As the third-tier Shield Warrior spoke, Ning Feng and the rest of the group looked at Shi Feng with a pang of shame.
They had been so caught up in the fighting earlier that they hadn't even had time to ask his name, let alone thank him. Fortunately, Madbull Yishi had offered to ask on their behalf—otherwise, their adventure team would have come across as truly ungrateful.
"Black Flame," Shi Feng said calmly.
"Black Flame?" Madbull Yishi burst out laughing the moment he heard it. "Brother, that name is way too badass. In the entire Star Moon Kingdom, I doubt anyone would dare not show some respect to a name like that."
Everyone present nodded in agreement.
Who didn't know the name of Zero Wing's Guild Master?
Setting aside the first-rate guilds in the Star Moon Kingdom like the Star River Alliance, even the current superpowers had to show some deference. It was a name known throughout the entire Star Moon Kingdom.
It was just that the Shi Feng standing before them—shrouded in a black robe that concealed both his information and appearance—didn't look anything like the legendary Black Flame. After all, no guild master would come to such a desolate wasteland, where leveling was slow and you had to face those Sacred Sculpture monsters.
"Alright, it's just a name. Since he doesn't want to say, there's no need to press the matter," Ning Feng whispered in the team chat as the others bantered.
The group nodded and dropped the subject. After all, they owed their lives to Shi Feng. If he wanted to hide his identity and wouldn't reveal his real name, they certainly shouldn't be so tactless as to push.
"Brother Black Flame, we haven't had a chance to thank you for your help earlier. If you ever run into trouble in the Star Moon Kingdom or the Beastman Empire in the future, don't hesitate to come find us. Our Blood Covenant adventure team may not compare to those big guilds, but handling a few small problems is no issue at all," Ning Feng said, walking up to Shi Feng with sincere gratitude.
"That's right," Madbull Yishi added confidently from the side. "Our Blood Covenant adventure team may not be one of the top-tier famous teams, but we're ranked in the top twenty here in the Beastman Empire. If you run into any rogue Dark players, just drop our name, and they'll give you some face."
"Sure," Shi Feng said with a wry smile, nodding at Ning Feng and the others, who clearly didn't buy it.
"Then let's get on the carriages quickly. Once night falls, not only will those Sacred Sculpture monsters become more active, but the people from the Heart of the Sacred Hand will also launch various attacks on the players around Silverwing Town. With our numbers, there's no way we could defend these goods," Ning Feng said, pointing at the merchant caravan nearby.
With that, everyone quickly climbed into the carriages, not daring to waste a moment.
"Vice Captain Ning Feng, since those Sacred Sculpture monsters are more active at night, aren't the people from the Heart of the Sacred Hand afraid of being attacked by them?" Shi Feng asked curiously as he boarded a carriage.
The Heart of the Sacred Hand wanted to expand and grow, so a future confrontation with Zero Wing was only natural. But those Sacred Sculpture monsters were no joke. Launching operations around Silverwing Town at night seemed like a foolish choice.
"We found that strange too," Ning Feng explained slowly. "But the Heart of the Sacred Hand developed a special item. As long as you wear it and don't actively attack those Sacred Sculpture monsters, they won't target you. That's why the Heart of the Sacred Hand operates at night alongside the Sacred Sculpture monsters to pressure Silverwing Town. And their offensives have been growing stronger lately—it looks like they're planning to seize Silverwing Town as quickly as possible."
"But we free players really don't want Silverwing Town to fall."
"Every town that the Heart of the Sacred Hand has taken over can only be entered by those who join them. Silverwing Town is currently the economic hub of the Beastman Empire. If Silverwing Town falls to the Heart of the Sacred Hand, we'll have nowhere left to go."
"That's why many of our adventure teams, and even some guilds from the Star Moon Kingdom, are helping Zero Wing fight the Heart of the Sacred Hand and protecting the trade caravans traveling to and from Silverwing Town. But recently, because those Sacred Sculpture monsters keep getting stronger, we've been gradually losing ground. I don't know how much longer we can hold on..."
The other players present silently seethed with hatred toward the Heart of the Sacred Hand.
The various kingdoms and factions were already struggling enough against the threat of the Sacred Sculpture monsters, yet the Heart of the Sacred Hand was exploiting the crisis to plunder them, making it harder and harder for free players to survive. And there was nothing they could do—even the superpowers simply stood by and watched, not daring to oppose the Heart of the Sacred Hand.
As Shi Feng chatted with Ning Feng and the others along the way, he gradually learned about the current situation in the Star Moon Kingdom.
Although nearly half of the Star Moon Kingdom had fallen, no major NPC city at the capital level had been captured yet. Still, the situation was far from optimistic.
As the Sacred Sculpture monsters grew stronger, large numbers of players had begun fleeing outward. White River City, which once boasted a player population of over ten million, now had fewer than four million remaining. The situation in other NPC cities was even worse.
The sharp decline in player numbers had sent the entire Star Moon Kingdom's economy plummeting. Many factions had been forced to leave the kingdom and seek development elsewhere.
The departure of major factions from the Star Moon Kingdom had allowed dark forces to rise in their stead, to the point where players who strayed from NPC towns risked dying at any moment.
In a word, it was chaos.
And most critically, as the Sacred Sculpture monsters continued to grow stronger, everyone could already foresee the fall of capital-level NPC cities. The entire Star Moon Kingdom was done for—unless you joined the Heart of the Sacred Hand, there was no way to avoid being consumed by the Sacred Sculpture monsters...
As the escort caravan pressed onward, before they knew it, Shi Feng and the others had arrived at a desert woodland not far from Silverwing Town.