The Power of a Projection, an Unexpected Battle for the City

The same applies to the Legion Guild nowadays.

Faced with overwhelming enemy firepower, they had no choice but to retreat temporarily.

"At least the huge price we paid for this deal wasn't in vain."

"With Fragrant Cloud City in hand, the Chamber of Commerce has taken a solid first step."

The person in the shadows watched the fading replica in their palm. The entire battle lasted only ten minutes, and the result was more satisfactory than expected.

"I never imagined that Chongxing's strength was this great; he could crush a major power with just a projection."

"If only he were a player from one of our Zone 30." Lan Changfeng's voice was filled with barely concealed excitement.

Don't get too excited yet.

"We can't reveal our trump card; keeping it a secret is better for everyone."

"If we can make other Critical Strike wary, we can save a lot of trouble in the future."

The man was eager to retract the illusion precisely so as not to leave any flaws.

Rather than letting people know that they possess the means to summon divine projections, he preferred that the outside world believe that Chongxing was already an ally of the Starlight Merchant Guild.

A key to doing business is to cheat and deceive, and to create information asymmetry.

Just like how ancient merchants fabricated many mysterious legends to cover up the origin of spices in order to monopolize the spice trade.

This is the nature of businessmen: creating information gaps to reap huge profits.

The biggest dark horse of this Territory War has emerged – the Starlight Merchant Guild defeated the Legion Guild and unexpectedly seized Fragrant Cloud City.

The key to victory or defeat lay in Chongxing's appearance midway through the Chongxing, which helped the Starlight Merchant Guild defeat the core crystal in one fell swoop.

Speculation immediately arose.

Some believe that Chongxing may have incurred the wrath of those above him, which is why he temporarily sided with the Starlight Merchant Guild.

"This is common; it's a typical plot device in novels. When those above want to control the experts, the experts turn against each other."

Some speculated that the Starlight Merchant Guild had offered a hefty reward in exchange for the powerful figure's assistance. "Hmph, they must have spent money, and a lot of it at that."

Some even speculated. "Chongxing has definitely decided to end his solitary life and officially join the Starlight Merchant Guild."

Opinions vary widely, and no consensus can be reached.

"I've said it before, there must have been a deeper reason why Chongxing went to the Zone 30 to find the Starlight Merchant Guild! We must have already reached a cooperation agreement back then."

"You're just offering hindsight advice again. Why didn't you bet on the Starlight Merchant Guild to win before? You've really made a fortune this time."

"I'm just curious how much they paid the great god. I heard that the Starlight Merchant Guild is incredibly wealthy, and they pocket half of the God's Domain's Gold Coin."

Although everyone was very curious about Chongxing, no one dared to ask him Chongxing. They could only try to find out from the Starlight Merchant Guild indirectly.

They didn't know that this dreaded Chongxing was entirely dependent on Gao Linzhi's whims.

When Gao Linzhi saw these people talking, he couldn't help but understand why those in high positions didn't treat people as human beings.

Because the information gap between the two sides is too large.

Those in lower positions often mistake those in higher positions for geniuses, possessing exceptional strategic vision. In reality, they are no different, and may even be less capable than those in lower positions.

Those in lower positions who possess this understanding will, like Huang Chao, storm in.

But they were destined to gain nothing—there were only four people who knew the inside story, including Zhang Mingzhen himself.

Even the usually clueless Utterly Empty was tacitly excluded by his family.

"Young Master, please take care of me in the future."

"I was young and naive in the past. If I have offended you in any way, please forgive me."

"Wandering Shadow," she said to Utterly Empty, half-jokingly and half-enviously.

Although he came from a well-off family, he was still far inferior to a behemoth like the Starlight Merchant Guild.

Now that the Chamber of Commerce has acquired Fragrant Cloud City, it is bound to experience rapid development in the next two weeks.

Keep in mind that the other party is a chamber of commerce, which naturally has an advantage in how to utilize the city.

This is something that can't be compared to what's above.

It's common knowledge that those in power aren't good at governing cities; the biggest help they can give a city is simply not causing trouble.

"Don't give me that! By the way, how did this expert end up collaborating with us?"

"Was this what they went to see the expert about last time?"

"Damn it, they kept it all from me! I had no idea about my idol! I have to go back and find out right now!"

Like many other players who were unaware of the situation, "Utterly Empty" was both envious and puzzled that his own merchant guild could persuade Chongxing, and immediately rushed to his father and brothers to ask them why.

Unexpectedly, he was dismissed with a few words and told not to inquire about such matters, so he had no choice but to leave disappointed.

After receiving the Territory War reward again, Zhang Mingzhen immediately contacted various guilds to trade "Amulet" fragments.

Unfortunately, their luck wasn't as good as in the inaugural Territory War; no one managed to obtain a complete Amulet.

