Princess Aina of the Wandering Souls waved her wand, conjuring a ball of flame that fell into the crowd of players. With a loud explosion, the flames burst open, scattering sparks everywhere and instantly engulfing some players.
Thousands of players were reaped in the attack, yet more and more recklessly surged forward. They planned to wear Princess Aina down through sheer numbers, as even the mightiest boss could not withstand endless assaults. Time ticked away.
The players had never imagined that Princess Aina could be this powerful, and their casualties mounted rapidly.
Approximately thirty minutes later, Princess Aina still had 33% of her health left, decreasing very slowly. Players finally understood what it meant to face a level hundred mutated lord; she was entirely different from previous bosses, whom thousands could overwhelm and defeat within five or six minutes.
The losses of Holy Glory Temple were quite severe, with over two hundred members killed or wounded.
“Shield, interrupt her spells. Mages, control the threat and reduce damage output!” Xing Zhihui (Star of Glory) observed his team’s casualties and issued orders. Suffering too many losses would not be worth it, even if they managed to secure good gear.
Besides Holy Glory Temple, scattered groups of independent players around Princess Aina numbered about ten thousand, with three guilds each sending a thousand-man team.
The Iron Troll had been lured into the town, and around six or seven thousand players had gathered around it.
With each punch, the Iron Troll knocked down dozens of players, yet still, fearless individuals charged forward.
These players all harbored dreams of instant wealth. The gear on their backs was worth at most several dozen or a few hundred gold coins, with gear valued at over a thousand gold coins considered excellent. If creatures like Princess Aina or the Iron Troll were defeated, the loot they dropped would be worth at least ten thousand gold coins. How could they not go crazy? As long as they were lucky enough to grab one or two items and sell them to influential guilds or studios, they could completely upgrade their gear.
Such scenarios had occurred too many times before, and many people had become rich overnight. The power of example was immense. In fact, there was a group of people who specialized in treasure hunting. Whenever there was a boss raid, they were more proactive than anyone else.
Therefore, as soon as they received news of Princess Aina attacking Krasu Town, they rushed from all directions to join the battle.
Nie Yan finally understood the saying, “Ants can devour an elephant.” Even if Princess Aina and her summoned creatures were powerful, they could not withstand the endless waves of players. There were just too many! Each player dealing a little damage could wear them down to death.
Princess Aina let out a piercing howl, and all players within a fifty-yard radius were placed under control effects, running around aimlessly like headless flies.
The chaos lasted for a while, and soon many spellcasters advanced, rapidly casting their spells.
Nie Yan didn’t dare to approach Princess Aina directly. Instead, he stealthily moved to a spot about twenty yards away from the Iron Troll and cast a detection spell on it. He discovered that the Iron Troll had only 9% of its health left, appearing to be on the brink of death.
The Iron Troll entered a berserk state, pulling out a massive axe from its back and swinging it into the crowd. A crescent-shaped arc of energy, over ten yards long, slashed across the ground with a deafening boom, felling over a hundred players instantly, their deaths lighting up the battlefield with a blinding white glow.
“F***, it’s gone berserk!”
“Run! Wait until its berserk state ends!”
“Damn it, you want to die fighting for loot? Run!”
The Iron Troll furiously chased the players, mowing them down like wheat wherever it went.
Nie Yan concealed himself among the crowd, observing as the Iron Troll swung its massive blade. Swiftly activating his Windstride ability, he evaded the attack, while the area behind him erupted into chaos—screams filled the air as the devastating shockwave of the blade strike tore through the onlookers.
Nie Yan glanced behind him and saw at least a hundred players lying dead.
Those with insufficient strength could only serve as cannon fodder.
Wherever the Iron Troll went, despair and death followed.
Nie Yan circled behind the Iron Troll, maintaining a distance of about ten yards, and fixed his gaze on its back.
With the Iron Troll’s health dwindling to about 3%, everyone waited for the perfect moment to strike, yet no one dared to approach, as the Iron Troll was at its most frenzied state, capable of instantly killing anyone who dared to get close.
A torrent of magical attacks bombarded the Iron Troll, causing a string of damage numbers to float above its head.
Its health finally dropped to just 1%.
“The Iron Troll is almost dead! Push harder!”
“Everyone in the team, cover me while I grab the loot!”
Several teams quickly formed defensive lines to block the other players, while rogues moved forward, ready to snatch the loot. They would mercilessly retaliate if anyone from behind attempted to push through. However, the players at the back kept forcing their way forward, as the gear dropped by the Iron Troll was enough to drive everyone into a frenzy. The people at the front wanted to monopolize the loot, but those at the back would not allow it.
As the Iron Troll’s health dwindled to a sliver, Nie Yan executed a Blink Strike, vanishing from sight. His dagger flashed as he swiftly delivered a Spine Sever on the Troll’s back.
