Fortunately for Xu Luo, his species, the Zerg, do not require faith power for cultivation, only evolution points.
After evolving the initial reptiles, he now had two species: Jumping Bugs and Armored Bugs. Previously, the 10,000 reptiles provided only one faith power per day. However, after reaching the bronze level, though Zerg were not as powerful as other creatures of the same tier, ten Zerg could now provide one faith power per day. Including the Queen, his daily faith power exceeded a thousand.
Time in the divine realm moves ten times faster than in the real world. Thus, ten days had passed in Xu Luo's divine realm, providing over ten thousand faith power, accumulating some evolution points, and producing a thousand insect eggs.
This highlighted the Zerg's drawback. Despite their high faith levels, each being a fanatic, their low intelligence and individual strength compared to other species meant they provided minimal faith power. In contrast, Xiang Yang's Goblins, numbering ten thousand, could probably generate over ten thousand faith power daily, though feeding them would bankrupt an ordinary family.
Few would recklessly increase their believers without the resources to support them.
Xu Luo needed to build a Zerg hive, preferably with some minerals that the Zerg could consume over time to develop new traits. Special minerals could even bestow unique abilities.
After searching the market, Xu Luo found no satisfactory materials. The materials had to be robust; otherwise, the hive would be devoured and collapse shortly after construction.
The black market's items were unreliable. Did he need to visit a legitimate store? Those items were costly, and he didn't want to be overcharged.
As Xu Luo hesitated, a nearby argument caught his attention.
"You scammer! Selling fake goods! Refund me, I don't want this anymore!"
A middle-aged vendor and a young man were arguing.
"Young man, think carefully. This is the black market. Buying here means relying on your judgment. No refunds."
The middle-aged vendor calmly sat, unfazed by the young man's outburst.
If he feared confrontation, he wouldn't be vending here.
"You sold me an Ocean Terrain Card but gave me an Acid Pool card in disguise! You're a cheat!"
The young man was nearly in tears. Though his family was wealthy, losing ten thousand faith power stung. Worse, using the card could poison his fishmen, causing even greater losses.
"That's not my problem. You chose to buy it. I didn't force you."
The vendor didn't even look up, his words infuriating.
The young man, though angry, didn't dare escalate. In the divine realm's main city, violence was forbidden. Besides, as a novice deity, he wasn't confident he could beat the seasoned vendor.
He could only swallow the loss, pained by spending ten thousand faith power on a useless item.
Xu Luo, observing, realized that buying from the black market required caution to avoid being scammed.
This vendor had sold a disguised Acid Pool card, which could devastate the buyer's aquatic ecosystem. Such malicious deceit was despicable.
[Ding! Suitable materials detected for evolving Zerg!]
The Zerg Overlord System suddenly alerted Xu Luo.
"Hmm?"
Xu Luo was surprised. Though he hadn't found hive-building materials, evolving his species was also beneficial.
After the young man left dejectedly, Xu Luo discreetly followed, speaking up in a quieter area.
"Hey, wait a minute."
"Hmm? Are you talking to me?"
The young man looked around and then turned back, puzzled.
"Yes, you!"
Xu Luo nodded.
"You have a problematic terrain card, right? I'm a terrain card trader, stocking up inventory."
Xu Luo didn't reveal his true intentions.
"You want to buy it?"
The young man brightened.
"Yes, but I can only offer four thousand."
Xu Luo spoke nonchalantly.
"I bought it for ten thousand!"
The young man hesitated, reluctant to sell at such a loss.
"But it's a defective card. Who else will buy it? I'm only willing to pay four thousand to diversify my stock. If you don't want to sell, forget it."
Xu Luo spoke convincingly, hiding his real purpose.
He appeared every bit the businessman.
The young man, though simple, wasn't foolish. Yet, Xu Luo's words made sense.
"Four thousand is too low."
Despite being tempted, the young man tried to negotiate.
"I can go up to five thousand, no more. Take it or leave it."
Xu Luo pretended to leave.
"Okay, five thousand!"
The young man quickly agreed, fearing losing the chance to offload the card.
Finally, Xu Luo bought the Acid Pool terrain card for five thousand faith power. Though small, it was useful and cheap.
In the divine realm, trading was straightforward. Friends could transfer directly, while strangers used faith crystals, which could be stored or absorbed.
In the World of Gods, faith power was the ultimate currency, more valuable than credit points.
One million faith power could condense into a divine power point.
Divine power could ignite the divine fire, transforming a demigod into a true god, the ultimate goal for novices.
Moreover, divine power had multiple uses: refining the body, consolidating the divine soul, constructing divine kingdoms, and gathering holy spirits. It also elevated a deity's rank, making faith power indispensable.