Chapter 198 – Field of Corpses
The official forums were abuzz with activity because of the provocative video released by Unhindered.
The players from Unhindered frequently jeered at Asskickers United in discussions related to the video. Even though the members of Asskickers United would attempt to refute, they simply lacked the ammunition to fire back. Numerous members expressed dissatisfaction over how the executives of the guild handled the situation, or rather the lack thereof. Many of them were so riled up that they were itching to start a massacre in Kiln Fire Woods.
But very soon, a response was posted to the video. It was another video along with a few brief sentences.
It was a recording of Nie Yan and the other nine members slaughtering a large group of Unhindered players.
「10:09, Players Killed: 153. Asskickers United doesn’t rely on an advantage in numbers. Ten of us are enough to massacre Unhindered!」
A hair-raising video followed by a domineering reply! It sent shock waves rippling through the community. It depicted Warriors and Paladins sweeping through everything before them, Thieves taking lives like they were reaping wheat, and Mages dealing damage that would make people faint from fright! Most awe-inspiring of all was the part where Undying Scoundrel annihilated over sixty players in a flash with Hellfire. It was truly breathtaking!
Nie Yan’s group mowed through the players from Unhindered like they were chopping up fruits and vegetables!
They displayed an unprecedented degree of skill in PvP! It couldn’t help but draw sighs of admiration.
What a powerful group of individuals!
Was that really the might of Asskickers United?
The words paired along with the video carried a bit of suspense. It ignited even further discussions among the players on the forums.
10:09, 153 players killed… Did that imply that the vengence of Asskickers United was far from over?
The line that followed got many people fired up. Asskickers United doesn’t rely on an advantage in numbers! It was a brutal slap to the face of Unhindered. So what if they ambushed the main team of Asskickers United? It took a thousand of them to deal with twenty players! Even then, some of their targets still managed to get out alive. Was that really worth bragging about? The opinions on the forums quickly changed. Asskickers United retrieved its honour.
The implication was clear: Just 10 of our members killed over 150 of your players! Let’s see if you can still act so arrogantly now!
Finally, there was the overbearing declaration at the end. Ten of us are enough to massacre Unhindered!
Could ten people really massacre all of Unhindered?
Everyone was eager to find out.
The community immediately brought the reply video to the top of the forums with their lively discussion. It was shared and posted elsewhere countless times, often labeled with various eye-catching titles.
…
「The Ten Slaughter Gods!」
「Ten Massacre a Hundred, Piling up a Field of Corpses!」
「The Might of Asskickers United!」
…
Such posts were by no means an uncommon sight.
The players of Asskickers United were very demoralized. Many of them couldn’t even bear to check the official forums anymore. Every once in a while, a few people had the urge to go and sling some insults back but they just couldn’t bring themselves to actually do it. They felt consumed by sadness, and the inaction of the guild executives served to dishearten them further.
All of that changed in this moment. The video released by Nie Yan and the others was a cool breeze blowing through their hearts, sweeping away all the bitterness and disappointment. In its place, they found indescribable excitement. Some of them were so moved that they started shedding tears of joy. The higher-ups finally made a move!
The members of Asskickers cared greatly for their guild. They didn’t wish for it to become the laughing-stock of the community.
When the guild members watched the video, their hearts burned with an even more ardent fervor. This was because Guo Huai told them that Victorious Return and Unhindered had laid out a trap in Kiln Fire Woods. The entire guild mobilizing to retaliate was exactly what the enemy wanted. So Nirvana Flame and the other higher-ups came to a decision. They would massacre Unhindered with only ten people!
The players of Asskickers United firmly imprinted the images of Nie Yan and the other nine members into their minds. These ten people, without help from any outside force, restored their faith in the guild.
The guild chat flooded with words of support for Nie Yan and the others.
「Nirvana Flame is awesome!」
「We’re going to duke it out with Victorious Return and Unhindered. Whoever’s afraid is a son of a bitch!」
「We should all go there! Let’s massacre Victorious Return and Unhindered!」
The guild members were impassioned. The guild had so many people levelling outside, yet they sent ten members out on a suicide mission. How could they just sit still and watch?
「Enough! Are you guys idiots!? Do you want to die? Did you all just forget what I told you? I want you to settle your asses down! No one’s going anywhere. Keep levelling where you are. When you’re needed, Nirvana Flame will naturally call on you!」Guo Huai scolded in the guild chat. He managed to quell them for the time being, but he could still sense their smoldering enthusiasm.
Players would regularly check the official forums, paying close attention to any new developments. No one knew whether Nie Yan’s group would end up dying or actually succeed in massacring all of Unhindered. Regardless of the outcome, their feats would be talked about for a long time to come.
Near the borders of Kiln Fire Woods, Hei Zhuo was getting jittery. His heart was welling up with an indescribable feeling of nervousness. It didn’t make sense that there were still no signs of movement. It was at this moment that he received an update from a subordinate. He was informed of the over a hundred casualties they suffered. Asskickers United had retaliated!
「How many of them are there?」Hei Zhuo asked, feeling a hint of uneasiness.
「There were only ten!」
「Are you telling me over a hundred of you were killed by only ten people!?」Hei Zhuo yelled, sounding extremely flustered.
Standing beside him, Yu Long said, “Check the forums.”
Hei Zhuo opened up the forums. Posted at the top was a response from Asskickers United. Playing the video, he recognized Bladelight on the screen at a glance. He was familiar with the faces of Nie Yan and the others as well. However, what surprised him was that they were just as skilled as Bladelight. When did Asskickers United get so many amazing players!?
