Bloody Battle!

The players were slaughtered in an instant as soon as they charged in.

They could do nothing to stop the Grass Ninja squad from advancing toward Hidden Jun Village.

And so this elite Grass Ninja squad marched straight in.

Without encountering a single obstacle along the way, they reached the outskirts of the village.

The Chunin exchanged nods, then vanished in a flash.

A few minutes later, they all returned.

They had found no guards anywhere around Hidden Jun Village, as though anyone could simply walk inside.

But after all their years of fighting and scraping by in the Shinobi World, they understood one thing very well.

They could never underestimate an enemy!

The Jonin therefore refrained from acting rashly and decided to observe a little longer.

One Chunin said, "There's something strange about Hidden Jun Village."

"The roads around here all look newly built. Where did they get the resources?"

After all, Kusagakure monopolized all the resources in the Land of Grass.

Yet this village could undertake extensive construction. It was downright bizarre!

Surely those resources couldn't have appeared out of thin air?

"It is suspicious. That's why we must proceed with caution!"

The Jonin nodded.

In his eyes, Hidden Jun Village was nothing more than an obscure little ninja village.

It wasn't even worth Kusagakure's attention.

Yet the more they learned about this tiny village, the less they understood it.

It was as though a veil of mystery shrouded it!

Logically speaking, ninja were a kind of resource, too.

An impoverished village naturally couldn't afford to possess, let alone train, such a luxury.

But not only did Hidden Jun Village have ninja, every one of them was unwavering in their beliefs!

Could Hidden Jun Village actually be some hidden paradise?

At that thought, the Jonin grew even more curious.

He became all the more determined to seize Hidden Jun Village and uncover its secrets!

Meanwhile, after getting slaughtered, the players didn't mindlessly rush back in to throw their lives away.

Instead, they discussed tactics.

Dai Xiaomei and Emperor of Sinking even brought One Sword Opens Heaven over to help them plan.

After hearing their account, One Sword Opens Heaven immediately made a rough assessment of the enemy's fighting strength.

Then, startled by his own conclusion, he said with a deep frown:

"I'm afraid the Grass Ninja leading them is already at Jonin level!"

"The ones who had a say in things were probably Chunin!"

His inference wasn't baseless.

The Shinobi World here clearly operated on the principle that strength ruled supreme.

Anyone who could make so many ninja obediently follow his orders had to be strong enough to command their respect!

A Chunin probably wouldn't cut it. He had to be a Jonin!

After hearing this, the other players thought back to what had happened.

It did line up pretty closely with what One Sword Opens Heaven had said!

"Then how are we supposed to fight them? That's a Jonin!"

Dai Xiaomei couldn't help feeling discouraged.

She might usually charge in recklessly, but that was for entertainment value.

Even the top players, including One Sword Opens Heaven, were only at Genin level.

Taking on a Jonin from Kusagakure head-on would be asking to lose even more chakra, wouldn't it?

At that moment, Ye Chen also received a system notification.

The Grass Ninja had arrived near Hidden Jun Village, signaling that he could issue a new quest.

After a moment's thought, Ye Chen issued a new main quest.

This time, he added something different.

[Ding! Main quest: Protect Hidden Jun Village from the Grass Ninja invasion until the village's Jun arrives!]

[Reward: All participants will receive 1,500 Contribution Points.]

[Ding! All players will gain the "Horn of Bloody Battle" status until Jun arrives!]

[Horn of Bloody Battle: Players under this blessing will no longer lose chakra upon death and will return to peak condition.]

[Countdown begins: 01:59:59]

Every player heard the newly issued system quest and saw the countdown.

Those out in the wilderness killing wolves to level up immediately headed back to the village and searched the surrounding area for the Grass Ninja.

Players who were conducting research or playing solo also rushed to the village entrance, intending to take part in the quest.

A full 1,500 Contribution Points were up for grabs!

For the new players, the temptation was even greater.

They were terrified that if they returned too late, they wouldn't get a share.

Dai Xiaomei and the others, who had already been figuring out how to deal with the Grass Ninja, froze for a moment.

Apparently, Emperor of Sinking's absurd luck was still working as reliably as ever.

The Grass Ninja they had just encountered were actually the enemies for the main quest!

One Sword Opens Heaven, however, was more interested in the [Horn of Bloody Battle] status mentioned in the announcement.

With that status, they no longer had to worry about the side effects of spending their lives!

"This is clearly a main quest built around teamwork."

"It was probably prepared for the new players who just joined, so they can quickly catch up with the game's progress!"

After One Sword Opens Heaven's analysis, the new players were eager to get started!

They hadn't expected this game to be so considerate!

Plenty of games deliberately maintained a gap between veterans and newcomers to retain their veteran players.

Who would have thought this game would actually look out for newcomers? It was enough to bring tears to their eyes!

Just then, someone appeared at the Respawn Point and reported the Grass Ninja's location.

It was the player Raijin.

He had just found the Grass Ninja squad outside the village, only to be killed before he could even react.

Raijin immediately shared his information on the Grass Ninja with Dai Xiaomei and her group.

"Damn it! Come help me get revenge!"

How could he let that slide? He immediately set about rounding up backup!

"Forget revenge, but since we're all players..."

"We can go die with you and come back together."

Emperor of Sinking spoke with a wry smile, helplessness showing on his face.

Raijin blinked, looking from Emperor of Sinking and Dai Xiaomei to the expressions on the other new players' faces.

With an odd look, he asked, "Were you guys sent back by that Grass Ninja squad too?"

He had thought he was the first to discover them!

"Let's go complete the main quest first!"

At One Sword Opens Heaven's words, everyone immediately nodded in agreement, and they set off together.

The instant they spotted the Grass Ninja, every player seemed to see 1,500 Contribution Points.

Countless excited gazes converged on the Grass Ninja, making their skin crawl!

At One Sword Opens Heaven's command, the players pounced like ravenous wolves!

"Grass Release: Leaf Blade!"

Countless leaves sliced through the players' bodies like blades, cutting them into mince.

Soon, they revived again.

[Countdown: 1:21:05]

"Grass Release: Vine Whip!"

Thin vines tightened around the players' necks, cutting off their breathing!

[Countdown: 00:49:42]

"Lightning Release: Earth Flow!"

Lightning chakra spread across the ground, rendering everyone unable to move!

[Countdown: 00:00:14]

Watching the countdown on the screen, Ye Chen slowly rose.

It was finally time for him to make his entrance!

In fact, Ye Chen could easily have waited for the Grass Ninja to enter the village and then wiped them out.

But...

Ye Chen wanted to put the players through their paces and give them more combat experience.

While he was at it, he could let them earn some Contribution Points.

That was why Ye Chen had issued this quest.

Fortunately, the system had come through as well, directly offering a reward of 1,500 Contribution Points.

Two birds with one stone!

And now, it was his turn to act!