Chapter 500: Smoke Bomb

The conflict between the Eternal Guild and the Bull Human Tribe immediately drew the attention of all players. The forums suddenly became bustling with discussions and hot debates about this incident.

This was the first time the Bull Human Tribe had launched a strong offensive beyond their city. Their target was clearly the three fortresses of the Eternal Guild. If they failed to capture at least one or two fortresses, this expedition would be meaningless. The final outcome of this war left players eagerly anticipating the result.

If the Eternal Guild were to admit fault, there might still be a chance to turn things around. However, conceding before the battle even started would severely damage the Eternal Guild’s reputation in Elemental City. Therefore, they had no choice but to stand their ground against the Bull Human Tribe. If they resisted the first wave of attacks before apologizing, they could save face.

As the Eternal Guild leader, Huo Tian Kuang Long, put it in his own words, the Bull Human Tribe thought it was too naive to believe that just sending 3000 people could wipe out the Eternal Guild.

Neither the Bull Human Tribe nor the Eternal Guild made any statements on the forums. The Mage Alliance and the Sacred Guardians closely monitored the situation. Suddenly, Elemental City saw an increase of five to six thousand members from the Mage Alliance and the Sacred Guardians. They roamed the streets and alleys of Elemental City, forming a deterrent against the Bull Human Tribe. Both the Mage Alliance and the Sacred Guardians were waiting—for the Eternal Guild to ask for their help.

The major guilds of Elemental City collectively fell into silence. The three allied guilds of the Eternal Guild suddenly went quiet, not revealing their stance. If the Bull Human Tribe suffered a crushing defeat, they might cheer for the Eternal Guild. But if the Eternal Guild faced a devastating loss, they certainly wouldn’t come to its rescue. This was what was known as an alliance.

All factions were making their preparations, watching the outcome of this war. If the Bull Human Tribe were to retreat in defeat, the Mage Alliance and the Sacred Guardians, who had been watching from the sidelines, would certainly make things difficult for the Bull Human Tribe.

Moyu Fortress.

This fortress was the second largest of the Eternal Guild, with walls towering over thirty yards high, extremely thick and sturdy. Behind the walls were numerous arrow towers. With the imminent conflict between the Eternal Guild and the Bull Human Tribe, more than 3000 players from the Bull Human Tribe had already teleported into Elemental City, and this fortress had entered a state of full lockdown. On the walls, there were guards stationed every ten steps, fully armed and ready to defend the fortress.

Without heavy equipment like catapults, it would be difficult for the Bull Human Tribe to break through such defenses.

The Bull Human Tribe players were still inside Elemental City and had not yet moved out, leaving people wondering what they were up to. As a result, the players on Moyu Fortress’ walls seemed somewhat relaxed.

Outside Moyu Fortress stretched a vast expanse of barren land, once an ancient battlefield.

The cold wind howled, and few plants grew on the desolate plain.

On the city wall, several players from the Eternal Guild were chatting.

“Do you think the Bull Human Tribe will attack which fortress first?”

“It’s hard to say.”

“Probably the main fortress, Keluoyi. If Keluoyi falls, the Eternal Guild will be wiped out of Elemental City. Given the Bull Human Tribe’s strength, they will definitely aim straight for the heart.”

“I think strategically, the Bull Human Tribe won’t target Keluoyi.”

“Why not?”

“If Keluoyi fortress falls, the Eternal Guild is finished. But what benefit does that bring the Bull Human Tribe? There are several factions in Elemental City eyeing the Eternal Guild. If the Bull Human Tribe defeats the Eternal Guild, someone else will step in to take over. The Bull Human Tribe would end up doing the dirty work for others. If I were the leader of the Bull Human Tribe, I would never do something so foolish. Therefore, the Bull Human Tribe’s target must be Moyu Fortress or Lingshu Fortress.”

“That actually sounds a bit convincing. Too bad you’re not Kuangzei Nian. How can you know what Kuangzei Nian is thinking?”

As these players chatted, three figures appeared below Moyu Fortress. They hid in the corner of the wall, using some rubble as cover, approaching the fortress wall without being noticed.

These three were the Bull Human Tribe’s most renowned rogues: Nian, Wang Zhetianxia, and Sun. Yichuidingqing had other tasks and wasn’t present, so only these three came.

Nie Yan signaled to Wang Zhetianxia and Sun. They moved along the wall for about a hundred yards. Nie Yan looked up at the wall, where players occasionally passed by.

“We’ll climb up from here,” Nie Yan said, using the skill from his Ring of the Crawler. Like a spider, he stuck to the wall and rapidly climbed upward, his movements agile and swift, his body gradually blending into the background of the wall.

