"Boom!"
A deafening sound, and as expected, the first level 46 Sword Master's sword qi collision instantly stunned Lin Zhao in place. A level difference of 4 meant the success rate of sword qi collision was genuinely quite high. The other two also struck one after another, followed by a burst of close-combat damage. Even with his Sword Qi Aegis active and top-tier equipment, Lin Zhao's health was halved, with over 5000 health vanishing in an instant. But the turn was now his.
The moment he recovered from the stun, a fiery red sword light erupted, and he unleashed Dragon Ascension Slash towards the three heavily armored players in front!
With a tremendous impact, all three were sent flying into the air, while Lin Zhao landed ahead of them and charged forward.
"Careful!"
The Knight shouted from mid-air, "Fan Wang, he's targeting you, retreat quickly!"
"Got it!"
Fan Wang Zhi Xue, wielding his staff, rapidly retreated, but it was too late. The instant he fell back, a streak of silver light shot out from behind Lin Zhao's shoulder, surrounded by wisps of frosty coldness. With a "swish," it pierced through Fan Wang Zhi Xue's Starry Sky Shield. The overflow damage after breaking the shield instantly took away over 1000 health from Fan Wang Zhi Xue. Even more critical was a "Frost" flying sword, his innate divine ability, which made Fan Wang Zhi Xue feel as if he had stood in a snowfield for a day and a night. His entire body was covered in frost, and his movements became sluggish.
Ming Yue, with its 330% attack damage and the slowing effect of Frost, was incredibly useful!
However, Fan Wang Zhi Xue's exquisite equipment meant Ming Yue's innate divine ability, even on its first strike, did not kill him. Lin Zhao instantly hurled out his Qing Lu Sword. Guided by qi, the sword pierced through Fan Wang Zhi Xue's chest in a flash, dealing nearly 5000 health damage again, instantly killing the foremost Starry Sky Mage of Sheng Shi Mu Dan!
"Ah?!"
Another Mage gasped in shock and hastily turned to flee, but it was no use. Lin Zhao raised his hand and conjured a wisp of sword qi that enveloped the Mage's head. The next moment, as Lin Zhao caught the spinning Qing Lu Sword returning, he charged forward. The instant he stunned the Mage, he followed up with a basic attack and a Heaven and Earth Toss, instantly killing him on the spot.
"You bastard!"
From behind, the three heavily armored players of Sheng Shi Mu Dan roared and charged.
Lin Zhao frowned. Dealing with heavily armored players was much simpler. As he shifted his body, he dodged the Holy Knight's spear and instantly moved to the right of a Sword Master, using his body to block the attacks of the other two heavily armored players. At the same time, his body sank, and he unleashed Heavy Slash and Sweep the Army, interspersed with basic attack effects. The Sword Master grunted and fell, not only dying but also allowing Lin Zhao to recover nearly 2000 health.
"You're asking for death!"
Another Sword Master roared in fury, activating Sword Qi Aegis, then Drawing Sword Slash and Sweep the Army, unleashing them almost instantaneously.
Lin Zhao couldn't help but chuckle. Too slow. How could they hit anyone like that? Within a second, he reacted, instantly performing a Drawing Sword Slash with a sidestep, missing the Sword Master's entire combo. The opponent had activated Sword Qi Aegis, so there was no need to clash head-on. The Qing Lu Sword spun gently and struck the Holy Knight's shoulder. The absolute advantage in strength made the Holy Knight's body sink, almost forcing him to kneel.
"You!?"
He raised his eyebrows and roared.
His response was a powerful kick from Lin Zhao, sending the Holy Knight flying. Before his body even hit the ground, a streak of silver light flashed. Ming Yue's second strike left a bloody hole on the Holy Knight, dealing nearly 2000 attack damage. Lin Zhao swooped in and followed with another Heavy Slash, killing him directly!
"You..."
The Sword Master, who had activated Sword Qi Aegis but was left idle, was furious. Their group had confidently promised Ghost King that they could hunt down this sneaky old man Bai Yi, claiming he had no other skills besides sneak attacks. Yet, five of them came down, and they were almost completely crushed by Lin Zhao. Crushed in equipment, skills, positioning, operation, and positional warfare!
He stopped pursuing Lin Zhao and turned to rush towards where Fan Wang Zhi Xue had fallen, because the moment Fan Wang Zhi Xue was killed, his magic robe had dropped. If he could bring the robe back, perhaps he could redeem himself a little.
Unfortunately, Lin Zhao was more concerned about the magic robe. That robe was worth at least 20,000 universal coins, enough to cover Ming Yue's sharpening cost for a day. How could he tolerate that?
Thus, the instant the Sword Master fled, Ming Yue's third strike arrived. It attacked once every 3 seconds. This time, the flying sword skill "Frost" had cooled down, and it instantly left a bloody hole on the Sword Master's neck, freezing him entirely and reducing his movement speed by 50%. Lin Zhao approached with his sword and chuckled, "Is it that easy?"
"You..."
The Sword Master's eyes were filled with venom and rage. If this were reality, he would not hesitate to kill this young man before him, regardless of whether it was a crime or imprisonment. He had to kill him. This was an irreconcilable hatred.
Looking at the opponent's gaze, Lin Zhao also felt genuine disgust.
What did they mean? Sheng Shi Mu Dan bullies people in Yun Shang County day after day, killing how many people in PK battles? They can bully others, but when others bully them once, it's like they've lost a father? Isn't this the legendary sore loser? Killing such people is the most satisfying.
