Chapter 196 - One Guards the Gate, Thousands Can’t Break Through (Part 1)

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

Before the undead army of Ming An City departed, Gao Li stood atop the city wall to deliver the final rally to the necromancers.

“The imperial lackeys have infiltrated Ming An City multiple times. According to intelligence, they will launch a full-scale attack soon. We cannot sit idle and wait for death!

“Thus, the upcoming operation, led by Sudden Death King, is to assault the imperial camp! You must obey the commands of Sudden Death King without fail!

“Huo Di, Black Feather, you two will also assist Sudden Death King in this battle. And I will coordinate with the remaining necromancers of Ming An City to ensure your rear support.”

Faced with Gao Li’s commands, the necromancers showed no excessive fervor and merely pressed their palms to their chests in acknowledgment.

Kill!!! Eliminate the imperial army, and feast once more!

Some necromancers’ eyes gleamed green. While Gao Li appeared relatively normal, that didn’t apply to every necromancer.

Before Gao Li could continue introducing this undead force to Lu Ran, explaining how he should lead them, a spectral bee flew over, landing beside a necromancer’s ear.

Upon contact with the bee, the necromancer’s expression changed drastically. He scrambled towards Gao Li, shouting, “Master Gao Li, bad news! Fresh intelligence indicates a force of over 200 imperial soldiers advancing covertly toward Ming An City! It’s suspected that they intend to launch an attack!”

As the words fell, the scene erupted.

The previously composed Gao Li turned pale, exclaiming, “What??? Is the information reliable?”

“Absolutely! The imperial army is mobilizing on a large scale, and their target is Ming An City!”

𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

“Unbelievable.” His heart dropped as he looked at Lu Ran.

“Fucking hell!

Hahaha!

”

But to Gao Li’s disbelief, Lu Ran was still laughing.

“Little Gao, I told you. The imperial army wouldn’t give up. If you don’t strike first, they’ll come for you. Do you believe me now?” Lu Ran chuckled.

It seemed that the other participants were just as desperate as he was to raise their scores.

“I...”

Gao Li was speechless but inwardly relieved.

Fortunately, Lu Ran had detected previous intrusions, prompting Gao Li to heighten surveillance on the imperial army. Otherwise, they might have been caught off guard. With lingering fear, Gao Li turned to the crowd.

“You’ve all hear that. Our response is still a step behind. The imperial army is already advancing on Ming An City! Next—”

Before Gao Li could finish, Captain Doofus in his bone armor beside Lu Ran leapt into action. A whirlwind then swept Lu Ran away.

“Brother Gao Li, take your time mobilizing. I'll intercept the army for you first. Make sure to support me quickly.”

Lu Ran couldn’t wait and left abruptly, leaving Gao Li momentarily stunned.

“Such righteousness!”

The necromancers, seeing Lu Ran willing to buy them time alone, were equally taken aback.

He’s

a good man. Just like Master Gao Li.

***

Meanwhile, on a perilous path toward Ming An City, the imperial army had indeed mobilized. Though they tried to conceal their movements, such a large group couldn’t evade the undead’s surveillance.

The primary issue was that the imperial army dared not split into smaller units. They weren’t a special forces team but a ragtag army relying on sheer numbers. Splitting up would only lead to being picked off by the stealthier necromancers.

“Why do I have a bad feeling about this?”

Among the nine participants, the black historian woman swallowed hard, her eyes twitching nonstop.

“Don’t worry. We’ve prepared thoroughly. Everything will be fine,” said the beast doctor.

They were aware that Ming An City had many necromancers and a formidable Grass-attribute familiar, so they had prepared countermeasures. For instance, they carried an abundance of Fire-attribute weapons, some even distributed to the imperial soldiers for free.

As for Light-attribute weapons to counter the undead, those were standard equipment. Under such circumstances, the trial participants couldn’t imagine losing.

“And even if we fall, it’s no big deal. We won’t truly die,” said the Southeast Asian youth.

“It’ll just be a waste of time. Although, I’ve heard the sealing process is quite painful.”

“Are we certain the opposing faction has no participants?” asked a Latin American youth, frowning.

“This kind of death immunity typically only appears in PvP scenarios, where participants fight against each other, right? If it’s just fighting secret realm projections, there shouldn’t be any death immunity. Death would be real!

