Starfire Oasis.
Here, green grass carpets the ground, streams babble, and dozens of meters high buildings are neatly arranged, facing south to north. The main roads are straight, intersecting like a grid. From the rooftop of a tall building, one could see the distant woodlands and rice paddies, dotted with busy figures.
The marketplace was also bustling, with strange and wondrous items filling every street.
Compared to Blue Star, entertainment here was relatively scarce, yet it offered many magical encounters unimaginable on Blue Star. It wasn't boring, however. Numerous job opportunities existed. Besides the three resource areas, Fang You had also established several large-scale laboratories to research the abnormal world's environment, the gray fog, and mysterious materials.
Construction on the oasis's periphery had been almost continuous lately. While Blue Star's infrastructure development was fast, the oasis's expansion and upgrade speed was no less.
He stood at a vantage point, overlooking the prosperous scene of the oasis.
"If an outsider arrived here for the first time, they would absolutely not believe that Starfire Oasis has only been operational for a few months, that it's merely an ordinary oasis. Many large oases aren't as impressive as my small one."
However, today, Starfire was no longer an ordinary oasis.
At this moment,
Outside the oasis's city walls, many construction sites had halted, with only patrol personnel on duty. On the walls, numerous anomalous crystal cannons were being calibrated. Zhou Hai stood before the battlements, gazing into the distance.
Originally, about four hundred meters beyond the city walls, a thick wall of fog stretched towards the sky, extending endlessly left and right—this buffer zone had been expanded recently. Now, the oasis's edge was expanding at a visible rate.
The dense fog wall continuously receded, as if being pushed back by an unseen force. In its place, the gray, desolate land began to sprout new greenery.
Tender sprouts broke through the soil, dotting the lifeless ground. This greenery was still far from the oasis's core, but it was a burgeoning of life. In some areas, ancient, robust trees were growing, right before the eyes of the defending soldiers, inch by inch.
Even more miraculously, some parts of the ground inexplicably subsided, and clear water flowed from an unknown source, quickly forming a babbling brook. Streams within the city walls, and some further, converged into small rivers and large ones. This transformation had no impact on the surrounding buildings; there were no earthquakes, no cracks, as if these rivers and streams had always existed.
The miraculous power of world creation was undeniably displayed at this moment. The core circle was also slowly expanding, giving birth to new resource points.
The only notable change was that the magnificent city walls, which had originally encased the entire oasis, now had three enormous openings. They weren't broken, but rather appeared as if the majestic walls were yet to be completed.
This transformation continued for three full days and nights. From the battlements, it was now difficult to discern the distance to the dense fog wall.
Yet, the sentry soldiers did not relax, continuing their rotating duty. The low hum of alarms echoed through the oasis city.
Zhou Hai once again ascended the watchtower, quietly gazing into the distance.
Suddenly,
"There's activity!"
The fog wall in the distance rippled faintly. He took out his binoculars and aimed them at that location. He saw the dense fog churning violently like waves, and a ferocious head with black, curved horns emerged from the mist.
This head alone was as large as a two-story building, immense and terrifying. There was no doubt it was a Class Four Calamity-level anomalous entity.
Following closely, more and more anomalous entities pounced from the fog. Rank Two, Rank Three, Rank Four—a black tide formed by these ferocious, terrifying figures surged directly towards the oasis city.
This scene of disaster, however, did not cause any tension among the defending soldiers. It was simply too common. The oasis soldiers were all elites, each having experienced wave assaults on the city, with some having participated in three, six, or even more than a dozen defensive battles. It was almost as if they were accustomed to it.
"Report the status of the waves from each direction."
"Southeast: currently a wave of three hundred thousand, with more anomalous entities appearing subsequently."
"West: currently a wave of four hundred thousand, also appearing continuously."
"North: currently a wave of six hundred thousand, calculations are ongoing."
"The anomalous entities are approaching. Prepare to fire and engage!"
Boom—Boom—Boom—!
The anomalous crystal cannons unleashed deafening roars.
These third-generation anomalous crystal cannons, having undergone continuous improvements, now possessed greater range, stronger power, and shorter cooling times. A single shot annihilated countless anomalous entities in the horde.
