Beastman Empire, Silverwing City.
The bustling main avenue was alive with foot traffic. Among the crowds, players made up a large portion, but more than half were NPCs from the surrounding kingdoms and empires.
With the opening of the World Passage and the influx of players and NPC forces from the outer worlds, the areas that both players and native NPCs could freely traverse had shrunk dramatically. Silverwing City—the strongest city on the Beastman Empire's soil, one that could not be breached short of a fifth-tier NPC's intervention—had become the gathering place for players and NPCs alike from all the neighboring kingdoms and empires.
On top of that, once word spread that Shi Feng had become a fifth-tier Class holder, the number of newcomers flooding into Silverwing City had skyrocketed. The city, already teeming with people, was now packed to the brim, and nearly all of them wanted to join Zero Wing, hoping to develop their careers here in Silverwing City for the long haul.
At the moment, however, a long queue had formed outside the Zero Wing headquarters. One by one, fourth-tier experts radiating terrifying auras were converging on the plaza in front of the headquarters, and the once-noisy surroundings fell into a hushed, oppressive quiet. Even the newcomers who had come to queue up for the Divine Realm aptitude test couldn't help but feel stiff with apprehension.
"What's going on with Zero Wing? Why are so many fourth-tier experts gathering here?"
"Maybe they saw how many people were showing up and brought these fourth-tier experts in to keep order?"
"Incredible! This is the Zero Wing Guild? Over fifty fourth-tier experts are here already—those super-guilds probably can't even compare!"
"Not just incredible—look at their gear. Every single one of them has at least three or four pieces of Level 150 Epic weapons or equipment. I wonder when I'll ever get even one!"
……
The new arrivals at the front of the queue stared wide-eyed at the Zero Wing fourth-tier experts gathered in the plaza.
Previously, they had thought Zero Wing was strong mostly because of Silverwing City's advantages and the guild master Black Flame's legend of invincibility—that was what made it a superpower in the Divine Realm.
Now, it seemed, Zero Wing's foundations ran far deeper than they had imagined.
Not only did it boast more fourth-tier experts than any other superpower, but its weapons and equipment were superior as well.
With over fifty fourth-tier Class holders assembled in the plaza, the spectacle was something none of them had ever witnessed in their lives. The combined, unrestrained aura of more than fifty fourth-tier professionals was even more terrifying than a high-ranking Legendary monster. Even third-tier experts felt their blood run cold and dared not approach.
"With so many fourth-tier experts gathered, is Zero Wing planning some kind of major operation?"
"It does seem unusual. Normally, without some special reason, a guild wouldn't suddenly mobilize this many fourth-tier Class holders."
As more and more fourth-tier Class holders continued to arrive, the newcomers in attendance started to feel that something was off. Even the Zero Wing guild members themselves watched the fourth-tier experts streaming into the plaza with undisguised puzzlement.
Ji Luorong arrived at the plaza and spotted Ziyan Liuyun, who had just gotten there not long ago. She walked over and asked curiously, "Sister Ziyan, do you know why the guild master suddenly called us all here?"
"I don't know either," Ziyan Liuyun replied, shaking her head. "Senior Huowu contacted me out of the blue and told me to get here for a gathering as soon as possible." She then studied Ji Luorong more closely and said with a hint of surprise, "Luorong, you've made amazing progress recently! Your Mana Body has broken through to 110%, hasn't it?"
Ji Luorong had only joined Zero Wing not long ago. She had already been strong when she first came aboard, but going from a Mana Body completion rate below 105% to the current 110% in less than ten days was nothing short of monstrous.
"Heh heh, I only broke through to 110% by luck, thanks to the Sword Saint Legacy that Senior Huowu gave me. Otherwise, who knows how long it would have taken." Ji Luorong smiled modestly, though she couldn't help feeling a small flutter of pride. After all, in the entire Divine Realm, there were vanishingly few experts who had pushed their Mana Body completion to 110%.
But the moment Ji Luorong focused and carefully sensed the mana around Ziyan Liuyun, her brief swell of pride crashed to the bottom of a pit.
Because the mana circulating around Ziyan Liuyun had already condensed into a liquid state. The droplets were tiny, but it was unmistakably genuine liquid mana.
Achieving that meant her Mana Body completion had to be at least 115%. According to some of the materials Shi Feng had provided, it was entirely possible she had reached the legendary 120%.
Not long after Ji Luorong arrived, a masked middle-aged man in black also walked over. The terrifying aura he exuded was comparable to that of a high-ranking Legendary monster, and this man was none other than Chimian—the same individual from the Eternal Glory Adventurer Team who had also joined Zero Wing.
"Captain, do you know what this sudden gathering is about?" Chimian looked at Ji Luorong and asked with a note of confusion.