The broad Knights Square in Silver Tooth City is like a huge disk embedded in the center of the city.
The bright skylight illuminates the endless flow of people, making the commercial street next to the square even more prosperous.
This commercial street is the prime location of Silver Ya City.
There is no other reason for this. The space-time gate and the auction house are located around the square.
At one end of the square, in the circular space-time gate, descendants and residents of Ashan kept coming out.
Most of them came from other cities in the principality, and some people were teleported from the distant Falcon Principality and Wolf Principality.
You can even occasionally see a Yincheng mage dressed in desert attire, traveling thousands of miles to Silver Fang City at a high cost of teleportation.
Lao Chai, dressed as a mercenary, walked out of the space-time gate.
He looked around, finding it hard to believe his eyes.
"Why are there so many people?"
This was completely different from the deserted and withered scene of Silver Fang City before he died in battle.
Several spear guards from the Wolf Principality were maintaining order at the time and space gate, shouting loudly: "Don't stay in the passage after walking out of the time and space gate, please leave immediately!"
Lao Chai was a little confused, why did it feel the same as queuing out of the train station?
A figure appeared from the light curtain and slammed into Lao Chai's back.
The man complained: "What are you doing if you don't leave the time and space gate?"
Lao Chai hurriedly stepped forward, nodded and said: "I'm sorry, there haven't been so many people here before."
When the man behind him heard this, his eyes immediately lit up. He came to Lao Chai and said, "Listen to what you said, are you a local?"
Lao Chai looked at the other party's information card.
This is a young Advent mage named Ye Ziming.
"Well," Lao Chai nodded, "I used to be a guild player here."
The guard not far away said angrily: "Don't talk in the passage in front of the time and space gate, leave immediately!"
"Quick," Ye Ziming said with a smile, "Let's leave here first."
The two walked out of the passage and came to the commercial street.
Lao Chai planned to go to the headquarters of the Xiaoyao Sanren Guild on Rusty Water Street to renew the guild subsidy agreement.
And Ye Ziming seemed to have no goal, just following Lao Chai with excitement on his face.
"Chai Guangzhu, right?" Zi Ming said very familiarly, "I'll call you Uncle Chai."
"Whatever you want," Lao Chai responded casually, "Why are you following me if you have nothing to do?"
Ye Ziming explained: "I heard that the Wolf Principality has a soul-refining potion. Do you know where I can get it?"
Lao Chai's face was full of confusion: "You spent so much on teleportation fees and came all the way here just for this?"
Ye Ziming said confidently: "Otherwise? All the strategy posts now say that qualified mages must prepare more soul refining potions."
What he said next left Lao Chai stunned.
"In Broken Star, players will die if they are killed. There is currently no means of resurrection. Even if I train the mage to level three or level four, he can easily be hacked to death with a knife."
"But it's different with the Soul Refining Potion. This thing seems to have serious side effects, but when used at critical moments, it can greatly improve the survival rate and give you a chance to kill the opponent."
"Spell competitions are popular in the mage academy of the Silver City State. A mage with a soul-refining potion is equivalent to 15% more reserve magic power. During the advanced exam, having a bottle of soul-refining potion can greatly increase the passing rate..."
Ye Ziming looked at Lao Chai with bright eyes: "Do you think this thing is important? So, I must get it first before starting my journey as Master Yashan!"
Lao Chai knew that this young master was completely different from him.
One look at his sophisticated equipment, bright robes, and appearance with tender skin and tender flesh, and you can tell that this young man is a kid from a wealthy family, a kid who has enough free time to go to college, and has no idea that he is going to meet someone after graduation. To what.
Lao Chai wanted to say that he didn't know where to get the soul-refining potion, but out of the corner of his eye he caught sight of a roadside tavern and said something strangely: "Buy me two glasses of wine, and I'll tell you how to get the soul-refining potion." method."
"okay!"
Lao Chai and Ye Ziming walked into the "Tianya Tavern".
The tavern owner was a barbarian who grew up in the north of the principality. He put his strong arms on the bar and said with a smile: "Old Chai, where did you die again this time?"