Besides the "Starry Night Guild" exchanging all their fragments for him as a gesture of goodwill, other guilds were also willing to exchange a small number of fragments for level 2 and 3 welfare chests.

In addition to what he had obtained from the previous dungeon, Zhang Mingzhen had now gathered enough materials to synthesize two complete Amulet.

That's the power of Cheater; the snowball can grow incredibly large.

To be on the safe side, he decided to synthesize two items at the same time, hoping that they would have attributes that suited his profession.

Fortunately, the results were not disappointing this time; neither Amulet produced the same "special" junk item description as before.

"Fortune-Wisdom Amulet (Universal): Spirit +100, Armor Penetration +100, Critical Hit +10%, Combo +10%, Experience Gain +3%, Fortune +2."

"Longevity Amulet (Universal): Constitution +300, Spirit +100, Critical Hit +10%"

After careful consideration, Zhang Mingzhen ultimately chose the Fortune-Wisdom Amulet.

After all, it increases both Fortune and experience.

This amulet focuses more on enhancing offensive power, which aligns well with his fighting style.

As for the other Longevity Amulet, he had no intention of selling or dismantling it.

Its robust physique and dual defense buffs are extremely useful, significantly enhancing survivability. Keep it for now, just in case.

He was never short of Gold Coin, so keeping an extra treasure wouldn't hurt.

At this moment, the Amulet was already on, and the experience accumulated within the Dragon-Eye Spirit Pearl had reached its full capacity.

So he stopped suppressing his level and decisively absorbed the vast torrent of experience from the spirit orb.

That urgent feeling of wanting to break through the hundred-level barrier and personally measure its height was driving him forward at full speed.

The desire to break free from the constraints of games and gain real power is especially urgent for them.

After the dust settled on the new Territory War, several sensational events occurred in the God's Domain world, becoming a hot topic of discussion among players.

The first thing to be affected is the terrifying leap in level that is called "Chongxing".

This Legend figure seemed to have been gathering strength for a long time, and in a short period of time, he completed a three-level jump, soaring to level eighty-two with unstoppable momentum, silencing all voices that questioned whether his potential had been exhausted.

Secondly, there was the grand announcement issued by the Starlight Merchant Guild to all Blue Star players:

"The inaugural Starlight Auction will be grandly unveiled in Fragrant Cloud City! We cordially invite distinguished individuals from all walks of life to attend the event, and will simultaneously open on-site and remote bidding channels."

This move, made with great fanfare, demonstrates its ambition to solidify its position as the number one merchant guild in the God's Domain.

The third thing was a chilling rumor.

It is said that the Evil God Faction, in their pursuit of power, did not hesitate to use forbidden techniques, ultimately suffering a backlash from the system.

By the time officials arrived in Xuancheng, all the players there had perished.

The entire organization of the Evil God Faction was completely wiped out, leaving no trace whatsoever.

Xuancheng has once again become a deserted ghost town. To prevent any unforeseen circumstances, the authorities have decided to permanently seal off the area and will no longer send any players there.

Zhang Mingzhen originally estimated that the 100 million experience points he had stored would be enough to help him break through the level 85 threshold.

Unexpectedly, after level 80, the required experience points suddenly increased dramatically, requiring a staggering 30 million just to level up from level 80 to 81.

Ultimately, this 100 million experience points could only support him to advance to level 82.

Currently, he has no suitable dungeons to conquer, and his sources of equipment upgrades have also been cut off.

This was one of the reasons he decided to attend the Starlight Auction.

In addition, the Chamber of Commerce had previously sold him all the Amulet Fragment, and he also needed to consider that favor.

Since the other party sincerely invited him to attend the auction, he agreed, hoping that he wouldn't leave empty-handed.

Even without equipment suitable for level 80, obtaining clues related to the new dungeon is still beneficial.

Hoping to acquire top-tier equipment directly from auction houses is a very slim hope.

Currently, he is the only player in the God's Domain capable of challenging Hell difficulty dungeons, and Platinum -grade equipment can only be obtained from level 70 Hell dungeons.

Even top-tier combatants mostly wear gold-plated equipment.

Even if some equipment occasionally comes up for auction, it's mostly gold-tier, which holds no appeal for him—most of his two equipment slots are already filled with Platinum gear, not to mention the four treasures he carries that can evolve as he grows.

Reaching level 80 naturally brings many benefits.

In addition to the Death Scepter, which had already been upgraded to Platinum, the other three growth-type equipment items have also successfully entered the Platinum Tier, with their attributes greatly enhanced and several unique effects added.

[Imperial Scepter (Platinum - Upgradable): Spirit +1500, Intelligence +800, Critical Hit +200, Combo +200]

[Special Effect - Combo: There is a 50% chance to trigger an additional basic attack when attacking.]

[Special Effect - Armor Penetration: Attacks have the effect of ignoring 30% of the opponent's defense.]

