Not only did Angel Corps arrive much earlier than expected, but their movements had also gone completely undetected by Asskickers United.
It appeared Soaring Angel had spared no efforts for the sake of killing Nie Yan and the others.
Soaring Angely was currently one of only two Masters in the entire Satreen Empire. Add on the fact that he had ambushed Lei Su, Bladelight, and Smoke Stub with more than 20 top experts from Angel Corps, and it was no surprise he succeeded.
One of the major reasons Asskickers United could produce so many Masters so quickly was that Nie Yan had provided detailed information on class advancing. Soaring Angel had class advanced relying solely on his own strength. The fact he was the number one player in the Satreen Empire in the previous timeline wasn't without merit. Of course, it wasn't simply because of skill. Soaring Angel was the guild leader of Angel Corps, allowing him to monopolize all the good things in the guild for himself. This was also a crucial point.
「Smoke Stub, hurry and retreat. Everyone, gather at the coordinates 385.283.209!」Nie Yan said. Soaring Angel and his forces had appeared in the Karukes Stronghold. If they continued to act separately, they would be easily picked off one by one. So, Nie Yan had them all group up.
The Karukes Stronghold had already been turned into a hot mess. Even though the deaths of Bladelight and Lei Su was a blow to Asskickers United, Divine Protectors had taken a hit they might never fully recover from. Nie Yan counted it a victory.
However, since the goal was already accomplished, Nie Yan couldn't allow for any more casualties!
As for Bladelight and Lei Su's grievances, there would undoubtedly come plenty of opportunities in the future to get their revenge.
After hearing Nie Yan's command, Tang Yao, Xie Yao, and the others all headed to the designated coordinates.
The other nine were safe and sound. Nie Yan looked around the square. There were still at least 1,000 players here, all of whom were elites of Divine Protectors. Such a juicy slab of meat, he felt it would be a waste to pass it up.
Nie Yan had Lil' Gold take the vanguard. Lil' Gold chanted out several words in the dragon language and sent a giant meteor crashing down toward the nearby enemy players.
BOOOM! In the aftermath of the explosion, wailing sounds of pain and misery sounded out. Most players who got hit died instantly, transforming into rays of light.
The Warriors no longer dared to surround Lil' Gold anymore. Every time they attacked him, he would erupt with Explosive Counters. After falling victim to this skill several times, Divine Protectors suffered heavy losses.
Paladin Lafus and Lil' Gold worked together flawlessly. Lil' Gold was wildly slaughtering the enemy at the forefront while Lafus continuously healed him from the back, occasionally killing a few players that charged toward him.
The players from Divine Protectors were slowly being overwhelmed.
In another 20 minutes, all the Divine Protectors players here would be wiped out!
Nie Yan checked his team window. Tang Yao, Xie Yao, and the other seven had already regrouped with each other. He could finally rest easy. With nine Masters working together, even Soaring Angel wouldn't dare to do anything against them!
While Nie Yan was clashing with the players from Divine Protectors, a group of people appeared in an alley near the edge of the square. It was Soaring Angel and his forces!
「Boss, over there. It's Nirvana Flame!」a Thief reported to Soaring Angel. Three Thieves had already snuck into the square and were eyeing Nie Yan.
Soaring Angel was hiding behind a house. Looking over to the center of the square, he spotted Nie Yan standing behind Lafus and Lil' Gold.
「Boss, are we making a move?」a Warrior in dark gold armour asked. He was Angel Corps' number one Warrior, Stone Splitter.[1]
Apart from Stone Splitter, many other famous experts from Angel Corps were present. There were a total of 27 players, all of whom were Level 100+.
Angel Corps was the number one guild in the Satreen Empire. Their strength wasn't to be looked down on. Even though they didn't have as many Masters as Asskickers United, they had many players who had the potential to class advance. If the 27 of them couldn't achieve anything while working together, they wouldn't have the face to meet anyone.
"Where are the others?" Soaring Angel asked. He knew Nie Yan was a tough nut to crack. Even if the 27 of them didn't need to fear him, killing him was another story altogether. Shadow Dancers were too fast. If he wanted to run, there was nothing they could do to stop him.
"Asskickers United's other nine Masters are in the eastern district of the stronghold."
"The nine of them are all grouped together?" Soaring Angel asked.
"Yes."
Soaring Angel knitted his brows. Nine Masters were extremely difficult to deal with. When the 27 of them had ambushed Bladelight, Lei Su, and Smoke Stub earlier, even holding nothing back, they had still lost two people, not to mention Smoke Stub had broken out of their encirclement and escaped. This kind of result was far from satisfactory. If they tried to face nine Masters simultaneously, one could imagine the outcome. All 27 of them might even end up being completely wiped out. Only Nie Yan was off by himself. They could only try their luck and see if they could kill him.
