Guard.

He had spent most of his Magic Crystals during the battle with the Titan Warrior, so he only had a few hundred crystals on hand. It wasn't enough to upgrade the Titan Guard.

The number of Magic Crystals Stone Forest Town's Advanced Auction House and Battle Arena had earned stunned Shi Feng.

Even after deducting the town's expenses, Stone Forest Town had earned over 60,000 Magic Crystals in just three days.

However, upgrading the Titan Guard wouldn't be cheap. After spending 1,000 Magic Crystals to upgrade the shield from Bronze to Mysterious-Iron rank, he spent another 3,000 crystals upgrading it to Secret-Silver rank, 6,000 to Fine-Gold rank, 10,000 to Dark-Gold rank, and 18,000 to Epic Rank. Unfortunately, upgrading the shield to Fragmented Legendary rank would cost 100,000 Magic Crystals.

In the end, Shi Feng could only afford to upgrade the Titan Guard to Epic rank. He'd have to save the last upgrade for the future.

"Guild Leader, you're finally back! I bought a large stock of Flame Potions as you asked. Do you want me to send them over?" Aqua Rose asked, smiling.

Aqua Rose and her team had grinded for Flame Potions in the Flaming Rain Mountains while Shi Feng had been gone. Since it was a neutral map, it had an abundance of extremely powerful monsters. If not for her leadership, they might not have completed their task. Furthermore, due to the map's difficulty, she had leveled up, reaching Level 51.

"Good." Shi Feng nodded and glanced at the time. It was almost time for his appointment with Phoenix Rain, and he said, "Let's meet up in Black Dragon City. And notify Snow to pick a team of experts. We're going on a trip to Apocalypse City!"

"We're heading out on another excursion? Alright." Aqua Rose was instantly overjoyed. She then disconnected the call and contacted Gentle Snow. 

Chapter 1474 - Zero Wing's Auction

Shi Feng didn't hurry to return to Black Dragon City after the call disconnected. Instead, he left the Candlelight Trading Firm and headed to the Zero Wing Auction House.

The Titan Guard would be of immense help when the Guild raided Dungeons.

If he upgraded the shield to Fragmented Legendary rank in time, it could also help them capture the Manatite vein on Karna Island.

However, 100,000 Magic Crystals were not easy to come by. So, he decided to sell some of the more valuable materials he had obtained in the Ice Crystal World in Zero Wing's Auction House.

Coins were the main currency in NPC Auction Houses, but Zero Wing's was an Advanced Auction House. Players were allowed to use other currencies in their transactions, including Magic Crystals.

This was also the reason that the various major powers in the past had sought their own.

As expected of an Advanced Auction House. The place has developed quickly. It's no wonder why Ouroboros rose to power so quickly in the past.

Before Shi Feng reached the building, he spotted massive crowds wandering in and out of the Auction House. It was far more lively than Black Dragon's Auction House.

Based on Aqua Rose's reports, Stone Forest Town's player population had stabilized at over 1,000,000 due to Zero Wing's Auction House. It was enough to rival a major NPC city. Such a high number of players also allowed the various large Guilds' spies to investigate the establishment. Some had even tried to bribe Zero Wing's core members to learn how their Guild could obtain an Advanced Auction House.

Among the Guilds trying to probe for information, Aqua Rose had discovered a few shadows from Super Guilds.

Unfortunately, although these players' bribes were tempting, not even Aqua Rose knew how they had obtained the Advanced Auction House Design, much less the core members. In the end, these spies had returned empty-handed.

As soon as Shi Feng entered the Auction House, several Level 20 to 30 merchant players stepped into his path before he reached the counter.

Moreover, he wasn't the only player they had interrupted. These merchant players in luxurious, non-Attributed clothing approached any player that tried to enter the Auction House.

"Fellow friend, do you intend to sell items here?" a female Oracle in a light blue dress asked after approaching Shi Feng. Softly, she continued, "I can help you sell and purchase items. If you have items to sell, I'll help pay a portion of the processing fees. If you're looking for items, depending on the item's value, I'll help cover the cost up to 1 Gold."

Shi Feng had intended to ignore the woman, but upon seeing the Oracle's name, he paused.

Why is she here? Shi Feng stared at the smiling player in shock.

The female Oracle's name was Susie. She wasn't a fighting expert or some upper echelon from a Guild or top adventurer team. Rather, she had been a famous merchant in the Black Dragon Empire and its neighbors.

Shi Feng had conducted various business deals with Susie in the past. Through her, he had secured a steady supply of various Resistance Potions, which had been very rare at the time. The potions had helped Shadow pioneer a neutral map and encounter plenty of opportunities.

Unfortunately, Susie hadn't had a powerful background. After amassing immense wealth for herself, some of the large Guilds had targeted her. In the end, they plundered her Coins and resources. Although Susie had tried to take revenge, she hadn't had any influence or strength. Eventually, she had been forced elsewhere to develop. After that incident, Shi Feng had lost track of the woman.

Shi Feng had never thought that he'd run into her here.

"What benefits do you offer for helping foot a portion of the processing fees?" Shi Feng asked curiously.

"I'm trying to join Zero Wing's Auction. To do so, I need to meet a certain transaction quota. I'd like to use your items to meet that quota," Susie explained without withholding anything.

Hearing this, realization dawned on Shi Feng.

An Advanced Auction House would periodically hold NPC auctions. During these auctions, players could bid on all sorts of precious items. However, not just any player could participate. Players needed to complete a specified number of transactions first. Fulfilling these quotas might be easy for adventurer teams and Guilds, but they were quite demanding of individual merchant players.

"How many are you missing?" Shi Feng asked.

Susie frowned at the question, but she offered an answer. "I'm roughly 500 Gold away from qualifying for the Intermediate Auctions."

Although she put up quite a few of her own items in Zero Wing's Auction House, many of them hadn't sold due to the intense competition. She was forced to resort to other methods to fulfill her quota.

"Alright. Help me sell these items, then. But I'll only accept Magic Crystals." Shi Feng handed the woman ten ingots of the absurdly rare Arctic Manatite. The market price for Arctic Manatite was over 50 Gold per piece, and even then, no one willing sold theirs.

"Arctic Manatite?!" Susie's jaw nearly hit the ground when she saw the material this Swordsman intended to sell.

Ordinary players might not know recognize Arctic Manatite, but merchant players were very familiar with the material.

Many of the various large Guilds were preparing to pioneer neutral maps, and they all needed various materials to craft Resistance items. Arctic Manatite was one such example. One ingot could easily sell for 180 Magic Crystals or more. Meanwhile, Magic Crystals' current market price had climbed to 30 Silver each. Even at such a high price, Guilds would fight over the metal, yet Shi Feng wanted to sell ten ingots...

"Are you sure you want to consign them with me?" Susie asked, giving Shi Feng a surprised look. She understood what it meant for a player to so easily collect ten ingots of Arctic Manatite. With Shi Feng's wealth, he likely wasn't worried about processing fees.

