Chapter 155: The Sorrow of Earth-Eating, The Bone Fire Mission

The Primordial Sacrifice Altar.

According to feedback from the Guide, Qi Sheng received a set of data.

Since the pet function went live these past few days, 22,392 pets had already been adopted.

Ranked by adoption numbers, they were:

First place: Fat Peach (12,594)

Second place: Light Spirit Feather (5,923)

Third place: Treasure-Hunting Rat (2,594)

Fourth place: Colorful Fruit (799)

Fifth place: Filth (482)

With its low price and financial attributes, Fat Peach's adoption count exceeded the sum of the other four combined.

In terms of subsequent growth, the trend of Fat Peach's adoption numbers continued to expand.

However, the requirement for continuous investment of sacrificial power to raise pets deterred many players; quite a few still preferred spending resources on boosting their own strength rather than diverting sacrificial power to raise pets in hopes of future returns.

Qi Sheng's next plan involved creating the cultivator function and searching for the second batch of pet templates.

Secondly, through the perspective of his Guide avatar, he constantly monitored the war between the Ascension Clan and Shu Yan.

This war had changed flavor after the players appeared.

While the two clans fought fiercely within the scene, players lurked in the mist surrounding the area, waiting for an opportunity to ambush.

Thanks to efforts over these past few days, the scale of Shu Yan clan warriors dominated via controlled soul souls outside the scene had expanded to 103, and 38 members of the Ascension Clan had been finished off, yielding abundant harvests.

Especially the Shu Yan warriors.

These free pets, with customizable ability settings, were the dream goal of countless control-stream players.

As the warriors of the two clans consumed each other's foundations, the players profited from the middle.

Through data feedback from these past few days, Qi Sheng also discovered that during the phase of the great war between the Ascension Clan and Shu Yan, the number of embedded control souls had surged by 127.5%.

This soul, always considered to be at T4 strength intensity, had become a version-hot soul during the two-clan war phase.

Its popularity only slightly declined after the pet function went live.

At this moment, both the Ascension Clan and Shu Yan had noticed the players' existence.

From the perspective of the two factions, they clearly could not understand the players' behavior.

They lurked in the mist shrouding the scene, peeking out to observe the war's progression; whenever a dying warrior fell near them, they would swarm out, launching fierce attacks until the dying warrior was killed.

Or they would drag dying Shu Yan warriors away from the scene.

These strange behaviors initially did not attract serious attention from the two clans; they merely thought this race of lifeforms was truly bold, daring to wait for an opportunity to snatch food amidst a war between two clans.

But as the number of players increased, both clans realized something was amiss.

This group lying in wait to ambush was even about to stick their chopsticks into the battlefield.

They had already launched several charges toward the center of the battlefield.

These suicide-style attacks left them puzzled, but mostly filled them with anger.

However, both clans focused their attention on each other's race, having no mental energy to spare for these ants disrupting the game.

In their eyes, the players could not affect the war's outcome; they merely found them irritating.

Through observations over these past few days, Qi Sheng also deeply investigated the hundreds of thousands of projection-connected worlds established by Shu Yan, roughly understanding why Shu Yan had descended upon this region.

During his analytical observation, he discovered that among the small worlds connected by Shu Yan's projections was a cultivation world controlled by the Ascension Clan.

Therefore, a conflict of interests between the two was highly likely.

Shu Yan collected ink power output in these small worlds through storytellers, literati, and other disseminators of stories.

The stronger the reader and the higher their mental intensity, the more ink power was generated during reading.

But during this process, Shu Yan discovered problems with the ink power output from the projection-connected small worlds; frequently, high-quality readers (those producing high ink power) would mysteriously vanish.

Driven by curiosity, it used the projection connection to enter the small worlds with its consciousness to investigate.

Gradually, it learned the truth behind these small worlds: the high-quality readers had not vanished but had been possessed by the Ascension Clan from the upper world.

In fact, Shu Yan did not care about readers being possessed; if the Ascension Clan members who completed the possession could become loyal readers of its stories, it would be too lazy to care about the safety of lifeforms in the cultivation world.

But the Ascension Clan members who completed the possession did not read its stories; in Shu Yan's eyes, this was a major problem.

For every high-quality reader lost, a portion of ink power revenue decreased.

To protect the readers in the small worlds and to obtain more ink power output, Shu Yan had already prepared to declare war on the Ascension Clan at that time.

The first step of the war plan was actually not to directly start the war, but to conduct preliminary probing.

That was the first engagement between the Shu Yan Clan and the Ascension Clan.

