After exiting the dimensional space, Nie Yan followed his usual habit and looked for a relatively safe spot among the jungle, preparing to return using a recall scroll.
Halfway through the incantation of the recall scroll, he heard footsteps coming from the nearby woods. Nie Yan’s heart skipped a beat; he quickly interrupted the scroll and concealed himself within the trees.
“Ghost Leader You, are you sure the Scythe of Death is around here? Why haven’t we found it after searching for three or four hours?” asked a player wearing a black robe and possessing a very peculiar appearance.
The one called Ghost Leader affirmed confidently, “I can’t pinpoint the exact coordinates of the Scythe of Death, but I’m absolutely sure it’s around here. Its location is moving, so it’s probably being held by some player.”
The conversation, interspersed with chaotic footsteps, reached Nie Yan’s ears. He furrowed his brow. These guys were actually after the Scythe of Death. How did they even know its location?
Remaining in stealth, Nie Yan peered toward the source of the voices. Emerging from the dense forest were five players. Their style of clothing was completely different from that of players from the Glinland Empire. Their attire was primarily dark red, with open collars and short sleeves, exuding an ancient tribal vibe. Some had peculiar appearances, while others were extremely handsome, with one or two distinctive tattoos on their arms, necks, faces, and other areas.
They were members of the Demonblood Tribe!
To the players of the Glinland Empire, the Demonblood Tribe was an extremely mysterious race. Previously, they rarely appeared on the surface, but recently their numbers had increased. Their empire was mainly composed of dark elves, fallen humans, half-orcs, and goblins, including mixed bloodlines from various races. They worshipped demons and embraced carnage.
Their occupational system differed from those of the Glinland Empire and the Sathern Empire, being far more complex. The main professions were warriors, shadowcasters, dark priests, stealthers, and warlocks, with further classifications within each. Warriors were divided into demon swordsmen, dual swordsmen, and half-orc warriors. Shadowcasters were categorized as elven shadowcasters, goblin shadowcasters, and fallen human shadowcasters. Stealthers were divided into dark elf thieves and drow assassins. Warlocks were further classified into goblin warlocks, black elf warlocks, and human warlocks. Dark priests were relatively uniform, similar to priests.
Each member of the Demonblood Tribe had an innate trait called “Carnage Instinct,” with primary attributes being health and defense, which were about 30% lower than those of players from the Glinland Empire and the Sathern Empire. However, their attack power was about 50% higher. It was said that Demonblood Tribe players leveled up extremely fast, but they were also more prone to dying.
In terms of overall quality, Demonblood Tribe players were nearly equal to those from the Glinland Empire and the Sathern Empire. However, their top experts were terrifying, especially thieves. For top-tier thieves, health and defense were secondary attributes; what they pursued were strong controls and high attack power. The Demonblood Tribe’s innate traits held a fatal attraction for players who preferred high-attack paths.
Nie Yan examined these players. The one called Ghost Leader was a fallen human, resembling an ordinary human, except his skin was slightly darker. He held a black sword in his left hand and a staff in his right, clearly a demon swordsman.
There were three demon swordsmen here: one was a fallen human, and the other two were black elves. Black elves had distinct racial characteristics, with pointed ears and very handsome appearances, their skin resembling translucent black jade.
Looking at the other two players, a male and a female, one was a half-orc, and the other was a fallen human female, both dual swordsmen.
Three demon swords and two dual swords. The fallen human demon swordsman and the half-orc dual swordsman were Silverwings, sporting silver wings on their backs. Unlike players from the human and orc empires, they did not have class change quests but instead underwent guided trials. Silverwing was a title, equivalent to the top-tier professions of humans and orcs, though their strength was significantly inferior to the top-tier players of humans and orcs. However, obtaining the Silverwing title was relatively simple. In the previous life, the human and Sathern empires combined had only a few hundred top-tier professions, while the Demonblood Tribe had five to six thousand Silverwings.
Three demon swords and two dual swords, with two having advanced to Silverwings. Seeing this configuration, Nie Yan’s heart sank. Ten years of experience from his previous life told him that this team would be difficult to deal with.
In his previous life, this combination was considered one of the Demonblood Tribe’s most classic lineups, with very high requirements for each member. In a five-man team fight, such a group was absolutely a team of killers, an unstoppable melee squad.
Demon swordsmen could handle both magic users and swordsmen. Though their magical damage wasn’t as high as that of mages, their stamina was better and their movement speed faster. Although their defense and health couldn’t match that of warriors, their attack power could make all warriors tremble. They could apply magical states to their weapons, making their physical attacks include magical damage as a talent, increasing normal attack damage by more than 60%.
