Chapter 632

Chapter 632: Gray Eagle

 

Chapter 632 – Gray Eagle

Above the wide and spacious stone platform, Shi Feng slowly sheathed the Abyssal Blade, not even bothering to look at the Level 30 Berserker who had fallen to the ground.

“Next,” Shi Feng said calmly.

The rules of the amphitheater were set so that when a vital point was struck, death and defeat were certain. Even a Shield Warrior with high HP and Defense was no exception to this rule, not to mention a Berserker.

Seeing Shi Feng’s calm expression, everyone who had felt insulted immediately shut their mouths, a hint of fear appearing in their eyes.

Although the Berserker class was not a speed-based class, it was not easily defeated. Not to mention, the Berserker that had served as Shi Feng’s opponent was an expert who had experienced countless live battles.

Moreover, they were all companions, so they understood each other’s strengths quite well.

Although the Berserker Shi Feng had defeated did not rank within the top five of their group, his combat power could still rank within the top ten. The fact that Shi Feng had defeated the Berserker with a single attack, giving the Berserker no time to react, was simply inconceivable.

“As expected of someone chosen by the Pavilion Master; you indeed possess some ability. Let me, Gray Eagle, learn something from you, then.”

A middle-aged man with a lean body and eyes as sharp as an eagle’s stepped out from the crowd.

When the crowd saw the Berserker named Gray Eagle step forward, the shock from Shi Feng’s one-sided victory immediately dissipated, their arrogance and confidence returning.

“Eagle, we’re counting on you! We can’t let him look down on us!” the others showed their support from the side.

Gray Eagle was the number one expert among their group. Although the man was already in his forties, his keen skills and bountiful combat experience were unmatched by ordinary, young players.

“I’ll do my best.” Gray Eagle nodded as he slowly walked up to Shi Feng.

Meanwhile, Phoenix Rain smiled pleasantly as she watched from the stands.

“We didn’t have the chance to see Black Flames true strength in the previous match. Now that Gray Eagle has stepped forward, we should get to see his limits,” Phoenix Rain said, smiling as she watched a playback video of Shi Feng’s prior battle.

“Miss, even in the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion, Gray Eagle is an expert who ranks at the very top. He has a good chance of defeating anyone among the younger generation, other than Martial Dragon. How could he not be a match for Black Flame?” Pure Fragrance could not help her surprise when she heard Phoenix Rain’s words.

Pure Fragrance believed that Phoenix Rain overestimated Shi Feng’s strength.

She had not been paying attention, so she had not seen the moment when Shi Feng had drawn his sword. However, after watching the battle’s recording, she could tell that his attack was not so fast that it was unblockable. Only, Shi Feng’s attack was crafty, suddenly changing its trajectory to target his opponent’s blind spot. As a result, the Berserker was unable to react in time and received a hit to his vital point, dying.

However, Gray Eagle was different. The combat experience he possessed was several times greater compared to the other reserve members. Even if Shi Feng abruptly changed the trajectory of his attack once more, it would be no threat to Gray Eagle.

“We’ll know once the battle begins.”

Naturally, Phoenix Rain knew how powerful Gray Eagle was. She had initially wanted Gray Eagle to lead the battle team. If Black Flame had not succeeded in conquering the Hell Mode Ruins of the Crow God, she would not be here today.

The moment Phoenix Rain finished speaking, the countdown timer above the stone platform also ended.

“Let me see just how strong you are.” Gray Eagle retrieved his two-handed saber. Suddenly, his eyes grew cold; even the surrounding temperature dropped. It seemed as if nothing could escape his frosty gaze.

Before Shi Feng could move, Gray Eagle sent his saber slashing at Shi Feng’s shoulder.

Gray Eagle’s attack was not fast. On the contrary, it was very slow. Even an ordinary player could react to and block the attack. It was as if Gray Eagle’s attack were tempting his opponent to block it.

In addition, Gray Eagle’s saber targeted a vital point. Facing this attack, one would have no choice but to either block or dodge it.

If Shi Feng did not defend against this attack, choosing to attack Gray Eagle’s vital point instead, the battle would end in mutual destruction.

One could say that this was a suicidal blow.

At this moment, those who were familiar with Gray Eagle laughed. They all knew that Gray Eagle was not trying to pit his life against his opponent’s. Rather, he was using this attack to probe for his opponent’s weaknesses.

Normally, experts rarely had any weak points when they were on guard. However, the instant they launched an attack, they would reveal their greatest weak point. Hence, Gray Eagle tempted Shi Feng to expose his weak point of his own accord. Then, he would strike. Although Gray Eagle would also reveal his weak point, with his superior insight and abundant combat experience, he could easily suppress his opponent.

In other words, Gray Eagle lured Shi Feng to fight within his comfort zone. Due to this ability, many top-tier experts in the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion were helpless against Gray Eagle.

“Going all-in?” Shi Feng laughed. “You’ll regret it.”

In the next moment, Shi Feng recklessly dove forward, towards Gray Eagle’s purple-black saber. He did not even bother using his sword to block the oncoming weapon.

Has he gone mad?! Gray Eagle was dumbfounded as he watched Shi Feng’s insane behavior. Does he think I’ll show mercy? Or does he think he can avoid my saber at the last moment?

Gray Eagle was very experienced in combat. Seeing as Shi Feng was not a lunatic, the only possibility for such reckless behavior was that Shi Feng believed he could evade his attack at the very last moment and take the opportunity to strike at his weak point.

You underestimate me.

Gray Eagle’s expression chilled further as he used more of his arms’ strength. Suddenly, the speed of his saber increased. At such a close distance, it was simply impossible for anyone to avoid this attack.

Immediately after, Gray Eagle’s saber passed through Shi Feng’s body.

“This is…?!” Gray Eagle was dumbfounded as he saw his saber cut across Shi Feng’s face, discovering that his weapon only struck an afterimage.

“What’s going on here?” Pure Fragrance gaped at this scene. No matter how she looked at it, Gray Eagle’s saber should have struck Shi Feng. Yet, for some unknown reason, despite a short distance of one meter between the Berserker and Swordsman, the 1.3-meter-long two-handed saber had failed to reach its target.

Sitting beside Pure Fragrance, Phoenix Rain squinted her eyes at this scene. With a heavy expression, she said, “Treating retreat as advance. I didn’t imagine that Black Flame had already reached such a realm.”

“Treating retreat as an advance? How does he know that?” Pure Fragrance was shocked when she heard her superior’s comment.

Treating retreat as an advance was an attack technique. Against this technique, one would notice their opponent rush towards them, while in reality, their opponent was retreating. In actual combat, one would discover that they could not make contact with their opponent’s body despite their opponent remaining right in front of them. It was as if they were haunted by a ghost, and they could not get rid of this ghost no matter what they did. This was a technique that could mentally exhaust the other party.

Treating retreat as an advance was Martial Dragon’s specialty. However, the reason Martial Dragon could use such a technique was his Domain. He was only capable of using such a combat technique due to his absolute control over his surroundings.

Could he have learned it after his fight with Martial Dragon? How can that be?! Thinking up to this point, Pure Fragrance felt a chill crawl down her spine.

Following which, Gray Eagle brandished his sword over a dozen times at Shi Feng. Every attack was swift and precise. Ordinary players could not defend against these attacks at all. Yet, no matter how hard the Berserker swung his saber, his weapon never struck the Swordsman before him. His attacks would always be off by a small thread. However, he could not stop his desperate and suicidal attacks. With such a short distance between them, if Shi Feng attacked, he would not have enough time to react.

No wonder the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion’s men were so confident when Gray Eagle stepped up. He’s an expert who has entered the Refinement Realm. If I had not gained some enlightenment from the Darkness Shrine, fighting him would have really been troublesome. At this moment, Shi Feng already had a general grasp of Gray Eagle’s standard. Time to end things.

Chapter 633: Capturing a Demonic Beast

 

Chapter 633 – Capturing a Demonic Beast

Shi Feng suddenly disappeared.

Is this the rumored Void Steps?

Gray Eagle was surprised. He had, more or less, watched the videos of Shi Feng using his specialty move, Void Steps. Only, he had not imagined that a live human being could actually disappear right before his eyes. Not even his acute five senses could find any trace of Shi Feng’s presence.

However, Void Steps weakness was also blatantly obvious.

And that was the instant when Shi Feng attacked. Facing a fatal strike, the brain would not ignore such vital information. However, it was also very difficult to block such an attack as the distance between them was simply too short.

The most common method to counter Void Steps was to adapt to it gradually, allowing one’s brain to stop ignoring the transmission of information. That way, Shi Feng’s Void Steps would be rendered useless. However, it was extremely difficult to achieve this. It was like trying to remember the faces of the hundreds of pedestrians one walked by every day.

Remembering the faces of a few people was already a difficult feat, as the brain would automatically ignore the majority of such information. Hence, it was extremely difficult to unravel Shi Feng’s Void Steps.

However, you still underestimate me.

Gray Eagle grinned as he shifted the trajectory of his saber, swinging the weapon towards a vacant location.

Dang!

Sparks scattered as the sound of clashing metal echoed throughout the amphitheater. Suddenly, Shi Feng appeared above the stone platform.

