After issuing the unlock command,
Stone Forest City was, after all, a newly ascended city. Even though it already had a fair number of buildings, they were few and far between for a city whose area had expanded several times over. At best, the original Stone Forest Town structures could accommodate around one million players living and resting in the city on a normal basis.
This was one of the drawbacks of a city that had ascended rather than one built from scratch — a constructed city would never face such a problem.
While the existing buildings in Stone Forest City were more than sufficient for its current population, players' levels and capabilities would continue to rise. Before long, not only expert players but also a great many ordinary ones would be able to enter the first layer of the
To ensure that a far greater number of players could live and rest in Stone Forest City, starting the planning early was essential. A well-thought-out layout would not only drive up the prices of shops and private residences but also prove vital to the city's long-term development.
And just as City Lord Shi Feng was mapping out the entire construction plan for Stone Forest City, the various kingdoms and empires beyond the ruins of the Undying Kingdom had all received the news that Stone Forest City had lifted its lockdown.
In an instant, every major faction erupted into a frenzy.
"Such a treasure trove, opened to the public now?
"What an enormous move!"
"A god-tier regional dungeon — just handed out for anyone to use? What exactly is Zero Wing thinking?"
Every major faction had been closely monitoring the battle for Stone Forest City, and they all understood its significance. Whoever held Stone Forest City gained an enormous advantage in conquering the Bottomless Abyss, leaping ahead of every other faction by an immeasurable margin.
And yet Zero Wing had gone ahead and simply opened Stone Forest City to everyone.
At that moment, not only the ordinary factions but even the major superpowers were left stupefied.
They all understood that Stone Forest City would eventually have to open its doors, since making it from the outer perimeter of the Bottomless Abyss to the first layer wasn't particularly difficult. Give it ten days to half a month, and not only the top superpowers but also the experts from first-tier guilds and elite adventurer teams would be able to level up in the first layer.
When that happened, Stone Forest City's advantage would diminish significantly, and even if Zero Wing didn't want to, they would gradually open the city up to earn money — because by then, the revenue would far outweigh the strategic edge.
But none of them had expected it to happen this quickly. It was practically throwing away an advantage that had fallen right into their laps.
"A god-tier regional dungeon? This is a golden opportunity for our adventurer team to rise! Before, the big factions always locked down the high-resource zones first, leaving us no chance to compete. Now that everyone's on equal footing, I refuse to believe we can't hold our own against those superpowers!"
"Opened it straight up — Zero Wing really is something. They'd pass on an opportunity like this? Even those superpowers probably wouldn't dare do the same. The Bottomless Abyss hasn't been explored yet. If we get in there and score some treasures, our guild's strength will definitely take a major step forward."
…
The outright opening of Stone Forest City set every kingdom and empire into motion, each dispatching hordes of expert players who streamed toward the city in a steady tide.
Every high-resource zone in the Divine Realm was currently controlled by the major superpowers, and the Bottomless Abyss had been no exception. After all, the weapons and equipment those superpowers possessed were far beyond what ordinary factions could hope to match. By the time lesser factions finished preparing and began their assault on the
Now, with Stone Forest City open, the race for the Bottomless Abyss's resources was being reset to zero for all factions. The superpowers' advantages were still substantial, but for every ordinary faction, this was the greatest fairness they could ask for.
If fortune smiled on them, skyrocketing to prominence overnight wasn't out of the question — the Bottomless Abyss was the absolute forefront of the Divine Realm right now, and whatever items dropped there or treasures one could obtain went without saying: they were the best available anywhere.
At the same time, the Zero Wing headquarters in
Inside the Zero Wing headquarters, Immortal Heart and