Chapter 205: 20‑Person Challenge Battle

"Transferring characters into the battle…"

"Achoo…"

From the warm spring, she suddenly stepped into the frozen soil of winter, Ka Li Ya‑Si Da Er couldn't help but sneeze.

With the Plane transfer completed, they faced the biting cold wind head‑on.

"I hate the cold!" Ka Li Ya‑Si Da Er complained, instinctively wrapping both arms around herself.

"Alright, the frost resistance has been granted to you!" her teammate laughed, bestowing a resistance spell on her; the once piercing wind instantly became much more pleasant.

"Ka Li Ya‑Si Da Er, you still need to keep training, how can this slight temperature feel cold!" the barbarian warrior, naked, displayed his muscles, unmoved by the ice.

"I'm a wanderer; how could I have a body as strong as yours!" Ka Li Ya‑Si Da Er looked at the barbarian, a bit frantic.

"The Dungeon info didn't mention this place being so cold!" Though she had the status spell, Ka Li Ya‑Si Da Er still felt a bit chilly.

Mu Yi and the barbarian exchanged a brief communication.

Only those large guilds—or large church groups—might have the necessary team coordination.

Battle end time: 30 natural days

Battle boss: Lord of Winter‑A Lie Ke Xie

Main battle quest: Defeat the Lord of Winter

Mu Yi pondered, staring at the detailed battle description on the Zongwang Panel.

Ka Li Ya‑Si Da Er's talents are even better than their squad's ever were; perhaps they can cross that threshold. Until then, what he must do is use his experience to protect these children.

"That's truly a pity; may the Father God wish you luck!" The barbarian, seeing this, said nothing, waved his hand, and led the team toward another direction.

Ordinary cold, for a Transcendent‑stage Zongwang Player, naturally means nothing.

Winter Disaster Battle

Type: 20‑person Challenge Battle

Mu Yi didn't mind the squad's departure.

"It's just that we happen to have that resistance," Mu Yi nodded at the barbarian.

The only requirement is that we can all assault the boss together at the end.

As a combat‑class profession, a Transcendent constitution is basically essential; this temperature is just a splash of water.

"Mu Yi, Level 17!"

But the cold here is not the ordinary notion of "cold".

Only after Mu Yi's figure vanished did they barely stop.

…

"Shall we act together? Our goal is the White Dragon's Treasure; our team takes thirty percent, the rest is divided by contribution!" the barbarian enthusiastically invited Mu Yi.

Recalling the god‑like figure in his memory, the barbarian shook his head; back then he was the tribe's top prodigy, but after entering the Zongwang and seeing the real monsters, he realized he was merely a slightly gifted little Xiao Karami.

For a battle Dungeon of this level, even if the main quest can't be completed, doing several side quests still yields decent rewards.

"Monsters?" Ka Li Ya‑Si Da Er asked, a bit puzzled.

"Oh oh oh, look at this young fellow, his body is so sturdy!" the barbarian warrior did two bicep curls, spotting the thin‑clad, ice‑unfazed Mu Yi nearby, his eyes lit up and he couldn't stop praising.

"We're so lucky to encounter such monsters!" the barbarian wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

"Don't approach that person; I smell blood and death on them—it's too dangerous!"

Sibake shook his head, a hint of fear flashing in his eyes, unwilling to discuss past stories, especially before Ka Li Ya‑Si Da Er; back then he suffered a massive shock that prevented him from crossing the final threshold to achieve Legend.

Mumbling while donning his cold‑weather gear.

Every Zongwang Player has their own personality; forcing a unified strategy is nonsense.

"Sibake, what happened?"

"Nice to meet you, I'm Sibake, Level 19 barbarian!"

Compared to each person's momentary awkwardness, combat‑class professions rarely get a chance to shine.

"Giant Demon's Revenge?" Ka Li Ya‑Si Da Er looked at Mu Yi's choice, a bit puzzled.

"No, that's not my goal; feel free to do as you wish," Mu Yi said with a smile, shaking his head, declining the barbarian's invitation.

Seeing the barbarian give a relaxed signal, the group finally relaxed.

He didn't expect to be teleported together with another team; honestly, he's not very good at dealing with such instantly familiar people.

Otherwise, the resources needed for exploration would increase dramatically.