"Mhm. Every Coin counts," Shi Feng said, nodding.

Susie had, more or less, helped in him the past. Since he had encountered her in this life, he didn't mind returning the favor.

Upon hearing the Swordsman's agreement, Susie stopped wasting time talking with the man. She pulled a pre-prepared contract from her bag and began to fill in some of the blank areas.

Since this was a consignment, the consignor would have to receive the materials to put them up for sale in the Auction House. To protect both parties, they'd sign a contract.

Within minutes, both players signed the contract.

Once the arrangement was complete, Shi Feng turned and headed up to the second floor.

Meanwhile, Susie was ecstatic as she looked at the two copies of the contract. Once she sold the Arctic Manatite, she would complete her quota. All she would need to do then was prepare for the Intermediate Auction.

However, when Susie read the consignee's name, she was dumbfounded.

How is this possible?! He's ...Zero Wing's Ye Feng? Susie spun around, spotting Shi Feng as he walked toward the staircase leading to the second floor.

Everyone in Star-Moon Kingdom knew about Zero Wing. It was, without a doubt, the kingdom's number one Guild and overlord. The names of the Guild's upper echelons was engraved on every player's mind.

Although Ye Feng wasn't as famous as Aqua Rose and Fire Dance, everybody knew that he was one of Zero Wing's core upper echelons. It was rumored that even Aqua Rose, one of the Guild's Vice Leaders, had to follow the man's commands from time to time.

To an insignificant player like her, Ye Feng was far out of her reach. She could only ever gaze up at someone like him.

When she thought about how she had engaged such a man for a business transaction, she was speechless. 

Chapter 1475 - Gathering of Experts

On the Auction House's second floor, Shi Feng followed an NPC to a VIP reception room.

He had treated his transaction with Susie as an investment.

Aside from her keen business sense, Susie had made a name for herself in the Black Dragon Empire as a merchant due to her resource channels.

The various first-rate Guilds in the past had struggled to secure a steady supply of various Resistance Potions, yet she had succeeded where they had failed.

It was hard to imagine a merchant player with no background obtaining so many Resistance Potions. Moreover, she had also sold various rare items that had tempted the large Guilds.

Hence, forming a connection with this merchant player was a wise move.

"Boss, do you wish to sell all of these items?" the advanced manager NPC asked as he examined the large pile of materials on the table.

"Yes. Sell them in batches. Only accept Magic Crystals as payment." Shi Feng nodded.

An Advanced Auction House offered two methods for selling items. With the first, players could manually decide when their items went up for sale, while the second option allowed them to leave that up to NPCs. NPCs would then sell the items based on the player's requirements and the current demand, putting them up for sale when they could generate the most profit.

However, only the Auction House's advanced members had access to the second method.

Every player dreamed of accessing this option; not only would it save them the hassle, but their items would also sell at an appropriate time. Usually, players increased their profits by at least 10% with this method.

Ten percent might not make a difference for a transaction worth dozens of Silver Coins, but it was a different story for those worth hundreds or thousands of Gold.

This was one of the Advanced Auction House's trump cards.

However, Shi Feng had no intention of offering this function to the public just yet. Otherwise, the various superpowers would become even more eager to obtain their own establishment. They might even attempt to steal the building. After all, God's Domain had certain tools that could return a building to its design even after its construction, but doing so was difficult and costly.

Although the rare materials he wanted to sell wouldn't earn 100,000 Magic Crystals, he should be able to earn around 60,000. Including the income from the Auction House fees and the Battle Arena, he should have enough to upgrade the Titan Guard.

Once he finished in the Auction House, Shi Feng glanced at the time. He then used a Return Scroll to travel to White River City before making his way to Black Dragon City.

...

Black Dragon Empire, Black Dragon City:

The Teleportation hall had fallen silent due to the arrival of a particular player group.

"What?! They're actually from Zero Wing?!"

"They're so strong!"

"Aren't they Gentle Snow and Aqua Rose? Why are Zero Wing's Vice Guild Leaders here?"

"Is that the Flame Witch? I've heard that she recently taught the Dark Guilds lurking around Lake Heart City another lesson. With no way to deal with her, they had been forced out of the city."

"Why are so many people from Zero Wing here? Are they going to declare war on some Guild?"

...

When Gentle Snow and the other core members of Zero Wing arrived in the Teleportation Hall, everyone turned towards the party.

Every player in the area felt an immense pressure weigh down on them the moment the group arrived. Many people unconsciously stepped out of the way, opening a path for Zero Wing's members.

The Black Dragon Empire's players hadn't been particularly familiar with Zero Wing several days ago, but after the ranking competition and the siege war, it had become one of the most popular Guilds in the empire, with countless players attempting to join. However, after the ranking competition and the siege war, Zero Wing had already become one of the most popular Guilds in the empire, and many players desperately wanted to join.

With such a large group of the Guild's experts before them, why wouldn't they be surprised?

In the past, almost no one knew how strong Zero Wing was, but looking at these members, every player in the Teleportation Hall sighed with admiration. Not only were Zero Wing's members sitting atop their Mounts, but their levels were also awesomely high. The lowest-leveled among them was Level 48.

Even the number one expert on the Black Dragon Empire's Ranking List was only Level 48...

"Guild Leader, everyone's arrived. We can set out at any time," Gentle Snow said when she noticed Shi Feng approach.

"Good." Shi Feng nodded in satisfaction at the strict, orderly 100-man team before him. "Take a quick break. The others will arrive shortly. We'll head over once everyone's here."

"There're more?" Gentle Snow was a little confused.

As far as she knew, they were here to help Phoenix Rain raid the Sunset Forest. She hadn't heard of the woman asking for other reinforcements.

As soon as Gentle Snow finished her question, a team entered the Teleportation Hall, approaching her group.

Every player on the team wore a Black Cloak, hiding their levels, but she felt the threat of death around all of them. When Gentle Snow looked a particular Berserk with a dark-purple spear across his back, she felt as if she were looking at a ferocious beast that had been released from its cage. The Berserker's aura was also as sharp as a blade.

For a moment, Gentle Snow sensed the thread of death radiating from this Berserker.

A peak expert? Gentle Snow was surprised and alert as she quietly examined the Berserker.

In fact, Gentle Snow wasn't the only one who felt it. Aqua Rose and Zhao Yueru were also aware of this particular player.

This Berserker was none other than Cold Wind City's number one expert, Lifeless Thorn.

Lifeless Thorn also felt a great deal of pressure from Zero Wing's team.

Although he had never fought any of these players, his senses as an expert told him that few were strong enough of rivaling his strength among Zero Wing's 100-man team.