If the preliminary engagement revealed that the Ascension Clan's combat power was fundamentally beyond its ability to contend with, Shu Yan would most likely cut his losses and flee, moving to another region to start anew.

After all, this was not Shu Yan's first time cutting a book.

Records on the Rule Book could prove that Shu Yan always cut and ran when unable to win, never staying behind.

Except for the first two Black Black Tide descents, which swallowed its profits from cutting books, the other two times it cut books, it managed to recover most of its earnings.

In this preliminary engagement, Shu Yan confirmed that the Ascension Clan's combat power was something it could contend with.

Thus, it initiated the second step of the plan: the war of attrition currently underway after cutting off the supply of combat power.

So, what seemed like a sudden war actually had traceable logic behind it.

Simply put, Shu Yan extended its chopsticks toward the Ascension Clan's farm to pick up some dishes, and upon finding the portion smaller than expected, prepared to snatch it by force.

This was Qi Sheng's speculation based on known clues.

But as for the specific truth, he was too lazy to spend sacrificial power investigating further.

Whether the Ascension Clan or Shu Yan won mattered little to him; he only cared about how much benefit these two clans could bring to himself and the players.

During this period, a post refreshed on the forum caught Qi Sheng's interest as very amusing.

The poster, through the number of replies and likes on the thread, collected players' views on known factions and compiled a list of impression tags players held for each faction.

The Bliss Clan: A rising star, has an inspirational clan chief who loves spreading happiness, a happiness-making machine, the Lord of Welfare, offer my Bliss power.

The Terrifying Black Black Tide: A madman addicted to devouring everywhere, the strongest AI in the Monster World, the faction where the Di Nian bully resides, boasts system troops as numerous as ox hairs, terrifying war growth ability, can't be killed, simply can't be killed, rumored to be the strongest faction in the Monster World.

The Combat Insect Clan: Hungry hungry hungry, eat eat eat, kills without reason, either fighting or on the way to fight, grows fiercer with every battle, more like a killing machine than the Black Black Tide, an emotionless assassin.

The Ancient God Clan: The mysterious Ancient God never acts personally, the Champion Fighter is awesome, we are serious about pleasing the Ancient God, when will the Ancient God come pick me up, the arena must not close down, a workplace opened by luck and lottery, rewards distributed based on performance.

The Counter-Black Tide Legion: Food is incredibly good, welfare is incredibly good, hurry up and release the next round of quotas for the Counter-Black Tide Legion, the hunger-endurance training camp, daily group brawls, the famous ground of the Grind-God Team, as long as you work hard, resources will be maxed out for you.

The Mechanical Overlord: Suddenly descended with a snap, gave us a sound beating, ruthlessly scraped the land bare, a faction from the neighboring continent, sounds quite powerful according to the Guide's description.

The Ascension Clan: Farm owners, the farming party of the Monster World, the Ascension Clan is here to harvest leeks again, nurturing seedlings starts with scattering resources, harvest one crop and another grows, crop after crop endlessly, the defeated opponent of the Champion Fighter.

The Soul-Return Clan: Perfect possession is too disgusting, this child cannot be left alive, luckily we players cannot possess, otherwise it would be too terrifying, the number one hostile faction of the Counter-Black Tide Legion, abilities are too disgusting, suggest official ban.

Shu Yan: Dead eunuch, the King of Bad Endings, cut the book again and again and again, when will the new book open?, custom warriors get good reviews, can have whatever combat power system with a snap of the head, masters three types of Rule Powers, but sooner or later they will belong to us players.

Through these tags given by players, one could very intuitively see the players' attitudes toward the various factions.

Only three factions could garner players' favor: the Counter-Black Tide Legion, the Bliss Clan, and the Ancient God Clan.

Because these three factions had indeed brought welfare to players, allowing many to make a fortune.

Especially the Counter-Black Tide Legion, which was the place players most wanted to go.

Compared to the welfare given by other factions, the Counter-Black Tide Legion's systematic cultivation provided maxed-out resources throughout the entire process, a fact visible even in the Grind-God Team's livestream room.

The rule blessing of the War God Seal made countless players yearn for it.

Among these known powerful factions, the ones with the most negative reviews were the Black Black Tide and the Soul-Return Clan.

The Black Black Tide controlled by the Di Nian Evil Spirit was the only faction that had made players stumble multiple times; even in resurrection battles, they could not defeat the Di Nian Evil Spirit, and its terrifying growth speed made players shout that it must be nerfed.

This was also the first faction players encountered in the Monster World, and also a faction they had never managed to defeat.