(Note: “瞬击” is translated as “Blink Strike” – a common gaming term for teleportation attacks. “断脊” is rendered as “Spine Sever” – maintaining the bone-breaking imagery while using natural gaming terminology. Both skill names follow capitalization conventions for ability names in game localization.)
The Iron Troll’s health was drained completely, its body collapsing as it fell to the ground.
“Awesome, I got the honor points!” Nie Yan glanced at the system notification, seeing that he had gained over two thousand honor points. Landing the final blow felt absolutely exhilarating.
As Nie Yan prepared to collect the gear dropped by the Iron Troll, warriors and rogues from the periphery surged forward.
“The Iron Troll is dead, grab the loot!”
“Stop that rogue!”
Suddenly, clusters of red flames gathered in the sky, followed by a rain of fireballs.
“F***, who cast area magic!”
The players cursed in unison. Some rogues and warriors couldn’t dodge in time and were struck directly by the fireballs, causing waves of damage numbers to appear.
“Damn, this is too harsh. They’re targeting the crowd with area magic!” Nie Yan realized the situation was deteriorating and used Gale Step to swiftly escape the firestorm, moving twenty to thirty yards away. Looking back, he saw the area engulfed in raging flames, littered with corpses.
The area magic continued to intensify. The mages at the back had painstakingly dealt damage to defeat the Iron Troll. However, the warriors and rogues from other teams blocked their way, preventing them from grabbing the loot. Witnessing the loot about to be snatched away, they could not accept it and resorted to area magic in a fit of rage. If they couldn’t obtain the loot, no one else would either!
“F***, whoever cast area magic will be killed!” The leader of a large team shouted angrily.
As the situation unfolded, chaos erupted. Within a thirty-yard radius around the Iron Troll, everything was engulfed in flames, making it impossible to retrieve any loot. Nie Yan decided to give up. He didn’t need any gear, and the loot from the Iron Troll was not particularly appealing to him. It wasn’t worth risking his life for, and securing the honor points was sufficient.
Nie Yan turned his gaze to Princess Aina in the distance. He decided to check out that battlefield instead.
Nie Yan dashed forward swiftly.
The battle around Princess Aina was even more complex than the one involving the Iron Troll. Several major guild teams were focusing on Princess Aina. Around her, there were several significant forces, one of which was Holy Glory Temple led by Xing Zhihui (Star of Glory), consisting of about two thousand players. Other factions included guilds such as Death’s Descent, Heaven’s Gate, and Winter’s Darkness, each with at least a thousand members. They remained vigilant, cautiously depleting Princess Aina’s health while preparing to snatch the loot.
The four guilds, Death’s Descent, Holy Glory Temple, Heaven’s Gate, and Winter’s Darkness, were second-tier guilds in Karol City, trailing only behind top-tier guilds like Cow Tribe and Holy Roman Empire. Some were established guilds existing since the game’s launch, while others were newly rising forces. Although they did not control any strongholds and might not have substantial income, their strength was formidable. Typically, each guild had around fifty to sixty thousand members, with a smaller proportion of elite players.
Although Cow Tribe was powerful, it remained wary of these guilds. Once these guilds grew stronger, their primary targets would be the strongholds controlled by Cow Tribe, Holy Roman Empire, and other similar guilds. For Cow Tribe and its allies, these guilds posed a greater threat. They were like barefoot people unafraid of those wearing shoes, as they had nothing to lose. Even if their attacks on Cow Tribe failed, the worst Cow Tribe could do was declare them wanted and hunt them down, causing some damage. If things became too dire, they could simply disband the guild and restart elsewhere with the same team.
Cow Tribe, with its vast resources, could not afford losses, but these guilds could.
Therefore, to ensure the stability of its foundation, Cow Tribe could not allow these second-tier guilds to grow stronger. Any signs of growth had to be crushed early.
The leaders of these four guilds were all commanding their troops at the front line. As Nie Yan looked ahead, he spotted the Blood Shadow Five, lurking about twenty to thirty yards from Princess Aina. It was said that Blood Shadow was an organization from the First Military Academy, with two current students and three graduates, whose code names were Ming, Lie, Ying, Su, and Feng. All their subordinates were thieves.
Nie Yan would eventually cross paths with them during his four years at the First Military Academy.
The last time they ambushed him, he nearly died. This time, it was his turn to ambush them, Nie Yan thought.
Compared to the last encounter, Nie Yan’s strength had significantly increased. He wondered if they could escape this time. Their skills were indeed impressive; it made sense that they could advance to Shadow Dancer in a previous life. However, Nie Yan’s current abilities could only be described as monstrous.
Nie Yan adjusted his dagger and entered stealth mode, creeping towards the battlefield.
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