"Let me introduce you. These two are Gentle Snow and Aqua Rose, Zero Wing's Vice Guild Leaders. This is Lifeless Thorn, who hails from the Ice Crystal World," Shi Feng said. He could not help but chuckle as the players eyed each other. "Both of your teams will be involved in this undertaking."

"Guild Leader?"

"Commander?"

All three players turned to Shi Feng in unison, confused.

Shi Feng then patiently explained Zero Wing's Guild and the Asura adventurer team to both sides.

The news shocked all of them, and both teams struggled to digest the information.

"Guild Leader, just how many secrets are you hiding" Shock overwhelmed Gentle Snow as she watched Asura's members.

Although the Black Cloaks prevented her from gauging the adventurer's strength, based on their movements, she could tell that every member of the team was an expert.

The various large Guilds would offer insane prices to recruit such experts, and even then, they had only succeeded in convincing a small number to join them.

Yet, Shi Feng revealed one ally after another. Now, he even had a top-tier adventurer team.

For a moment, Gentle Snow wondered if the man was backed by some Super Guild. What other explanation was there for the continued emergence of so many experts in Zero Wing?

Once Shi Feng confirmed that everyone had arrived, he smiled and announced, "Since we're all here, let's head out to Apocalypse City." 

Chapter 1476 - Zero Wing Arrives

Apocalypse Empire, Apocalypse City, Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion's Residence:

As the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion's main headquarters, the Residence was lively as members often came and left. At this moment, however, tension gripped the Residence's front courtyard.

Both Pavilion Masters and their respective forces stood in the courtyard, each occupying one side with a clear divide between the two. The smell of gunpowder wafted between the forces. Most of the uninvolved Guild members were too afraid to enter the Residence.

It was common knowledge in the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion that Phoenix Rain and Nine Dragons Emperor were in a constant struggle for the Great Pavilion Master's position. At this point, neither side held anything back. If players weren't careful, they could get caught in the crossfire and die without know what killed them.

"What's going on? Why are both Pavilion Masters here?"

"Don't you know? I've heard that a Historical Site is going to open today, so they've gathered here before setting out. Look, some of the Guild's more elusive experts are among them, too."

"Our Guild's experts aren't the only ones here. Look at those players. They aren't wearing our Guild's emblem. They must be hired help."

"I've heard that the Historical Site they plan to raid is particularly powerful, a Grade 1 ancient ruin. The treasures in the ruin will definitely help whichever side gets them first."

"The Nine Heavens Pavilion's Ninth Floor Master raided a Grade 2 Historical Site. Nobody knows what items he found, but the Elders promoted him to Eighth Floor Master. It caused quite a commotion in the Guild. It's no wonder why our Pavilion Masters are so desperate to compete for the ancient ruin."

...

The Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion members chatted quietly as they watched the Guild's two major factions stare each other down.

The requirements to become the next Great Pavilion Master had already been announced to the Guild as a whole. Now, all they had to do was wait and see which Pavilion Master completed the requirements first. Since they had found a Grade 1 Historical Site, the two factions would spare no effort in obtaining the First Clear. After all, this competition over the ruin might affect the outcome on Thunder Island.

...

"Big Sis Rain, those people seem to be from Bloody Paradise," Blue Phoenix said, her expression darkening as she watched the several dozen players behind Nine Dragons Emperor. One thing separated these players from the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion's members: a blood-red pattern on the back of their hands.

Bloody Paradise was not a Guild, but a famous adventurer team in the virtual gaming world.

Although Bloody Paradise was only an adventurer team, it had outlasted many large Guilds.

However, Bloody Paradise was powerful because, to the adventurer team, strength was everything. The adventurer team had become famous in the gaming world due to its history of provoking Super Guilds. The adventurer team had even foiled these Super Guild's attempts to eliminate the team.

Bloody Paradise would do anything for money. For a high enough price, they'd even strike out against a Super Guild.

"Nine Dragons Emperor really has gone all-out." Phoenix Rain could not help but frown as she watched a black-clad, middle-aged man chat merrily with Nine Dragons Emperor.

She was very familiar with Bloody Paradise. Although it wasn't a Super Guild, its experts were no less powerful than many of those in the various superpowers. This was especially true for the adventurer team's current commander, Undead.

Undead had ranked 18th on the God's Domain Experts List, but he had recently risen to rank 11. Even the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion's old monsters were afraid of the man.

The black-clad man beside Nine Dragons Emperor was none other than the monster known as Undead.

Phoenix Rain also noticed quite a few familiar experts among her competitor's team. Only, these great experts were not as famous as Undead.

Although she had recruited quite a few experts herself, even inviting Quiet Melody, the Vice Temple Master of the Super Guild, Sacred Temple, they were insignificant compared to Nine Dragons Emperor's recruits. Furthermore, Quiet Melody was only helping as a good friend. Phoenix Rain hadn't been able to borrow the Sacred Temple's true strength.

...

Nine Dragons Emperor flashed Phoenix Rain a gleeful smile. He could already see the Sunset Forest's treasure in his bags.

"Nine Dragons Pavilion Master, your opponent seems quite formidable. She's invited quite a few exciting experts to help her," Undead said, smiling as he glanced at the people beside Phoenix Rain.

"True, she has recruited a good number of experts, but how can any of them compare to you, Commander Undead? Your team will likely have an easy enough time defeating them," Nine Dragons Emperor responded. He had already investigated Phoenix Rain's allies. Only Quiet Melody and the few experts she had brought with her were worth any concern. Moreover, this was a Historical Site raid, not a PvP battle. "Once we enter the ruin, I'll rely on you to take the lead."

The team Undead had brought with him was leagues above Quiet Melody's.

Bloody Paradise was precisely the reason that the Nine Heavens Pavilion's Ninth Floor Master had secured the First Clear of a Grade 2 Historical Site. On his own, the Ninth Floor Master would have failed.

"Rest assured; I've already collected quite a bit of information on the Sunset Forest and seen to ample preparations," Undead stated. "However, Nine Dragons Pavilion Master, you have to fulfill your promise as soon as possible."

"Of course." Nine Dragons Emperor nodded.

...

As the Sunset Forest's activation time approached, both sides completed the final groundwork for the raid. A Historical Site was far more dangerous than a Dungeon. Multiple team-wipes were normal. Players would also go through resources such as Stamina, Concentration, and Mana far faster than outside of the ruin. Without preparing, a team could easily waste the opportunity.

"Big Sis Rain, it's almost time to depart, but Zero Wing isn't here yet. Should we contact them?" Blue Phoenix asked anxiously.

Although every team entering the Historical Site would have the same amount of time, the sooner they entered the ruin, the sooner they could secure the First Clear.

Glancing at the time, Phoenix Rain noticed that they only had 15 minutes before the Sunset Forest opened.

"Alright. Give them a call," Phoenix Rain said.

Just as Blue Phoenix pulled up her communication interface, a large group of players rode through the Residence's entrance. The moment these people arrived, the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion members in their way instinctively parted to open a pat as the pressure the team radiated swept over them.

