Chapter 100: Lord’s Support is Incredible
The players had roughly figured out the direct cause of the team wipe.
However, they still could not come up with any viable countermeasures.
A head-on clash was definitely not going to work.
At present, among the 480 players, only seventy to eighty were above Level 5, and whether in numbers or individual combat power, there was a huge gap compared to the soldiers of the Dragon Lizard Men.
If the players had three to five days to research and prepare carefully, they might be able to come up with some effective methods, but the problem was that time was of the essence, and in such a short period, they simply could not figure out how to break through the enemy lord’s blockade.
After repeated discussions among the players.
They finally decided to seek help from the lord.
Black-Eyed Rui Ge and Chimera Wraith were chosen as the players’ representatives.
The two of them went to meet the great lord and carefully described the difficulties they were currently facing.
“Our Fourth Calamity Army is short-handed, and we fear that in a short time, we will not be able to break through the Dragon Lizard Men’s blockade.”
Both of them were a little apprehensive, after all, needing to trouble the lord with even this matter — if it affected the lord’s favorability toward them, what would they do?
But for the sake of the mission, they could only try their luck!
Hang Yu calmly nodded, “This setback is not because the Fourth Calamity Army performed poorly, but because the Starsea Demons are too cunning. It’s already impressive that you managed to notice the Dragon Lizard Men’s methods after only two failures!”
The lord did not blame the players for their failures!
Instead, he gave affirmation and encouragement.
The two of them breathed a sigh of relief.
“In fact, the Starsea Demons’ blockade of Woniu Mountain is not a particularly complicated or brilliant tactic. They merely deployed some Spirit Hounds near the Abyssal Mist Gate. But I, your lord, have already prepared a method for you to counter this.”
Hang Yu did not beat around the bush and directly told the players about the newly added skills and the Concealment Potion, which made Black-Eyed Rui Ge and Chimera Wraith overjoyed.
They immediately thanked the lord and passed the good news on to the other players.
Street Slayer: “Damn! Lord Yu is so awesome!”
Little Bell said emotionally, “The lord always quietly looks after us players. Every time we encounter difficulties, he steps in at the critical moment. No wonder he’s the most respected and beloved leader among us!”
Little Brother Ma: “With the lord as our backing, no enemy can stand in our way!”
Blue-Clothed Fox: “I’m in love! Super sense of security! From now on, I’m a die-hard fan of the lord!”
“With the help provided by Lord Yu.”
“There’s no way we’ll fail this time!”
“Everyone, hurry and buy potions and learn the new skill!”
“……”
Although each Concealment Potion cost 400 Contribution Points, which was not cheap, it was nothing for most high-level players.
However, the Thunderhorn Eagle Summoning skill was not so easy to learn!
15 points of Spirit.
28 points of Will.
The stat requirements for this skill were way too high!
Among the four major classes, Monks had the highest Will growth.
Monks started with 7 points of Will, and each level-up granted 3 additional points.
At least an 8th-level Monk was needed to barely meet the basic threshold for learning the skill.
For other classes like Rangers and Warriors, it would be very difficult to meet the Spirit and Will requirements in a short time.
Even though Warlocks had high Spirit growth, it was also very difficult for them to achieve such a high Will.
This was a skill designed exclusively for early-stage Monks!
Aside from the high learning threshold, the cost to learn this skill was also steep — 3000 Contribution Points and 2000 Essence Points!
At the current stage among Monk players, although several had reached Level 8, only one had enough Essence and Contribution Points to meet the requirements — Midnight Pig Slayer, one of the earliest players.
Midnight Pig Slayer had originally been the first Monk to reach Level 9, but after dying recently, he had fallen back to Level 8.
Because of this setback, he happened to have enough Essence to learn the skill.
When Midnight Pig Slayer walked out of the Skill Tower.
“Old Pig, how did it go, did you learn it?” a group of players immediately crowded around, concerned.
Midnight Pig Slayer sighed and said, “Sigh, don’t even mention it. My Contribution Points and Essence Points are almost spent. It’s like I’ve returned to square one!”
“So what!”
“You can always earn more later!”
“You’re the hope of the whole village now!”
“I heard this is a summoning skill?”
“We’ve never seen a summoning skill before!”
“Hurry up and show us what it looks like!”
The players urged him frantically.
Midnight Pig Slayer did not want to miss this chance to be in the spotlight, so he immediately used the Thunderhorn Eagle Summoning skill.
Accompanied by a loud eagle cry, a bird appeared on his shoulder.
