Pedicure

"Fire at me--!!!"

With that roar from Feng Xing Tian Xia that shook the entire arena, all the Spirit Pivot Envoys hesitated no longer and unleashed their full power!

A sky-filling web of lightning wove into an airtight net, pouring down onto that small patch of airspace like divine retribution.

BOOM--!!!

A brilliant storm of energy swallowed everything. In the final moment before being engulfed, Feng Xing Tian Xia, who was at the center of the explosion, grinned hideously and plunged the Origin Fang deep into the Plague Priest's energy core!

[System Notification: You have died]

[Server-wide Announcement: The lord "Plague Priest" has been slain!]

As the priest's withered body exploded into dust amidst the sky-filling lightning, the green light chains that were about to reconnect instantly dissipated.

"Woohoo! The Symbiotic Link buff is gone! Charge, charge, charge!"

The spirits of all the players were lifted, and their morale soared! They turned their gazes toward the remaining two behemoths—the Gluttonous Meat Mountain and the Venomous Touch Hydra.

The battle was far from over.

"ROAR--!!!"

"HISS--!!!"

Having lost the protection of the "Symbiotic Link," the two remaining giant beasts, while no longer enjoying shared health and triple regeneration, fell into a complete state of berserk rage.

The eyes of the Gluttonous Meat Mountain turned blood-red, its entire body of rotting flesh began to tremble violently, and its originally grayish-white skin took on a dark red luster like a red-hot branding iron; the nine heads of the Venomous Touch Hydra hissed frantically, and its rhythmic venom spray turned into indiscriminate scattering, instantly turning the entire plaza into an ocean of poison.

"The healer is dead! The link is broken!"

Long Zhan Yu Ye crawled out of the ruins, wiped the blood from his face, and looked at the Meat Mountain's health bar, which was still despairingly long. He gritted his teeth: "The natural regeneration speed of this thing is a bit ridiculous! And this defense is insanely high too!"

What do you do when you encounter a boss like this?

As young people of the new era, veteran gamers who grew up playing games, everyone knew there was only one way to go right now—

Scrape the skin! Trim the feet!

To avoid the combo skills of the two bosses, a large number of Divine Guards stepped forward, pulling aggro in different directions. The battlefield was quickly split into two. One side was Long Zhan and the Imperial Dynasty, while the Dawn Guild spread out to act and provide support everywhere.

Detoxification Camp resurrection point.

A flash of white light.

Feng Xing Tian Xia walked out of the Resurrection Altar. His weapon, the Origin Fang, was soul-bound and did not drop, but the durability of his fine armor had completely hit zero and shattered.

"That lightning really hurt." Feng Xing Tian Xia rubbed his chest, still feeling a tightness in his chest when recalling the pain from just a moment ago. Even with the pain sensitivity turned to the lowest setting, being struck by lightning was not a pleasant feeling. However, he didn't pause for a second and hurried toward the battlefield.

When he ran back to H-124, panting, what he saw was not the dawn of victory, but an even more tragic war of attrition.

The two bosses were still standing tall, their health bars having dropped by less than 10%!

The left battlefield was currently confronting the Gluttonous Meat Mountain.

This giant beast, having lost its sanity, was like an out-of-control biological steamroller. It swung its massive Meat Cleaver, and every horizontal sweep could cut the players in the fan-shaped area in half, turning them into white light. Even a Steel Bastion couldn't take many hits under the level suppression.

"Can't hold it! We absolutely can't hold it!"

Dali Chu Qiji was kicked flying more than ten meters away while holding his Tower Shield, but he immediately flipped and climbed up, roaring in the channel, "Don't tank it head-on! Lure it back! Use the terrain to trap it! Don't let it get near the back row!"

"How do we lure it? Whoever goes up dies!"

"If you die, you die! What are you afraid of!"

Long Zhan Yu Ye steeled his heart, stripped off the heavy plate armor he was wearing, and charged up shirtless, holding only a Two-Handed Greatsword.

"All Divine Guards, strip your armor! We need speed! Lure it to the Collapsed Corridor in Zone B! Don't stop the taunts!"

Hundreds of warrior players actually took off their armor and darted around the feet of the Meat Mountain like a swarm of annoying flies.

"Pus-bag! Look over here!"

"Come and chase your grandpa! You tumor-ridden fat pig!"