After ten volleys, before the anomalous entities could even reach the city walls, they suffered immense casualties. The once dense black tide was now sparse, like a middle-aged man losing his hair.
"Long-range squad, commence free fire!"
"All defense sectors, open fire!"
The blue light patterns around the anomalous crystal cannon muzzles, which had glowed brightly, gradually dimmed.
After all, these war machines were heavy consumers of crystals. Seeing the sparse tide and realizing they had halted the anomalous entity horde's charge, the commander ordered the cessation of anomalous crystal cannon usage. They would fire freely if needed.
Unlike months ago, the anomalous crystal cannons were no longer the sole primary means of inflicting damage for the defending army.
When the artillery fire ceased and the anomalous entity horde closed in, the soldiers, prepared on the city walls, unleashed their unique skills.
The first to act were a group of elite snipers wielding the Blue-tier anomalous weapon, the 'Revolver Battle Bow'.
Arrows whistled through the air, precisely striking the swiftly moving anomalous entities. Some arrows glowed red, others crackled with lightning, and some were connected by three stars. Wielding the same model of anomalous weapon, they employed different methods—this was the current elite of Blue Star, the inheritors of its legacy.
Each displayed their unique skills, continuously sniping the approaching anomalous entities.
Occasionally, Hell-tier or Cataclysm-tier anomalous entities would emerge from the gray fog, but they were quickly dispatched by experts like Fan Anyuan, Xu Tian, Liu Ji, and Shi Yunxi.
They did not engage these Cataclysm-tier entities in one-on-one combat. Instead, they first used anomalous crystal cannons to clear the surrounding anomalous entities, then utilized 'domain-type anomalous weapons' to create advantageous terrain. Subsequently, three or four individuals would attack in unison, controlling, weakening, and finally killing. With such a coordinated approach, a Cataclysm-tier anomalous entity wouldn't last a minute in their hands.
Observing their performance, Tutor Fang nodded with satisfaction.
"Your performance in this practical exercise is commendable."
"Everyone worked very hard."
An Jianyou stood nearby, her smooth black hair flowing, carrying a subtle floral fragrance on the wind.
She had come to escort the cargo. To be safe, Fang You had kept An Jianyou here, but as it turned out, her presence wasn't needed. This anomalous entity wave was stronger than the one at the Marsh Base City, yet throughout the entire ordeal, not a single Apostle of Fate had intervened. The entire anomalous entity wave was eliminated.
The only losses were minor damage to a few sections of the city wall and injuries to a few dozen people, varying in severity.
One person was particularly unlucky, pierced through the heart by a bone shard, but was successfully rescued. This was because each section of the city wall was equipped with medical awakened individuals who mastered skills like healing water and purification, along with various elixirs. Captain-level officers even had a small vial of the Water of Life.
As long as they weren't killed instantly, they could be saved.
The wave assault triggered by the promotion of a small oasis to a large one finally ended after several hours.
By then, Fang You was already staring at the panel, a smile involuntarily playing on his lips, his steps becoming lighter.
"Ding!"
"Notification: Killed a Class Four anomalous entity, obtained Destiny Points..."
"Notification: Killed a Class Six anomalous entity, obtained..."
"Notification: ..."
These Destiny Points were not from Blue Star, but from the oasis itself.
In fact, he had discovered during previous resistances against anomalous entity waves that killing them within the oasis also yielded Destiny Points. However, the killing range had to be strictly within the oasis; even a centimeter outside the boundary would not count.
He had experimented with this.
He had established dozens of fog-dispelling bonfires outside the oasis to extend its strategic depth in the early stages. But none of the anomalous entities killed outside the oasis were counted; they had to be lured inside.
Previously, the anomalous entities attacking the oasis were very few, and the Destiny Point income from them was negligible.
Only this time, by consuming an anomalous entity wave totaling several million in strength, the organization's lean Destiny Point wallet had finally warmed up a bit! Tutor Fang had been hesitant to draw cards frequently recently, out of necessity!
"Therefore, even when constructing new outer city walls in the future, we must leave at least a thousand meters of strategic space to lure anomalous entities inside for kills."