Yu Long was also taken aback. If any of those ten were pulled into Victorious Return, they would easily rank among the top five players in the guild! He was astonished. It seemed he had vastly underestimated the clout of Asskickers United.
「Report the coordinates of where you last saw them! I want all forces over there immediately! Exterminate them!」Hei Zhuo was enraged after reading through some of the comments below the video.
Yu Long wondered how Nie Yan’s group got past the Unhindered’s tight blockade to enter the inner regions of Kiln Fire Woods. Did they have some sort of secret route or special method?
Don’t tell me they made their way through the underground lava caverns!? No, it’s not very likely. Yu Long shook his head. Not many players dared to enter that place. Several guilds had sent out scouting teams to explore the underground map before, but all of them were wiped out without exception. He felt confident that no one was foolish enough to throw their lives away by entering such a dangerous, unexplored area.
Did Nie Yan’s group get past them unnoticed by drinking Invisibility Potions? That was the more likely possibility.
“Tell the Priests to cast Illuminate. They probably have Invisibility Potions!” Yu Long said to Hei Zhuo.
Hei Zhuo thought for a moment, then nodded, passing down the orders to his subordinates.
The seven to eight thousand members of Unhindered at the outskirts of Kiln Fire Woods all moved towards the inner region.
In the deepest parts of Kiln Fire Woods, the annihilation of the hundred-man group immediately alerted the two other groups in the vicinity, causing them to become restless. Some of the players wanted to retreat until backup arrived. Others wanted to hunt Nie Yan’s group down. However, before any of them could come to a decision, several figures appeared in their vision.
After picking up all the spoils of battle, Nie Yan and the others had rushed to the next target.
The first to take action were obviously the two Thieves, Nie Yan and Sun.
Nie Yan snuck up behind a Level 20 Paladin who was at the edge of the fifty-man group. Near him was a small group of six melee-class players. They were about to withdraw from the area with a larger group of players.
The Awareness of the Paladin clearly wasn’t very high. He was oblivious to Nie Yan’s approach.
Nie Yan struck the Paladin in the back of the head with Smothering Strike, stunning him.
Vital Strike! Nie Yan slashed his throat.
−253
−428！
The Paladin didn’t even get a chance to react before collapsing to the ground.
Nie Yan smirked. After getting his attack power up, he could even handle plate-armoured classes with ease.
“Shit! It’s a Thief!”
“Surround him!”
The six nearby melee-class players finally reacted. Charge! They rushed forward, wanting to murder Nie Yan. A silver-armoured Berserker among them led the charge.
Nie Yan pulled back. However, bolstered by the speed boost of Charge, the Berserker quickly caught up.
Tendon Break! Afraid of being stunned by this Thief with terrifying damage, the silver-armored Berserker tried to cripple his movements. But who could’ve anticipated that the opponent was already one step ahead of him.
Concussive Blow! Nie Yan stunned him with Concussive Blow, then circled behind to avoid the Tendon Break. Backstab! Eviscerate! The Berserker’s health disappeared in an instant.
The Priests and Paladins behind the Berserker didn’t even get a chance to cast a Heal!
One fighter rushed up to Nie Yan from the front, and two Berserkers flanked him from both sides. They were attempting to surround him. Nie Yan activated Shadow Dance, disappearing from their sight.
“Did he run?”
The three Warriors were at a loss after failing to intercept Nie Yan. They vigilantly surveyed their surroundings a while longer before finally turning around and giving up. Within a second of them putting their weapons down, Nie Yan reappeared behind one of the Berserkers and stabbed him in the back. Blast!「Bang!」Splitting Edge exploded with energy, sending the Berserker flying out like a ragdoll.
Although there wasn’t much energy stored up, Nie Yan’s attack power had reached a terrifyingly high degree. Even a weak Blast would instantly kill the average Berserker.
Before any of the Berserker’s companions could react, Nie Yan melded into their surroundings and disappeared.
Several of them nearly wet their pants from fright. Fearing Nie Yan would appear again, they quickly retreated. Only when they joined up with the main group did they feel a little bit safer.
“Big Brother, how many did you kill?” Sun also returned safely after carrying out an ambush.
“Three.”
“I killed three too!” Sun exclaimed. However, after looking over at the three corpses in the distance, his face was tinged with a bit of red. Nie Yan took down Warriors and Paladins while all his targets were Mages and Priests.
“Not bad!” Nie Yan nodded in approval.
Monochrome, Edgeless, and the others blew the battle horn on the other side of the battle. They charged into the group of players and started a unilateral slaughter.
“Divine Strike!” Blue Yarn Thread sent a Berserker Flying. Clad in silver-white armour, he could even crush a Warrior.
“Whirlwind Slash!” Monochrome spun around like a top, knocking down the six players surrounding him. Wearing armour that boosted damage and carrying a greatsword that increased critical rate, he was like a heavy-duty tank, tearing across the battlefield. He was invincible.
Undying Scoundrel cast spell after spell, causing explosions to go off everywhere, littering the ground with corpses. Blowhard Summer Bug cast the area-of-effect spell, Firestorm. Immediately, a raging cyclone of fire appeared over the area, swallowing up over ten players.
A group of over fifty players was reduced to a little more than ten. None of the survivors had the willpower to resist. They all fled in every direction.
Nie Yan and Sun gave chase, killing another five players. In the end, six players got away through a fluke of luck.
Nie Yan updated the post on the forums:
「10:17, Players Killed: 201」