"First, kill Roman!"
Chang Ye Yu Huo's eyes were filled with ferocity as he roared, "Isn't she the strongest defense of the Scarlet Moon Knights? Then kill her first!"
Guo Ke Wu Ming flipped his body into the air, a golden sword light appearing beneath his feet. In an instant, he was riding his sword to Roman's front. His sword cut through the wind with a fierce sound, and with a soft "clang," it pressed against the front of Roman's shield. Simultaneously, two flying swords attacked Roman from the left and right.
"Ah!?"
Although Roman was considered the absolute core of the Scarlet Moon Knights, with operations and awareness honed by Shen Xing Chen, Chen Xue, and others, making her a top-tier knight player in the national server, she had never faced a "S+" level player like Guo Ke Wu Ming in the current version. In a flash, Roman twisted her slender waist, dragging Guo Ke Wu Ming's sword light. She blocked the trajectory of one flying sword with her shield, and with her right-hand longsword, imbued with the radiance of her sword attire, she fiercely cleaved another flying sword.
Guo Ke Wu Ming was slightly startled. He hadn't expected this delicate-looking young girl to have such skill and reaction speed. Just then, his gaze sharpened. He saw someone raising a flame-wreathed sword and slashing towards Roman's back. It was Li Cang Hai, the leader of the Azure Knights. With a soft "peng" sound, Roman's perfect defensive posture was broken, and she took over 20,000 damage. Her total HP, after being buffed by sword attire, phantom armor, and magical artifacts, was just over 200,000.
It would be difficult for Li Cang Hai alone to kill Roman in a short time.
But then there was Guo Ke Wu Ming. As they passed each other, Guo Ke Wu Ming struck a recoiling pose, his longsword and two flying swords all attacking Roman simultaneously. At the same time, two formidable mages, Ling Ren Fa Zhi and Jiu Mo Zhi, cast their spells together, their magical artifacts also attacking. Instantly, dense damage numbers soared into the air. Roman's over 200,000 HP drained as if through a water pump, disappearing in less than three seconds.
There was no way around it. The ten members of the Brothers Alliance were too strong. Each of their masters was at least at the Eleventh Realm, and they had acquired too many fortuitous encounters. Moreover, their levels had a crushing advantage over Roman, Ding Chi, and others.
The next moment, Guo Ke Wu Ming's sword swept across, the tip grazing Roman's throat and drawing a crimson line. Roman slowly knelt to the ground, her body dissolving into streams of light that scattered across the forest.
"Roman!"
Ding Chi was entangled by the high-level sword cultivator named Ben Mo Ruo. The dozens of other Scarlet Moon Knights players were too far from Roman's position. By the time they arrived, it was too late. They could only watch helplessly as their leader was killed. What's more, Ding Chun Qiu, Chang Ye Yu Huo, and Xi He Da Guo Kui, this group of high-level players, were already slaughtering their way into the crowd with their magical artifacts.
"Don't rush in, advance step by step, fight steadily!"
Ding Chi knew the advantages of the opposing group. In recent times, the players who had joined the Northern Four Tribes were gaining an advantage. Especially Guo Ke Wu Ming and Ding Chun Qiu, who had both resources and skill, had become monsters. To force their way through these ten people would come at a considerable cost.
Following Ding Chi's order, the Scarlet Moon Knights' hundred-person team methodically established their formation. The rear ranged and support players each played their roles, and instantly, Guo Ke Wu Ming and Ding Chun Qiu could no longer kill with impunity. Moreover, this team had Ding Chi as its blade, possessing extremely strong counter-killing abilities. Within a short minute, neither side could gain the upper hand.
"Let's go."
Guo Ke Wu Ming waved his longsword, frowning, and said in the team chat, "They've formed their formation. A frontal assault would result in heavy losses. Let's withdraw first, bypass this group of Scarlet Moon Knights, and there's no need to clash head-on with them!"
In fact, it was Ding Chun Qiu who stubbornly wanted to engage Ding Chi and Roman's hundred-person team. Guo Ke Wu Ming was not optimistic. He thought that ten people could wipe out a hundred-person team of Scarlet Moon Knights? Did they really think the people of Scarlet Moon Knights were mere vegetarians? Remember, the Scarlet Moon Knights guild was a true "start from scratch" guild. Initially, there were only a handful of people like Lin Zhao and Chen Xue, who built their empire step by step from the mud of the county town. It could be said that among the many top guilds in the national server, the Scarlet Moon Knights had the strongest resilience. However, testing the waters was also good; knowing they couldn't defeat the main hundred-person team of Scarlet Moon Knights, they could then easily handle other guilds in the future.
Under Guo Ke Wu Ming's cover, the ten members of the Brothers Alliance slowly retreated. Ding Chi did not order a pursuit. Once the formation of the hundred-person team loosened, there was a possibility of being picked off one by one. If the opponent could kill Roman in three seconds, they could kill him in two seconds. At that time, it would be even harder for other players in his team to bear the burden.
Ding Chi was naturally cautious and would never give the opponent a chance to "kite and fight."
...
"Brother!"
In the studio channel, Roman called out plaintively.
"Hmm?"
Lin Zhao, who was practicing punches in the morning light in front of Tian Ran Ju, smiled and asked, "Man Man, what's wrong?"
"I was just killed."
Roman's eyes reddened. "Three seconds."
"What exactly happened? Who did it?" Lin Zhao frowned.
Ding Chi said, "A new guild called Brothers Alliance, with only ten people, but all of them are veterans. They've gathered the peak players who joined the Northern Four Tribes. Guo Ke Wu Ming, Ding Chun Qiu, Chang Ye Yu Huo, Li Cang Hai, Ling Ren Fa Zhi, Ben Mo Ruo, and that group are all there. These people have been lurking like ghosts in the northern region for the past two days, slaughtering human faction players' leveling teams everywhere. My hundred-person team and Roman's hundred-person team were just ambushed by them not long ago. The opponent suffered no losses, while we lost one Roman and six brothers, a total of seven casualties."
