Chapter 797: The Archmage Refis

“Where is he?” Nie Yan asked the gravekeeper Kallis.

“I don’t know where he is either. He should arrive here in about thirty minutes. Every day at this time, he comes here to assign some quests to players,” replied the gravekeeper Kallis.

The mage Lephist would issue quests to ordinary players. He only appeared briefly each day, making him quite a mysterious NPC for regular players.

Nie Yan had no interest in the quests issued by Archmage Lephist. At his current level, he could easily disregard missions of this tier.

Nie Yan waited patiently on the side for the arrival of Archmage Lephist.

More and more players gathered nearby, but they only dared to gaze from afar, afraid to approach. Some players were curious about what Nie Yan was trying to do here.

Still, they busied themselves with their own affairs, occasionally glancing over.

Nie Yan looked around. This small area already had five or six hundred players, with more continuously arriving. It seemed quite a few people came to the cemetery.

About thirty minutes later, an NPC wearing gray robes approached from a distance.

“The Archmage Lephist is coming.”

“Let’s go see if we can trigger a quest! He’ll leave in ten minutes!”

The appearance of Archmage Lephist caused a stir among the players.

“Are you stupid? Can’t you see Nie Yan has been waiting here this whole time? He must be here for Archmage Lephist.”

Seeing Nie Yan heading toward Archmage Lephist, the players dared not approach. They kept glancing over. Could Mad Rogue Nie Yan also be here to trigger a quest? Archmage Lephist often issued quests to collect herbs. Although his temper was eccentric, many players were still willing to gather materials for him due to the generous rewards he offered.

That can’t be it. Why would the rogue Nie Yan do such a low-level quest?

“Mr. Lephist, hello,” Nie Yan greeted.

Lephist glanced at Nie Yan, his expression extremely stiff, giving a faint response.

“Respected Mr. Lephist, I want to ask if the Abak Swift Boots are in your possession. I’ve been searching for this item. If you’re willing, I’d like to buy it at a high price,” Nie Yan said.

“The Abak Swift Boots are indeed with me, but I won’t give them to anyone,” Lephist replied with a hostile look upon hearing Nie Yan’s words.

“I’m willing to exchange them for equally valuable legendary items. Since you can’t use the Abak Swift Boots, why not transfer them to me?” Nie Yan said. He felt anger rising within him due to Lephist’s cold attitude, but he still suppressed his anger.

“I said no means no. Leave quickly, or I’ll expel you,” Archmage Lephist didn’t even glance at Nie Yan before turning to depart.

As expected, just as the gravedigger Kallis had mentioned, this Archmage Lephist had an extremely peculiar temperament, leaving no room for negotiation. It appeared that force would indeed be necessary, just as Kallis had advised. Nie Yan cast a Scout spell on Archmage Lephist. He was a level 160 mage with approximately 500,000 hit points.

The Archmage Lephist’s hit points weren’t high, but as a mage-level NPC, this guy’s combat capability would definitely be terrifying.

“The Abak Swift Boots are absolutely crucial to me. What if I must have them no matter what?” Nie Yan stared at Archmage Lephist’s back and shouted loudly.

The Archmage Lephist halted his steps, without turning back, and coldly uttered, “Unless you can defeat me.”

Nie Yan unsheathed the Zennarde Sword and pointed it at Archmage Lephist, declaring, “Then let’s fight.”

“Foolish fellow, this is your own doing. You’ll pay the price for your foolishness,” Archmage Lephist coldly replied, as a chilling killing intent radiated from him.

Specializing in ice magic!

Nie Yan was startled. The control ability of ice magic was extremely strong. He absolutely couldn’t be hit by ice magic, or it would mean certain death.

The onlookers observed from a distance. Though intensely curious about the conversation between Nie Yan and Archmage Lephist, none dared approach to interrupt. Suddenly, they witnessed Nie Yan pointing the Zennarde Sword at Archmage Lephist, who in turn radiated a bone-chilling murderous aura. The crowd gasped in shock—could Mad Rogue Nie Yan truly be challenging Archmage Lephist? This was sheer madness. The gulf between a player mage and an NPC mage was astronomical. NPC mages often boasted centuries of experience; their profound comprehension of arcane arts and mastery of abilities far eclipsed that of ordinary mage-tier players.

Nie Yan actually wanted to challenge an NPC of mage level. This was simply unbelievable.

“Come on, Lord Lephist. The Abak Swift Boots belong to you, but I will take them from your hands. As a sign of fairness, you may attack first,” Nie Yan said calmly. Even facing such a powerful mage-level NPC, he still showed no sign of panic.

“Has he lost his mind? He even allows Archmage Lephist to strike first.”

The players were somewhat stunned, but they couldn’t understand someone of Nie Yan’s level.

