The rental prices posted by Candlelight Trading Firm left the player merchants in the lobby stunned for a good while, then a wave of exclamations erupted. Even the players who had come just to watch stood with their mouths agape.
"Damn! Three thousand gold just to rent a shop for a month? I remember shops in NPC cities cost about that much, but those are permanent purchases. Now you're telling me renting a single shop in Silver Wing Town costs three thousand gold? That's outrageous!"
"Silver Wing Town is still just a town — it can't compare to NPC cities. Who can afford rent like that?"
"If I had three thousand gold, I'd buy top-tier equipment instead. With a full set of top-tier gear, I could join a gold run, and with a bit of luck, I might even earn it back within a month. That's way better than renting a shop."
…
For a time, everyone was buzzing about the sky-high rental prices Silver Wing Town had posted.
"Guild Master, at this price, I'm afraid very few merchant players will be able to afford it. Several reputable trading firms have approached me with a proposal — if we could offer a thirty percent discount, they'd be willing to sign long-term leases. Should we lower the price a bit?" Seer Rose, sitting in the second-floor lobby, looked up at Shi Feng and suggested.
Honestly, she thought this price was too high. If this were Zero Wing City, it would be one thing — after all, Zero Wing City's active player population had already exceeded five million, far surpassing ordinary NPC large cities. Even with such high rent, it would be acceptable, since shops permanently purchased from NPC cities still required a fifteen percent property tax every month.
Of course, that property tax was based on the shop's actual monthly value, not the original purchase price, so it was essentially equivalent to rent.
But Silver Wing Town was different. Although it had become an intermediate town and its player capacity had increased considerably, its limited area severely restricted the number of players it could accommodate. It couldn't compare to NPC large cities, let alone Zero Wing City.
"Go and tell them the price I've set isn't high for Silver Wing Town's current state. Those who want to lease can lease, and those who don't — we won't force them. Give it another half month and the price might even go up." Shi Feng was nonchalant about it.
Silver Wing Town possessed the Trade Hall, a natural gold mine that could easily purchase rare items exchanged by players through the Trade Hall, which could then be sold in other kingdoms and empires for a handsome profit. The trading firms themselves could also serve as warehouses.
If it weren't for the fact that the Sea Forest required a massive amount of gold, he wouldn't be leasing these shops right now.
"Guild Master, I've also received news about Beast King City. It's said that the Black Water Guild has broken the seal on Beast King City's weapon vault. Right now, every major guild is sending expert teams to attempt their first clear of the vault. We'd like to do the same, but the Black Water Guild has us under extremely tight surveillance — any of our people who dare approach Beast King City will be ambushed and killed. We simply can't get close." Seer Rose looked worried. "But there are definitely plenty of war weapons inside that vault. If they get to them first, it'll be very detrimental to our Zero Wing Guild's development in the Beastman Empire."
"They've opened the weapon vault?" Shi Feng frowned slightly. "The Black Water Guild really is something."
For Beast King City, a Shura-level area dungeon, the resources inside were naturally abundant beyond measure. The weapon vault area went without saying — it surely contained numerous war weapons. For guilds starved of war weapons, it was a place that could dramatically boost their combat power.
But the Black Water Guild controlled the Scarlet Flame Fortress, effectively cutting off the route to Beast King City. Even if they managed to enter, the Black Water Guild could deal with them easily, thanks to their home-field advantage.
If the Black Water Guild actually obtained a large number of war weapons, it would be extremely unfavorable for Zero Wing Guild.
Currently, Zero Wing's ability to maintain a foothold in the Beastman Empire was largely thanks to their superiority in war weapons over other guilds. If that gap were closed, the Black Water Guild's assault on Silver Wing Town would become much easier. At that point, even the major superpowers who had been watching from the sidelines would no longer sit idle — they'd seize the opportunity to strike.
"According to our intelligence, all the major superpowers are also preparing to go all-out to clear the weapon vault. If we fall behind…" Seer Rose had no solution to offer.