The Meat Mountain was enraged by this group of flea-like players. It roared, wriggling its body as it chased the player with the highest aggro, charging toward the edge of the plaza with a thunderous rumble. Every step shook the earth.

"Flesh Artisans! Build walls!"

Dozens of players who had advanced to the Flesh Artisan class, having long been lying in ambush above the ruins, cast their spells simultaneously.

Countless bone walls and flesh walls rose from the ground. Although they couldn't hard-control this thick-skinned monster, they successfully disrupted its pace.

"BOOM!"

The Meat Mountain's massive body stepped into empty air and sank into the ruins filled with filth, temporarily unable to move.

"It's stuck! Brothers! The foot-trimmers are online!"

Hundreds of melee players swarmed up.

Because of the level suppression, most of the Divine Guards' attacks could only produce "-1" or "-2" damage numbers on the Meat Mountain. Fortunately, there were still quite a few Hunters with flashy footwork who had survived until now and could deal higher damage.

But it didn't matter. The players here might have had their gear shattered and their formations in chaos, but the one thing they didn't lack was numbers!

A war of attrition! A brutal, all-out brawl!

Densely packed players swarmed over the body of the Meat Mountain like army ants.

Some were frantically hacking at its ankle tendons, others climbed onto its back to plunge longswords into its pustules, while some focused their entire output on its eyes.

The Meat Mountain struggled wildly; every time it twisted its body, it crushed several players clinging to it. The white light of the respawn points formed an almost continuous line.

"Hold the line, brothers! Wait for me to respawn!"

"Ura!"

"Don't let it out! Use the corpses to block the path if you have to!"

"What are you doing, what are you doing? Don't die on my face! Damn it, die further away! Use the corpses to block the boss! Oh man, the pus sprayed on my face! Get away, get away!"

The Flesh Artisans were overjoyed, as using existing corpses as materials to alter the terrain cost them very little mana. They could even craft grenades on the spot using flesh and blood.

This was a gruesome death by a thousand cuts, and a contest of sheer willpower.

The main force on the right flank was the Imperial Dynasty Guild, and their style was completely different as they confronted the Venomous Touch Hydra.

The battle here demanded much higher precision.

The Hydra was a stationary turret; although it couldn't move, its field-covering venom spray was a nightmare. The ground was covered in potent poison, and standing on it caused health to plummet every second.

"Spread out! Everyone disperse! Keep at least five meters between positions!"

Data Maniac stood at a high point in the safe zone; at this moment, he was the brain of the entire operation. With Cerebral Overclocking running at full power, his mind was like a precision computer, predicting the landing point of every attack from the Hydra's heads. Tian Ce was also nearby, providing support.

"The three heads on the left are charging up, expected to cover Zone B! Everyone in Zone B, roll to the right!"

"The main head in the center is out of venom; there's a few seconds of downtime! Hunter squads, go up and sever its poison sac!"

The tactics of the Imperial Dynasty Guild were extremely underhanded and precise.

Hundreds of Thunder Lords and Mind Hackers didn't care about damage; they only sought to trigger that split-second of stun.

"Ready—fire!"

Whenever one of the Hydra's heads opened its mouth to spray venom, dozens of lightning strikes mixed with mental interference would immediately slam into its eyelids, forcing the skill to be canceled. Relying on this playstyle, they could interrupt five out of every ten attacks!

Meanwhile, on the ground, countless Ghost Blade players activated stealth, risking their lives to charge into the venom zone and unleash a frenzy of attacks on the Hydra's body.

Their health bars plummeted in the toxic mist, and the staves of the Life Sages behind them were practically smoking as they desperately spammed heals.

"Can't keep you up! Retreat!"

"No retreating! I can still land three hits! One, two... oh man, brother, I was wrong! Stop hitting me, stop hitting me! Ah—"

This battle lasted for a full three hours.

The plaza of the H-124 Fortress was covered in layer upon layer of player corpses, only to be trampled underfoot by players rushing back from respawn.

Equipment durability empty? Pick up someone else's weapon from the pile of corpses and keep fighting!

Mana empty? Yun Zhong You took the lead, calling for the healers to use their staves to bash the enemy!

This was the most terrifying aspect of the Fourth Calamity—tireless, fearless of death, and endless.

Finally.