Chen Xue frowned and said, "Guo Ke Wu Ming, Ding Chun Qiu, and that group have always been like a persistent thorn in our side. Relying on their high levels, powerful magical artifacts, and the advantage of gaining experience by killing people, they are draining our human faction players. They are few in number, and each of them is at the Golden Core Realm, capable of flight. It's too difficult for us to eliminate them on a large scale, and we can't beat them in small-scale battles. It's very troublesome."
"I understand."
Lin Zhao nodded. "What are the specific coordinates? I'll go and meet them. They dare to attack our hundred-person team with just ten people, so I'll go and challenge all ten of them alone."
"Spirit Badger Valley."
Ding Chi frowned. "A Zhao, be careful. Don't get instantly killed. This group's coordination is already quite默契 (mòqì - tacit understanding). My suggestion is, when you can sneak attack, do so as much as possible. Don't give them too many chances to counter-attack. Otherwise, once you are continuously controlled, no matter how strong your attributes are, you'll likely be finished."
"Mm, I know."
Lin Zhao took a deep breath, summoned his flying sword Hong Ye, and rode it up from in front of Tian Ran Ju, heading straight for Spirit Badger Valley in the distance.
...
In the morning, Spirit Badger Valley was filled with many high-level monsters. Every so often, one could see a player's leveling team. After Lin Zhao entered Spirit Badger Valley, he no longer rode his sword but mounted his warhorse. He changed his equipment to a deep blue color to be less conspicuous, then urged his warhorse, hunting within Spirit Badger Valley, searching for the traces of Guo Ke Wu Ming and the other ten.
Less than ten minutes.
"Beep!"
A private message came from Chen Xue: "They've appeared. Coordinates are at [Spirit Badger Valley] (7881, 9887)."
"Ok!"
Lin Zhao immediately opened the minimap and confirmed the target. The Spirit Badger Valley map was not large, so he immediately ascended on his sword, riding the flying sword Hong Ye at an altitude of 1-2 meters above the ground, rapidly traversing. Suddenly, he passed through a patch of bushes and saw a scene where a battle was about to end. Guo Ke Wu Ming was pulling his blood-stained longsword from the throat of a level 151 female mage, his foot on her chest, sneering, "You're so ugly, and you dare to go out?"
Killing and attacking the heart, too ruthless.
Ding Chun Qiu swept his sword, and in an instant, a young knight's head was severed. They had just wiped out a leveling team of about 30 people, with an average level of only 147. Of course, they couldn't compete with the ten people of the Brothers Alliance, who had an average level of 160+.
"Swish!"
Lin Zhao swept past. The moment the grass leaves in the jungle bent, Guo Ke Wu Ming realized something was wrong and hurriedly shouted, "Careful, Lin Zhao is here!"
But it was too late. The next moment, Lin Zhao ignited a Speed Talisman and punched Guo Ke Wu Ming's jaw with a "peng." Instantly, Guo Ke Wu Ming entered a "knocked back" state. In this state, he could not use any skills, nor could he activate invincibility special abilities. Lin Zhao wanted precisely this opportunity. As the treasures and skills of Ding Chun Qiu, Chang Ye Yu Huo, Ling Ren Fa Zhi, and others from all directions rained down, Lin Zhao directly opened a Vast Sky Realm, encompassing only Guo Ke Wu Ming within it. All the other people's skills and magical artifacts missed.
"You!?"
Guo Ke Wu Ming's eyes widened.
"Die?"
Lin Zhao pointed his sword, unleashing a Qian Kun Yi Zhi + Heng Sao Qian Jun burst. Then, the flying sword Xin Huo transformed into a beam of light, carrying the "Ghost Cry" skill and piercing Guo Ke Wu Ming's head, revealing a huge damage number—
"492388!"
In an instant, Guo Ke Wu Ming, hailed as the strongest player in the Northern Four Tribes faction, was instantly killed without a sound. The nearly 500,000 damage far exceeded Guo Ke Wu Ming's HP cap of over 100,000. Even without critical hits, the damage was nearly 250,000. The ultimate strike of the flying sword Xin Huo was capable of instantly killing almost any player at this stage.
"Clang!"
The moment Guo Ke Wu Ming died, he actually dropped his sword, which glowed with a bloody red light. It was a Ghost Divine Artifact.
Lin Zhao frowned, collected the loot with a raise of his hand, and turned to look outside the Vast Sky Realm. Ding Chun Qiu, Chang Ye Yu Huo, Li Cang Hai, and the others were going mad. They knew Lin Zhao had taken Guo Ke Wu Ming into the small world for a one-on-one fight, but they were helpless. Everyone was at the Golden Core Realm, while the small world was a divine ability that only those in the Upper Five Realms could possess. What could they do? They could only blame Lin Zhao for having too many powerful magical artifacts and fortuitous encounters, making him someone ordinary players could not deal with.
"Swish!"
The small world suddenly enveloped everyone. Lin Zhao, with his superb skill and daring, took advantage of the Speed Talisman's effect still being active and nimbly closed in. White cyclones of speed-boosting effects swirled around him. The next moment, the hilt of his sword smashed into Ling Ren Fa Zhi's abdomen. Following that, five immortal swords and twelve Great Wilderness Ancient Swords were unleashed at Ding Chun Qiu not far away. The thirty-six Ephemeral Flying Swords from the orange gourd flew out like gray gnats, showering Chang Ye Yu Huo, Li Cang Hai, Xi He Da Guo Kui, and Ben Mo Ruo like a fine rain.