At the start of the dungeon, Murphy, with his characteristic “sudden appearance” befitting a plot NPC, charged into the unpredictable purple storm ahead with his group of Astral Wolves, perfectly embodying the “glorious image” of those legendary “mob-pulling maniacs” who create a mess and then vanish in a puff of smoke.
However, this time, the players behind him didn’t scatter around like they did during previous group fights.
On the contrary, after repeated discussions on the forums over the past two days, they split into three main groups heading in different directions according to the various tasks assigned to their respective teams, guided by the “player map”.
They clearly had a plan.
Especially under the guidance of the “veterans” who had completely transformed while accompanying Murphy all along, even the little players new to the game quickly became proficient.
Just as Murphy wanted to see, they scattered like a group of true “professionals”.
After all, in Reality Realm, this 100% realistic ghost of a game, the area of raid dungeons is unimaginably large and there are no annoying things like “invisible walls”. This means players must make good use of their manpower to complete the dungeon strategy in the shortest time possible and finish the raid dungeon tasks that have been distributed and shared in advance.
The “Crimson Hammer and Sickle team” led by Onboard Joy Stick, with the largest number of people, took on the most difficult assault task without hesitation.
They had to charge forward along the central axis of the gnoll camp, fighting fiercely until they advanced to the core tent where the gnoll warlord Kenport was located.
This was undoubtedly the most difficult and pressure-filled route.Therefore, in addition to Brother Stick’s original 30 people, 50 other solo players and small teams with strong combat experience among the little players were also brought under Brother Stick’s command.
Meow King’s “Big Bird Spin Spin Spin team” had to leverage their advantage as Avalon believers of not being largely interfered with by impure forces in the Astral Realm spirit energy zone. They were to lead people to destroy all the supplies stockpiled in the gnoll’s large tents, burning or stealing away the things that the gnoll big bandit gang relied on for survival.
Without that mouthful of food, the sheer enormous number of gnolls themselves would be enough to crush these non-productive scoundrels.
Most importantly, Meow King had to destroy the few signal towers used by the gnolls for communication in the shortest time possible. Once the fire was lit, much of the Astral Realm shadows here would be dispelled, which would be very unfavorable for the players and would allow the chaotic gnolls on the outskirts to receive orders and rush in to support.
That would be a big trouble.
Finally, there was the “task team” composed of girls and a group of players not good at combat from administration and manufacturing.
Their main task was not to fight, but to find the mysterious “pangolin” within the dungeon range and assist it in establishing the “mysterious force” that was to be built in passing during this raid dungeon strategy.
This would be the first force on this continent to be supported by the players themselves, and it must be taken seriously.
Theoretically, the strength of the administrative and manufacturing players led by the girl team was the weakest, and it would be very dangerous to let them act freely. However, the guards that administrative players could be equipped with showed a marvelous effect at this time, and the combat power of these elite soldiers gathered together was not to be underestimated.
The three teams acted according to the plan, and they were all prepared to sacrifice themselves using their “3-day one life” advantage to achieve tactical purposes.
However, like Lord Murphy, who was now rated as “kind”, the player teams were also shocked by the combat intensity they encountered after stepping into the real battlefield.
It wasn’t too difficult.
Rather, it wasn’t as difficult as they had imagined.
Well, that’s not quite right either.
After all, those gnoll barbarians who had gone mad from the impure spirit energy washing over their minds had not weakened in terms of destructive power, but rather had been given a super BUFF of 【Never Defeated】due to their mental frenzy.
This made it very dangerous for little players who found themselves in a 1v1 situation if isolated, especially those who had not yet passed the Black Iron trial.
However, the price paid by the gnolls who survived after the Astral Realm impact for this “fearless” enhancement was disastrous.
They sacrificed their brains for it.
This turned them into a group of mindless beasts, only knowing how to attack the nearest life, and even when the little players weren’t close, they would still fight each other with bloodshot eyes. ℞₳₦Ò฿ΕṦ
Such chaotic situations were very nice for a group of players executing a decapitation strategy.
