Chapter 129: The Power of Holy Light

A fierce battle unfolded before the eyes of the spectators, a dazzling array of skills erupting in rapid succession. Had any of these onlookers ventured too close, they surely would have been caught in the crossfire of such powerful abilities and seen their worlds turn to gray in an instant.

No one here was a fool, and naturally, none were willing to throw their lives away by stepping into the fray.

The crowd watched as Li Ren and Mao Mao joined forces, barely managing to hold their own against the fifty Paladins. Yet, to Li Ren’s immense frustration, despite the passage of time, he had not managed to kill a single additional Paladin.

He had to admit, their coordination was terrifyingly seamless. Combined with their absurd skill sets—capable of tanking, dealing damage, and self-healing—this class was nothing short of a blatant bug. It was no wonder the odds of a player becoming a Paladin were so slim; if this class were readily available, the entire world would soon be overrun by them.

Whenever Li Ren used Blink to seize a prime opportunity to strike, the Paladins adjacent to the target would react instantly, closing in to sandwich him. Faced with three massive greatswords simultaneously, he could never land a finishing blow. Even when he managed to inflict heavy wounds, the victim would be bathed in an obscene holy light, instantly restored to peak condition. It was truly an unsolvable predicament.

As the battle settled into a stalemate, Li Ren grew impatient. In truth, the Paladins were even more restless than he was.

Li Ren relied on his high-level Blink to teleport from one side of the battlefield to the other, his movements lacking any discernible pattern. If one had to find a logic to it, it was simply that he was most likely to appear at the point furthest from the Paladin Captain.

Li Ren’s caution was well-founded. Taking on a Level 180 Boss as a Level 100 player was not bravery—it was suicide. If he could only clear out these unkillable pests, he would have no qualms about facing the Captain in a one-on-one duel.

To the onlookers, the fifty Paladins appeared trapped in a defensive circle, looking rather stifled. Outside the formation, a skeletal monster wobbled about, striking here and there, its frequent blinks inciting envy in every player watching.

"That skeleton’s Blink skill is simply heaven-defying!" one spectator remarked, his eyes filled with jealousy and longing.

"I’d say its HP is even more terrifying, not to mention that recovery rate," countered a Shield Warrior. "Didn't you see? The Paladin landed a full strike, and its health barely moved!"

"For me, it’s that Bone Dragon. It’s the coolest. If that were me, I’d ride it, rain magic from above, and blast those Paladins into oblivion," said a Mage, his eyes turning green with envy as he watched Mao Mao soaring through the sky, constantly unleashing dragon breath.

Li Ren could not hear these discussions, and even if he could, it would not have changed his demeanor. His current priority was dealing with this formidable group of Paladins.

Holy light continued to pour from the knights, showing no signs of exhaustion. While this might be sustainable for a short while, Li Ren had been burning through his own mana to maintain his "Verdict of Fire." Surely, these Paladins, constantly utilizing holy light to heal and cast, must be facing similar constraints. There had to be a trick to it.

Once Li Ren set his mind to uncovering it, he began to notice anomalies. Every Paladin he struck down was restored to full health by their comrades. But regardless of the healing, one would expect their stamina or state to be diminished after such a blow. Yet, these Paladins defied all logic; they recovered as if they had just respawned in a state of perfect vigor.

After Li Ren sent the same Paladin back to the brink of death for the third time, he caught a glimpse of a light—brighter and more concentrated than the usual holy light—emanating from the Paladin Captain. As it touched the unfortunate knight, he returned instantly to his peak. Looking at the Captain, Li Ren felt a surge of helplessness.

To take down the Captain, he had to clear the "small fry" first. But as long as the Captain lived, they were seemingly impossible to finish off. Unless he secured a one-shot kill, they would simply revert to their original state.

It was worth noting that the only one he had managed to kill was a stroke of luck, triggered by his "Five-Star Piercing Strike," which had activated a long-ignored passive skill: a 1% chance to ignore all defense. Relying on a 1% proc to pick off forty-plus knights was impossible without infinite time and stamina—luxuries he lacked as more players gathered.

Moreover, these Paladins were likely just one part of Xulong’s grand plan. After all, the only player linked to Xulong so far was the one he had killed at the start.

Li Ren steeled himself. Under the immense pressure of these Paladins, he realized that even with an elite team like Xulong’s, victory would be difficult. A single mistake could be his undoing. According to Fan Yunshan, the state of the System Admin was unknown. If the "Heavenly Evil" could boost Xulong’s team levels by such an absurd margin, it wouldn't be difficult for it to disable his own lifeline: the Blink skill.

A cold sweat broke out on his brow. If Blink were truly disabled, ten of him wouldn't be enough to survive. Just as he began to contemplate a retreat, an unexpected turn of events occurred.