A large number of bandits came charging toward them.
With a single glance, it was obvious that every one of them was at least a Level 6 monster. Once surrounded by such a force, escape would become virtually impossible.
“That way!”
Mu Yu rapidly assessed the terrain of the passage ahead and pointed toward the southeast.
After entering the interior of Bladewind Stronghold, they had found themselves facing a maze like network of roads that stretched in every direction. Mu Yu had no idea where that particular route led but there was no time to worry about that now.
Their priority was to break through the encirclement and shake off these lesser monsters first.
Everyone immediately sprang into action.
Yin Huaichen swept his gaze across the battlefield and locked onto several bandits ahead. Just as he was preparing to move forward, He Shiyue Buque acted first.
Pinching two fingers together, he summoned a translucent crimson talisman that lit up at his fingertips before bursting into flames.
Flame Dragon Roar!
A blazing tornado erupted out of nowhere and swept directly toward the monsters blocking the path ahead.
35, 35, 33…
A storm of damage numbers floated into the air.
At the same time, the attack tore a gap through the encirclement in front of them.
Great White Shark swung the enormous shield sword in his hands and charged forward like a roaring beast.
His momentum was overwhelming.
He smashed through two or three bandits in an instant before driving the blade into the ground.
Crack!
Spiderweb like fractures spread across the earth.
A stone wall rose from the ground, sealing off the pursuing monsters and temporarily blocking their advance.
“Go! I’ll cover the rear!”
Great White Shark shouted.
The others wasted no time and immediately ran in the direction Mu Yu had indicated.
As expected of members of an elite team.
Every one of them possessed impressive skills.
Before they had gone very far, another group of bandits suddenly rushed toward them from the right.
The Tianhuo Sect mechanic in the party, Big Black Shark, raised a hand.
A Crimson Refinement Cannon forged from red copper alloy appeared in his grasp.
Without hesitation, he aimed into the crowd of monsters and fired a Rainbow Piercing Sniper Shot.
A streak of scorching light flashed across the battlefield.
147 damage!
Every enemy standing in a straight line was pierced by the attack.
Falling Leaf Unrivaled was equally unwilling to be outdone.
He slammed the iconic Soul Suppressing Banner of the Hundred Ghosts Nightwalk Workshop into the ground.
The Gates of the Underworld opened.
Several translucent spirits surged out from within and lunged at the monsters.
The sheer scale of the spectacle and the dazzling visual effects left Yin Huaichen momentarily stunned.
Those skills were pretty cool…
Several ranged damage dealers specialized in large area attacks unleashed their abilities into the crowd.
The entire Bladewind Stronghold looked as though fireworks were exploding everywhere.
At that moment, Yin Huaichen suddenly understood why martial artists weren’t particularly popular.
Just looking at the visual effects alone…
The martial artist’s simple and unadorned abilities looked like a neglected stepchild compared to everyone else’s flashy skills.
“The monsters are increasing in number. Don’t get bogged down fighting them!”
Mu Yu called out.
At the same time, he quickly cast a Purifying Universal Mantra, restoring the party’s health bars.
Then he suddenly shouted,
“Don’t!”
The warning was directed at Yin Huaichen.
Martial artists were fragile melee fighters.
Large scale monster battles like this offered them very little room to perform.
More importantly, the battlefield was crowded with enemies.
Based on Mu Yu’s understanding of the class, once a martial artist became entangled in a mob of monsters, escaping would be extremely difficult.
Seeing Yin Huaichen reaching for his sword, Mu Yu immediately stopped him.
“…Oh.”
Yin Huaichen obediently put the sword away.
The group fought while retreating.
Soon they reached a bend in the passage.
At the corner stood a half open iron gate.
Mu Yu’s eyes lit up.
“Inside! Close the gate!”
Everyone immediately rushed forward.
Unfortunately, Falling Leaf Unrivaled was caught by a pursuing bandit and slowed down slightly.
The others had already entered through the gate.
Seeing him fall behind, Mu Yu quickly cast a healing spell on him.