"Running Wolf Fortress, please have two large glasses of Starwind beer."
"Okay," the strong man couldn't help but praise as he took out the freshly made ale from a wooden barrel on the top shelf of the rear wine rack: "You're lucky. This is the last shipment today. Starwind Beer is in short supply!"
"Thanks, brother," Lao Chaigan said with a smile, "I will support your business as always."
After Lao Chai got it, he immediately took a big gulp.
Hiss—ha!
Cool!
This refreshing taste, rich foam, sweetness mixed with bitterness, and endless aftertaste are completely different from real beer. You can only enjoy it in the Principality of the Wolf.
Although the price of Star Wind Beer is much more expensive than ordinary ale, Lao Chai still feels that it is worth the money.
Besides, he didn't spend the money.
Ye Ziming looked forward to it: "Is it time for you to tell me the news about the soul refining potion?"
"Okay, come with me."
After finishing his beer, Lao Chai stood up and strode outside.
He planned to go to the Guild of Free and Unfettered Individuals located on Rusty Water Street.
Since Lu Xiao is the only one in the entire development area who has the soul refining potion, he can definitely find clues at the guild headquarters.
Lao Chai and Ye Ziming walked out of the bar and found that there were people outside and the commercial street was packed to the brim.
"The black dragon and the angel flew over there!"
"The Lord of Starwind went to the auction house!"
It turns out that the mysterious Lord of Star Wind visited here.
With the intention of watching the excitement, everyone crowded towards the auction house.
Lao Chai thought about it. When he drank too much in this bar, he often wandered around in the alley behind.
He knew there was a path around it.
Lao Chai chuckled: "Young man, let's go and see the excitement."
He took Ye Ziming for a spin in the alley, all the way to the back of the auction house.
There is a dark alley here that leads directly to the main entrance of the auction house.
Just as Lao Chai was about to walk in, he heard a sound coming from inside.
There was someone in the alley, and Lao Chai stopped.
"Are you out?"
"Not yet, he has the black dragon and the archangel beside him."
"Are you going to do it soon?"
"What kind of action? What to use? Use the broken crossbow in your hand? Report to the boss. High-level creatures must participate in order to succeed."
Lao Chai couldn't understand what was going on. He waited until the sound disappeared before walking out of the alley.
The Lord of Star Wind just walked out of the door of the auction house.
Amid the cheers of the crowds in the streets, he climbed onto the black dragon's back and soared into the sky, followed closely by the glorious and beautiful archangel.
Ye Ziming raised his head and admired: "This is so handsome. There is not only one giant dragon in the pioneer area, but he is the only one with such a high-profile dragon knight."
Lao Chai laughed dryly and continued walking towards Rusty Water Street.
When they arrived at the registration office of the Xiaoyao Sanren Guild, they discovered that there was already a long queue of people waiting to join the association!
Lao Chai was a little embarrassed and said: "This... wasn't like this before?"
Although Lao Chai failed to successfully renew the subsidy agreement, he successfully helped Ye Ziming find clues to the soul refining potion.
There is a large poster on the wall of the registration desk.
"Welcome the Silver City Mage to join the Xiaoyao Sanren Guild!"
"Sign in for 3 months and receive a bottle of soul refining potion! Sign in for 6 months and increase the allowance!"
Next to the poster, there was another recruitment order signed by Archduke Ron.
"The Principality of the Wolf is openly recruiting intermediate and advanced elemental mages of level 4 or above. Those with teaching experience will be given priority. After passing the interview, you can enjoy the official establishment and excess treatment, and you will also receive a free residence in Holy Flame City."
"It's chaos, it's all chaos," Lao Chai murmured, "Since when the Holy Empire has recruited mages, will the group of archbishops and priests in Falkenridge agree?"
A descendant next to him smiled and said, "Don't you understand? This is Grand Duke Ron's new policy! I heard that it was the Lord of Starwind who made the suggestion."
Lao Chai asked with confused eyes: "Don't the Holy Empire have an anti-magic tradition?"
"Anti-magic is nothing. The Wolf Principality is almost gone. Who can we show it to?"
...