The Di Nian Evil Spirit itself was called the Di Nian Bully after countless engagements with players.

The Soul-Return Clan received many negative reviews because its possession ability made players feel extremely repulsed.

Especially when members of the Grind-God Team, en route to the Phase Two Training Camp, witnessed a killed Four-Eyed Clan warrior being possessed by a Soul Beast, then smiling at Ghost Eye and calling out "Clan Brother," which many players found unacceptable.

They considered this faction too evil and believed that given the chance in the future, they must eradicate them completely.

Colorful Mist Coast, Divine Oracle Plain.

This was a plain region hidden deep within a forest, shrouded in clouds and mist, where large tracts of reclaimed farmland were meticulously divided into square plots; spiritual qi gathered here, the fields nestled against mountains and beside waters, surrounded by lush trees.

Under long-term nourishment by spiritual qi, the fields had begun to show trends of becoming spiritual fields.

But this kind of spiritual field was not a rule resource of a domain node, but a type of natural spiritual field.

The soil in the spiritual fields presented a pale green color; planted within were a type of spiritual grain serving as food, emitting a heart-penetrating fragrance that attracted colorful flying insects to dance gracefully among the fields.

At the end of the fields stood an ancient village, with rows of farmhouses built.

The farmhouses were constructed from a mixture of rock and yellow earth; having undergone the baptism of years, their surfaces were already mottled, roofs covered with thick thatch; although simple, they could shelter from wind and rain, providing a warm harbor for the lifeforms living here.

In front of every farmhouse, a small vegetable garden was enclosed by bamboo fences, inside which various seasonal vegetables were planted, lush and green.

As the sun set in the west, cooking smoke curled up from the village, intertwining with the clouds and mist in the forest, composing a warm and tranquil pastoral landscape painting.

At this moment, a player team of 52 people was advancing toward the area where the spiritual fields were located.

"The spiritual wine brewed by the Stone-Earth Clan is too delicious; this stuff would definitely sell for a high price in the Exchange Hall, pity we don't even have enough for ourselves." Thinking that they would soon be able to drink the spiritual wine brewed by the Stone-Earth Clan again, the team leader walking at the very front of the group couldn't help but sigh in the voice channel.

"Team Leader, can we set up an industrial chain? We use Mall resources to exchange for spiritual wine with the Stone-Earth Clan, then sell it in the Exchange Hall; I feel it would be a substantial source of income."

Hearing the teammate's suggestion in the voice channel, Fang Zhi couldn't help but shake his head:

"I thought about this long ago and even asked the Food-Earth Clan Chief, but their spiritual wine production is very low, fundamentally unable to supply the Exchange Hall's consumption; doing this business once is fine, but it won't last long."

Speaking thus, Fang Zhi raised his head to look forward.

His gaze pierced through the gaps in the dense forest; the spiritual fields ahead were within arm's reach.

This area had been accidentally discovered by their squad while hunting a fleeing monster.

Upon seeing the vast number of low-grade spiritual plants cultivated in the fields, they had been ecstatic, ready to harvest them immediately.

But what surprised Fang Zhi was that a large crowd of Stone-Earth Clan members suddenly surged out from the village at the far end of the spiritual fields.

This startled them, and they immediately prepared for battle.

However, contrary to their expectations, the swarming Earth-Eating Clan members knelt one after another before even getting close, kowtowing repeatedly to them; the Earth-Eating Clan Chief at the front even expressed willingness to offer up resources, begging to escape slaughter and plunder.

This completely dispelled any such thoughts in Fang Zhi's mind.

As a player, although he could act recklessly within the game, his principles and worldview as a human being remained intact.

In this game with such incredibly realistic immersion, he could even see the look of pleading in the eyes of the elderly Earth-Eating Clan Chief.

The delicate expression of such emotion carried such a strong impact that Fang Zhi compromised instantly, even feeling that he was truly a scumbag for having harbored such vile thoughts of plunder.

Facing their plea, he immediately assured the Earth-Eating Clan Chief that they would commit no excessive acts and were merely passing through.

Upon learning this, the Stone-Earth Clan clearly breathed a sigh of relief, then welcomed them into the village, bringing out self-brewed spiritual wine and various delicacies to treat them.

To this, Fang Zhi did not refuse; he led his brothers in enjoying a grand meal there and offered a batch of Mall goods in exchange.

Afterwards, whenever they passed by while hunting nearby, they would stop at the village where the Earth-Eating Clan resided to mooch a meal, leaving behind a batch of resources in return.

After multiple contacts, they got along harmoniously.

