Chapter 1865 – Establishing a Garrison

As Shi Feng took the token radiating a golden glow, he couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief.

If it weren't for the rare materials shipped in from the Ice Crystal World and the booming popularity of Zero Wing City, the sharply declining population of Silver Wing Town would have tanked their income, and there was no way he could have scraped together sixty thousand gold.

But things were fine now.

With the senior management status for the Stone Fortress secured, the Zero Wing Guild could officially establish a garrison there. Sure, it would draw the envy of every major superpower and provoke further moves, but as long as his next plan succeeded—if he could demonstrate that Zero Wing possessed formidable strength in the Orc Empire—those superpowers would think twice before going so far as to launch a full-scale assault on the Guild.

With that thought, Shi Feng headed toward the administrative hall of the City Hall.

At the moment, over a thousand players filled the hall, each one at least level 55, decked out in level-50 Mythril Rank equipment. The more impressive ones even wore a few pieces of level-50 Gold-grade gear.

All of them shared one thing in common: they were guild members, seated in their respective squads, waiting for the front-desk NPCs to process their paperwork.

"So slow! I really hope the captain picks a good quest this time. That last one was a total scam—our squad had to collect five hundred Orc weapons, and all we got was three guild contribution points. Not even any extra rewards."

"Yours is nothing compared to ours. We were sent to steal three repeating heavy crossbows from an Orc fortress. The place was packed with monsters that were Leader-rank or higher—dozens of great lords at level 60-plus among them. We got wiped out twice on the way. If our healer hadn't known Intermediate Resurrection to soften the death penalty, we'd have dropped two levels by now."

…

Across the hall, squad after squad from various guilds grumbled about the contribution quests issued by the Stone Fortress. The quests were punishingly difficult with underwhelming rewards, yet everyone had no choice but to grind through them—the Guild simply couldn't establish its presence in the Stone Fortress otherwise.

While the squads chatted amongst themselves, Shi Feng—clad in a black cloak—walked up to the exchange counter near the quest desk, immediately drawing the attention of everyone present.

"Who the hell is that guy? Is he actually exchanging contribution points for items?"

"No way. Just to unlock that exchange counter, you need two hundred personal contribution points and the title of Honored Warrior of the Stone Fortress. A single high-tier quest only gives five to ten personal contribution points, and each one takes at least five hours to finish. Even if he never slept, never took a break, and never queued, there's no way he could've hit two hundred by now."

"Probably just asking about the exchange options."

…

The Stone Fortress had only been open for four days. Redeeming points was still a distant dream.

But just as the crowd mused on this, the ever-cold-faced receptionist NPC spotted Shi Feng, and her demeanor instantly shifted to one of deep respect. A smile bloomed across her face.

"Honored Guardian, how may I be of service?" the beautiful NPC asked with a respectful bow.

"I'd like to process my Guild's garrison registration," Shi Feng said with a nod.

"Very well. Please fill out this form here, and then deposit five hundred gold as a security deposit. After that, your Guild will be officially recognized by the Stone Fortress." The NPC immediately produced a form and explained each section in detail.

"Sure. Here's five hundred gold." Shi Feng produced the coins without hesitation and began filling out the form.

The entire administrative hall went dead silent. Every jaw dropped as they stared at the black-cloaked figure.

"Who is that guy? Why is the NPC treating him with such respect?"