Li Wei's plan sounds simple, but in reality, it is fraught with difficulties.
First, the enemy can contain us as long as they hold the key locations of the mission. Moreover, if all six tasks are not completed, the mission will continue indefinitely.
Moreover, what worries Li Wei is that if the first squad tries to steal the mission, then things will get complicated.
Currently, I have only completed one mission. Two missions were completed by the eliminated squad, and according to the rules, those two missions will also disappear. Therefore, only three missions remain.
One mission is 'Search for Cain', and the other two are 'Tools of the Trade' and 'The Slaying the Sisters'. If the other side manages to steal these three missions, the final result will still be total annihilation.
Fortunately, Zheng Yutong has already obtained the key item for Search for Cain mission, so the most urgent task is to obtain this crucial point.
In this way, even if the other party completes the last two tasks, their scores will be equal.
Emerging from the cave, Li Wei and his group of five quickly headed towards the Stony Field.
Li Wei walked at the front of the group because he knew the location of the stone formation.
The journey was uneventful, without encountering anyone from the first squad. However, this made Li Wei feel uneasy, as the first reincarnation squad seemed quite terrifying based on his interactions with the two people he had met.
However, precisely because of this, Squad 1 is also the most unstable team, because the individuals among them are simply too strong.
If an individual is too strong, the team will inevitably be weak.
The attitude of that orc reincarnator just now shows that they don't have much trust in their companions, and they don't even really understand them.
From the thieves at the beginning to the orcs, it was the same; they were better at fighting alone than cooperating, which was exactly what Li Wei wanted to take advantage of.
If the thieves and orcs had attacked them together that time, the outcome would likely have been very different. Such a squad might not have had a leader, and even if it did, the other members wouldn't truly obey the other side.
Therefore, Li Wei believed that he was facing four powerful reincarnators, not a powerful reincarnation team.
This is crucial for future battles.
The stone formation remained the same, surrounded by monsters. This time, because the stone formation's portal needed to be used, these monsters had to be completely eliminated.
The five of them worked together and the task went very smoothly.
Li Wei, Chen Dali, and Blood Wolf were responsible for close combat, while Zheng Yutong and Xue Yan attacked from a distance. The five of them cooperated very well and soon knocked dozens of zombies and skeletons to the ground.
Zheng Yutong took out the sheepskin scroll and activated the Cairn Stones in the order shown on it. As mysterious symbols flashed on the five stone pillars, a red portal appeared in the stone formation.
"This is the portal to Tristram. We must rescue Cain from the corrupted monsters there. According to the game's mechanics, he will automatically open a portal back to the Rogue Encampment. Once we confirm he's gone, we'll retreat. No fighting allowed!"
Li Wei issued an order.
All four of his companions nodded firmly, Li Wei felt a warmth in his heart. Even if they weren't strong individually, as a team, they were much stronger than that first squad.
The five people passed through the portal one after another and arrived in Tristram.
Tristram, a town that grew from a church, is described in this way on the Yellow Paper.
"I've heard tales of Tristram, and every time I hear that name, images of the undead, demons at their mercy, mad monarchs, and, most terrifyingly, legends come to mind. This is where Diablo was sealed, and years later, Diablo awoke. Tristram was reduced to horrific ruins by Diablo's Diablo attack, and since then, it has become a paradise for demons and the Undead."
In fact, that's exactly the case.
When Li Wei arrived at this chilling place through the portal, Li Wei could feel the intense demonic aura in the air. The black soil, mixed with black wisps of air, felt like stepping on dried flesh. The occasional cries from afar only added to his unease.
Flame.
The inextinguishable fires of hell filled the destroyed town, and soon, a monster glowing with an eerie red light burst forth from the shadows.
'Burning Hellbone', an enhanced monster, is a cursed demon that, under the influence of hellish power, completed the arduous task of crawling out of its tomb. Now, the demon god has given it a new task: to eradicate all living creatures.
The monster, wielding a chain hook, pounced swiftly, only to be met with an arrow wreathed in powerful, piercing energy.
Bang!
With a muffled thud, the arrow pierced its breastbone. The monster staggered back two steps, hissing as it sped up even faster than before.
If it were an ordinary monster, this arrow would have finished it off long ago. Clearly, the monsters here are much stronger than those outside.
"The monsters here are very powerful. Remember our objective!"
Li Wei struck the Burning Hellbone with a palm strike from a distance, shattering the resentful monster into a pile of broken bones.
A hundred meters away stood a dilapidated church. Li Wei knew that the only 'Horadric Deckard Cain' in the world was imprisoned there.
We need to hurry; if we get there too late, that old man might become the devil's dinner.