During this time, he had also asked the Earth-Eating Clan Chief about the circumstances of their race.

Through the Earth-Eating Clan Chief's account, he learned that the Earth-Eating Clan had gone into seclusion here to avoid war as much as possible.

Their arrival dated back hundreds of years at the earliest.

At that time, the Earth-Eating Clan was a hegemonic power in a minor world; believing that a broader sky would benefit their race's development, the then-Chief led his clansmen to descend upon the Monster World.

Before descending, they even swore an oath to lead their clan, starting from this upper world, toward an era of even more prosperous development.

But oaths, after all, are not reality.

Having expended massive amounts of resources and manpower, they had painstakingly constructed a spatial teleportation channel.

They had thought they could unleash their full potential in a vaster world, until they made initial contact with the living beings of the Monster World.

Only then did they realize how terrifying this world truly was, but it was too late for regret.

The moment they descended, the Earth-Eating Clan was surrounded by local powers.

This war nearly drove the Earth-Eating Clan to extinction; ultimately, they hid in this region shrouded by dense forests, barely surviving, with fewer than 5% of their original numbers remaining from the time of their descent.

This battle also caused the Earth-Eating Clan to completely abandon their ambition of conquering the world.

The surviving clansmen thereafter multiplied and thrived here, felling trees, reclaiming wasteland, and even constructing a spirit-gathering array near this area to draw spiritual energy to nourish the land, making the soil even more fertile.

With the efforts of generation after generation of clansmen, those arduous days gradually improved.

Most importantly, after negotiating with the strongest power in this region, the "Thorn Clan," the Earth-Eating Clan obtained protection; henceforth, they only needed to pay 65% of their spiritual plant yield annually to be allowed to settle here, ensuring their safety.

But those good days did not last long; the Thorn Clan exited the historical stage, their clan extinguished and dispersed.

The newly emerged powers raised the resource levy from 65% of the yield to 75%; basically, every century or so, the managing power would change.

All the Earth-Eating Clan could do was survive in the cracks between clashing races, proving to the outside world that they had absolutely no ambition by refusing to develop military strength, willingly becoming a servant power cultivating spiritual fields for other forces.

They reclaimed the land themselves and took full responsibility for planting; it was precisely this development model of abandoning military construction that allowed the Earth-Eating Clan to survive safely until now.

Developing to the present day, the Earth-Eating Clan's population still numbered less than a thousand.

This deliberately limited population scale was both to demonstrate to nearby powers that the Earth-Eating Clan had absolutely no ambition and to save on resource expenditures; after all, the spiritual fields in their territory were only so large, unable to expand further, and simply could not support more clansmen.

This was the tragedy of a small clan.

Without the protection of a super-power like the Counter-Black Tide Legion, a small clan was merely "food" at the mercy of others to slaughter and exploit, possessing no voice anywhere.

Lost in thought, Fang Zhi led his team members through the dense forest; seeing the cooking smoke in the distance, smiles floated onto their faces, knowing they could mooch another meal.

But very soon, Fang Zhi noticed something was wrong.

The spiritual plants in the spiritual fields ahead had been completely harvested; not a single spiritual plant could be found.

During his last chat with the Earth-Eating Clan Chief, he clearly remembered the Chief saying that this batch of spiritual plants would mature next month; how could they have been harvested early?

Looking up at the village at the end of the spiritual fields, the smoke in the air, upon closer inspection, also seemed off; it did not appear to be cooking smoke.

"Let's go take a look."

Fang Zhi's expression changed; he immediately rushed toward the farming house area at the far end, with his teammates following closely behind.

Entering the village, the lively scene full of vitality that should have been present had vanished entirely; only the wind remained, weaving through the dilapidated, open houses, emitting wails like ghosts crying and wolves howling.

The first thing to catch their eyes was the old tree at the village entrance; it still stood with its roots tangled and knotted, but beneath it lay several shriveled corpses drained of blood, scattered haphazardly; their faces were twisted, eyes wide open, as if in their final moments they had witnessed something extremely terrifying; among them, an elder still tightly gripped a sickle in his hand, his knuckles white from the force, seeming to have resisted before death.

Proceeding along the narrow dirt road, most farmhouse doors were half-ajar; by the threshold of one house lay a young figure prone on the ground, holding a child tightly nestled against them; both the adult and the child had likewise been drained of blood.

"Bastards!"

"Who the hell did this? Attacking a peaceful faction is too vicious."

Seeing this scene, the players spoke out one after another in the squad voice channel.