"Zero Wing?" A cold glint flashed in Nine Dragons Emperor's eyes when he saw Shi Feng at the head of the group.

Due to Zero Wing, the resource towns he had invested in had been destroyed. Although Zero Wing hadn't captured the two towns, they had flattened them. They would be incredibly expensive to rebuild.

Even if he had the funds, Zero Wing could simply destroy them all over again. As a result, he had been forced to watch as those two resource towns had gone to waste.

Nine Dragons Emperor wanted nothing more than the Guild's extermination.

"Zero Wing's members are so high-leveled!"

"Crap! Isn't that the Flame Witch?!"

"Look! She's Aqua Rose! Didn't she defeat the Shadow Dragon Legion?!"

"The Phoenix Pavilion Master is amazing! She actually hired Zero Wing's members! The competition for the Historical Site's First Clear will be interesting."

The Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion members in the courtyard erupted into a fevered discussion as Zero Wing's members walked into their Residence. Everyone had heard of Zero Wing's experts. 

Chapter 1477 - Unknown Adventurer Team

Not only had Zero Wing's arrival attracted the Guild members' attention, but the experts Phoenix Rain and Nine Dragons Emperor had hired also turned towards these experts.

Most of God's Domain's ordinary players hadn't heard of Zero Wing's experts. After all, God's Domain had only launched a few months ago, and countless Guilds rose and fell each day. Most players were only familiar with the veteran large Guilds that had been founded many years ago.

But it was a different story for players of their caliber.

They were privy to far more information than ordinary players, and they were all familiar with what kind of Guild Zero Wing was. Not only had Zero Wing become Star-Moon Kingdom's number one Guild early in the game, but it was also one of the Black Dragon Empire's top six Guilds, excluding the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion.

Some time ago, a rumor had spread about Zero Wing's victory over the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion's Shadow Dragon Legion. The Shadow Dragon Legion was one of the Guild's trump card legions and very formidable in large-scale battles. The fact that Zero Wing had defeated such a powerful force proved its extraordinary combat power.

"Big Sis Melody, what is the Phoenix Pavilion Master thinking?! We're raiding a Grade 1 Historical Site, yet she invited so many players from Zero Wing? Is she so desperate for manpower?" a male Summoner named Lonely Fantasy asked, dissatisfied as he watched the 200 players Shi Feng led.

It was common knowledge that a Grade 2 Historical Site was more difficult than a 100-man Hell Mode Team Dungeon of the same level. Needless to say, a Grade 1 Historical Site would be a greater challenge. If that hadn't been the case, Phoenix Rain wouldn't have recruited so many experts.

Meanwhile, the Sunset Forest only allowed each team 1,000 members per raid, yet Zero Wing had dispatched 200 members, taking one-fifth of the available slots...

"I doubt that. Rain might have her own ideas on the matter." Quiet Melody could not help but reveal a playful smile when she saw Zero Wing's members. "But the Guild is interesting. Despite knowing how important this is, it didn't dispatch most of its main force members."

Most players didn't have a clear idea of Zero Wing's structure, but she did. She had thoroughly investigated the Guild, memorizing almost every face in Zero Wing's main force.

Although Zero Wing had sent a lot of players, Fire Dance, the main force's commander, Cola, Ye Wumian, and Turtledove, the three top MTs, were absent. Other important individuals such as Violet Cloud, Flying Shadow, Shadow Sword, Rampant Blade, Black Cloud, Minor Wind, and Alluring Summer weren't here either.

Without these experts, Zero Wing's main force would be nothing but a joke in the various superpowers' eyes.

"You've finally arrived." Phoenix Rain frowned as Shi Feng's group approached. "Team Leader Ye Feng, do you plan to bring all of these members to the Historical Site?"

She could ignore the fact that Zero Wing hadn't mobilized all of its top experts, but the Guild had gone a little too far if they expected to bring all 200 players to the Sunset Forest.

It was not that she doubted Zero Wing's strength. Rather, it was impossible for the Guild to gather so many players who qualified to challenge a Grade 1 Historical Site with its current capabilities. All of the players participating in this operation were top experts in their Guilds or adventurer teams. In her opinion, only Zero Wing's main force members were qualified to stand beside them.

This operation was of utmost importance. She couldn't afford to lose because of such a minor issue. Moreover, she had long since prepared the 1,000 members required for the raid. Zero Wing's members were nothing more than reinforcements.

"Of course. I wouldn't have brought them otherwise." Shi Feng could hear the ire in Phoenix Rain's tone. Immediately, he explained, "Let me introduce you. This is Lifeless Thorn, the vice commander of the Asura adventurer team. I specifically invited Asura to help us."

"Hello." Lifeless Thorn nodded in greeting, confusion gripping his heart. Since when was he Asura's vice commander?

Lifeless Thorn wasn't the only confused player. Gentle Snow and Aqua Rose shot Shi Feng disdainful looks.

"The Asura adventurer team?"

Phoenix Rain examined Lifeless Thorn before glancing at the cloaked players behind him. She had assumed they were from Zero Wing, but upon closer inspection, she realized that their appearances were foreign to her.

She had never heard of an adventurer team called Asura.

Yet, Shi Feng had invited this unknown adventurer team to join such a crucial operation. For a moment, she was at a loss for words.

"Relax. I can vouch for their strength." Shi Feng was fully aware of the questions plaguing Phoenix Rain's mind. He chuckled and said, "Moreover, Asura will be absolutely necessary if we want to raid Sunset Forest."

When he had established the Asura adventurer team, his goal had been to recruit the various independent experts that detested Guild restrictions. Since he didn't want others to realize how closely tied the team was to Zero Wing, he had named it Asura. After all, any adventurer team that had a Guild behind it would struggle to recruit members. In addition, Zero Wing's enemies might target Asura, which would be a detriment to the adventurer team's development.

He intended to develop Asura separate from Zero Wing. The Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion's operation was a good opportunity for Asura to make a name for itself in God's Domain, creating a foundation for the adventurer team to grow. With this, he could save himself the trouble of trying to promote the team secretly.

Since they had Shi Feng's vote of confidence, Phoenix Rain sized up the Berserker before her.

Although the Black Cloak hid Lifeless Thorn's name and level, it did nothing to conceal his killing intent. Even she felt slightly threatened when subjected to this stranger's aura. As for the purple spear on Lifeless Thorn's back, although he had hidden the weapon's glow effect, she guessed that it was at least Dark-Gold rank based on the design on the shaft and the small arcs of electricity dancing around it. It was very likely that the spear was, in fact, an Epic Weapon.

The Black Cloak hid most of the Berserker's equipment as well, but after a close look, she noticed that every piece had a unified theme. In addition, a distinct pattern flowed from one piece to the next. Its glow proved that it was Dark-Gold rank, proving that Lifeless Thorn wore a Dark-Gold Set Equipment. Moreover, it was an eight-piece Set.

