Chapter 264: The War Between Studios

At the entrance of the front courtyard of the Sanjiang Branch Helm, Fei Zai stood with more than a dozen Yulong Gang disciples, waiting solemnly.

Chen Ergou stood nearby.

When Wangchuan walked out from inside, he happened to see the scene.

“Helm Leader!”

“Fei Zai greets the Helm Leader!”

“Your subordinates greet the Helm Leader!”

Fei Zai and the others knelt on one knee and saluted in unison, their voices loud and orderly.

Wangchuan paused in surprise.

“What is going on?”

Chen Ergou quickly explained:

“Helm Leader, Fei Zai and his brothers have come to seek refuge with you. I asked them to wait here.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Fei Zai raised his head and cupped his fists.

“Helm Leader!”

“Our Gang Leader has died. The Yulong Gang is now falling apart. My brothers and I do not wish to remain there any longer. We want to follow you!”

Fei Zai had always followed He Haisheng. Now that He Haisheng was dead, it was only natural for him to change allegiance.

Moreover, the Yulong Gang no longer had a Second-Rank Martial Artist.

Now that Fei Zai had advanced to the First Rank, he naturally looked down on the remaining leaders. Therefore, he brought along a group of former subordinates of He Haisheng and came to join Wangchuan.

Wangchuan glanced at the thirteen disciples behind Fei Zai.

Most of them were familiar faces—former Inner Disciples of the Huishui County hall.

Now all of them had reached the level of full-fledged Martial Artists.

“Come in.”

He was naturally willing to accept such a group of Martial Artists.

“Fei Zai, from now on you will serve as the captain of the Tenth Squad in the lower waterways. Escort and transport missions will be assigned to you… These brothers will continue following you. Full-fledged Martial Artists will receive thirty taels of silver per month, with bonuses calculated separately. Squad captains will receive fifty taels, with bonuses calculated separately.”

“Thank you, Helm Leader!”

Fei Zai was overjoyed.

Wangchuan was even happier.

He had gained a loyal First-Rank Martial Artist who could potentially be cultivated into a Second-Rank Martial Artist.

As for the remaining thirteen Martial Artists, they could eventually be trained into First-Rank Martial Artists.

When that happened, the foundation and scale of the Sanjiang Branch Helm would rise to an entirely new level.

“Ergou, you arrange Fei Zai’s squad.”

“Yes!”

Chen Ergou cupped his fists and led Fei Zai and his group away.

Wangchuan returned to his residence in high spirits. He opened a cabinet and took out the metal claw gauntlets he had removed from the Third-Rank Martial Artist earlier.

Brass Claw Gauntlets: Green Grade (Durability 98/100)

Attack +20

Hand Defense +10

Once worn, they gave off the aura of a villain.

After putting them on, Wangchuan realized that the brass claw gauntlets fit perfectly along his finger bones. Although they were slightly heavy, they did not interfere with the flexibility of his fingers at all.

He stepped into the courtyard and lightly struck the Iron Dummy Stake with his palm.

SLAP!

The iron dummy stake snapped in half instantly.

He then changed the motion from a palm strike to a claw.

The iron plating of the dummy stake was torn open together with the wood beneath it, leaving behind a horrifying claw mark.

“So powerful!”

Joy flashed in Wangchuan’s eyes.

In close combat, fist techniques usually suffered a disadvantage because they lacked a weapon, and their attacks were calculated without weapon damage. With these brass claw gauntlets, the added attack power compensated for that weakness while fully bringing out the speed advantage of fist techniques.

Wangchuan performed a full set of 《Wudang Sanshou》 in the courtyard. Wherever the force of his palms swept through, the Iron Dummy Stake shattered with ease.

Equipment of Green Grade truly possessed remarkable power.

Although he was still far from matching the strength of the original owner of the brass claw gauntlets, he now displayed seventy percent of that fierce momentum.

Not bad at all.

…

Although the conflict between the Yulong Gang and the Beggar Sect had temporarily subsided, the trouble facing the Gold-Farming Team of Warring States Game Studio had not improved.

After seizing the coal mine, Red Moon Studio was still not satisfied. They entered the territory of Huishui County and somehow persuaded another village—Yunzao Village—to relocate into the mountains.

The village chief ordered the entire village to move near the iron mine, intending to seize the iron mine using the same method.

This immediately enraged the three nearby studios.

Enough was enough!

Warring States, Tianxia, and Black Panther Studios held a call and each dispatched a Land-Clearing Team.

They slaughtered the militia force of Yunzao Village, and some players within the village were also caught in the chaos.

In a single day, more than thirty players died.

Yunzao Village refused to back down.

No one knew where they obtained them, but more than a dozen Martial Artists suddenly appeared and began assassinating players in the villages of Huishui County.

Members of the Gold-Farming Teams of Warring States, Tianxia, and Black Panther Studios all suffered casualties.

For a time, the Gold-Farming Team members were trembling with fear. Many did not even dare to log in or leave their villages.

Su Wan stood before the floor-to-ceiling window in her office, holding a phone. Her aura was dark and oppressive as she spoke with the leaders of the other two studios.

“Red Moon Studio is going too far!”

“They just obtained their license. What gives them the confidence to be this arrogant?”

“They are starting a war!”

“Our Warring States Game Studio does not want to escalate things too much, but they have gone too far! We will not retreat… Right! What is your position over there… Fight? Fine! Then let us crush them in one decisive blow!”

After receiving Tianxia Studio’s commitment, Su Wan said:

“We can deploy three Land-Clearing Teams on our side!”

“Then let us first wipe out all Red Moon Studio players within the territory of Huishui County! Since they have gone this far, we do not need to show them any courtesy!”

“Anyone with blood on their hands would face the death penalty in the real world!”

After speaking with the leader of Black Panther Studio as well, the three studios each dispatched three Land-Clearing Teams.

A total of forty-five Martial Artists and Ranked Martial Artists sealed off several villages and mining areas in Huishui County.

After a full day and night of pursuit and battle, by nightfall they finally eliminated all Red Moon Studio members who had infiltrated Huishui County.

They took control of the villages.

They hunted down enemies from outside.

But Red Moon Studio proved far more ruthless and desperate than they had imagined.

That very night, they launched a counterattack on several villages in Huishui County and began slaughtering civilians.

The entire population of one village was massacred.

After destroying the houses, they killed all the players in the village who were still asleep.

Early the next morning, the human resources offices of the three studios were surrounded.

Su Wan’s face was ashen.

While arranging robotic security to handle employee account deletions and resignations, she sternly instructed all members of the Land-Clearing Teams:

“From now on, everyone must watch out for retaliation from Red Moon Studio players!”

“Yes! The people from Red Moon have gone mad!”

The massacre of villages had escalated the situation beyond all control.

From this moment onward, none of the four studios could remain uninvolved.

No one was safe anymore.

Red Moon Studio had declared total war on the other three studios.

Su Wan made one final call to Su Wangchuan.

“Wangchuan.”

“The situation has changed. We must prepare for the worst. We may need your help… because we fear that Red Moon Studio may continue their attacks and massacre other villages in Huishui County, including Blackstone Village.”

“…”

The moment Wangchuan received the message, he could no longer ignore it.

The conflict between studios had escalated and now threatened Blackstone Village.

His master could not come to harm.

He immediately summoned Captain Zhao Heiniu.

“Captain Zhao, take a group of men and return to Blackstone Village for a while.”