As for whether building outer city walls would be a waste, Fang You didn't think so.
They would have to be built eventually, and the completed walls could later be moved outwards, either through technological means or by controlling them with the Oasis Heart.
His pressing concern was that anomalous entities typically did not enter oases.
Large-scale anomalous entity waves like today's might not be seen again until the oasis reached Level Seven.
This was unexpected wealth. Having it was good, but not having it was not a cause for dejection. Fang You arrived at the core area of the oasis. After three days of upgrading and several hours of repelling the anomalous entity wave, new resource points had just been nurtured.
According to the panel, there were two.
"Anomalous Crystal Mine - Lv1 -"
"White Meat Fruit Forest - Lv1 -"
The Anomalous Crystal Mine was a small, open-pit mine. Though not large, it was easy to excavate. Moreover, as a resource point born from the oasis, the Anomalous Crystal Mine could continuously upgrade and expand its scale with proper management.
The second resource point was rather peculiar—a fruit forest he hadn't seen before. White, thumb-sized fruits clustered together, resembling bunches of white grapes hanging from the branches of trees three to four meters high.
But this was not plant matter; it was meat, grown from trees.
Having seen trees that grew bread and meat fields that could be cultivated like rice paddies, a White Meat Fruit Tree was not particularly surprising. However, as An Jianyou approached, her nose twitched, and she asked in confusion, "Mentor, I smell something savory, and it smells quite good."
"...It's not your imagination."
Fang You also smelled it. He raised an invisible hand, plucked a bunch of white fruit, and broke off half for An Jianyou. He then picked a grape-sized fruit, observed it, and finding no peel, popped it into his mouth.
With a crisp bite.
"Mmm, it is quite savory."
"Really! And it's a taste I've never had before. We can develop a few new dishes from this."
These fruits were approximately Tier One, containing considerable energy.
This fruit forest alone was quite remarkable. If some were transplanted back to Blue Star for large-scale cultivation, it would be even more valuable.
After leaving the fruit forest, Fang You gazed into the distance and chose to upgrade.
"Ding!"
"Notification: Destiny Points - 1000, Anomalous Crystals - 1000. Resource point 'White Meat Fruit Forest Lv1' is undergoing upgrade, estimated to take 10 days to complete the overall upgrade."
"Notification: Consumption deducted. Resource point 'Anomalous Crystal Mine Lv1' is undergoing upgrade, ..."
For oasis resource points, upgrading from Lv1 to Lv2 only required double 1000. However, upgrading from Lv2 to Lv3 required double 10000. Although not cheap, the resource output significantly increased with each upgrade, making it quite worthwhile. Especially the transition from Lv3 to Lv4, which, like the oasis itself, represented a major bottleneck.
Perhaps the output could increase severalfold or even tenfold?
This was his first time upgrading, and with anticipation, he gently pressed the button.
"Ding!"
"Notification: Do you wish to deduct '100,000 Anomalous Crystals, 100,000 Destiny Points' to upgrade resource point 'Vitality Spring Lv3'?"
"Notification: This upgrade is a major tier breakthrough, with two branches to choose from:
'1. Conventional Upgrade: This Lv4 upgrade will significantly increase spring water output, and the resource point's scale will expand.'
'2. Quality Upgrade: This Lv4 upgrade will not increase spring water output, but 'Vitality Spring' will be upgraded to 'Vitality Spring', producing both types of spring water.'
"Hmm?"
Fang You was taken aback.
Vitality Spring was a Tier Two material, usable in medicine or for direct consumption, with the effect of replenishing stamina and alleviating mental fatigue—a practical low-tier beverage. But Vitality Spring was quite remarkable; it was a Tier Four Epic material that not only replenished stamina but also restored muscle activity, healed injuries, and promoted crop growth.
Its numerous benefits made it a primary ingredient in many recovery potions.
Was there even a choice? Of course, it was two, two!
"Notification: Consumption deducted. Resource point 'Vitality Spring Lv3', estimated to take 10 days to complete the overall upgrade."