Sure enough, he can grasp my general location.

Shi Feng was not at all surprised by Gray Eagle’s performance. After all, the Berserker had already entered the Refinement Realm. Gray Eagle’s observational skills should be exceptional. Even with a lack of information, Gray Eagle should be able to grasp his general location.

It was like his fight with Martial Dragon. With his Domain, Martial Dragon was capable of processing all information within his Domain without missing even the tiniest of detail. If Martial Dragon concentrated on observing his surroundings, he could render Void Steps utterly useless.

Unfortunately, you only have a single weapon, whereas I have two.

Shi Feng increased the force he exerted with the Abyssal Blade, pinning down Gray Eagle’s two-handed saber. Meanwhile, Purgatory’s Shadow, which he wielded with his other hand, completed a perfect arc as it slid through Gray Eagle’s heart, leaving behind small and unnoticeable seam.

“Damn it…”

Gray Eagle clutched at his heart as he fell to the stone floor of the platform, reluctance filling his eyes as he died.

Gray Eagle’s defeat stunned the venue into silence.

Although this match had appeared uneventful, most battles between experts were like this. Tiny differences usually decided the outcome of these battles.

“What a pity. If Gray Eagle could use two weapons as well, Black Flame would not have won so easily.” Pure Fragrance sighed. No matter what anyone said or did, Gray Eagle was a part of the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion. The fact that Gray Eagle was defeated so easily was not a good thing for the Pavilion’s reputation.

“Would two weapons really solve the problem?” Phoenix Rain wore a complex expression as she watched Shi Feng. “He really is a hateful person.”

Gray Eagle was a Berserker, a class that was known for its Strength. The class’s Strength growth was the highest of any class, yet Shi Feng had suppressed Gray Eagle with a single hand. This was enough to show just how high Shi Feng’s Strength Attribute was.

With such an advantage, Shi Feng could easily decide the outcome the moment the battle began. Still, Shi Feng had chosen to waste so much time with Gray Eagle.

Why?

There could only be one explanation; he wanted to determine Gray Eagle’s strength.

Originally, Phoenix Rain had thought to use Gray Eagle to uncover the depths of Shi Feng’s strength. However, not only had they failed to do so, but they had also allowed Shi Feng to study them in turn.

Following which, Shi Feng proceeded with testing the remaining 18 reserve members and sure enough, not a single one passed. Shi Feng finished off everyone with a single hit.

“Miss Phoenix, I’m sorry to say this, but none of these people passed. It seems that I can only recruit members on my own,” Shi Feng said, smiling at Phoenix Rain.

Hearing Shi Feng’s declaration, the reserve members instantly paled.

Shi Feng had extinguished their previous arrogance and confidence. They could not even bring themselves to muster a retort.

“If none of them passed, it can’t be helped. I still have to deal with some procedures regarding the participation rights. As for the battle team members, I’ll leave it to Guild Leader Black Flame.” Phoenix Rain inwardly rolled her eyes at Shi Feng. It was obvious that Shi Feng had no intentions of letting her subordinates join the battle team.

Finished speaking, Phoenix Rain left the Divine Colosseum with her group.

Meanwhile, Shi Feng hailed a horse carriage and hurried towards White River City’s Teleportation Hall.

“Phoenix Rain can’t be underestimated. She was actually able to recruit three Refinement Realm experts. It seems that I’ll have to hasten Fire Dance and the others’ training.” Shi Feng had a clear understanding of his companions’ strength.

If not for his intention to widen the Guild’s core members’ horizons in the Dark Arena, Phoenix Rain’s top three reserve members definitely qualified to become official members. After all, Refinement Realm experts were rare in God’s Domain. A battle team with three of such experts could definitely rank in the middle among all battle teams participating in the Dark Arena. This was also why Phoenix Rain believed that the battle team had the chance to rank within the top 100.

Of course, that was not to say that Fire Dance and the others were weaker than Gray Eagle’s group.

A player’s combat power could not be determined by combat techniques alone. Attributes and Skills also made up a rather large ratio.

Upon arriving at the Teleportation Hall, Shi Feng quickly discovered Fire Dance and the others, who had been waiting for him for quite some time.

“Guild Leader, we brought what you asked for. However, haven’t we bought a few too many?” Aqua Rose asked, feeling a slight sting to her heart.

Hunting Scrolls and Storage Space Scrolls were already very expensive. A single Hunting Scroll cost 3 Gold, 50 Silver, whereas a Storage Space Scroll cost a full 5 Gold.

If they only needed to purchase a few, Aqua Rose would not have minded. After all, the Guild’s member count had increased significantly in recent days. The money a 2-star Guild could earn through Guild Quests was quite significant as well. In addition, they also had the profits from the Candlelight Trading Firm. Hence, spending 100 or 200 Gold wouldn’t be an issue.

However, Shi Feng had requested 100 Hunting Scrolls and 50 Storage Space Scrolls. Furthermore, hunting required other items as well. In total, they had spent more than 800 Gold to prepare for this hunting trip. Not even a Bronze Mount cost that much.

“You’ll understand when the time comes. This amount is nothing considerable.” Shi Feng laughed.

In the past, to obtain a slightly better Guild Mount, various large Guilds had spent astronomical sums of money. In comparison, they had only spent around 800 Gold.

Aqua Rose grew frustrated by Shi Feng’s response. Fortunately, Zero Wing still had the Candlelight Trading Firm to support it. Otherwise, this hunting trip would have punched a huge hole in the Guild’s finances.

“Let’s head to the Great Forest of Soria.” Saying so, Shi Feng approached the Teleportation Magic Array.

Upon discovering their destination, everyone involuntarily trembled.

The Great Forest of Soria… Anyone who researched high-level maps knew that the Great Forest of Soria was a Level 50 map. To current players, it was a death trap.

Furthermore, the Great Forest of Soria was different from ordinary leveling maps; it was a forbidden land for the human race!

Chapter 634: Starfall City

 

Chapter 634 – Starfall City

Very quickly, Shi Feng paid the party’s teleportation fees. Each person cost 80 Silver for a total of 4 Gold, 80 Silver for the whole party. An ordinary party could not afford to spend that much money even if they bankrupted themselves.

The Great Forest of Soria was a neutral area situated between the Black Dragon Empire and the Star-Moon Kingdom.

Current players were not nearly strong enough to survive the area.

Players also knew the Great Forest of Soria as the Forest of Death. It was a Level 50 to Level 70 leveling map, and it was three to four times larger than ordinary leveling maps of the same Level. However, the map’s high level wasn’t the greatest threat. The reason behind the ‘Forest of Death’ nickname was the utter lack of fortresses or safe gathering locations for humans. Instead, the map was a haven for Demonic Beasts and Half-orcs.

The Great Forest of Soria was a kingdom of Half-orcs, and it posed a great threat to players as the Half-orc race was highly prejudiced against outsiders. Players could encounter the Half-orc patrol squads at any time inside the Great Forest. Not only were these patrol squads extremely powerful, but they would also call for their other companions to ambush players. Hence, survival within the Great Forest was, to say the least, challenging.

Through the teleportation array, Shi Feng’s party quickly arrived at Starfall City, a city near Star-Moon Kingdom’s border.

Starfall City was the second largest city in Star-Moon Kingdom’s northern region.

Although the city was near the kingdom’s border, it was the most prosperous of all the cities in the northern region. Starfall City was of similar rank to White River City. Only, the city had a few more Tier 4 NPCs guarding it than White River City. There were a total of seven Tier 4 NPCs. The city’s defensive power greatly surpassed White River City and was only weaker than Star-Moon City.

“This place is impressive!” Blackie could not help his shock when he saw the busy street.

There were a lot of NPC guards patrolling the streets, at least twice that of White River City. Other than the NPC guards, there were also plenty of Merchants roaming about. One could also see many horse carriages carrying cargo coming and going.

Moreover, these Merchants were not limited to NPCs. There were also plenty of player Merchants. These player Merchants similarly rode horse carriages around the city. There were also plenty of player Merchants who had parked their carriages in one place and hawked and bought various items.

“What are they doing?

Cola noticed that these player Merchants were frantically purchasing various materials and equipment from other players. There were even some who purchased common items from NPC Merchants. Moreover, these player Merchants purchased these common items in large quantities, costing up to dozens, or even more than a hundred, Gold. Such an amount would be enough to fund a small Guild for a relatively long time.

None of White River City’s players would be so insane as to purchase so many common items from NPC Merchants.

“Those people are reselling goods and making a profit through the price differences,” Shi Feng explained.

“Making a profit through the price differences?” Blackie was confused. “But the NPCs’ prices are the same throughout Star-Moon Kingdom. Only some unique items can be resold for a profit. Even so, there aren’t usually many of those items available for sale, and normally, when the NPCs restock, large Guilds usually buy everything, keeping them for their own use. Who are they planning to sell these common items to?”

“To players, of course,” Shi Feng said, laughing. “Although NPCs’ common items in Star-Moon Kingdom have uniform prices, the prices may be different in other kingdoms and empires. Some items sold in Star-Moon Kingdom might be more expensive in the Black Dragon Empire, while some items might be cheaper. Meanwhile, these people are trying to make a profit through the difference in prices.”