Especially in the eyes of command-type characters like Joy Stick, he immediately exclaimed ecstatically in the team framework communication:
“The development team has finally adjusted the monster values to a reasonable level this time. Brothers, don’t worry that this dungeon will end up in a terrible team wipe like last time. I told you, if that ridiculous situation from last time happens again and again, this dungeon system would be too poorly made.”
This immediately provoked opposition from others.
Leading Pigeon, the leader of the student party who was assigned to Brother Stick’s team as support, flew in the air flapping his wings, waving his staff to hurl balls of spirit energy lightning at the gnolls ahead, and then casually throwing mental shrieks and other mental attacks at them.
He dodged arrows from below with flashy “positioning” in the air while retorting:
“Which eye of yours saw the monster values being nerfed? Didn’t a brother just get killed by one blow because he charged too fast? I don’t see these gnolls being weakened at all, instead they seem to have been strengthened into a bloodthirsty frenzy state by the Astral Realm spirit energy entering their brains.”
“You know jack shit!” Brother Stick snapped back unceremoniously:
“So-called balance isn’t just about crudely nerfing values, that’s something only third-rate dog designers would do. I admit they haven’t been greatly weakened at the individual level, but their action logic has changed!
You little idiot, look carefully!
We’ve taken out three waves of nearly 100 elites on this path, losing less than 5 people ourselves. Would you dare to imagine this under the intensity of Blood Vulture Halls?
Apart from our own strength improvement and adaptation to the cooperation rhythm, the biggest reason is that these gnolls have lost their minds!
They just rush up to deliver themselves like lemmings, just like the ghouls in the sewers.
We don’t even need to change formation!
Just using the simplest shield bearers in front and spearmen behind can take care of them.
Monsters with brains are scary, elites without brains are meat on the chopping block! I have 99 ways to take them out.
I now think we can fight more aggressively.”
Joy Stick hovered in the air observing the surrounding terrain as unclear as a storm-blown landscape, and he quickly made a decision.
“Brothers! Collect all the Molotov cocktails and bombs in your bags and give them to the vampire players who can fly. Agility-type players, fall in line!”
Brother Stick had made up his mind and shouted in the team channel:
“Using our current coordinates as the center, advance in three directions – forward, left, and right – to lure monsters back! Not too many, one wave at a time. Shield bearers, prepare to execute defense.
Vampires, await my command!”
“Cluster bombing?” Brother Mao, holding a sword and shield, suddenly looked up and asked:
“Brother Stick, are you planning to trap and kill them? Isn’t this too risky?”
“No, this terrain is just right,” Joy Stick squinted, using his high vantage point to observe, and said:
“There’s a semi-permanent position ahead, I suspect there’s at least one BOSS there. Starting a BOSS fight in such a cramped terrain would be a nightmare, luring it out to fight here is the best.
Executing this tactic requires clearing all the monsters around.
Although there’s no time limit for this dungeon, don’t forget that Lady Tris and Lord Murphy overloaded the shield core of Crimson Citadel to execute this Astral Realm tear, leaving that side undefended.
If we drag on for too long here, the casualties at Crimson Citadel might be quite terrible.
We must hurry!
The faster the better.
I strongly suspect there’s some kind of ‘soft enrage’ mechanism here. The assault here and the defense at Crimson Citadel seem unrelated, but they’re actually tied together.
If we can’t kill the gnoll warlord within a specific time, it might allow them to escape, and if they manage to send out a key command, it could also cause a reversal in the battlefield situation at Crimson Citadel.
This would directly lead to the failure of the tactical objective of crushing the gnoll bandit gang in one fell swoop, thus allowing this event to continue to evolve.
Never underestimate the malice of the development team in this regard.”
Brother Stick’s analysis made a lot of sense, although it lacked a bit of evidence as supplementary.
