The Clemenci Stronghold. A middle-aged man in black, ornamental robes entered the main hall of Angel Corps' guild headquarters. He was here to meet with Soaring Angel, who was clad in Demon Hunter leather armour and sitting on his throne.
"Fan, my boy, I trust you've been well?" Cao Xu chuckled.
"Does Brother Cao have some business with me?" Soaring Angel asked, narrowing his eyes. Their relationship wasn't nearly as friendly as it appeared on the surface. They had many conflicts of interest, and struggled bitterly behind the scene. If it weren't for the fact they shared a common enemy in Asskickers United, they would never be working together.
"I've got a plan in the works, and I'd like your cooperation," Cao Xu said, as he sat down on a nearby chair.
"Straight to the point, huh, Brother Cao? Well, if I can be of assistance, I'll naturally lend my help," Soaring Angel said with a frank smile. Inwardly, he couldn't help but wonder why this old fox came looking for him.
"I'm sure you've heard of the matter of the Blood Reaver Corps in the Viridian Empire?"
"Of course. I assume that's your doing?"
Cao Xu chuckled. "I estimate the Blood Reaver Corps will give Asskickers United quite the headache. Anyway, I sincerely hope we can cooperate. I've already bribed more than 1,000 of their players, and I'm sure you've also lured over no small number. If we both strike at once, we can paralyze them, at least for a short while."
"That's all well and good. However, if you believe that will be enough to defeat them, that's just naive," Soaring Angel said. After clashing with Asskickers United for so long, he knew like no one else how difficult they were to deal with.
"This is only a part of my plan. I'm also working on bribing a large number of players from the Undead Empire and Demon Tribe. Though I don't expect them to deal much damage to Asskickers United, they'll help buy us more time to produce Masters," Cao Xu said. This plan required a fortune, but it couldn't be helped. Asskickers United was pulling too far ahead. Recently, they had been doing nothing but expanding. By the time they solidified their position in the Viridian Empire, the tip of their spear would be pointed toward Angel Corps and the Century Financial Group.
"I'll mobilize Angel Corps' manpower to aid you as best as I can," Soaring Angel said. He understood Angel Corps' biggest enemy was Asskickers United. The conflict with the Century Financial Group could be put aside for now.
The two biggest powers in the Satreen Empire started working together in full force. A major event was about to unfold.
With the Century Financial Group and Angel Corps meddling behind the scenes, some changes started occurring in the power structure of the underworld. After receiving their mission, teams of players started setting out for the surface in droves.
...
Asskickers United. The Hundred Thieves were searching everywhere for traces of the Blood Reaver Corps, but it was as if they'd disappeared from the face of the world.
Nie Yan and the others couldn't stay idle in the city forever. While the others went off to level and hunt bosses, Nie Yan set off for Hilderlocke alone. He'd obtained some information about one of the two pieces of the Tyrant Abak Set not yet in his possession.
If Nie Yan could complete the Tyrant Abak Set, he'd feel all the more confident about clashing against the Blood Reaver Corps.
Hilderlocke. Ever since God Executioner Sword admitted defeat, Asskickers United gained absolute control over this place. There were no more major conflicts. The large guilds respected Asskickers United's authority and had accepted their places.
Asskickers United's influence in Hilderlocke could be seen everywhere. If any guild were to try to go against Asskickers United, they would probably collapse from the inside first. From their point of view, Asskickers United was simply too powerful. Nothing good would come out of provoking them. This was different from when Asskickers United first entered Hilderlocke. Many guilds banded together to oppose them. However, under Nie Yan's command, their little rebellion was instantly quashed by Battle Crazed Alliance and God Executioner Sword. At that time, the remaining guilds who didn't take part were trembling in fear, believing they were fated to be swallowed up one by one. But to their surprise, Asskickers United was virutous and offered them a non-aggression pact with relatively fair terms.
Seeing that there was no going against the trend, God Executioner Sword had haggled with Asskickers United before formally joining the alliance. This cemented Asskickers United's position in Hilderlocke. When the players Asskickers United walked the streets here, they could hold their heads high while basking in the reverence of other players.
After passing through numerous streets, Nie Yan excited the city gates. His goal was a tomb on the outskirts of Hilderlocke. He could learn more information about one of the pieces of the Tyrant Abak Set there.
The tomb was only one kilometer away from Hilderlocke, about a few minutes' walk.