Squad Leader Fang Zhi, his Iron Face iron-green, led the team to the center of the village.

There, an Earth-Eating Clan elder, his Iron Face filled with despair and his eyes dull, was dragging corpses, piling them in the open space at the village center to burn.

The "cooking smoke" they had seen was precisely what rose from burning the corpses.

Stopping in front of the Earth-Eating Clan elder who was dragging the corpses, Fang Zhi blocked his path and asked in a heavy voice:

"What happened here?"

The Earth-Eating Clan elder slowly raised his head, looked at Fang Zhi, and immediately recognized him as a member of the foreign power that had frequently visited recently; a trace of clarity returned to his eyes, but the despair at the bottom did not dissipate, and he explained in a hoarse voice:

"We were invaded; all the resources in our clan were plundered, including our clansmen, who became food for the invading power... everyone is dead."

As he spoke, the Earth-Eating Clan elder's lips trembled continuously, and boundless terror remained in his hollow eyes.

"Where is the Chief?"

"Dead."

Hearing this, Fang Zhi's expression turned gloomy.

Subsequently, he asked the Earth-Eating Clan elder in detail about the specific circumstances at the time.

He learned that just half a day ago, a group of foreign powers clad in black armor had suddenly attacked; the Earth-Eating Clan Chief had intended to beg for peace by offering resources, but the attacking power completely ignored the Chief's request, slaughtering and draining the entire village before harvesting and taking away all the spiritual plants from the fields.

The elder explaining the situation had been arranged to hide in the cellar where food was stored, thus escaping death.

Learning the details, Fang Zhi was so angry his teeth itched; he then asked the elder why they were cremating their clansmen's corpses.

The elder explained that in the Earth-Eating Clan's tradition, after a clansman died, their soul would be trapped within the dead flesh; only by burning it with fierce flames could the soul be helped to ascend and refine.

The remaining ashes would be crafted into stone walls and sent to the graveyard; this was their way of mourning the deceased.

Learning the reason, Fang Zhi could not help but sigh:

"Brothers, lend a hand; since fate brought us together, let's put in some effort."

Facing the captain's proposal, the team members all expressed agreement and began searching the village for corpses, suppressing their grief and indignation as they dragged them to the open space in the village center to burn.

Several hours later, gazing at the raging flames burning on the open ground, Fang Zhi sighed in his heart.

Although it was a game, witnessing such a tragic scene stirred his heart, even evoking a sense of powerlessness.

Turning to look at the elder standing aside, whose tears had already run dry, Fang Zhi asked:

"What are your plans?"

Upon hearing this, the elder took a gem emitting a scattered, brilliant light from his pocket and handed it to Fang Zhi:

"It was precisely to protect this inherited object that the Chief ordered me to hide in the cellar; now that they are all dead, my living alone holds no meaning, and I wish to follow them... if possible, I would like to entrust you with one matter, though you may refuse."

"Speak." Fang Zhi did not take the gem, nor did he even activate analysis.

"Our clan built a graveyard 16 kilometers north of here; that is also the initial landing site where our ancestors descended upon the Monster World; I request that you take the stone walls made from cremating my clansmen and bury them in the graveyard."

"And you?"

The Earth-Eating Clan elder shook his head, gazing at the flames still burning ahead, muttering to himself.

Fang Zhi wanted to speak words of comfort but did not know what to say; the cliché that living is better than dying felt pale and powerless; ultimately, he could only nod and say:

"Very well, we agree."

"Thank you." Saying this, the elder stood up, stuffed the brilliant gem in his hand into Fang Zhi's palm:

"Actually, I long anticipated that this day would come; in this world, weakness is a sin; leave this inherited treasure to you all."

As he spoke these words, the elder seemed to have made some kind of decision.

Before long, the flames burned out.

The Earth-Eating Clan elder came to stand before the piled ashes; the qi and blood within his body ignited, turning him into a man of fire.

Under the Earth-Eating Clan elder's control, the surrounding ashes converged toward him, finally merging with his body to form a stone slab nearly ten meters tall.

While sighing in his heart, Fang Zhi lowered his head to look at the brilliant gem in his hand.

[Earth-Eating Gold]:

Item Quality: 49

Item Description: A spiritual composite crafted by the Earth-Eating Clan over several generations; it records a vast amount of the Earth-Eating Clan's historical information and technical data; it can be used for forging weapons and equipment or sacrificed to Di Zhao.

A material of quality 49 was already extremely high.

At the current stage, the highest quality item players had encountered was the necklace around the neck of "Tong Zi," a good brother from the Liver-Emperor Group, which had a quality of 285.

