Age of Evolution

Chapter 285: 285: The Polar Region and the Marketplace

First, there were the Dark Energy Stones. He knew that there was a pile of Dark Energy Stones in the Rage Dragon nest, but he did not expect there to be so many. Clearly, some were in someone’s Space Ring. After sorting, there were more than thirty of them.

Crystals can replace Dark Energy Stones, but the actual contained Dark Energy quality and quantity are not as good as Dark Energy Stones.

For example, Lin Zhen is now a Level 9 War God, and he needs to cultivate quasi-S-tier Crystals. Once he reaches the Star Realm, he will need S-tier. If he wants to accelerate his cultivation after breaking into the Star Realm, he will need even more advanced Crystals.

But Dark Energy Stones have no such restrictions, usable in any realm, and their effects are even better than Crystals. These are most suitable for breaking through realms.

Lin Zhen is now at the peak of Level 9. His leveling speed is too fast, and he needs to stabilize his realm before trying to break through slowly. He cannot immediately break into the Star Realm, as that would lead to an unstable foundation.

These Dark Energy Stones are treasures, and Lin Zhen put them all away.

Next came the gold and silver coins, there were about one hundred gold coins and nearly two thousand silver coins, all of which Lin Zhen also put away.

Now, they didn’t seem very useful, but after the invasion from extraterrestrial civilizations and entering the Star Realm, this money will be necessary. At that time, Earth’s currency will basically be obsolete, and Lin Zhen must prepare beforehand.

Besides these things, there were Star Artifacts.

Whether it was the Rage Dragon Beast or those three quasi-Star Realm Experts, the quality of their Star Artifacts was very high. Among this pile, there were only three Lower Grade Star Artifacts, and Lin Zhen threw them directly into his Space Ring.

There were twelve Middle Grade Star Artifacts that he also put away.

Thirty-five High Grade Star Artifacts, also put away.

Lin Zhen’s eyes are now more discerning, and only Top Quality Star Artifacts can catch his attention. The others can be taken out to exchange for money.

There were a total of eight Top Quality Star Artifacts, five of which were weapons, and none were long spears. Lin Zhen also put them away.

Of the remaining three, two were defensive, and Lin Zhen could use them both.

One was a pair of boots that could replace his current Cloud Stepping boots, which were just Middle Grade Star Artifacts and needed to be replaced.

These boots were short boots that reached just above the ankle when worn.

They contained Wind Element energy, which could increase flying speed. Lin Zhen wore them and moved around a bit, feeling extremely comfortable.

“Not bad, this belongs to a category of half-defense and half-assistance, and it also has a strong offensive power. From now on, when I kick people with my foot, it should be enough to kill them.”

After putting on the boots, he also acquired a pair of gloves made of an unknown material, very thin and almost transparent when worn. However, Lin Zhen took out an uncharged Seven Stars Knife and slashed at them, yet not even a mark was left behind.

“This should have come from the Rage Dragon Beast’s nest. I didn’t see any of the others wearing it.”

Lin Zhen clenched his fist, revealing a satisfied smile. These gloves were right up his alley, and with them, his unarmed attacks packed quite a punch, often not even needing a weapon.

The last Star Artifact was a Top Quality Star Artifact necklace for Mental Defense, with effects similar to Lin Zhen’s mask.

Lin Zhen thought for a while and put the necklace on. Now that the danger from Li Yao had been eliminated, he didn’t need to hide anymore and could put the mask away.

Lin Zhen switched to Top Quality Star Artifacts and finally looked at the golden half-body armor.

The armor was called Orange Light and was likely crafted by an Artifact Refiner from the Star Realm.

Artifact refining is a sought-after profession in the Star Realm, but all Star Artifacts are basically made by apprentices. To become an actual Artifact Refiner, one must forge a Sacred Artifact.

This Orange Light half-body armor had golden light swirling around it, making it look incredibly flashy. But when Lin Zhen puts it on and slightly activates his Dantian gas, the aura on the armor instantly retracts its brilliance, making it look like an ordinary High Grade Star Artifact light armor, and nothing fancy can be seen.

However, in reality, even if you were to hit it with a Top Quality Star Artifact for a day and night, you wouldn’t be able to damage this armor in the slightest.

“Great! The defense of this armor is simply too strong! Even in my previous life, I had never gotten a Sacred Artifact Armor. The value of this armor is even higher than that of a Sacred Artifact weapon. If it were sold, it would cause people to fight over it.”

Now, Lin Zhen’s combat power had undoubtedly increased a lot. With a Sacred

Artifact armor for defense, a Top Quality Star Artifact long spear, a Top Quality Star Artifact gloves and boots, plus a Mental Defense Necklace, he can finally match up to other Star Realm experts.

And Lin Zhen still has a trump card which is the Foldable Space. He can use it to hide if he can’t win a fight, ensuring his safety.

Additionally, there were gold, jewelry, and cash here, and Lin Zhen collected them all without hesitation. He was never afraid of having too much money.

After organizing everything, Lin Zhen stood up but did not immediately head for the second layer. Without a doubt, the second layer was extremely dangerous, so he wanted to go outside first. There was even a small market outside, where a lot of rare treasures were traded. He wanted to stroll around there.