Not far away, Sun took out a large crossbow. This crossbow was about the same size as Nie Yan’s Darrow’s Rider Crossbow of the Headless Knight. The back of the arrow was attached to a long rope. He pulled the trigger, and with a thud, the arrow shot into the stone wall above, thirty yards high, firmly embedding itself into the stone. Sun climbed up the rope quickly.

Wang Zhetianxia took out two oddly shaped daggers, the blades lined with sharp spikes. He drove the daggers into the stone wall and, using his arm strength, quickly climbed up, his muscles constantly flexing with powerful force.

Nie Yan reached the top of the wall in nineteen seconds. Sun and Wang Zhetianxia were not far behind, taking twenty-one and twenty-two seconds respectively. The three of them vaulted over the wall and landed silently.

They were in stealth mode, and the Eternal Guild players on the wall did not notice them at all. Nie Yan and the others had infiltrated stealthily.

With these players’ perception, unless they got very close to Nie Yan and the others, they couldn’t sense their presence.

There were many Eternal Guild players walking back and forth on the wall. Nie Yan carefully hid, dodging several players, and made his way to the edge of the opposite wall. Then he jumped down into the fortress. For a rogue skilled in jumping, a height of thirty yards posed no danger at all.

Nie Yan landed lightly and quickly disappeared into the fortress of the Eternal Guild, hiding in a corner.

“Are you guys in?” Nie Yan asked in the party chat.

“Inside,” Wang Zhetianxia replied.

“Me too,” Sun responded.

“Let’s split up!” Nie Yan smiled slightly. For them, this kind of mission was not difficult at all.

The three rogues moved in different directions and disappeared into the cluster of buildings.

After scouting around, Nie Yan, Wang Zhetianxia, and Sun found that there were about 5000 people inside Moyu Fortress. Among these 5000, only about 20% were strong enough to put up a decent fight against them.

In the center of Moyu Fortress was a teleportation array. If the Eternal Guild learned of Nie Yan’s attack on Moyu Fortress, they could transport over 10,000 reinforcements within ten minutes.

That was the advantage of a teleportation array.

Precisely because of this, the Eternal Guild felt confident leaving only a small number of players to guard Moyu Fortress. They believed that even if Moyu Fortress was attacked, holding out for ten minutes would be easy.

However, they never considered that Nie Yan and his team could enter Moyu Fortress as easily as entering their own home, treating the fortress’s defenses as if they were nothing.

Due to the wartime lockdown of Moyu Fortress, ordinary players had left, leaving the fortress empty. On the streets, apart from the occasional Eternal Guild player passing by, there was no one else.

The fortress had neatly arranged buildings and crisscrossing streets, but few people were seen. Most of the Eternal Guild players were stationed on the walls, while the rest guarded the arrow towers and defensive structures. A fortress capable of accommodating half a million to six hundred thousand players for trading and leisure now had only over 5000 people. One could imagine what a sight that was.

Nie Yan found a secluded spot in the fortress and looked around. The buildings here were very dense, with an open space in the center. Near the open space were several shops, all closed. Players from the Eternal Guild probably wouldn’t come to such a remote corner. It was only about 500 yards from the central teleportation array of the fortress. At full speed, one could reach it in a minute.

After confirming that everything was set, Nie Yan said in the regional guild chat, “Let’s begin.”

Upon receiving Nie Yan’s command, the Bull Human Tribe players who were idly wandering around Elemental City started to move.

These Bull Human Tribe players puzzled all factions. They gathered in Elemental City without doing anything, as if waiting for something. In fact, under the cover of these Bull Human Tribe players, one by one, arcane mages evaded the watchful eyes of various factions and entered the teleportation array, teleporting to Molongduo Village, which was only about a thousand yards away from Moyu Fortress. Since their numbers were small, around three to four hundred, and their movements were scattered, they did not attract much attention from the Eternal Guild. These arcane mages posed no threat to them.

The Eternal Guild believed that as long as the main force of the Bull Human Tribe was still here, nothing significant would happen.

After the arcane mages teleported to Molongduo Village, they gradually entered the inns operated by NPCs. They booked several rooms and went inside, with about twenty people in each room.

Some people followed these arcane mages, thinking they were going to launch a surprise attack on one of the Eternal Guild’s fortresses. However, they were surprised to find that these arcane mages did not leave Molongduo Village. Instead, they simply booked rooms in the inns there. No one could figure out what these arcane mages were planning.

Everyone was confused, puzzled by what Kuangzei Nian was up to.

In a room of an inn in Molongduo Village, more than twenty arcane mages gathered together. The leader among them held a group teleportation scroll and was murmuring incantations. Brilliant light filled the entire room. Moments later, more than twenty arcane mages suddenly vanished from the spot, leaving the room completely empty.