Closing In

At the same time.

Oolacile Arena.

Lu Xiu had just briefly explained the situation of the other two bosses of Oolacile to the other players in Nine Provinces.

They were facing the speechless gazes of Cheng Xiu and the others.

Sudden.

A system announcement then went off.

Having just finished their rest, the core players of Nine Provinces couldn't help but look up at the sky upon hearing the announcement that Zane was being hunted down, and then they couldn't help but look at Lu Xiu.

Lu Xiu was also somewhat surprised.

But upon further reflection, it seemed quite reasonable.

really.

The two Core Bonfire in the Painted World are located at the Sister Friede's place and at the half-dragon Priscilla's place.

While players from Prison Rock can't beat the Sister Friede —they can easily defeat Priscilla.

When Constructed Instance, she maxed out the strength of most of the bosses in the Dark Souls Dungeon, making them unrecognizable.

However, Lu Xiu didn't make many changes to Priscilla; he only increased her damage.

Because in Lu Xiu's mind, this lonely character in the Painted World is not a BOSS in the traditional sense, but an NPC.

certainly.

Lu Xiu truly hadn't expected that killing Priscilla in a group battle would lead to being hunted down by the cross-dresser, and even result in such severe collateral punishment.

He noticed that the eerie and unsettling self-illumination of those around him was all focused on him.

"Don't look at me like I'm the mastermind. You don't think I set this up, do you?"

Lu Xiu said speechlessly, "How could that be? The settings of all the Core Bonfire have nothing to do with me. I just added two new bosses. Moreover, once the dungeon became a group battle scene, it was completely out of my control as the Architect. Don't think that Architect are omnipotent."

If I were truly omnipotent, I wouldn't be holding this Title now.

She pointed to the Title "[Creator]" above her head with her fair finger.

Upon hearing this...

Jiang Qiu, Cheng Xiu, and the others coughed awkwardly twice.

For a fleeting moment, they did subconsciously believe that Lu Xiu was the mastermind behind it all.

Wei Yidong, however, was much more thick-skinned and said directly, "I think you're the one who did the bad thing—"

Lu Xiu: "----Don't you have any manners?"

"So this is a setting added by the system?"

Shen Nian had recovered from the awkwardness of the moment and looked at Lu Xiu curiously, asking, "Why is the system set up like this? Why is it Gwyndolin who's chasing us?"

"How would I know? I already said I didn't set it, but I guess so. The Core Bonfire points are so high, in a team battle, capturing three campfires guarantees victory. The system definitely won't let players capture them so easily."

Lu Xiu looked at Shen Nian: "Of the five Core Bonfire, four require defeating powerful bosses, and the last one can't be easily obtained by players, otherwise there's no point in setting up the other four Core Bonfire."

"This fifth Bonfire is very easy to capture, but once you do, you'll face a severe penalty—it's like a different game mode, which is normal."

"Moreover, this setting might be fine for the top-tier players, but for the vast majority of ordinary players in other tiers, it's a powder keg that could explode at any moment."

"Especially in the later stages of group battles, it can easily spark huge disagreements among players—for example, should we attack the half-dragon? Who will deliver the final blow and bear the pressure of being chased down? After attacking, how do we retreat while carrying debuffs? How do we deal with players from other factions? Will the opposing faction even know how to fight? After all, getting a Core Bonfire is basically equivalent to winning."

"Such enormous profits and death penalties make it easier to ignite conflicts between players, plunging large numbers of players into endless scrambling and chaotic battles."

"And that's probably the system's purpose."

After listening to Lu Xiu's words.

The core players of Nine Provinces present seemed to be deep in thought.

Thinking about it carefully, it really is true.

All Core Bonfire require defeating a boss like Artorias.

Then players in other tiers will completely give up on capturing the Core Bonfire.

But a boss like a half-dragon is a different story.

This will add a lot of variables to the battles between players from other tiers.

"As for why Gwyndolin who came out to chase and kill him—"

Lu Xiu slightly raised her snow-white chin, recalling the various original settings she had added when creating this dungeon, and casually explained, "This is probably related to the background story of the entire dungeon. The half-dragon girl Priscilla in the Painted World is an illegitimate child."

"----Whose illegitimate daughter?"

"Gwyn."

Shen Nian asked with a hint of gossip, "Oh~ with whom?"

While the general story of Dark Souls is generally easy to understand, many of the storylines are truly obscure.

The others, upon hearing this, also became curious.

"Guess for yourselves."

Lu Xiu chuckled lightly, "I said, what do I mean?"

In fact, Lu Xiu didn't know either.

Given the fragmented narrative of the original game, there were no fixed answers to begin with.

The description of Crossbreed Priscilla, is that she is a special character with a unique soul. She is an illegitimate child and a half-dragon whose life is threatened.

But the game doesn't reveal whose illegitimate daughter she is.