The smell of strangers was extremely pungent in this town overrun by demons. It was like placing a golden-brown, juicy roast duck among a group of hungry people.
So, a horde of demons surged in from all directions. They howled and sharpened their teeth as they came to feast on this meal.
However, some delicacies are not so easy to enjoy.
"I'll do it!"
Dozens of gleaming throwing knives appeared simultaneously in Xue Yan's hands. Only then did Li Wei notice that two new tattoos had appeared on her wrists.
It was an ink-colored incantation with the word "Qi" written in the middle.
"That was a human Enchanting she herself had done on her wrist, which she spent 20,000 points to have Enchanter. With that enchantment, she can use a large number of throwing knives at any time!"
Seeing Li Wei staring at the demonic runes, Zheng Yutong, who was standing nearby, offered an explanation.
Enchanter?
Li Wei suddenly realized that he also knew Enchanting. He had learned this skill from the vampiric Enchantment Scroll he brought from Heroes of Might and Magic and Magic, but apart from the time he assassinated Guo Jian, he had never used it again.
"Human Enchanting? I must study it when I get the chance!" Li Wei muttered to himself.
At that moment, Xue Yan had already thrown the throwing knife in her hand.
Some researchers have studied that if someone is a skilled thrower who has practiced throwing knives for a long time, the instantaneous speed of the throwing knife after it leaves their hand can exceed the speed of sound. Xue Yan is an enhanced reincarnated person, and she seems to have specifically enhanced her skills in throwing weapons. Therefore, those dozens of throwing knives were shot out like bullets.
The next second, a crisp sound of metal piercing into rotting flesh and bones was heard. More than a dozen monsters on the other side were hit by throwing knives. Li Wei took a closer look and realized that Xue Yan's throwing knife skills were too high. Every knife hit the monster's vital points.
"If that's all, you won't be able to kill the monster!" Li Wei said.
However, Zheng Yutong and the others rolled their eyes at Li Wei, as if to say, "You're such a country bumpkin."
Isn't that so?
The next second, Li Wei heard more than a dozen explosions, and when he looked at the monsters that had been hit by the throwing knives, the knives on their bodies were strangely exploding.
Li Wei was stunned.
Metal doesn't explode, unless the throwing knife wasn't made of metal at all.
"That's one of Xue Yan's special skills, Aura Daggers! Those throwing knives are created by her using special abilities, just like a part of her body. She can control the shape of those knives at will and... detonate them!"
Even Zheng Yutong showed a hint of envy when this ability was mentioned.
"It's just that Swallow's current level of this ability is not high. If she reaches a higher level, her combat strength will definitely not be weaker than yours!"
I see!
Li Wei only realized what had happened after seeing the monster's mangled corpse fall to the ground, struck by the flying knife.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, the group rushed forward. Most of the monsters along the way died under Li Wei's Black Spiral Sword. Perhaps inspired by Xue Yan's special skill, Li Wei tried to infuse a large amount of true energy into the sword. Then, he used the True Qi-Controlling Formula to attach a layer of special true energy, similar to a mucous membrane, to the surface of the true energy. In this way, the true energy on the sword would not dissipate, and its sharpness would not be reduced.
When swung, the sword seemed to be covered with a whip of true energy. This whip of true energy replaced the sword's edge and could kill enemies that the sword blade could not reach. Often, when the sword blade swung, enemies within four or five meters would be cut in half.
The five men stormed into the church.
Li Wei immediately spotted a pillar in the church, with an old man in a gray robe sitting in a cage hanging from it, his eyes closed in meditation.
That's him.
Deckard Cain, the Sage!
There were far fewer monsters inside the church than outside. The wooden chairs used for worship had long since rotted away, some of them completely reduced to piles of sawdust. Several dark hunters lay on the ground, constantly hissing.
"Human heroes, beware of the monsters lurking in the darkness!"
Cain, inside the cage, gave a warning; his voice seemed to have a penetrating power, echoing throughout the church.
This voice reminded Li Wei of a movie, the Lord of the Rings, where the wizard Gandalf's voice was just like that—deep and commanding.
No sooner had the words left his mouth than a naked woman emerged from the depths of the church.
The moment Li Wei saw her, he knew she wasn't a monster from the Diablo world.
She was completely naked, and by appearance alone, she looked like an ordinary woman. Her private parts, in particular, were enough to make one's heart race. However, it would be a big mistake to assume that she was harmless.
She was terrifying, Li Wei knew that perfectly well.
When the woman emerged completely from the darkness, everyone gasped.
Dozens of blood-red 'sticks' were stuck in her back, looking from a distance like steel bars piercing her body.