【Thunderhorn Eagle】, Level 7 Normal Unit… Skills: Eagle Eye Scout, Eagle Claw Strike.
Midnight Pig Slayer had not only learned the summoning skill but had also leveled it up to Level 5.
Even so, the summoned creature was still just a Level 7 Normal Unit.
A Level 7 normal monster had about the same strength as a Level 3 elite monster.
This was certainly not considered strong combat power, but as a summoned support unit, it was quite good to have some fighting ability!
Moreover, the Thunderhorn Eagle’s main role was reconnaissance — its Eagle Eye Scout could reveal various low-level stealth or trap methods.
This greatly enhanced the Fourth Calamity Army’s overall capability, making monster hunting and combat much safer and more efficient.
“Wow!”
“So cool!”
“What an awesome skill!”
Everyone looked at Midnight Pig Slayer with envy.
Little Bell: “This skill not only boosts combat power but is also perfect for reconnaissance support!”
Chenxi (Morning Dawn): “Such a great ability! I have to learn it as soon as possible too!”
Glorious Years: “My gosh, with this skill, we Monks can finally hold our heads high!”
“……”
Before the appearance of the Thunderhorn Eagle Summoning skill, Monk players were important in the Fourth Calamity Army but had very limited capabilities.
They lacked offensive methods and mainly stayed in the middle of the team healing others, making their gameplay less fun compared to other classes.
After this summoning skill emerged, Monks would no longer be just healers.
Their roles would expand greatly, improving their overall game experience.
Players like Chenxi and Glorious Years were naturally very happy.
Black-Eyed Rui Ge: “With Old Pig’s new ability, plus the support of the Concealment Potion, we definitely won’t have any problems this time!”
Ye Li Meng said excitedly, “We have little time left. Let’s immediately plan our next actions!”
The players’ confidence soared.
“The lord has done so much for us.”
“We must not let the lord down!”
“Just reaching Sanxiang County isn’t enough. We have to find a way to turn the tables!”
“That’s right! Those damn lizards probably think they’ve got us cornered. We’ll make them pay the price for messing with players!”
“……”
The players began discussing concrete action plans.
Currently, only one player could summon a Thunderhorn Eagle.
If everyone acted together, the target would be too large and easy to expose and get surrounded.
Given the current situation of strong enemies and weak allies, it would be very disadvantageous.
It would be best to split up.
To ensure a foolproof operation.
The players finally decided to divide into five groups.
A team of twenty main players would be responsible for specific missions and operations.
Another forty players would form four suicide squads.
They would enter Woniu Mountain without using Concealment Potions, each prepared to die, with the aim of drawing attention and dispersing the Dragon Lizard Men’s forces.
This way, the main team would have a chance to launch a surprise attack and break through.
…………
Hang Yu had been closely observing the players.
He also felt that the operation should not encounter any major problems.
At this moment, the players had finished formulating a new strategy and were about to set off.
Hang Yu then ordered a personal guard to fetch Zhou Ji, who had just taught Zhang San the Tiger Combo Slash.
Upon receiving the lord’s summons, Zhou Ji immediately rushed to the Lord’s Hall.
“Lord!”
Zhou Ji saluted respectfully, “May I ask what you need of me?”
Hang Yu directly asked, “How much do you know about Sanxiang County?”
Zhou Ji immediately said, “Originally, this was just an ordinary city of the Han Dynasty, but ever since the Abyss descended, many changes have occurred there. Although it can provide shelter, it is also an extremely dangerous place, and I myself have rarely gone there in recent years.”
Hang Yu asked, “What’s the danger?”
Zhou Ji immediately said, “Although Sanxiang County is protected by a Fate Crystal Stone, the barrier formed by the stone can block external enemies but cannot prevent the corruption of human hearts from within. As time goes on, Sanxiang County has grown increasingly strange.”
“Strange?”
Hang Yu did not quite understand why he said that.
Why would a perfectly fine town be described as strange?
Zhou Ji had rarely entered the town in the past two years, so he could not clearly explain the latest situation.
Thus Hang Yu said, “My Fourth Calamity Army is about to move toward Sanxiang County. After all, this city is crucial for the development of our territory, so I want to invite you to become the guide for the soldiers!”
At this point.
He paused slightly.
Hang Yu continued, “Of course, there will be some risk on this journey. I will reward you according to your performance, and as a newcomer who just joined the territory, you have the right to freely choose whether to participate.”