The Level 40, eight-piece Barbarian Set? Phoenix Rain guessed. No... The Barbarian Set is silver. This one is crimson. Could it be...a Level 45 Dark-Gold Set Equipment?

When Phoenix Rain considered the possibility of this man wearing an eight-piece, Level 45, Dark-Gold Set equipment, the gaze she gave the Berserker changed.

Although the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion had Level 45, Dark-Gold Set Equipment as well, the Guild had only collected a dozen or so six-piece sets. Naturally, they weren't as strong as an eight-piece set. The fact that an adventurer team had obtained such a set, in addition to an Epic Weapon, proved Asura's prowess.

"Fine, have it your way. We'll enter the Sunset Forest together." Phoenix Rain still questioned Shi Feng's claim, but when she thought about her agreement with the man, she gave in. "However, we need to finish the raid as soon as possible. Nine Dragons Emperor has invited Bloody Paradise. I've heard that they helped the Nine Heavens Pavilion raid a Grade 2 Historical Site, they should know what they're doing."

"Bloody Paradise?" Hearing this, Shi Feng could not help but turn towards Nine Dragons Emperor's group. He quickly spotted Undead, Bloody Paradise's commander.

Bloody Paradise had been a top adventurer team in his previous life. Although it hadn't achieved as much as the Midnight Tea Party had, the adventurer team had been absurdly powerful. This was especially true for the adventurer team's commander, Undead. He had been a madman who had dared to kill a Super Guild's leader and countless players from the Midnight Tea Party. Eventually, however, the various Super Guilds and Midnight Tea Party had hunted the man down, removing him from God's Domain entirely.

"In any case, we need to raid the Sunset Forest as fast as possible. If you need recovery items, let me know," Phoenix rain offered as she glanced at the time. Only a few minutes were left before the Sunset Forest opened, and even though Shi Feng now knew about Bloody Paradise's participation, nothing had changed. All they could do was rest up and prepare for the raid.

...

When Nine Dragons Emperor's players saw Zero Wing's members join Phoenix Rain's forces, the laughed.

"Phoenix Rain has lost her mind. She actually let Zero Wing bring 200 members!." Blood Dragon, the Guild Leader of the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion's Branch Guild in the Black Dragon Empire, could not help but laugh when he looked at the opponent's team composition.

"Have you looked into these 200 members yet?" Nine Dragons Emperor asked as he glanced at Shi Feng's group.

Although he didn't think that Zero Wing could make much of a difference, there was no harm in being cautious. After all, this raid was incredibly important.

"I sent someone to probe for information. Among those 200 players, 100 belong to Zero Wing, while the other 100 are from an adventurer team called Asura. Unfortunately, we don't know anything about this adventurer team. My guess is that they've only recently established. Many of Phoenix Rain's experts aren't happy about the situation," Blood Dragon reported, chuckling.

"A new adventurer team?" The news stunned Nine Dragons Emperor, but after a moment, he laughed uncontrollably. "Phoenix Rain is trying her best to sabotage herself. Have someone leak the information to those obstinate Elders. Let them know who they should truly support."

"Understood." Blood Dragon began to compile the information and sent his subordinates to spread rumors.

The last few minutes passed quickly. When the Sunset Forest activated, both Phoenix Rain and Nine Dragons Emperor retrieved a silver crystal ball from their bags at almost the same time, shattering it. The crystal balls then opened a spatial tunnel that allowed Phoenix Rain and Nine Dragon Emperor's teams to enter.

Very quickly, 2,000 players entered their respective spatial tunnels, vanishing from the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion's Residence. A breath later, the spatial tunnels also disappeared. 

Chapter 1478 - Asura's Edge

When Shi Feng entered the spatial tunnel, a glaring light blinded him for a moment. When his vision recovered, he noticed that he stood in a familiar, yet foreign, location.

...

System: You have discovered the Historical Site, Sunset Forest.

System: You will be teleported out of the Sunset Forest automatically after 8 hours.

...

It seems we've gotten pretty lucky. We were actually teleported to the Werewolf zone. After taking a quick look around him, Shi Feng had a general grasp of their location.

A Historical Site was like a special secret land. It only opened at certain times. Players had to complete the key quest each time they wanted to enter a particular Historical Site. In addition, players would be teleported to different locations every time they entered.

The Sunset Forest was massive, no smaller than a leveling map. The map was divided into eight zones, and each time players entered the Historical Site, they'd be teleported to one of the areas randomly. Naturally, each area's danger would also differ. Among the eight areas, the Werewolf zone was considered the easiest to get through.

Each of the Sunset Forest's eight zones offered varying challenges. For example, the Swamp zone would drag players down, drowning those who weren't careful. In the Stone Forest zone, players weren't able to use Spells. The Darkness and Hail zones were the most dangerous. Random orbs of ice would rain down in the Hail zone, claiming players' lives. In the Darkness zone, players could only see eight yards around them, making them easy targets for monster ambushes.

The reason the Werewolf zone was considered the easiest was that its main threat came in the form of a larger monster population. The zone's monsters were also quite organized.

All eight zones had one thing in common; they eventually led to the Sunset Forest's center. However, players didn't often get that far.

Once the team was accounted for, they adjusted the team's formation. Phoenix Rain sent scouting parties of Assassins and Rangers ahead to determine their next move.

Unlike Dungeons, players didn't have access to a system map in Historical Sites. They had to explore the available routes. This was also why the system gave them eight hours to clear the ruin. If a team wasn't careful, they could venture into a different zone, bypassing the Historical Site's core.

After 15 minutes or so, the scouting parties reported back with what they had discovered.

When Phoenix Rain read the reports, she was astonished.

"So, this is a Grade 1 Historical Site." Phoenix Rain frowned deeply at the reports.

Their current location was extremely dangerous. Based on the scouting parties' investigation, they were surrounded by Werewolf caps. Moreover, a large number of Werewolves patrolled the various paths leading to the Sunset Forest's core. If they tried to advance, they'd march straight into these Werewolves' den.

Thirty Werewolf squads patrolled the straightest path to the core, and each patrol consisted of around 100 monsters, led by at least one Great Lord. The more powerful patrol squads were commanded by Grand Lords. Even the weakest Werewolf in the zone was a Chieftain, and they were all Level 52 and above.

Dealing with one Werewolf patrol squad would be difficult and time-consuming, much less dealing with 30.

Furthermore, if they weren't careful and disturbed any of the nearby camps, they'd be overrun.

Each Werewolf camp had at least 11 Grand Lords, including a specialized Grand Lord. Attempting to face such a force would be suicidal.

After several evolutions to God's Domain, even monsters of the same rank had varying levels of strength. Monsters that failed to evolve properly tended to upgrade a portion of their Basic Attributes first, such as their Strength, Agility, and Defense. These monsters were known as specialized Bosses. They were much stronger than Bosses of the same rank and level, but they were extremely rare.