[Equipment Restriction: Priest]

[Death Tomb Book (Platinum - Upgradable): Spirit +2000, Intelligence +800, Critical Hit +200, Combo +200]

[Special Effect - Magic Conversion: When casting a spell, there is a 70% chance to negate mana cost.]

[Special Effect - Immortality: Increases base constitution by 20%.]

[Equipment Restriction: Priest]

[Netherguard Spirit Tome (Platinum - Upgradable): Spirit +2000, Intelligence +800, Critical Hit +200, Combo +200]

[Special Effect - Mana Body: Increases maximum Mana by 30%.]

[Special Effect - Intellect Body: Grants an additional 1000 points of Intelligence.]

[Equipment Restriction: Priest]

This significant leap in equipment attributes caused his character's stats to increase exponentially.

His physique broke through the 5,000 mark in one fell swoop, and his life value soared to an unimaginable height, making his strength a complete transformation.

Its attributes rival those of a boss, yet it reflects the wisdom of the player.

The character's abilities have been comprehensively enhanced, gaining not only special skills to break through defenses and prolong survival, but also significantly increasing their output efficiency.

What's even more remarkable is that his healing value has exceeded 100,000. If he were to unleash his ultimate skill of Blood-for-Life at this moment, even a powerful Demon Race might find it difficult to defeat him easily.

It's gratifying that his skill "Flower Spirit" can now summon three Flower Spirit illusions to fight together.

This can be seen as compensation for high-level players after the experience required for leveling up has increased significantly.

Having an extra Flower Spirit to assist him will undoubtedly be a significant boost to his subsequent advancement.

[Chongxing (Priest) Level 83, Constitution: 5590, Strength: 1746, Agility: 3090, Intelligence: 7010, Spirit: 9876, Critical Hit Rate: 1500, Combo Rate: 1500]

"Physical resistance... Spell Resistance... Healing power:... Experience points:..."

Examining his current stats, he discovered that the attribute bonuses provided by his equipment far exceeded his base stats.

After all, he has a dual equipment system.

Even with his base stats far exceeding those of ordinary players, the numerical values are still so low, which further demonstrates the crucial importance of equipment for other adventurers.

Most games are all about equipment.

Especially pay-to-win games and online games.

Because equipment is tradable and exchangeable, it greatly enhances interaction and will naturally be a key focus of development.

Since he stopped leading the team, the channels for obtaining equipment through team battles have become increasingly scarce, which will inevitably lead to fierce competition at this Starlight Auction.

"The Starlight Auction about to begin! It's said that many top experts have received invitations to attend. Do you think Chongxing will show up?"

"Given his relationship with the Starlight Merchant Guild, he should attend if he receives an invitation."

"I don't think he'll go. He's always been averse to trouble, and I guess he'll just participate in the bidding online, like us."

"In any case, today we can finally see the Wind and Cloud from each server, and it's time to watch the big shots spend lavishly!"

"I'm definitely going to bid on one piece of equipment this time! I'm so fed up with this level 40 gear I'm wearing!"

"Same here! I've been saving up Gold Coin for so long, just to snag a gold-quality weapon at the auction!"

"I'm so envious! I wouldn't even dare to dream of getting gold-tier equipment; I'd be perfectly content with Silver Tier gear!"

At this very moment.

"Have all the invitations been sent out? Make sure you confirm the guest list and ensure the venue is secure. We can't let anyone take the opportunity to cause trouble—after all, not everyone wants to see our chamber of commerce in such a good light."

The person in the shadows carefully confirmed the auction process with the two young men beside him.

"Father, rest assured, the list of items for the preliminary auction has been delivered to those distinguished guests. As long as it's a treasure that can enhance their strength, those powerful individuals will certainly not refuse it."

"Oh, right, Kongkong also said he wanted to come and participate in the auction..." Gongzi Su shook his head after mentioning his younger brother.

"Let him participate online; there's no time to provide extra support on-site."

The Mysterious Man had already seen through the three men's intentions; he simply wanted to bypass the formalities and acquire the auction items through irregular means.

"Also, Chongxing has confirmed his attendance. He mentioned that he has some unused equipment that he intends to entrust to us for auction."

"Oh? The equipment he used was at least Golden Tier."

"I will speak with him personally once he arrives."

The Starlight Auction about to open, and players from all sides have already gathered in front of the live broadcast channel, eagerly awaiting its opening.

Some were looking for suitable equipment and treasures, while others simply wanted to catch a glimpse of the masters attending the gathering.

"The Starlight Merchant Guild is quite shrewd; they actually bought the auction house in Fragrant Cloud City directly, and from now on it will be renamed 'Starlight Auction Hall'!"

"Many big guilds have sent people! I saw our guild leader at the table!"

"As expected, almost all the top experts on the combat power ranking have come in person. The Starlight Merchant Guild has really made a grand entrance this time."

"Where's the master? Chongxing arrived yet? I'll definitely support him because of him!"

"I see! That person is here too!"