Hearing Hapless Frog’s words, Tyrannical couldn’t help but feel envious. How many Thieves were there in Conviction? Perhaps only the system itself could give you the exact figure. One thing was for sure, though. Almost all of them were imitating Nie Yan. However, up until now, no one had yet come close his speed, the same inhuman speed which allowed him to transcend everything and easily escape any enemy encirclement. There was a phrase used to describe the Mad Rogue, “Only copied, never surpassed.”

Even Sun, King of the World, and the other Shadow Dancers couldn’t imitate Nie Yan’s speed, but Hapless Frog succeeded just now. He managed to comprehend some of the mysteries behind it and was one foot through the door. The path ahead of him was bright. As long as he slowly familiarized himself with this feeling, he would truly become the second coming of the Mad Rogue. Before long, everyone would remember his name.

After razing the Mona Stronghold, the Blood Reaver Corps vanished like a puff of smoke. The Thieves from Asskickers United couldn’t find any trace of them.

Guo Huai reported the fall of the Mona Stronghold to Nie Yan.

「What are our casualties?」Nie Yan asked.

「We lost Black Heaven and Edgeless. That bastard Ashen One betrayed us.」Guo Huai explained roughly what happened during the battle.「Another traitor in the guild, and I didn’t suspect a thing. It’s my fault for being negligent.」

「Traitors are inevitable. After all, our guild is so big. Don’t forget, we also have quite a few spies hidden in Angel Corps and the Century Financial Group,」Nie Yan said. However, he still felt a bit of heartache because Ashen One was someone he personally knew, one of the longest standing members of the guild. If it weren’t for today’s matter, he would’ve never suspected that Ashen One had already betrayed them.

「Should I do a sweep through the guild?」

「No, absolutely not. That’ll only make our guild members feel even more disillusioned. I’ll say a few words in the guild chat.」

「Alright.」

Nie Yan pulled open the guild chat and discovered the mood here was pretty low. The fall of the Mona Stronghold was a heavy blow to morale, especially since a traitor had appeared in their midst. Even a veteran member like Ashen One had betrayed them. They felt a heavy ache in their hearts. How could they trust those around them?

「Liven up, guys. We only lost a small stronghold. We can take it back whenever,」Nie Yan said.

「Boss, you’re here!」

「Boss!」

...

Everyone in the guild chatted excitedly greeted Nie Yan, a warm feeling in their hearts. Though he rarely showed himself in here, they knew that whether he was out levelling, running a dungeon, or doing something else altogether, he always kept one eye on the guild chat. He was no stranger.

「Ashen One, t-that guy...」

「Ashen One is only one person. Given how large we’ve grown, it was inevitable. But that doesn’t change anything. All of us have gone through so many trials and tribulations together before finally arriving at this stage together. Think about the brothers beside you and the many battles you’ve fought together. You trusted them then, so trust them now too. Even if there are others like Ashen One in the guild, who won’t hesitate to stab me in the back, up until they do, I’ll still give them my unconditional trust. So, don’t feel down. Instead, we should be happy that a person has revealed their true colours. With Ashen One gone, we’re among only true brothers again,」Nie Yan said.

「Ashen One, that bastard! I’ll definitely kill him back to Level 0!」A Thief gritted his teeth, clenching hard onto his dagger.

「Boss, leave everything to us. In half a month, as long as he dares to step foot out of the city, we’ll hunt him down back to Level 0!」

Nie Yan rubbed his chin. He could no longer act so kind as before, or else others like Ashen One would take advantage of it. Steeling his heart, he nodded.「Alright, I’ll leave it to you guys. 10 Thieves should be enough.」

「Understood!」the Thief said.「Choco Cow, Twelve, let’s do this. 」

10 Thieves set out.

After this brief disturbance, the players of Asskickers United all got back to what they were doing before.

Ashen One’s betrayal was a painful blow, but at the end of the day, it was just a small matter and couldn’t affect Asskickers United as a whole. After all, traitors appearing was quite common. In fact, the issue was far more prevalent in other guilds. The fact that Asskickers United only had a few so far could be considered a miracle.

Nie Yan arranged a few matters in the guild, mobilizing all of Asskickers United’s 100+ flying mounts. If the Blood Reaver Corps launched an assault on another stronghold, this time they would be prepared to meet them in the air.

The Blood Reaver Corps completely disappeared after taking down the Mona Stronghold. Nie Yan felt a sense of unease. He couldn’t help but worry they were plotting something bigger.

Nie Yan turned his attention back to the battle with Drakuru. Looking at this demon, his health had only dropped by 10% after this long.

𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

It appeared this battle was going to take quite a few days. Nie Yan looked at the server clock. It was about time to log off. They could only retire for the day.

“The server is shutting down. See you tomorrow, everyone.”

“Bye Boss.”

...

Everyone bid farewell to each other, exiting the game right before the servers shut off. Nie Yan stepped out of his game capsule.

Xie Yao made breakfast. After eating, the two prepared to head for school.

Over these past couple of months, Wang Duo and the others had grown much stronger after going through Bayonet’s high-intensity training. Nie Yan passed down his techniques to them as well. They managed to comprehend many things. Although even up until now none of them had succeeded in becoming a Master, they’d still learned many things. According to the original plan, Wang Duo and the others were supposed to continue training here for a while longer. However, Mo Yuntian sent word that something had come up and they had to return quickly.

「Bayonet, should we send them off at the train station?」Nie Yan asked through the phone.

「Forget it. I’ll pass. Just looking at them makes me annoyed,」Bayonet coldly said.

Since Bayonet didn’t want to come, there was nothing Nie Yan could do.

「Alright, I’ll accompany them to the train station,」Nie Yan said. Bayonet always had a cold look on his face. It was hard to tell what the was thinking.

「Up to you,」Bayonet replied indifferently.

After hanging up the call, Nie Yan turned to Xie Yao. “Let’s go and send Wang Duo and them off.”

“Am I okay going out in this?” Xie Yao asked. She was wearing a simple yet elegant white dress. She appeared quite graceful and refined.

Nie Yan nodded with a smile. “You look great as always. Come on, let’s head out.”