Meanwhile, the weapons and equipment commonly used by players had a quality around 20.

Sacrificing this item of quality 49 to Di Zhao would yield approximately over ten thousand points of Sacrificial Power.

While sighing in his heart, Fang Zhi stored the gem in his Spatial Satchel and decided to lead his teammates to fulfill the Earth-Eating Clan elder's request before his departure.

Looking up at the stone slab, its volume was obviously too large to be stored in the Spatial Satchel.

"Captain, the village has resource carts that the Earth-Eating Clan used to send supplies to nearby factions; why not use one of those things to transport it?" a player suggested over the squad channel at that moment.

"Good, since we promised, we must deliver; bring the resource cart."

Before long, a teammate pushed over a resource cart specially designed for carrying spiritual plants, and the players worked together to lay the stone slabs onto the cart, escorting them toward the direction the elder had indicated.

Before leaving the spiritual field area, Fang Zhi turned back to glance at the village and couldn't help but sigh again:

"I've realized that all these clans descending into the Monster World share one trait: they always believe a higher platform will allow their clan to spread its wings and soar; the Heavenly Fire Dharma King was like this, and the Earth-Eating Clan is no different."

Hearing the captain's words, the player standing beside him, wearing a straw hat, sighed along with him:

"Captain, I asked the Guide about your question; actually, none of them are wrong—they just want better development for their clans—but they cannot see the risks of a higher platform, always believing that the status they hold in their small world is the truth of their strength, enough to secure better development in a higher world."

"It's like a deaf person thinking everyone dancing to music is mad; they cannot see the unknown truth, or rather, they believe everything seen within their narrow field of vision is the truth, firmly convinced they are not mistaken; this information gap drives forces like the Heavenly Fire Clan and the Earth-Eating Clan down a dead end."

"Perhaps some clans among them could rise from obscurity in the Monster World to become regional overlords, but the vast majority become nourishment for the growth of other forces."

Thinking of how the once-lively village was wiped out overnight, the squad members felt low in spirits.

But they did not forget the elder's commission and carried the stone slabs northward.

Half an hour later, the squad followed a winding, rugged path out of the lush, dense forest; ahead lay a relatively open stretch of road, making it easier to push the cart forward.

Just as the player squad reached the center of this area, countless figures clad in heavy armor suddenly surged in from all sides.

Sensing something was wrong, Captain Fang Zhi immediately shouted:

"Prepare for battle!"

As soon as he spoke, Gang Qi seeped from his pores, covering his body's surface.

Then, a colorful small bird drilled out of the void, chirping as it flew upward and circled around the squad.

Looking up at the approaching figures, the leader stood tall and burly, resembling a moving black hill.

The Analysis ability activated at that moment.

[Evil Nine]:

Hunting Rank: 54

Target Analysis: A warrior of the "Evil Armor Clan" that recently descended into the Monster World; its true form is a gaseous lifeform that fights by possessing armor, feeding on the blood of other living beings to gain growth after absorption.

Seeing the analysis information and recalling the elder's words,

Fang Zhi could be certain that the group responsible for slaughtering the village was this batch of newly arrived Evil Armor Clan members.

Their faces were invisible through the black armor; only eyes radiating red light could be seen.

Each suit of black armor seemed cast from shadow, gleaming with a cold luster under the sunlight; the shoulder guards were broad as wings, engraved with golden stripes, while sharp armor horns resembling demonic claws extended outward arrogantly; the chest armor was thick and solid, inlaid with a golden ferocious beast.

Behind the leading Evil Armor Clan warrior followed a group of warriors likewise clad in black armor.

Some warriors had helmets adorned with sharp bone spines, ferocious as thorns; others had beast faces carved onto their arm guards... Though each warrior's black armor had slight variations, all exuded a sinister aura.

They surged in from all directions like a black Black Tide.

Seeing this scene, the squad members immediately realized they had become hunting targets.

"Brothers, we've got work to do."

As captain, Fang Zhi stepped forward, the Gang Qi beneath his feet rippling outward.

Hearing this, the other squad members sprang into action as well.

Players with combat pets immediately summoned them; magic-system players raised spell towers on the spot; support players readied light shields; Stone Statue-stream players took the outermost circle of the formation... As veteran players, the squad members clearly knew their roles in battle.

Without any useless words, battle was about to erupt.

Acting like a berserker, Captain Fang Zhi charged straight at the Evil Armor Clan warriors, throwing a punch at Evil Nine, whose rank was seven levels higher than his own.

