With the fierce man's question, the members of the Crimson Emperor Guild present couldn't help but look toward Huanyu.
The 'Stone Forest City' before them was simply too stunning, hardly imaginable as merely a mid-tier city.
They had previously been operating on the hundred-level maps around the Ten Saints Empire. All they knew was that Stone Forest City was located somewhere within the Cold Spring Great Forest. This was their first time visiting the forest, and only Huanyu, who enjoyed wandering around to level up, had actually been to Stone Forest City before.
"The coordinates aren't wrong — this should be Stone Forest City." Huanyu replied with a bitter smile at the fierce man's interrogation. "Besides, the information displayed on the city gate says Stone Forest City. We shouldn't have come to the wrong place."
Before she had seen the city information displayed on the gate, even she had felt the illusion that they might have arrived at the wrong location.
After all, this was an entirely different Stone Forest City from what she had seen before — practically worlds apart, on par with those great NPC cities. Let alone that astonishing mana; even the mana of Titan Holy City would probably be somewhat weaker than this. It didn't look anything like a guild city that players could possess.
Only after Huanyu finished speaking did the Crimson Emperor members snap out of their daze, one by one checking the city information and confirming that everything was just as she had said — this was the genuine Stone Forest City.
At this moment, it wasn't only the bold Crimson Emperor who had come. Some top experts from various major factions who had rushed over to take a look at Stone Forest City were also shaken by the newly upgraded city.
No one had expected that the promotion from a low-tier guild city to a mid-tier one would yield such a massive improvement.
"This Black Flame is truly formidable," said Galaxy of the Past, president of the Star River Alliance, gazing at the majestic Stone Forest City from the main gate, unable to hide his envy. "With such incredible mana, even with the threat of the Dark World looming, players will still flock to Stone Forest City like crazy just to rest. The entry fees alone from this wave should be enough to relieve Zero Wing of all their money worries."
Back in the Star Moon Kingdom, the Star River Alliance had once been on par with Zero Wing. Now, the Star River Alliance still worried about guild revenue every day, while Zero Wing could practically count money until their hands went numb…
Nowadays, the primary income for major guilds came from entry fees. However, because guild cities in neutral territories were becoming more and more numerous, and because every major guild competed for players, they had all driven their entry fees down. Stone Forest City, as the only guild city on a hundred-level neutral map, could charge entry fees without any restraint — it was practically robbery.
"Profiting is a given, and it's going to be massive. You've just arrived at Stone Forest City, so you probably don't know how crazy Zero Wing is," said a Tier 3 free-class Shield Warrior standing nearby in the queue, nodding emphatically in agreement. "Their entry fee is only five silver coins per person — I've heard that's the minimum standard for a mid-tier city. Remember, the entry fees at other guild cities on neutral maps are at least two silver coins per person, and their conditions are nowhere close to Stone Forest City's. A lot of my friends are planning to come to Stone Forest City to develop. When that happens, the number of players entering will probably be more than ten times what it is now."
"Five silver coins?" Liu Qianqian, a Tier 3 Ranger following behind Galaxy of the Past, widened her beautiful eyes in disbelief at what the Tier 3 Shield Warrior had said.
Their first-rate guilds had been forced to lower their entry fees due to intense competition. But Stone Forest City was in a league of its own — forget about the previous ten silver coins; even at twenty silver coins, massive numbers of players would still come to develop. After all, there were far too many players in the Divine Realm, and among them were countless top-tier experts. A single Stone Forest City simply couldn't accommodate all of them.
A city's player capacity was limited. When there was no shortage of players, the correct move to maximize revenue was to raise entry fees. Yet Zero Wing had actually lowered them instead. It was simply unbelievable.
At that moment, it wasn't only the Star River Alliance experts in the queue who were dumbfounded — even the Crimson Emperor members waiting behind them were slack-jawed.
A holy resting ground like this not charging at least twenty silver coins felt like a disservice to the city. They had even mentally prepared themselves to pay thirty silver coins per person. With such dense mana, it would not only massively boost their recovery speed but also dramatically accelerate their training and combat improvement inside Stone Forest City. For experts like them, thirty silver coins was a pittance — they'd be making a huge profit.