Using his Lightning Wings, Lin Zhen accelerated towards the entrance of the first layer.

No need to follow the squad and move forward step by step. The entrance was only tens of kilometers away, and it was almost an instant pass.

After stepping out of the entrance, a wave of heat hit him from outside.

The temperature in the desert was very high, and the sun seemed to always shine brightly. Lin Zhen walked towards the market.

About ten days had passed since entering the Ancient God City, and there were more Martial Artists outside. War Gods and Quasi-Star Realm experts were everywhere, especially in the central market. These experts from various places had become street vendors, constantly hawking their own goods.

Lin Zhen did not immediately buy anything but took out his phone to go online. He wanted to see the specific situation of the second layer first.

There was a signal outside, and Lin Zhen quickly logged in to the Ancient God City forum.

Quite a few people had entered the second layer, and there were many videos and screenshots about the second layer.

The second layer was called Polar Region, divided into the South and North Poles.

Unlike Earth’s South and North Poles, which were both ice, this place had South Pole as ice, and the North Pole as fire.

There were two entrances to the third layer from the second layer, one at the extreme point of the South Pole and the other at the extreme point of the North Pole.

However, very few people could actually enter the third layer. Apart from the Mutated Beasts on the way, the extremely extreme climate was the main reason.

The North Pole was a land of magma, with rolling lava everywhere. The temperature increased as one went farther north, and flames constantly fell from the sky like meteors. These meteors were extremely abnormal, and if anyone tried to fly past them, they would be attacked by those meteors.

Even if you used teleportation, the next meteor would appear at the landing point, making it impossible to evade.

To pass from the North Pole, one had to go through the Lava River where Mutated Beasts of fire element were rampant, each being incredibly fierce, and the lowest level was S-tier.

There was a video online in which a quasi-Star Realm team tried to reach the North Pole. Before they were even halfway there, three of the five members of the team spontaneously burst into flames.

The temperature in the air there had reached the ignition point, so to reach the North Pole, equipment and medicines containing cold and freezing air were essential, or else one would turn into ashes on the way.

Passing through the South Pole’s extreme point was also not an easy task, as it was covered in ice and snow. Large chunks of ice and snow were swept up by the fierce cold winds, becoming ubiquitous.

The higher one ascended, the colder the temperature. A Spiritual Mind Master tried to fly quickly through but was turned into an ice sculpture the moment he took off and shattered upon falling.

Even a Star Realm Expert using teleportation froze in mid-air during the second teleport and similarly turned into an ice sculpture, shattering upon impact.

To go from the South Pole, one had to possess enough firepower; otherwise, they would be frozen to pieces within minutes.

Moreover, the Mutated Beasts in the South Pole were also terrifying, each was born from cold air, posing a great threat to Martial Artists. Even walking on the ground was extremely perilous.

Therefore, to pass through the South and North Poles to reach the third layer, a Martial Artist must possess either ice or fire elemental powers and cultivate resonance to a considerable extent.

Aside from that, many medicines and equipment were being sold in the market, some were resistant to fire, and some resisted cold.

Now that there were many Martial Artists with elemental power, like Lin Zhen imbuing Seven Stars Knife, they could also add their power to armor or weapons, creating elemental equipment, which was an emerging industry.

For example, a Lower Grade Star Artifact armor had a market value of about 100 million, but once imbued with elemental power, the price would increase several or even dozens of times, depending on the strength of the imbued elemental energy.

Lin Zhen’s Seven Stars Knife was of no attribute, and many Star Artifacts had some attributes. To imbue them, one had to find equipment without attributes, so such equipment was scarce, causing prices to skyrocket.

The same went for medicines; these medicines were deadly when consumed under normal circumstances, but they would unleash tremendous effects in specific environments.

Standing in the center of the market, Lin Zhen was surrounded by incessant hawking.

“Come and see! Freshly made Lower Grade Star Artifact Ice Element Skirt Armor! Skirt armor is already rare, Ice Element is even harder to find! Must have for passing through the North Pole in Ancient God City! Price is 50 billion, no bargaining!”

“Fire Element Crystal, A-level Mutant Beast’s Fire Element Crystal! Once absorbed, you can fearlessly withstand minus sixty-degree cold for at least an hour. It’s indispensable for going to the South Pole! Only two pieces left in stock, one billion each!”

“High Grade Star Artifact Longsword, only want to exchange for a bottle of Fire Element Wine. Interested parties, please hurry.”

“A set of Middle Grade Star Artifact, exchange only for a High Grade Armor.”

“Buy, buy, buy! Buying Ice and Fire Element Crystals, five hundred million for one!”

With the increasing amount of Elemental Crystals on the market, many Martial Artists could only absorb one kind of attribute crystal. Even if they absorbed a second crystal with a different attribute, they could not achieve resonance as their bodies didn’t contain a Dark Star and couldn’t contain the elements, which would then disperse within their Dantian.

As a result, although there were more and more Elemental Crystals, their prices were not outrageous.

Standing in the market, Lin Zhen felt happy in his heart. He still had over four trillion in his account, and it would finally come in handy. It was a good decision to come out and take a look at the market in the Ancient God City..