“Then, aren’t there teleportation arrays? Wouldn’t it be easier just to deliver their products using teleportation arrays?” Blackie asked curiously. “Why must they use horse carriages?”

“Very simple. The transportation fees would be too high if they used the teleportation arrays. Moreover, only the capital city has an array that enables teleportation between other kingdoms and empires, and each teleportation would cost more than 1 Gold. Their profit margin is not high. Moreover, a player can’t carry enough items. They might even incur losses if they used teleportation arrays to conduct their trades.

“Meanwhile, a horse carriage can carry more than a dozen times that of players. Some good horse carriages can even carry up to twenty or thirty times. Although one may waste some time and encounter some dangers if they travel to the Black Dragon Empire via a horse carriage, in general, they can earn a lot of money with a single trip. These player Merchants earn even more money than our Guild’s elite players.”

Shi Feng had some knowledge regarding the Merchant subclass. In the past, his Guild had frequently organized Caravans to conduct cross-border trade, earning significant funds for the Guild. Meanwhile, Starfall City offered a natural advantage for cross-border trade. This was also why many Merchants throughout Star-Moon Kingdom specifically traveled all the way to Starfall City to develop themselves.

Everyone came to a realization upon hearing Shi Feng’s explanation. They had never imagined that the cross-border trade was such a profitable business.

The wages Zero Wing offered were among the highest of all Guilds in Star-Moon Kingdom. The money its elite members earned each day was several times more than the elite members of other Guilds. The money they earned could even rival that of ordinary experts.

Yet, these Merchant players actually made more money than Zero Wing’s elite members. In other words, these Merchant players made more money than even the ordinary experts in God’s Domain.

“Alright, split up and look for any Caravans that are about to depart,” Shi Feng ordered.

There was a great distance between Starfall City and the Great Forest of Soria. If a player relied on their own two feet to travel, it would take over ten hours to reach the Great Forest. If Shi Feng were traveling alone, he could simply teleport to the Great Forest with the aid of the Seven Luminaries Ring, saving him a lot of hassle. Unfortunately, none of his other party members possessed the Seven Luminaries Ring. Hence, they would have no choice but to travel to the Great Forest on foot.

Meanwhile, if a Caravan were about to embark from Starfall City to the Black Dragon Empire, they would have to pass through the outermost region of the Great Forest of Soria.

If one traveled via horse carriage, the journey to the Great Forest would only take three or four hours. It was much faster than even Common Mounts.

However, the road to the Black Dragon Empire was not easy for a Caravan. A Caravan normally required an escort of guards. Meanwhile, powerful players would often accept such Escort Quests as they were extremely profitable. The money one could earn from these quests was several times higher than ordinary high-level quests. Only, one would have to invest a lot of time to complete the quest.

A dozen minutes or so later, Aqua Rose located a Caravan that was about to depart for the Black Dragon Empire.

This Caravan was not particularly large. In total, there were only a dozen or so horse carriages. Moreover, it was a Caravan that consisted entirely of players. It was far less safe than NPC Caravans.

After leaving the city, Caravans could encounter all sorts of trouble such as monster attacks and player robberies. In the past, Shi Feng had even tragically been mugged by a Tier 4 Sword Emperor NPC.

Meanwhile, in an NPC-organized Caravan, there would usually be some NPC guards escorting the Caravan. Ordinary players would not dare consider robbing such Caravans; monsters offered the greatest danger these Caravans. Player-organized Caravans, on the other hand, were often the targets of players who had joined the dark forces.

Of course, with risk comes opportunity. If player Merchants joined an NPC-organized Caravan, their profits would decrease sharply. The maximum amount of money they could earn from a single trade was only one-third of the money they could make if they joined a player-organized Caravan. Of course, even this was still a significant amount of money to an ordinary player.

In other words, a player-organized Caravan’s profits were three times that of an NPC-organized Caravan. Naturally, courageous or strong players would take this risk.

“Our Red Rain Caravan is not some weak Caravan. We don’t welcome weaklings here. Not to mention, you guys are only planning to join us to the Great Forest of Soria. You will occupy our guard slots for nothing.” A female Ranger with a charming and flirtatious look sneered. This female Ranger had black, shoulder-length hair and wore a black-and-red tight-fitting leather jacket.

Chapter 635: Rainless Sword

 

Chapter 635 – Rainless Sword

Just as the female Ranger had said, the Red Rain Caravan’s strength could not be underestimated.

Although the Red Rain Caravan was slightly weaker than the other Caravans that consisted of over 30 horse carriages, their horse carriages were of higher quality. Two horses pulled the Red Rain Caravan’s carriages, unlike the normal horse carriages that other Caravans used, which were only pulled by one horse. Not only were the Red Rain Caravan’s carriages faster, but they could also hold considerably more cargo, with each carriage holding up to 24 times that of an ordinary player’s bag space. Moreover, due to the horse carriages being of a higher rank, they could hire two more guards than ordinary carriages.

Forming such a powerful Caravan at this stage of the game displayed the great capability of this player group.

“Guild Leader, although there are several other Caravans that are about to leave we’ll have to wait for another three to four hours for them to resupply before they set out. However, this Caravan doesn’t want guards that will quit halfway through the journey,” Aqua Rose reported.

Although there were many Caravans in Starfall City, that did not mean that a Caravan was available to set off at any time.

“It’s their loss for not picking powerful guards like us,” Cola snorted. He had just replaced his old shield with the Divine Bluefire Shield, his strength increasing significantly, so he felt somewhat irritated by the fact that the Red Rain Caravan had ignored him.

Shi Feng swept a glance over the Red Rain Caravan that was recruiting guards some distance away.

The Red Rain Caravan consisted of a total of 16 Bronze Carriages, each holding a maximum of five people. That was two more than Common Carriages; in other words, the Red Rain Caravan could carry a total of 80 people. After including the Caravan’s Merchants, they could recruit up to a maximum of 50 guards. If the Caravan allowed Shi Feng’s party of six to take up one-eighth of the remaining slots, it would greatly strengthen the Caravan.

Currently, Shi Feng’s group wore Black Cloaks to hide their identities. Outsiders could not discern their appearances at all, not to mention their Guild.

With Zero Wing’s influence in Star-Moon Kingdom, the Red Rain Caravan would definitely show some deference and allow their party to join.

However, Shi Feng did not wish to expose their tracks.

Every large Guild had their own investigation team that was responsible for collecting information on and tracking the important members of other large Guilds, taking the opportunity to investigate their movements or seek opportunities to assassinate these members.

Everyone in Star-Moon Kingdom knew of Zero Wing. Naturally, their actions would attract the attention of many parties. Not to mention, Zero Wing had plenty of enemies. If someone discovered their tracks, some of these enemies might go out of their way to deal with them.

Although Shi Feng was not afraid of his enemies, he did not wish to risk exposing the location of a rare Guild Mount and the method of capturing it; that would be a huge loss for him. Therefore, Shi Feng had everyone in his party hide their identities.

“I’ll negotiate with them.” Shi Feng shook his head and smiled. He then walked towards the lead female Ranger.

“Why are you here again? Haven’t I said that our guard slots are precious and that we can’t afford to hire people that will quit halfway through the trip?” the female Ranger named Red Rain said.

“We don’t want any remunerations. I’ll even give you 1 Gold as a traveling expense. How about it?” Shi Feng took out a shining Gold Coin from his bag.

Although the Red Rain Caravan transported a lot of goods, they could not earn much. To the Caravan, 1 Gold was a significant amount of money.

Hearing Shi Feng’s offer, Red Rain hesitated.

“Although the Great Forest of Soria is only halfway, most of the dangers on the way to the Empire come from the Great Forest itself. As long as you get through the Great Forest, you shouldn’t encounter any problems on the remaining journey. We’ll part ways only after we exit the Great Forest, how about that?” Shi Feng offered another suggestion.

“This…” Red Rain was clearly tempted.

Indeed, just as Shi Feng had stated, the truly dangerous area from Starfall City to the Black Dragon Empire was the Great Forest of Soria. The Great Forest was the best place for players to set up an ambush. At the same time, the Great Forest was also where Caravans would most likely encounter monster attacks. As long as they passed through the Great Forest, their trip to the Black Dragon Empire could basically be considered a success.

“Sis, just agree to their offer. Our Red Rain Caravan is famous in Starfall City. Those bandit players normally take the long way around to avoid us. What’s wrong with earning a little more money?” a Level 29 Swordsman youth asked. “Even if we encounter some trouble on the second half of the journey, doesn’t the Caravan still have me?”

While the Swordsman youth was speaking, Shi Feng activated Omniscient Eyes to size up the young man.

The Swordsman’s name was displayed as Rainless Path. The majority of his equipment was Level 25 Fine-Gold rank with a few pieces of Level 30 Secret-Silver Equipment. There was even a piece of Level 25 Dark-Gold Equipment.

Rainless Path? When Shi Feng saw this name, he suddenly recalled something about this Swordsman.

