When Qing Hong and Elder Jin heard Shi Feng casually mention a level-120 secret realm — the City of Toxic Miasma — they were left momentarily speechless.
That was a level-120 secret realm!
At present, none of the major superpowers in the Divine Realm had even attempted a level-110 hundred-man team dungeon, and there wasn't a single level-110 player among them. A secret realm wasn't technically a dungeon, but in practice it was even harder — its minimum difficulty was equivalent to an Extra-Hard large-scale team dungeon. A level-120 secret realm was something the current major powers and superpowers wouldn't even dare dream of attempting.
And yet Shi Feng?
He spoke of it as casually as if he were stopping by a neighborhood supermarket for a stroll…
They strongly wondered whether they were even playing the same game.
"What's wrong? Is there a problem?" Shi Feng asked, looking at the two stunned figures with a puzzled expression.
"Nothing — it's just that, Lord Black Flame, that's a level-120 secret realm. With our current levels and equipment, I'm afraid…" Elder Jin said worriedly.
A level-120 secret realm itself wasn't the issue — getting in was one thing, but whether you could get back out was another matter entirely.
A secret realm was nothing like a dungeon. Inside, the difficulty wasn't pre-set based on player count with a fixed number of monsters. The number and strength of enemies encountered in a secret realm were entirely random — you might end up fighting a hundred-man squad, or a thousand-man force, or even a group of three to five thousand.
This was precisely why clearing a secret realm was significantly harder than a team dungeon of the same level. Normally, an entire guild had to be mobilized for a large-scale operation. But once players entered the level-100 range, the only ones who could hold their own inside were Third Class experts. Second Class players could barely take a single step inside — meaning it was essentially impossible to rally the full strength of a guild. Only a small number of Third Class experts could be sent in to attempt a clear.
This was the primary reason why the major powers and superpowers had stopped attempting secret realms above level 100 after reaching the level-100 threshold.
"Relax. As long as everyone follows orders, there won't be much of a problem," Shi Feng said with a smile.
The City of Toxic Miasma had been quite famous in his previous life. Even the great superpowers had sent thousands of Third Class experts to assault it and failed — it wasn't until Fourth Class experts appeared that it was barely cleared.
But that was for other people. For him, it wasn't particularly difficult. After all, his goal wasn't to conquer the City of Toxic Miasma itself, but rather to obtain a fragment of Solomon's Sword. He currently possessed both the Abyss and the Ring of Gospel, and now that he had become an Intermediate Grandmaster Mage, the Ring of Gospel could better exert its power to suppress those Fourth Class Legendary monsters — turning what had once been a hopeless endeavor into something with a real chance of success.
The only thing he was lacking, perhaps, was manpower.
Secret realms above level 100 generally required a corps of a thousand Third Class experts. Previously, relying on the Hell Legion's three hundred Third Class experts combined with Zero Wing's forces — roughly five hundred Third Class experts in total — had been barely enough. But now, with the two major guilds contributing over two hundred more Third Class experts, the odds of obtaining Solomon's Sword fragment had improved considerably.
Although Elder Jin and the female knight Qing Hong still felt something was off about the arrangement after hearing Shi Feng's response, both sides had already entered into a binding contract, and neither could afford to casually violate its terms.
Shortly after, Elder Jin and Qing Hong began covertly mustering the Third Class experts from the Divine Alliance and Dark Rhapsody, while on the other side, Shi Feng started rallying the members of Zero Wing and the Hell Legion.
News of the full cooperation between the Divine Alliance, Dark Rhapsody, and Zero Wing spread throughout the Dark World like wildfire, sending shockwaves across the entire region. Especially when the numerous independent players learned that members of the two major guilds could freely travel back and forth to the Divine Realm's continent, the influx of new applicants to both guilds skyrocketed.
"Elder Nuxin, before this, our Dawn Hegemony listened to your people and took the lead in targeting Zero Wing. Look where that got us — our prestige has plummeted, and we've become the laughingstock of the Dark World. Meanwhile, after the Divine Alliance and Dark Rhapsody joined Zero Wing, they've been wildly popular. If you can't offer something concrete, we may have no choice but to consider cooperating with Zero Wing instead," Dawn Hegemon said coldly from inside the reception room, staring across at Nuxin who sat in silence.
"Rest assured about that, Lord Dawn. Since we've come to invite Dawn Hegemony to join us, we naturally wouldn't let you suffer any losses. Besides, wouldn't Lord Dawn like to settle the score with Zero Wing?" Nuxin said slowly. "Zero Wing now possesses not only the ever-profitable Stone Forest City, but also controls the Dark World's teleportation gate. Their influence across the eastern continent is unmatched at the moment. But the tallest tree in the forest is the first to be felled — Zero Wing's star has risen too brightly, and there are plenty of superpowers who are none too happy about it."
"Cut to something real — I don't want to hear empty platitudes!"
Dawn Hegemon shot Nuxin an irritated look. Who didn't already know all that? The real question was, who could actually do anything about Zero Wing?
"That's precisely why we've received covert backing from numerous superpowers — particularly the loan of weapons and equipment. If Dawn Hegemony is willing to join our alliance, you'll be able to borrow fifty sets of level-105 Gold-grade equipment and ten sets of level-105 Dark-Gold equipment for ten days, completely interest-free and at no cost," Nuxin said with a calm smile, unfazed by Dawn Hegemon's irritation. "What do you think? Even an ordinary superpower would have a hard time obtaining equipment of this caliber. Yet all Dawn Hegemony has to do is join the alliance, lend a few Third Class experts, and you'll not only receive these items but get help clearing those level-100 team dungeons to acquire high-quality gear. And after clearing the Tower of the Ancient Gods, you'll also receive a five-percent share of the profits. Isn't that far more tangible than what those two guilds partnering with Zero Wing are getting?"
"Fifty sets of level-105 Gold-grade equipment and ten sets of level-105 Dark-Gold equipment?" Dawn Hegemon's eyes widened in shock. "You can actually produce that many top-tier items?"