The Petrification ability activated at that moment, instantly plating his body surface with a layer of pitch black.

Bang!

His fist collided with the serrated blade Evil Nine had drawn from behind his back; in his petrified form, Fang Zhi stood immovable as a mountain, his legs planted on the ground as if rooted, whereas Evil Nine was knocked stumbling backward by the punch, red light flickering in the eyes beneath his helmet.

At that moment, Fang Zhi dispelled his petrified form and decisively activated Taunt.

Instantly, memories within the minds of the surrounding Evil Armor Clan warriors automatically assembled; endless rage rose from the depths of their hearts, Fang Zhi's Iron Face appearing so detestable in their eyes that surging emotions drove them to launch an assault against him.

A Thirsty Blood Brand formed above Fang Zhi's head, and he activated his petrified form once more.

After enduring multiple weapon slashes in succession, a beam of green fluorescent light descended from the sky, connecting with Fang Zhi.

The healing light of the Light Spirit Feather arrived and began restoring Fang Zhi's health.

The other players also struck out at this time, mounting a defensive counterattack centered around protecting the stone slabs they were escorting.

"Hold the line, brothers; we absolutely cannot let the stone slabs be destroyed; we accepted the commission fee for this task, so we must see it through."

Fang Zhi shouted over the voice channel, then activated Taunt again, drawing the Evil Armor warriors, who were gradually regaining clarity, back to fight around him.

The other Stone Statue-stream players on the outer circle struck out, using their Taunt Soul to forcibly attract the Evil Armor warriors and protect the players in the center.

Ink Flame, Spell Towers, Running Thunder... various magic-system damage traits also crashed down upon the Evil Armor Clan warriors at this time.

But in terms of numbers, they were at an absolute disadvantage.

"Guide, how many of them are there?" Fang Zhi asked.

[278.]

"Damn!"

Learning the exact number, Fang Zhi immediately felt the situation was dire, then shouted over the voice channel:

"Everyone, don't save your potions; fight a war of attrition with them; we must hold out... Ah Le, call all our guild brothers over to help; try to hold on as long as possible."

"Captain, I've already contacted the boss."

Protected by the four Stone Statue-stream players and the light shields occasionally released by the support players, the squad held firm under pressure, preventing the Evil Armor Clan from breaking through.

But as their vitality was consumed, the squad players gradually began to falter.

On the Black Armor Clan's side, Evil Nine, having successfully broken free from the Taunt suppression, quickly retreated out of the Taunt's range, his red eyes suddenly fixing on the stone slabs protected in the players' center.

He realized these living beings seemed to value the central stone slabs immensely.

Realizing he could not break through from the perimeter, he immediately formed a plan, his hoarse voice ringing out:

"The stone slabs seem to be their weakness; Group 3, tunnel underground and attack the slabs; look for a killing opportunity."

As soon as his words fell, a squad of Evil Armor Clan warriors at the rear drilled into the earth.

These words, translated, also rang in the players' ears, causing the squad members' expressions to change drastically.

"Warriors, move up; Stone Statue-stream, follow me into the inner circle to protect!" Fang Zhi roared at that moment.

The four Stone Statue-stream players in the squad decisively retreated, while the warrior players actively moved up to take their place.

Just as they reached the inner circle, the ground loosened, and several figures burst forth from the earth, their weapons slashing directly toward the stone slabs.

In this critical moment, three light shields formed around the stone slabs.

The weapons in the Evil Armor warriors' hands smashed against the light shields, sending countless golden sparks flying.

At that moment, several more Evil Armor warriors burst from the ground, their serrated blades turning into phantoms as they continuously slashed at the magic-system players.

Two magic-system players were instantly shattered into black mist and dispersed.

Attacked from both inside and outside, the squad's formation was immediately scattered.

Evil Nine cleverly had his clansmen fight around the stone slabs; he discovered that as long as they feinted an attack on the slabs, these living beings would defend them at the cost of their lives, making it easy to find breakthrough points.

This proved his guess was correct; this seemingly ordinary stone slab was indeed these living beings' weakness.

This tactic made the players unable to help but curse loudly.

Usually, they fought without any scruples, but this time they truly had a weakness.

After all, they had accepted the inheritance treasure, and the next task was to transport the ash wall.

Although failing the task would result in no loss, and the inheritance treasure had already entered their spatial bags, their consciences simply could not accept it.

These deceased Earth-Eating Clan members had once warmly hosted them; just as the captain said, their meeting was ultimately a matter of fate.

But now they faced an assault by the Evil Armor Clan, and with their combat power alone, they simply could not withstand it.

