Blood-Eating Vulture

# Chapter 12: The Blood-Eating Vulture

Meow Brother clutched a bloodstained pitchfork while standing in the ruins of Morland Village, staring dumbly as the fierce female hunter collapsed under the assault of Chen Dian Niu Niu and his own NPCs.

Though this was far from his first time participating in a test, and he was no naive youngster, Meow Brother's heart still pounded violently in his chest.

Two voices were at war inside his head.

The rational one told him this was just a game, so he had to stay calm! Meanwhile, the more excited voice grabbed his brain and roared.

Look at everything before you!

The blood-drenched sunset, the collapsed ruins, the comrades standing beside him after a desperate battle, and the powerful enemy finally defeated—the hand of war was madly strumming the most primal wildness buried deep in this man's heart!

He could feel his heart skip a few beats as that dangerous figure hit the ground.

Really!

He had actually fought a battle against those vicious enemies!

And he had won!

So, to hell with rationality.

"We won, we actually won!"

Meow Brother raised his pitchfork and roared, his voice cracking from excitement. The surrounding new players snapped out of their daze and joined in the cheering one by one. Even the fierce sister Lumina, with her broken leg, raised her dwarven hunting rifle high with Mirian's support.

This scene looked exactly like a game team celebrating a first-kill dungeon clear, yet the immense sense of achievement and satisfaction they felt right now was something no pixel game could ever provide.

The cheers from behind made Chen Dian Niu Niu, who had just completed a "finishing blow," feel deeply unreal.

He looked at the Witch Hunter squad leader he had taken down and the heavy, bizarre steam-powered mechanical weapon lying on the ground. It felt like the adrenaline was fading, leaving him dizzy and gasping as he sat down heavily on the ground.

That ambush just now had been way too intense—how was it any different from charging a tower under AK fire?

He never thought he could run that fast. He'd been completely confused when he first logged in, and in an instant, he'd become everyone's hero.

This game was really something!

Chen Dian Niu Niu looked at his hands, identical in the game to his real-life ones, when a shadow fell over him. He looked up to see the handsome NPC reaching out a hand to him.

"Is this the first time you've felt this feeling?"

Against the backdrop of dusk transitioning into evening, Murphy stood with his sword, asking softly. His crimson cape swayed behind him, as if trying to block out the last rays of light.

The jock was momentarily stunned.

Damn, this real-time rendered CG cutscene was way too atmospheric!

"Huh?"

Chen Dian Niu Niu replied stupidly.

He didn't quite understand what this NPC was saying, but he still accepted Murphy's help, taking his hand and being pulled up from the ground.

Only then did he hear Murphy say:

"What I mean is, the feeling of drinking deeply from the wine of victory, the feeling that makes one want to drown in it—the feeling of being alive. My warrior, look, your companions are treating you as a hero!

Just as I see you as a heaven-sent savior, you are a true warrior!"

"Hehe."

Chen Dian Niu Niu instinctively looked back at the players who could still stand. Meow Brother and the others were whistling and making weird noises at him.

This scene felt just like when he broke a record at the school sports meet and stood on the podium. Embarrassed yet proud, he extended his thumb and wiped his dusty nose.

"This feeling really is great, Murphy. Uh, Lord Murphy!"

He replied, then watched as Murphy bent down, pulled an exquisite hunting knife from the unconscious female hunter's waist, and presented it to him with both hands in a respectful gesture, saying:

"Today, you are also a hero of this destroyed Morland Village. The dead will thank you for your kindness. Take it—it is what you deserve."

"Uh, thanks."

Chen Dian Niu Niu immediately reached out with both hands to accept the weapon.

He felt like he was receiving a trophy. Even though this was just a virtual reality game, the atmosphere had built up to this point, right?

"Lord Murphy! Those four trash Witch Hunters at the village entrance ran away!"

Spicy Gugu Chicken, dragging his hand-and-a-half sword, ran over excitedly. He gave Murphy a clumsy, half-baked salute and reported:

"Should we chase them?"

"Can any of you ride a horse, brave warriors?"

Murphy raised his voice to ask. The new players who had just been cheering immediately fell silent, looking at each other. Finally, Meow Brother said with a strange expression:

"Mud Truck usually likes that kind of stuff. He probably knows how to ride."

"Where is this warrior now?"

Murphy pressed further. Meow Brother shrugged, pointed at the collapsed high "sniper platform," and said quietly:

"Probably already turned into a sieve by now."