In the past, Rainless Path had been a famous Swordsman in Star-Moon Kingdom. At his peak, he had ranked within the top 30 Swordsmen in Star-Moon Kingdom. Back then, he had also been known as Rainless Sword. His name had shaken the entire Star-Moon Kingdom. Unfortunately, his growth had been limited by the fact that he was an independent player. For an independent player like Rainless Path to place within the top 30 of the kingdom’s Swordsmen was an amazing feat.

“Alright, then. I accept your offer. However, we have to make a contract first,” Red Rain sighed as she conceded. She thought that she was behaving too conservatively. After all, the Red Rain Caravan was a well-known Caravan in Starfall City. Bandit players normally would not try to make an enemy of their Caravan. Even in the off chance that someone did try to rob them, they still had an expert like Rainless Path.

“Okay.” Shi Feng did not object to signing a contract. With a contract, both sides could feel at ease.

Afterward, Shi Feng and his party entered into a contract with the Red Rain Caravan. The contract required Shi Feng’s party to pay a remuneration of 1 Gold to the Red Rain Caravan. In return, the Red Rain Caravan would transport his party to the Great Forest of Soria. The two groups would part ways once they exited the Great Forest.

After another dozen or so minutes, the Red Rain Caravan recruited enough players to fill the remaining guard spots. Shortly after, the Caravan departed from Starfall City.

The Bronze Carriages were very fast. Moving along the highway, it took only two hours for the Red Rain Caravan to reach the Great Forest of Soria.

Level 50 monsters roamed the Great Forest’s outermost region. However, due to the Star-Moon Kingdom and the Black Dragon Empire armies often clearing the monsters around the highway, the Great Forest’s monsters did not dare approach the highway casually. This allowed players to organize their own Caravans to travel between these two countries.

Moreover, with the current level of players, as long as they possessed some equipment that had the Ignore Levels Attribute and the Protection Skills unique to Caravans, even a player Caravan could pose a certain degree of threat to Level 50 monsters. As long as there were not too many monsters, a player Caravan could even kill off the Level 50 monsters.

Only, during transport, the players in a Caravan would not get any loot or EXP from the monsters they killed. Hence, players were unable to take advantage of the Caravan’s strength to grind for EXP and items. Moreover, the Carriages could only travel on commercial roads; they could not travel to other locations. Otherwise, players would not need to purchase Mounts.

—

Shortly after the Red Rain Caravan entered the Great Forest of Soria, a thinly-built Ranger hiding in a towering tree noticed the Caravan. This Ranger then activated Eagle Eyes and carefully observed his target.

“Boss, another Caravan has arrived,” the Ranger said through the team chat.

“Which Caravan is it?” a rough and barbaric voice came from the other side.

“Looking at the symbol, it seems to be the Red Rain Caravan,” the thinly-built Ranger said, licking his lips.

“Red Rain Caravan. Excellent. I’ll show that slut, Red Rain, that struggling is useless, even if she has Rainless Path. Send me their coordinates. Today, the Thousand Mile killers will take this opportunity to lay our hands on the Red Rain Caravan for never paying tolls!”

The thinly-built Ranger immediately sent the Red Rain Caravan’s coordinates to his boss.

“Hahaha! We’re going to make a fortune! I heard that the Red Rain Caravan is as rich as an oil baron! The Caravan has even given Rainless Path a Dark-Gold Weapon. Their riches will be ours, the Thousand Mile Killers!” The thinly-built Ranger drooled as he watched the Bronze Carriages of the Red Rain Caravan.

Chapter 636: Dark Guild

 

Chapter 636 – Dark Guild

The Red Rain Caravan did not have an easy journey through the Great Forest of Soria.

They oftentimes encountered attacks from one or two Level 50 Wind Leopards, forcing the Caravan to halt their advance and face these Demonic Beasts.

[Wind Leopard] (Demonic Beast, Common Rank)

Level 50

HP 50,000/50,000

Although the Wind Leopard was only a Common monster and its HP was very low, its speed and damage could rival even that of a Level 30 Chieftain. Ordinary players would not survive more than three hits from this monster.

If an ordinary player encountered a Wind Leopard, only death awaited them. They would not even have a chance to escape.

However, when a Caravan was in the process of delivering goods, it gained Special Skills. There was no need for players to risk their lives to defend their cargo. They could deal significant damage to these monsters just by relying on the Bronze Carriages’ Attack Skills. The Bronze Carriages could also enhance players’ Attributes within a certain range. A Level 30 player could receive such a massive buff that it gave them the Attributes of a Level 40 player. Hence, as long as a player was somewhat skilled, it was not entirely impossible for them to defeat Level 50 monsters.

Before Shi Feng’s party even descended from their Carriages, Rainless Path was already charging towards the two Wind Leopards. And before the two Wind Leopards could react, Rainless Path activated Chop and dealt three damages of over -1,000 points to one of the Demonic Beasts.

“Aoo!”

The injured Wind Leopard released an angry howl. It then pounced at Rainless Path, brandishing its sharp claws at the Swordsman. At the same time, the other Wind Leopard darted towards Rainless Path with its fangs bared.

However, before the two Wind Leopards could touch Rainless Path, the six frontmost Bronze Carriages each fired a blue beam at the two monsters. The beams were extremely fast, and in the blink of an eye, they struck the Wind Leopards, knocking them back. Each beam dealt -3,000 damage and severely injured the two monsters.

Rainless Path circled to the Wind Leopards’ backs, aiming Earth Splitter at their hind legs. The keen edge of a Dark-Gold longsword was extraordinary. Immediately, Rainless Path’s weapon sliced through the Leopards’ thick hide, damaging the tendons and greatly reducing the monsters’ mobility.

Following which, the other Bronze Carriages fired beams as well, and in a short moment, the two Wind Leopards were dead. Meanwhile, Rainless Path had even not received a single point of damage. The coordination between player and Carriages was perfect. Shi Feng and the other guards had no chance to display their skill at all.

Sheathing his longsword, Rainless Path leaped back onto his Carriage and said, “Let’s go.”

This scene shocked many of the Caravan’s guards. Rainless Path was able to defeat two Level 50 Wind Leopards without suffering any damage. In all of Starfall City, very few were capable of such a feat.

“As expected of Red Rain Caravan’s Rainless Path, it seems that the only thing we’ll do on this trip is fill our pockets with money,” many of the guard players said in celebration.

Although the remuneration and EXP for a Caravan’s Escort Quest were abundant, the quest itself was not an easy one. One would encounter many life-threatening dangers on the road. Hence, not many players in Starfall City were willing to accept an Escort Quest. However, it was a different story if the Escort Quest was for a powerful Caravan. In such cases, taking on the quest would be the equivalent of free money and EXP.

If he already has such precise physical control now, chances are that, among those in the Guild, only Fire Dance and Violet Cloud can defeat him. It’s no wonder why he was able to make a name for himself in Star-Moon Kingdom despite being an independent player. Shi Feng was able to gage Rainless Path’s combat standards during his previous battle. The current Rainless Path was many times stronger than Shi Feng when he had first logged into God’s Domain in this life.

—

At a stone bridge in the Great Forest of Soria’s outer region, multiple Level 27 and higher players hid in the surrounding forest.

At such a distance, ordinary players traveling the road could easily discover these players. However, they had used Isolation Scrolls. Although they were not invisible, the scrolls blurred their bodies, making it very difficult to notice them by sight alone while they hid in the forest.

The person leading this team was a Level 29 Berserker wearing black scale armor and wielding a silver greatsword. Watching the quickly approaching Caravan, he sneered as he said, “They’re finally here. Get into position.”

Upon receiving this man’s command, every team member took out an earthy-yellow magic scroll from their bags.

The moment the Red Rain Caravan’s Carriages entered their encirclement, the leading Berserker shouted.

“Go!”

The members of Thousand Mile Killers immediately activated the yellow magic scrolls. In the next moment, thick walls rose from the road, sealing off the path ahead and behind the Red Rain Caravan, preventing the Carriages from advancing or retreating.

The ambush took the Red Rain Caravan’s players by surprise.

Before anyone could react, nearly one hundred players burst from the forest on both sides of the road.

Normally, when attempting to plunder a Caravan, one could not have too many players because if too many players joined the fight, the Caravan’s Special Skills would grow stronger, making the Caravan far more difficult to deal with. When attacking a Caravan consisting of a dozen or so Carriages, a small army of one hundred players offered the best results.

“Thousand Mile Bear!” Red Rain’s expression sank, her beautiful eyes glaring at the Berserker amidst the crowd. “We have never interfered with each other’s business. What is the meaning of this?”

The Thousand Mile Killers was a Red Name Team that had already plundered countless Caravans; Thousand Mile Bear was their leader.

However, the Thousand Mile Killers had never attempted to rob Starfall City’s famous Caravans. Hence, the various famous Caravans had never bothered to join hands to deal with the Thousand Mile Killers.

Red Rain had never thought that Thousand Mile Bear would break the unwritten rule after all this time and target their Red Rain Caravan.

“Red Rain, do you really think that I don’t normally target you guys because I am afraid of you?” Thousand Mile Bear grinned. Coldly, he said, “Hand over one piece of Dark-Gold Equipment and five pieces of Fine-Gold Equipment. Oh, and leave your Carriages behind. Otherwise, none of you will leave here alive.”

