Now We've Got a Score to Settle (Please Bookmark)

In a lavishly decorated room.

A gaming pod slowly opened.

Cao Hong sat up inside, tapped his head a few times, and took a moment to clear his mind before climbing out.

His expression turned utterly sour as he recalled the final system message.

"What the hell was that? A single boss wiped us all out?"

Cao Hong couldn't help grumbling inwardly at the thought.

While Qin Shujian was absorbing the Core Token, he had already been preparing to leave the trouble-ridden Beginner Village 10021.

The bandits of Liangshan Stronghold were formidable.

If he couldn't fight them, surely he could hide from them.

But before he could make his next move, he received a system message and was forcibly logged out.

Recalling Qin Shujian's terrifying strength, Cao Hong sighed again.

He walked over to his computer with practiced ease.

Then he opened the forums and began browsing.

The game had been live for quite some time. He believed some expert players must have figured out a few strategies by now.

After the bandit disaster, Cao Hong knew he couldn't judge this game by his past experience.

Know yourself and your enemy.

Only then could you win every battle.

But when Cao Hong opened the forum page...

A huge headline was pinned right at the top.

"Terrifying Boss Destroys Beginner Village! Tens of Thousands of Players Helpless!"

Seeing that headline, Cao Hong had a bad feeling.

Sure enough.

When he clicked into the thread, a video awaited playback at the top, its thumbnail showing the stern face of the Liangshan Stronghold Chieftain.

He clicked to play the video.

The image abruptly changed.

Half an hour passed.

Only then did Cao Hong finish watching the video, his expression grim.

From the bandits' attack on Beginner Village 10021 to Qin Shujian standing inside the ring of light at the end, with not a single player daring to come within thirty feet of him.

The entire sequence had been recorded in full.

As for the ability to record...

It was actually an auxiliary feature available to every player.

What Cao Hong hadn't expected was that someone would record the whole incident and openly post it on the forums.

With that...

It would be hard for them not to be humiliated.

After finishing the video, Cao Hong had intended to close the thread immediately. But when he saw the 999+ comments below, he clicked them almost despite himself.

A long string of comments appeared.

Twenty minutes passed.

Cao Hong closed the comments, his face dark.

He had known perfectly well that nothing good would be in them.

Yet he just couldn't keep himself from clicking.

The facts proved that his past understanding had been entirely correct.

Judging by the comments, however...

Almost none of the other players had ever faced a major boss like the Liangshan Stronghold Chieftain head-on.

A tiny minority expressed sympathy for the destruction of Beginner Village 10021.

Of course, far more were mocking them.

"Liangshan Stronghold's chieftain... now we've got a score to settle. Just don't give me an opening..." Cao Hong suppressed his anger.

Players always grew far faster than NPCs.

The Liangshan Stronghold Chieftain might be so powerful now that he seemed invincible, but that didn't mean he would stay that way.

Once the players had all raised their levels, Cao Hong was ready to clear Liangshan Stronghold.

Liangshan Stronghold.

It had undergone a tremendous transformation.

After their cultivation rose to the Martial Entry Third Level, the bandits' intelligence had also risen from its previously deficient state to that of ordinary people.

And this...

That was what pleased Qin Shujian most.

The Bandits had been obedient before, but most of them were dim-witted. Their limited intelligence made it easy for players to trick them into getting killed.

Before Zheng Fang and the others arrived, he couldn't even find more than a few Bandits he could hold a normal conversation with.

But now that Liangshan Stronghold had become a First-Tier Power...

The Bandits who had caused Qin Shujian so much worry finally behaved like people.

Besides that...

The stronghold's crude buildings had also been completely transformed.

Under the hands of professional carpenters and masons, even using locally sourced materials, the renovated stronghold had gained some of the imposing air it ought to have possessed.

Inside the Hall of Loyalty and Righteousness.

After the renovations, the hall was considerably more spacious, and even its furnishings were no longer as crude as before.

Qin Shujian sat upright in the seat of honor.

Below him sat Zheng Fang, Zhang Tieniu, and the other Bandit leaders.

"All of you contributed greatly to conquering the Outlanders' village and raising our stronghold to a first-tier power. As your chieftain, I'm deeply gratified." Qin Shujian smiled as he surveyed everyone in the Hall of Loyalty and Righteousness.

Zheng Fang cupped his hands. "It was your formidable strength that secured the opportunity for victory in one stroke, Chieftain. We dare not claim the credit."

"The strategist is right. It's all thanks to your wise leadership, Chieftain!"

Zhang Tieniu and the others hurried to agree.

"If I say you deserve credit, then you deserve credit!"

Qin Shujian raised his hand and pressed it down slightly, and the hall immediately fell silent.

Then his gaze settled on Zheng Fang.

This newly appointed strategist and leader had originally been an expert at the Fourth Level of Martial Entry. But after being surrounded and killed by a mob of players, his cultivation had fallen to the Martial Entry Third Level.

Yet with Liangshan Stronghold's promotion to a First-Tier Power, his strength had advanced rather than declined, making him an expert at the Martial Entry Fifth Level in one leap.

Even the original Bandits, such as Zhang Tieniu and Wang Tiezhu, along with Zhao Shanlin, Wang Hu, and the others who had followed Zheng Fang here, had advanced rather than declined, reaching the Fourth Level of Martial Entry.

Besides them...

Three other Bandits had also reached the Fourth Level of Martial Entry.

They were all seated here now.

Feeling Qin Shujian's gaze upon him, Zheng Fang felt immense pressure.

"I intend to establish three ranks beneath the chieftain: Elite Leader, Senior Leader, and Leader." Qin Shujian looked at everyone and spoke slowly. "Our strategist contributed greatly to the conquest of the Outlanders' village, so today I am raising his position to the equivalent of an Elite Leader."

At those words, Zheng Fang trembled slightly. He immediately stood and said solemnly, "Rest assured, Chieftain. I will devote all my strength to your service until my dying breath!"

"Good!"

Qin Shujian nodded slightly, then looked at Zhang Tieniu and the others. "Zhang Tieniu and Wang Tiezhu have followed me for quite some time and have always worked hard and rendered great service. Today, I am promoting you both to Elite Leader as well."

"Thank you, Chieftain!"

Overjoyed, Zhang Tieniu and Wang Tiezhu hurriedly rose to answer.

“Zhao Shanlin, Wang Hu, Chen Daniu, Fu Gang...”

When he reached Fu Gang's name, Qin Shujian couldn't help pausing.

He couldn't help it.

In a bandit den full of names like Iron Ox, Second Dog, and Dog Egg, the sudden appearance of such an ordinary name was impossible not to notice.

But he paused only briefly before continuing.

"Fu Gang and Sun Erzhu—the five of you will be promoted to Leader."

"Thank you, Chieftain!"

Zhao Shanlin, Wang Hu, and the three bandits who had newly reached the Fourth Level of Martial Entry answered in unison.

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