Chapter 107:

“Oh my goodness! The NPC learned how to speak!” At this moment, Brother Dump Truck exclamation rang out in the team channel, clearly due to the shock caused by Lady Tris’ preceding segment of non-standard Mandarin speech, akin to that of a beginner. However, Brother Meow remained unfazed. While raising the crimson spirit staff in his hand, he said: “That’s an intelligent AI roleplaying as an NPC. It’s normal for her to learn how to speak, isn’t it? In fact, I think if it wasn’t for emphasizing the game’s sense of realism and immersion, the NPCs here should have spoken Mandarin from the start. Now is not the time to be marveling at such things. The minions have respawned, quick! Open fire!” A precise blast of natural fury spirit orb flew out from the tip of his staff, knocking down a “monster” that had crawled out from the constantly rotating sub-dimension rift behind Salrokdar, emerging from above the sacred blood pool. That thing was completely blackish all over. As if a distorted humanoid form was covered in a layer of “oil”, with its features indistinct but its wide-open mouth roaring at everyone visible. It was as if a signal for battle. In the next instant, even more blackish monsters crawled out from the rift! They had no fixed form, with humanoid, bestial and even winged alien shapes all screeching as they charged towards the players’ formation. Like Salrokdar, these beings were vessels for the chaotic will, like sources of pollution entering the physical world. As they approached, the mental strain the players were enduring instantly increased. Little Ashina, who had just fired a shot blasting a monster’s head, clutched her own in pain, clearly failing a recent “SC check” which caused her “spirit sight” to spike. Even with the protection of nature scrolls and arbitration auras, their impoverished minds and souls only barely reached the threshold value, with bad luck resulting in devastating strikes on the spiritual plane. The good news was that the holy lance projection from Knight Lord Palanno brought a highly damaging aura of light, allowing the little players’ attacks to temporarily disperse the “darklings” into melting sludge if they hit their heads or hearts. Although they would re-form in a few dozen seconds, at least they weren’t completely helpless in retaliation. “Hold on! I’ll give you all a BUFF!” The flustered Lumina opened the guitar case on her back and pulled out a golden trumpet. Seeing the battlefield white-hot from the moment combat started, she knew it was time for this newbie bard to take the stage. The long-haired girl took a deep breath, shielded by Orchid and Sister Pomegranate with their heavy shields, before putting the mouthpiece between her lips. In the next instant, the majestic main melody of ‘The Sacred War’, not the smoothest but still grand, rang out on the intense battlefield. Of course, this was not a song from this world, as Lumina the little player had not even left the “beginner’s map” yet, let alone collect music scores native to this realm. However, the appreciation of music was likely universal across dimensions, and the bard’s skill of inspiring teammates through music did not hinge on which specific piece was used. The emotions imbued in the music were what mattered most! Hearing the BGM from their homeworld while fighting filled the little players with heroic vigor. As Lumina’s performance deepened, their character panels were simultaneously supplemented with short-duration but constantly refreshing positive BUFFs like【Soaring Courage】,【Battle Frenzy】and【Unstoppable Charge】for as long as the music played. Though only basic Level I enhancements, in this wretched battleground requiring an SC check every second, solidifying one’s will undoubtedly played an immense role. Not just them, even the witch hunters’ silent hunting became more valorous. Clearly, Lumina’s song of courage and war was also a “battlefield effect”. “Such beautiful yet bold music that pierces the soul, representing a pure maiden’s admiration for victory and warriors, I have felt this emotion, how could I disappoint the hopeful maiden? Fallen abominations! Feel the power of this burning love!” At this point, Lord Palanno, already locked in battle with the frenzied Salrokdar exchanging blows between his lance and heavy shield, was so emboldened by this rousing melody that he felt struck by lightning. As someone inherently romantic chasing all that is beautiful, he was swept up with even more bravado amidst this anthem, his overly dramatic shouts symbolizing a counterattack beginning. The heavy shield engraved with the Blood Pact Knights’ crest blocked forward, parrying Salrokdar’s single-handed chaos-imbued sword. Red spirit and dark spirit energies clashed, shattering the brick floor beneath before the crimson lance thrust forward with a ruthless, vicious piercing strike that forced the fallen Blood Vulture patriarch to retreat. Simultaneously, the aged knight wielding the great oaken blade “The Watcher” invoked visions of woodland hunts, calling upon Avalon’s name as he brought down the burning greatsword in a mighty overhead cleave towards the vessel of chaos from the flank. Knowing he could not evade this strike, Salrokdar