This discovery made him lower his assessment of the opponent; true masters generally don't use such fletching, as it's a sign of insecurity.
The warrior was not yet dead, his clothes covered in fresh blood and wood chips, but his chest was still faintly rising and falling. He had fallen into a comatose state from the severe trauma and lost the ability to move. Behind the spreading mist, Fang Hong saw another slender figure—that was their healer, Elsa, a fifteen-year-old girl, two years younger than himself. She seemed to have noticed the situation here as well.
Moved by the sight, Fang Hong urgently waved her back without regard for his own safety, signalling her to retreat.
But it was a moment too late.
Elsa sprang up and charged toward the ancient tree. At that instant, an arrow pierced through the misty woods and struck her in the back. Her frail body fell not far from the warrior, motionless.
Fang Hong felt a surge of anger well up inside him as he witnessed this scene. He knew the enemy was fishing, which was not uncommon on the battlefield where tactics held no right or wrong, but the opponent had chosen to strike just as Elsa thought she was successful, a move so vile in nature.
Fang Hong never dreamt that among professional Invokers there would be someone with such a dark psychology. He was familiar with the top Invokers, each with their own personal style, but without exception, they were all honorable individuals.
Instinctively, he wanted to rush out, but Kroid held him back. "Elsa is already dead," the silent and tall man shook his head at him. Fang Hong couldn't help but take a deep breath, itching to drag that hidden enemy out into the open and beat him up.
But anger couldn't change anything.
He was still just a Life Profession Practitioner without any combat power. This was Fang Hong's first time on a battlefield, and the first time he had felt such a deep sense of helplessness. An involuntary thought emerged in his mind: if only he had Magical Adaptability.
Fang Hong startled himself with this thought, as he believed he didn't care about it. In Eteliria's corresponding virtual community, there was a famous saying—"In Eteliria, weakness is the original sin." He didn't agree with this utilitarian rhetoric, but at this moment he couldn't help but feel the reality and rawness of those words.
It wasn't just him; the other members of Morning Dawn Star were also grinding their teeth in anger. They weren't afraid of dying, but naked humiliation was not something they experienced often.
Unfortunately, sometimes this is reality.
Weakness is the original sin.
With the capabilities of this small private adventure group, contending with the main force of Silver Forest Spear was already the limit; they had no choice but to flee when up against the Elite Corps. Not to mention opponents like Silver Shadow, they never even imagined in their wildest dreams that one day they would come face to face with top Invokers.
The forest fell silent once again.
The enemy did not take another shot, but this feeling was even more unsettling. Fang Hong stayed still, his eyes fixed on Elsa's cold body, and the warrior whose life was about to extinguish.
Sicape knew well that the enemy was merely toying with them, but this was also an opportunity for Morning Dawn Star. "We've got to make a move," she told the others, "members of our group don't operate alone, at least not without a partner. Staying here is just waiting for death, we must break out."
All present, except for Fang Hong, were experienced veterans and understood Sicape's meaning. They nodded and said, "If we split up and run, some of us should make it out."
"Ade can't die," Sicape reminded them, "as long as he's alive, we can activate Jiefulite's Dragon Knight, then come back and take out those sons of bitches."
With that reminder, they suddenly realized it wasn't impossible. Almost no one had a chance of survival against a Dragon Knight, except for those top Invokers in the second world. Silver Shadow was just fodder in front of a Dragon Knight.
With this thought, everyone regained a bit of confidence and asked, "So, what do we do?"
"First, let's test the waters," Sicape gestured with her hand, indicating to two people not far away to scout the enemy. The two nodded, leapt up without hesitation, and sprinted toward the nearest cover, one to the left and one to the right.
Another sharp whizzing sound, the man on the right clutched his neck and fell. But the person on the left rolled towards the cover of rocks and raised a fist in their direction, signaling them.
"Half a second," Sicape's eyes gleamed with a serious light.
"Huh?" Qin Zhi also realized the intent of their adversary. These mercenaries were reacting faster than he had anticipated, and he couldn't help but sneer softly, thinking he still had time to play.
He became a bit serious. He hadn't fully followed KUN's orders, and although the other party didn't fuss about it, Qin Zhi knew that if the plan went awry because of him, the club would not let him off easily.
He raised his bow once again.
Sicape's thumb and little finger touched, showing three fingers to the others. "Split into three groups," then she silently pointed in several directions, "each group take one Cloth Armor Class. I'll count, and you'll move on my mark. Ade, you go last, make sure to keep the pace."
Fang Hong nodded.
"First group, south side, one."
A few people stood up at the same time, running to the east. An agonizing scream came from the darkness; the Natural Historian in the middle of the group fell without a sound. But Sicape didn't even glance that way, continuing to shout, "Two."