The only good news is:

Though the environment is harsh, it hasn't reached the level of causing elemental damage.

Battle side quests: White Dragon's Treasure, Snow Beast's Revenge, Giant Demon Raider…

After thinking, Mu Yi selected a side quest and posted it in the side‑quest channel.

He proactively invited Mu Yi, also to gauge Mu Yi's intentions, hoping to avoid conflict.

Glancing at the temporary team channel, most teams had already locked in their side quests.

If a mortal were exposed to such an environment, they would likely lose their life in a short time.

"Hehe, that was encountered many years ago when adventuring with your father..."

"Isn't this side quest about exterminating an entire Giant Demon tribe? One person? No regard for life?"

"Hehehe, Ka Li Ya‑Si Da Er, instead of worrying about others, you should worry about us next!" Sibake deftly shifted the topic.

He casually sent Mu Yi a map of the Winter Disaster Battle; this monthly‑reset battle always has intel on the Zongwang, and the Winter Disaster happens to be a hugely popular battle, already saturated.

However, given the barbarian's understanding of these perversions, they certainly aren't prepared, so casually making a good connection is also a fine choice—something an old Holy Warrior teammate of his once loved to do.

"Next, we'll face a maze likely left by a Legendary Dragon; all the traps inside will be yours to solve!"

"Leave it to me!"

Calia nodded confidently; she had this confidence. Though her combat ability was merely average, she was highly skilled in technique, possessing the innate all‑purpose dexterous precursor talent that comes with Legend thief talent—mechanisms and traps are exactly her forte.

"Met a good person!" Mu Yi sighed.

Just like the barbarians thought, he had no preparation at all; it was a completely random battle dungeon, merely intending to accumulate some Zongwang Disaster Coin and Universal Experience to boost his ability.

With the map, the rest was naturally easy; Mu Yi followed the map and easily found the Giant Demon's tribe.

"Average level 14–17, about three hundred Giant Demons, the tribe chief is a level 17 hero template?"

"If I had known this was an arctic-type dungeon, I should have asked Sernida for a squad of ice-disaster soldiers! It would have saved some effort!"

Mu Yi assessed the scale of the Giant Demon tribe, then opened a barrier and directly enclosed the tribe within it.

Trangard, chief of the Giant Demon tribe.

Of course, it would rather be called the Giant Demon King!

Under its leadership, the Giant Demon tribe became the local hegemon; even the Snow Maidens dare not provoke its dignity.

Under its great leadership, the Giant Demons will sooner or later accomplish a feat no Giant Demon has ever achieved.

That is to rule this land!

Replace the Lord of Winter and become the true master of this polar region.

But before that, it needs to find more food; even though Giant Demons can split and regenerate, individuals without food cannot grow large, and individuals without combat ability, no matter how strong, are meaningless.

Why not go provoke the bear monster? But that bear druid can spit acid, and what the Giant Demons fear most is fire and acid.

The former is suppressed to the limit in this environment, but the latter is no joke.

Just as Trangard was exercising its limited brain, planning the future of the Giant Demon tribe.

A blood‑red space forcibly pulled it in.

"Roar! Who is it! Who dares provoke the Giant Demon King!" Trangard roared, looking around, and found the culprit.

"Humans!!" The Giant Demon King had seen humans before; even the frozen taste, it liked, and immediately rejoiced.

"Hahaha, you lot, get them, seize these humans!"

The Giant Demon King wielded its ever‑present giant club, summoning nearby Giant Demons to surround and attack.

"Hell Path!" Mu Yi whispered.

Then fire fell from the sky and rose from the ground!

Trangard's pupils shrank sharply; fire is what they fear most.

The next moment, fire sprayed everywhere!

The great fire surged!

The ferocious flames mercilessly devoured everything in sight!

Flee?

All the Giant Demons fell into a sea of flames, as if the whole world were burning; where could they run to?

"Roar! Fake! All fake!"

Trangard roared loudly; although it felt the heat, as a leader‑type monster it immediately sensed something odd.

In Trangard's roar, the Giant Demons gradually calmed; though they initially believed they were being scorched by the infernal fire, once they began to doubt, the infernal fire could only drain their stamina and energy, unable to inflict real flame damage.

"Hehehe, this is fake, then what about this!"

"Human Path!"

