Chapter 456: What A Shame, But You're One Step Too Late

The earth, stripped of its grass, turned barren—its soil exposed in shades of blackish gray.

The moment the grass disappeared, Lin Moyu saw monsters crawling across the land: octopi, crabs, and strange, four-limbed fish.

In seconds, the creatures shifted colors, blending seamlessly into the terrain once more.

His eyes locked onto a spot just five meters ahead.

There, a colossal crab-like monster—over ten meters tall with massive pincers—loomed, emanating raw power.

As the monsters camouflaged themselves, a flicker of their aura leaked out.

Lin Moyu sensed their strength: each one on par with an ordinary boss—perhaps even stronger.

Their level? Likely in the high 70s, maybe even 80.

“These monsters don't initiate attacks...”

In any other place, monsters at this range would have already struck.

But thinking back, even the Giant Leaf Dwarf Trees hadn't attacked first—until Mu Xianxian stepped on one of the vines.

Strange creatures indeed.

Rising into the air, Lin Moyu flew off in a certain direction.

Behind him, the grass blades had returned, restoring the land to its original form.

What looked like soft, harmless grass on the ground became deadly miniature swords once airborne.

After some time in flight, Lin Moyu finally spotted two sides locked in combat.

"Human-class users."

A party of six was engaged in battle with a monster.

The creature resembled the octopus-like beasts Lin Moyu had encountered earlier.

He landed some distance away, taking cover behind a slope, quietly observing the fight.

The monster’s eight tentacles lashed wildly through the air but were effectively blocked by the coordinated efforts of the human class users.

The party consisted of a Knight, a Healer, a support crowd controller, two Mages, and an Archer.

Each was over level 70—top-level class users—but none had surpassed level 80. If they had, their auras would have shifted, something Lin Moyu now understood clearly.

For Knights, Healers, and other classes, reaching level 70 and undergoing their third class awakening granted them powerful new skills.

Support classes, however, experienced a more dramatic transformation.

Before level 70, the role of supports was limited—after casting buffs, they often had little to do in battle.

But after the threshold, they awakened numerous crowd control skills, granting them formidable battlefield control ability.

In large-scale fights, they managed enemy groups. Against bosses, they disrupted and interrupted their skills.

In any level 70-plus party, a support was indispensable.

Lin Moyu watched as the support raised a stave, releasing a burst of light that struck the octopus monster—freezing it in place for a brief moment.

The skill the octopus monster had been preparing was interrupted.

Though the pause lasted less than two seconds, it was enough. The brief window gave the Knight a chance to recover and allowed the Healer to cast two more healing spells.

After all, post–level 70 combat was nothing like what came before—two seconds could change everything.

Lin Moyu didn’t approach immediately. This party wasn’t from the Shenxia Empire.

Judging by their attire, he recognized them as class users from the Eagle Kingdom.

While there was no open conflict between the two nations, relations had been tense for years.

Encounters in the wild were rarely friendly—clashes were common, sometimes even resulting in fatalities.

Because of this, Lin Moyu kept his distance and continued observing quietly.

The octopus monster’s combat strength was roughly what he had anticipated—likely an ordinary boss just below level 80.

The six-person party from the Eagle Kingdom was well-coordinated, especially the support, who stood out with precise, well-timed interruptions.

Each time the boss attempted a skill, the support neutralized it, easing the pressure on the Knight and creating space for the backline Mages and Archer to strike.

But something caught Lin Moyu’s attention—the Mages were holding back.

They avoided using large-scale spells.

He immediately understood why.

This grassland had a damage reflection mechanism.

Using large-scale spells would inevitably hit the terrain itself, triggering a devastating counterattack.

He guessed that the earlier swarm of flying grass blades had been triggered when a Mage used a large-scale spell.

Mages were the strongest damage dealers, but if they couldn’t fight at full strength, it would inevitably lower the party’s overall efficiency.

After about thirty minutes of combat, the party finally brought down the octopus boss.