There are two plausible guesses: one is that Priscilla's father is Gwyn and her mother is the Seath the Scaleless.

Because Priscilla is a half-dragon girl, possessing both human and dragon characteristics, and having powerful soul strength, she poses a threat to the gods.

This is why so many people covet her power and want to come to the Painted World to seize her soul; after all, her father was one of the original Four Kings, and her mother was a scaleless ancient Ancient Dragon.

This is also why she was imprisoned, because she possessed power that could threaten the gods.

Another theory is that Priscilla is the daughter of the goddess of sin Velka, and the Duke of Piercing Alster, because various signs indicate that the goddess of sin also possesses Ancient Dragon blood.

Lu Xiu simply added the setting.

The system's decision to have Gwyndolin hunt her down is clearly based on the assumption that this one of the few bosses who still retains some humanity is Gwyn's illegitimate daughter.

That's fine too.

Because Lu Xiu thought so too.

After all, in the original game, the Crossbreed Priscilla was originally the female protagonist of Dark Souls.

It ultimately became a scrapped proposal.

Otherwise, Dark Souls might become a dating sim without even waiting for a sequel.

Speaking of which...

In the next team battle, I can also go and explore the Painted World.

I don't know what will happen after the instance becomes a scene and the restrictions are lifted.

How will the system evolve this half-dragon girl?

Lu Xiu's thoughts wandered, quickly moving on to the next group battle.

On the other side...

Hearing Lu Xiu's words.

Others:

Guessing is fine.

However, seeing that Lu Xiu was unwilling to talk, the Nine Provinces players standing around could only shake their heads regretfully and suppress their strong curiosity.

Only Jian Li.

The usually aloof and indifferent girl glanced at Lu Xiu, who was standing there gracefully, hesitated for a moment, and then, unusually, took half a step closer to her.

Then, she turned slightly to the side, ran her fingers through the strands of hair that had fallen down her temple, and then leaned close to Lu Xiu's ear, whispering in a voice only the two of them could hear, "Could you... tell me secretly?"

Warm breath came, and soft strands of hair gently brushed against Lu Xiu's ear, bringing a ticklish sensation.

Lu Xiu turned her head and looked at the girl who was acting suspiciously for the first time ever, and couldn't help but chuckle.

So gossipy!

She leaned close to her ear and whispered back, "Okay, I'll tell you privately after we finish this match, if we win."

Seeing this, Shen Nian pursed her lips and couldn't help but ask, "----What are you talking about?"

Jian Li skillfully unleashed her killing intent.

Shen Nian then skillfully shrugged her shoulders.

Lu Xiu smiled.

At this moment.

Anor Londo Cheng Xiu closed the communication window in front of him, then turned to look at Lu Xiu and said, "There's new information from the capital."

Fan Lixin said that he was leading the Nine Provinces players in the Anor Londo to join the attack on Zane, but Zane's domain, the Mist Sea Abyss, was indeed disgusting; it was really hard to find him under the vast fog.

"Although they managed to forcibly retain many core players of Prison Rock and basically wiped out all the core players of Prison Rock in the Painted World, Zane himself still used a lot of high-level items to escape the encirclement."

Upon hearing this result, the Nine Provinces players around him had various expressions, with many expressing regret.

Lu Xiu showed no surprise. She stretched slightly, her slender figure relaxed, and her neatly tied high ponytail swayed in the air, completely dispelling the last trace of fatigue from the extreme battle.

"So what if they ran away?"

Lu Xiu lowered her hand and said, "Then there's no need to even think about it. Let's head straight to Firelink Shrine. Zane is currently carrying the points from a Core Bonfire, so he definitely won't be foolish enough to return to the Anor Londo and walk right into their trap. The other Prison Rock players won't go to the Anor Londo to protect him either."

Speaking of which...

Lu Xiu paused, then pointed to the top of her head. "Besides, if I go back to the Anor Londo now, with the [Creator] negative buff on me, I might attract Gwyndolin as soon as I show my face. In that case, I'd end up helping the Prison Rock players out of trouble and becoming their scapegoat."

Upon hearing this, everyone nodded in agreement.

"Then let's go to Firelink Shrine."

Cheng Xiu rallied the troops, saying, "Let's finish this in one battle and fight to the death against Prison Rock!"

"It wasn't that tragic."

"The atmosphere has reached this point."

"Alright----By the way, the new boss at Firelink Shrine is a dragon. I wonder if the players in the Prison Rock will be fighting it when we get there. Just a heads up, so be prepared."

".

Cheng Xiu paused, nodded, and began arranging for people to guard the Bonfire at Oolacile to prevent the people from Prison Rock from coming to exchange homes.

Because Lu Xiu disliked this matter and was not familiar with the members of the Strategy Group.

Only Cheng Xiu can do it.

Even with Cheng Xiu's arrival, it seemed that no one else wanted to be a guard, and in the end, the choice was made by drawing lots.

