Chapter 2052 – Road After Tier 2
After s.h.i.+ Feng activated the Ancient G.o.d's Secret Key, he found himself moving through a tunnel of time and s.p.a.ce. Various images, visions of G.o.d's Domain's history, zipped past him. Some images showed the rise of a kingdom, others depicted a war between empires, and some showed heroes as they triumphed.
After quite some time, a ma.s.sive black hole appeared before s.h.i.+ Feng. Countless arcs of pitch-black electricity snaked in and out of this black hole. Even though s.h.i.+ Feng was still far from the black hole, he could sense how powerful the arcs of electricity were. He suspected that these black electric arcs would even turn a Tier 5 being to ash in an instant.
As s.h.i.+ Feng fell into the black hole and encounter the black electricity, the magic barrier around his body protected him from harm. In the end, he entered the black hole in one piece.
By the time s.h.i.+ Feng recovered from his daze, he stood inside an ancient, dilapidated palace.
System: You have discovered the Ancient G.o.d's Maze.
System: While inside the Ancient G.o.d's Maze, communication with the outside world is prohibited. Time flows within the Maze as it does in the real world. You will automatically be transported out of the Ancient G.o.d's Maze in the event of your death.
So, this is the trial ground?
The system notification didn't particularly surprise s.h.i.+ Feng; after all, he currently stood in a place the Ancient G.o.ds had left behind. Severed communication and the altered flow of time were normal. He was far more interested in the Maze's environment.
Aside from the tightly shut stone doors, there were no paths leading further into. However, this palace's Mana density was incredibly high. Even Zero Wing City's paled in comparison.
The environment was a G.o.dsend to s.h.i.+ Feng.
Not only could players exhibit greater strength while in a high-Mana environment, but they would also recover their Stamina and Concentration much faster. Players could continue to fight without worrying about running out of the resources.
Following which, s.h.i.+ Feng approached the tightly shut doors.
Many divine runes had been carved into the doors, which were made entirely of Black Luminaries Stone. The closer s.h.i.+ Feng got to the doors, the more pressure he felt from them. He felt that the doors' aura was no weaker than that of a Tier 5 NPC.
System: You have discovered the Ancient G.o.d's Gate. You may choose one of four difficulties – Normal, Hard, h.e.l.l, and Asura. No changes will be allowed once you have made your selection. Please choose carefully.
There are four difficulties? s.h.i.+ Feng was stunned when he heard the system notification.
He remembered that after using the Ancient G.o.d's Secret Key, one should only have three difficulties to choose from: Normal, Hard, and h.e.l.l. The Secret Key's trial had the same difficulty modes as Dungeons in the outside world. As a result, many players who had challenged the Ancient G.o.d's Secret Key's trial had taken the difficulty selection too lightly, wasting their golden opportunity.
Ordinary experts had no trouble raiding Normal Mode Dungeons; in fact, they usually raided Hard Mode. However, peak experts accepted nothing less than h.e.l.l Mode Dungeons. Most peak experts considered weaker Modes an insult to their strength.
In the end, however, ordinary experts proved incapable of even clearing the Normal Mode trial. Peak experts had even been rendered powerless when challenging the Hard Mode trial…
This was why many players who had obtained an Ancient G.o.d's Secret Key had wasted their opportunities in the past.
One would have a high chance of earning an Epic item if they could complete the Normal Mode Trial. Completing the Hard Mode trial could award players several Epic items, with a small chance of obtaining a Fragmented Legendary item. Finally, completing h.e.l.l Mode gave players a high chance of acquiring a Fragmented Legendary item.
However, s.h.i.+ Feng had never heard of an Asura Mode. Why wouldn't it surprise him?
This turn of events left s.h.i.+ Feng unsure of which difficulty he should choose.
The Ancient G.o.d's Secret Key's trial scaled to the challenger's level. As such, it was far more important for the player to improve their combat and equipment standards, rather than increase their level.
s.h.i.+ Feng had intended to challenge h.e.l.l Mode and pray for a Fragmented Legendary item, and he had been relatively confident in succeeding. The discovery of an Asura Mode, however, put him in a bind.
The difficulty of the Secret Key's trial increased substantially with each difficulty mode. Of course, if one succeeded, they'd be handsomely rewarded. He was almost certain of completing h.e.l.l Mode, but he'd likely have a hard time if he chose Asura Mode.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained! Let's go with Asura Mode! After giving the matter some thought, s.h.i.+ Feng chose Asura Mode.
Although he knew he'd have a high chance of earning a Fragmented Legendary item if he cleared h.e.l.l Mode, it wasn't a guaranteed drop. Based on the trial's setting, however, he should be guaranteed a Fragmented Legendary item if he cleared Asura Mode. Rather than gamble on h.e.l.l Mode, he might as well take the risk and challenge Asura Mode.
Two Epic items would be of little help to him or Zero Wing. Only Fragmented Legendary items could bring about significant changes.
As players reached higher levels and improved their combat standards, Epic items would become more common in G.o.d's Domain. Zero Wing could still rely on its numerous Epic items to contend with superpowers' peak experts, but as time pa.s.sed, the low quant.i.ty and quality of Zero Wing's peak experts would begin to show.
As luck would have it, nurturing a peak expert took a lot of time, even with players that had ample resources and heaven- defying talent.
The only way Zero Wing could keep up with G.o.d's Domain's rapidly developing world was to rely on Fragmented Legendary items.
Moreover, Epic items' help would be limited after reaching Tier 2. Tier 3 had been a ma.s.sive turning point in G.o.d's Domain in the past Countless powers had risen to prominence or fallen into the pits of h.e.l.l when the Tier 3 era had begun.
Fragmented Legendary items and above would be players' last hope for a significant power boost after reaching Tier 3. These items could even help experts with lacking combat standards reach Tier 3 and Tier 4. This was why Guilds with Fragmented Legendary items had had more Tier 3 and 4 experts than Guilds that did not
Every additional Fragmented Legendary item Zero Wing gained would ensure one more Tier 3 or 4 experts to support it in the future.
Since the Asura Mode could guarantee a Fragmented Legendary item, he had no choice but to choose the difficulty.
Once s.h.i.+ Feng made his decision, the Ancient G.o.d's Gate released a golden light. The doors slowly parted to reveal a dark corridor.
Sure enough, this trial won't be that simple. s.h.i.+ Feng's expression tensed slightly as he stared down the dark corridor, his instincts screaming that danger awaited him.
He could already see multiple skeletons strewn along the corridor's sides from its entrance. The skeletons all wore excellent equipment, every piece radiating with the glow unique to Epic Equipment. The skeletons' armor was clearly damaged beyond repair. It was easy to imagine how difficult the Asura Mode trial was.
Those unfamiliar with G.o.d's Domain would most likely treat these skeletal corpses as mere decorations.
But s.h.i.+ Feng, who had experienced more than a decade in G.o.d's Domain, knew that wasn't the case. Rather, they were a warning.
Epic items were extraordinary, and they weren't easy to damage. This held true for both players' items and NPCs'.
Taking a deep breath, s.h.i.+ Feng summoned the Fire Spirit and instructed it to lead the way.
The instant the Fire Spirit stepped through the gate, a furious roar echoed from the corridor's depths, so loud that s.h.i.+ Feng had to cover his ears.
This roar was particularly familiar to s.h.i.+ Feng.
A Dragon's roar!
