Published: February 8, 2025
"I thought I could finish up today, but there have been relatives coming over to the new house, leaving me with no time to write. I’ve updated once today, but I owe two chapters. I’ll make it up tomorrow, and I apologize to everyone."
Chinese people have a habit of always keeping a trump card, no matter the time or situation.
In peaceful times, this trump card could be a network of connections, savings in the bank, a forbidden weapon, or sometimes even a double-sided persona.
In the apocalypse, this habit remains, and the whole world has learned to adopt this Chinese custom. The trump cards they leave behind have, of course, become bizarre and varied due to the different structures of the world.
Some people leave behind a bottle of Evolution Potion, some leave behind a lot of magic crystals, some leave behind a skill, and some hide their professions...
In short, this concept of a trump card seems to have been instinctively adopted by everyone since the apocalypse began.
It’s no wonder, because in the apocalypse, a trump card often means a life.
Thus, Ye Zhongming cannot escape this custom.
Ye Zhongming's trump card at the critical moment of life and death is the Sky Dome Suppression!
Although Ye Zhongming is a reborn person and he cannot understand the reason and process of his rebirth, ultimately, he is also a survivor who has struggled to survive in the apocalypse, and he still retains the habit of keeping a trump card.
In the nearly two months since returning from the secret realm, Ye Zhongming has done many things: collecting city taxes, opening a trading market, and occupying the entire Ying City. This has made Ye Zhongming the king of Ying City in every sense; even the spirit woman and corpse king dares not appear together in places where Ye Zhongming shows up, let alone attack Cloud Summit Villa.
Whether Ye Zhongming admits it or not, he has gained a lot during these nearly two months; only he knows the specifics of how much he has truly gained.
Everyone knows that Ye Zhongming has become rich: for instance, his professional skills have improved, as have Shengyuan's professional skills, Mo Ye's professional skills, the earth yellow pill has accumulated evolutionary energy, the needle bird has accumulated evolutionary energy, and the overall strength of the Cloud Summit Alliance has increased by a level... all of these require 'money.'
But is that all? No, that is far from everything Ye Zhongming has acquired.
Thanks to the ginseng melon and Ye Zhongming's gardener profession, the demand for low-level magic crystals in Cloud Summit Villa has become almost nonexistent. However, at least in the current world, this level of magic crystal is still mainstream.
In the trading market, these low-level magic crystals have inevitably become the "mainstream currency."
Don’t underestimate these low-level magic crystals; even in the apocalypse, they serve as the most basic unit of value. Accumulated over time, they can exert tremendous energy.
Ye Zhongming has transformed this accumulation into his trump card.
Because he has the Gate of Sacrifice.
Once the foundational strength of Cloud Summit Villa has exceeded the two-star level, the first-level and second-level magic crystals he holds seem to lose their utility.
However, whether it’s the trading market in Puxing Town or the "extra income" along the way to Cloud Port, Ye Zhongming has indeed made a considerable fortune, a significant portion of which exists in the form of low-level magic crystals.
The greatest significance of these items to Ye Zhongming is perhaps to be offered to the Gate of Sacrifice.
In addition, among the vast materials Ye Zhongming exchanged through various channels, there are many that he does not need, and combined with these low-level magic crystals, he has thrown them all into the Gate of Sacrifice. Compared to earlier sacrifices, Ye Zhongming’s mindset is now incredibly calm; sometimes he doesn't even bother to check the energy lines of the Gate of Sacrifice.
Yet, in this unintentional state, Ye Zhongming received a treasure chest — still a small one, containing only a single item.