Nie Yan realized that he had still underestimated the strength of these team members. Take Big Brother Qizi, for example; normally he specialized in healing and Nie Yan had never seen him engage in player combat, so he didn’t know how skilled Big Brother Qizi actually was in duels. Now, however, Nie Yan had witnessed it firsthand.
Under pursuit by four rogues, Big Brother Qizi remained completely composed. He cast a fear spell on the nearest rogue, applied a curse on the second, and used Divine Shield to block attacks. With his skill level, defeating two or three rogues was more than feasible.
This level of expertise was clearly no worse than some battle-hardened mages. Nie Yan had previously thought that as long as Big Brother Qizi could survive for a while—lasting more than ten seconds without dying—he would have the opportunity to kill those rogues. He hadn’t expected Big Brother Qizi to perform so impressively. Only now did Nie Yan gain a more direct understanding of Big Brother Qizi’s capabilities. After all, he had been one of the seven legendary priests from a previous life. If he didn’t have some remarkable skills, that would have been strange indeed.
A priest should strive to reach Big Brother Qizi’s level—fearless in player combat—to truly grow stronger. Relying entirely on teammates when danger arises is completely unacceptable.
“They’re catching up. Let’s run,” Nie Yan said. They didn’t even have time to pick up the dropped equipment on the ground. Judging from the members of Zongheng Tianxia, they probably wouldn’t drop anything valuable anyway.
Nie Yan and his team, familiar with the terrain, sometimes passed through lava caves to launch surprise attacks on Zongheng Tianxia, while at other times they maneuvered through the jungle, playing cat-and-mouse with their opponents. Zongheng Tianxia could do absolutely nothing about it.
Nie Yan’s team kept killing more and more enemies, getting caught up in the heat of battle.
On the official forums, a series of replies appeared:
’10:29, 278 kills’
’10:58, 308 kills’
’11:27, 323 kills’
…
Although the increases were not as dramatic as before, they were still impressive. The death count for Zongheng Tianxia steadily climbed, while Nie Yan’s team of ten remained completely unscathed. Previously, players merely admired Nie Yan and his team; now, they truly respected and feared them. Ten people actually forcing a guild into such a desperate situation—this Bull Men Tribe was indeed fearsome.
Zongheng Tianxia had been thoroughly frightened. They were anxious and fearful, never knowing when or where Nie Yan’s team might appear next.
Nie Yan’s group was like ghosts. Every time they appeared, they could kill ten to twenty people. By the time Zongheng Tianxia arrived at the scene, Nie Yan’s team had already vanished without a trace.
“Damn it, how are they doing this!” Hei Zhuo was furious, watching the steadily rising casualty numbers with frustration.
Yu Long calmly considered the situation. This was no longer something that could be achieved merely by using invisibility potions. The problem might lie in the lava caves beneath their feet. Could this group have found a way to traverse the lava caves?
Zongheng Tianxia’s forces were too weak and too few to control the entire Molten Fire Forest. They were utterly unable to stop Nie Yan’s team from launching ambushes. Zongheng Tianxia was now stuck between a rock and a hard place. If they withdrew from the Molten Fire Forest, they would become the laughingstock of the entire game.
As for the mastermind behind this entire incident—the Triumph Empire—they too would face disgrace because of Zongheng Tianxia. Anyone with a shred of intelligence could see that Zongheng Tianxia was being manipulated by the Triumph Empire from behind the scenes. After this debacle, the Triumph Empire’s reputation would plummet to rock bottom, while their rival, the Bull Men Tribe, would see their prestige rise steadily. If given just a little more time, the Bull Men Tribe would undoubtedly force the Triumph Empire to step aside.
Yu Long pondered for a moment. If Zongheng Tianxia kept going like this, the kill count of those ten individuals would only continue to rise. Once it surpassed a thousand, it would undoubtedly bring the Bull Men Tribe immense fame! A thousand kills—what a massive sensation that would create on the official forums!
After discussing with Po Tian, Yu Long decided it was time for Triumph Empire to take direct action. Even if they couldn’t completely stop Nie Yan’s team, they had to drive them out of the Molten Fire Forest entirely, preventing them from continuing their arrogant reign of terror there.
Nie Yan’s team hunted and killed another ten or so members of Zongheng Tianxia before retreating. They always played it safe, striking some blows before immediately withdrawing without lingering.
Just then, Nie Yan’s voice chat notification sounded.
“Quickly withdraw from the Molten Fire Forest!” Guo Huai messaged Nie Yan.
“Why? What’s going on?” Nie Yan asked. Guo Huai wouldn’t sound so urgent unless something serious had happened.
“Large numbers of Triumph Empire players are entering the Molten Fire Forest. They’re coming for you,” Guo Huai replied. He couldn’t help but worry about Nie Yan and his team’s safety. Now, Nie Yan and his team’s well-being was a matter of concern for every Bull Men Tribe player.
Hearing Guo Huai’s words, Nie Yan narrowed his eyes, a flash of killing intent passing through them. He had finally managed to stir up such a massive commotion, successfully drawing out the Triumph Empire players. The Zongheng Tianxia members were merely pawns for Triumph Empire; even if Nie Yan killed countless Zongheng Tianxia players, Triumph Empire wouldn’t care. Now, the real adversaries had finally arrived.