“Hurry! Hurry! Get inside!”
Falling Leaf Unrivaled was just as anxious.
A moment earlier, he had already exhausted all of his skills.
He had nothing left available and couldn’t shake the pursuing enemy.
The bandits behind him were closing in fast.
His heart was practically in his throat.
Then, in the next instant,
A figure appeared beside him.
Yin Huaichen surged forward.
With one hand, he grabbed Falling Leaf Unrivaled and pulled him aside.
At the same time, he leaned his body backward slightly, narrowly avoiding an incoming blade.
Then he spun.
A swift and vicious roundhouse kick exploded outward.
Bang!
The charging bandit was instantly sent flying.
He staggered backward several steps before crashing into the group of bandits behind him.
“Thanks!”
Still shaken, Falling Leaf Unrivaled hurriedly thanked Yin Huaichen before sprinting toward the iron gate.
Yin Huaichen had no intention of lingering.
After helping him escape, he immediately retreated into the gate as well.
“Close it!”
Mu Yu shouted.
Everyone quickly put away their weapons and worked together to shove the heavy gate shut.
Creak
With a grating sound, the iron gate slammed closed.
Great White Shark grabbed a thick wooden beam from nearby and wedged it across the gate.
Only then did they finally manage to secure it.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
“They’re inside!”
“Go around!”
The bandits trapped outside began hammering against the gate.
The entire structure trembled violently.
Combined with the chaotic shouting beyond it, the noise was enough to make anyone nervous.
The gate looked sturdy enough.
It should hold for a little while.
Mu Yu finally breathed a sigh of relief.
But before he could fully relax,
A sharp whistling sound tore through the air.
Whoosh!
A black iron feathered arrow shot toward him.
Like a bolt of lightning, it pierced straight through his body.
Everyone spun around.
Behind them stood two tall figures.
One on the left.
One on the right.
They completely blocked the path ahead.
Bladewind Stronghold Squad Leader: Lu Jia (Lv. 8)
Bladewind Stronghold Squad Leader: Lu Yi (Lv. 8)
One wielded a bow.
The other carried a massive axe.
“Those who trespass into Bladewind Stronghold are seeking death!”
The two leaders roared.
Then they charged forward.
“Level 8 elite leaders!”
He Shiyue Buque quickly cast an inspection skill.
“Do we fight?”
“What kind of question is that? If we don’t fight, what else can we do?”
Mu Yu yanked the arrow from his body and immediately healed himself.
Fortunately, as a healer, his health pool was sturdier than that of most damage dealers.
If that arrow had struck one of the squishier ranged classes, they might have been killed instantly.
“Great White Shark! Pull aggro!”
The two elite leaders completely blocked their route.
There was no avoiding this battle.
Not only did they have to fight,
They had to finish it quickly.
Otherwise, the iron gate behind them would not hold much longer.
Attack!
Flames transformed into a roaring dragon and swept across the battlefield.
The Soul Suppressing Banner unfurled, unleashing hordes of spirits.
The Crimson Refinement Cannon thundered once again as blazing firelight converged and erupted forward.
Dazzling skill effects exploded one after another.
Great White Shark was equally decisive.
He combined shield and sword into a defensive stance and activated his damage reduction skill.
Even with the extraordinary durability of an Iron Guardian, tanking two elite leaders simultaneously was extremely difficult.
The terrain here was narrow.
There was little room to maneuver.
Even worse, the iron gate behind them continued to shake violently under the relentless assault of the bandits outside.
It clearly wouldn’t last much longer.
Finish quickly?
How exactly were they supposed to finish this quickly?
Clang!
Lu Jia, the archer, drew his massive bow from the rear and released an arrow.
The projectile slammed into Great White Shark’s shield sword.
The tremendous impact numbed his arms.
Before he could recover,
Lu Yi’s gigantic axe was already descending toward him.
Buzz
Great White Shark suddenly felt his vision blur.
A slender figure stepped forward.
Under the enhancement of Coiling Dragon Steps, Yin Huaichen moved as lightly as the wind itself.
