Chapter 127: The Paladin Legion

"If, after paying such a colossal price, I still let you escape, it would truly be inexcusable." The Paladin player gritted his teeth, his face perfectly concealed behind the visor of his helm, hiding his true intentions from prying eyes.

"You are right. I sense a powerful demonic presence, not far to the east," the Captain of the Paladins said, looking at the player before him.

"These damned demonic scum dare to defile our glory once again! Use the Holy Light in your hands to purge all of this! Knights! For glory!"

With a thunderous roar from the Captain, the Paladins following him bellowed in unison. Though they numbered fewer than fifty, their collective voice possessed the overwhelming momentum of a thousand-strong army.

As the group of Paladins summoned mounts wreathed in holy light and charged out of the city toward the east, the players who witnessed them couldn't help but gasp.

Those were all level 140 boss-tier entities! And the Captain leading them was a level 180 Lord-tier boss! Who could possibly stand against such a force?

Unable to suppress their curiosity, many players who owned mounts summoned them and began to follow in the wake of the charging Paladins.

High above, Li Ren watched the circus-like commotion unfolding on the ground below, and a sense of inexplicable irritation grew stronger within him.

Forcing down his growing unease, he turned to Lania, who was hovering nearby. "Destroy the Mad Lion base. We’ll end it here for now and retreat; I have a bad feeling about this."

Upon hearing Li Ren’s command, Lania frowned, and the legion of vampires attacking the Mad Lion guild intensified their assault with newfound ferocity.

Just as Li Ren issued the order, and the vampire legion broke through the defenses of the Mad Lion headquarters with unstoppable force, a powerful and astonishing presence was rapidly approaching from the distance.

Sensing the radiant power and the sheer strength contained within that aura, Lania’s expression shifted.

"Go ahead and finish destroying that place; I will go see what kind of people dare to meddle in our affairs," Li Ren said. Despite sensing the formidable power, he felt little surprise.

If the players were truly foolish enough to rely solely on their own strength to join this battle, it would be a vast underestimation of them. He knew that the game world held many secrets, and the players’ ability to uncover them was equally formidable.

To ensure the vampire legion behind him remained untouched, Li Ren took Mao Mao and charged head-on toward the approaching source of the aura.

Both sides surged forward at high speed, and soon, the source of the powerful, unsettling aura came into view. Seeing the faint, holy radiance and the heroic figures atop their steeds, Li Ren shook his head and smiled.

He really couldn't afford to underestimate these fellows.

It was strange, though—how could beings associated with Paladins appear in the Underworld? Logically, they shouldn't have any involvement here. But since they had appeared, there was no use dwelling on it; this was likely a design choice by the system to enhance gameplay.

Li Ren rationalized it to himself, yet his eyes never left the group of Paladins.

"Such immense strength. They seem even tougher than that Iron-Saw Centipede, and their light-based powers naturally suppress my dark attributes. It’s hard to say how a direct confrontation would turn out," Li Ren mused to himself.

The rapidly approaching Paladins naturally spotted Li Ren, and they grew highly cautious at the sight of him. Even without considering Li Ren himself, Mao Mao’s current appearance was enough to warrant their full attention.

After all, Mao Mao was a member of the Dragon race. No dragon was truly weak, and even if these Paladins were tasked with fighting Mao Mao one-on-one, they would likely feel a tremor of fear. This was only natural; the might of the dragons was deeply ingrained in everyone's minds.

Li Ren carefully observed the Paladin NPCs. He didn't believe that his minor skirmish against a player stronghold would be enough to attract such terrifying figures. That would be absurd.

Sure enough, upon closer inspection, he spotted the player trailing at the very end of the Paladin formation.

"Hmph, so you couldn't resist making a move? A level 98 Paladin—not bad at all!" Li Ren sneered. It was exactly as he suspected; this was the work of the Zoron gang.

Still, he hadn't expected them to possess such hidden assets. Even if he wasn't fully versed in the classification of player classes, it was clear that the Paladin was no pushover.

Looking at the players trailing behind the Paladin formation to watch the show, Li Ren felt indifferent. If they were just there to spectate, that was fine, but if any were foolish enough to jump into the fray, he wouldn't mind reaping a few more souls to replenish his own strength.

Seeing the level 140 boss-tier Paladins and the level 180 Lord-tier Captain before him, Li Ren couldn't help but sigh.

What a massive investment!

To deal with him alone, they had deployed such a formidable force. He wondered what kind of price they had paid to summon such NPCs.

Li Ren rubbed his chin. "It seems the players who rushed in to die before the battle even started were the 'price' they paid this time."

Despite being at a disadvantage, Li Ren had no intention of just sitting on Mao Mao’s back and watching the show from the sky. After all, he had invested a vast number of souls to build his vampire legion. If these light-wielders were allowed to tear through them, it would be a significant loss.

As Mao Mao descended, the Paladins began to channel their power. Seeing their stern expressions, Li Ren smiled. Just as he and Mao Mao were about to touch the ground, the Purple-Gold Winged God Sword abruptly appeared in his hand.

The Paladin Captain stared at Li Ren with tiger-like eyes; upon seeing his movement, an instinctual sense of dread washed over him.

Before he could even speak, he saw Li Ren offer a disdainful smile from atop Mao Mao’s back before dissolving into a blurred shadow.

At that exact moment, at the rear of the Paladin formation, the dying roar of the player who had attained the hidden Paladin class ignited the fury of the Captain ahead!