"Stone Splitter, you take three people to deal with that Paladin Lafus. Piao Lin, you take Luo Bai and the other 10 Mages to bring down the Golden Dragon! As for the rest, come with me to kill Nirvana Flame! Everyone be careful. Our opponent is Nirvana Flame. Always stay in groups of four, and don't stray more than five meters from any teammate!" Soaring Angel said in a grave tone. This wasn't the first time they clashed. He was well aware of Nie Yan's strength. They only had this one opportunity to kill Nie Yan. If this ambush failed, it would be gone.
Soaring Angel sent Divine Flame a message, requesting Crazy Magic to aid him with the magic cannons.
After receiving Soaring Angel's request, Divine Flame hesitated. These cannons were their most formidable defense. No one and nothing could survive their power. If they were aimed at the center of the stronghold, all for the sake of killing a single player, the collateral damage would be immense. However, it was already too late to turn back now. He gritted his teeth and agreed.
Soaring Angel had helped Divine Protectors regain a bit of face by killing two Masters from Asskickers United. Perhaps they really could kill Nirvana Flame!
If they could kill Nirvana Flame, even if the Karukes Stronghold had to be rebuilt from scratch, it would be worth it!
Soaring Angel obtained authority over all the cannons in the Karukes Stronghold. He calculated the shooting ranges. A total of five cannons were capable of firing into the square. He immediately ordered Divine Protectors to focus the aim of those five cannons on the square.
He would make sure Nirvana Flame wouldn't leave here alive!
While Nie Yan was directing Lil' Gold to kill the players in the square, he suddenly received a call from Guo Huai. If Guo Huai was messaging him at this time, it was definitely important. He quickly answered.
「Nie Yan, run! Soaring Angel and his forces are in your area. Divine Protectors' cannons are also aimed at you! If you don't leave now, it'll be too late!」Guo Huai anxiously warned. No matter how strong a player was, they couldn't withstand the blast from a cannon!
Nie Yan's heart trembled. As he looked around the square, he spotted a silhouette standing near the entrance of an alley. It was Soaring Angel!
Soaring Angel had already swapped to an entirely new set of equipment since last time they met. Clad in violet gold leather armour, he wielded a large golden longbow. It was about two meters in length and sparkled with a dazzling radiance.
Nie Yan's eyes flashed with surprise. "It's the Lost Longbow of Sorodin!"
This longbow was incredibly famous in his past life. It was a Level 100 Legendary bow with an astonishing shooting range of 200 meters. It also had a special tracking arrow skill that could pursue a target. Even if the target entered stealth, it would still follow them. It could be described as the nemesis of Thieves. Soaring Angel had prepared this longbow especially for him!
Soaring Angel didn't exchange pleasantries. The moment he stepped into the square, he notched his bow with three arrows. He pulled the string to full draw and released his hand. Whoosh whoosh whoosh! Three arrows streaked toward Nie Yan.
Nie Yan looked around. There were more than 20 Angel Corps players closing in towards him.
These players had cut off all escape routes. Even though Nie Yan could escape, he had no time to recall Lil' Gold or Paladin Lafus.
Nie Yan braced his hand against the ground and rolled out of the way, traversing six meters and evading the three arrows. However, Soaring Angel's attack didn't stop there. He kept pulling out arrows from his bag. Whoosh whoosh whoosh! Golden blurs streaked through the air. His firing rate was even faster than Nie Yan's. After all, he was a marksman class. Nie Yan naturally couldn't compete with Soaring Angel in his own speciality.
Nie Yan swiftly dodged. He had no choice but to employ the shadow steps footwork, avoiding more than a dozen arrows. Even though he had no issue doding, he had no way of doing anything else.
Seeing Soaring Angel repeatedly firing his bow in the distance, his hands moving at an astonishing speed, Nie Yan inwardly thought, This guy really does have some skill with the bow.
Nine Star Alignment!
Soaring Angel shot out three volleys of three arrows at a lightning quick speed. Nine arrows flew out toward Nie Yan.
When the arrows closed in, they suddenly changed directions and flew toward his waist.
Nie Yan's heart trembled. He couldn't avoid the strange movements of these arrows with shadow steps. He hurriedly activated Gale Step. Ding ding ding! The brief invincibility blocked three arrows.
Nie Yan dodged to the side, covering some distance. As he glanced back, the six remaining arrows hadn't fallen to the ground. Instead, they looped around in mid-air, then continued chasing after him.
This was the special ability of the Lost Longbow of Sorodin!
1. Stone Splitter was first mentioned in Chapter 549.