Chapter 110: The Great Battle Concludes, Wealth Skyrockets (Seeking Monthly Votes)

North of the Ancient Battlefield.

The brutal battle continued.

More accurately, this was a brutal war in the eyes of the Heavenly Fire Clan.

But for the other three factions, this battlefield brought only profits.

As for losses, they were completely negligible.

In Qi Sheng's eyes, the players suffered no loss of combat power after death; through the rule characteristics of Emperor Tomb Village, their flesh and blood could be reshaped, allowing them to re-enter the battlefield.

In the eyes of the Earth-Chanting Evil Spirit, the death of a Black Black Tide evil entity meant merging back into the Black Black Tide, only to be reborn and regenerated; the loss from death was infinitely minimized, so even if they died in droves, he felt not a shred of heartache.

In the eyes of the Zerg Overmind, the Zerg warriors were merely cannon fodder to fill the lines; through battle, they acquired pheromones for improvement and evolution, making the next generation of the Zerg stronger and stronger through constant refinement. Every battle meant the next generation would be stronger, while the previous generation was destined to become obsolete cannon fodder; death represented progress.

But in the eyes of the Heavenly Fire Clan, every warrior was an elite of the clan.

They were war talents meticulously cultivated through the continuous optimization of population structure and the heavy consumption of resources.

Though both were warriors, the attacking and defending sides held completely different definitions of their own fighters.

To the three factions, warriors were consumables; losing them in droves was of no great consequence. But to the Heavenly Fire Dharma King, warriors were the core force of a war of plunder, and he could not accept them being easily expended.

This destined that a war of attrition would develop in a direction unfavorable to the Heavenly Fire Clan.

Beneath the hanging Evil Moon, the war continued.

The Heavenly Fire Clan's resistance grew weaker, and the frequency with which they deployed the Great Flame Formation steadily decreased.

To allow the clan's priests to recover their condition better, the Heavenly Fire Dharma King, returning to the city to rest after a bitter struggle, took out 108 energy crystal stones to replenish the priests for use.

This action immediately aroused the dissatisfaction of the Earth-Chanting Evil Spirit and the Zerg Overmind.

The Black Black Tide and the Zerg Swarm under their control launched increasingly frenzied attacks.

Just as Qi Sheng had thought, in the eyes of the Earth-Chanting Evil Spirit and the Zerg Overmind, the energy crystal stones were already theirs for the taking.

Although two other extremely disgusting factions would fight over them, their own side could at least secure a portion of the benefits.

But if the energy crystal stones were consumed on meaningless group spellcasting, they viewed this as a pointless waste.

To guarantee the reserves of energy crystal stones, they chose to adopt an even more frenzied offensive, hoping to defeat the Heavenly Fire Clan as quickly as possible.

Behind the Black Black Tide, vast dark clouds converged from multiple domain nodes in all directions, merging into the Black Black Tide, causing the speed at which the Black Black Tide bred evil entities to suddenly accelerate.

Behind the Zerg Swarm, the Overmind accelerated the breeding of the next generation; swaths of life seeds resembling spores surged outward from it like churning dark clouds, quickly growing upon landing to generate Zerg warriors one by one, gathering into a sea of insects that advanced upon the battlefield.

Two hours later.

Above Flame City, the Great Heavenly Fire Formation condensed once more, opening slowly like the eye of a Fire God.

As spiritual runes intersected and ignited, countless sparks of fire appeared within the formation, rapidly catalyzing and expanding, transforming into great fireballs burning fiercely.

At this moment, the Heavenly Fire Dharma King issued his command; the priests controlling the formation followed suit, activating its power to unleash a rain of fire from the heavens.

But under this wave of fiery rain attacks, a large number of Zerg warriors survived and continued to launch fierce offensives.

This meant the Heavenly Fire Clan had completely lost even their brief respite from war.

The flames released by the Heavenly Fire warriors differed from the rule-based power of Ink Flame released by the players; every battle provided pheromones that allowed the Zerg warriors to grow, their resistance to fire constantly increasing during this period, while the killing power of the Heavenly Fire warriors continuously weakened.