Lu Xiu was amazed by the way their makeshift troupe operated.

Soon, the people who remained were chosen through a random lottery.

However, it's obvious.

Cheng Xiu trusted them and didn't suggest adding more people to the group that remained behind.

Several core players from Nine Provinces who drew the worst possible lot looked at Cheng Xiu with resentment and longing.

However, given the overall situation, they didn't say much and obediently stayed in Oolacile to guard the area.

After the arrangements were made.

Lu Xiu then led the remaining main force of Nine Provinces away from Oolacile in a grand procession.

We passed through a dark passage.

The group returned to the wide lake area in the Darkroot Garden.

Cheng Xiu.

Lu Xiu stopped and turned around, saying, "Contact Fan Lixin again and ask him if he knows how long Zane has been out of the Anor Londo."

We'll stop by and see if we can intercept this mobile Bonfire.

Upon hearing this, Cheng Xiu immediately activated his communication panel and quickly exchanged a few words with Fan Lixin, who was in the Anor Londo.

Next.

Cheng Xiu looked up and reported to the commander, "Zane broke through the encirclement about fifteen minutes ago."

"Fifteen minutes!"

Lu Xiu thought for a moment, "Everyone, spread out a little and search along the only route to the Firelink Shrine. See if you can intercept him halfway there."

"Clear!"

The players in Nine Provinces were immediately invigorated; this was practically like getting a Core Bonfire for free.

However.

After a thorough search, Zane was nowhere to be found.

After all, Zane's domain is quite overpowered. Since he was determined to leave rather than risk his life, it was indeed difficult for him to be stopped by monsters in the wild.

More than ten minutes later, the scattered crowd regrouped.

"Didn't get stuck." Wei Yidong shrugged, somewhat regretfully.

"Never mind."

Lu Xiu wasn't too upset. "It's okay if we didn't catch him—his goal is probably the same as ours, to go straight to the Firelink Shrine."

At the same time.

The Firelink Shrine.

Amidst a series of hurried footsteps, Zane, leading the last remaining player from Prison Rock, finally staggered into the somewhat oppressive camp.

He looked extremely disheveled at that moment.

It could even be described as being covered in wounds.

After all, being besieged by so many monsters and players from Nine Provinces —his survival was already an impressive feat of his Domain Skill.

He looked up and met the gazes of Gallagher and Finn.

The three commanders of the Prison Rock faction finally met in the most frustrating way they had ever experienced.

They looked at each other's less-than-pleasant expressions.

The three remained silent.

At the same moment, in the live broadcast room...

Countless players watching the battle also noticed the shift in the tide of the war.

The original main live stream featured three main perspective split screens: Anor Londo, Oolacile, and Firelink Shrine.

At this moment, they merged seamlessly into a dual-screen mode with the left and right sides facing each other.

On the left side of the screen, Lu Xiu is leading the charge, bringing with her the powerful core players of Nine Provinces, rapidly approaching the Firelink Shrine along the cliff path.

On the right side of the screen were Gallagher, Finn, Zane, and their group of Prison Rock players, their faces ashen, exchanging silent glances.

Any player with even a little common sense would understand it.

Based on their respective routes and speeds, it won't be long before the two split-screen views are completely merged into one.

The final battle is coming!

[We're about to meet! Finally, we're going to face off!]

[This is the final battle! Our Nine Provinces main force is unstoppable, while on the other hand, Prison Rock's side looks like they've all lost loved ones. This advantage is on my side!]

[Charge!!! Crush their last glimmer of hope!]

[Almost there! Lu Xiu and her group are about to run into the players from Prison Rock! My palms are sweating in front of the screen! The final battle between factions! I'm so excited just thinking about it! Finally, we can see Nine Provinces annihilate Prison Rock!]

[There are more players in Nine Provinces! Kill!!!]

The Nine Provinces comment section was in an uproar, filled with excited and enthusiastic comments.

In contrast.

The livestream room of the Prison Rock faction is different.

[It's over—they're coming! Lu Xiu is coming!]

[Run!]

[Zane has already used his Domain Skill Domain Skill twice and can no longer use it. Even using it for an ambush is no longer effective, and even if it were, according to the special event information, Lu Xiu doesn't seem to be afraid.]

[I definitely can't beat her in a one-on-one fight. Lu Xiu's skills are monstrous—she can only rely on team battles! Forget about running away! This is definitely an opportunity!]

[But how do we fight this?]

[Don't panic! Didn't Lord Finn say we'd use that Abyss Dragon down there to lure the people of Nine Provinces to Midir's territory and then kill them with a borrowed knife!]

[Yes! The dragon's area-of-effect attack is indiscriminate; if Lu Xiu dares to come down, we'll all perish together!]

A storm is coming.

All the spectators held their breath, staring intently at the screen as the two teams closed the distance between them.