“Thousand Mile Bear, do you think that our Red Rain Caravan is that easy to bully? If you’re strong enough, take it yourself!” Red Rain unslung the dark blue longbow from her back and fired multiple arrows consecutively at the Level 29 Berserker.

Although an arrow was not as powerful as a Spell, it was much faster.

Rainless Path also unsheathed his longsword and swiftly charged towards Thousand Mile Bear.

In order to round up bandits, one must first catch their ringleader. If Thousand Mile Bear died, the other members of his team would fall into disarray.

“Since you don’t know when to give up, don’t blame me for not showing mercy.” Thousand Mile Bear swung his greatsword, deflecting the incoming arrows. He then called out to the twelve black-robed players behind him, saying, “It’s up to you guys now!”

All twelve black-robed players hid their identities. Their appearances were also indiscernible. However, all twelve radiated a bone-chilling aura.

The twelve players nodded silently before splitting up and charging towards the Caravan. They did not bother dealing with Rainless Path as a group.

“I heard that you are a Swordsman expert. I want to see just how strong you are.” One of the robed players, a Swordsman, unsheathed his pair of swords as he approached Rainless Path, wearing a playful expression

The black-robed Swordsman activated Wind Blade, arriving before and brandishing his swords at Rainless Path. As if they were venomous snakes, the black-robed Swordsman’s two swords struck at Rainless Path’s heart and neck with deadly precision. The attacks were so fast that Rainless Path barely saw the weapons’ afterimages.

“Who are you?” Rainless Path was shocked. Hurriedly, he swung his longsword to block the attack.

Throughout Starfall City, only a few players were capable of such speed and accuracy, and Rainless Path knew practically every Swordsman in the city who could achieve such a feat. However, he could not remember anyone who matched the size and aura of the black-robed Swordsman.

Dang! Dang!

Two rings of metal clashing resounded. Although Rainless Path blocked the black-robed Swordsman’s attacks, he had been forced to retreat by two steps. The black-robed Swordsman was slightly stronger than Rainless Path. However, Rainless Path did not lack speed as he slashed at his opponent’s Black Cloak, revealing the mysterious Swordsman’s true identity.

The mysterious Swordsman was actually a severely emaciated youth. However, the youth’s character ID was as crimson as a deep pool of blood. A black skull also graced the boy’s silver armor, and his entire body radiated a faint bloody glow.

“What is the Dark Guild, The Million Ghosts, doing here?!” Rainless Path could not help his shock when he saw the skull-shaped Guild Emblem.

“You really are powerful. However, what do you think of this?” the Swordsman youth laughed. In the next moment, he swung his swords and sent ten sword images towards Rainless Path. All ten sword images appeared before Rainless Path’s body simultaneously, making them impossible to block or dodge.

Chapter 637: Are The Million Ghosts Very Strong?

 

Chapter 637 – Are The Million Ghosts Very Strong?

Facing ten sword images, even an ordinary expert would be surprised, failing to defend themselves. However, instead of moving to block the attacks, Rainless Path activated Defensive Blade and charged towards the sword images.

Rainless Path then used the Tier 1 Swordsman Skill, Five Consecutive Slashes, on the Swordsman youth.

Five Consecutive Slashes was not a particularly powerful Skill among Tier 1 Swordsman Skills. However, this Skill increased his Attack Speed more than any other in his arsenal. When executing the Skill, the user would send out a total of five slashes, with each subsequent slash receiving a 20% Attack Speed and damage increase. Hence, each subsequent slash was faster and more powerful than the prior one, making it extremely difficult to counter.

Both Rainless Path and the mysterious youth were Swordsmen, and both parties were Level 29. Although they had extraordinary Attack Power, their Defenses were average. However, in terms of Attributes, the youth was stronger. The boy had over 7,300 HP, whereas Rainless Path only had over 6,800 HP. If either Swordsman failed to defend his opponent’s attack, even if they did not die instantly, they would not have much HP remaining.

Facing Rainless Path’s suicidal attack, the Swordsman youth had no choice but to activate Defensive Blade.

Peng… Peng… Peng…

After sparks scattered, both Swordsmen pulled away from each other. Though neither received any damage, their Defensive Blades had been exhausted. For a short time, neither Swordsman could use the Lifesaving Skill again.

After a series of exchanges, neither side managed to grasp an advantage over each other.

Although the Swordsman youth had the advantage in Attributes, Rainless Path’s combat techniques were superior. For a time, the Swordsmen were helpless against each other.

However, the same could not be said for the battles happening elsewhere.

Arrows and Spells flew through the air. The Bronze Carriages added their own magic attacks into the mix, as well. At the rear line, the healers of both sides concentrated on keeping their allies alive. The bridge had transformed into a miniature battlefield. Players could die at any time. When the Red Rain Caravan’s guards were killed by Red Names, they would lose one Level and drop two or three pieces of equipment. On the other hand, the ambushing Red Names suffered a more severe fate. When they died, not only did they lose two or three Levels, but they also dropped the majority of their equipment. There were even some Red Names who dropped every single piece of equipment they had upon death.

However, the black-robed players who had emerged were frighteningly strong. Killing the Red Rain Caravan’s guards was like child’s play to these players. In a short moment, these black-robed players had killed eight guards.

“How could this be?!” Red Rain suddenly felt a wave of despair.

They should not have had any problems dealing with the Thousand Mile Killers. However, these twelve powerful experts had rendered even the Red Rain Caravan powerless.

Moreover, these twelve experts were members of The Million Ghosts, a Dark Guild.

Dark Guilds were different from ordinary Guilds in that they focused on slaughtering other players. The members of Dark Guilds were all Red Names. Meanwhile, The Million Ghosts was one of the famous Dark Guilds in the Black Dragon Empire. The Dark Guild’s strength could rival even that of a first-rate Guild. Only, the Guild had far fewer members than a first-rate Guild.

Red Rain had never imagined that The Million Ghosts would lay their hands on this place as well.

Rainless Path was similarly anxious. After all, as his fight against the Swordsman youth drug on, more people in the Caravan would die.

“Hahaha! From today onwards, the trade route between Star-Moon Kingdom and the Black Dragon Empire belongs to The Million Ghosts! You people from Red Rain Caravan, when you return to Starfall City, make sure to tell all the Caravans in the city that anyone who crosses this bridge will have to pay a toll! Otherwise, they will share your fate!” Thousand Mile Bear arrogantly declared as he overlooked the battling crowd.

The Red Rain Caravan’s members could not help but despair at these words.

The Million Ghosts intended to use them as an example for the people of Starfall City.

“So, that’s the case. However, are The Million Ghosts very strong?” Shi Feng asked, chuckling as he looked down on the Level 29 Berserker.

Dark Guilds would normally occupy some high-traffic routes, making a fortune in tolls.

However, Shi Feng had never imagined that The Million Ghosts Guild would discover the importance of trade routes and begin claiming them so quickly.

It was just like the how the Candlelight Trading Firm was charged an export fee when selling their products in other cities. If they exported products to other countries, however, the fees were much higher, charging 30% of the item’s price. Hence, once players established a Shop in other countries, they normally formed their own Caravans to transport their goods, saving a lot on travel expenses.

The Candlelight Trading Firm already possessed Shops in a few cities within the Black Dragon Empire. The Trading Firm similarly had a Shop in Starfall City. However, as the level of current players was still somewhat low, Shi Feng had not planned to establish his own Caravan just yet.

Since The Million Ghosts was already eyeing trade routes, Shi Feng could not sit idle and do nothing.

“How dare you provoke The Million Ghosts!” a Level 29 black-robed Berserker charged towards Shi Feng, sending a Heavy Strike at Shi Feng’s head.

In response, Shi Feng remained motionless as he allowed the Berserker’s axe to descend on him.

Peng!

Before anyone knew it, Fire Dance appeared beside a black-robed Berserker and used Sneak Attack, forcing the Berserker into a Fainted state for 3 seconds. Immediately after, she used the most powerful Burst Skill an Assassin had, Absolute Strike. When her Dagger penetrated the Berserker’s back, the attack threw the latter forward by ten yards.

System: Absolute Strike Completion Rate 85%, resulting in 100% of Skill’s effect. Skill Proficiency +3.

-12,056!

The black-robed Berserker, who had less than 8,000 HP, dropped like a stone.

As the Berserker slammed heavily into the ground, he dropped three pieces of equipment.

Since the Berserker was a member of a Dark Guild, even though he was a Red Name and his name was nearly black, his punishment from the system would not be too severe. Only, he would drop slightly more items than an ordinary player. As for his lost levels, he would only lose one level like everyone else.

However, the black-robed Berserker’s death immediately silenced the battlefield. Everyone’s attention shifted towards Fire Dance, who currently wore a Black Cloak that blurred her appearance.

“Who are you?” Thousand Mile Bear asked, his expression turning grave as he stared at Shi Feng.

The twelve experts The Million Ghosts had sent were all core members of the Dark Guild. Every one of them was extremely powerful. Meanwhile, the Berserker that Fire Dance had killed ranked fifth out of the twelve experts. If such a person died from a single hit, even an idiot could tell that Shi Feng’s group was not ordinary.