By now, even the Great Flame Formation covering a super-large area could not completely crush the Zerg Swarm.

After the Great Flame Formation hanging in the high sky extinguished, exhaustion and despair were unmistakable in the Heavenly Fire Dharma King's eyes.

He finally realized that the conjecture he had dared not admit was the truth.

The Zerg Swarm attacking the west side of the city possessed powerful evolutionary capabilities; they were constantly adapting to the flame abilities released by the Heavenly Fire Clan, and by now could already withstand the super-large-scale suppression of the Great Flame Formation.

If the fighting continued along this trend, he had no doubt the Zerg Swarm could evolve a resistance that completely exempted them from the power of the Heavenly Fire.

By that time, the war would become a one-sided slaughter of the Heavenly Fire Clan by the Zerg Swarm.

Such a powerful racial talent completely surpassed his understanding.

His proud Heavenly Fire rune technology was useless before the racial talent of the Zerg Swarm; no matter what new breakthroughs he made, it would be to no avail.

They had spent a thousand years researching, consuming countless resources in the process, yet the Zerg Swarm completed their life leap in just four days, gaining the ability to exempt themselves from Heavenly Fire runes; the technology he was so proud of seemed like a joke.

This growth beyond reason was also reflected in the racial factions attacking from the other two directions.

To the north, the strength of the evil entities bred within the black mist of the Black Black Tide was constantly rising, something that could be intuitively felt during combat.

During this period, two new troop types were even bred, their combat power far exceeding that of the evil entities produced previously.

The invading force from the south was the same; individual combat power kept climbing, bringing increasing pressure to the front lines.

This battle simply did not develop in the direction he had anticipated; the three invading factions grew stronger with every fight, while his own Heavenly Fire warriors had already lost over half their numbers, trapped in a bitter struggle with insufficient strength left to resist the endless incursions.

The bitterness in his heart turned into anger.

He issued an attack order once again, leading his clansmen in a frenzied counterattack against the Zerg Swarm.

At this moment, he finally realized his own ignorance and arrogance.

He had once been the supreme god of the Heavenly Fire World, revered and worshipped on bended knee by his clansmen and countless servant races.

But that was only within the Heavenly Fire World.

The peak combat power of this world was far beyond what the current Heavenly Fire Clan could contend with; continuing the war was destined to end in failure.

Yet he could not stop the war; he had been completely dragged into the quagmire of war by the three factions.

Despair, regret, anger, remorse... various emotions intertwined in the depths of his heart; he knew he was wrong, yet there was no longer any path of retreat.

All he could do was continue to fight desperately.

As the Black Black Tide rose at the horizon to the north, the scattered Player Clan attacked again from the south.

Exhaustion was fully evident in the Heavenly Fire Dharma King's eyes.

A new round of combined offensive from the three factions struck, and the few remaining clansmen of the Heavenly Fire Clan died one after another in the war.

Finally, the city gates constructed of flame were breached.

The three factions killed into the city, launching a chaotic four-way melee.

The Heavenly Fire Dharma King, having returned before his throne, gazed at the chaotic scene within Flame City from afar, and endless bitterness surged in his heart.

He knew the situation was lost.

Before breaking through the spatial barrier, he had trembled all over with excitement countless times in his dreams, envisioning the Heavenly Fire Clan becoming a terrifying calamity sweeping across myriad worlds; he would surpass his ancestors, becoming the strongest Heavenly Fire Dharma King recorded in history books, and the pathfinder leading the Heavenly Fire Clan toward glory.

At this moment, the dream ended.

The beautiful things in his fantasies were nothing more than flowers in a mirror and the moon in the water; the racial factions of the outside world were far more terrifying than he had imagined.

Now, he needed to pay the price for his impulsiveness.

"Dharma King, we will protect you as you depart."

