Chapter 301 - Fighting like a Caged Beast

Just as a Thief darted toward Tyrannical, Nie Yan emerged beside him and slashed down with Zennarde’s Sword.

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The Thief collapsed dead on the ground. Nie Yan could even deal fatal damage to a Fighter, to say nothing of a weak, leather-armoured Thief!

The remaining Thieves all pounced toward Nie Yan.

They’re fast!

Nie Yan couldn’t help but remark.

At this moment, Tyrannical also cancelled the activation of his Return Scroll.

“Escape, you idiot! Why the hell did you stop your Return Scroll!?” Nie Yan cursed with a frown. The enemy had obviously come prepared. He could cover Tyrannical’s escape, then teleport away himself with an Unknown Transfer Scroll.

“Abandon the boss and escape myself? If word got out, how could I face my brothers?” Tyrannical laughed. He raised his dagger and dashed toward the enemy.

Back in Calore, the Agmota Muddy Swamplands dungeon on Specialist difficulty almost exclusively belonged to Asskickers United. Since Unknown Transfer Scrolls dropped at a fairly low rate and Asskickers United generally kept such information under wraps, a guild member like Tyrannical wouldn’t be privy to the knowledge that Nie Yan was in possession of an Unknown Transfer Scroll. Nor would Nie Yan casually disclose such a thing.

So naturally, when Tyrannical saw Nie Yan besieged by a squadron of Thieves, he cancelled the activation of his Return Scroll.

“Boss, you leave first. I’ll cover you,” Tyrannical declared. Nie Yan was the face of Asskickers United. His death would be a heavy blow to the guild’s prestige. On the other hand, Tyrannical was a nobody, a guild member who ranked somewhere in the middle of the pack, a random statistic in a guild war or siege. No one would bat an eyelid if he died.

But even nobodies still had their pride and a set of principles they followed!

Although their fame would never be as eclipsing as Nie Yan’s, they weren’t petty and low!

This was for honour!

Tyrannical worshiped Nie Yan, but his loyalty was still to Asskickers United because that was his family!

Suddenly, Nie Yan felt an extreme discomfort as if something was clutching at his heart. He gazed into the distance and saw a black-robed Shadow Priest standing atop a hill with a sinister smile on his face.

It wasn’t easy for him to land this spell on Nie Yan. He had the seven Thieves distract Nie Yan and Tyrannical while he hid in a corner chanting. After six seconds, he finally succeeded in casting the spell!

Dark Magic—Shackles of Strife!

Out of all spells, this one was definitely useful for ensnaring someone. When Shackles of Strife was activated, both the caster and target would be unable to teleport away until either one of them died.

Nie Yan could still move. However, he couldn’t use items like the Unknown Transfer Scroll or Return Scroll.

After the Shadow Priest finished casting Shackles of Strife, a large horde of Bloodlust Blades players emerged from the surrounding hilltops, completely entrapping Nie Yan.

Nie Yan never thought someone in Bloodlust Blades would have Shackles of Strife. This was a gross error in judgement!

The skills in Conviction were always full of surprises! Just when he thought everything was settled, the tables had been flipped yet again!

Tyrannical’s life was in constant danger as he fought off the six Thieves. Nie Yan appeared behind one of the Thieves and struck them down with a slash from Zennarde’s Sword.

When the remaining five Thieves saw Nie Yan approaching them, they quickly retreated in a panic.

What terrifying damage!

Nie Yan turned to Tyrannical with a calm gaze. “It seems this is the end of the line for me. Here, take this Unknown Transfer Scroll and get out of here.”

“Leave? Boss, if I abandon you here to save my own skin, all the brothers in our guild will look down on me!” Tyrannical directly refused. A person only lived one life. It was better to live it with honour!

After thinking for a brief moment, Nie Yan didn’t argue any further. He gazed at the Bloodlust Blades players who had completely sealed the area off. It appeared they planned to slowly whittle him down until he died.

“Boss, give me some face. Let me die before you. At least that way I can brag to our brothers that I went out protecting you from these bastards,” Tyrannical said.

“Alright, I’ll give you this bit of face.” Nie Yan turned to face the thousands of Bloodlust Blades players, then revealed a proud smile. “I started playing the game a week after its launch. From starting out with nothing to becoming the guild leader of Asskickers United, I’ve never died once to another player. For the sake of killing me alone, Bloodlust Blades has mobilized several thousand players. Even if I die here, it should be fine, right?”

“Yes, there’s nothing disgraceful about it, at all!” Tyrannical nodded vigorously as his nose turned sour.

Nie Yan was the hero of this generation. In the entire game, who could kill him 1v1? Even if he died here today, it wouldn’t be a blemish on his reputation!

“Even if I die here, I’m still the guild leader of Asskickers United. I definitely won’t dishonour the guild’s name! I’ll take out as many of them as I can with me!” Nie Yan declared. Since things had reached this point, it wouldn’t be in his style to just sit back and resign himself to fate!