Red Rain, who had begun to despair, also stared at Shi Feng’s party in disbelief.

So strong! Rainless Path could not help but shiver when he recalled Fire Dance killing the black-robed Berserker instantly. When he placed himself in the Berserker’s shoes, he felt that he would not have even had time to activate Defensive Blade, dying instantly. With such strength, Fire Dance could definitely rank at the very top of Starfall City. She was not someone that he could hope to contend with.

At this moment, Shi Feng waved his hand and said, “Get rid of them! Teach The Million Ghosts that there are some things that they are not allowed to touch!”

Fire Dance and the others nodded as they dashed towards The Million Ghosts’ experts.

Although there was not much of a level difference between them, in terms of equipment, Fire Dance and the others were leaps and bounds above The Million Ghosts’ experts. Not to mention the Dark Guild’s core members, even The Million Ghosts Guild Leader would not have equipment that could compare with a Tier 1 Set Equipment.

Cola charged at a Level 29 black-robed Assassin and used Divine Shield Strike. The Divine Bluefire Shield transformed into a blue meteor that struck the Assassin and dealt -2,748 damage. In response, the Assassin hurriedly spun to Cola’s back and used Backstab on the Guardian Knight. However, shifting his feet slightly, Cola easily blocked the attack with the Bluefire Shield, receiving no damage. Immediately after, Cola followed up with a Hammer of Sanctions and Punishment, finishing off the black-robed Assassin. The entire battle was over in a flash.

If even an MT like Cola could defeat his opponent so swiftly, there was no need to mention the rest of Shi Feng’s party.

With a wave of her staff, Aqua Rose cast Flame Explosion and finished off one of the bandits instantly. As for Fire Dance, she activated Wind Steps, and like Death’s scythe, she harvested her enemy’s head easily.

After a short moment, only a few of the Thousand Mile Killers remained. As for The Million Ghosts members, only four of the black-robed experts still stood.

Nobody would have thought that a party of players could actually render these Red Name experts utterly powerless.

“You guys are digging your own graves!” Thousand Mile Bear’s eyes bulged from his anger. “The Million Ghosts will not let you off the hook! We’re retreating!”

Saying so, Thousand Mile Bear turned and fled.

However, activating Silent Steps, Shi Feng immediately appeared behind Thousand Mile Bear and sent a Chop at the Berserker. Shi Feng’s sword drawing speed was astonishing, and all everyone saw was a silver flash.

In the next moment, Thousand Mile Bear’s body fell to the ground. The Berserker could not believe that someone could actually execute such a fast attack. It was so fast that he had no chance to react. The only thing he could do was watch as his HP descend until it reached zero.

Chapter 638: Forming a Caravan

 

Chapter 638 – Forming a Caravan

Thousand Mile Bear’s instant death stupefied The Million Ghosts members who had been fleeing for their lives.

Shi Feng was simply too fast.

They had only heard Thousand Mile Bear finish his words, and in the next moment, his body hit the ground. And before anyone had noticed, Shi Feng stood beside Thousand Mile Bear like the God of Death.

Monster!

This thought immediately possessed the minds of the Million Ghosts members. They finally understood why Shi Feng looked down on The Million Ghosts.

With such strength, not even the Big Three in their Guild would be his match.

Both Red Rain and Rainless Path stared in shock at Shi Feng quietly standing in the distance. They were very familiar with Thousand Mile Bear’s strength. Even if they worked together, they would need to expend a lot of effort to defeat him. Thousand Mile Bear might even escape. However, as if he stepped on an ant, Shi Feng only needed an instant to kill the Berserker.

They could no longer fathom just how strong Shi Feng was.

And here I thought that his companions were strong enough. I never imagined that the man himself would be even stronger. Thank goodness I accepted his request. Red Rain was somewhat afraid as she thought back to how she had taken a Gold Coin from Shi Feng. Fortunately, she had not offended Shi Feng with her words or actions. Otherwise, the consequences would be unimaginable.

So that’s what a real expert looks like. An indescribable excitement rose in Rainless Path’s heart when he recalled Shi Feng’s attack, which had been as quick as lightning.

In Starfall City, he was already considered one of the city’s peak experts. There were not many worthy opponents for him in the city. However, upon seeing Shi Feng’s stunning performance, he finally understood what a real expert was.

A real expert was someone who could exert their body and techniques to their limits, someone who could utilize their strength with maximum efficiency, and someone who was more than just slightly stronger than an ordinary player.

After Thousand Mile Bear died, Fire Dance and the others swiftly dispatched the remaining The Million Ghosts members and collected some excellent equipment.

Although these Level 25 Dark-Gold and Fine-Gold items were of no use to Fire Dance and the others, there were a bunch of people in the Guild who would fight over for them. Hence, the party silently pocketed the equipment, not bothering to leave any for the Red Rain Caravan.

“Many thanks for Big Brother Expert’s help. Without you taking action, our Red Rain Caravan would have been obliterated.” Red Rain repeatedly expressed her gratitude to Shi Feng. Although Shi Feng hid his name, from the vague appearance Red Rain saw beyond the cloak, she could tell that Shi Feng was not a child. Hence, she referred to Shi Feng as “Big Brother Expert.”

“There is no need to thank me. I am only doing my job as a guard.” Shi Feng waved his hand. He then shifted his eyes to The Million Ghosts’ corpses, commenting softly, “A Dark Guild is already targeting this trade route. In the future, any Caravans that pass through here will have to pay a toll. I wonder what plans Miss Red has for the future?”

Compared to ordinary Guilds, Dark Guilds were far more overbearing. They would not give up a potential source of income just because of one failure. They would mobilize their forces, attacking again and again like a pack of hungry wolves. They would not give up before achieving their goals. After all, Dark Guilds had significantly fewer sources of income than ordinary Guilds. In order to develop themselves, it was a necessity to resort to such desperate actions.

Moreover, as players’ levels increased, trade routes would become increasingly prosperous. One could collect astronomical tolls. Moreover, it was a costless business. If a Dark Guild managed to take control of multiple important trade routes, its income would most likely exceed even the Candlelight Trading Firm’s, which was why it was impossible for The Million Ghosts to give up on the trade routes.

For a Caravan of independent players like the Red Rain Caravan, there was no safety to speak of. Even an expert like Rainless Path could not change the outcome. After all, an independent expert’s strength was limited. In the past, after Violet Cloud left Ouroboros, she had similarly established her own Workshop to serve as her foundation. Otherwise, she would not have become a Tier 6 Cleric God.

Being questioned by Shi Feng in such a way, Red Rain quickly realized the severity of the situation.

Even if an independent Caravan were powerful, it could not stand against a large Guild.

“If this path is too risky, then our Red Rain Caravan can only move to other cities to develop ourselves,” Red Rain could not help but sigh. She had never imagined that, shortly after the Red Rain Caravan improved and was about to follow a profitable path, an incident like this would happen.

“Move to other cities, huh?” Very quickly, Rainless Path noticed a crucial point. Shaking his head, he said, “Sis, I think the other cities will have the same issue. It’s only a matter of how high the tolls they are.”

Red Rain’s mood soured further upon hearing Rainless Path’s logic.

If that were the case, independent players could no longer survive…

“Miss Red, if you still wish to continue transporting goods, I know of a good option. I’m just not sure if you will be interested,” Shi Feng said, smiling.

“Big Brother Expert, please, tell us.” Red Rain was definitely interested in what Shi Feng had to say.

“The Candlelight Trading Firm has recently begun to hire Caravans to ship its goods to other kingdoms and empires. With the backing of the Trading Firm, you won’t have to worry about large Guilds robbing you when transporting goods in the future.” Shi Feng finally revealed his true goal.

Red Rain and her group were experienced in the transportation of goods. As the Candlelight Trading Firm continued to develop, sooner or later, it would require its own Caravan. By recruiting the Red Rain Caravan, not only would he establish a foundation for the Trading Firm in advance, but he could also deepen his connection with Red Rain and Rainless Path.

“The Candlelight Trading Firm? Is that the famous trading firm that Zero Wing established?” Red Rain’s breathing grew a little rushed.

If the Candlelight Trading Firm were really hiring Caravans to transport goods, this would be a heaven-sent opportunity for them. With the support of the Trading Firm, they would gain an additional layer of protection. The only issue was that they would have to prioritize the Candlelight Trading Firm’s goods. However, in the future, the Red Rain Caravan would no longer have to worry about robberies.

Zero Wing was currently like the midday sun throughout Star-Moon Kingdom. It was a Guild that even the super-first-rate Guild, the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion, was helpless against. There was no need to mention the other Guilds in Star-Moon Kingdom.

“Thank you for the advice. I’ll begin preparing once we return to Star-Moon Kingdom,” Red Rain repeatedly thanked Shi Feng.

Following which, Red Rain and the others began to clear the battlefield. After completing this shipment, they intended to try their luck with the Candlelight Trading Firm.

Standing beside Shi Feng, Aqua Rose asked curiously, “Guild Leader, since when did Candlelight begin recruiting Caravans? Why didn’t you tell me about this before?”

It was not an easy task for a Caravan to transport goods. The previous battle made this obvious. There were many problems involved in such an operation, and they were extremely troublesome to deal with.

