Chapter 326
The footsteps in front of him and the paper airplane above his head seemed to have some kind of wonderful connection. What a coincidence! Tiger Vanguard had just arrived when the clay airplane arrived. And look at the flight path.
It hovered above the covered bridge, why was it focusing on a bunch of cannon fodder instead of observing the formidable Tiger Vanguard? Besides, didn't Yomi say that Tiger Vanguard had very sharp intuition?
Is it unable to see, or is it pretending not to see?
A series of questions surfaced in his mind, Yuki reached out and grasped that fleeting inspiration.
If it's looking for me—no, it should be said that it's being ordered by those two to find me—could we plan ahead?
Yuki was certain that those two were up to no good, and thinking that there was no harm in making a mistake, he hesitated for a moment before releasing his sword.
"Frieren, you and Yanzhu have something to do. Go now."
"What is it?" Inside a palace, a girl who was taking small bites of pocky sat up straight.
"I've already notified Hayasaka Ai to bring her people out. Hiyori will share a coordinate; you two should meet at the designated location."
"And then, will you join forces and support us?"
Yuki glanced at the paper airplane above his head, made a gesture, and quietly retreated with Yomi.
"No, you two fight. You and Hayasaka go all out, and Flame Pillar and Bradley can just hold the fort."
"Huh? You're not sick?"
Frieren was stunned, but Yuki had no intention of creating an ally's encirclement. Some problems were beginning to emerge, and a true sage would begin to plan when the curtain was drawn.
Tiger Vanguard, Ulquiorra, Deidara, are you three in cahoots? What do you want from me?
Let's try casting some bait first.
Chapter Twenty: I Have a Very Ridiculous Plan (4K)
Boom!
The light of the Doomsday Meteor flashed across the city; the forbidden magic was powerful, but it could only create a ripple in this vast city.
In the distance, a fireball ignited on the horizon, followed by even more muffled gunfire that reduced a palace larger than a football field to dust—yes, dust finer than flour.
Forbidden magic, the Death Knell tolls—this is no performance, causing the Flame Pillar and the Führer to turn their heads in a stark contrast.
Both of them were Monster II level players, more like powerful figures holding the fort, making one wonder if these two women had some deep-seated grudge.
But just like a rehearsal, Hayasaka Ai always manages to dodge the rain of exorcism magic. Her Gun-Kata is like a gorgeous dance, launching counterattacks from unexpected angles. Then, with Frieren perception at its peak, she can distinguish between ordinary bullets and the deafening roar of Death Knell.
These two are so in sync! If they weren't on opposing sides, they'd look like long-time teammates.
Flame Pillar glanced at Bradley. Neither of them dared to draw their swords, not only because they had no trust in each other, but also because such fast-paced attacks could easily get them carried away.
Anyone who dares to hold back will die.
"We can't just stand here all the time, how about we practice?"
"I'm getting old, my reactions aren't as quick as an average person's." The President chuckled, his eyes sharp as knives. "We can play some light combat, but I have a habit—"
He removed the blindfold, revealing the red pattern inside. His most powerful eye scanned the surroundings, taking in all sorts of bizarre and wonderful Reconnaissance tools.
"I don't like being watched."
Clang--
The military sword was drawn, complementing Kyojuro's flaming katana, and together they attacked, the resulting shockwave shattering all the Reconnaissance equipment.
"Oh no, we've been discovered."
In the distance, Deidara scratched his face. Just as Yuki had predicted, his abilities weren't limited to explosions.
Find a secluded spot to hide, free your eyes; monitoring the giant island isn't difficult, just keep an eye on those covered bridges.
"I've seen the man with the eye patch before. He's a player from the 'War Orphans' group, known as 'The Strongest Eye.' Your little toys won't fool him." Ulquiorra leaned against the wall, flipping through an ancient book in his hands.
This book is very thick, as if it could never be finished. The cover is brown and covered with drawings of eyes.
"Found him. The person he fought should be Kyojuro from the Night Parade of One Hundred Demons. The magician is confirmed to belong to the Aether Particles. Only they can use that Doomsday Meteor. We don't know who the woman with the revolver is. She should be from a faction that recently broke out of the closed world."
The Book of Hundred Eyes recorded a wealth of information and skills about known players, but the results left the two completely baffled.
Before the two of them could even arrive, the players from the War Tower came out on their own and then engaged in a direct battle with the players from the Tower of Asura.
The two players who control the towers are enemies, which is good for other players, but strange for Deidara and Ulquiorra, who originally thought their target was the mastermind who secretly took control of the two towers.
But such an intense battle doesn't seem like a performance, because each faction can only enter one tower, and it certainly couldn't be a group of people.
