Reckless

Chapter 18: Reckless

To catch the bandits, first capture their leader.

On the battlefield, killing the commander leading the troops first often dealt a devastating blow to enemy morale, perhaps even making them kneel and beg for mercy. This tactic never failed against Orcs.

So how could a level 10 Legendary Boss kill a level 35 Orc Boss?

That was when true skill had to be displayed.

William leaped down from the treetop again. Gracefully drawing his bow to its limit in midair, he gathered gleaming white battle aura in both arms and unleashed Deadly Volley!

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Three arrows wrapped in razor-sharp battle aura streaked through the night sky like three dazzling meteors.

In an instant.

The arrows struck the Orc Boss's head in rapid succession!

Bursts of light flared. No matter how thick-skinned and tough the Orc Boss was, the moment the arrows hit his head, he could not help but rear back and stagger several steps. His Battle Aura Shield was powerful, but when all three arrows struck the same spot in succession, it finally shattered.

With both axes in hand, he let out a howl and dropped to one knee, clutching his right eye.

As long as every arrow from William's Deadly Volley hit, its damage continuously increased.

The final arrow had already gained 160% additional damage. Coupled with the doubled damage from a headshot, it instantly tore away a huge chunk of the Orc Boss's health.

"Damn it! Damn it! You little bastard, I'll kill you!" The Orc leader viciously yanked the arrow from his eye socket, then charged forward with his men, roaring.

With no time left to climb a tree, William took a deep breath.

He drew his bow again!

At that moment.

Light of Dawn activated.

By adding 50% battle aura to Deadly Volley, its attack power could be increased by 200%!

At that instant.

Nearly every Orc charging forward felt a sliver of lethal chill.

An Elven Archer who never missed and only aimed for heads was simply terrifying.

But they were already close. Some Orcs could not help fantasizing that if they killed William, the thrill would be enough to send them into a frenzy!

Even more Orc girls would throw themselves into their arms after the battle, while they themselves would receive the treatment of heroes.

The Orc leader, meanwhile, had been shot red-eyed. As a Berserker, he had completely fallen into a state of madness. Red light blazed all over his body, and he had no intention of dodging at all.

But that alone proved one thing.

He had activated his Berserker state.

There should have been only one word left in his mind!

That was—

Charge!

And so.

As William retreated, shifted, and dodged in quick succession, he raised his hand and fired another three streaks of light through the Black Night. With piercing whistles, they struck their targets in an instant.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Blood burst forth!

The Orc leader, swinging his twin axes, failed to block a single arrow.

All three arrows nearly struck the Orc leader's head at the same time!

When the final arrow pierced through the Orc leader's skull, many even heard the sharp sounds of cracking bone.

Boom...

Still clutching his twin axes, the Orc leader's head exploded in a vivid spray of brains, and he crashed heavily to the ground.

This Berserk Orc, who had almost no defenses and knew only how to charge recklessly, finally died on the spot.

A level 35 Orc Boss was very strong.

But he was merely someone with an Advanced Bloodline.

In terms of bloodline potential, he was nowhere near William's equal.

Of course, when charging recklessly, someone like him was still quite formidable against players. But against a level 10 Legendary Boss, with the added difference in equipment, they were more or less evenly matched.

That was because William after changing class was vastly different from the William who had not yet done so.

Especially in terms of attributes, with his Epic-Class inner armor and legendary battle aura technique, he was only slightly weaker than the Orc Boss in raw stats. In terms of skills, however, he completely crushed him.

Even in terms of intelligence, the Orc was equally outclassed.

It was precisely the Orc leader's death that made the charging Orcs stop in their tracks!

Even some Berserkers could not help swallowing. Recklessness was a word that could define their entire lives, but their leader had charged himself straight to death. Their brains finally produced a side effect—stopping their charge...

After all, the arrows that had blown up their leader were terrifying enough to make their hearts tremble.

William stood alone before more than two hundred Orc Warriors, carrying the imposing air of a man facing an army by himself.

The reason he had killed the Orc leader first was that doing so would inflict a fear buff upon the ordinary Orc Warriors.

Otherwise, how could he possibly kill every Orc alone?

"Still, the effect isn't that great!" William raised an eyebrow. The Orc Warriors had not fled and still seemed hesitant, so he waved his hand.

Rustle, rustle.

Two hundred Elf soldiers in elite armor instantly appeared all around them. As the Elven Archers aimed their bows at the Orcs, they finally clattered their weapons onto the ground, wailed, and knelt to surrender.

Shivering like a group of young women surrounded by burly men, they looked toward William with hopeful yet slightly despairing gazes, as though worrying about what their futures would hold.

[Territory Crisis Quest: Phase Two completed. You successfully defeated the invaders by yourself. Although you needed your subordinates to maintain order, you also displayed your true strength.]

[Reward: 45,000 experience]

[Reward: A large quantity of armor]

Upon seeing the second reward, William could not help twitching his lips. He had thought the unknown second reward would be something good, but it was merely some armor. This was practically being handed to him for free!

As long as he killed these Orcs, he could naturally obtain the armor they wore with ease.

Unfortunately, Orc armor was too ugly and did not fit properly. It would need to be reforged.

As the Orcs disarmed and surrendered, William had yet to order their execution, but the other Elves understood what he meant. They had the Orcs remove their last pieces of armor, leaving them naked as they covered their groins and lined up to be properly arranged.

For no other reason.

Orcs were the best miners aside from Dwarves.

Not only could they endure hardship.

Under the lash of a small whip, they could even develop a mentality of enjoying mining more and more!

Whether among the Elves or the Human Race, as long as they could control their Orc prisoners, they would generally send them into the mines.

"Lord!" Nock, who had gone into the cave to loot the spoils, suddenly ran over with delight on his face.

William, who had been considering how to level up, looked over, and his eyes lit up. "Armor?"

"Yes. We found armor and weapons belonging to Human Race Warriors in the cave. Every piece is of excellent quality, and there are more than three hundred sets!" Nock said with a smile, holding up bloodstained armor and weapons.

The quest didn't lie to me after all. William casually picked up a piece of armor and weighed it in his hand, then raised an eyebrow. "Bring it all back. Grind off the markings on the armor and weapons. When we recruit soldiers later, we won't lack equipment!"

"Understood!" Nock nodded and began directing the other soldiers to empty the Orc cave of its valuables.

"How did the Steel Duchy's soldiers' armor and weapons end up in the Orcs' hands?" Lotner asked, puzzled by the sight.

"I don't know, but they're mine now!" William said indifferently. War between Orcs and humans had never ceased. After obtaining loot from human soldiers, Orcs would usually find merchants to sell it to.

If nothing unexpected happened, these sets of armor would eventually be bought by merchants with adventurous spirits.

The Orcs would then exchange them for food, such as salt, cloth, scarce goods, and so on. So capturing Steel Duchy armor was not much of a problem.

But when someone brought over a pitch-black scale.

The two of them instantly widened their eyes and asked in unison, "Dragon scale?"

Please vote for me.

Thanks to Shanhe for the massive reward.