"I'm in!"
Chen Xue's voice came from the team chat: "The Temple of Chaos is a map shaped like an inverted vortex, divided into nine levels. The higher the level, the smaller the map and the better the resources. The first level has level 51 Golden monsters. Should I wait for everyone, or go directly to the second level? The map doesn't show the entrance to the second level, so we have to find it ourselves."
"Chen Xue, find the entrance first."
Lin Zhao said solemnly, "Let's try to gather on the second level directly! Anyone can enter the first level. It will likely be dominated by the Glorious Peony and the Knights of the Azure."
"Got it."
Chen Xue nodded, carrying her giant rock spear and lava shield, and ran around the first level map while tanking monster attacks. She was one of the first players to enter the Temple of Chaos map. Although not the only one, she was likely the only player who could freely dash through the map, searching for the entrance while tanking attacks from various monsters.
...
Lin Zhao sprinted with all his might, leaving many players behind. However, there were still players ahead. There were simply too many players waiting in ambush in the northern map of Yun Shang County. Just as Lin Zhao passed through a patch of forest, a blood-red gate stood horizontally between the trees. Passing through this gate would lead to the Temple of Chaos.
"I'm here!"
He flickered in and was instantly randomly spawned on the first level of the Temple of Chaos map. At that moment, Chen Xue said, "I've found the entrance to the second level. It's in the top right corner of the map. You can see it if you open your map. The top right corner of the map looks like a bull's head with horns. It's near the tip of the left bull's horn, and the coordinates are right there."
"Got it!"
Lin Zhao, Ding Chi, Rong Xing, and others nodded.
"Rustle..."
Lin Zhao, carrying the Qing Lu sword, had no intention of lingering on the second level. He rushed straight towards the entrance, paying attention to the Buffs on the map. This Temple of Chaos map had quite a few Buffs—
[War Fog]: Coordinates cannot be queried within the map, and positions cannot be displayed on the minimap.
[Woe of War]: Player PK within the map does not increase sin points.
[No Regrets in Life and Death]: Being killed by a player within the map increases drop rate to 300%.
[Raid Like Fire]: Drop rate for all monster resources within the map increases to 300%, and experience gain increases to 300%.
...
Essentially, the nature of this map was confirmed. It was a map where coordinates couldn't be queried, PK was without penalty, and death by PK had a triple drop rate. It was also a map with triple drop rates for treasure and triple experience for killing monsters. It was a place where danger and opportunity coexisted. The game "Tian Xia" had clearly created this map to encourage player-versus-player combat and make the game more competitive. Therefore, in this game, "farming" players might thrive, but they would never reach the top. To stand out in such a game, a love for fighting and killing were essential.
Lin Zhao did not particularly enjoy fighting, but at this moment, his killing prowess was terrifying!
"Where is Qing Ning?"
Lin Zhao frowned in the team chat. Other players were manageable. A group of heavy tanks could charge forward while tanking monsters. Mo Yin could stealth past. Lu Li, with her Starry Sky Shield, was also quite tanky. Only the nomadic Qing Ning had poor survivability. She would lose health when hit by monsters, and when her health dropped, she had to use Heal on herself to recover. But as soon as she healed, she would be attacked again...
"Don't worry."
Ding Chi said solemnly in the team chat, "I just happened to run into Qing Ning. How coincidental is that? I'm bringing her along towards the second level entrance now. Don't worry about us. With me here, who would dare touch our little cutie Qing Ning?"
In the team list, Qing Ning's pretty face instantly turned red. She said, "I... I just had laser hair removal last month, so there's nothing to touch..."
"Ah?!"
Ding Chi, Zhang Jun, Rong Xing, and others exchanged glances, then their minds wandered, and their blood boiled!
"Hurry up, let's meet on the second level!"
Although the first level of the Temple of Chaos was large, Lin Zhao's movement speed was decent, thanks to the bonus from the Golden artifact Ling Feng Battle Boots. Moreover, his spawn location was relatively close to that bull's horn. In less than five minutes, he saw a small, blood-red portal ahead. He stepped into it, and the next moment, he collided headfirst with Chen Xue.
"Ah?"
Chen Xue was knocked dizzy and fell to the ground. She instinctively reached out and rubbed her chest, a wronged expression on her pretty face. She frowned and asked, "In such a hurry?"
"Um..."
Lin Zhao scratched his head and said awkwardly, "I was afraid you'd be in danger alone on the second level, and getting PK'd would be bad."
"Hmph~~~"
Chen Xue pouted, "You say nice things, but you're not helping me up."
"Alright!"
Lin Zhao stepped forward, grabbed Chen Xue's arm, and pulled her up. He then looked around at the terrain. The map was a long-abandoned underground palace. The ground was paved with ancient stone slabs, and shade-loving plants that didn't require sunlight grew tenaciously from the cracks in the stones. The ceiling was covered with various vines, exuding a dark and eerie aura.
"The entrance to the second level should be unique."
Lin Zhao frowned. "We're few in number, so there's no need to block the entrance. I'll clear out the monsters above. Chen Xue, you continue to look for the entrance to the third level, and also see if there are any bosses on the second level. If we can tackle them, we'll finish the fight quickly!"
"Okay."