Aether Particles, Night Parade of One Hundred Demons, War Orphans, and an unknown faction—that makes four factions. Just coordinating them will take a lot of effort.
Ulquiorra frowned, then turned and asked, "How's your investigation going?"
"Just found an Alliance Tower Explorer, currently being interrogated." Deidara closed his eyes, linking with his clay clone in the distance. After a long while, he opened his eyes, revealing a look of sudden enlightenment.
"Just as you guessed, before the tower was activated, a player broke into the Tower of Asura. Shortly after he entered, the dungeon entered its second phase. Furthermore, this person carried the scent of the Asura Mark."
"What does it look like?"
"A blond boy, consistent with the intelligence from the Red Earth Continent."
Ulquiorra straightened up instantly. After all this work, he had finally obtained solid evidence, exactly as he had guessed.
While appearances can be changed at will, players cannot defy the game's hints. Since Frieren has been identified as the 'Aether Particles,' the players who entered the tower with her must be senior members of the same faction, and this can be compared with the prophecy of the Hundred Eyes of True Knowledge and the information from the broker.
Two members of the Aether Particles, six members of the Night Parade of One Hundred Demons, and the Target of Judgment formed an alliance, and these three factions jointly controlled the Tower of Asura.
Because the blond youth was a lone traveler, he could theoretically enter any tower. He only needed to force his way back to the Tower of Asura and enter the top floor to enter the second stage.
"No wonder he went to the two towers. He was probably deliberately leading us to the War Tower. Those War Orphans are not easy to deal with. Fighting them would at least result in injuries."
Deidara snapped out of his daze, scratched his head, and started counting on his fingers:
"The female mage can be disregarded, but as a duo, the man must be very strong; the 'Night Parade of One Hundred Demons' Demon Extermination Squad is a bunch of stubborn fools, but their strength is still there; the target's background is unknown, but theoretically, they are stronger than both of them."
Even setting aside the issues of sowing discord and winning over rivals, in a direct confrontation, they are no less formidable than themselves.
Ulquiorra sensed the difficulty and wondered how Lord Aizen would handle such a complex situation. He quickly came up with an idea.
"Contact the Manual of Hundred Demons and others, and launch a full-scale attack on the players belonging to the Tower of Asura to investigate their strength. Based on their power, I will then decide the Destiny of the players in the War Tower."
Deidara nodded; the logic was simple and clear.
The enemy of my enemy can be my friend.
"Five types of detectors? That means at least five factions of players have already entered the game."
Meanwhile, Yuki also received news that more and more Tower Explorers had entered the giant island and begun vying for the marks.
There's a reason for sending Flame Pillar and President Bradley; both are powerful, well-known among players, and backed by major forces.
Experienced players aren't fools; they all deciphered the problem in the first hint. Upon seeing that the Tower of Asura and the War Tower were controlled by War Orphans and the Demon Extermination Squad, they all abandoned their idea of seizing the Witch Spirit Mark.
Since there are six towers and hundreds of characters in the story, why not just rob them?
Standing atop the palace, Yuki saw that the giant island had become lively, with occasional booming cannon fire, meteorites falling from the sky, and powerful beings soaring into the heavens, casting huge and blurry shadows.
The distance was too great for Yuki to recognize who it was; in any case, technology, magic, and cultivation were intertwined, and the battle was quite lively.
"Yes, don't provoke the players. Target the Alliance explorers. Kaguya can go now; this kind of giant city is perfect for her."
The easiest way for Thorny Rose to collect all the marks is with Hiyori, and Kaguya Shinomiya targeting them from dozens of kilometers away. Even if those wizards are enhanced, they can still be killed with a single arrow if they are below the level of the Transcendental Grade.
This is Kaguya-sama's shining moment. With such an outrageous sniper around, the War Tower is more like a dragon's den or a tiger's lair; who would dare to approach it?
Bite.
With a soft whistle, the black-haired girl with her ponytail sheathed her blade, and several spirit beasts around her vanished into thin air.
Corpses lay all around, and blood dripped down the steps, forming a small stream.
Blood, corpses, short skirts, black hair, samurai swords—it looks like a famous painting.
"Are you and Miss Frieren really not in a hurry?"
After killing the person, the girl lit up a Pocky, as relaxed and peaceful as if she were having a cigarette afterward.
"What's the rush? There are still many targets. By the way, is the mark proportional to strength?" Yuki withdrew his gaze. Yomi Isayama was very deceptive; she was more like a summoner.
A group of noble explorers from the Purgatory Tower were wiped out, and the wizard leading them, even after being enhanced, still posed little threat.
"Killing a squad is enough to collect enough traces for one person. That makes sense. There are only two of you, so you'll catch up quickly."