Sending expert players in disguise to attempt the clear? They'd likely be driven out by the major powers before even entering the vault. Forcing their way through the Black Water Guild's blockade would result in heavy losses — the Scarlet Flame Fortress could provide reinforcements at any time, while they couldn't. But leaving it alone would only allow the major powers to pull further and further ahead.
"We'll abandon the Beast King City clear." After a moment of thought, Shi Feng said.
"Abandon it? But —" Seer Rose was taken aback.
If they abandoned it, once the major powers cleared the vault and obtained a large number of war weapons, it would be Zero Wing that suffered.
"I wasn't finished. Although we're giving up on clearing Beast King City, we can go clear somewhere else. In the Divine Realm, area dungeons aren't limited to just Beast King City." Shi Feng smiled. "How many second-order class players do we currently have in the guild?"
"Fortunately, thanks to the Ancient Souls, our rate of promoting to second-order classes has been much faster than other guilds. Currently, the entire guild has over four hundred second-order class players, and many more are in the middle of their second-order class-change quests. I believe within a few days, that number will surpass a thousand." Seer Rose said excitedly.
In the entire Divine Realm, when it came to the number of second-order class players, Zero Wing was now on par with the major superpowers. And as time went on, that number would only grow.
The advantage of monopolizing the Ancient City's vast resources was truly enormous. After all, Zero Wing had far fewer experts compared to the major superpowers. But obtaining the Ancient Souls had significantly reduced the difficulty of second-order class changes, and combined with their equipment advantage, they'd achieved this impressive number.
"Already that many?" Shi Feng was somewhat surprised — the number exceeded his expectations. Currently, even top-tier guilds having thirty to forty second-order players would be considered excellent. "Good. Then take this Heart of Icarus and organize three hundred people to head to the neutral zone — the Salak Mountains. Go farm Rock Giant Beasts, get as many as you can. It's also a good opportunity to level up, but be careful when exploring the map. Although it's not a Shura-level area dungeon, it's still a rare Hell-level area dungeon."
The Salak Mountains were a neutral zone located not far from the Storm Empire, with levels ranging from sixty to ninety. What it was most famous for was the Titan Mithril Ore that could be found there.
Titan Mithril Ore was far more valuable than regular Titan Ore. Even in the hundred-man raid dungeons where it could drop, it was extremely rare. However, the Hell-level area dungeon in the Salak Mountains did contain drops — though the probability wasn't high. Even defeating Great Lord-level Rock Giant Beasts, the drop rate didn't exceed three percent. The upside was that the area dungeon contained many Great Lord-level Rock Giant Beasts.
But there was a prerequisite for farming there — the players had to be second-order class.
Previously, Zero Wing had only had a few dozen second-order players and simply didn't have the manpower, so they'd had to pass on it. But now, with so many second-order class players, it was the perfect time to farm Titan Mithril Ore. That would provide the main material for crafting Guardian Puppets. All they'd need to do then was wait for Somber Smile to train up the necessary Life Skill masters.
When Seer Rose heard Shi Feng's plan, she was completely bewildered — she didn't understand why they'd go all the way to such a distant location to farm monsters. But since Shi Feng had made the decision, she had no better solution for the current situation. So she took the Heart of Icarus and organized the guild's second-order class players to head for the Salak Mountains.
As a day passed, all twenty shops that Shi Feng had put up for lease were rented out — fifteen small shops and five large shops, not a single one left empty. This instantly brought Shi Feng seventy thousand gold coins, leaving many merchant players and casual players dumbfounded, unable to understand why anyone would spend that much gold just to rent a shop.
By the time the agreed-upon day to enter the Sea Forest approached, Shi Feng had accumulated a total of one hundred and twenty thousand gold through Zero Wing's profits and material trading from the Ice Crystal World. His wallet swelled considerably.
Immediately after, Shi Feng took all the money and nine first-order class experts and teleported directly from Star Moon Royal City to Dark Night City in the Dark Night Empire.