Once they knew what they were up against, even Quiet Melody was shocked.

She had raided a Grade 2 Historical Site in the past, but compared to this Grade 1 ruin, that experience had been child's play. Even extremely rare specialized Bosses were common here. Although players would only lose 20% of their EXP if they died in the ruin, it would add up after multiple deaths.

"I see why they say that Historical Sites are even more difficult than 100-man Hell Mode Team Dungeons. This Grade 1 Historical Site really knows how to render players powerless." Phoenix Rain smiled bitterly. She then turned to Shi Feng and asked, "Team Leader Ye Feng, do you have a way to break through?"

"I don't have any ideas, either. We'll have to fight our way through," Shi Feng stated.

Players in other areas might be able to rely on their wit to overcome the zone's challenges, but the Werewolf zone didn't offer that option. The only way to the core was to kill their way there.

"Fight our way through?" Phoenix Rain rolled her eyes at Shi Feng. She had asked him precisely because that wasn't possible. "Since we don't have other options, I guess we have no choice but to use the four Tier 3 Summoning Scrolls earlier than expected."

To raid the Sunset Forest, she had prepared plenty of trump cards. However, she hadn't expected to use them so soon after entering the Historical Site.

No one else on the team voiced an opinion, either. With their team's strength, fighting 30 Werewolf patrol squads was pushing it. They'd have to face over 20 Level 55 Great Lords and several Level 55 Grand Lords. There were thousands of weaker monsters as well.

If they had four Tier 3 summoned creatures to hold off the Grand Lords while they defeated the rest of the monsters, they might have a chance of making it through.

"It's too wasteful to use Tier 3 Summoning Scrolls right now," Shi Feng commented as he stopped Phoenix Rain.

"That's easy for you to say. How are we supposed to get past the Grand Lords if we don't use the Tier 3 summoned creatures to distract them?" Lonely Fantasy snapped, clicking his tongue when he heard Shi Feng.

However, Quiet Melody quickly silenced Lonely Fantasy, turning to Shi Feng, "May I know if Elder Ye Feng has a different plan?"

"We'll just force our way through," Shi Feng stated.

For a moment, the team fell silent.

If they could force their way through, they wouldn't need to use the Tier 3 Summoning Scrolls, yet when they saw the look in Shi Feng's eyes, they knew he was serious. They were stunned.

"Team Leader Ye Feng, what about the Grand Lords?" Phoenix Rain asked when she saw the man's expression.

"The Asura adventurer team will distract the Grand Lords in our path. Everyone else can worry about the other monsters as we advance," Shi Feng explained.

"Leave them to Asura?" Phoenix Rain shot Lifeless Thorn a glance.

Based on the scouts' reports, four Grand Lords guarded the easiest path. A measly 100-man team could never deal with four Grand Lords at once. Besides, other monsters littered the area.

"We don't have any problems with it," Lifeless Thorn declared. Initially, he had wanted to veto the idea, but Shi Feng had sent him a whisper, instructing him to agree. With no other choice, he did as he was told.

Hearing Lifeless Thorn's lack of hesitation, Quiet Melody and the others were stunned.

None of them had ever heard of the Asura adventurer team before today, yet the team claimed that they could distract four Level 55 Grand Lords. This was simply inconceivable.

After some reluctance, Phoenix Rain eventually agreed and said, "Alright, then. Let's try it. If we fail, I'll use the Tier 3 Summoning Scrolls to assist you."

Following which, the team prepared to move out. Meanwhile, Shi Feng made his own secret arrangements.

"Nine, you'll tank two Grand Lords. Madness, you'll tank one of the remaining two, and I'll take the last. Healers, focus on the two MTs," Shi Feng whispered to Asura's members.

"I'm dealing with two?" Solitary Nine was beginning to grow nervous.

"Relax," Shi Feng said, chuckling.

After all, he had lent Solitary Nine the Epic ranked Titan Guard. The man was also a Level 53 Shield Warrior wearing an eight-piece, Level 45, Dark-Gold Set Equipment. If he couldn't hold his ground against two Grand Lords, he didn't deserve the equipment.

A moment later, the 1,000-man team moved out under Shi Feng's command. First, he sent the scouting parties to lure Grand Lords' Werewolf patrol squads to Asura's members. He instructed the rest of the team to focus on moving towards Sunset Forest's core.

Every player in this raid was an expert. They had long since grown used to luring powerful Bosses. It wasn't long before the scouts ran back with four Werewolf patrol squads behind them.

"Go!" Shi Feng commanded when he saw the oncoming monsters.

Taking the lead, Solitary Nine ran up to one of the Grand Lord ranked Werewolf Captains and executed a Shield Bash. He then activated Charge on another Werewolf Captain. In seconds, he had aggroed two Werewolf Captains.

...

[Werewolf Captain] (Humanoid Creature, Grand Lord)
Level 55
HP 72,000,000/72,000,000

...

"Awoo!" The two Werewolf Captains howled in anger as they swung their clubs at the Shield Warrior.

Peng! Peng!

Both clubs struck Solitary Nine's shield, emitting two loud, buzzing sounds.

Two damages of over -10,000 appeared above the Solitary Nine's head, devouring nearly two-fifths of the man's HP. Fortunately, the four healers in the rear restored him back to full.

"How is this possible?" As Phoenix Rain and the others fought their way towards the distant core, they were stunned when they saw the scene. 

Chapter 1479 - Brutish Team

"How did he do that? Did he activate a Lifesaving Skill?" Lonely Castle gaped at the recovered Solitary Nine.

Everyone who had underestimated the Asura adventurer team was stupefied.

Normally, the strength of a team's MT was synonymous to the team's overall strength. Solitary Nine's performance proved that Asura's claim of being a powerful adventurer team was clearly more than just arrogance.

Even the game's current top-tier MTs would lose more than 15,000 HP against a casual attack from a Level 55 Grand Lord. It was the equivalent of one-third of most MTs' HP, yet Solitary Nine had only sustained a little over -10,000 HP from each Werewolf Captain's attack, which totaled less than two-fifths of his total HP...

However, their shock after seeing the damage Solitary Nine had received was nothing compared to what they felt after watching the man block both attacks with his shield.

While their respective Guilds' top-ranking MTs could block a Level 55 Grand Lord's attacks as well, it normally took several MTs working together. If they sent a single MT to tank the Grand Lord, they'd send the player to his death.

Even when a peak Mt blocked an attack from a Grand Lord of the same level, they'd stiffen momentarily from the impact. The outcome was the same when the MT used a defensive technique. If MTs didn't deal with the momentary stiffness properly, the Grand Lord could use its high Attack Speed to break through their defenses, landing a direct hit. Even with a group of dedicated healers, most MTs wouldn't survive the hit.

