Chapter 345: The God of War, Nie Yan

The Necropolis Rift Fortress was the domain of the fallen angels. This formidable fortress was entirely built of huge stones, with rows of arrow towers hidden behind the stones.

Inside the headquarters of the Fallen Angels guild, a curse caster wearing a Robe of Sorcery was sitting in the vast hall listening to Dark’s report. The Robe of Sorcery was a top-tier set for Sorcerers at level fifty. The slightly grayish-white robe fluttered violently from the flow of magical elements, with golden trimmings. Dark red threads embroidered a shadowy vine pattern on the collar, entwining around a white skull. In his hand was a bonewood staff topped with a deep blue gemstone.

He looked about twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, tall and imposing, with a heroic bearing and a cold, commanding gaze that exuded authority without anger.

This was Duo Duo, the guild leader of Fallen Angels.

Dark, Xue Han, and others stood aside, all visibly nervous under Duo Duo’s gaze. They had all felt the guild leader’s fury after losing the Black Viper King Shield.

Dark hesitated, unwilling to challenge the authority of the guild leader.

“Dark, explain,” Duo Duo said in a low voice.

Dark felt a weight on his heart as he spoke, “According to the original protocol, we could have easily defeated the Zombie Overseer. However, we were suddenly ambushed by a few Zombie Foremen, followed by a Gold Earth Serpent. That human Rogue was too fast; he took out all our Wizards with one strike. Xue Han was kicked away by the Zombie Overseer and couldn’t even manage a basic defensive move…”

Duo Duo waved his hand, interrupting Dark. “I won’t investigate whose fault it was this time. The Black Viper King Shield must be recovered. Has there been any message from Shi Zi?”

Seeing the guild leader was no longer holding them accountable, Dark quickly replied, “Shi Zi just said he found that human Rogue’s pet, then the contact was cut off. I’ll contact him immediately.”

After a while, Shi Zi sent a long video.

“Boss, Shi Zi sent a video,” Dark glanced at it and promptly shared it with Duo Duo.

Duo Duo opened the video. It showed five Zombie Foremen and a Gold Earth Serpent defeating a hundred-man team. The Zombie Foremen’s triple-blade sweeping technique made this video a classic. Although Nie Yan never appeared in the video, one could imagine how mentally taxing it must have been to coordinate the attacks of five Zombie Foremen and a Gold Earth Serpent. At the end of the video, Nie Yan emerged from the darkness, seemingly sensing something, and activated his Eye of Truth to scan the hiding place of Shi Zi and others. Veins bulged around his eyes, bloodshot pupils radiating a demonic light.

Dark, Xue Han, and others were deeply shaken by the sight at the video’s end.

Duo Duo tapped the table beside him and said, “This guy is interesting. Let Shi Zi keep an eye on him!” He was considering whether to dispatch hundreds or even thousands of players to corner Nie Yan. In the dark underground world, blocking a Rogue, especially a high-level one with top-tier skills, was no simple task.

Seeing Duo Duo’s expression soften, Dark felt relieved. The video from Shi Zi had indeed saved them from blame. The near-disaster against the Zombie Overseer wasn’t due to their incompetence but because Nie Yan was just too strong.

“Boss, what do we do now?” Dark asked.

“Keep an eye on him first. If the Black Viper King Shield is taken to the surface, it would be worth only a few hundred gold at most if broken down into materials. But if disposed of in the dungeon, it would be worth at least five or six thousand gold. He must know this and wouldn’t be foolish enough to take the shield away. Someone should make contact with him,” Duo Duo said. He was determined to recover the Black Viper King Shield by any means. If a peaceful resolution was possible, he preferred not to resort to force, but if not, he would settle it through confrontation.

Even if Nie Yan was strong, this was Duo Duo’s territory—the Necropolis Rift. As the saying goes, even a mighty dragon cannot overpower a local snake.

Dark understood Duo Duo’s meaning and immediately relayed the guild leader’s orders to Shi Zi and others.

Though Shi Zi and his team were no match for Nie Yan, they were still considered elite. Tracking someone in the dark without being noticed wasn’t particularly difficult for them. While they might not be able to follow Nie Yan himself, they could easily trail his Zombie Foremen and Gold Earth Serpent.

The fragmented video of Nie Yan’s defeat of the hundred-man team was posted on the Necropolis Rift forum. Seeing that the video was already largely exposed, Shi Zi posted the complete version, which was immediately pinned to the top.

The triple-blade sweeping technique of the Zombie Foremen and Nie Yan’s final Eye of Truth made every player in the Necropolis Rift remember Nie Yan’s face. He had slaughtered two to three hundred people and remained unchecked.