Nie Yan activated Gale Step and dashed toward the tomb.
About a minute later, Nie Yan arrived at the tomb. This place looked absolutely magnificent. It was made out of white stone and stood in the center of a large square, which was fenced off. There were 13 NPCs standing outside the entrance. Wearing white, solemn-looking robes, they were the tomb keepers.
Apart from these NPCs, there were many players here as well, about 300 or so. They were in line waiting to talk to these NPCs, probably about something quest-related. One 20-man team after another entered the tomb.
At this moment, Nie Yan received a notification.
Go speak with Tomb Keeper Karise.
Nie Yan walked over to the tomb keepers. Looking at them, he quickly found the one he was looking for. Tomb Keeper Karise was 70 years old, yet his eyes were still full of vitality. He was in the middle of chatting with four players. There were about 10 players in line waiting to talk with him.
Nie Yan waited for a while. However, the number of players around Tomb Keeper Karise didn't appear to decrease. In fact, it only kept increasing. Running out of patience, he headed straight for Karise.
"Hey, you little shit! You looking to die!? Back off! If you want to get in line, you gotta pay the toll!" a Warrior shouted with a fierce expression. He walked over and smacked his palm toward Nie Yan's head.
Hearing the Warrior's words, Nie Yan finally understood what was going on. No wonder the line hadn't gotten shorter despite him waiting for so long. It was these guys making people pay a toll!
Nie Yan lightly stepped to the side, dodging the Warrior's slap. He then stuck out his leg, tripping the Warrior and causing him to fall flat on his face.
In the previous timeline, people like these would appear all the time around popular NPCs. They would stand guard in front of the NPC. Anyone that wanted to talk to the NPC would have to pay a toll first. More times than he'd like to admit, he encountered these kinds of situations in his past life. Even though he was unwilling back then, he could do nothing else but obediently pay the toll.
Nie Yan swept his gaze around the surroundings. There were at least 30 players in the vicinity moving to surround him. They wore the same emblems, signifying they were all part of the same team.
Nie Yan flicked his wrist, flashing Zennarde's Sword which burned brightly with black flames.
"You bastard!" The Warrior who fell flat on his face just now was enraged. He got up to his feet and was about to let loose, when his gaze fell on Zennarde's Sword. He immediately became stupefied. Nirvana Flame!
After seeing Zennarde's Sword, the 30 players who surrounded Nie Yan were also dumbstruck.
"N-nirvana Flame! W-we deserve death! We had no idea it was you!"
"P-please forgive us! We'll take our lives immediately! No need to dirty your hands!"
These players all hurriedly begged for forgiveness. This game was their livelihood. They were simply a bunch of freelance professional players while Nie Yan was Nie Yan. As long as he gave the word, every major guild in the Viridian Empire would hunt them down back to Level 0. This was an extremely frightening kind of power. So, after learning they'd antagonized Nie Yan, they all nearly pissed their pants in fear.
Seeing these people begging for their dog lives, Nie Yan lost all interest in killing them. He coldly said, "Get out of my sight before I change my mind. I don't want to see any of you here again."
"Thank you! Thank you!" These players all tucked their tails between their legs and fled.
Nie Yan walked over to Tomb Keeper Karise.
"Great Prophet, how may I help you?" Tomb Keeper Karise bowed.
All the players in the surroundings gawked in amazement. Seeing how respectful Tomb Keeper Karise treated Nie Yan, their hearts were filled with shock. They would frequently come here. So, they knew Karise held quite a high position in Hilderlocke, equivalent to that of a Marquis. However, even with his high standing, in front of Nie Yan, he was still acting like a servant.
"Tomb Keeper Karise, have you seen any of these items before?" Nie Yan opened up the Glimpse of Darkness and showed him the illustrations of the Tyrant Abak Set.
Karise showed a pensive look before nodding. "Yes, at Magister Lefis' residence. But…"
"But what?" Nie Yan asked. He could tell Karise appeared to be hesitant.
"Are you looking for this item?" Karise asked, as he pointed at the illustration of the boots of the Tyrant Abak Set.
"Yes."
"Magister Lefis is an extremely eccentric fellow. He also hates it when others covet his possessions."
"Then what do I need to do to obtain the Abak's Vorpal Striders from him?"
"You'll have to defeat him," Karise replied.
Nie Yan raised an eyebrow. Defeating an NPC Magister? He wondered how strong Lefis was.