Hence, teams usually sent in multiple MTs to manage the Boss's attacks and dampen the resulting impacts.

Yet, Solitary Nine had blocked attacks from two Werewolf Captains, and by the looks of it, he had energy to spare. It was inconceivable!

However, Solitary Nine was more surprised than anyone.

Isn't this shield a little too powerful?

Solitary Nine could not help but glance at the crescent shield on his arm. He couldn't believe that he had just blocked two Great Lord's attacks without slowing in the least.

Elsewhere, Dark Madness had secured his own Werewolf Captain. Although he had a harder time than Solitary Nine, with his eight-piece, Dark-Gold Set Equipment, he held his ground as he focused on his defense.

Naturally, Shi Feng had little trouble with his Boss. Although he wasn't an MT, his Attributes rivaled a Grand Lord's of the same level. At Level 60, distracting a Grand Lord that was five levels lower than him was a piece of cake.

With the four Werewolf Captains distracted, the rest of the team had an easier time dealing with the remaining Werewolves. Every player that Phoenix Rain had recruited for the operation was a top-tier expert. The MTs were more than capable of holding their ground against a Level 55 Great Lord, let alone High Lord ranked monsters and below.

With the MTs forming a wall around the team, the various DPS classes launched frenzied attacks at the Werewolves in their way.

Hundreds of Spells and arrows rained down on the Werewolves, killing a few Chieftain ranked Werewolves instantly. As the patrol squads thinned, the team slowly advanced.

"Melee players, assist the MTs! Ranged players, prioritize the Werewolves directly in front of us! Don't waste your attacks! Healers, coordinate and make sure there aren't any long breaks between heals on the MTs!" Phoenix Rain commanded hurriedly as more Werewolves converged on their location.

"Don't! Prioritize the Werewolf Captains and ignore the mobs!" Shi Feng interjected.

"The mobs are increasing by the minute. If we don't clear them out soon, we won't be able to move forward," Quiet Melody snapped as she glanced at the approaching Werewolf squads. She strongly disapproved of Shi Feng's plan.

It would take too long to kill the Grand Lords. They simply had too much HP. Rather than targeting the Grand Lords, they should focus on killing the weaker monsters. That way, they could break through the blockade sooner than later.

"I have a plan to deal with the mobs. For now, prioritize the Werewolf Captains," Shi Feng said, chuckling.

"Even the weakest of these Werewolves have several million HP. If they swarm us, the MTs won't be able to hold them back," Quiet Melody growled when she saw the Swordsman's calm expression.

His plan wouldn't be an issue if they were fighting Common or Elite monsters, but the Werewolves coming at them were Chieftain rank and above. Even if they bombarded those monsters with one AOE Spell after another, it would do little to thin their numbers. Only large-scale destruction Spells would be useful. Even then, the Spells would be of limited help. If they didn't get rid of these monsters soon, the Werewolves would overwhelm the team.

But before Quiet Melody could respond, Phoenix Rain got ahead of her and said, "Alright. You have command of the team now, Ye Feng."

"Rain! This is too risky!" Quiet Melody spun towards her friend in confusion and shock.

"I know. But I want to see what tricks he's got up his sleeve. If things go south, I have a back-up plan," the Phoenix Pavilion Master softly explained.

While Quiet Melody had been correct about needing to deal with the weaker monsters first, there was an issue with her plan. If they ignored the four Grand Lords and advanced, the pressure on the team would only increase as they moved forward and more Werewolf patrol squads joined the fight.

On the off chance that they came across another Grand Lord's squad, the team would be annihilated. Hence, prioritizing the Werewolf Captains was a sound idea. In addition, she could use the opportunity to gauge Zero Wing's strength.

Once Phoenix Rain handed Shi Feng the leadership rights, he instructed the team to focus their fire on the Werewolf Captain in front of him.

Although the Werewolf Captain had 72,000,000 HP, its HP steadily decreased as hundreds of players bombarded the monster. Most of the team members dealt around -5,000 damage, occasionally dealing double that due to critical hits. Gentle Snow, Aqua Rose, Zhao Yueru, and Lifeless Thorn, however, dealt over -10,000 damage on average. They even dealt several times that every now and again.

Aqua Rose's damage was particularly frightening.

She was already a Tier 2 player, and after she gained the Sea Dragon Staff, her Tier 2 Spells had gained the power of Tier 3, each capable of dealing several hundred thousand damage.

Zhao Yueru had a similar benefit with her staff. Despite only being a Tier 1 player, her Spells were on par with Tier 2 Spells. With Shi Feng distracting the Werewolf Captain, both women could attack freely, dominating the team's damage output ranking and leaving the rest of the players in their dust.

"Crap, this is insane! Their combined damage is more than the next seven players' combined."

"So, this is Zero Wing?"

Aqua Rose and Zhao Yueru's damage stupefied many of the team's experts. Even Lifeless Thorn and his companions from Asura were surprised. They had never dreamed that Zero Wing was this powerful.

It wasn't long before one Werewolf Captain after another fell. However, a tremendous number of Werewolves had converged on the team's location. The monsters had already blocked the path head, making advancement impossible.

"Good! Aqua, Yueru, you two can begin!" Shi Feng shouted as he glanced at the clogged path ahead. He then switched the Aura of Wind for the Aura of Fire.

Aqua Rose and Zhao Yueru exchanged smiles as they cast the Tier 2 Spells, Rising Flow and Frostflame Hell simultaneously. Meanwhile, Shi Feng activated Flame Domain.

Suddenly, the Werewolves blocking the path screamed in pain as their HPs plummeted. In seconds, they turned to dust.

When the Spells dissipated, only a small portion of the Werewolves remained. Every Chieftain ranked Werewolf had been eliminated, and the Lord ranked Werewolves had less than half of their HPs remaining.

For a moment, both players and Werewolves had fallen silent. 

Chapter 1480 - Historical Site's Treasure

"What destructive power!"

"Am I seeing things?! All of the Chieftains are dead?!"

An indescribable shock overwhelmed the team members as they stared at the clearing in the enemy lines. Moreover, after the deaths of so many Werewolves, everyone's experience bars had risen by a significant chunk.

"They still have three large-scale destruction spells of such power despite so many of their main force members missing?" Quiet Melody stared at Shi Feng on the frontline in confusion.

The various large Guilds constantly searched for large-scale destruction Spells, but such Spells were extremely rare. Even a Super Guild like the Sacred Temple only had 30-plus players who could wield such power, and she was one of them.

Players and Guilds who didn't fully understand large-scale destruction Spells treated them like war weapons or powerful tools to use when grinding monsters. Only players who had large-scale destruction Spells knew that there were differences even among them.

An ordinary large-scale destruction Spell might be useful against players, but even three of such Spells might not be enough to kill Level 50-plus Chieftain ranked monsters and above. Only Curse-grade large-scale destruction Spells could achieve the feat. However, such Curses were even harder to find.

