"Operating near Stone Forest Town?" Shi Feng couldn't help but fall into deep thought.
In his memory, no such monsters had ever appeared in the Star Moon Kingdom, and this was the first time he had ever laid eyes on creatures like these.
If they were aberrant monsters, they shouldn't spare any living thing — players would never be able to coexist with them.
But these horned humanoid creatures bore some resemblance to aberrants. They could grow stronger by killing monsters and players.
Just as Blood Fang had said, those monsters weren't much of a threat right now.
However, if these horned creatures kept growing, things would get very dangerous.
"Before I sent Bloodlust Fengqing to negotiate cooperation, I had already been investigating that area in secret. According to his report, every field boss in that region has been wiped out. Not only that, but not a single regular monster remains. The same situation has been discovered in the nearby level-sixty maps as well." Blood Fang sent several more photos to Shi Feng. "These pictures were taken by Bloodlust Fengqing in one of those level-sixty maps. At the rate these creatures are growing, it won't be long before they pose a threat to Stone Forest Town — or even to NPC cities."
Shi Feng glanced at the photos and could hardly believe what he was seeing.
A forest that had once been lush and overgrown was now riddled with sinkholes and scorched earth. A level-sixty-three Great Lord — a creature over thirty meters tall — lay collapsed on the ground, its entire body resembling a mummy that had been drained of all moisture.
What was even more terrifying was that in every place these horned monsters had appeared, even regular monsters had stopped spawning. It was as if the entire map had been rendered useless. It might not seem like much now, but if this spread, the entire Star Moon Kingdom would have nowhere left for players to level up.
"Thank you for the information, Guild Master Blood Fang. I have matters to attend to, so I'll be leaving now." After looking through the photos, Shi Feng's brows knitted tightly together. He bid Blood Fang farewell immediately and pulled out a Return Scroll to activate it.
After Shi Feng vanished in a streak of white light, Blood Fang turned to the shadow guard beside him and ordered, "Tell Bloodlust to pull our people out of the Star Moon Kingdom for now. Redirect our focus to the neighboring Black Dragon Empire."
"Guild Master, our business in the Star Moon Kingdom has been doing well. If we pull everyone out, our gold income will drop significantly. Besides, those monsters are only affecting the area around the Star Moon Royal Capital. Is there really a need to be that cautious?" The cold-faced shadow guard beside him said in surprise.
"You think those monsters are that simple?" Blood Fang shot a glance at the guard. "There's something I didn't tell Zero Wing. Just recently, the Shadow Blade squad I sent out reported back — they've already encountered those horned monsters. Do you know where they found them?"
The shadow guard shook his head.
"It was an NPC town on a level-fifty map. The entire town has already become a nest for those horned creatures. According to earlier information, there were fewer than ten of them. But now there are hundreds — and the lowest level among them is fifty, with some reaching as high as eighty. At this rate, something terrible will happen across the entire Star Moon Kingdom. It's better to leave early. Don't forget that the people killed by those monsters still can't log back into the Divine Realm." Blood Fang smiled. "And I've also received word — the Blackwater Consortium has decided to start making moves in the Star Moon Kingdom. We'd better not have any contact with them for now."
"What? The Blackwater Consortium is finally entering the Divine Realm? But why the Star Moon Kingdom?" Upon hearing the name Blackwater, the shadow guard's ice-cold face showed a flicker of fear for the first time.
"I'm not entirely sure either, but it's probably because of the new class. After all, the Star Moon Kingdom is the easiest place in the Divine Realm to cultivate new-class players. Having a batch of new-class players would be very beneficial for future development." Blood Fang shook his head. "Of all the major conglomerates, I despise the Blackwater Consortium the most. They never play by the rules and will stop at nothing. As for Zero Wing, they'll have to rely on their own abilities from here on out."
…
Shortly after Blood Fang gave his orders, Bloodlust Fengqing also departed in confusion, leading the several hundred Shadow Crow members hidden throughout the Star Moon Kingdom out of the kingdom and into the neighboring Black Dragon Empire to continue their operations there. As for Shi Feng himself, he did not head to Black Wing City to purchase Exorcism Scrolls. Instead, he arrived at the Star Moon Royal Capital.
The capital had undergone a noticeable change compared to just a few days ago. The players filling the streets were largely from other kingdoms and empires, all hawking weapons and equipment. There were also many non-combat adventure players, whose levels were generally quite low — some were only in the teens. But these players were extremely wealthy. They were player merchants.
Owning a personal shop in the city was extremely difficult for players, and the free market had designated hours for setting up stalls, so items couldn't be sold at any time. Selling through the Auction House, on the other hand, charged fees that were too high for the average player. So most chose to call out their wares on the street, and anyone who wanted to buy could simply trade directly.
It was time-consuming and tiring, but for ordinary players, earning whatever they could was worth it — especially when selling weapons and equipment. The income was nothing to scoff at.
This gave merchant players an opportunity to make money. Once they hit level ten, they would travel between major kingdoms and cities, buying goods from players selling on the streets, then reselling them elsewhere. After all, prices varied between cities and countries, and there was decent profit to be made in the spread.
Because they were professional merchants, the major kingdoms and cities of the Divine Realm offered discounts on teleportation fees. And just like life professions, merchants had their own ranks — the higher the rank, the greater the discount on teleportation.
Many players had managed to accumulate enough capital to open a shop in an NPC city through this kind of trading. Otherwise, with the savings of an ordinary player, they could never afford a single plot of land in their entire lifetime.
Shi Feng then made his way along the main street to the mansion of Grand Duke Hartfield.
The NPC guards at the mansion gates saw Shi Feng but made no effort to stop him, allowing him to enter the Grand Duke's estate.
Shi Feng hadn't come here for the Dawn Treasure Chest. He had come because of the horned monsters.
He hadn't originally known the origin of those horned creatures, but the information in the photos and Blood Fang's words allowed him to confirm one thing.
The horned monsters were connected to the Evil God Temple.
On the continent of the Divine Realm, humanity's threats weren't limited to abyssal monsters — there were many other dark forces as well. Among them, the most dangerous was the Evil God Temple. Unlike the War God Temple, which was dedicated to resisting the abyssal invasion, the Evil God Temple existed solely to destroy the Divine Realm — to annihilate all life indiscriminately, unlike the abyssal monsters who sought conquest.