However, the “dog designer” who had been “lurking” immediately thought that Brother Stick’s “creative idea” was quite good. Murphy decided to send Brother Stick the “assist” he needed most at this moment.
“Hey, stop!”
The vampire lord turned his head and shouted to Femis, who was using spirit energy to seal off the Kenport camp area behind him, blocking the enemy’s escape routes:
“Leave a gap, give King Kenport a chance to escape. Let Kudel block the north, so it can only run south.”
“Why?”
Femis widened her eyes and asked:
“The 3 of us together have an 80% chance of taking down Kenport right here. Why do you insist on complicating things? Don’t you know how bad the consequences will be if we let it escape?”
“I know, I know that if my orders fail, it will tarnish our extremely successful tactics tonight. I also know that once Kenport escapes, it will be very difficult to have such a wonderful ambush opportunity again.
Trust me! Femis.
I know exactly what I’m doing!”
Murphy gripped Frostfang and stepped forward, using Death’s Grasp to restrain 2 gnoll elites pouncing towards him, then pierced and shredded their hearts like a poisonous snake hunting prey. Afterwards, he swung the bleeding corpses towards the melee ahead, helping Kudel who was wielding a crimson greatsword and dominating among the gnoll elites, knocking away the gnoll mystics on the flank.
The Count of Kadman commanded the wraiths summoned by the Tomb Guards’ death invocation to cooperate with his own Astral Wolf pack in attacking forward. He raised his head and said to Femis who was controlling the battlefield in the air:
“I know all the risks, but now please act according to my orders! Kenport is a very valuable opponent and prey. Precisely because of this, it must die at the hands of my warriors.”
“Ah! I can never understand what’s going on in your head!”
Femis screamed in frustration:
“Why do you have to consider their feelings at a time like this? Murphy, isn’t victory important?”
“Joy, sense of achievement, and immersion are more important than dry, tasteless victory. Hey, Femis, do you see that watchtower at the southernmost edge of the camp that hasn’t been destroyed after 15 minutes?
Light it up!
Can you do it?”
The young lady ascended to estimate the distance, and said:
“No problem, that’s easy to do, but why?”
“Because they’re past the ‘time limit’.”
Murphy shrugged and said in a subtle tone:
“Going past the time limit means they have to suffer a little punishment, give them a bit more pressure, make them more motivated. Remember that nonsense I told you before about life being a game? Since we’re playing a game, there should be rewards and penalties, right?
Light it up!”
“Whoosh”
The young lady made a charging throw motion in the air.
The next instant, a beam of obscure fire turned into an arrow flying through layers of spirit energy mist, landing precisely on top of the watchtower at the edge of the camp’s core area.
A dazzling flame lit up in the darkness, instantly dispelling much of the thick Astral Realm shadows.
Murphy lowered his head and gripped the core orb to start editing a new message, while the howling return of Necessary Evil blocked the ferocious gnoll barbarians around him.
A few seconds later, a note popped up on all players’ character interfaces:
【Because the attackers failed to destroy all camp watchtowers before the gnoll sentries acted, the first warning flame has been lit. The gnoll warlord Kenport Gnawbone, who was lost in the Astral Realm shadows, has reconfirmed his position guided by the warning flame.
It and its elite barbarian guards have broken through the Countess of Anderma’s first blockade!
The good news is that Hunting Baron Kudel has blocked its way, and Lord Murphy is also ready to intercept at the outermost perimeter.
The bad news is that you must quicken your pace.
Note!
After Kenport Gnawbone breaks through all 3 blockades, it will successfully escape the camp! This situation will trigger certain changes to the main storyline in the Transia region.
Note!
Due to the attackers’ mistake causing the Countess of Anderma’s defense line to be breached, Lady Femis is in an extremely bad mood, so she will not distribute the victory rewards she had prepared to the testers who participated in the battle.