Mu Yi smiled as he extinguished the infernal fire rising from Hell Path, then from Human Path summoned his two‑thousand‑strong guard formation to meet the Giant Demons.

"Four Symbols Formation – Assault Like Fire – Vermilion Bird!"

Cloud Energy rose and rolled, gradually turning fiery red; the great Vermilion Bird spirit was summoned by the formation, and the weapons of all soldiers also rose with flame.

Unlike the infernal fire, which is real if believed and fake if not, the blessing brought by the Vermilion Bird spirit summoned from the Four Symbols Formation is a genuine fire‑element damage enchantment.

Mu Yi also gradually felt what Bai Qi said: formations are fundamental; as long as a formation exists, one can have means to overcome the enemy.

Always attack the enemy's weakness with your own strength; of course you can be invincible!

"Chirp!"

Flapping its wings, the Vermilion Bird spirit scattered several fireballs toward the Giant Demons.

The large fireballs that tore through the air accurately struck several Giant Demons, but in an instant the flames produced by the Cloud Energy change ignited those Giant Demons into torches.

"Ah!"

The Giant Demon swallowed by the fireball could only let out a brief, cut‑off scream before turning into a roasted Giant Demon.

Such regenerative power—able to recover from blade and axe, even regrow two individuals if cut in half and buried—turned to nothing in the face of its weakness to fire.

Trangard watched fearfully as the Giant Demons were consumed by flames; even though it was stronger than ordinary Giant Demons, it still feared fire, and could sense the Vermilion Bird's flames as violent and ferocious.

"Roar! Charge forward and we can kill them!"

Trangard bolstered morale; although fearful, it deeply understood that fear equals death.

As long as they can get close, they can win; this is Trangard's confidence in himself and in the Giant Demons.

The Snow Maidens' attacks could also knock them down and kill them, but once the Giant Demons closed in, they immediately fell into disarray.

"Heavenly Human Path!"

"Asura Path!"

Mu Yi extended a finger, bestowing Heavenly Human blessing and Asura armament upon his subordinates.

"Spearmen charge! Javelin suppress! Archers provide long‑range cover!"

Brandishing their spears, the soldiers hesitated not and launched the charge per orders.

The behind‑positioned soldiers took up Asura longbows and began to suppress with dense flaming arrows.

The centrally positioned soldiers, meanwhile, hurled their javelins forward with force.

The three‑tiered long‑medium‑short attack unfolded in an instant; after reaching an agreement with the authorities, at least material consumption no longer required Mu Yi's concern.

Although the official production of Transcendent armaments had not yet begun, the efficiency of assembly-line production was absolutely superb; with several factories operating simultaneously, they almost overnight gathered enough arrows and various weapons for Mu Yi that even two thousand people could not exhaust in a year of waste.

Almost every soldier was armed to the teeth, equipped with javelins, bows and arrows, spears, shields, and armor—everything needed. Although it couldn't be guaranteed that every soldier would have Transcendent gear, at least it ensured that each soldier was fully armed.

The appearance of these equipments also made Mu Yi's tactics more varied, better able to show the effect of command.

All attacks were imbued with a flame enchantment by the Vermilion Bird Spirit; when they struck the Giant Demon, every hit was a critical strike.

Even the mightiest Trandgard, under the soldiers' concentrated fire, kept retreating, constantly waving his weapon to avoid injury.

"Ah! Ah! Ah!"

The enraged Trandgard had blood-red eyes, emanating a terrifying aura; while berserking, he unleashed something akin to intimidation, seemingly trying to use his appearance to frighten Mu Yi's soldiers.

The newly recruited soldiers showed fear in their eyes; even though they were shooting from the safe rear, they were still affected by this dread, and even their arrow-shooting speed slowed a bit.

However, the veterans who had experienced the Dragon-Slaying Battle showed no change in expression; after all, compared to dragons and flood dragons, an ugly-looking Giant Demon could not frighten them.

As for the bloody stench emanating from the Giant Demon, whether it is heavier than the blood stench on an Asura remains a question.

"Kill!"

Mu Yi's voice dispelled the new soldiers' fear; as they watched the Giant Demons fall one after another, their dread began to fade, replaced by something called courage.

That was something they previously lacked, and it is also the greatest difference between them and the veterans.