Embers, Terror Born at Night

On the mountainside.

In a lush jungle.

"The leader is dead, perfectly done. We'll continue tomorrow."

Ning Zheng watched the twilight sky, his heart filled with complex emotions as he silently descended the mountain.

It was a special period.

Going offline tonight was optional.

But since they were so disciplined about resting on time, sleeping early and waking early, Ning Zheng decided not to be the bad guy.

The sleep quality of young people was the most important.

Because of the bizarre events of today, Ning Zheng descended the mountain with a complicated, indescribable feeling.

It was a bit like a father who had always worried about and cared for his intellectually disabled son, who had suddenly become capable, his intelligence restored and reliable, able to independently support the family!

In short, it was hard to describe.

After returning home and finishing dinner with Ning Jiaojiao, Ning Zheng felt a little happy.

"If things continue like this, with the bandit leader eliminated, the crow flock should be hunting stably. They won't be able to break through our defenses easily, and we should get the meat fields soon."

The crow flock numbered tens of thousands.

Today, they had only killed two to three thousand. Tomorrow would likely be the same, and then the other side should back down and retreat entirely.

This was reality. After losing thirty percent of their population and having their leader killed, they wouldn't risk annihilation to fight to the death. They would be afraid of dying.

They were very good at bullying the weak and fearing the strong.

Did the crows dare to cause trouble in front of the manor's demons before?

If the crows couldn't win tomorrow and the beast horde backed down, a temporary truce was foreseeable.

This was the law of the food chain in the mountains. Animal populations could develop mortal enmities, but they wouldn't fight to the last soldier, to the bitter end.

The more likely scenario was that they would back down, and once a new Crow King was born, under new leadership and intelligence, they would launch a second wave of revenge attacks.

As for what to do if they didn't fall for it the second time, they would deal with it then!

So, the problem arose.

"Meaning, I absolutely have to get that headless body tomorrow, otherwise if they retreat and run, I won't be able to get it," Ning Zheng thought, still focused on his meat fields.

Dusk.

In a bloody ruin, an ember inherited some fragmented memories and crawled out of a corpse, a ghoul was born.

"Where am I?" This 'Yan Hua' looked at the puffy eyes, the blind eyes, the swollen eyes, and a mangled corpse, feeling a little panicked.

Had he fainted?

The caws of crows outside were chilling, and some crows were even crawling in the underground tunnels, sparse and few, their cries seemingly filled with immense rage.

"Why haven't I gone offline yet?" The 'Yan Hua' was tense, feeling like he was doomed.

The next second, a crow indeed came down the tunnel. Yan Hua trembled in fear and fell to the ground, feigning death.

But the crow seemed to have already detected the disturbance. It glanced at Yan Hua, then slowly retreated, instinctively avoiding him, as if it disliked Yan Hua, with a faint sense of disgust.

After a long while.

Yan Hua got up from the ground and walked along the tunnel, bypassing crow after crow, and luckily reached the underground sewer, swimming through it.

At the end, a large bronze stone blocked the exit.

He couldn't call for help, but they had considered this situation and designed a secret code. He knocked hard with his fist.

Knock.

Knock-knock-knock-knock.

Knock.

Following a series of coded knocks, a gap appeared in the large bronze stone.

"Yan Hua? How is it you? Didn't the Eye Legend four-person team all die?" Someone looked at the strange 'Yan Hua' through the gap, feeling an inexplicable sense of dread.

"Open the door quickly," Yan Hua pleaded pitifully, "I didn't die at all, I just fainted."

"Are there no crows outside?"

"No!"

To prevent Yan Hua from being a crow spy, they specifically called several players armed with bows and arrows to prepare, and only then opened the passage, prioritizing caution.

After all, if this place fell, they would be finished.

As the passage opened, Yan Hua swam in, dripping wet, without any incidents.

Some players came to ask him a few questions, and seeing that there were no issues, they ignored him.

Unfortunately, it was almost 7 PM when Yan Hua returned, and everyone was preparing to go offline to sleep.

And they had already researched the magic artifacts and divine abilities of the crows after their blacksmithing.

These crows have the following racial talents:

[1: Swiftness (Active), enhances speed once.]

[2: Agility (Passive), slightly improves neural reflexes.]

Most creatures possess a primary trait, and a second hidden trait.

The hidden trait is also referred to as a "dream trait" by the blacksmiths.

For example, Agility only exists among a small number of crows within a population, signifying exceptional talent.

This really comes down to one's luck. If you obtain a crow with a hidden trait for forging, you might get a good outcome.

"Hahaha! I did it! Look, my +2!" someone shouted, holding a freshly quenched bow and arrow that was still radiating intense heat.

Everyone looked on with envy.

[Unnamed]

[Trait: Swiftness]

[Magic Bronze Energy Storage Count: 2/2]

Even though it's a low-level trait, it's still enough to make one happy!

The advanced magic artifacts and various enchantment traits of the future are something to look forward to.

For instance, if we were to capture a Manor Lord, who is rarer than a phoenix feather on this entire earth, and throw them into a furnace to forge, the resulting magic artifact would likely be a divine artifact!

Attacking ten times would summon a clone.

Phantom Divine Blade, how cool is that! With a divine artifact in hand, one would feel invincible among peers!

Yan Hua, standing nearby, also felt a pang of desire. They wanted to forge some money to save their teammates.

After all, even the first resurrection requires ten magic coins, which is a considerable expense.

Soon.

All the blacksmiths also received a message:

[The server will shut down in one minute.]

[59]

[58]

Everyone lay down on the iron net beds to sleep.

The next moment, they collectively logged off. Yan Hua also obediently closed their eyes. After more than ten seconds, they blinked, "Huh? Why didn't I log off?"

They opened the iron net clamp and sat up with a plop, staring blankly at the Money Boys lying around them, completely immobile.

A wave of intense surprise suddenly flooded their heart.

Did I find a game bug?

I can still play the game!?

Damn it! How can I not log off at night!

Excitedly, they quickly got up and walked to the blacksmith shop on the second floor.

"Alright, I'll work hard all night tonight! If I earn some magic coins, I can revive Eye Bag, Yan Xia, and Eye Swell. We, the Eye Legend, will never betray each other."

The blacksmith shop was quiet and deserted.

Tools were neatly arranged, and magic artifact blanks were piled on shelves, well-categorized.

However, it felt incredibly eerie, with a heavy aura of gloom, which made Yan Hua, naturally timid and afraid to watch horror movies, a little scared. They suppressed their fear and fumbled around in the dark.

Swish.

They finally lit a faint light.

Silently, they raised the oil lamp, carefully illuminating the surrounding shelves and corners.

After confirming there was nothing terrifying, they breathed a sigh of relief and sat at the table to practice drawing inscriptions.

"I must work hard to earn money."

Under the flickering, dim light that mingled shadow and brightness, they held a rough magic artifact blank in the blacksmith shop, meticulously carving stroke by stroke. Unconsciously, a sinister smile, unnoticed even by themselves, appeared on their face.

Adding one more update today, seeking recommendations and all other requests.