Nie Yan checked the stat bonuses for 10-Man Commander—Defense +5% and Health +7%—only marginally better than the Defense +3% and Health +5% for Soldier. But every percent counted, even more so given his base stats were much higher than the average player.
It looks like visiting the Underworld is going to become a regular thing. Maybe becoming a Great General isn’t that far fetched, after all, Nie Yan couldn’t help but muse. The Evil Faction players gave him a wide berth of space as he leisurely strolled forward. His awe-inspiring display of might had thoroughly deterred them, especially after seeing the countless scattered bodies that trailed behind him on the ground.
Just as Nie Yan finished dispatching several more Thieves, the cold light of a dagger flashed behind him.
You’ve finally shown yourself! Nie Yan smirked. This fellow had kept him waiting long enough.
Les dashed up from behind and struck Nie Yan’s head with a Smothering Strike.
Gale Step!
Nie Yan blocked the attack and countered with a Concussive Blow to the forehead.
At this moment, Les spun around to avoid the attack. With a flick of his wrist, he switched to a reverse grip and plunged his dagger toward Nie Yan’s back.
This was the Freedom Skill of a Great Thief, Reverse Grip Backstab!
Whether it was the Undead Empire, Viridian Empire, or any other, the first class advancement of all Thieves was a Great Thief. So, the skills and combat techniques they learned were fairly similar.
Nie Yan finally caught a glimpse of his assailant. It was actually the Undead Thief that Plenty had previously assigned to escort him. Warlance informed him that this fellow was expelled from Fallen Angel as a show of sincerity.
Still not convinced, so you came looking for revenge, eh? Nie Yan smirked. I don’t mind sending you back to the grave again!
Les’ dagger flickered with a green light. It was coated in poison!
Les’ expression was fierce. He had smeared the blade of his dagger with the venom of a Roman Viper, the 36th most venomous snake in the Underworld. Its venom could paralyze a target for three seconds and prevent them from activating any movement skills for the duration of the debuff.
As long as Nie Yan was even nicked by the blade, he would surely die!
Nie Yan never expected Les to know how to pull off Reverse Grip Backstab. Every single movement was carved deeply into his mind.
Ever since Nie Yan started unravelling the mysteries of a Shadow Dancer, his comprehension ability had increased greatly. Although he had witnessed others execute Reverse Grip Backstab in the previous timeline, his memory had grown fuzzy over time. Now that he was witnessing Les using the skill in real time, everything came surging back.
Les’ Reverse Grip Backstab was about to land, but Nie Yan showed no sign of moving. At the very last moment, he raised his dagger to parry while simultaneously the mallet of a Vampire Crusher came out of nowhere and smashed into Les, sending him hurtling several meters backwards.
Les landed back on his feet with a flip, but his face was aghast in horror by the fact that Nie Yan could still control a minion in the heat of battle! This was ridiculous!
Truthfully, this move wasn’t all that special to Nie Yan. By Conviction’s 10th anniversary in the previous timeline, almost every expert was capable of pulling off these sorts of tricks with relative ease.
Conviction could greatly improve the reaction time and thought process of the player. There had never been a virtual reality game in the past that through electrical impulses could alter the player’s physique. But Conviction had succeeded. This was also why the game had obtained the support of the federation.
Nie Yan’s skill at this stage of the game was universally shocking!
Nie Yan gave Les a glance before turning away, pretending as though his opponent no longer existed. He ordered Lil’ Gold to continue wiping out the other Thieves. At this moment, three Vampire Crushers surrounded Les.
Vampire Crushers were slow and clumsy, their attacks from wind-up to swing taking roughly two seconds to fully execute. Even three Vampire Crushers were normally no threat to a nimble Thief. But this situation was very different.
With their large bodies and giant mallets, Vampire Crushers had an attack range of almost six meters.
The three Vampire Crushers started swinging down their mallets in synchronized order, forming a strange rhythm that only left a 0.7 second gap between each attack.
The mallets kept falling one after the other!
Les evaded the first mallet with Gale Step. He tried to turn tail and flee, but his escape route was sealed off by another Vampire Crusher. He panicked and bolted in a different direction, only to be struck by the second mallet and knocked out of stealth.
−546 A damage value floated up above Les’ head.
He quickly chugged down an Intermediate Health Potion. But before he could focus on dodging again, the third mallet smashed him into the air with a dull thud.
Les hung in the air for only a moment, when the first Vampire Crusher’s mallet came around once more and pummeled him back toward the earth. He crashed into the ground, the last bit of his health bar disappearing.
A so-called top Thief was killed just like that!