“This secret realm was generated after we chose our factions. If the other side doesn’t have participants, then why is there a death immunity mechanism?”

This was a common phenomenon. In ascension realms involving beastmaster conflicts, there was often a prompt stating that participant deaths would not result in true death and they would return after 30 days.

After dying, their bodies would be recovered by Limitless City, treated, and sealed. Their ID cards would remain active.

But if the task didn’t involve PvP, but was instead PvE that involved battles against secret realm beastmasters, ferocious beasts, or completing specific missions—like Lu Ran’s previous gourmet assessment—then death would be real.

In such cases, their ID cards would be revoked. This made the current mission’s death immunity mechanism a notable anomaly.

“Perhaps it was determined to be a competitive secret realm before factions were chosen. Limitless City probably didn’t anticipate everyone picking the Empire Faction and didn’t have time to adjust,” someone speculated.

This pointless discussion made the knights twitch with annoyance.

“Can we stop talking about failure? Whether or not the other side has participants, this mission is one we must win. Failure is not an option!” said the Knight of Glory, shooting them a sharp look.

For the three knights, losing a month might not matter much. But for the Princess of Light, who was preparing to enter the Evolution Secret Realm, failure would be devastating. It would be a blow worse than death.

“We won’t lose,” Princess of Light declared.

Yet, as soon as she spoke, a thunderous roar came from above.

Boom, boom, boom!

Everyone instinctively looked up. What they saw stunned them. It was dozens of massive, meteor-like stones hurtling down from the sky with terrifying speed, accompanied by deafening sonic booms.

The imperial beastmasters stared in disbelief. At the center of the group, Captain Kai En shouted at the top of his lungs, “Enemy attack! Enemy attack!”

These stones, of course, were thrown by Lu Ran. Earlier, he had collected a large number of boulders from Ming An City, stored them in his storage, and had been waiting for this exact moment to unleash them.

Using the momentum of their high-altitude descent, these meteors weren’t likely to kill elites outright. But for ordinary beastmasters, they were similar to an ultimate Rock-attribute skill. Even if intercepted, they would still drain the enemy’s resources.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The boulders plummeted at high speed, causing the faces of those below to pale. In the next instant, a barrage of projection-based skills was unleashed to intercept them.

Among these were beams of light which were the contributions of the Knights of Light, who had joined the fray to help the beastmaster corps fend off the assault.

However, this meteor-like bombardment was merely the first wave, or rather a diversion.

While the enemy’s attention was focused on the falling stones, nine Bone Swords suddenly broke through the air with a sharp “whoosh.”

The flight paths of these swords were chaotic and erratic, showing no discernible pattern. But their sheer speed and power made them lethal. One by one, the swords pierced through familiars, their attacks so sharp and violent that blood rained down from the sky.

This sudden and horrifying turn of events plunged the Empire Faction into chaos.

“Who’s there? Show yourself!”

The mysterious Bone Swords claimed the lives of several familiars before falling to the ground, seemingly inert. Those around stared at them warily, recognizing them now as sharp, bone-like projectiles.

Seeing the swords stationary on the ground, the soldiers began scanning for their attacker.

“One, two, three, four... seven, eight, nine...”

A raspy voice suddenly echoed from one side, prompting everyone to look in its direction. They quickly spotted a mysterious figure in a black robe, dressed as a necromancer and accompanied by a Bone Hound, slowly approaching step by step.

The figure muttered low phrases under his breath, words that left many of the imperial soldiers confused.

“Judging by your attire, there are nine compatriots. Hm? Are you the Knights of Light?”

The necromancer drew closer, his words eliciting no strong reaction from the imperial beastmasters. However, the Princess of Light and her group turned pale.

They stared at the black-robed figure in shock. In an instant, Lu Ran’s meaning became crystal clear to them.

Compatriots... This man was also a Blue Planet participant! God! Someone had truly chosen the Undead Faction!?

“Grass! It’s that grass!” The Knight of Sunlight exclaimed as he suddenly noticed the swordgrass coiled around the Bone Hound’s tail. Seeing the peculiar grass, his face went pale.

“That’s the same grass that injured me before!”

His words sent another ripple of shock through the group. The person who had injured the Knight of Sunlight back then was truly a participant!?

“It can’t be!!!”