In the blink of an eye, he was standing directly in front of Great White Shark.
A clear sword cry rang out.
Like the roar of a dragon, it echoed beside everyone’s ears.
His left foot pressed forward.
His back tilted slightly.
His breathing stilled.
His focus sharpened.
Then with a flick of his wrist, the sword left its sheath.
Cold light flashed across the blade.
For an instant, it illuminated the young man’s vivid features.
The sword strike was as precise as a needle.
The blade traced a diagonal arc through the air.
Perfectly.
Elegantly.
It intercepted the trajectory of the descending axe and shattered its momentum.
The sharp whistle of splitting air merged with a stream of beautiful sword light as the attack pierced directly into Lu Yi’s throat.
Sleeved Azure Dragon , 90% Completion!
Vital Strike!
Under Great White Shark’s disbelieving gaze, a terrifying damage number floated above Lu Yi’s head.
387!
Holy crap?
The damage was so outrageous that it immediately stood out among the surrounding numbers that only reached the tens.
Even He Shiyue Buque and the others instinctively rubbed their eyes in disbelief.
Several skills they were in the middle of casting even paused for a brief moment.
What kind of damage was that?!
After thrusting his sword forward, Yin Huaichen immediately pressed the attack.
The hem of his martial attire fluttered violently as axe winds swept around him.
With a sharp lift of his blade, he caught the descending axe head on.
CLANG!
The explosive collision sent vibrations rippling through the air.
Sparks burst from the grinding steel.
“Stop staring.”
Seeing Mu Yu, Great White Shark and the others frozen in shock, Yin Huaichen couldn’t help reminding them.
“Huh? Oh!”
Losing focus in the middle of combat was incredibly unprofessional.
Mu Yu silently cursed himself.
Suppressing his astonishment, he quickly regained control of the situation.
“Focus fire on the archer first!”
Yin Huaichen’s terrifying damage output had dramatically reduced the pressure on the team.
Compared to the axe wielding leader, the ranged archer posed a far greater threat.
Mu Yu immediately directed the team’s three ranged damage dealers toward Lu Jia.
As for Lu Yi that opponent would be left to Yin Huaichen and Great White Shark.
The muscles on Lu Yi’s arms bulged like ancient tree roots.
With a twist of his wrists, the axe swept toward Yin Huaichen’s waist.
Yin Huaichen was about to retreat.
But Great White Shark moved before he could.
Raising his shield sword, he stepped forward and intercepted the strike.
Clang!
The axe collided with the shield in a burst of sparks.
Yin Huaichen stopped retreating.
“Nice block.”
With Great White Shark absorbing the pressure at the front, Yin Huaichen no longer had any worries.
He slid forward three swift steps.
His sword shot out like a venomous serpent.
First, he slashed toward the tendons of Lu Yi’s axe wielding wrist.
Then he thrust directly toward the vulnerable point beneath the armpit.
Although these attacks were not skills, the relentless offensive still forced Lu Yi into a frantic defense.
Logically speaking, martial artists possessed far simpler and less flashy skills than most other damage dealing classes.
Yet on the battlefield, Yin Huaichen’s figure was impossible to ignore.
Every movement.
Every strike.
Every turn of his body.
The tied hair behind his head swept through the air like strokes of black ink splashed across a painting.
Elegant.
Sharp.
Beautiful.
And terrifying.
Sword shadows swept through the air in dazzling arcs.
The young man’s eyes, visible beneath the edge of his half mask, were sharper than the blade itself.
Seizing the opening, Yin Huaichen twisted his sword and redirected the momentum of the axe. Then he lunged forward in a fluid motion. At the same time, Star Splitting Art activated naturally and three streaks of sword light shot forth like fragments of starlight.
Flood Dragon’s Triple Probe!
Three points of cold light flashed out with the precision of a surgeon’s scalpel.
One struck the throat.
Another followed.
Then the third pierced through.
Each attack landed with ruthless accuracy upon vital points, the throat and the heart.