To be precise, each case is separate. Can a Transcendental Grade team really assemble just one person? That's not a big problem.
Yuki relaxed slightly; he didn't want to get Frieren killed, and turned to look to the east.
"That tiger demon didn't come over."
"Huh, this tiger demon is cruel and bloodthirsty. It will definitely come to interfere if there is a battle around, and then, depending on the situation, it will wipe out both sides at the same time." Yomi scratched his face and looked at Yuki with a slightly strange expression. "Mr. Li, why did you suddenly think of punishing evil and promoting good?"
If she remembered correctly, Yuki wasn't interested at first, but then his thoughts suddenly changed, and he started researching how to ambush Tiger Vanguard.
'Because a simple act of self-inflicted suffering isn't enough; we also need to enlighten their minds.'
Yuki silent, but he had already concluded that Tiger Vanguard was related to Deidara. The city was estimated to cover tens of thousands of square kilometers, and the clay plane had been circling Tiger Vanguard.
He sensed a tacit understanding: Tiger Vanguard was more like a scout, and as for who he was Reconnaissance, there was still some evidence.
"Map."
Yomi quickly pulled out a map, which was hand-drawn by Yuki. Very few players could multitask at the Isshin, not only to steal the marks but also to draw a map.
The finger moved along the map, tracing the route Tiger Vanguard took after leaving the Forest Elf Tower, and stopping at several points.
These are all locations where the members of the Tower of Asura have stayed. They occasionally encounter other players, but no one follows them closely.
"They're after us?" Yomi Isayama was taken aback, then looked on in disbelief. "There are plenty of targets here, why are they targeting us?"
Each tower has a unique aura that cannot be concealed by any item, making it easy to identify the tower's owner. However, the Flame Pillar's previous actions have already revealed who owns the Tower of Asura, causing other players to avoid it at all costs.
"Okay, I know why it came looking for us. Fine, we didn't settle scores with this beast, yet it dared to come knocking on our door." Yomi covered his face, suddenly understanding that the two camps did indeed have a deep-seated blood feud.
This is a wonderful misunderstanding, or perhaps it is.
Yuki didn't correct him, only saying calmly, "You probably can't beat it."
"Isn't this right here with you?"
"Is it backed by a powerful figure? Taking it down would cause trouble?" Yuki glanced at her and asked casually.
The girl's smile froze, her purple eyes darted around, and finally she stuck out her tongue. "Hey, you figured that out. You killed it, so I owe you a favor."
It's not hard to guess; Tiger Vanguard hadn't hidden its tracks and had already been discovered by other players, but no one dared to provoke it.
Yuki is no longer a newbie; he knows that returning will also involve karma. But just like Akaza getting his head caught in the crossfire of the Demon Extermination Squad, he will make enemies, but he will also gain friends.
Seeing the expectant look in Yomi Isayama's eyes, Yuki said nothing, closed the map, and turned to leave.
"We took the initiative and killed it."
Yuki didn't care how evil Tiger Vanguard was, nor was he interested in its relationship with the Demon Extermination Squad.
But since those two are looking for him, Tiger Vanguard is acting as Tiger's accomplice, he must die.
Moreover, killing them would gather enough marks to enter the mausoleum, making it a win-win situation.
Pat, pat.
Yuki flicked the blade with his thumb and then slowly closed it again, hiding in a corner under his invisibility cloak.
The battle has begun. Tiger Vanguard has indeed found the Demon Extermination Squad. Without any nonsense, the two sides started fighting directly, but the course of the battle was unexpected.
The palaces before my eyes vanished, replaced by a vast forest, with trees covered in human faces standing side by side, adding a touch of gray-green to the city.
Illusion? No, a domain barrier.
Communication was cut off, and the battle situation was unclear. The tiger was very cunning; it anticipated an ambush and activated the barrier, leaving Yuki and his companion, who were originally preparing to fight and then flank each other, staring blankly at the forest.
"The illusionary domain 'Blood Pool and Flesh Forest,' Chaos Grade- level artifact, a must-have for Tiger Vanguard." Yomi knew the Tiger Demon well and quickly revealed all the information.
This is a powerful level 6 item. Unlike the Night Furnace Domain, it cannot Spatial Severance; instead, it creates a vast illusion.
The tiger can hide in the forest, using its own Conceal Presence, and hunt silently, making it impossible for anyone to ambush it. The blood pool can also dissolve creatures with physiques below the extraordinary level, turning them into blood demons for the tiger to command.
Blood Demon? Below Extraordinary Physique?
"It's targeting the Soulless Ones." Upon hearing this, Yuki immediately realized that he had underestimated Tiger Vanguard. How could such a powerful player be willing to take such a risk? He must have his own selfish motives.