The person who arrived just in time at the critical moment was none other than Heine.
Not long before, he had taken his Skeletons to visit four pipeline nodes in succession.
Although he was unable to destroy the Energy Well at the bottom, it was enough to cause the pipelines to rupture.
Consequently, the Holy Light Particles that had been accumulating for many years began to spill out, most of which were absorbed by Zhuo Yang.
Now, his Soulfire had completely transitioned from silver to a pale gold color.
Then the line broke as if some kind of "tempering" had been completed.
Yet what was eerie was that Heine didn't detect the slightest hint of holiness from Zhuo Yang; it was still that same serene feeling.
Still, it had nothing to do with Wandering Souls.
Was he a Holy Light Skeleton?
It seemed holy, yet not quite… like holy!
Fortunately, the helmet protected him; if one didn't look closely, they wouldn't notice the anomaly in the Soulfire.
Likewise, from afar, one could not tell this was a "Skeleton with warmth."
As the threads disappeared, the concentration of Holy Light in the mine began to climb steadily.
Heine felt as if he were a survivor trapped in a blazing building, not just choking but starting to lose his vision.
In short, every wisp of air seemed determined to expel him, and he had no need to pretend anymore; he took his Skeletons and ran straight out.
Then, he arrived just in time to see Arthur ambushed and falling to the ground—
Director Sa's three Demon-breaking Arrows struck the Blood Puppet's remaining right arm and the magic nodes of both legs, causing the massive creature to collapse thunderously.
A tall figure in armor dragged Arthur's battered body back, then stood in front of Heine.
At that moment, vines burst from the earth, aiming for Heine, but were sliced up by several flashes of cold light.
—Reinforcements had arrived.
Jianglu's eyelids twitched uncontrollably. Instinctively wanting to take out the newcomer, but the Skeleton with the red bandanna was heading towards her.
The confidence of a Fifth Level stalker instantly evaporated.
She seemed to see herself being accurately predicted, then failing and fleeing in a sorry state.
The failure of the last time was just too unforgettable.
The situation momentarily stalemated, and Director Sa couldn't help but exclaim,
"Dude, I truly admire him; his timing for entry is just too damn perfect!
"All these bosses are in weakened states, the pipeline in the mine has leaked, the secret is out in the open, and even the fools (Dylan and Selima) must realize they've been played, they'll start fighting each other first…
"Damn, perfect entry… I'll never doubt again, I'd rather believe this guy is just lucky than believe all of this was his calculated plan, if it was deliberate planning then it's just too terrifying…"
"You left out one thing, Jianglu broke the rules, now this will be fun to watch."
Teacher Xia took delight in the misfortune, "The poison that could bring down Arthur has to be at least Fifth Level, The Quad-Nations Covenant doesn't allow such level of substances to enter neutral battle zones, if Heine knows about this, then we're in for a show."
"Damn, what a scene it would be, 'Ms. Jianglu, you wouldn't want your use of Fifth Level poison to be known by those above, would you?'"
Zhuo Yang: "You two Japanese netizens, please tone it down…"
Heine glanced at Jianglu, then turned to Dylan Jettile.
In this strange silence, he spoke with a mocking tone,
"As you can see, I've just come out from the mine.
"I regret to inform you that the pipes below have burst.
"The Holy Light, accumulated for god knows how long, is escaping; the place truly sickens me, a Necromancer.
"I believe, in not too long, this farm, including your esteemed manor, might as well be renamed Sunshine Ranch.
"To this day, I still don't understand, whether it's Hunter Jettile or you all, why you like being lapdogs for Holy Light?"
He seemed to come here filled with anger and a fearless courage embracing death.
He cursed unbridled and wholeheartedly.
But with each word he spoke, Dylan's face grew uglier, until finally, his expression drastically changed!
"Elves!!"
He ground out through clenched teeth!
By this point, how could he not understand that it wasn't any Holy Light Isolation Device at all, it was an Energy Well!!
Realizing the bad turn of events, Jianglu immediately blew her whistle to retreat.
A clear eagle cry sounded from the sky, followed by a broad figure swooping downward.
"Don't let her escape!"
Heine shouted.
Director Sa immediately nocked and shot his arrow.
The bowstring was drawn taut, the arrowhead aimed at the eagle in mid-dive.
But he was still waiting.
Waiting for just the right moment.
Jianglu leaped up to grasp the eagle's talons, and just as the bird fluttered its wings to ascend sharply, a 5 Gold Coin Piercing Arrow cleaved through the chilly air.
