The troops of the Mage Alliance began their march towards the direction of the Bullman Tribe.
The condition for victory was to occupy ten castles for more than an hour. Without an absolute advantage, completing this condition would be difficult, so they didn’t need to defend the castles stubbornly and could fight more flexibly.
If the battle could be resolved within a day, Kuang Fa and others could return to Moonlight City.
The long procession of the Mage Alliance marched toward the Bullman Tribe. What happened next nearly drove Kuang Fa crazy.
Thieves from the Bullman Tribe kept appearing, ambushing and eliminating Mage Alliance players one by one in the jungle. Kuang Fa organized groups of players to hunt down these thieves, but without success. These thieves were extremely clever and highly skilled, making them seem like ghosts—unpredictable and impossible to guard against. Initially, many Mage Alliance players were caught alone and over a dozen were killed. As a result, the Mage Alliance players became more cautious, realizing they needed to move in groups. However, they still couldn’t prevent these thieves.
These thieves were the Bullman Tribe’s strongest elites: Wangzhetianxia, Sun, Yichui Dingqing, Wudao, Luonan de Qingwa, and others of slightly lower rank who were still formidable. These thieves mainly relied on ambush tactics, killing one or two and then immediately leaving without hesitation. If they encountered strong resistance, they would retreat immediately without engaging in prolonged battles. The Mage Alliance was completely helpless against them.
During the long march, the Mage Alliance lost another fifty to sixty members, bringing their total casualties close to a hundred.
Kuang Fa was furious. Without even seeing the enemy, they had already suffered so many losses. He felt like cursing.
“Have you figured out who these thieves are?” Kuang Fa asked through gritted teeth.
“They are the Bullman Tribe’s top elites. Both Sun and Yichui Dingqing are among them. There’s also a very mysterious one, said to be almost as skilled as Sun.”
“Damn it! Where did the Bullman Tribe get so many experts? Is Kuang Ze Nieyan coming too?” Kuang Fa asked gloomily. The Bullman Tribe’s thieves, especially Kuang Ze Nieyan, were already formidable enough. Sun was nearly invincible, and there were only a few players in the entire Granland Empire who could match Sun’s level, like Ying Sha. Now another thief had appeared, matching Sun’s skill. Was the Bullman Tribe a den of thieves? Why were all the top-tier thieves flocking there?
“Kuang Ze Nieyan is in the castle and hasn’t come along,” Xiao Yao Feng Tian replied, somewhat relieved. Without Kuang Ze Nieyan’s presence, they were already in chaos. If Kuang Ze Nieyan had come too, things would have been even worse.
With such a long front line, the Mage Alliance had no way of defending against such a group of thieves.
Kuang Fa gradually understood Nieyan’s plan. The Bullman Tribe was holding one castle, delaying time while letting these top-tier thieves gradually wear down the Mage Alliance’s strength. If this continued for a few days, the Mage Alliance would suffer heavy losses, weakening their forces significantly. When the final battle came, the consequences would be unimaginable.
“Should we return to the castle?” Xiao Yao Feng Tian asked Kuang Fa, looking at him. Since they had entered the Death Realm, the Mage Alliance had been dragged along helplessly, struggling to regain control.
“Even if we stay in the castle, we still can’t defend against these thieves. A castle can hold at most a thousand people, and the rest would still have to camp outside. Doing this would play right into Kuang Ze Nieyan’s hands, allowing them to prolong the conflict indefinitely. If we spread out to three castles, we might be attacked and defeated one by one by the Bullman Tribe. If this continues, we will eventually be worn down and destroyed. We might as well seek a decisive battle,” Kuang Fa said. Kuang Ze Nieyan’s move was indeed ruthless, leaving him with no choice.
“Then what should we do?”
“We’ll do the same. We’ll send some thieves to harass the Bullman Tribe, at least making it harder for them to have an easy time. We’ll ask the Wolf Studio to contribute more. We can find thirty top-tier thieves.”
Kuang Fa said, although their thieves were not as skilled as those of the Bullman Tribe, they were still more than capable of dealing with ordinary Bullman Tribe players. “Additionally, we’ll continue our advance and head to that castle for a decisive battle with the Bullman Tribe!”
Kuang Fa consulted with the Wolf Studio and recruited ten thieves, while Xue Sha contributed eleven. The Mage Alliance and Divine Guardians provided nine thieves, making a total of thirty. They were sent ahead toward the Bullman Tribe’s encampment. Kuang Fa equipped them with a large number of offensive scrolls, thinking that with so many scrolls, the Bullman Tribe would have a hard time.