The stable situation in the development zone was suddenly shaken up by an invisible black hand.
While all parties involved were struggling, the culprit woke up in a dilapidated rental house in Nanying Village.
Pfft——
The immersion hatch was opened, and Li Ran stood up from the protective fluid.
He ripped off the life-support tube, walked to the faucet, and washed the thick liquid off his body.
The projection bracelet suddenly sent a message.
Ding!
"1,780,000 yuan has been credited to your account, issued by Amber Technology. Note: The gold coin you listed for sale at the auction house has been auctioned."
Li Ran breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the first payment entering his account.
That's right, Li Ran's purpose in going to Silver Ya City was to sell gold coins at the auction house.
No one can do this for him.
Generally speaking, the handling fee for selling gold coins in auction houses is high and the price-performance ratio is low, but compared with offline transactions, it has irreplaceable advantages.
That's anonymization.
No third party knew about Li Ran's transaction.
1.78 million yuan, this is the market value of several boxes of gold coins that Li Ran randomly intercepted from the convoy returning to the wilderness and sold for real money.
In a real sense, this is the first pot of gold that Li Ran has obtained since entering Broken Star.
If all personnel and assets in the entire Star Wind Territory are included, the scientific research and economic value of the Iron Maiden biological armor opening up inland shipping, as well as the market value equivalent to its future development potential...
Li Ran couldn't imagine how much he was worth now.
However, this matter does not need to be entangled.
If he wanted to sell Xingfeng Ling as a package, he wouldn't have waited until now.
After returning to the development area, Li Ran's mentality gradually changed.
He walked to the mold-stained mirror and looked at himself.
The young man in the mirror has a handsome face, a confident smile on his face, and the light in his eyes is calm and bottomless.
He patted his face and transformed himself from a schemer hiding in the shadows into a normal person.
"This is normal." Li Ran smiled lightly in the mirror.
As he put on his clothes, he muttered to himself: "We must seize the time. After setting off for Hammerfell, there may not be many opportunities to go offline."
The journey to Hammerfell is too dangerous and requires sailing along the tributaries of the Ila River in the areas occupied by the Machine Tribe.
Hammerfall is under siege by the Machine Clan.
After the situation in the Wolf Principality stabilized and the number of Blizzard-class frigates increased, Li Ran finally had enough strength to complete this matter.
Going to Hammerfall Town was, on the one hand, to fulfill his promise to Tia and truly recruit the archangel to his command. On the other hand, Li Ran was also very interested in the Shantiri technology in Hammerfall Town.
Before that, Li Ran wanted to stabilize his life in reality and go to see Han Feibai to repay the loan in person.
I wonder, how is that aloof independent game producer and the successor of Future Technology Co., Ltd. doing now?
Li Ran tidied up, left the door, and came to the hall on the first floor.
The hall was empty, the garbage thrown by the tenants was piled messily on the ground, and the sofa where the second landlord Aunt Wu often sat was covered with dust.
Li Ran suddenly remembered that he had not paid the rent he had owed for a long time.
"Where did Aunt Wu go?"
Li Ran stepped up the stairs and came to the third floor.
Aunt Wu and her husband's room is here.
Li Ran came to the corridor window and looked into the room.
Aunt Wu's wife was sitting on the bench, staring at the old TV in front of her.
The old man kept pressing an ancient game controller in his hand, playing a game called Super Mario.
Aunt Wu stayed with her husband in the house, holding a bowl of hot soup in her hand and feeding it to him one bite at a time.
Li Ran knocked on the yellowed glass window.
Aunt Wu, who had half-white hair and was wearing a purple old man's uniform, immediately opened the door when she saw Li Ran appeared and said happily: "Oh, Li Ran? Have you come out of the Broken Star?"
Li Ran frowned and said, "What's wrong with my uncle?"
Aunt Wu said calmly: "He, it's not like you don't know about cerebellar atrophy and schizophrenia. The doctor said that if he continues like this, he won't survive next year. His condition has worsened seriously. I have to take care of him wholeheartedly. No The solution is to walk downstairs and clean every day."
Li Ran asked: "Can it be treated?"