In the Sacred Temple, only six players possessed such Curses, and the Guild's upper echelons fought over every one of them.

Quiet Melody found it hard to believe that, despite the majority of Zero Wing's main force missing, the Guild could still employ three Curse-grade, large-scale destruction Spells.

"It's no wonder why Ye Fang claimed that we can clear the Sunset Forest. It seems' he had hidden his Guild's true power." Phoenix Rain shook her head and smiled bitterly at the empty plot of land before her.

Curse-grade large-scale destruction Spells were extremely useful when raiding a Dungeon. It was especially true as players took on the Dungeon Bosses.

Although she had prepared her own Curse, that was it. None of her subordinates wielded such a Spell. She had never expected to see three players from Zero Wing use one.

"The path ahead is clear! Everyone, charge! Ranged players, use your Control Skills on the monsters! Don't let them fill the gap!" Shi Feng shouted in the team chat.

If Tier 1 players tried to grind all of the Werewolf zone's monsters until they reached the Sunset Forest's core, they'd never reach it. The only way through this zone was to run, avoid as many battles as possible, and only stop when they came across a Grand Lord.

The Werewolf patrol squad respawned very quickly. Moreover, their hunting range extended throughout the zone. If they discovered players, the Werewolves would chase them to the ends of the earth.

Fortunately, Shi Feng's command snapped everyone out of their daze, and the team began to advance.

With the team's MTs on the frontlines, and everyone following closely behind, the team soon broke through the Werewolves' blockade.

Although the team had encountered plenty of Werewolves as they moved, they hadn't run into any Grand Lords. Hence, the MTs had remained within their block limits. Including their mobile turrets, such as Zhao Yueru and Aqua Rose, the team knocked aside the Grand Lord ranked Werewolves that had stood in their path. This allowed everyone to approach the ruin's core relatively easily.

After a little over four hours, Phoenix Rain's team reached the isolated area separating the Werewolf zone and the center of the Sunset Forest.

Some players had even leveled up during the past four hours. Those who hadn't had seen a 30% rise in their experience bars. These players were a little reluctant to leave the Werewolf zone after realizing their leveling speed.

"Big Sis Melody, the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion has pretty good luck. Although the Sunset Forest is a Grade 1 Historical Site, it's much easier than the Grade 2 Historical Site we previously raided. Even after gathering so many experts, the Sacred Temple had only reached the core after using all of our allotted time," Lonely Fantasy enviously commented as he gazed at the dense forest before them, which was currently protected by a magic barrier.

Unfortunately, despite all of the EXP they had obtained, the Historical Site's monsters hadn't dropped any loot. To secure a Historical Site's treasure, they had to search its core.

With over three hours remaining, they could recover some of the Sunset Forest's items, even if they failed to clear it. In contrast, when the Sacred Temple had raided the Grade 2 Historical Site, they hadn't returned with anything. To top it off, they had team-wiped twice.

"Easy?" Quiet Melody glanced at the Werewolf army standing near the edge of the isolation area before turning towards Shi Feng, who had sat down to rest. "It seems I'll need to report to the Guild Leader."

Their journey might've seemed easy, so much so that Phoenix Rain hadn't had to use a single trump card she had prepared for this trip, but they had only come this far due to Shi Feng's efficient command and Zero Wing's incredible DPS.

If the Sacred Temple hired Zero Wing to raid Historical Sites in the future, their chances of success would increase tremendously.

After the team rested for a bit, they marched towards the protected forest ahead of them.

The moment they pushed through the magic barrier, they felt as if a great weight had dropped on their shoulders. They also struggled to concentrate.

"Everyone, be careful when we face the monsters in this area! The Mana here is very thin, and the gravity is three times that of other zones," Shi Feng warned his companions in the team chat. "Scouting parties, be wary of traps as you explore ahead. Report back immediately if you spot monsters!"

The Sunset Forest's Mana was paper-thin. After factoring in the high-gravity, players would struggle to display their full combat power in this area. Even experts would be fortunate to exhibit 60 or 70% of their total combat power. Ordinary players might not even display 30%.

Fortunately, the core didn't have many monsters. Each group the team encountered only consisted of several hundred Forest Dryads. Meanwhile, the strongest among these Dryads was a Level 58 Grand Lord, whereas the weakest were Level 55 Lords.

While exploring the Sunset Forest, the team annihilated over a dozen Dryad groups. They had discovered three Dryad nests as well, each of which was like a miniature treasure trove.

Although numerous Dryads protected these nests, the strongest fortified nest they had found only had six Grand Lords and a single specialized Grand Lord.

Seeing the potential harvest she could obtain from these nests, Phoenix Rain used all six Tier 3 Summoning Scroll she had prepared. Each Summoning Scroll had a three-hour duration, just long enough to last them until their time in the Sunset Forest came to an end.

With the six Tier 3 summoned creatures, Solitary Nine, and Dark Madness tanking the Grand Lords, the team swiftly cleared out the Dryad nests, taking roughly 30 minutes to do so.

Meanwhile, each of the nests they found had contained over 30 Treasure Chests, the lowest rank of which was Secret-Silver, while the best they had found thus far was a Dark-Gold Treasure Chest. After raiding three Dryad nests, the team had obtained 11 Dark-Gold Treasure Chests and 43 Fine-Gold Treasure Chests. In addition, the team had found various materials the Dryads had collected. Among the materials, they had found precious Ancient Origin Wood.

Even Quiet Melody was a little jealous.

The Sunset Forest was a Level 50 to Level 60 Historical Site. Needless to say, its Treasure Chests would drop Level 50 to 60 weapons and equipment. At this stage of the game, Level 50-plus, Fine-Gold Equipment was still incredibly rare, much less Dark-Gold rank.

"Commander, we've discovered something," a scouting party suddenly reported. "It looks like a Dryad nest, but there's a shrine inside it. A lot of Dryads are patrolling the nest, too. I don't think we can investigate further without being detected."

"Good! We'll make our way there right away!" Shi Feng was ecstatic.

The scouting party had found the Sunset Shrine!

The Sunset Shrine hid most of the Sunset Forest's treasure, but its location wasn't static. The shrine's location would differ each time the Sunset Forest activated. Every time players teleported to the Historical Site, they'd have to search for the Sunset Shrine all over again.

Shi Feng quickly led the team to the Sunset Shrine, but when they arrived, they gasped at what they saw.

"How is this possible?! Didn't the records say that Grade 1 Historical Sites' Final Boss is supposed to be a Grand Lord ranked Archaic Species?!" Phoenix Rain unconsciously balled her fists when she saw at the gigantic, living tree blocking the distant shrine.

When everyone saw this massive treant, they could not help but shudder.

The giant tree was the Sunset Forest's Final Boss, but its rank wasn't what they had expected; rather than a Grand Lord, the treant was a Mythic monster.

The King of Trees!