Nie Yan chuckled as he glanced at the flattened corpse on the ground.
Les was an exceptional Thief for sure, but it was his misfortune to have encountered Nie Yan. Even three Vampire Crushers could be turned into heaven defying existences in his hands!
A Thief in some distant bushes had been broadcasting the scene of Les being toyed with in real time on the Undead Empire forums.
Les was undoubtedly an exceptionally skilled Thief, but he was still utterly decimated by the three Vampire Crushers. The players on the forums were reeling in shock as they felt their scalps turn numb in horror. The in-sync attacks of the Vampire Crushers left Les no room to breathe whatsoever!
「What the hell is up with that Nirvana Flame!? He’s way too overpowered!」
「Does anyone recognize that Thief?」
「I think he’s Les from Fallen Angel.」
「I heard Les recently withdrew from Fallen Angel.」
No one would’ve batted an eye if it were some nobody that had been killed by those three Vampire Crushers. However, Les was a famous Thief that ranked high up on the Undead Empire leaderboards for his class. He was a figure many players looked up to. Even if his gear quality sharply dropped after leaving Fallen Angel, his strength wasn’t to be underestimated! But this revered Thief still suffered such a humiliating death! Nie Yan’s ability to control multiple minions at such a high level was definitely worthy of the utmost praise.
The players of the Undead Empire were now even less inclined to go after Nie Yan. A powerful Thief who had exceptional skills on top of god-like microing ability was definitely not an existence normal players could ever hope to match up to. Even some of the top experts in the Undead Empire were cowed by him.
Nie Yan continued on his trek, with no one daring to block his path. He arrived outside of an encampment full of white tents that stretched out as far as the eye could see. Countless players were moving between the tents, creating for a lively atmosphere. Occasionally, some players rose up to the sky on giant bats which carried them to one of the distant islands in the Lava Sea.
It was a flight point!
Flight points were stations that allowed players to rent out flying monsters to transport them between stations. The fee was cheaper than transfer points. From Nie Yan’s memory of the previous timeline, flight points would only really start taking off in Conviction’s 7th year. They were still fairly uncommon right now.
Players would naturally start setting up stalls near particularly popular flight points, with things like tents following shortly after, gradually turning the area into a place of flourishing commerce.
This flight point was guarded by Evil Faction NPCs. Nie Yan pondered for a moment before recalling Lil’ Gold. He entered stealth and moved out of sight of the players in the vicinity before disappearing into the dark thickets.
Deception was still on cooldown. Although the Pearl of Disguise could alter Nie Yan’s appearance, it didn’t allow him to trade or communicate with Evil Faction players or NPCs, lest he be exposed. He could only wait for the Deception skill from his Necklace of Deception to come back off cooldown.
Nie Yan spent the rest of the day levelling up in the nearby maps before logging off.
The next day Nie Yan used Deception to change into an Evil Faction player before heading towards the flight point.
Many players shuttled in and out of the encampment entrance. This area was flourishing with trade, with rows upon rows of stalls selling various types of goods on the street. Even the small walkways outside the encampment were lined with stalls.
Most of the players here were over Level 40. They were all travelling to the Flame Bright Archipelago.
The Flame Bright Archipelago was a group of 13 islands located in the middle of the Lava Sea. Only the Beast Tamers operating the flight points knew how to get there.
Nie Yan wore a black cloak that hid his face. It wasn’t odd for players in the Undead Empire to wear such attire, so he didn’t attract any suspicion.
The entrance to the encampment was guarded by two Level 70 Skeleton Guards. They failed to notice Nie Yan among the stream of players entering inside.
After infiltrating the encampment, Nie Yan headed directly for the flight point.
“I found two gems yesterday. I really earned big. Let’s go to that same place again today. I heard if we keep grinding in the same spot, some good stuff is bound to drop.”
“Who knows. Maybe you just got lucky yesterday.”
Nie Yan felt a sense of nostalgia as he heard the chattering of the players around him. He used to be like them, frequently grinding in the same spot for several days on end in the previous timeline. Back then, a single gem or piece of equipment dropping would leave him excited for a long time. His past self would never dare to pick fights with elites or explore untracked land like he was doing right now.
Whether in terms of stats or gear quality, the difference between his past and current self was like night and day!
The flight point was already in Nie Yan’s sight. He occasionally saw giant bats flying over him in the sky. They had pairs of fleshy, semi-transparent wings spanning more than three meters. They weighed several hundred pounds and were covered in dense fur. When they took off, they generated gusts of wind that caused the robes of nearby players to flap around wildly. Every now and then, the sound of feminine squeals entered his ears.