Changes to additional dungeon reward drops: 3→2.】
“Holy shit!”
This note immediately made the little players who were slaughtering elite gnolls exclaim in surprise, and almost caused Brother Stick in the air to lose control and fall to the ground.
He stared intently at his Computation Bead.
The good news was that he had guessed correctly, the sneaky game designer had indeed planted a trap.
The bad news was that he had guessed correctly, the sneaky game designer was really being inhuman.
Brother Stick instantly interrupted his command and continued to ascend to a height where he could overlook the entire camp. Then he discovered in the south that a warning flame on a gnoll watchtower had been lit, and that area happened to be the place where Meow King’s Big Bird Spin Spin Spin team was responsible for clearing.
“F**k! Meow! What the hell are you guys doing? Why is that watchtower lit up! Damn, that was your task! You clearly patted your chest and told me it wouldn’t be a problem.
Fuck!
I’m telling you, this kind of mess-up will get you court-martialed.”
Brother Stick was furious at this moment.
His shouts also irritated Meow King, who was trying to set fire to a warehouse in the south. The latter yelled:
“How the hell were we supposed to know there was another watchtower there? We’ve already destroyed 3! Fuck, this one’s on me, I’ll take one less share of the loot. Now cut the crap, you guys hurry up and push forward! We’ll come to help after we burn down this warehouse.”
Brother Stick quickly calmed down.
At this point, it was no longer realistic to demand perfection, but the change in the situation wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.
At a glance, he saw that the little players were obviously more focused than before. Almost without needing his orders, the vampire players carrying Molotov cocktails and explosives swooped down like low-flying bombers over the elite gnolls below who had been lured out and lost their minds.
The Molotov cocktails and explosions they dropped started large fires, burning these clustered creatures so badly they howled in pain, but the thrusts of the shield bearers and spearmen at the front were even more merciless.
“Hurry, hurry! Go lure more monsters! Lure more this time.”
Brother Stick shouted.
He also picked up his hunting rifle and joined the ranks of the monster-luring army. They had already lost one treasure chest! They couldn’t lose the remaining 2.
At this point, it was no longer just about the loot, but purely about face!
Damn, when the friendly NPCs have already weakened the enemy to this extent, if you still can’t win, that’s a bit unacceptable.
Meow King’s side was even more gloomy, like a dead horse.
But he had nothing to say.
It was indeed his responsibility that caused the problem in this link, directly resulting in all players losing a precious treasure chest.
“F**k!”
Meow King rubbed his face vigorously and cursed:
“I knew this damn game designer was definitely going to pull something. This time we’ve really lost face big time. Who knows how they’ll mock us on the forums when we get back.”
“I’m not saying this to criticize, brother, but when we get hit, we have to stand up straight,”
The little hand throwing torches at the warehouse advised:
“It’s a strategy dungeon, how can we not make mistakes? Calm down, calm down. Look, haven’t we successfully completed our main task?”
Before their eyes, the area storing the remaining supplies of the entire gnoll bandit gang had been completely set ablaze. The flames were burning, and in the flickering firelight, other comrades were fighting with the elite gnolls who had rushed over to try to extinguish the fire.
But Meow King just couldn’t cheer up.
The dignity of being a mature man in society felt trampled by this damned mistake. If things kept going like this, his dream of becoming a player legend would get further and further away!
A rage burned in his heart, making Meow King’s eyes grow fierce.
“In the name of our god Avalon! Deliver purifying punishment to these evil creatures! Kill!”
He roared on his warhorse, throwing out the bloodwood seeds in his hand and releasing the Oak Knight’s nature’s call. As the seeds took root on the ground, ferocious blood-thirsty treants soon appeared beside him, then charged into the surrounding gnoll barbarians under Meow King’s assault.
Another war sacrifice began.
And tonight, he would blood sacrifice to the blood god in the name of Avalon, killing to his heart’s content! From here on, he would embark on his own path as a Red Knight!
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