Afterward, Fang You upgraded the Lv3 Ironwood Forest and the Lv3 Bright Flow Crystal Mine. Both also had branch choices. The changes were not as significant as with Vitality Spring, but after the upgrade, the Ironwood Forest had a chance to mutate into Epic-grade trees, and similarly, the Bright Flow Crystal Mine would yield a small amount of Epic-grade high-level crystals with similar but far more potent effects.
The branch selection for resource point upgrades was an unexpected delight.
Fang You impatiently interrupted the ritual and invested the collected 'experience points' for another matter.
—Opening a channel.
If a channel connecting to Blue Star could be opened, it would possess extraordinary strategic value.
It was time!
Fang You stepped into the core area of the oasis, manipulating the power of the secret realm and the power of the world with his will, extending along the conceptual connection. He had tried many times, and operating it was now second nature. The secret realm channel, which had been just a little bit short of connecting before, finally linked up this time!
Space buzzed.
A silver-white door with ancient patterns slowly materialized before him. The process was slow but resolute, consuming the power of the secret realm and anomalous crystals continuously.
Normally, a secret realm channel only required 50 anomalous crystals. This time, the consumption was hundreds or even thousands of times more, along with the consumption of 10 secret realm channel quotas.
These were not problems.
After several hundred seconds, the entire silver-white door was constructed and slowly opened before him. Fang You stepped through, his footsteps echoing on the wide stone path. The path was long, much longer than a normal secret realm channel. Outside the hollow windows on either side were distorted, vibrant colors.
He walked at a normal pace. After a while, it felt like passing through a membrane. Golden sunlight streamed in from both sides, and a familiar feeling welled up from his heart.
He was home.
…
"However, compared to the smooth operation of the oasis, cultivation in the Mythical realm has been quite challenging."
A few days later, at the base training ground.
Holding a crystal radiating a faint divine aura, Fang You sighed slightly.
Mythical realm cultivation was truly difficult.
He opened his panel.
"Savior of Destiny (Seven Awakening Mythical)"
"Divinity: 1/3"
"Divinity Particles: 8/100"
It had been about four months since he ascended to the Mythical realm. In these four months, he remained a newly awakened Mythical, a novice among Mythicals.
Only through personal experience could one truly understand the difficulty of Mythical cultivation.
Normal cultivation would likely take two, three, or even five years to cultivate a trace of Divinity Particle.
Cultivating with world power, the speed was like being injected with hormones in comparison, but it still took more than a month to cultivate a single Divinity Particle. It would take about ten years to accumulate enough experience for a minor level, and this was with constant cultivation day and night, without using Mythical power.
Cultivating with divine crystals was faster, yielding 3 Divinity Particles per month. However, the pure divine power contained within a single divine crystal could only sustain one month of cultivation.
No wonder the Mythicals of dominant powers couldn't afford them.
Who could afford this!
"Moreover, any Mythical cannot completely abstain from using Mythical power. Mythicals cannot exist in isolation; normal cultivation also refers to cultivation that consumes resources."
"Once Mythical power is used, Divinity Particles are consumed. Sometimes, after years of painstaking cultivation, progress is zero... Mythical cultivation is indeed a matter of patience."
Therefore, divine crystals were mostly used for restoring consumption.
After all, restoring a consumed Divinity Particle on its own would take two to three years. Using divine crystals to recover took only two to three days, and the consumption of divine crystals for recovery was less—one divine crystal could support 10 points of recovery.
Timely recovery of Mythical power consumption would not affect normal cultivation.
This was the value of divine crystals.
Although some poor Mythicals might not be able to afford even a single divine crystal, like the captured Mythical Julius. Alas, how could a Mythical be so impoverished.
"Although Mythical cultivation is difficult, each Divinity Particle cultivated brings comprehensive improvements to physique, spirit, life energy, recovery ability, vitality, divine sense, etc. I have only cultivated 7 Divinity Particles, and my two dimensions have already significantly improved. It's no wonder there's such a huge gap between veteran Mythicals and newly awakened ones."
"This kind of improvement is intoxicating, as if there's no upper limit, something incredibly coveted by those below the Mythical realm."
"Alas, there's no choice; I can only diligently cultivate with a 996 schedule."
Tutor Fang grasped a divine crystal radiating a faint golden glow, shaking his head and sighing.