Star-Rank Weapons

Crescent Bay, Helick's Great Trove. Yu Xian's spirits weren't dampened by Zhenwo Changjing's departure, and he continued browsing the shops with the rest of the group. He remained merged with Nora. Because their strength had grown so swiftly, especially the rapid surge in mental power, Nora was currently in a wondrous state akin to a fetal slumber, or perhaps an epiphany. Once she awoke from her sleep, she would surely be able to harness her newly skyrocketed power to perfection. The third floor. The moment they arrived, they were met with a dense sea of shops—all of them selling weapons and equipment. The first and second floors were primarily filled with a diverse array of gourmet snacks and service-oriented shops, but the atmosphere shifted completely on the third floor. Everything sold here was serious hardware, and to many customers, these arms and armaments were essential necessities. In fact, the higher one ascended through Helick's Great Trove, the more specialized the offerings became. After all, that was the only way to entice customers ever higher. If the layout were reversed, shoppers would likely linger on the ground floor, leaving the top level without enough draw to attract any patrons at all. "Aliens use swords too?" Zhang Shou remarked in surprise upon noticing how many shops carried blades. Yet a single glance at the swords on display made it clear that many were not made for humans. Some blades were nearly five meters long, completely impractical for human anatomy, while others were minuscule—little more than toothpicks to a human. Shui Yuetian laughed. "The simpler a weapon is, the more effective it tends to be. Anyone with grasping appendages can easily wield things like swords, sabers, and spears, so intelligent species naturally developed their own blade systems. Only a few peculiar races favor weapons with more bizarre designs." With that, the group stepped into a shop stocked with a vast assortment of weaponry, including quite a few crosses and rakes. Indeed, in Crescent Bay, a cross really was treated as a weapon—and so was the swastika emblem. Many unique races favored these shapes. Vampires and werewolves, for instance, had a fond penchant for crosses, while the swastika was a weapon favored by many telekinesis masters. "Units, tens, hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands... Wow, that's expensive! Over fifty thousand for a single saber?!" Qingniao had taken a liking to a glazed saber, but one look at the price tag left her dumbfounded. From their shopping along the way, she had gained a rough sense of Crescent Bay's cost of living. Back at the snack shop, for example, they had eaten quite a spread—especially Little Nora, who had no concept of restraint and had stuffed herself to her heart's content. Yet when the bill came, Shui Yuetian had only spent a little over a hundred Star Coins. On Earth, that amount of food would have easily cost at least thirty thousand yuan. "The lowest tier of weapons sold here in the Great Trove are Heaven-rank, so naturally they're pricey," Shui Yuetian explained. "Earth-rank weapons are very cheap; you can buy one for around ten Star Coins." Qingniao asked in surprise, "Weapons in Crescent Bay have ranks too?" Earth's transcendent equipment was all ranked. Gong Qian's everyday clothing, for instance, was Dragon-rank transcendent gear capable of enduring her colossal physical strength without tearing. Yu Xian lacked such garments, which was why his clothes were woven out of his own abilities, allowing them to rapidly mend whenever damaged. "Of course," Shui Yuetian nodded. "Wherever order exists, differences in quality are bound to follow, and with varying quality comes a grading system. Weapons are generally divided into Earth Rank and Heaven Rank. Above that are Star-rank weapons, which are essentially designed to match the Star Divine Artifacts forged by Star-rank powerhouses." Zhang Shou asked in astonishment, "Someone can actually forge Star-rank equipment on par with a Star Divine Artifact?" "Of course," Shui Yuetian replied. "Crescent Bay's first great free-for-all erupted precisely because Master Fang Nan, the Grandmaster Artifact Refiner of Tingyu Study, crafted a Star-rank weapon. It triggered a bloodbath that claimed at least several hundred thousand lives among those vying for it." A Star Divine Artifact could only be drawn upon at full power by a Star-rank powerhouse, whereas anyone could wield a Star-rank weapon. Even if an ordinary user couldn't unleash its peak potential, the weapon's materials and intrinsic properties alone were enough to make them invincible below the Star Rank. With a surprise attack, there was even a minute chance of slaying a Star-rank powerhouse. Who wouldn't covet such a prize? Little Nora asked curiously, "So who ended up getting it?" "Nobody knows," Shui Yuetian answered. "As the battle dragged on, the Star-rank weapon simply vanished without a trace." Hearing this, the group was rendered somewhat speechless. A massive crowd had beaten each other's brains out only for the prize to disappear into thin air—what a senseless death for all those who perished. "I bet a Star-rank powerhouse secretly made a move," Zhang Shou deduced immediately. "Otherwise, it would've been impossible to steal a Star-rank weapon without anyone noticing." Yu Xian asked, "What type of weapon was that Star-rank weapon?" "No one knows," Shui Yuetian said, shaking her head. "Too many legends have survived. Some say it was a sword, some say a bow, and others say a spear. As for what it really was, probably only the thief knows." The group marveled at the tale, and Yu Xian mused, "After that incident, did Crescent Bay see any newly advanced Star-rank powerhouses? Or did any existing Star-rank powerhouse suddenly gain an extra Star Divine Artifact?" "Fish God, you think they refined that Star-rank weapon into a Star Divine Artifact?" Shui Yuetian asked. Yu Xian nodded. "Doing so would save immense trouble, and it would keep others from fighting over it, wouldn't it?" Moreover, he suspected that refining a Star-rank weapon into a Star Divine Artifact might not only save effort but potentially amplify the artifact's might. After all, the strength of a Star-rank weapon and that of a Star Divine Artifact were of different natures; the two did not conflict. Strictly speaking, a Star Divine Artifact was an energy-storing piece of equipment. Whether used for offense or defense, its paramount function remained storing energy. Star-rank weapons, on the other hand, could possess all manner of diverse properties. When Shui Yuetian had first mentioned Star-rank weapons, Yu Xian had already pulled up information about them through his Star Ring. Star-rank weapons were generally created using vast quantities of top-tier materials and supreme refining techniques. Their specific abilities depended entirely on the artifact refiner's skill. To date, only ten pieces of Star-rank equipment had ever appeared in Crescent Bay, and every single one was currently held by a Star-rank powerhouse. The group chatted a while longer before continuing to browse the weapons that caught their interest. Yu Xian wandered the shop on his own, still pondering whether the refinement methods for Star-rank weapons and Star Divine Artifacts might be combined. "Auntie, how do you..." Yu Xian suddenly felt curious about how Zhenwo Changjing refined high-tier equipment, but the words cut off abruptly as soon as he spoke. He stopped in front of a saber, realizing Zhenwo Changjing had already departed. In silence, he resumed walking forward. One always had to move forward.