Under the continuous attacks of the Evil Armor Clan, the squad kept losing members until only the four Stone Statue-stream players remained alive.

Even the Light Spirit Feather in the sky was killed by the Evil Armor warriors using some kind of ranged attack weapon.

The remaining three Stone Statue-stream players, led by Captain Fang Zhi, circled the stone slabs, continuously releasing Taunts, still gritting their teeth and holding on.

"Captain, we can't hold anymore."

A teammate's cry rang out over the voice channel; Fang Zhi turned to look and saw a player beside him shed his petrified form, only to be instantly focused by dense attacks and dissolve into black mist.

"Damn your grandfather!" Fang Zhi's eyes turned blood-red; he activated Taunt again, drawing even more firepower.

But persistence at this point was undoubtedly futile.

Before long, the other two Stone Statue-stream teammates also dissolved into black smoke.

As Fang Zhi watched, his eyes nearly bursting from their sockets, Evil Nine struck the stone slab, shattering it; fragments flew in all directions.

With his vitality exhausted, Fang Zhi also shed his petrified form at this moment; under the dense assault, the scene before his eyes gradually dimmed.

After killing Fang Zhi and the others, Evil Nine crouched down and picked up a fragment of the shattered stone slab:

"Ordinary matter; utterly worthless."

In fact, their original target was not this protected stone slab, but rather to devour the vitality and blood within these living beings.

Alas, upon death, they dissolved into black mist, making it impossible to extract even a shred of vitality energy.

"Next target," Evil Nine said in a deep voice at that moment.

Before long, the Evil Armor Clan members withdrew, leaving behind only scattered stone fragments drifting in the wind.

But what the Evil Armor Clan did not know was what kind of existence they had provoked.

Just as Evil Nine had guessed, on this escort mission, the ash stone slabs were the player squad's weakness.

But now, that weakness was gone.

……

A few minutes later, a plea for help was posted on the forum.

The post detailed the entire ordeal: Fang Zhi's squad's first encounter with the Earth-Eating Clan, their warm reception, the subsequent massacre of the Earth-Eating Clan's village by the Evil Armor Clan, and how the poster's squad, tasked with escorting an ash tablet, was ambushed by the Evil Armor Clan en route.

The post's popularity soared; after watching the edited video within, many players broke down.

The first half of the footage was heartwarming: squad players and Earth-Eating Clansmen sharing wine and laughter at the village entrance, the clansmen serving various delicious spiritual foods to the player squad, while the players left behind resources from the mall in return.

On every subsequent visit, members of the Earth-Eating Clan greeted them with smiles and warm hospitality.

But the second half of the video chilled the heart.

The village had become a sea of fire, with black smoke billowing.

The Earth-Eating Clansmen who had been smiling innocently in the video one second lay scattered haphazardly across the village the next; blood trails wound across the ground, many damaged houses teetered on the verge of collapse, and surviving elders, lingering on the brink of death under the shadow of demise, wore expressions of despair.

The former vitality and warmth of life had vanished like a dream or an illusion, leaving behind only suffocating misery.

After learning the full story, forum players who read the post flew into a rage, cursing vehemently in the comments.

When Fang Zhi resurrected, a large crowd of players had already gathered at the resurrection point, waiting; they called out one after another:

"Brother, count me in for this strike. It's always been us players bullying others; there's no reason for others to bully us. Start a warband and pull me into the team."

"Such kind villagers, massacred just like that. Watching the video, I was nearly in tears. Count me in."

"Brother, start the warband quickly. I'm determined to kill these Evil Armor Clansmen. This is an inversion of heaven and earth—have they not heard who the boss is in the Colorful Mist Coast region?"

"I was already preparing to log off, but after reading the post, I'm shaking all over with anger. Count me in for the revenge operation; I'll smash those Evil Armor dogs to death with my light shield, damn it."

……

Looking at the dense crowd of players before him, filled with righteous indignation, Fang Zhi was moved in his heart.

He immediately formed a group, batching nearby players into the warband.

The guild leader also arrived at this moment with several hundred players and joined the group.

After leaving the Colorful Mist Space, thousands of players marched in great force toward the location where the ambush had occurred.

Along the way, players continuously sent private messages, requesting to join the team.

Even leaders of several major guilds took the initiative to contact them, stating they would soon bring their guild members to provide support.

As more and more players joined successively, the scale of the warband continuously expanded during the advance.

Every player who joined the warband harbored a pent-up fire in their hearts, vowing to annihilate the Evil Armor Clan.

(End of Chapter)