Nie Yan allowed Archmage Lephist to strike first precisely to uphold the dignity of the Great Prophet. If he had attacked first and word spread, he would have been branded as a robber attempting to forcibly seize the Abak Swift Boots. However, if Archmage Lephist initiated the attack, it would simply be a fair duel between the two.

Such details are difficult to notice if one’s thinking is not thorough.

“Arrogant fool!” The Archmage Lephist waved his staff and fired an ice arrow at Nie Yan.

Just an ice arrow? Nie Yan thought, preparing to block it with the Zennarde Sword. Suddenly, the ice arrow split into three, then three into nine, sweeping towards him.

The NPC mage’s understanding of magic had reached perfection, allowing him to control it at will.

Nie Yan leapt sideways, and the ice arrows whizzed past him, the icy chill making him shiver.

As soon as he landed, he heard a loud bang, and a ring of ice erupted from the ground, sweeping towards him.

Not good! Just as he was about to be hit, Nie Yan activated Hurricane Step, and with a crisp sound, the ice ring was blocked by Nie Yan’s Hurricane Step.

Watching Nie Yan activate Gale Step, the Archmage Lephist let out a cold snort. With a wave of his staff, a torrent of icy needles cascaded from the sky, clattering against the ground and instantly freezing it solid.

Nie Yan employed every trick up his sleeve. The Archmage Lephist was far more formidable than any mage-level player he had encountered before—Tang Yao, Xie Yao, Bad Guy Who Can’t Die, and others were simply no match for Archmage Lephist! This was a true mage in every sense of the word, effortlessly wielding a variety of instant-cast spells, showcasing his offensive prowess to the fullest, and striking every critical timing with pinpoint precision.

The temperature in the surroundings plummeted sharply. The players trembled from the cold and retreated hundreds of yards away. Gazing into the distance, Nie Yan and Archmage Lephist had already vanished into the dense white mist. Only the chaotic sounds of battle indicated that Nie Yan and Archmage Lephist were still locked in combat. The area within a thousand yards ahead had become their battleground.

The players couldn’t help but exclaim in amazement. The battle was actually this intense. What surprised them most was Nie Yan. Nie Yan was actually able to fight evenly with an NPC of mage level!

Looking into the distance, tiny ice crystals refracted rays of colorful light under the sunlight.

The area had already transformed into a fantastical and surreal world. Despite the sunlight, the players felt no warmth at all.

The spectators couldn’t make out the specifics of the battle, but Nie Yan himself was well aware of the difficulty. The Archmage Lephist’s combat prowess was extraordinarily formidable. His barrage of instant-cast spells kept Nie Yan perpetually on the defensive, denying him any opening to strike back.

Watching Nie Yan continuously evade, the Archmage Lephist persistently employed blink skills, frequently brandishing his staff with spellcasting as fluid as drifting clouds and flowing water.

Frost Howl!

A giant ice ball shot forth, rapidly rotating forward through the air, accompanied by a series of ice spikes.

Seeing the dense ice spikes approaching, Nie Yan executed a Shadow Dance, leaving a series of illusions behind him. With a few explosive sounds, these ice spikes hit Nie Yan but were blocked by the invincibility effect of Shadow Dance.

Summon Shadow Assassin!

Nie Yan’s body suddenly split into two, creating an exact copy of himself. After quickly separating, the two charged at Archmage Lephist from two directions.

The Archmage Lephist was momentarily stunned. He couldn’t immediately distinguish which one was real and which was fake, so he prepared to use a skill to eliminate one of them.

Lock On!

One of the clones cast a lock-on skill on Archmage Lephist, causing his movement to pause and his spell to be canceled. The other clone swooped down from above, directly aiming at Archmage Lephist’s forehead. The first clone suddenly appeared behind Archmage Lephist, wielding the Zennarde Sword for a sudden thrust.

A flawless coordinated assault, leaving Archmage Lephist with no escape—whether from the front or the rear!

The eerie flames of the Zennarde Sword were already within inches. Archmage Lephist was about to be struck when he suddenly swung his staff, casting Ice Barrier!

Centered on his body, a rectangular block of ice quickly formed, completely protecting him inside.

Clang, clang—the attacks from the two clones didn’t even scratch the Archmage Lephist, completely blocked by the ice barrier.

In the blink of an eye, the ice block rapidly melted. The moment the ice barrier failed, the Archmage Lephist swung his staff and cast Ice Ring!

Centered on him, a circular ice ring rapidly expanded outward.

Nie Yan’s two clones were even unable to retreat in time as the ice ring struck them unexpectedly. The Ice Ring came straight at them, and the sudden drop in temperature made Nie Yan’s body somewhat stiff.