The Knight stepped forward, using his sword to dissect the creature. From within, he retrieved a massive, translucent water sphere—larger than a human head.

He then used several bottles to collect the water contained within.

Lin Moyu didn’t understand why they were collecting this water.

Just then, a sharp whistling sound pierced the air.

Dark specks appeared on the horizon, rapidly growing larger.

A massive group—over a hundred strong—was approaching from the sky.

They wore matching uniforms, clearly members of the same guild—class users from the Eagle Kingdom.

Leading the formation was a Knight radiating immense pressure. Judging by his aura, Lin Moyu estimated him to be above level 85—a peak-level class user.

His level was the highest among the group.

Clad in magnificent gear, the Knight glanced at the slain octopus and asked, “Have you collected the Purified Water?”

Several Knights answered, “Yes.”

One by one, they produced bottles filled with the water they had gathered.

Only then did Lin Moyu realize: the water inside the octopus boss was called Purified Water.

And from their conversation, it was clear this group hadn’t slain just one octopus.

They had split into teams and hunted several bosses, gathering limited quantities of Purified Water from each—only five or six bottles per kill.

Now, they had over a hundred bottles—enough for everyone to receive at least one, with extras to spare.

The leading Knight nodded, “Good. Distribute one bottle to each member. With this, the threat of the Venomous Flood Dragon can be greatly reduced. This time, the Flying Eagle Guild will surely slay it—and wash away the previous humiliation.”

Lin Moyu was momentarily surprised.

So they were planning to slay the Venomous Flood Dragon?

It seemed the Purified Water had detoxifying properties.

“I wonder how they’ll react when they find out the Venomous Flood Dragon is already dead.” Lin Moyu thought to himself, feeling amused, “What a shame, but you're one step too late.”

Despite their meticulous preparation, they'd likely walk away empty-handed.

After giving a few more words of encouragement, the leading Knight raised his hand and shouted, “Move out! To the Venomous Serpent Land!”

The entire group took off like a gust of wind, racing toward the Venomous Serpent Land.

Standing behind the small slope, Lin Moyu watched them disappear into the horizon.

He was certain they'd noticed him.

He hadn’t hidden his presence, and with that leading Knight’s level, he had surely sensed him.

But the other party hadn’t reacted—clearly, he didn’t see him as a threat.

Lin Moyu turned his gaze in the direction they had come from.

“That way probably leads out of here. The terrain is nothing like the Lightning Burial Canyon. Once I’m out, I’ll find someone and ask for directions.”

Decision made, he took off swiftly.

Compared to the Venomous Serpent Land, this lush grassland was relatively safe.

The monsters didn’t attack unless provoked, and there were no world rank boss lurking nearby.

As long as you didn’t disturb the grass itself, danger could be avoided.

However, Lin Moyu remained curious.

Why was there ice beneath the grass?

How had it formed?

After everything he’d been through, Lin Moyu had developed his own perspective on many things, and had a number of speculations.

One idea, in particular, lingered in his mind.

Could the resting place of the Water God lie beneath that ice layer?

Unfortunately, he currently lacked the power to break through the ice.

But one day, when the opportunity arose, he would return—and uncover the truth.

About an hour later, after covering more than a thousand kilometers, Lin Moyu encountered another party of class users.

A man from the party flew over to greet him, “You’re a Shenxian?”

Lin Moyu nodded. “Yes. Are you from the Jialan Guild?”

He recognized the emblem on the clothing.

Mu Xianxian wore the same emblem—he had seen it often enough to remember.

The man was large—over two meters tall, with a burly frame and a voice that matched his rugged appearance.

“That’s right. Jialan Lieyang, level 82 Sacred Word Knight.”

Jialan Lieyang?

The name immediately rang a bell.

Not only was he part of the Jialan Guild—he was almost certainly related to Jialan Yeyu.

Just then, Jialan Lieyang’s expression shifted to one of surprise, “Young brother… how are you only level 52?”