Earthshaking Continent, the Virtual Legion's "shield-class" node battlefront.
The Greatsword Guild's ten-thousand-strong legion was advancing.
Its front ranks consisted entirely of heavily armored damage-soakers. Thick armor formed from weaponized particles encased them like moving iron towers, and every step stamped a footprint into the earth.
Every one of them carried a greatsword bearing the "Black Sword" emblem. Hundreds of Windbreaker Auras lit up beneath their feet in overlapping layers, pale blue-green patterns winding around every warband member and steadily increasing their advance speed.
From a distance, the ten-thousand-strong legion resembled a moving iron curtain crushing across the wasteland.
Complaints rose one after another in the guild channel.
"Disgusting. Absolutely disgusting. Why did the boss pick the Virtual Legion front? At least smashing those iron turtles on the Mechanical Overlord's side feels good. Here, we're sealed inside barriers the whole time. It's making me sick."
"Because the boss promised the Radiance Guild ahead of time that we'd advance together. Now we have to swallow it, no matter how disgusting it gets. Every charge ends with a virtual barrier slapped over our faces. Seriously, who designed these monsters? Couldn't they have made them a little more fun and relaxing?"
"Enough complaining," deputy commander One Elbow Strike snapped in the channel. "The hunting returns on the Virtual Legion front are pretty decent. If you think this is disgusting, you haven't been to the Village Entrance Battlefield. That place is true despair. Every monster comes with a backlash trait. You get one down to low health, and before you can finish it, Di Nian Bully recalls it and it's gone. Worse, a full-health one gets sent back afterward, smiling as it taunts you mercilessly. Experience that pain, and you'll understand what torture means."
The channel fell silent for a moment.
Someone muttered, "True. The