“Don’t worry. We won’t be so easily caught,” Nie Yan smiled confidently. He casually glanced at the group chat window of Bull Men Tribe, where countless Bull Men Tribe players were cheering for Nie Yan’s team and urging them to return.
**Knight’s Elegy: An Open Letter to Leader Nie Yan**
Respected Leader Nie Yan, please come back soon. To all our guild brothers, your safety is the most important. You have already slain over five hundred of those Zongheng Tianxia scoundrels. You are the pride of the Bull Men Tribe…
Gan Zhe: Boss, please come back. We miss you…
And so on. Although under Guo Huai’s firm control, the players of the Bull Men Tribe had stopped planning to charge into the Molten Fire Forest en masse, they were still deeply worried about Nie Yan and his team’s safety.
Nie Yan read the messages from his guild members and smiled slightly.
“They’re here already?” Big Brother Qizi looked at Nie Yan and asked.
Nie Yan nodded.
“How many of them came?” Cui Can Dao Guang (Brilliant Blade) asked, surprised.
“About twenty or thirty thousand,” Nie Yan replied. With that many Triumph Empire players, they could almost completely control the Molten Fire Forest. It would be nearly impossible for Nie Yan’s team to launch ambushes against them.
With such a massive number of Triumph Empire players setting up defenses in the Molten Fire Forest, would they still dare to launch surprise attacks? If discovered, where could they possibly escape?
Nie Yan wouldn’t be foolish enough to throw eggs at a stone wall.
“What should we do next? Should we retreat?” Big Brother Qizi asked. Sometimes, retreating was also a viable strategy. They had already achieved tremendous success. Withdrawing now would still mean the Bull Men Tribe had won. But if all ten of them were killed here, it would mean Triumph Empire had successfully struck back.
Each of them had at least fifty kills, with some even surpassing a hundred. If they died, they might lose five or six levels. That would be an enormous loss.
“Don’t worry. I’ll escort you back,” Nie Yan smiled. These people were all elites of the guild. Losing even one would be a significant blow to the Bull Men Tribe.
Big Brother Qizi frowned, contemplating Nie Yan’s words. Did Nie Yan intend to stay behind?
“What are your plans?” Cui Can Dao Guang asked. Was Nie Yan planning to face the Triumph Empire players alone?
“Don’t worry. I wouldn’t risk my level or equipment for nothing,” Nie Yan replied. He had already made his plans. The previous actions were merely the prelude to this strategy.
Triumph Empire, feel the wrath of the Bull Men Tribe!
“Nie Yan, I’ve located Triumph Empire’s elite team. They’re heading into the Shadow Swamp!” Guo Huai said excitedly. After finally tracking Triumph Empire’s elite team’s movements, they happened to be entering the Shadow Swamp at this critical moment.
“Have you formed the rogue team yet?” Nie Yan asked. Guo Huai shouldn’t have moved that quickly.
“Not yet. But I’ve already gathered more than fifty rogues. They’re all top-performing rogues from before. I believe they should be enough to handle Triumph Empire’s elite team. Even if they can’t eliminate them completely, they can at least make them pay dearly. We mustn’t let Triumph Empire think Bull Men Tribe is an easy target,” Guo Huai said confidently. These fifty-plus rogues were all elite members of the guild, had signed agreements, and had already received the best equipment available. Their player combat skills were absolutely formidable.
“Just don’t act recklessly if the timing isn’t right. We don’t want to tip them off!” Nie Yan warned. Since Triumph Empire dared to target Bull Men Tribe’s elite team, their own elite team must be extremely vigilant and difficult to catch off guard. Therefore, they shouldn’t act unless they could strike decisively and achieve a guaranteed kill!
“I understand,” Guo Huai replied.
Nie Yan’s team entered the lava caves and headed toward the exit on the forest’s outer edge.
“Be careful on your way back. You might encounter Triumph Empire players. It’s best to find a place to hide first,” Nie Yan told Big Brother Qizi and the others. Then he turned to Sun with instructions: “You especially need to be cautious. Since you’re the only rogue among them, help scout the way for the team.”
Sun nodded heavily: “Don’t worry, Brother Nie Yan.”
“If all ten of us return unharmed and in high spirits, I bet Triumph Empire will be furious enough to explode,” Xia Chong Yubing (Summer Cicada Ice) laughed. The mood among the group lightened considerably.
“This was a huge profit. We got 567 kills and not a single one of us died,” Sha Bu Si De Huai Dan (Invincible Bad Guy) said.
Moving through the dark caves, waves of heat continuously rose from beneath the ground, making the air scorching hot.
“This cursed place is way too hot,” Bai He (Black and White) and others couldn’t help but complain.
“This is actually a great place,” Nie Yan smiled mysteriously but said nothing more.
Numerous venomous snake-flies quickly retreated as the group swiftly exited the Molten Fire Forest area and approached the outer exit.
Within the Molten Fire Forest, tens of thousands of Triumph Empire players had assembled, numbering between twenty to thirty thousand. The entire forest was densely packed with their members, nearly reaching the point where guards stood every five steps and sentries every ten. Their tightly fortified defenses were solely aimed at locating Nie Yan’s team. Yet, they never anticipated that Nie Yan and his group had already left the Molten Fire Forest.
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