Dusk descended, painting the forest with the color of blood.
After a grueling journey, Old Zhao and his group finally reached the mountaintop outpost. They had lost six comrades along the way.
Before reaching the summit, everyone was fervently praying that the outpost would be small. Otherwise, with so few of them, they would stand no chance!
The Wild Boarmen were too ferocious!
They had been repeatedly ambushed by several elite Wild Boarmen teams.
The red Wild Boars were tough-skinned and almost impervious to attack.
The black Wild Boars could unleash overwhelming damage without warning, killing in an instant.
The green Wild Boars were agile fatties, with very high movement speed, and could shoot arrows.
The combat power of the Wild Boarmen was truly formidable!
The operation was rushed, and they were severely undermanned!
If the mountaintop outpost was too large, they would likely be overwhelmed by a sense of helplessness. It was already dusk, and there was no time to seek reinforcements from the camp. By the time help arrived, the Wild Boar Monster Ridge would have already descended into darkness.
The Wild Boar Monster Ridge was perilous even during the day.
Nighttime was too terrifying to even contemplate.
As they approached the summit, they found themselves in an awkward predicament. If they could capture the mountaintop outpost, that would be great. But if they failed, they would be caught in a dilemma with no way forward or back.
Everyone gazed towards the mountaintop outpost with a prayerful attitude, and when they saw its scale, their expressions turned blank, followed by despair.
Young Master Cong was the first to curse: "Damn it, is this an outpost? Itâs clearly a camp!"
"How is this outpost so big!"
"From the foot of the mountain, it looked much smaller!"
"Itâs over, itâs completely over now!"
"We have less than fifty men left. How can we take a camp guarded by a large group of Wild Boarmen?"
Despair filled everyoneâs hearts.
Before the battle even started, morale had plummeted to the bottom.
"We canât rely on brute strength, and we must not make unnecessary sacrifices," Xu Tianhua said, frowning. "Judging by the size of this outpost base, even if we can take it down, weâll likely suffer high casualties, which just isnât worth it!"
"Boss Xu is right!"
"Itâs tough for us to level up!"
"Iâm not afraid to die, but dying once means too much loss!"
Many in the crowd echoed these sentiments. Those present were generally 2nd or 3rd level elites. They were called elites because they were one step ahead of others.
But that lead was fragile.
If they died even once, their advantage would vanish.
No one wanted to take that risk, as the risk outweighed the reward.
If the elite vanguard of the three camps were annihilated here.
How could the three camps compete with the others? They would likely lose a substantial edge!
Even the strong-willed Chen Yu showed hesitation. She was tough but not foolish. No one wants to fight a battle that leads to mutual destruction or even total annihilation.
But having come this far.
Wouldnât it be a shame to give up?
Once again, everyoneâs eyes turned to Zhao Ming.
Zhao Ming did not immediately respond but looked around, searching for something.
Zhang Xiaoqiang approached and whispered, "No sign of Boss Hang nearby."
Old Zhao furrowed his thick brows slightly.
"Get in touch with him."
"Let me do it!" Jiang Nan volunteered to contact Hang Yu. After a few seconds, she walked over to Zhao Ming with a peculiar expression and said, "The Great God wants us to enter the camp directly."
Enter the camp directly?
No way! Isnât that suicidal!
Zhao Ming thought for a couple of seconds and said to Chen Yu and Xu Tianhua, "I think since weâve come this far, we should at least scout the area, even if we donât attack, to prepare for future operations."
Chen Yu and Xu Tianhua exchanged glances.
Both agreed that Zhao Ming made some sense.
They immediately sent two invisible team members ahead for reconnaissance.
The team cautiously approached the closed main gate of the camp.
How many Wild Boarmen would be inside?
Once the gate opened.
Would they be ambushed?
Everyone was extremely anxious.
Just as the tense atmosphere was about to solidify,
Suddenly, the gate opened on its own, and everyoneâs nerves tightened. The mages prepared their skills, the warriors gripped their weapons tightly, all ready to face a formidable foe.
Just when the tension reached its peak,
A mischievous head peeked out through the gap in the door.
It was a dog head, with its tongue out, head tilted, eyes goofy, a purebred Husky!
Everyone was dumbfounded at the sight.
Is this a joke? Whatâs going on!
They had gone through an arduous journey to reach the summit.
They had steeled themselves for a life-or-death battle.
Yet, the first creature to emerge from the mountaintop outpost was a Husky!
The feeling was akin to this ludicrous scenario:
Youâve trained for twenty years, becoming the mightiest warrior, receiving the Treasure Sword from the king, wearing the finest armor in the land, wielding the sturdiest shield, and assembling seven or eight Legendary Powerhouses. Youâve slain monsters all the way to the Demon Kingâs castle, ready to challenge the legendary Demon King.
Only to find out... the legendary Demon King is a Patrick Star.
"Hey, hello, how are you? You are so slow!" The Husky came out, nudged the door open with its head, and shook its fur confidently, "Boss and I almost fell asleep waiting."
"Er Gou!"
Jiang Nan and Young Master Cong exclaimed simultaneously.
Everyone turned their eyes to the two of them.
Jiang Nan explained, "Donât be nervous, everyone. Er Gou is a friendly dog; heâs Mr. Hangâs Husky Spirit Beast."
Young Master Cong inwardly scoffed: Friendly? My foot!
"Er Gou, why are you here, and where is Mr. Hang?" Jiang Nan shouted at the dog at the gate, "Whatâs the situation in this camp? Are there still any monsters inside?"
"Oh, youâre late. All the monsters have been wiped out by Boss and me. Boss is inside, just come on in!"
What?
The monsters have been eliminated!
All wiped out!
The crowd was bewildered.
The Husky sauntered back into the outpost camp, leaving everyone momentarily speechless. After a brief hesitation, they had no choice but to follow.
The camp was very clean.
There was no sign of a major battle.
However, the air carried a lingering burnt scent.
The Wild Boarmenâs bodies had already turned into spiritual particles and evaporated; the watchtowers and buildings had been replaced. A Spirit Realm stele stood in the center, marking it as an open space similar to a camp.
Was there really no Wild Boarmen at the mountaintop outpost?
Everyone knew that was impossible.
Could it be, as the talking Husky said, that all the Wild Boarmen had been wiped out? Almost all eyes were drawn to a figure sitting in front of the Spirit Realm stele.
He looked young.
He wore neatly crafted green armor but sported a deliberately tattered cloak. He wasnât particularly tall, yet sitting alone in the camp watching the twilight gave off a mysterious aura.
No one could see his face.
Because the young man wore a mask.
It only added to his mysteriousness.
He sat silently, spreading out a small ground display with over thirty items, more than half of which emanated a white glow, captivating anyoneâs gaze.
Equipment!
So much equipment!
Since entering the Spirit Realm, this group had never seen so many valuable items displayed together!
Could it be this guy single-handedly wiped out the entire campâs Wild Boarmen?
How could anyone believe that!
This is outrageous!
Unless this guy had hacked the game!
Yet this pile of equipment unwittingly confirmed it.
Because the attributes of the displayed gear were visible to everyone, and quite a few were level five equipment... This was simply a godlike figure.
(PS: Seven Chapters are being released on launch day, with barely two Chapters left in the draft. How far I can push myself next depends on everyoneâs support! Asking for monthly votes, results to be reported at midnight on the second!)