Chapter 272: Blockade

“This time, the people from Triumph Empire and Holy Flame have become smarter. Po Tian and Ye Pushenguai issued orders directly to each squad, instructing all members to level up in maps other than Crime Ravine. They did a great job keeping it secret. Our brothers embedded inside Triumph Empire and Holy Flame couldn’t detect anything, and many of them were even expelled directly from these guilds,” Guo Huai said. By the time he noticed the unusual movements from Triumph Empire and Holy Flame, it was already too late.

“This time, Triumph Empire and Holy Flame are really going all-in, sending in 200,000 players. If so many people enter the Crime Ravine, they could literally overwhelm Nie Yan and his people by sheer numbers!”

“Po Tian and Ye Pushenguai must be furious. After being suppressed for so long by Cow Tribe, Holy Roman Empire, and Jade Hall, they’ve definitely built up a lot of anger.”

“How many people from Triumph Empire and Holy Flame have entered the Crime Ravine now?” Nie Yan asked.

“About twenty to thirty thousand. There might be even more in a few minutes!” Guo Huai replied, slightly apologetic. This was clearly a failure in intelligence on his part.

Nie Yan looked at his teammates and said solemnly, “Yaozi, Badguy, Heibai, Wu Feng, Qizi, Shilihuasha, Heise Tiantang… follow me!”

A total of thirty people.

Nie Yan and his team rushed toward the entrance of the Crime Ravine.

“People from Triumph Empire and Holy Flame have arrived. What should we do?” Foxhalfawake asked anxiously. His spies embedded in Triumph Empire and Holy Flame had sent messages, but it was already too late.

Seeing Nie Yan and his team heading toward the entrance of the Crime Ravine, he was confused. After all, that area was already filled with players from Triumph Empire and Holy Flame.

He hadn’t expected Triumph Empire and Holy Flame to act so quickly. With a single command, all their players rushed to the entrance of the Crime Ravine. Obviously, they had been planning this for quite some time.

“How many players from Holy Roman Empire and Jade Hall are still in the Crime Ravine?” Nie Yan asked Foxhalfawake.

Triumph Empire and Holy Flame had assigned nearly 50,000 players to level up in maps near the Crime Ravine, while the remaining hundred thousand were hidden in various locations, waiting. Since the orders were issued directly by the guild leaders to each squad, and each squad’s communication channels were isolated, Po Tian and Ye Pushenguai had meticulously planned this operation with extensive secrecy, gaining about ten minutes of advantage. However, in an online game, ten minutes can be a long time. Approximately 20,000 players had already entered the Crime Ravine, while many more were gathering at the entrance. In about twenty more minutes, over 200,000 players would flood into the ravine, completely filling it. Then, by blocking the entrance, all the elite players from Cow Tribe, Holy Roman Empire, and Jade Hall inside would be doomed.

Nie Yan’s original plan was to wait until Triumph Empire and Holy Flame had mobilized about ten to twenty thousand players into the Crime Ravine, and then cut them off at the entrance. By defending the entrance, those outside couldn’t enter while those inside couldn’t escape. If they could eliminate another ten to twenty thousand players from Triumph Empire and Holy Flame, it would likely lead to their collapse.

Even the wisest plans have their flaws!

Nie Yan hadn’t expected Triumph Empire and Holy Flame to move so quickly, already sending in twenty to thirty thousand players.

“We have about 8,000 players from Holy Roman Empire and over 6,000 from Jade Hall,” Foxhalfawake replied. Under his command, Holy Roman Empire was mobilizing its main forces toward the Crime Ravine, and Jade Hall was doing the same.

They were preparing for an all-out battle against Triumph Empire and Holy Flame.

Nie Yan thought for a moment. Inside the Crime Ravine, there were about 15,000 players from Holy Roman Empire, Jade Hall, and Cow Tribe, all elite players. They should still have a fighting chance and wouldn’t be easily overwhelmed by Triumph Empire and Holy Flame.

Led by Nie Yan, the team entered a cave at the edge of the Crime Ravine.

It was a strange cave, dark and lightless, with an unknown destination. The air inside was damp and cold, sending chills through their bodies.

“Boss, where are we going?” asked Badguy, who couldn’t be killed.

“You’ll see soon enough,” Nie Yan replied. He was much more familiar with this map than Badguy and the others.

The group of over thirty people ventured deeper into the cave, navigating through twists and turns. After two or three minutes, Nie Yan turned onto a steep slope and began climbing upward. No one questioned where he was leading them, trusting Nie Yan as always.

The cave was narrow enough to allow only one or two people to pass through at a time. This passage was designed by the game’s AI for players to enjoy the scenery. At the end of the cave, one could get a clearer view of the magnificent landscape of the narrow ravine.

After walking for a while, they finally saw some light ahead.

Blinding sunlight poured in from outside the cave.