“I just decided it,” Shi Feng laughed.

Aqua Rose was speechless. She could not help but shift her gaze towards Red Rain, before returning her gaze to Shi Feng, a meaningful smile appearing on her face. She looked at Shi Feng as if saying, “I see…”

…

Half an hour later, the Red Rain Caravan arrived at the exit of the Great Forest of Soria. Reaching this point, Shi Feng and the others had fulfilled their agreement. After parting with Red Rain and the others, the party advanced into the inner regions of the Great Forest.

Roughly four hours later, Shi Feng’s party arrived at a small lake in the forest.

“Guild Leader, aren’t we trying to capture a Guild Mount? Why aren’t there any monsters here?” Blackie glanced at his surroundings, failing to find a single monster around the lake. No matter how he looked at it, this was not an area for capturing Mounts.

Shortly after Blackie finished speaking, the sound of wings reached his ears.

Turning to the source of the sound, Blackie noticed a golden-winged lion that was over twenty meters long descending from the sky, landing beside the clear lake.

“A Great Lord!” Blackie gaped as he saw this monster.

Every member of the party was shocked.

Chapter 639: Rare Mount

 

Chapter 639 – Rare Mount

“Guild Leader, don’t tell me we’re going to capture that?!” Blackie inquired. He gulped audibly as he stared at the massive figure in the distance.

The Golden-winged Lion King before him was a bona fide Great Lord.

Moreover, it was no ordinary Great Lord. It was a Level 60 Great Lord. It was definitely part of the ruling class of monsters; it could obliterate them with a sneeze.

[Golden-winged Lion King] (Demonic Beast, Great Lord)

Level 60

HP 30,000,000/30,000,000

“Capture it?” Shi Feng rolled his eyes at Blackie, saying, “You must be crazy.”

Although the Golden-winged Lion King could be captured, it was a Level 60 Great Lord. He wasn’t that good. Unless they had a 100-man team of Level 70 Tier 2 players or above, they had absolutely no chance of capturing the Great Lord.

Shi Feng’s reply left Blackie speechless.

However, the other members of the party released a sigh of relief. Capturing a monster was several times more difficult than killing one.

“We’ll head over once it leaves,” Shi Feng said in the team chat.

This Golden-winged Lion King was this area’s overlord. Hence, no other monsters dared to approach the area around the lake. However, nobody would have thought that not only was the Golden-winged Lion King a Field Boss, but it was also a Guardian Boss. It was a Boss specifically tasked with guarding a treasure.

In the past, after Fantasy Extinguisher led a team of players to exterminate this Golden-winged Lion King, they discovered a secret. When that secret got out, it shocked the various large Guilds throughout God’s Domain.

Back then, even ordinary players had their own Mounts. The various large Guilds had also realized the importance of rare Mounts and constantly searched for their own unique monster. The commotion these Guilds caused as a result had disrupted God’s Domain’s peace and tranquility. However, nobody would have imagined that the Fantasy Shrine had actually managed to obtain a 5-star Mount.

The star-ranking of a Mount represented its Growth Potential.

A Guild Mount’s rank could be upgraded when properly nurtured. Furthermore, with a higher star-rank, a Mount had a higher promotion success rate. The majority of the Guild Mounts throughout God’s Domain were 1-star Mounts.

A 1-star Mount started out as a Common Mount. It was a general Mount, and most Guilds would not capture a 1-star Mount for a Guild Mount as there was only a 10% chance for it to become a Bronze Mount.

A 2-star Mount started out slightly stronger than a 1-star Mount, and there was a 20% chance that it could become a Bronze Mount. As long as Guild members were willing to pay the price, they could nurture their 2-star Mount into a Bronze Mount. It was much cheaper than just purchasing a Bronze Mount.

As for 3-star Mounts, they were rarely seen. Not only could the additional Movement Speed they provided initially reach 110%, but there was also a 30% chance that they could nurture them to become Bronze Mounts. However, few Guilds were capable of obtaining 3-star Mounts.

A 4-star Mount was a rare Mount. Not only could its initial Movement Speed reach 115%, but there was also a 50% chance for it to become a Bronze Mount. Impressively, there was a 15% chance for it to become a Mysterious-Iron Mount. This was a potential that 1-star to 3-star Mounts did not possess. Hence, 4-star Mounts and above were considered rare Mounts. Various large Guilds throughout God’s Domain drooled over the idea of their own 4-star Mount.

Although there was only a difference of one rank between a Bronze Mount and a Mysterious-Iron Mount, the latter possessed storage capabilities. Moreover, unlike Bronze Mounts, Mysterious-Iron Mounts’ combat capabilities allowed them to make a difference in a battle.

Five-star Mounts were even more powerful. The additional Movement Speed they provided initially could reach 120%; its speed was practically equivalent to an ordinary Bronze Mount. Only, it did not possess any combat capabilities. However, 5-star Mounts had a 70% chance to become Bronze Mounts. Not only could they be upgraded within a short amount of time, but they also had a 30% chance to become Mysterious-Iron Mounts and a 3% chance to become Secret-Silver Mounts.

The most powerful Guild Mount Shi Feng had seen in the past was a 6-star Mount. Its rarity could even rival that of a Legendary item. There was a 90% that it could become a Bronze Mount, 50% chance for Mysterious-Iron rank, and 10% chance for Secret-Silver rank.

Just the thought of a Guild outfitting its members with Secret-Silver Mounts was frightening. After all, unlike Mysterious-Iron Mounts or below, Secret-Silver Mounts possessed Skills that could assist players in battle, increasing their combat power significantly. This was also why so many Guilds had been so desperate to collect rare Mounts in the past.

In the past, after Fantasy Extinguisher’s team killed the Golden-winged Lion King, they discovered a 5-star Mount and became one of the few large Guilds throughout God’s Domain to possess one.

After over an hour, the Golden-winged Lion King finally quenched its thirst and finished its rest. It then flew from the clear lake.

“Alright, everyone, drink your potions and follow me.” Shi Feng did not bother to explain much. Immediately, he retrieved a deep blue potion from his bag and emptied the bottle’s contents.

The Underwater Breathing Potion allowed players to breathe underwater for two hours.

After drinking the potion, Shi Feng led his team and dove into the lake.

Although the Golden-winged Lion King was a Guardian Monster, it did not guard this place constantly. It normally left the area for an hour or so, giving players a loophole to exploit. Otherwise, Shi Feng would not have been confident of capturing 5-star Mount that hid behind a Great Lord.

After swimming for about a dozen minutes or so, the party discovered the ruins of a shrine. However, the shrine’s thick, stone doors were currently shut tight. Even after combining their strength, they could not open the doors. It was obvious that they needed some sort of item to gain passage.

Just as everyone was at a loss on what to do…

Shi Feng activated the Seven Luminaries Ring’s Space Movement and entered the space beyond the stone doors.

A minute later, the stone doors slowly opened.

Everyone was amazed by this scene. They had not thought that the doors could be opened like this.

“I wish I had an item with Space Movement. I could easily teleport into any shrine I find without wasting effort looking for a way to open the doors,” Blackie said enviously.

“This method is only viable for shrines that are not magically sealed. You wouldn’t be able to teleport into shrines with magic seals or their own spaces.” Shi Feng wished the same, but there were very few non-magically sealed shrines throughout God’s Domain. There were even fewer items with Skills similar to Space Movement.

Normally, in order to enter this shrine beneath the lake, players were required to obtain the key by killing the Golden-winged Lion King.

“Alright, we don’t have much time left. We have around 40 minutes before the Lion King returns. We need to finish the job within these 40 minutes.” Shi Feng no longer bothered to explain. Immediately, he swam further into the shrine.

The shrine was not large, being only three-stories tall. The first floor was completely flooded. There was nothing special about the second floor beyond the various idols that cluttered the space. However, upon reaching the third floor of the shrine, the party felt as if they had entered a different space entirely.

The third floor was actually a forest. Various wild beasts and Demonic Beasts lived here, and the monsters were all Level 50. However, the beasts living here would not actively attack players.

Meanwhile, slumbering in this forest’s heart was a blue wolf that stood over three meters tall. Despite being asleep, blue arcs of electricity flashed around the wolf’s body, preventing others from approaching it.

[Thunder Wolf] (Demonic Beast, Lord)

Level 50

HP 9,000,000/9,000,000

“Such a handsome wolf!” Cola was immediately mesmerized by the Thunder Wolf.

In comparison, the horses of the Red Rain Caravan’s Bronze Carriages looked like ugly toads.

The Thunder Wolf was twice as large as a horse. If he could ride the beast through the city, he would become the envy of all.

“We only have thirty minutes left. Get into position as I taught you. If we fail, we’ll have to spend a long time running back to this place,” Shi Feng hurriedly commanded.

Quickly, everyone stealthily approached the Thunder Wolf under Shi Feng’s command.

Chapter 640: Astonishing Attack Power

 

Chapter 640 – Astonishing Attack Power

The Thunder Wolf cracked opened its eyes upon detecting Shi Feng’s party. It then emitted a low growl, warning the approaching humans.

Although the Demonic Beasts on the third floor would not actively attack players, they would give warnings when players got too close. If the players refused to heed their warning, they would attack.