Aunt Wu said in a bitter voice: "These diseases were incurable in the past. Now there is a special treatment. It is said to be based on the same principle as Broken Star's neural interaction system. It is said to stimulate and reconstruct atrophic lesions and restore memory, but it takes a lot of time. A big sum of money.”
Li Ran looked at the ancient game console again.
With the old man's current IQ, which has a shrunken cerebellum, he can't even pass the first level of Super Mario.
But he just enjoyed it and kept playing.
It seemed that before he was tortured to death by hallucinations and illness, in his gradually shrinking mind, only the little person who kept bouncing could bring him some happiness.
Super Mario is a "cultural relic" from before the nuclear war.
This is an age of forgetfulness.
The era before nuclear war is known as the golden age.
With the collapse of the earth and the nuclear destruction that covered the world, most of the culture and history of the Golden Age disappeared, leaving only "cultural relics" like Super Mario, which can also give people a glimpse of the fragments of people's lives in that era.
The brilliance of virtual reality, artificial intelligence and robotics makes people almost forget that the current civilization is rebuilt from the ruins of a broken world.
The lost culture and history of the Golden Age can never be recovered. Time will only roll forward and never stop.
Li Ran often imagines, how many games like Super Mario would there be in the golden age?
The Broken Star is also a "technological relic".
Its unimaginable virtual reality interaction technology, as well as the integrated biochip storage and computing technology that carries that virtual world, are said to all originate from the golden age before nuclear war.
Whoever created Broken Star originally designed this game, or virtual world, in what structure?
Li Ran put aside the distracting thoughts in his mind, took a deep breath, and asked: "Why don't you ask me for rent? I obviously owe so much..."
Aunt Wu looked into Li Ran's eyes and said with a smile: "You children, your life is more difficult than that of us immortals. There are robots everywhere and you don't even have a stable income..."
She waved her hand and said: "The other tenants have paid their dues, and the owner of this house doesn't miss you at all, so I didn't rush you and created a better environment for you to work in."
Li Ran asked in a normal voice: "Aunt Wu, how much does it cost to treat my uncle's disease?"
Aunt Wu said calmly: "The AI assessment of the treatment center said that more than 700,000 yuan is needed to cure the old man... Hey, how can we, the old couple, have so much money? The rent collected is so much, and it is also every day." I have no choice but to get a commission of two thousand yuan a month. Before the old man leaves, I will be satisfied as long as I can take care of him more..."
"Aunt Wu, thank you for taking care of me for a long time. I know that many second landlords in Nanying have kicked out people who can't pay the rent, but you have never kicked me out."
Li Ran smiled and said: "Maybe without your care, I would have missed this opportunity to succeed after I was forced to live on the street... I am really grateful to you. I made a small amount of money recently, so I will treat it as..." Express your gratitude.”
The senior version of the projection bracelet in the room suddenly sounded a prompt:
Ding!
"Your account has received 800,000 yuan, which was transferred by Li Ran in person. Note: Rent arrears, donated to my uncle's medical expenses."
"Li Ran, what are you..." Aunt Wu looked at Li Ran dumbfounded.
After she reacted, she immediately grabbed Li Ran's arm anxiously. An elderly person like her didn't know how to transfer money through a projection bracelet, so she forced him to drag him into the house to repay the loan.
"Li Ran, you can't do this, take it back quickly..."
Aunt Wu scratched out white marks on Li Ran's arm.
Li Ran slapped his forehead and said, "By the way, Aunt Wu, don't tell anyone about the money!"
Li Ran broke free from Aunt Wu's entanglement, jumped down the stairs, and rushed into the alley.
In the room, Aunt Wu looked at the place where Li Ran disappeared, opened her mouth wide, and did not move for a long time.
Her traditional moral values did not allow her to accept this huge sum of money. She had an impulse to find Li Ran with the projection bracelet and hand it back to him face to face, regardless of her weak body.
But she could never take this step.
After a while, the gray-haired Aunt Wu closed the door tightly and walked to her husband's side.
She hugged the man who had forgotten her and only pressed the game controller, and cried bitterly.
"Old man, your life can be saved..."