“Hahaha, Lord, you jest. This matter is naturally one Zhou cannot refuse. If I can truly help the lord seize Sanxiang, it will be a great boon for most people as well!”
“Good. Then this lord shall await good news!”
Hang Yu did not expect.
That Zhou Ji would agree so readily.
Not only willing to act as a guide for this mission.
But even proactively proposing to help Hang Yu seize the city.
What exactly was going on in Sanxiang County? Could the situation inside really be that terrible?
The players were preparing to depart, and upon learning that the lord had sent Zhou Ji to assist, they were all both surprised and incredibly excited!
“The lord is just too amazing!”
“Not only did he prepare new skills and special potions for us!”
“He even sent the newly recruited NPC Zhou Ji to help us!”
“Although Zhou Ji’s strength is far from that of the lord, for us, he’s absolutely a force equivalent to ten or even twenty players. With his help, even in dangerous situations, we’ll be able to manage!”
“……”
It was the first time they brought an NPC out on a mission.
Every player found it fresh and interesting.
Whether it was groups like Chenxi and Chimera Wraith, who paid special attention to story settings and lore, or big shots like Black-Eyed Rui Ge and Street Slayer, who focused on studying strategies and gameplay, they all saw this as a great opportunity to interact with the NPCs.
Before this.
The players had about sixty to seventy percent confidence.
Now, it had increased to ninety percent!
After all, Zhou Ji not only had combat power comparable to a Level 11 top-tier elite monster, but he had also lived in the Woniu Mountain region for nearly forty years, enough to ensure the players could reach the ancient city smoothly.
Not long after.
The Fourth Calamity Army re-entered Woniu Mountain.
Hang Yu stayed at the base camp to oversee the operation while checking today’s income.
Just the two previous wipes of the players alone had brought in about 220,000 Essence Points, and the hundreds of low-level players contributed another 40,000 or so.
And this was only Essence income, not counting the backpack materials dropped during the players’ deaths.
Halfway through the day, they had already earned 260,000 Essence Points.
Breaking 300,000 by the end of the day would be no problem at all.
Although Hang Yu’s expenditures of Essence today were not small, the growth rate still far outpaced the consumption rate, so he could afford to be more aggressive in spending to create more task rewards and motivate the players.
But just then.
Something caught Hang Yu’s attention.
Of the 40,000 Essence quota specially approved for Bai Mu and Yan Ling, Bai Mu had already exchanged all of it and directly advanced his tier, but Yan Ling still had not redeemed this great benefit.
What was going on?
Hang Yu went to the Forging Workshop.
There he saw Yan Ling hard at work.
Because of the growing number of players, her workload had also greatly increased.
She was still at Level 10, and her forging level had not advanced.
When questioned by the lord.
Yan Ling appeared very hesitant.
It turned out it was not that Yan Ling did not want to claim the welfare package.
She was simply too poor to gather enough Abyssal Magic Crystals, and needed a few more days to scrape together the money, probably three to five days.
She could not even come up with 400 Magic Crystals?
It seemed that Yan Ling’s financial situation was truly bad.
Hang Yu said, “I’ve already hired two new permanent Forgers for the territory. They will arrive in a day or two. As the chief Forger, if you can’t even reach Tier Two, you won’t be able to command respect!”
Yan Ling panicked a little, “T-then what should I do? I’ll try to figure something out!”
Hang Yu said, “Forget it. It’s just 400 Magic Crystals. I’ll cover it for you. Just consider it an advance on your salary!”
Yan Ling was instantly moved to tears.
The lord had already spent huge amounts of precious Essence to hand out benefits almost for free, and now he was even personally advancing her money out of his own pocket — was there any lord better than this in the world?
For Hang Yu, it was just a small favor and did not even require him to truly spend Magic Crystals.
Yan Ling was not rich, even borderline poor, yet she had been willing to offer up her entire fortune to support the territory during the Day of Ultimate Darkness.
Thus, Hang Yu’s advance to her was a special reward and care for her loyalty.
Besides, for an intermediate Forger, there were many ways to make money — a few hundred Magic Crystals were nothing.
Yan Ling said, “I don’t even know how to repay such great nurturing kindness. From now on, I will work even harder for the lord and advance together with the territory!”
Not long after.
Yan Ling successfully advanced to the next level.
Thus, the territory now had two intermediate-level producers.
Once the new Forger and Alchemist arrived, the territory’s production capabilities would skyrocket, not only serving the rapidly growing number of players but also creating more value and boosting the territory’s financial income.