"Then why even mention it?"

Murphy, who had been hesitating to speak, suppressed the immense urge to vent his complaints and instead shook his head with the calm composure befitting an NPC, saying:

"It seems pursuit is impossible. The Witch Hunters' warhorses are specially trained—fast and enduring. Even without nightfall, I couldn't catch up to them. But this is still a victory worth commemorating. You've once again proven your courage and potential."

His gaze swept over the surviving players. Twelve had been reduced to nine, which left Murphy somewhat regretful. Despite his best efforts to adjust tactics, the gap between rookie players and Witch Hunters remained significant. Losing three people had already hit the failure threshold for the fourth novice guidance mission.

But it didn't matter.

If a bunch of rookies could fight this well, then after coordinating a practice session with another Witch Hunter squad after nightfall, they might just pass.

Just then, A-Cha's shout rang out from behind:

"Someone come quick! Ge Bao's still alive, but barely—just one breath left."

Hearing this, the players who could still move rushed over to help. Like a disaster rescue team, they worked frantically for a few minutes before hauling the blood-soaked Leading Pigeon out from the collapsed second-floor building.

The sight of his injuries made everyone gasp.

Too brutal!

His entire body was a mess of blood and flesh, like he'd been dragged out of a coal mine.

"Damn! This pain is way too real!"

Good Pigeon, covered in blood, twitched as he looked around wildly and shouted:

"Why doesn't this game have a button to turn off pain perception? I'm freaking dying here!"

"The pain's already been reduced, rookie."

Meow Brother, leaning on a pitchfork, glanced at Ge Bao and said:

"In real life, with injuries like that, you'd be dead by now, or at least unconscious. The fact that you're still hopping around and screaming says a lot. But with wounds this bad, you should've been forcibly disconnected for protection long ago. How are you still alive?"

"Ouch, yeah, I did feel dizzy a few times, like I was about to disconnect."

Ge Bao answered honestly:

"But every time I thought about having to wait three days to revive if I died, and didn't want to get mocked, I just gritted my teeth and held on, hoping you guys would manage to save me."

"Tch, do you have to be this hardcore? My poor Ge Bao."

A-Cha knelt beside him, patting Leading Pigeon's head with a mix of sincerity and jest:

"You're really brave to avoid being called a rookie. Dad's impressed. My son has grown up. Lunch is on me today! Eat whatever you want."

"Ouch, then let's have chicken for lunch. At least a whole roast chicken."

"...Fine!"

Murphy stood apart from the crowd, stunned by his silly little players' untimely perseverance.

But this was indeed a good thing, because the moment Ge Bao was carried back, a mission completion prompt appeared on the character card before his eyes:

[Novice Guidance Mission (4/6): Advanced Practical Test (Completed)

Evaluation: 2 personnel lost. Mission completion rating: Excellent.

Rewards: +5 Test Invitation Codes, Item Identification Function unlocked.

Bonus Reward for Excellent Completion: Experience Points and Level-Up Function unlocked early.

Developer's Note: Although your eyesight is fine and you lack the supernatural ability to speak laws into being, I still think you'd be well-suited to become a professional RTS player. Ever considered switching careers?]

Murphy revealed a satisfied smile.

He turned back to look at his little players. Meow Brother and Ge Bao, who had experience from before, recognized his expression as a sign that this round of testing was about to end. So Meow Brother stepped forward first and said earnestly:

"Lord Murphy, I know this request is a bit much, but we hope to stay a little longer in this world to better adapt to it."

"That's right, Lord Murphy. This village is too tragic."

Coo-Coo Chicken and A-Cha chimed in to support the request:

"We can stay here and help you scavenge. Uh, I mean, help that poor red-haired girl bury her family and friends. It's one of the few things we can do for this village. Of course, Ge Bao should go back. He's in too bad a shape."

"Well..."

Murphy didn't need to look closely to know what the little players were up to. They simply felt that since open beta hadn't started yet, every chance to log in was precious, and they wanted to linger a bit longer—a perfectly understandable desire.

So he pretended to be a bit troubled. After "agonizing over it," he said to the eagerly waiting little players:

"Then stay a little longer. But I have to leave here by nightfall to meet up with my companions. By then, you'll have to return to your world. The big plan can't be exposed yet! I must act cautiously until I have my own power base—to protect myself and to protect you. I hope you understand."