He stepped forward and used Heaven and Earth Toss to knock the opponent down. Equipment also dropped. Triple drop rate was great. A pair of level 45 silver-grade leg guards with good stats, worth some money!
Lin Zhao happily picked up the equipment from the ground one by one. This excursion with five people had dropped a total of 4 pieces of equipment. Fan Wang Zhi Xue's drop was the best: a level 48 gold-grade magic robe. It would be a mainstream item in the upper market. Its stats were good, offering physical evasion and damage reduction, and a sword-related attribute of +800 health, all attributes favored by mages. In PK, mages feared assassins and heavily armored players the most, so improving a mage's evasion and damage reduction was paramount.
Indeed, this magic robe was worth at least 40,000 universal coins. He had underestimated its value earlier.
He put the equipment into his inventory. This trip was worthwhile. In fact, even if Lin Zhao returned to the city now, he would have made a huge profit. But he couldn't leave. There were surely better treasures waiting for him in the Chaos Temple. Moreover, in this top-tier map of a county city, if the Scarlet Moon Knights didn't intervene, the players of Yun Shang County would truly think the Scarlet Moon Knights were spineless.
This absolutely could not be allowed!
...
"Killed again?!"
Chen Xue asked in the team channel.
"En, wiped them all out."
Lin Zhao smiled faintly. "Mo Yin, what's the situation below?"
"No situation for now."
Mo Yin said, "Lu Li and Zhang Jun have arrived, coming up soon."
"Alright."
Lin Zhao retreated a few steps to meet Lu Li and Zhang Jun as they entered the second level. Then, the monsters arrived, and all ten members of the Scarlet Moon Knights, except Mo Yin who was gathering intelligence on the first level, had arrived.
"Found the entrance to the third level."
Chen Xue said, "It's slightly to the left of the center of the map. Everyone come over. Lin Zhao, are you meeting up with us or continuing to lie in wait for a while longer?"
"No rush."
Lin Zhao smiled faintly. "I'll wait a bit longer to delay Sheng Shi Mu Dan's map progress as much as possible."
"Okay!"
Just then, Mo Yin said, "Boss, more people have arrived. Two mages, one archer. They're at the entrance and dare not go in. They're likely waiting for someone. If Sheng Shi Mu Dan sends more people, there should be at least ten people now. Your output might not be enough to kill them all quickly. Be careful!"
"It's fine, are there only three ranged players now?" Lin Zhao asked.
"En, why?" Mo Yin was puzzled.
Lin Zhao smiled. "If they don't come up, I can go down!"
"..."
Mo Yin was silent for a few seconds, not wanting to speak. This might be the mark of a strong player. Wasn't this clearly bullying?
...
The next moment, Lin Zhao flashed and stepped into the teleportation portal, appearing at the entrance to the second level. The three Sheng Shi Mu Dan ranged players in front were terrified, as if they had seen a ghost. Even before the two mages could activate their Starry Sky Shields, Lin Zhao sent them flying with Dragon Ascension Slash. What followed was a flurry of attacks. Three people dropped two pieces of equipment and all returned to town.
"This is inhumane..."
Chen Xue looked at the combat notifications in the team channel, seeing the constant announcements of "Bai Yi" killing enemy members. She was speechless. "Our feud with Sheng Shi Mu Dan is getting deeper and deeper. It's probably irreconcilable from now on."
"No need to reconcile."
Lin Zhao chuckled as he picked up equipment. "A guild like Sheng Shi Mu Dan is typically one that fears the strong and bullies the weak, and bullies the soft while fearing the hard. If our Scarlet Moon Knights are not strong enough, they will continue to bully us. But if we grow stronger step by step, they will fear us instead. Therefore, one must be strong to get by. To put it bluntly, only by becoming stronger and stronger can we have a voice in Yun Shang County."
"That's true."
Chen Xue smiled. "Hurry up and kill them, then bring Mo Yin up. We're about to all enter the third level."
"En, you guys explore the third level map first. I'll be there shortly."
"Okay!"
...
A while later, according to Mo Yin's intelligence, Sheng Shi Mu Dan had gathered over 20 people at the entrance to the second level, still hesitant to ascend. At this moment, Li Canghai of the Azure Knight Order arrived with over 30 people. The two sides met at the entrance. Li Canghai looked at the opposing force and smiled faintly, "What do you mean? My King was scared off by Bai Yi?"
"En?"
Ghost King sneered. "The first level 50 Sword Master, we should at least give him some face. Are you Azure Knight Order gloating?"
"Say what you will."
Li Canghai waved his hand. "We're going to the second level. May I ask my King to make way?"
"Hmph!"
Ghost King resentfully moved aside.
...
When Li Canghai led his group into the second level, they saw Lin Zhao standing about 10 yards away. This was a good distance. A Sword Qi Collision, Heaven and Earth Toss, and Sweep the Army from them would likely take him down. But Li Canghai was not afraid at all. He knew the Scarlet Moon Knights desperately needed an ally like him at this moment.
"Ally!"
Li Canghai raised his hand and smiled.
"En."
Lin Zhao smiled and nodded. "Gentlemen, please proceed."
The members of the Azure Knight Order looked at the first Sword Master to have advanced in Yun Shang County. Many smiled and nodded. A lot of people quite liked this kind of stubborn fighter who dared to fight and possessed strength. Many in the Azure Knight Order admired their courage to confront the entire Sheng Shi Mu Dan with just a dozen people. Especially their leader, Bai Yi, who was a rising star in Yun Shang County.