But five silver coins? What kind of joke was that?
"So this is Black Flame's trump card," the fierce man murmured after overhearing the conversation between Galaxy of the Past and the others. "It's a smart move. He knows the passage to the Dark World won't stay open for long, so he plans to rake in as much as he can right now, and afterward use those reserves to hold out against the Dark World forces, right?"
If the entry fee had been set at twenty or thirty silver coins, Stone Forest City would still have eventually filled to capacity, but it would have taken a great deal of time — after all, players who could afford such fees were no ordinary folk.
In contrast, at five silver coins, even an average hundred-level player could afford it, and these were the most numerous players in the Divine Realm. Within two or three days, Stone Forest City would reach saturation. Even at just five silver coins per person, the revenue would be staggering.
And in a large-scale war of this kind, money flowed out like water. Without a solid financial foundation, no one could hold out.
"If that's the case, then Demon Heart's Flame Light is going to have a terrible headache," Huanyu said with a smile. "In just two or three days alone, the entry fees should earn Zero Wing at least a million gold coins. Add in the commercial revenue from the population explosion, and that's at least two million, conservatively. With that many gold coins, Zero Wing should be able to sustain themselves for quite some time."
She had originally thought Zero Wing would have a hard time getting through this crisis, but the current Stone Forest City had far exceeded her expectations. It would be considerably harder for Demon Heart to make a move against Zero Wing.
"Zero Wing's approach is certainly wise, but unfortunately, time is already running out," the fierce man said, glancing at Huanyu and shaking his head.
"What do you mean?" Huanyu asked, puzzled.
"I didn't tell you before, but the elders have actually received accurate intelligence in secret — Demon Heart has already made its move. Within a day at most, the passage to the Dark World will open, and the major forces and top free players from the Dark World will flood into the Cold Spring Great Forest." The fierce man lowered his voice as he spoke to Huanyu. "Even if Stone Forest City is raking in money, Zero Wing doesn't have enough time."
Stone Forest City was certainly attractive to players, especially ordinary ones, but for those ordinary players to receive the news and then make their way here — who knew how long that would take. After all, it required significant travel expenses. Ordinary players had to take airships, while their own group rode Mythril-rank mounts at the very least. A typical hundred-level ordinary player only had a common mount.
With just one day, factoring in the spread of information and travel time, the ordinary players probably wouldn't have made it from the various kingdoms and empires to Stone Forest City before the Cold Spring Great Forest was already at war.
While the fierce man and Huanyu spoke in hushed tones and the various factions marveled at the new Stone Forest City, Shi Feng had quietly teleported back to White River City alone, ready to focus on upgrading his Knight Corps.
In the Divine Realm, top-tier players were certainly the foundation of any guild, but to establish a foothold on neutral maps above level one hundred, a strong Knight Corps was equally critical.
Previously, lacking gold coins, he hadn't dared to truly invest in upgrading the Knight Corps.
Now, with Stone Forest City being the first guild city on a hundred-level map to promote to mid-tier, the first wave of recruitment was sure to attract numerous knights with exceptional potential.
Moreover, with the proceeds from Bai Qingxue's sales of the Western Continent materials, combined with the entry fees from Stone Forest City, the gold coins in his pocket hadn't decreased at all — they had actually increased to five million. It would be a waste not to put them to use…
Star Moon Kingdom, White River City, Adventurer's Association Hall.
With the news of Stone Forest City spreading, the moment Shi Feng arrived at the Adventurer's Association, the entire hall was buzzing with discussions about Stone Forest City. Many free players expressed a desire to go develop there, particularly those small adventure teams with their own squads. Shi Feng, cloaked in a black robe, made his way alone to the VIP lounge on the second floor.
"Honored Bronze Legacy holder, is there anything I can assist you with?" Senior Steward Loran approached Shi Feng and asked with a smile.
"I'd like to check on the current recruitment status and the class promotion list for my Knight Corps," Shi Feng said with a smile.