After the sighting of the Darkwing Dragon in Sinful Gorge spread, many players flocked to the map. They varied in strength, but they all shared a common goal—Nirvana Flame!

Most of these players were Thieves. Some came to ambush Nie Yan. Others only wanted to know what he was up to.

Nie Yan was completely ignorant of the commotion outside. He calmly walked over to War God Kelo.

War God Kelo woke up as he sensed someone approaching. Seeing it was Nie Yan, his eyes flickered with a listless light, but they were still as sharp as ever.

“Youngster, you’re back.” War God Kelo chuckled. “I can sense it. You’ve removed all the seals on Zennarde’s Sword.”

“Correct, sir Kelo. I’m here to free you of your millenium long imprisonment,” Nie Yan said. With a flick of his wrist, he equipped Zennarde’s Sword. Deep azure flames blazed to life with an unworldly heat, eclipsing the glow of the surrounding lava.

“What a pure flame!” War God Kelo gasped in admiration.

“Isn’t it the evil sword of Dragon King Zennarde?” Nie Yan asked.

“A weapon is blameless. It’s a tool, no more. In the hands of a saint, this divine sword will bring salvation to the world. In the hands of a tyrant, the fiendish blade will reap the lives of the innocent,” War God Kelo replied.

Nie Yan could tell War God Kelo was wise. After being bound here for so long, he was like a sheathed divine weapon. Even if it gathered rust over the years, as soon as its blade came out, it would cut with unrivalled sharpness.

Nie Yan approached War God Kelo and slashed down at the chains binding him.

KLANK! KLANK! KLANK! The chains fell on the ground.

“ARRGH!” War God Kelo roared, his muscles bulging with unrivalled power as he sent the remaining chains flying out. His body dropped down from the crucifix. Freedom at last! Eyes shining with excitement, he raised his head to the sky and laughed heartily.

The lava chamber shook violently as if it were about to come caving in.

War God Kelo’s voice brimmed with explosive strength. However, Nie Yan, who was standing right next to him, wasn’t hurt one bit. It was clear that Kelo had restrained his voice; else Nie Yan would be bleeding from his internal organs right now.

Several hundred Thieves had followed Nie Yan into Zennarde’s Cenotaph. As they searched for him, they felt the ground beneath them shaking. Their eyes widened in alarm. What was going on? Suddenly, a powerful sound wave swept over them and sent them flying, causing them to cough out blood. It felt as if they had been struck in the chest with a hammer. Damage values of over 6,000 floated up above their heads. The weaker ones even found themselves at the graveyard!

Whose voice was that? Too frightening!

War God Kelo finally settled down.

“Please forgive me. I’ve been imprisoned here for far, far too long,” War God Kelo said apologetically.

“Don’t worry. Anyone would behave the same in your shoes.” Nie Yan nodded. He read the complicated emotions on Kelo’s face with some surprise. This was the most expressive NPC he had ever encountered. Most NPCs were fairly rigid and stiff. However, Kelo seemed almost human. It appeared that NPCs were the same as monsters in this regard; the higher level and more powerful they were, the closer they came to being truly alive

Now how can I convince him to help me defeat Angud...? Nie Yan wondered. Given he had just freed War God Kelo from a millennium of imprisonment, it was only natural that he received some kind of reward. He felt that putting forward such a request wasn’t unreasonable.

War God Kelo took out two stones. “These are Kelo Runestones. As thanks for rescuing me, you can call for my help twice. You can instantly summon me by crushing these runestones. However, as a god, I won’t participate in the conflict of men. Nor will I needlessly take lives, unless yours is in direct danger. Secondly, I won’t help you complete any quests. A true adventurer must brave risks and tackle any challenges head-on. There are no easy shortcuts.”

“I understand, and thank you.” Nie Yan accepted the two runestones and stored them away in his bag. With them, he could take down Angud! He couldn’t help but become excited.

As Nie Yan wondered how he could create an opportunity for War God Kelo to take action, a notification popped up.

Nie Yan was dumbstruck. A new race and class—barbarian Raider?

In the rich history of Conviction, barbarians were known for their strength. Many powerful heroes came from their tribe. In terms of racial bonuses, every barbarian was a natural born warrior. The release of this new race and class would bring about huge changes, which all players would welcome.

Nie Yan immediately searched up information related to barbarian Raiders online. All Righteous Faction Warriors could become barbarian Raiders. All they had to do was head to the barbarian tribe and complete a quest given by the tribe elders. However, there was one big caveat, if they accepted the class swap, they would be returned to Level 0 and have to restart from scratch. This was simply too heavy of a price for most players. It was a tough decision to make. The might of barbarian Raiders was unquestioned. With every level up, they’d receive a little more attack power, health, and defense than other similar classes. This would only become more apparent later on.

News of the release of the barbarian race and Raider class shook the hearts of the entire Righteous Faction. Many Warriors were brimming with excitement. Be it the the War God Baptism quest or the Raider class, both were extremely alluring to them. Before long, numerous Warriors flocked to the Abernathy Great Grasslands where the barbarian tribe resided.

Nie Yan didn’t expect rescuing War God Kelo would lead to the release of an entire new race and class. Whether this development was good or bad remained to be seen.