Whoosh!
The arrow almost instantly reached the eagle's side, then suddenly burst open.
A pale blue, faint current instantly disturbed the air around the eagle, its wings fluttered a few times to no effect, as if like a wild chicken fallen into a pond.
The upward momentum was halted in an instant, both person and bird plummeted together.
Teacher Xia, under Heine's direction, had already been moving closer to the expected landing point when Director Sa had nocked the arrow.
Now, watching Jianglu disappear in mid-fall, he felt not a hint of panic, but rather an urge to laugh.
Thinking back to the days of being bloodily crushed by NPCs, this moment was just...
So satisfying!
He suddenly flung a poisoned throwing knife into the air to his front right.
The throwing knife from the elf drew a streak of blood in the air, and then Jianglu, clenching her paralyzed calf, appeared, incredulous.
This familiar feeling...
This damn red mask!
...
Noticing Jianglu captured, Heine shouted loudly:
"There's still one more, aren't the two of you planning to take action personally?"
Yes, there was that damned Tree Herder!
Donald! He definitely couldn't be absolved of guilt either!
Reminded by Heine, Dylan Gittler and Selima Gittler exchanged a glance and sprang into action!
Although the Blood Puppet couldn't move, it didn't prevent the couple from summoning a giant Blood Beast over one meter tall.
It looked like a cute, headless rabbit, except that its body was constantly oozing disgusting, sticky blood plasma.
It didn't seem to have much fighting capability, but it jumped incredibly high!
The Blood Beast landed more than ten meters away with a single leap and soon appeared in front of the Tree Herder, who had no time to escape.
To draw strength from the earth, he needed to root himself.
This could certainly grant him nearly limitless magical power, but the risks it posed were now fully exposed.
The "Gardening Master" forced a smile:
"Mr. Dylan, there might be a misunderstanding betwee-ahh!"
The Blood Beast bit into his body and uprooted him from the ground.
His legs were torn apart from the knees, revealing stark white bones and fragile flesh, looking miserable.
While his wife watched the Blood Beast and the unconscious captive, Dylan walked up to Heine alone.
Heine purposely had Zhuo Yang withdraw to prevent the other party from noticing anything amiss.
Haunted Farm was researching things related to Spirit Communicators, and it'd be a huge loss if they couldn't return today because of this.
This move made Dylan raise an eyebrow.
He mistook the gesture as a sign of respect, as if Heine knew he was at the end of his strength and thus didn't persist in pointing out his mistake; Dylan's esteem for Heine increased slightly as a result.
"Did you kill Hunter?"
He asked straightforwardly.
"Yes," Heine said calmly. "So, you owe me a favor."
Dylan sneered, "He was, after all, from the Gittler family."
"And I am, after all, one of the lord's men."
"Hmph..."
Having hit a soft spot, Dylan grunted.
The other party was tactful and didn't harp on his fault, instead voluntarily offering him a way out.
"Can you represent your lord?"
"I can convey messages on his behalf."
"I will visit him tomorrow morning."
"Sorry, when the lord wishes to see you is up to him to decide; I can't make that decision."
Heine deliberately glanced at the unconscious Arthur.
Dylan grasped the implication as well.
Before Arthur regained consciousness, it was indeed unlikely that George would meet with him.
Hmph, such a cautious little fellow.
His gaze shifted to Jianglu, who was a short distance away.
The giant eagle had already fled—probably a temporary hire.
The effect of the Piercing Arrow lasted only a moment, and with Director Sa seizing the right moment, it didn't crash to its death.
Dylan said, "Regarding this elf..."
"Hunting rules apply, whoever catches it, keeps it."
Dylan looked at him deeply, his smile somewhat sinister.
"You're the first Necromancer to talk to me about rules."
But he didn't object and merely said, "Take your people and leave my farm," before turning to leave.
For a moment, Heine wondered if he could keep the couple here.
But in the end, he held back.
The other party was a Necromancer; the driving force behind the Blood Puppet must be a Wandering Soul.
If it was a Wandering Soul, it could explode.
A regular person's explosion was already horrifying—let alone the self-destruction of a Blood Puppet...
Forget it, forget it.
At that moment, Teacher Xia also approached with the captive.
"We meet again, Miss Jianglu,"
Heine said with a smile.
He had learned her name from the horse-hunting incident that morning and naturally didn't need to keep it hidden anymore.
Jianglu did not respond but looked at him with a complex expression.
For the second time.
This was the second time she had been captured by him.