Chen Xue nodded. "Be careful on your own. I'm leaving."
"You be careful too. Soon, the second level will be filled with enemies."
"Mhm!"
...
So, Lin Zhao, carrying the Qing Lu sword, lured a group of level 52 monsters and killed them in minutes. Then, he squatted behind the entrance to the second level, his body hunched over, sword in hand. The mechanics of this map were good: no sin points for PK, and a triple drop rate for PK kills. It would be a shame not to make good use of such a great mechanism!
"Swish~~~"
A figure flickered into the second level. The moment he opened his eyes, the tip of a flowing green longsword was already at his throat. Rong Xing was so scared he almost lost his soul. "Damn it~~~"
"Are you one of us?"
Lin Zhao gently retracted his sword and smiled. "Go up and meet up with Chen Xue!"
"Mhm!"
Rong Xing drew his sword and left, saying in the team chat, "Boss, what are you doing? Camping?"
"Mhm."
Lin Zhao smiled. "Just stay here and kill any Glorious Peony members who come. I'll meet up with you all after you find the entrance. Mo Yin, don't rush to the second level yet. Stealth and hide at the entrance to provide me with intelligence."
"Alright, Brother Bai Yi!!"
Mo Yin smiled slightly. This was a task perfectly suited for an assassin like him.
A minute later, Mo Yin said grimly in the team chat, "Someone's coming up. It's from the Glorious Peony. Flying Dragon in the Sky. Be careful, Brother Bai Yi!"
"Don't worry, I'm fine!"
A few seconds later, a figure flickered into the second level. It was Flying Dragon in the Sky. The moment he stepped onto the second level and curiously opened his minimap to examine it, a sword aura enveloped his head.
"Huh?!"
Flying Dragon in the Sky was startled. The next second, he was stunned. Lin Zhao's sword aura's two-stage damage dealt nearly 2000 points of damage. Then, a normal attack followed by a Barrage of Thousand Strikes combo. The four attacks instantly dealt Flying Dragon in the Sky over 6000 HP. This top Berserker of the Glorious Peony only had a total HP of over 7000. He immediately collapsed on the ground, dead. He even dropped a Golden artifact armor and a pile of potions.
Good, keep the armor.
Lin Zhao directly put the armor into his inventory. It should sell for a decent amount at the auction house later.
In the team chat, the others could also see the notification of Lin Zhao's successful kill.
"Awesome!"
Ding Chi laughed heartily. "My Zhao is so strong, killing Flying Dragon in the Sky is like killing a chicken!"
"Haha~~~"
Lin Zhao said, "Flying Dragon in the Sky dropped a Golden chestplate. Since it was a personal PK, I won't turn it over to the public. I'll keep this equipment to sell later. My finances are a bit tight these days, as refining my flying sword requires 20,000 general currency every day. If I don't make some private money... I can't go on."
"Ah?!"
Chen Xue was stunned. "You bought the Sea God's Rock to refine your sword?"
"Yes. Using ordinary sword refining stones is too time-consuming. I'll be left behind in damage by other wealthy sword masters in the future."
"That's true."
Chen Xue's beautiful eyes were like water. "Actually, the cost of nurturing a flying sword for sword masters should be covered by the studio. After all, the funding requirement is too huge. Relying on individuals... will be extremely strenuous."
"No rush."
Lin Zhao smiled. "Let's talk about it after Ding Chi and Zhang Jun also have flying swords. I'll work hard now, and maybe I can support myself."
"Mhm!"
...
Just then, two more people entered the second level: Ding Chi and Qing Ning.
"Let's go."
Lin Zhao headed upwards. "Go up. Chen Xue and Rong Xing are over there."
"Mhm mhm."
Qing Ning nodded repeatedly. The young girl felt it was great to have a leader like Bai Yi. In that moment, she felt incredibly safe. If he were an enemy, he would be terrifying!
After Ding Chi and Qing Ning left, Mo Yin immediately said in the team chat, "The Glorious Peony has sent more people. They should know you're blocking the second level. This time, they've sent five people in total: three heavy tanks and two mages. One of the mages is King of Vows, their strongest mage."
"Got it."
"Be careful, they're rushing through the gate!"
"Mhm!"
Lin Zhao retreated several steps, his brows furrowed. Five experts from the Glorious Peony coming together required caution. Indeed, the next second, two Sword Masters and a Paladin rushed into the second level almost in sync. They came with skills ready. The Sword Masters immediately drew their swords and initiated a Turning Slash upon entering, while the Paladin activated their Shield of Glory and unleashed a Lunge skill forward upon entering!
"Over there!"
A Sword Master spotted Lin Zhao and immediately raised his long sword, a sword aura enveloping Lin Zhao's head. The other Sword Master, almost in sync, launched a sword aura impact together!
Lin Zhao slammed his foot on the ground and "swished" as he summoned the Sword Aura Guard skill. This wave would likely stun him, so he had to endure this strong attack before counterattacking. The reason for not attacking the three heavy tanks was simple: the two Starry Sky Mages hadn't entered yet. It would be a waste to use his output skills on them!
"Flash flash!"
Two figures flickered out. King of Vows and another level 47 Starry Sky Mage stepped into the second level of the Temple of Chaos!