Chapter 2523 – Run

“Why are there so many fallen Demon patrol squads?”

“What happened here?”

“Did those people kill all of these patrol squads?”

Windtooth’s members were curious and afraid when they saw so many Demon corpses strewn around them.

The Demon patrol squads served as a barrier between intruders and Demon City, with 10,000 Demons patrolling the Burning Forest. Thus far, however, the adventurer team had found more than 1,000 Demon corpses.

This was one-tenth of the Burning Forest’s defenses...

“Commander, there’s something you need to see!” the masked, Tier 3 Assassin, who had scouted ahead, reported in the team chat.

All of the team members put up their guard the moment they heard the Assassin. Meanwhile, Regretful Wind hurried to the Assassin’s side.

Finding his comrade, Regretful Wind arrived before a forested area laden with player corpses. To his surprise, however, there was no sign of battle. Some of the weapons and equipment the players had dropped hadn’t been touched, and after a quick glance around, Regretful Wind counted more than 200 bodies.

Based on how the organized the corpses lay, it looked as if death had befallen them as the group marched through the forest. It was almost as if the battle had ended as abruptly as it had begun, and none of these players had had a chance to react to the attack...

While scanning the dead, Regretful Wind quickly noticed the familiar faces of several Tier 3 experts. He clearly wasn’t pleased about it, either.

“How was Misty Ghost’s main force annihilated?” Regretful Wind stared at the fallen team in confusion. “What happened here?”

Misty Ghost was a relatively famous medium-scale adventurer team based in Demon City. Although the adventurer team had fewer than 2,000 members, it had over 30 Tier 3 experts, including one Demon Viscount and 10 Demon Barons.

Even Windtooth would struggle to defeat Misty Ghost.

And yet, Misty Ghost’s main force had died here. They hadn’t even had a chance to fight back. It was unbelievable.

“I don’t see Misty Ghost’s commander, Seven Constellations, among the corpses, Commander,” the Tier 3 Assassin reported after carefully examining the bodies.

“He’s not here?” Regretful Wind took a closer look at the slain players, as well, and just as the masked Assassin had said, Seven Constellations wasn’t present. He breathed a deep sigh of relief.

Seven Constellations was Misty Ghost’s sole Demon Viscount and one of the top 10 Assassins in the Demon City. Even Regretful Wind would have a hard time defeating the man.

If Seven Constellations had died as suddenly as his team, Regretful Wind’s prey would be far stronger than he has surmised.

“I have found traces of a battle. It’s possible that he and his surviving teammates were involved,” the masked Assassin said as he looked toward the towering trees some distance away. The trees were large enough that it would take several people to wrap their arms around the trunks, but they had been sliced cleanly through. Moreover, lingering life auras clung to the trees.

“The fight wasn’t that long ago. Misty Ghost’s members must’ve encountered the invaders. They might still be fighting as we speak,” Regretful Wind guessed, staring at the bisected trees. “Notify the team! We’re going after them, and we won’t bother hiding our presence!”

“Understood!” The masked Assassin nodded before contacting the team.

Windtooth’s several thousand members charged past the cut trees, and they made no attempt to hide.

It wasn’t long before they encountered another group boldly marching through the forest. The group had more than 4,000 players, and Windtooth’s members tensed when they saw them.

“I see you’ve picked up the scent, as well, Old Wind,” the savage woman carrying two dark-blue axes and leading the group said, smiling at Regretful Wind.

This is interesting. Now, all of Demon City’s top three adventurer teams are here. I suppose this is only the second time since the fight with Battle Wolves,” a dignified, debonair man carrying an ancient bow spoke up.

When they heard the two leaders, Windtooth’s members released a held breath. These two were the commanders from Crimson Sand and Eternal Night, two of Demon City’s top adventurer teams. They were also Regretful Wind’s old acquaintances.

“Indeed. The last time we worked together, we helped Demon’s Heart secure more territory,” Regretful Wind said. Smiling, he continued, “Well? How are we going to split the profits this time?”

Regretful Wind was very familiar with the two players before him. Since they had found each other in the forest, Windtooth had lost its chance to monopolize the bounty rewards.

But the encounter also eased the pressure on Regretful Wind’s adventurer team. No force that could instantly wipe out Misty Ghost’s main force should be underestimated. Even Windtooth would suffer tremendous losses if it tried to take on such a force alone.

If his adventurer team worked with Crimson Sand and Eternal Night, however, the three teams could minimize their losses and maximize their profits.

“There’s not much to consider. We’ll split them evenly. I’m sure you find this acceptable, correct?” Helpless Smile, the bow-carrying man who commanded Eternal Night, said.

Flame Feather, Crimson Sand’s commander, nodded in agreement.

“Deal. That way, we won’t have to compete for contribution and can divide the work,” Regretful Wind replied without hesitation.

If their three adventurer teams tried to outdo each other, the fight would descend into chaos. Doing so would only weaken their teams. The gains weren’t worth the losses. Rather, they’d all be better off cooperating, maximizing their combat power.

None of the three teams even considered that they might be ripped off by another. Each of the teams was on par with the others, and they all had around 3 or 4 Demon Viscounts and 30 Demon Barons. They each also had around 70 or 80 Tier 3 experts.

“Good. That settles it. When we find the rumored monster, I’ll hold him back. Old Wind and Smile, back me up from the sides,” Flame Feather said.

Regretful Wind was the third-ranked Elementalist in Demon City, and one of the publicly acknowledged top 10 experts in the city. Although Helpless Smile wasn’t quite as powerful, he still ranked among the top 15 experts in Demon City. In a support role, he was one of the five best players in the city.

“No problem.”

Neither Regretful Wind nor Helpless Smile objected to Flame Feather’s plan. She was the strongest melee player among their adventurer teams, after all. Flame Feather was also the only 3-star Viscount in any of their teams, only one step away from becoming a Count.

Shortly after the three commanders came to an arrangement, they heard the sound of battle from the nearby forest.

All three teams immediately charged toward the sound.

After crossing about 500 yards, a loud explosion rocked the forest.

Boom!

A figure suddenly shot past the three adventurer teams like a cannonball, crashing into a large tree roughly 100 yards away from Regretful Wind. The tree shattered instantly, falling, while the figure slid down its trunk to the ground. To everyone’s surprise, this figure radiated an even stronger aura than a Grand Lord of the same level. Even so, the figure rapidly lost HP.

“Seven Constellations?!” Regretful Wind paled when he recognized the player.

Flame Feather and Helpless Smile looked at the player with somber expressions, as well. They were all familiar with Seven Constellations and the strength he wielded.

Demon City didn’t have many Viscounts, and as such, they all, more or less, knew each other.

Despite his noble Demon rank, however, Seven Constellations had just been defeated. The man hadn’t even had a chance to flee. They could only imagine how strong his opponent was.

“Mon...ster... Run...quickly...” Seven Constellations hissed between clenched teeth when he saw the nearby adventurer teams.

Before he could finish his warning, however, his HP dropped to zero, and his body went as limp as a puppet with its strings cut...