“Cola, make sure you’re ready to aggro the Wolf! Blackie, focus on using Guardian of Light! Violet, focus on healing! Everyone else, use the Hunting Scroll when the time arrives!” Shi Feng hurriedly commanded his team when he noticed the Thunder Wolf beginning to stand.

Normally, it was practically impossible for them to capture a Level 50 Lord.

However, the Thunder Wolf was slightly special. One could use a special method to capture it.

The first condition for capturing a wild beast or Demonic Beast was to lower the monster’s HP to exactly 10%. If its HP were above or below 10%, one could not capture the monster. It was a stringent condition, and it was one of the reasons why killing a monster was much easier than capturing one.

Cola was currently Level 30 and wore a complete Tier 1 Set Equipment. He also had the Divine Bluefire Shield. Even so, he could not hope to tank a Level 50 Lord.

Finished with his commands, Shi Feng revealed the Bible of Darkness and began activating Demon Summoning.

“Emerge, Demon!”

When Shi Feng finished chanting the incantation’s final verse, the Demon Gate slowly opened. From behind the gates, a human-shaped Demon, an Evil Blade Spirit, stepped out. Sharp spikes and black scales covered the Demon’s body. This Demon was a pure attack-type and would not possess any Support Spells like the Heart Devourer.

[Evil Blade Spirit] (Evil Spirit)

Level 36

HP 3,000,000/3,000,000

Not bad. At least it’s a Tier 2 Demon. Shi Feng smiled at the Evil Blade Spirit in satisfaction.

Although it was not as strong as the Thunder Wolf, it would still be of significant help. It was fully capable of pinning down the Thunder Wolf for a long period.

“Everyone, assist the Evil Blade Spirit and attack the Thunder Wolf. Make sure you dodge the Wolf’s lightning attacks.” Shi Feng then commanded the Evil Blade Spirit to charge at the Thunder Wolf.

The Evil Blade Spirit fought like a Berserker. Activating Shadow Charge, it appeared before the Thunder Wolf like a ghost. The Blade Spirit’s sword-like arms then sliced fiercely at the Thunder Wolf’s body.

-17,519.

-16,749.

Two damages that were over -10,000 points appeared above the Lord’s head, shocking the team.

Such a high Attack Power. Shi Feng was also surprised. We lucked out this time.

A Level 36 Lord had no chance against a Level 50 Lord. The latter’s Defense was many times higher. The Thunder Wolf’s Defense was even greater than an ordinary Level 35 Great Lord. For Shi Feng, he would have to enter his Twofold Berserk state to inflict more than -10,000 damage to the Thunder Wolf. Yet, the similarly Lord ranked Evil Blade Spirit could easily deal more than -10,000 damage. The Demon’s Attack Power was stronger than even a High Lord of the same level.

“Awoo!”

The Thunder Wolf howled, countless blue arcs of electricity suddenly appeared and surrounded its body, significantly increasing its speed. It then swung its claws at the Evil Blade Spirit. The Tier 2 Evil Spirit had no opportunity to block or evade before the attack struck and sent it flying backward by more than ten yards. As it crashed to the ground, the resulting impact formed a large crater. The Thunder Wolf’s claws easily sliced through the Evil Blade Spirit’s scale armor, leaving multiple scorched scratch marks.

The Evil Blade Spirit’s HP instantly fell by 41,864. The difference in strength between them was instantly obvious.

“Isn’t its attack a little too powerful? If I don’t activate Lifesaving Skills, I’ll most likely die with a single hit.” Standing a short distance away, Cola gulped when he saw the Thunder Wolf’s damage. He no longer dared underestimate the Demonic Beast.

The Thunder Wolf’s Attack Power was many times stronger than even the Great Lord ranked Bluefire Crow King…

Just how were they supposed to lower this monster’s HP to 10%?

“Violet, heal the Evil Blade Spirit! Everyone else, attack from a distance!” Shi Feng was not particularly surprised by this result.

Level 50 was another great divide of levels.

At Level 50, players could become Tier 2 classes. Hence, monsters would become a lot more powerful after reaching Level 50 as well. Moreover, the Thunder Wolf was a super-attack-type Demonic Beast. Naturally, its Attack Power was dismaying.

However, this astonishing Attack Power was the key factor in capturing the Thunder Wolf.

Following which, Shi Feng controlled the Evil Blade Spirit and began to lure the Thunder Wolf elsewhere. At the same time, Violet Cloud continuously healed the Evil Blade Spirit. Although each of her heals could only recover several thousand HP for the Tier 2 Evil Spirit, they added up. As long as the Evil Blade Spirit fought while it fled, it will soon recover to full HP.

Meanwhile, Blackie and Aqua Rose were the party’s main damage dealers.

Unfortunately, when Aqua Rose used the Tier 1 Spell, Fire Dragon’s Dance, she only caused a little over -1,500 damage. As for Blackie, who wielded an Epic staff, he only dealt over -2,000 damage with the Tier 1 Spell, Darkness Ball. Against the Thunder Wolf’s 9,000,000 HP, their attacks were practically negligible. Only after including the Evil Blade Spirit’s attacks did their damage surpass the Lord’s battle recovery.

After Shi Feng lured the Thunder Wolf to a low-lying area, he stopped actively controlling the Evil Blade Spirit and allowed it to attack on its own.

“This should be the place.” Shi Feng observed his surroundings. After confirming that there were no problems, he recovered a dark blue Tier 2 Magic Scroll from his bag. “Everyone, distance yourselves 50 yards from the Thunder Wolf!”

Hearing Shi Feng’s command, although Blackie and Aqua Rose wondered why he wanted them to stop attacking, they had no choice but to back away from the Thunder Wolf.

After seeing Blackie and Aqua Rose retreat, Shi Feng unfurled the Magic Scroll and began chanting the incantation recorded within.

At this moment, the Evil Blade Spirit, which confronted the Thunder Wolf head-on, lost HP rapidly. Each of the Thunder Wolf’s attacks dealt over -40,000 HP, while its Skills dealt over -70,000 damage. The Evil Blade Spirit only had 3,000,000 HP. Very quickly, the Demon’s HP fell below 2,000,000. On the other hand, the Thunder Wolf had only lost around 100,000 HP.

“Blackie, use Guardian of Light on the Blade Spirit!” Shi Feng said sternly through the party chat after completing his preparations.

Immediately, Blackie cast Guardian of Light on the Evil Blade Spirit.

Guardian of Light was an Additional Skill of Mavis’s Guard. When activated, the Skill granted immunity to all magic damage, reduced physical damage taken by 80%, and recovered 5% HP every second for 20 seconds. It was one of the most powerful Lifesaving Skills at this stage of the game.

After receiving Guardian of Light, the damage the Evil Blade Spirit received fell sharply from over -40,000 points to just over -2,000 points. Moreover, it also recovered 5% of its HP every second. For the Evil Blade Spirit, that was 150,000 HP every second. Not only did the Evil Blade Spirit stop losing HP, but its HP also recovered rapidly.

“What’s going on?” Aqua Rose was surprised.

The Thunder Wolf had initially dealt over -40,000 damage to the Evil Blade Spirit. Even if its damage were reduced by 80%, it should still deal over -8,000 damage. Yet, now, its attacks only inflicted over -2,000 damage.

Before Aqua Rose could make sense of the situation, Shi Feng activated the Tier 2 Magic Scroll, Waterfall, in his hands.

Suddenly, a massive magic array appeared above the Thunder Wolf. A torrent of water then gushed out of the magic array, pummeling the Thunder Wolf and causing damages of over -4,000 points to appear above the Lord’s head. The Magic Scroll’s effect lasted for 4 seconds.

“We’re finally done. All we need to do now is to watch the show,” Shi Feng smiled faintly.

“Watch the show?” Doubt flashed in Fire Dance’s eyes.

Everyone was clearly confused. They did not understand Shi Feng’s actions.

It was merely a Tier 2 Magic Scroll. Moreover, it wasn’t dealing much damage.

In the next moment, however, everyone’s eyes nearly fell out of their sockets.

Suddenly, damages of more than -60,000 points started appearing above the Thunder Wolf’s head.

“This is…!”

When Fire Dance noticed the Thunder Wolf’s claws falling into the pooled water from the Waterfall and it receiving massive amounts of damages as a result, she immediately came to a realization.

“That’s right. The Thunder Beast’s attacks are mainly lightning-type magical attacks. Using the electrical conductivity of water, although the water will amplify the power of its attacks, it will also become a victim of its own power,” Shi Feng explained, grinning.

If it were any other monster, he would have no method to capture it. Unfortunately for the Thunder Wolf, its attacks were lightning-based, so its greatest weakness was water. Hence, when the Fantasy Shrine had faced enemies with water-type AOE Spells, they would not utilize their Thunder Wolf Mounts to assist them in battle, as doing so would cause more harm than good.

For a time, the Thunder Wolf’s 9,000,000 HP rapidly decreased.

“Everyone, get ready!” Watching the Thunder Wolf’s HP about to reach 10%, Shi Feng immediately ordered everyone to retrieve a Hunting Scroll and begin the capturing process.