Dual swordsmen excelled in agility, with top-tier dual swordsmen often being fully agile builds. It was said that a level 100 dual swordsman could achieve a base agility of over 3,000, and with equipment bonuses, some could even reach 7,000 to 8,000, an absolutely terrifying number. They specialized in rapid assaults and quick resolutions.
Such a group was a nightmare for any magic users, and warriors encountering such a team would have no resistance if flanked.
The tactic this configuration excelled in was having the two dual swordsmen quickly advance and attack the opponent. If they encountered magic users, they would eliminate them instantly. If they faced tanky warriors or defensive warriors, they would hold them down while the demon swordsmen either cast spells or rushed in.
“A setup for instant kills, with two Silverwings,” Nie Yan’s gaze fixed on those people, his left hand unconsciously gliding over the Zennarde Sword.
These people were after his Scythe of Death, probably having accepted some mission. The one called Ghost Leader could determine the Scythe of Death’s location. If Nie Yan didn’t take the initiative, these guys would probably follow him relentlessly.
Nie Yan silently concealed himself in the nearby jungle, and none of the five noticed his presence.
They were relatively lax about thieves since both demon swordsmen and dual swordsmen were considered warriors, and their skills were clearly top-tier. In the wild, ordinary thieves would only have the option to flee upon seeing them, with few daring to launch a surprise attack.
“I heard that the class change quests for humans and orcs are very difficult. Up to now, only more than twenty people have successfully changed classes. Our Demonblood Tribe already has more than three hundred Silverwings. I wonder which is stronger between Silverwings and the top-tier professions of the human and orc empires,” said the half-orc dual swordsman as he pushed aside the bushes.
“We’ll know only after a fight. It mainly depends on skill, and the class abilities are also very important,” Ghost Leader was quite confident in the demon swordsmen. In the Demonblood Tribe, players would show admiration when they saw the silver wings on his back. Silverwing was a very honorable title, and he had a sense of pride in his heart.
Only the two of them had the Silverwing title, both around level 130, while the other three were all over level 120. Due to their high attack power, the level of Demonblood Tribe players was generally higher than that of human nations.
Nie Yan trailed behind them, looking for the right moment to act. Although he had encountered members of the Demonblood Tribe in his previous life, they were all low-level players. He had no idea about the skills of their top experts, so he dared not act rashly.
As he followed these five, Nie Yan received a message from Guo Huai.
“Be careful when you go to the Sathern Empire. Not only are the Angel Empire people after you, but the Undead Empire and Demonblood Tribe are also looking for you. The mercenary guilds of the two empires have issued missions: whoever can obtain the Scythe of Death from your hands can attain the rank of Marquis and receive three legendary-grade equipments,” said Guo Huai. After acquiring information about the Scythe of Death through certain channels, he immediately informed Nie Yan. About a dozen people from the Bullmen Tribe knew that the Scythe of Death was in Nie Yan’s possession.
“I see now. No wonder I just met a few Demonblood Tribe members,” Nie Yan realized, no wonder these five were here, probably having accepted a mission to find the Scythe of Death. A Marquis rank plus three legendary-grade equipments, such a reward even made him feel tempted. This Scythe of Death was indeed worth a lot of money. The two enemy empires’ eagerness to obtain the Scythe of Death made Nie Yan even more curious about it.
“Have they already targeted you?” Guo Huai’s heart skipped a beat as he asked. They had not yet fully gathered information on the Demonblood Tribe. Without firsthand experience, it was impossible to know the effects of their talents, bloodlines, and demon markings. Therefore, the Demonblood Tribe remained somewhat mysterious to them.
Nie Yan shook his head and smiled, “Not them targeting me, but me targeting them. It’s time for them to return underground.”
Guo Huai chuckled. Unless it was a large-scale ambush or a premeditated attack, it was difficult for ordinary people to deal with Nie Yan. If Nie Yan revealed his equipment, it would make most people retreat.
“I’ll talk to you later. I’ll deal with them first,” Nie Yan said, noticing that the five had engaged some monsters, which was an excellent opportunity.
“Okay,” Guo Huai nodded and ended the voice call.
Nie Yan’s footsteps were rhythmic and silent. At this moment, he was already only five yards away from one of the demon swordsmen.
After spotting a level 150 elite Mandrake Snake, the two dual swordsmen darted forward like arrows, their twin swords emitting dazzling light, as fast as lightning.
The remaining three demon swordsmen applied magical enhancements to their swords, preparing to confront the Mandrake Snake. They were completely unaware that Death was silently approaching from behind.
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