Just then, a figure with an aged Iron Face appeared beside the Heavenly Fire Dharma King, kneeling on one knee and pleading.

Hearing this, the Heavenly Fire Dharma King shook his head indifferently, a bitter smile floating across his Iron Face:

"Where could I possibly escape to? Without the Heavenly Fire Clan, am I still the Heavenly Fire Dharma King?"

"If you lead the clan's 1,000 newborn elites away, perhaps one day in the future you will rise again in this world, restoring our clan's glory like our ancestors, and growing into a super-power standing at the peak of this world."

Hearing these words, the Heavenly Fire Dharma King shook his head once more:

"That possibility no longer exists. Our ancestors prepared years in advance to flee disaster; after crossing space, they were fortunate to arrive in a world where no native race had yet birthed an intelligent civilization. The resources there were unexploited; our arrival was like a dimensional strike. Subsequent development proceeded incredibly smoothly; those native races all became slaves for our development, contributing their strength to our climb toward new technologies."

"But where can I escape to? I even suspect this world holds powerful races far more terrifying than these three great factions; where is there any place for me to find refuge?... Right now, I have only one thought: to live and die alongside my clan."

As he spoke these words, the Heavenly Fire Dharma King no longer possessed his former arrogance.

The cold reality had ruthlessly shattered the fantasies in his heart.

He had failed to lead the Heavenly Fire Clan toward glory; instead, he had led them toward destruction.

The great battle within the city continued.

The Player Clan, the Black Black Tide evil entities, the combat Zerg... while the three factions fought each other in a melee, they also advanced from three directions toward the Heavenly Fire Dharma King's location.

During this time, the players' voice channel was incredibly lively:

"Hahaha, stealing last hits from the Zerg and evil entities directly grants rewards; this is too satisfying! I declare that the Assassin build has risen!"

"Our team's assassin has already left the group to become a kill-stealing thief; looking at the notifications, he's already stolen three kills. This efficiency is too fierce."

"The train is coming! Brothers in front, make way; type '1' to get on board."

"Attention, attention, I'm about to cast Taunt. If you don't want to watch your wife cheat on you, evacuate immediately. Preset range: three meters. Something big is coming."

"Self-destruct dogs, stay away from me! What kind of nonsense is this tech play? Can't you check if there are allies nearby before exploding?"

Finally advancing into the city, the players' spirits were high.

After days of bitter fighting, they knew they were about to receive their mission settlement rewards.

It was like a long engineering project finally reaching payment; joy was already overflowing on their faces.

Especially for the warbands organized by the major guilds; in this battle, their gains were substantial, and the post-battle settlement rewards would bring a significant boost to the warbands' comprehensive strength.

In the melee, what annoyed the players most were the Zerg and the Black Black Tide.

Although psychologically they did not feel as strong a rejection toward the Player Clan as the Zerg Overmind and Earth-Chanting Evil Spirit did, the players themselves were also not particularly fond of these two factions.

They had long labeled them as "poor mobs," full of disdain.

In contrast, Heavenly Fire warriors, being "rich mobs," were simply a breath of fresh air in the novice village, soothing the psychological damage to the players' earnings.

But as long as the Zerg Swarm and evil entities dared to approach, the players would still strike without hesitation, cursing and swearing in the voice channel.

The three front lines advanced to the city center, encountering the Priest Group.

The great battle reignited.

The physically weak members of the Priest Group, under the siege of the three factions and with their mental energy already exhausted, were unable to effectively fight back; the Sacrificial Power dropped after killing them made the players exclaim that these were even richer "rich mobs" than the Heavenly Fire warriors.

The key point was that they were also easier to kill than the Heavenly Fire warriors.

When the Priest Group perished, ahead lay 108 energy crystal stones.

The Challenger Prompt sounded in the players' minds accordingly, displaying that touching the energy crystal stones would grant a massive contribution reward.

At this moment, the Player Clan, the Insect Clan, and the Black Black Tide all appeared exceptionally frenzied.

