Word of the Candlelight Trading Firm continuing to sell Endurance Gems spread instantly throughout the entire Dark Night Empire. The various major guilds and adventure teams that had previously had no intention of acting suddenly began to stir.
"The Candlelight Trading Firm is going to sell Endurance Gems long-term?"
"Now that's interesting!"
"Our chance to take the next step is finally here!"
If the previous sixty Endurance Gems had only seemed eye-catching and impressive to them, there ultimately weren't enough to go around among the great powers.
After all, the Dark Night Empire alone boasted as many as three superpowers, to say nothing of the first-rate guilds, top-tier adventure teams, and hidden top-tier factions lurking in the shadows. Practically everyone had no opportunity to obtain Endurance Gems, and even if they did manage to get their hands on one or two, what difference could a single gem make?
But now things were different.
If the Candlelight Trading Firm could truly sell Endurance Gems long-term, then they would have a chance to compete. After all, the currency used to purchase Endurance Gems was region-specific materials. Even if superpowers held a large stockpile of such materials, their reserves were still limited. As long as they hoarded massive quantities, they would eventually manage to snatch one or two gems. Accumulating small gains over time would allow them to wield tremendous power in the neutral maps.
In an instant, the major factions of the Dark Night Empire received this news and almost immediately issued orders to find ways to collect Dark Night Empire-specific materials and stop selling them externally. After all, the meager profit from selling materials paled in comparison to the rewards of clearing the neutral maps—anyone with half a brain understood this logic.
Conversely, if they failed to obtain Endurance Gems early on, they would be overtaken by those factions that did. As a result, every major faction poured all their resources into the effort.
Meanwhile, in Zero Wing City within the Star Moon Kingdom, the Heavenly Science Trading Association had expelled the Candlelight Trading Firm. As a result, all previous agreements were voided, and the personnel and assets stationed in Zero Wing City began to gradually withdraw.
Just as Yuan Tiexin was arranging his subordinates to evacuate their workshop, a strikingly beautiful woman in magnificent holy armor strode over. Her appearance caused everyone nearby to turn their heads, and many men were left stunned and infatuated.
"As expected of Goddess Purple Jade—she's already reached Level 66. That level would probably rank her among the top twenty in the entire Empire."
"I heard that just a couple of days ago, Goddess Purple Jade led a team to complete an epic squad quest. They defeated the Level 60 Legendary boss, the Iron Blood Earth Dragon, and obtained a Dragon Blood Sword. That sword is incredibly powerful—it's already ranked among the top ten epic weapons. Thanks to that sword, Goddess Purple Jade now has almost no rivals among the top experts, and the Celestial Wisdom Pavilion has named her one of the Ten Great Swordsmen."
At the mention of the Ten Great Swordsmen, the crowd's eyes filled with longing.
This ranking had been newly released by the Celestial Wisdom Pavilion, primarily to showcase experts from each class. After all, every class was different—some classes even countered others—which made it difficult to properly reflect a player's strength or allow for meaningful comparisons. Cross-class comparisons left everyone unconvinced, so the Pavilion had introduced a new system: twelve class-specific rankings, each listing only ten players. The rankings were based purely on strength, not on level or combat record.
Moreover, this ranking was primarily designed to highlight the younger generation, giving young players more opportunities. As such, there was an age limit—players had to be under thirty. Anyone over thirty, regardless of their strength, could not be listed.
Of course, this was done to avoid threatening the foundations of the major superpowers. After all, the pillar experts and ancient monsters within those superpowers were core secrets. If the Celestial Wisdom Pavilion carelessly exposed them, the superpowers would fight tooth and nail to prevent it.
After obtaining the Dragon Blood Sword, Purple Jade—who had previously been absent from the rankings—suddenly rocketed to eighth place on the Swordsman rankings.
Consider how vast the Divine Realm was.
It was teeming with prodigies. Even within the Swordsman class alone, the sheer number of talented players was staggering. To stand out among so many geniuses and earn a place among the Ten Great Swordsmen was nothing short of extraordinary. Purple Jade was a favored daughter of heaven, a treasured jewel in her faction's hand, with a future of limitless promise—far more dazzling than any sports star. After all, the Divine Realm had become universally popular, nearly a part of everyone's daily life, making it incomparable to any athlete or celebrity.