Critical Hit!
182!
198!
207!
Star Splitting Art’s twenty percent critical damage bonus within ten seconds was practically a perfect match for the Martial Artist class.
Once a critical hit was triggered, the damage instantly rose to one hundred and seventy percent critical damage.
Combined with the enormous skill multiplier provided by a ninety percent completion rate, this single Flood Dragon’s Triple Probe dealt nearly six hundred total damage.
Not only that but it also activated the Blood Slaughter effect from the Gale Bracelet.
Additional bleeding damage numbers floated upward.
20.
20.
Great White Shark’s eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.
Before the duration of Star Splitting Art expired, Yin Huaichen moved again.
Without even waiting for Flood Dragon’s Triple Probe to fully finish its recovery animation, his wrist turned.
The sword momentum had yet to fade when it changed direction.
The scattered sword light condensed into a single point.
Streams of radiance converged.
Then a deep, tearing sound split through the air.
The fluttering of his robes concealed a decisive judgment of life and death.
Azure Dragon in the Sleeve!
439!
Yin Huaichen’s sword momentum surged forward in overlapping waves.
One strike layered upon another.
Relentless.
Merciless.
He transformed into a machine built solely to inflict damage.
Within only a few breaths, every offensive skill at his disposal had been unleashed to its fullest potential.
At that moment, the terrifying burst damage unique to the Martial Artist class revealed itself completely.
Thud…
The massive axe slipped from Lu Yi’s hand.
His body swayed.
Then collapsed heavily onto the ground.
✦ ✧ ✦
Cresvynia
[Translator]
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ChaptersChapter 1 · Remember to keep a positive moodChapter 2 · Have fun playing the gameChapter 3 · Skill completion rateChapter 4 · Strange and malevolent creatures roam outside the cityChapter 5 · 90% complete!Chapter 6 · Serving the sect is my dutyChapter 7 · First meetingChapter 8 · Fang LecangChapter 9 · A prestigious and righteous sect!Chapter 10 · Kill Chi BantuChapter 11 · Spoils of warChapter 12 · We’ve made a fortune!Chapter 13 · Thunder and fire extinguish goldChapter 14 · You found it?Chapter 15 · The so called degree of freedomChapter 16 · The secrets of life and deathChapter 17 · A minor leader of the first rank.Chapter 18 · What kind of luck do you have?Chapter 19 · Let’s Do itChapter 20 · The BOSS escapedChapter 21 · “A wound to the heart is also a wound.”Chapter 22 · Good people are always blessed.Chapter 23 · The Old Man of the Valley of BonesChapter 24 · It’s me, young master!Chapter 25 · Take it slow and steadyChapter 26 · The older they get, the stingier they becomeChapter 27 · You know this person tooChapter 28 · I saw Wei Wanzhou againChapter 29 · You’d better keep having this kind of luckChapter 30 · “Password lock” crackedChapter 31 · We’ve come to punish you!Chapter 32 · A boorish country bumpkin who knows no manners.Chapter 33 · You have crossed the lineChapter 34 · Now that we’re here, do you think we can leave?Chapter 35 · A trivial skillChapter 36 · Actually, I was just kiddingChapter 37 · Upgrade mission complete, rating: SSS!Chapter 38 · AwardChapter 39 · I have always been law-abiding and law-abidingChapter 40 · Are you coming back for dinner tonight?Chapter 41 · Purple Lightning Square Seal.Chapter 42 · A money-grubberChapter 43 · BetChapter 44 · Four Continents Chamber of CommerceChapter 45 · This was my third meeting with Wei WanzhouChapter 46 · Oh, you want to hit on me.Chapter 47 · The angry drizzle has stoppedChapter 48 · Thunder SpearChapter 49 · “Are you a devil?”Chapter 50 · The Impermanent Lord!?Chapter 51 · Loot everywhere..Chapter 52 · His identity remains a mystery.Chapter 53 · Why not show yourself?Chapter 54 · He confronted Li Mingrui.Chapter 55 · Auction