"Roar..."

Accompanied by a mournful, unwilling cry, the Meat Mountain, which had been attacked by hundreds of thousands of players, collapsed with a boom. Its legs had been hacked off by the players, and there wasn't an inch of intact skin left on its body. By the end, its passive regeneration had weakened, and its supply of hematopoietic stem cells had burned out.

"Bang!"

The massive body slammed into the ground, kicking up a sky full of dust.

Immediately after, the last head of the Hydra was also shattered.

[Server Announcement: Congratulations to the player coalition for successfully capturing the H-124 Hub!]

[This is a great victory! The first major gateway to the Liver region has been opened to you!]

"We won!!!"

"Holy crap! We finally ground it down! My hands are sore!"

"Oh my god, I died eight times and lost all my money, but this wave was totally worth it! The experience bar is skyrocketing!"

Cheers instantly drowned out the battlefield. Countless players slumped to the ground, gasping for air, their faces glowing with the joy of a bountiful harvest.

Where the boss had dissipated, there lay a massive crystal core, half a person tall, emitting a blinding green light.

Feng Xing Tian Xia walked forward and looked at the core.

[Item: H-124 Flesh Core]

[Description: The power source of the fortress, containing high-purity Bio-Energy accumulated in the H-124 region over a long time.]

[Energy Content: 10 million Bio-Energy]

"10 million Bio-Energy..."

Dragon Fighting in the Wild leaned in, eyeing the core greedily. "If we took this thing alone, we'd be rich, right? It's enough to repair the gear for my entire guild."

Tian Ce walked over as well; though he didn't speak, his eyes revealed a hint of longing. With so much Bio-Energy, in this early stage where resources were scarce, it was a massive fortune.

Feng Xing Tian Xia placed his hand on the core, feeling the surging energy within.

He looked up and scanned his surroundings.

There were members of the Dawn Guild, the Dragon War Guild, the Imperial Dynasty Guild, and countless solo players. Everyone was covered in blood, their gear tattered, looking absolutely miserable.

"We can't split this thing," he said, his voice calm, yet it reached everyone's ears through the area channel.

"Everyone has sacrificed a lot, and this item is too valuable to give to just one party. My suggestion is to recycle it directly and split the Bio-Energy among everyone."

This core wasn't a crafting material, nor could it be forged into equipment; the best method was to break it down into Bio-Energy and distribute the funds. Although the crowd felt a bit of regret, they still agreed.

Without hesitation, Feng Xing Tian Xia opened the server-wide mission panel—[Titan Armory].

The current Bio-Energy progress bar was stuck just above 20%. That was the result of all server players frantically grinding monsters over the past few days, combined with the drops from the countless mobs during this H-124 assault.

There was still quite a distance to go before reaching one billion.

"Although we are still far from completing the mission, this core represents our victory over H-124."

Chen Feng pressed the [Recycle] button firmly.

[System Notification: Player "Feng Xing Tian Xia" has submitted the "H-124 Flesh Core"!]

[Server-wide progress updated: Increased by 1%]

It went up by 1%. The progress bar jumped visibly.

But the surrounding players were somewhat disappointed.

"Huh? Only that much?"

"This is too hard, right? How many bosses would we have to kill to reach one billion?"

But just then, a mechanical roar echoed from within the fortress.

[H-124 Joint Camp has been established.]

[Area Announcement: With the injection of the core energy, the "Bile Salt Refinery" of Fortress H-124 has been activated!]

[This facility has been captured by players! Function enabled!]

[From now on, all players can accept "Refining Missions" here to process collected or recycled common Gallstone into High-Energy Crystal! Worth a large amount of Bio-Energy!]

Everyone's faces lit up with joy. This was the true value of H-124. It wasn't a one-time reward, but a machine capable of continuously producing Bio-Energy!

[System Announcement: Detected that the fortress was captured by a coalition of guilds; camp commission will be distributed according to contribution. Allocation quota: 20%. The proportions for each organization are as follows:]

[1. Dawn Guild: 6.41%]

[2. Dragon War Guild: 6.33%] (Stacked up by sheer numbers)

[3. Imperial Dynasty Guild: 5.23%]

[Remaining small guilds]

[Titan Blood (Diluted Version) purchase eligibility ×5000 has been distributed based on individual contribution.]