"Uncle Yuan, word has come from the higher-ups. They want us to buy as many Endurance Gems from Zero Wing as possible—the more the better," Purple Jade said with a smile as she approached Yuan Tiexin.
"These people really have no shame. They're the ones who kicked Zero Wing out of the Heavenly Science Trading Association, and now they want me to go negotiate with Zero Wing? Why don't they go themselves?" Yuan Tiexin's anger flared at the request.
The so-called "higher-ups" were the senior members of the Heavenly Science Trading Association. The Celestial Wisdom Pavilion had made it perfectly clear before—don't carelessly expel association members, especially one with Zero Wing's growth potential. But the five senior members hadn't cared in the slightest and had kicked them out on a whim. Now that the deed was done, they wanted him to play peacemaker.
"Still, Zero Wing really is impressive this time. To produce something like Endurance Gems—all five major factions are regretting their decision. I hear they're currently busy clearing the newly discovered Barbarian God Lands. That's a place where ancient deities once lived, and they're desperately short of items that can boost or restore Stamina," Purple Jade said with a faint smile. "They're in a panic now. Back then, they just wanted to do Star Ring a favor while putting Zero Wing down, and now they've lost their chance to get Endurance Gems. They're already growing resentful toward Star Ring."
"Still, Star Ring has played it big this time. In the Star Moon Kingdom, they've not only raised their acquisition prices for region-specific materials again, but they're also selling many similar products at cut-rate prices to compete with the Candlelight Trading Firm's offerings. Now a huge number of players have flocked to the Star Ring Trading Association. The Candlelight Trading Firm can only profit from its exclusive products—everything else goes completely unsold. The firm's total profits have probably dropped by more than two-thirds. And right now, the costs of clearing the neutral maps are enormous. Even a normal guild would find their funds stretched thin, let alone Zero Wing, which has suddenly expanded," Yuan Tiexin said slowly. "Over in the Orc Empire, every faction is eyeing them hungrily too. Zero Wing's days are anything but easy. Meanwhile, the only leverage Zero Wing has against Star Ring is these Endurance Gems."
"Endurance Gems are valuable, but Star Ring is no pushover. They control three Auction Houses and have the backing of the Star Navigation Financial Group—in terms of economic power, no faction can casually challenge them. Furthermore, Star Ring currently holds a fortress in the Dead Land Kingdom, the most important neutral map in the Dark Night Empire. For Zero Wing to shake Star Ring would be far too difficult."
The Dead Land Kingdom was the Dark Night Empire's newest expansion content, and it had been unlocked by Star Ring. The kingdom had once been a massive empire destroyed in an ancient war. Its hidden resources were said to be even more bountiful than those of the Orc Empire, and it contained the only known Divine-tier zone dungeon among over a dozen surrounding kingdoms and several empires.
Because Star Ring dominated this Dead Land Kingdom, every major superpower in the Divine Realm gave Star Ring a degree of deference. Without that leverage, the backing of the Star Navigation Financial Group alone wouldn't have been enough to command such respect from the superpowers. Even the two top-tier superpowers, Battle Soul Unfallen and Crimson Emperor, had to yield, propelling Star Ring into the senior member tier of their Heavenly Science Trading Association.
"However, with Zero Wing having produced Endurance Gems, they could use them to re-enter the Heavenly Science Trading Association. Even the five major factions probably wouldn't object anymore. With our association's distribution channels, Zero Wing could certainly continue to contend with Star Ring and gradually grow stronger." Purple Jade nodded, clearly understanding Star Ring's might. For Zero Wing to have made Star Ring suffer even a minor setback this time was already quite impressive.
"Indeed," Yuan Tiexin agreed wholeheartedly.
With the Heavenly Science Trading Association's channels, it would be far harder for Star Ring to blockade Zero Wing. Yuan Tiexin promptly contacted Shi Feng, ready to share this good news.