As they reached the end of the cave, a vast view opened up before them. They found themselves at the location of the Crime Ravine’s narrow gorge. The cave exits were embedded in the rock wall, about ten yards above the ground, like open pockets where over ten people could stand at the entrance.

Looking down, they saw a dense crowd of players from Triumph Empire and Holy Flame pouring into the Crime Ravine like ants moving house, creating a spectacular scene. Looking in both directions, they saw endless waves of players.

At least fifty to sixty thousand players from Triumph Empire and Holy Flame had already entered the Crime Ravine!

With so many players inside, the red-name members of Cow Tribe, Holy Roman Empire, and Jade Hall inside the ravine were in serious trouble. Nie Yan felt a deep sense of failure. He had underestimated the speed of Triumph Empire and Holy Flame. If he had known, he should have stationed people here to monitor the situation.

After all, he wasn’t sure whether Triumph Empire and Holy Flame would actually come, and he had put too much trust in Guo Huai’s intelligence, leading to this oversight.

Nie Yan reflected on his mistakes. After all, he hadn’t been leading the guild for long and couldn’t cover every aspect. He must never make such a basic mistake again.

Even if they were going to lose today, they had to make sure they took enough of the enemy down with them!

“Boss, let’s start!” Badguy, who couldn’t be killed, said excitedly. If they cast a mass-attack spell from here, the kill count would skyrocket by two or three hundred. Such a feeling was incomparable.

“Badguy, use Infernal Fire!” Nie Yan commanded. He was going to cut off the players from Triumph Empire and Holy Flame right here!

Badguy swung his staff and began chanting Infernal Fire. Magical energy surged in the sky, and red clouds gathered above the narrow gorge, creating a powerful magical pressure that descended.

“What the hell, who’s casting a spell?”

“Damn it, it’s a mass-attack spell! Who cast it!”

The players from Triumph Empire and Holy Flame below became restless, and the commotion quickly spread. They looked around, but there was no one casting spells nearby!

“There!” One player pointed at the cave on the rock wall. He saw silhouettes of people. How did these people get up there?

With a rock wall ten yards high, how could they climb up?

They could only watch helplessly as Badguy slowly completed his spellcasting. Badguy uttered the final heavy syllable, and the scorching red clouds in the sky rapidly condensed. Then, a torrent of flames poured down.

Violent flames struck the rock wall, scattering in all directions, while even more fireballs rained down. The area below immediately became a sea of fire, and damage values floated above the players’ heads in droves. The flames raged on, clearing a large area of the ground and killing at least two to three hundred players.

The forces of Triumph Empire and Holy Flame were halved. Some had entered the Crime Ravine, while the rest were blocked and unable to advance.

After a while, the flames gradually died down, leaving the ground littered with the corpses of players from Triumph Empire and Holy Flame.

“Leave five mages who can cast mass-attack spells to cover our rear. The rest of you follow me. We’re going to drive these people ahead out of the Crime Ravine!” Nie Yan said, then leaped down. Heibai, Wu Feng, and others followed suit.

The five mages capable of mass-attack spells remained above, ready to unleash a barrage of spells if any players from the Crime Ravine tried to retreat.

Nie Yan landed and charged toward the exit of the narrow gorge, his dagger slicing through the air. He quickly felled several players. These players had low levels and poor equipment, so Nie Yan could almost take one down with a single strike.

Behind him, Heibai, Wu Feng, and others rushed forward.

Heibai let out a deep shout and used Heroic Strike, sending a player from Triumph Empire flying. He then charged forward, knocking down five or six players, followed by a whirlwind slash that felled seven or eight more. The ground was soon littered with corpses.

Wu Feng also slashed through the enemy, taking down one player after another.

On the other side, a somewhat unfamiliar shield warrior named Leng Aoying also performed exceptionally well. He was a rising star in Cow Tribe who had quickly risen to the ranks of top players, earning everyone’s admiration. Leng Aoying fiercely attacked the players from Triumph Empire and Holy Flame with his shield.

Judging from his movements, he was no less skilled than Yi Yan, only slightly inferior to Cui Can Dao Guang.

Nie Yan was pleased to see that some promising players in Cow Tribe were also growing. This meant Cow Tribe now had another formidable shield warrior to showcase.

Cui Can Dao Guang and other warriors charged forward fiercely, with Big Brother Qizi and Shilihuasha casting holy light from behind. They didn’t even need to check their health, advancing fearlessly with incredible speed.

Not a single enemy could withstand their assault!

With the rear guarded by a group of mages, they had no worries from behind. In such a narrow passage, facing an equal number of opponents, they were invincible! Especially Cui Can Dao Guang, no matter how many spells hit him, the damage was always in single digits. Compared to his massive health pool, it was like a drop in the ocean, especially with healers behind him. Fully armored in dark gold, he fought like a steel beast, cutting down enemies relentlessly.