dispersed his form into a swarm of fluttering dark bats that regrouped on the other side of the hall. The old knight’s blow struck empty air. But he felt no regret. For the tactical goal had been achieved! Seizing this opening from the two golden elites’ combined assault driving Salrokdar outside the blood pool’s sphere of influence, Murphy and the young lady instantly unfurled their blood wings, flying over the battlefield straight for the unguarded, bubbling blood pool. Murphy took the lead, the young lady following behind. As they neared the boiling blood pool, even more “darklings” crawled forth from the sub-dimension rifts, these incarnations even larger and with more detailed “humanoid” forms. They even came equipped with blackbone-like weapons. The Blood Vulture patriarch’s delirious and chaotic mind was filled with immense regret. Leaving behind this ambitious, uncompromising lunatic descendant had been a mistake! But he had a countermeasure! Realizing he could not easily break free from the two holy relic wielders in a frontal confrontation, Salrokdar immediately decided to open up the flanks. He began channeling the power of that sub-dimension rift floating above the sacred pool, allowing the permeating chaos aura to double in intensity over a dozen seconds. The effect was immediate. Though the golden elites were unaffected, the witch hunter elites soon could not withstand it. Rapidly overwhelmed by the intensifying chaotic onslaught, several witch hunters had their mental defenses breached, undergoing the same sort of transformation Brother Meow experienced earlier. Their willpower was crushed by the chaotic will, eyes now listless and vacant as they turned to attack their own comrades. But with a few flashes of silver, those witch hunters subverted by chaos were slain on the spot, their blood spattering across the emotionless Huntress Captain Natalie as she flicked the crimson from her blades, long and short replicas of sacred blades. Her eyes flickered with pain and resignation. But she knew it was necessary. They had to eliminate any polluted, subverted comrades, or face even worse consequences. Directly facing a sub-dimension rift like this, the best outcome for those whose minds fell to the chaotic invasion was the same miserable half-life as the maddened vampires they’d killed, guided only by delusions and insanity. For a warrior, that was worse than death. And for witch hunters so accustomed to death, even their exit needed to be a dignified one! “Ah! I’m red! I’m red!” On the little players’ side, there was also an incident. The Heaven’s Chosen Grayman running around collecting heads with his musket suddenly screamed over the team channel: “Four consecutive SC failures! Damn it! The system must be targeting me! Brothers, get clear! My SAN value is zero, about to enter ‘Madness’ and ‘Insanity’. Quick! See if there’s any way to save this dog’s life-” He didn’t even finish before convulsing and disconnecting. But instead of his character dispersing into motes of light after going offline, he was rapidly enveloped in a tainted glow, transforming into one of those “darklings”. “Damn! Grayman’s been mind-controlled! Mages? Quick, get control!” The nearby Brother Dump Truck shouted in a panic. Brother Meow immediately flung a vine bind, thinking they could wait out this guy’s mind control duration. But in the midst of slaying elite “darklings”, Murphy turned and yelled: “He’s a lost cause!” “Bang” Like an execution command! The words had barely left his mouth before a crisp gunshot rang out through the crowd. Howling like a savage beast while clutching his musket, the mind-controlled Grayman crumpled to the precise shot. The little players’ eyes widened at the skilled kill. Following the bullet’s trajectory, the innocent-faced Ashina holstered her still-smoking handgun, nervously muttering: “Uh, when a teammate gets mind-controlled, doesn’t that mean PVP is truly underway? Isn’t that the essence of all MMORPGs?” “You make an excellent point, I can’t refute that,” said Sister Pomegranate with a twitch of her lips, gazing at Grayman’s gruesome headshot corpse before her eyes swept over to a student player. In an odd tone, she asked: “Little brother, you failed three SCs right? One more and you’ll probably disconnect. Want to go ahead and book ‘end-of-life services’?” The student “Scholar Xiao Zhou” gulped, glancing at the precariously flickering icon on his character panel indicating his SAN value was nearly depleted. Gritting his teeth with a tragic expression, the little brother dropped his weapon and grabbed two witch hunter alchemical bombs from his belt, shouting loudly: “For the grand plan! For Murphy’s victory! Aroo!!!” After one last burst of favor gain before his suicide run, the red-eyed Scholar Xiao Zhou charged out. The instant his fourth SC failed, the bombs detonated, dragging two unfortunate “darklings” with him to hell. “Such bravery!” The overly emotional First Lord Palanno was instantly inspired by the unwavering loyalty of Murphy’s warriors. Turning to the innocently clueless Salrokdar, he roared: “See! This is the bitter fruit you have sowed! Such beautiful, solemn sacrifices, warriors’ blood wasted in vain, you! Your sins run deep!”