Under the players' touch, the crystal stones continuously transformed into pure sacrificial power, flowing into the Sacrificial Power Pool beneath Emperor Tomb Village.

On the Black Black Tide's side, the energy crystal stones covered by black mist dissolved at a speed visible to the naked eye, transforming into nutrients for the Black Black Tide's growth and constantly strengthening it.

On the Insect Clan's side, compared to the other two factions, their resource gathering speed was the slowest.

Insect warriors devouring energy crystal stones retreated toward the Main Brain under the escort of other combat units, harvesting resources through transportation.

In this regard, the Insect Clan's shortcoming was extremely obvious.

Although the Insect Clan's performance in the late stage of the war was the best among the three factions.

The Insect Clan, having gained Heavenly Fire resistance, was also the most troublesome faction in the eyes of the Heavenly Fire Clan; however, in terms of resource acquisition efficiency, their inability to utilize ultra-long-distance teleportation for conversion destined their gains from resource plunder to be the lowest among the three factions.

Amidst the frantic scrambling, the Heavenly Fire Dharma King appeared once again.

Transforming into a fire demon form dozens of meters tall, he did not heed the advice of the elders within his clan, his heart already filled with the will to die.

In his own eyes, he was a sinner of the Heavenly Fire Clan.

His wrong choice had led the Heavenly Fire Clan toward destruction, and he ought to bear responsibility for this mistake.

But none of the factions cared about the discharge of firepower driven by the Heavenly Fire Dharma King's grief and indignation.

In the eyes of the Earth-Nian Evil Spirit, he had witnessed more than one race walk toward destruction, and had many times personally sent numerous races to their end.

This tragic heroism was worthless in his eyes.

It was even more so in the eyes of the Insect Clan's Main Brain.

Similarly a member of a calamity-level faction spanning multiple worlds, it was a purer war machine than the Earth-Nian Evil Spirit; in its eyes, there was only war, devouring, and evolution, everything else was unimportant, so what did the Heavenly Fire Dharma King's tragic heroism have to do with it?

And in the eyes of the Player Clan, this was the death throes of a scene boss before its end.

Some players, after reading and analyzing the information, learned part of the Heavenly Fire Dharma King's background data and felt a slight touch of emotion, but they cared more about the 108 energy crystal stones; these were the key items for completing the mission and could not be seized by the Insect Clan or the Black Black Tide.

In less than an hour, all 108 energy crystal stones were divided up.

Qi Sheng obtained 34 of them, while the majority were devoured by the Black Black Tide.

But in Qi Sheng's eyes, this was not a bad thing.

After all, the Black Black Tide controlled by the Earth-Nian Evil Spirit was, in his eyes, merely nutrients for the players.

If swallowed by the Black Black Tide, it would sooner or later fall into the players' hands.

The one with the lowest gains was the Insect Black Tide; some resources were even intercepted by players and Black Black Tide evil spirits during transport. According to calculations from the Guidance statistics, the Insect Black Tide's total gain was 28 energy crystal stones.

This war alone brought Qi Sheng over 17 million points in sacrificial power revenue from just the energy crystal stones.

He had already begun considering the establishment of an Emperor Tomb Village sub-zone and the recruitment of alien players.

He would implement the plan as soon as this war ended.

At that time, he would use the teleportation point at Colorful Mist Coast as the center, demarcate the area of Emperor Tomb Village, completely encompass it, and establish the sub-zone.

At that time, the recruited Gill-Men and Abyss-Fish Men would develop with Colorful Mist Coast as their novice village.

The objectives were divided into three directions: the construction of naval combat power, the containment of primordial sea monsters, and the containment of sea domain nodes.

With the addition of aliens proficient in water skills, the development of the sea domain would inevitably become smoother.

Without dwelling on this issue, Qi Sheng cast his gaze once again toward Flame City.

The great battle was nearing its end, yet the three factions had not withdrawn.

All eyes were locked onto the remaining Heavenly Fire warriors and the Heavenly Fire Dharma King.

These were the remaining nutrients in their eyes, naturally they could not let them go.