The Bullman Tribe’s thieves continued their relentless harassment, causing the Mage Alliance’s casualties to rise steadily, eventually exceeding two hundred. At first, Wangzhetianxia, Sun, and others were merely testing the waters. Later, when they found that the Mage Alliance players’ strength was nothing special, they began to act more boldly. Wangzhetianxia and Sun would strike and take down at least three players before retreating. After several such attacks, the Mage Alliance could no longer withstand the pressure. Their members were gradually picked off, causing significant pain. Later, Kuang Fa had no choice but to disperse his experts among each group. While this helped to some extent, it was still impossible to completely stop Wangzhetianxia, Sun, and others.
At least the top five players from the Wolf Studio would be needed to stand a chance against Wangzhetianxia and Sun.
Nieyan glanced at the messages from Wangzhetianxia and others, a slight smile forming on his face. Everything was unfolding exactly as he had planned. He still had a few more ruthless tricks up his sleeve, and soon he would slowly crush the Mage Alliance!
“How many have you eliminated?” Nieyan messaged Wangzhetianxia, Sun, and others.
“Over two hundred,” Wangzhetianxia replied.
The results were quite impressive.
“Tell us about the situation there. We’ll strike the Mage Alliance hard,” Nieyan said. He gathered Tang Yao, Xie Yao, Desire’s Touch of Youth, and others—players who possessed teleportation rings. Additionally, Nieyan had Knight’s Dirge prepare some items.
After a while, Knight’s Dirge brought the items Nieyan requested.
“Everyone, take some random teleportation scrolls and other life-saving items,” Nieyan pointed to several scrolls nearby.
“Do you have any plans?” Cui Can Dao Guang asked.
Everyone turned their attention to Nieyan.
“Dao Guang, you and Shui Se will stay here to manage things. We’re going to mess with the Mage Alliance,” Nieyan said. Cui Can Dao Guang and Shui Se would remain here to lead the Bullman Tribe players and serve as coordinates for their teleportation.
Tang Yao, Xie Yao, and others replenished their random teleportation scrolls, each taking at least five. Although random teleportation scrolls were quite scarce, meeting the needs of these top-tier members was still manageable.
In the distant jungle, Mage Alliance players gathered into several large groups of a hundred, advancing toward the Bullman Tribe.
The groups varied in size, with smaller teams consisting of two to three hundred members, while larger ones numbered five or six hundred. Only when their numbers were substantial did they feel a sense of security. Nevertheless, the sporadic appearances of Bullman Tribe thieves still caused them significant distress. Mages dared not walk at the front of the procession, so warriors and paladins formed a solid defensive perimeter. Priests continuously cast illumination spells, draining their mana but leaving them with no alternative.
“The Bullman Tribe players are quite clever. At this rate, the Mage Alliance is likely to lose!” A warrior from the Wolf Studio said to Crow.
Crow nodded and said, “Let’s report the situation to the boss.” At this rate, by the time the Mage Alliance reached the castle occupied by the Bullman Tribe, they would have suffered losses of more than a third. If they engaged in battle and the Bullman Tribe refused to come out, the Mage Alliance wouldn’t gain any advantage. With those thieves roaming outside hunting them, the Mage Alliance would eventually be unable to hold out.
Crow was also helpless against Wangzhetianxia, Sun, and others.
In the jungle near the Mage Alliance players, Sun, Wangzhetianxia, and others were hiding among the dense branches and leaves.
“If we go forward another ten minutes, we’ll reach a desert area, which won’t be suitable for ambushes,” Wangzhetianxia said after checking a message from a teammate.
“Nieyan and the others are preparing to teleport in for a big strike,” Sun looked at the team chat. “Brother Yao, Sister-in-law, Like Jiangnan, and Desire are also coming. With mages, things will be easier.”
Sun examined the surrounding environment and moved to a hidden area. He saw rays of white light flashing, and one person after another appeared in his vision.
“Brother Nieyan, you’re here!” Sun excitedly rushed forward to greet them.
Nieyan nodded and said, “Where are the Mage Alliance players? Lead us there.”
“Follow me,” Sun said and darted toward the distance.
Like Jiangnan and others exchanged glances and quickly drank invisibility potions. There were too many of them, making them a large target. If discovered, their ambush plan would be compromised, so using invisibility potions was the safer choice.
The group stealthily approached the Mage Alliance, with Sun describing the general situation along the way.
“There are three Mage Alliance teams to the west, each with around three hundred members. Although they’re fewer in number, their experts are concentrated there. If they discover the ambush, they could arrive here in about three minutes. There’s another team here with around five hundred members, but their overall strength isn’t impressive, although there are some experts among them.”
As they spoke, they could already see the Mage Alliance players in the distance, cautiously advancing with warriors on the periphery providing vigilance. A flurry of illumination spells soared into the sky, casting white light downward. Some warriors glanced in their direction, and Nieyan and others quickly hid behind trees.
“We have three minutes. We’ll take out as many as we can and then immediately use random teleportation scrolls to escape! Now, get ready and follow my command,” Nieyan said. In his mind, he already had a perfect plan.
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