Nie Yan’s murderous gaze while scanning the darkness with his Eye of Truth left a deep impression on them.

The title “God of Slaughter, Nie Yan” began circulating among the players of the Necropolis Rift. Only such a title could convey the awe and fear they felt toward him.

The bounty on Nie Yan’s head also soared, quickly rising to over a thousand gold. Combined with the many Chaotic Good items he carried, Nie Yan became a huge temptation for players in the Necropolis Rift. Some guilds were already getting restless, though they hadn’t made any moves yet because Fallen Angels hadn’t acted.

Fallen Angels was the largest guild in the Necropolis Rift, and all other guilds followed its lead. Since Fallen Angels hadn’t taken action, the other guilds naturally refrained from being the first to act.

After the team that ambushed him withdrew from the Fallen Canyon, Nie Yan continued his journey mostly unchallenged. Occasionally, a few reckless players tried to confront him, but they were quickly routed by his Zombie Foremen and Gold Earth Serpent.

Nie Yan moved like a ghost, appearing and disappearing around the Gold Earth Serpent and Zombie Foremen, rarely being spotted by others.

After passing through the Fallen Canyon, Nie Yan entered a vast wilderness. In the distance, at the edge of the horizon, stood a tall lighthouse, dozens of yards high, its flame flickering precariously in the cold, dark wind.

This was the mark of a settlement!

In the dark underground world, players had limited vision and often couldn’t find their way back, so large settlements usually set up lighthouses. With lighthouses as beacons in the darkness, the underground residents could find their way home.

Nie Yan had finally found the Chaotic Good settlement.

He thought that what came next would be a risky move—sneaking into the Chaotic Good settlement. This required extreme caution. If anything went wrong, he would surely perish.

This was a new exploration. If successful, it would mean a flood of wealth!

Sometimes, taking a risk was worth it.

With that thought, Nie Yan no longer hesitated and headed toward the distant town.

As he approached the town, Nie Yan recalled his Gold Earth Serpent to avoid drawing too much attention. He let the Zombie Foremen roam freely to hunt monsters in the wild and entered stealth mode, moving toward the town.

Shi Zi and others following Nie Yan were startled when Nie Yan disappeared from their sight after recalling his Gold Earth Serpent.

They dared not get too close to Nie Yan and could only follow from a distance with their superior dark vision. When they saw Nie Yan vanish, they thought he had discovered them. Later, they saw no more of Nie Yan, clearly indicating he had left.

They had lost track of him!

The Zombie Foremen scattered in all directions to hunt monsters freely, as if abandoned by Nie Yan.

“Boss, that Rogue called Nie Yan recalled his Gold Earth Serpent and then disappeared,” Shi Zi sent a message to the guild leader. With the guild leader now personally handling the matter, he felt extremely anxious. Adding to his worries was the fact that they had lost track of Nie Yan, and he didn’t know how to explain it.

“Where did he disappear?” Duo Duo asked with a frown. Nie Yan recalling his Gold Earth Serpent and then vanishing must have had a reason. From his deduction, those Zombie Foremen were clearly ordinary command creatures that Nie Yan could abandon at any time. However, the Gold Earth Serpent was Nie Yan’s pet. Nie Yan recalling his pet and then disappearing likely meant he had already moved far away.

“Near the town of Valdin Cemetery. I think he was heading toward Valdin Cemetery Town,” Shi Zi said. He couldn’t help but wonder, could Nie Yan be going to Valdin Cemetery Town? But that was a Chaotic Good player settlement! Not to mention the numerous players there, the NPCs frequenting Valdin Cemetery Town were at least elite monsters of fifty to sixty levels, and there were even two hundred-level guards. A Lawful Good player going there would likely be cut down in one strike by the NPCs!

Logically, a Lawful Good player coming underground would try to avoid such Chaotic Good settlements, as few would go there to seek death.

Shi Zi thought for a moment and said, “That Rogue called Nie Yan might be trying to bypass Valdin Cemetery Town, which is why he recalled his Gold Earth Serpent.” He believed this explanation made sense.

At this moment, Duo Duo was a bit distracted and didn’t respond to Shi Zi. He was speculating about the purpose of Nie Yan’s trip underground. For so many days wandering aimlessly, passing through the Fallen Canyon—could it really just be for travel and adventure? As a guild leader, Nie Yan certainly wouldn’t be that idle. What was his real purpose?

“Valdin Cemetery Town,” Duo Duo murmured for a moment, then suddenly stood up and strode toward the fortress’s teleportation array.

Players from Fallen Angels passing by Duo Duo immediately greeted him respectfully.

“Boss.”

“Boss.”

…

Duo Duo nodded and entered the fortress’s teleportation array, activated it, a flash of light, and he disappeared.