“I, Tyrannical of the Asskickers United’s Hundred Thieves, also won’t let down the boss or the guild!” Tyrannical bravely declared. Even if he died, he had no regrets following his leader, Nie Yan.

The players from Bloodlust Blades gradually approached, sealing off the surrounding area. Players of every class formed a human barricade with the Fighters holding heavy shields at the very front, while the Mages and Priests were at the back.

Despite being surrounded by several thousand players and locked down by Shackles of Strife, they were still worried Nie Yan might escape.

To go to such lengths for a single Thief, it was definitely a first.

Nie Yan swept his gaze over the crowd of Bloodlust Blades players, then said in a clear voice, “You bunch of dogs, I’m right here where you want me. Any of you who aren’t convinced, come up and have a taste of my sword!”

Even though Dragon King Zennarde was a Tyrant, very few people were actually aware of his backstory. His sudden rise from obscurity only started with 10 people. After conquering several dozen tribes neighbouring his territory relying on nothing but himself, he embarked on his journey for world domination. One time he was ambushed in the Karu Plains, one against 100,000, and he fought for 10 days and 10 nights.

While wielding Zennarde’s Sword, a feeling of one man against the world also surfaced in Nie Yan’s heart.

His blade would cut down anyone who dared to approach him!

Nie Yan glanced at his skill bar. Adjudicator of God, God’s Grace, and a few other of his trump cards were still there. The rest had all been used. He didn’t have many skills left that could be used, so what did it matter if he used a couple more?

As for unequipping his equipment and going forward to commit suicide, Nie Yan had no such plan. Perhaps he might do this if he were a solo player. But as the guild leader of Asskickers United, he absolutely wouldn’t do anything of the sort!

Despite being trapped, Nie Yan’s domineering attitude still caused the players from Bloodlust Blades to tremble. Although Nie Yan was their enemy, this didn’t influence the respect they had for him.

Among the crowd, Maple Blazeheart gazed at Nie Yan with a hint of admiration. No wonder the players of Asskickers United held him in such high esteem! As things stood, even if the Mad Rogue died here today, it would be a hero’s death.

「

Everyone, hold!

」Maple Blazeheart ordered through voice chat. Everybody halted and looked toward Maple Blazeheart, awaiting his command.

Maple Blazeheart’s word undoubtedly carried a great influence in Bloodlust Blades. Even Bloodlust Mad Blade had to show him respect.

Nie Yan looked at Maple Blazeheart in the crowd. He was surprised. Why did these players suddenly stop? But realization quickly daunted on him.

So it was because of him!

As Maple Blazeheart gazed at Nie Yan, who didn’t show the slightest bit of fear despite being surrounded on all sides, a feeling of respect surfaced in his heart.

「

To show respect to the guild leader of Asskickers United, Mad Rogue Nirvana Flame, I want only Squad 25 to go forward! Everyone else, remain on standby!

」Maple Blazeheart ordered through voice chat. A group of players walked forward from the crowd. They numbered around 60 or 70. All of them were ordinary players, their levels only being around Level 40.

Maple Blazeheart counted the number of people in this group. There were 62 players in total!

「

Engage!

」

The 62 players rushed toward Tyrannical and Nie Yan. A group of 30 or so Fighters led the charge.

Nie Yan narrowed his eyes. He never expected this turn of events. His impression of Maple Blazeheart improved greatly. This person wasn’t the type who regularly schemed and backstabbed others.

The way a person conducted themselves was important.

“Boss, I’ll go up first!” Tyrannical entered stealth and dashed toward the group of players.

Truthfully, whether he was stealthed or not didn’t make the slightest bit of difference.

Balls of light shot up into the air, illuminating the area below. Nothing could be hidden from this radiance!

Nie Yan activated God’s Grace as a barrier of light enveloped him. He entered stealth and dashed toward a Mage at lightning speed.

The Fighters wanted to intercept Nie Yan. But he was too fast. He easily slipped through the gaps between them and pounced toward the Mages in the backline.

With a slash of his sword, the first Mage was instantly cut down.

The terrifying damage caused the surrounding players to reel back in terror.

A shower of spells rained down on Nie Yan, exploding on impact.

Nie Yan slashed down yet again. The blazing attack of Zennarde’s Sword struck another Mage, killing them instantly!

Under the intense bombardment of spells, Nie Yan’s Radiant Barrier shattered into shards of light.

At this moment, Nie Yan activated Adjudicator of God and drank an Intermediate Health Potion. He charged through the hail of spells and pounced on the Priests further in the back, throwing the group into complete chaos.

「

Boss, it seems I’ll be leaving first.

」After cutting down a Mage, Tyrannical was feared by a Thief. He had lost complete control of his body. Six Fighters moved in to surround him.「Klang! Klang! Klang」He was pummeled to death with one Shield Bash after another.

With Tyrannical dead, Nie Yan made his last stand and fought like a caged beast!