Hearing that the NPC had allowed them to stay longer, the little players erupted in cheers. Especially the newcomers logging in for the first time—they found everything fascinating.

Mainly because the environment was too realistic!

If not for the ability to log out normally, it would truly feel like stepping into another world, making it hard to tear oneself away. Even an ordinary little village was enough to keep these simple little players entertained for a long time.

Murphy stood by the earthen wall, watching the naive little players around him using sign language to communicate with Mirian, who couldn't speak their tongue. The scene gave him a rare sense of relaxation since crossing over.

But that relaxation didn't last more than a few seconds before a new prompt appeared before him:

[Newbie Guidance Quest (5/6): Comprehensive Assessment. Lead all available manpower, from planning to preparation to execution, to complete a complex combat operation!

Specific requirements:

1. Alpha must engage in tactical discussion with the adorable little players in-game and form a strategy.

2. The main process of the combat operation must be completed solely by Alpha and the player faction.

3. Alpha or a player must personally kill the leader of the target force selected for the operation, and ensure that at least one-fifth of the current manpower survives by the end of the operation.

Rewards: Test Invitation Code +10, New Feature Unlock, additional rewards based on quest completion.

Developer's Note: Keep it up. There are only six rings in the Newbie Guidance Quest. Once you finish them all, it means you're a qualified test administrator capable of handling most sudden situations.

Though, that also means your long service life has truly just begun.]

Murphy stared at the quest before him, lost in thought.

He didn't know which bastard designed this system and stuffed it into his body, but he was now basically sure that guy was an idiot.

Was this something a ten-year corporate slave like him could accomplish?

Damn, this was just the newbie quest, and it was already cranking up the difficulty this hard. What would he be made to do once he became a full-fledged test administrator? He didn't dare imagine.

Fuck!

All his good mood was gone.

--

"We can't leave!"

On the road far from Morland Village, the Witch Hunter, burned on his saddle, gritted his teeth and shouted at the veteran riding ahead.

"Norman! We have to go back for little Natalie! We can't abandon that kid there. Her life is worth more than ours."

The veteran Norman said nothing, only tapping his warhorse with his stirrups to speed up. As the surrounding night grew darker and gloomier, he said in a hoarse voice, "Calm down, Mond. This was a trap from the start. That vampire played us for fools. Stay calm and trust Natalie! She'll be fine.

Have you forgotten the prophecy the Glamor Council made about her at birth?

This child will become a true leader under Avalon's protection. She will accomplish feats ordinary people can't reach. She will never die here!

Avalon watches over her."

These words silenced the hunters around them.

They couldn't refute Norman's reasoning, because the Glamor Council's prophecies over the past few centuries had almost all come true, including the rebellion ten years ago that turned the Avalon Church into the Old Church.

In a world where gods existed, prophecies were far from empty talk.

Besides, in their current state, trying to go back to save Natalie would only add more casualties. They had to leave first, gather strength, and then fight their way back.

"The mission to intercept the messenger has failed."

The veteran grabbed the reins and said in a low voice, "We must rendezvous with the Warband leader immediately and decide on the next course of action. Keep your spirits up, lads. Our hunt isn't over yet."

"No, it's already over!"

A cold voice, like a sweeping shadow, suddenly appeared beside the four escaping Witch Hunters, causing their warhorses to neigh in agitation and stop in their tracks.

The lead veteran, Norman, looked up and saw a pair of massive blood-red wings spread before him.

Those enormous blood-red bat wings lifted a petite figure like a ghost, hovering in midair. Behind her, four Blood Eagle Midnight Hunters stood proudly, carrying war spears, longswords, and blade whips.

And higher up, a cluster of scarlet fireworks exploded in the sky.

Those specks of light gathered into the pattern of a spreading holy blood vulture—the gathering emblem of the Blood Eagle Clan, signaling that all roaming Midnight Hunters would converge here in this night.

"Shing."

Old Norman drew the war blade at his waist.

The three Witch Hunters behind him did the same. Facing the Blood Eagle elites—Midnight Hunters whose strength generally hovered at the upper Black Iron rank—they knew they couldn't win.

But that wasn't a reason to abandon the fight, let alone a reason to kneel and surrender.

"White Oak Warband, Thirty-Seventh Witch Hunter Squad!"

The veteran's blade pointed forward. He pulled the reins to calm his restless mount. Under the mocking gazes of the Midnight Hunters appearing one after another in the night, he roared in a flat, expressionless voice:

"Charge!"