Chapter Seventy-Seven: Attack! The Battle of Yuxiao City (V)

On the close-range battlefield, only the monsters and the original guardian NPCs of Yuxiao City fought relentlessly. The players, along with Li Ren, remained at the rear of both armies; the front lines were far too perilous, and they would only dare advance once both sides had worn each other down. Precisely because of this, when the crimson equipment dropped, no one seized it immediately. This was also the reason for the first outbreak of player chaos since the battle began.

Li Ren surveyed the situation. Unlike the players, he could not simply resurrect; death for him was true and final. To risk his life in that deadly zone for a piece of crimson gear was not something he was willing to do. Whoever claimed it, he could always wait and ambush them later; after all, it was just equipment—nothing compared to the value of his own life.

While he weighed the risks and rewards, the players, driven mad by greed, surged forward, closing in on the area where the crimson item had fallen, though fierce fighting still raged there.

He watched as the human earth drake knights clashed with the monsters, chaotic attacks unleashed everywhere, countless spells and skills detonating along that brief front line every second.

No one could withstand such onslaught.

Therefore, Li Ren decided to move forward a bit, then stay put and watch. Anyone attempting to snatch that item now would meet a grim fate.

Naturally, he was not the only one to notice the battlefield’s dynamics. Solon, the player at the pinnacle of their ranks, also watched intently from the sidelines, he and his followers unmoving. They had seen the crimson equipment appear and were waiting for their chance. Solon did not believe anyone could seize the item from such a place unless they possessed the power of Fan Yunshan—but was that even possible?

Just as expected, every player who charged ahead was instantly obliterated by concentrated attacks, leaving only those shield warriors who activated their skills able to take a few steps before falling as well. The closest one was still dozens of paces from the crimson item.

Yet this did not dampen the players’ fervor.

A subtle but pivotal change began to disrupt the balance on the field. The original pace of casualties had been rapid, with monsters and earth drake knights locked in a meat-grinder battle. Reinforcements constantly filled the gaps, maintaining a rare equilibrium, though both sides’ strength diminished swiftly.

With the appearance of the crimson equipment, waves of reckless players filled the spaces left by fallen knights. Knights unable to find their place lingered at the rear, while the players, much weaker, were slain instantly, unable to contribute any strength or protect allies, let alone coordinate attacks.

The players perished quickly, and knights soon filled the gaps again, but over time, the tide shifted unmistakably.

Solon could not help but curse aloud, gripping his twin swords in frustration. No matter how great his influence, when enough profit was at stake, how could anyone expect the others to obey?

Fan Yunshan sighed as he witnessed the chaos, recalling his premonition before the battle. He wondered if the voodoo lord’s death had been a calculated stratagem by the enemy.

Li Ren observed the scene—the enormous corpse lying ahead, the ultimate lords behind him unmoving—and strange thoughts stirred in his mind.

Yet this situation suited him perfectly. Once the front line collapsed, he could freely gather resources at the rear, and the crimson gear would inevitably fall into his hands.

All he needed now was to stay inconspicuous, blend in as an ordinary monster, avoid attracting attention, and wait until he claimed the spoils. After that, who cared about the players’ fate?

Thus, the battlefield began to unfold according to Li Ren’s plan, progressing smoothly despite minor setbacks.

The monsters’ assault line advanced, and as more monsters moved up, Li Ren summoned his skeletal army to silently follow. He blended seamlessly among them, heading directly toward the voodoo lord’s corpse under their cover.

With his presence, the group now numbered two hundred skeletons: a hundred were his summoned minions, expert at converting blood essence; the other hundred were true combatants.

He split fifty of the latter without hesitation and deployed them to press forward in battle, while his collection squad followed close behind.

Wherever they passed, nothing was left alive; all corpses were instantly converted and vanished, making the battlefield swiftly “clean.”

Sharp-eyed players noticed this oddity, but none suspected Li Ren’s presence among the skeletons or realized he could convert every fallen body into blood essence, empowering himself.

His sweep continued, and the scattered equipment on the ground, under his careful control, rapidly disappeared into the Ashen Ring. Only now did its infinite storage capacity prove invaluable.

Undeniably, after the monster siege, if these items were left behind, the players’ overall strength would soar, since only elite bosses dropped such gear—and most were first-kill rewards.

Nearly every item was a rare treasure; even blue ones were scarce, with most being purple.

Li Ren collected everything possible, unwilling to waste a single bit. To him, all these were prime resources for the future development of Luoyun City.

Fortunately, the players’ reckless charge disrupted Yuxiao City’s army formation, granting him this unique opportunity bestowed by fate.

The voodoo lord’s corpse lay before him. Li Ren performed a blood essence conversion, and with a bang, the massive body transformed into a chunk of violet-gold blood essence that flew into his hand.

Along with the corpse’s conversion, a violet-gold, fist-sized bone appeared with the blood essence. It was a massive piece—clearly the knuckle bone of the voodoo lord’s original fist. Li Ren held it as if he were carrying a washbasin.

The spectacle was so striking that the players charging forward witnessed it all perfectly.