Although possessing a hunting level of 76 and combat power that crushed the entire field, the Heavenly Fire Dharma King was now at the end of his rope, his lamp exhausted.

Every sweep of the great flame sword in his hand could raise a wave of fire, devouring swathes of life.

But individual strength could not reverse the Black Tide of defeat.

The city originally condensed from flames also gradually dissipated after the energy crystal stones were devoured, until it vanished completely, leaving behind barren scorched earth where not a blade of grass grew.

The war entered its final stages.

The remaining Heavenly Fire warriors fought desperately, but could not withstand the encirclement and suppression of the three factions.

Watching his clansmen die one after another, the Heavenly Fire Dharma King's heart died along with them; like a walking corpse, he continued to fight by instinct.

The injuries on his body grew heavier and heavier, yet he felt not a shred of pain, still not stopping his slaughter.

The flames spurting from his body splashed onto the ground, turning into blood; the Heavenly Fire Dharma King grew weaker and weaker, until finally only powerless panting remained, and he could barely lift the great flame sword in his hand.

The Black Black Tide besieging the Heavenly Fire Dharma King became even more fierce at this moment, vowing to cover and devour him.

Just as the Heavenly Fire Dharma King's life was about to reach its end.

A roar rang out in the regional voice channel:

"Everyone fucking stop, don't move, listen to my command and focus fire!"

This voice was very familiar to the vast majority of players; it was precisely Shen Wang, the supreme commander of many campaigns.

Players who knew him stopped one after another, leaving only a few players who completely ignored him and continued their damage output.

At this moment, Shen Wang's gaze was tightly locked onto the Heavenly Fire Dharma King, who had knelt on the ground, extremely weak, as if waiting for something.

Just then, the fire demon body on the Heavenly Fire Dharma King dispersed, revealing his true form.

Seeing this scene, Shen Wang roared in the voice channel:

"Focus fire, output, snatch the last hit!"

The players, poised and ready, struck out all at once, maximizing their damage output.

The surging Black Black Tide also lunged at the Heavenly Fire Dharma King at this moment, wanting to gnaw on his flesh and blood.

But the firepower concentration unleashed by the players' focused attack pierced through the black mist, pouring entirely onto the Heavenly Fire Dharma King, who was on the verge of death.

[Challenger Notification: Congratulations to player squad: Playing Games Should Be Happy... (45) people for killing the Heavenly Fire Dharma King, receiving a sacrificial power reward of 13,723 points (shared by squad players).]

The voice channel instantly erupted with countless cheers, even though this reward had nothing to do with them.

Seeing this scene, Qi Sheng could not help but burst into loud laughter.

Meanwhile, the Earth-Nian Evil Spirit, who was manipulating the Black Black Tide from behind the scenes, discovering that his nutrients had been stolen again, became so angry his eyes turned red, wishing he could personally rush to the battlefield and slaughter all the players there.

But this thought was stopped once again by the Evil Eye, stating that as the Black Black Tide commander, he should not be so impulsive.

What greeted him was the Earth-Nian Evil Spirit's furious cursing.

Regarding this, the Evil Eye was already accustomed to it.

Information obtained from other nodes indicated that as attendant auxiliary eyes serving the commander, they ought to bear the emotions vented by the commander during moments of anger and actively provide assistance in channeling them.

But this commander's temper was evidently more irritable than those of other nodes.

He needed to endure the frequency of emotional venting being too high.

But thinking of his own positioning, the Evil Eye spoke up once again to soothe him:

"Earth-Nian, you need to calm down; we are the biggest winners of this campaign, you should feel happy about this."

"Happy your mother!"

"My mother is the Thirteenth Divine Eye; please do not insult her. She gave birth to countless auxiliary eyes for our clan and established remarkable military achievements by expanding our territory."

"Happy your father."

"I have no father, so you may insult him," the Evil Eye agreed very calmly.

Continuing with an explosion of over ten thousand words~





(End of Chapter)