Bladelight was knocked back by a powerful rebound force. He regained his balance mid-air and landed back on his feet.
"Wretched, lowly human, you dare to challenge a follower of the god of death!? Die!" Necromancer Vorderman bellowed out. The bone dragon strode forward, flattening a building beneath its feet.
At this moment, a barrage of spells bombarded the bone dragon. The explosions from the spells forced it to stagger several steps back.
Necromancer Vorderman reigned in the bone dragon. He locked his gaze onto the assaillants. Several Magisters stood loftily on arrow towers, walls, and roofs of buildings with their staffs raised. Magic energy swirled around them as their robes fluttered in the wind.
14 Masters were spread out in the vicinity of the bone dragon.
Necromancer Vorderman had an unsightly expression on his bony face. He had the bone dragon whip out with its tail. BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! It destroyed several buildings and part of the wall of the Cripps Stronghold.
Bladelight and the others leaped into the air and evaded the attack.
An epic battle was about to unfold.
The catapults in the Cripps Stronghold repeatedly fired at the bone dragon. However, the shells did little to no damage. Its body was harder than steel. Necromancer Vorderman chanted out an incantation and called down a hail of raging flames, burning over a dozen catapults to a crisp.
Bladelight and the other Masters could only hinder the bone dragon. They were far too weak to prevent it from destroying the inside of the stronghold.
Standing on top of a mountain in the distance, Qin Han gazed over in the direction of the Cripps Stronghold. The walls were riddled with holes. The Warriors of Asskickers United could only hold their positions from the fortified defensive structures and repel the enemy with all their might. Before long, the stronghold would be overrun by his skeleton army.
Qin Han coldly laughed. No matter how strong Masters were, they were no match for a demi-god like Necromancer Vorderman.
Qin Han had to admit that Asskickers United was strong, but they still wouldn't escape destruction.
When the skeleton army defeated Asskickers United, the entire Viridian Empire would belong to the Monet Financial Group. Recalling Xie Yao and Nie Yan holding hands, recalling how Nie Yan had snatched away his rightful spot in Heavenly Kings, Qin Han's heart bubbled over with excitement and a sense of vindication. He was going to prove everyone that doubted him wrong! Then when he turned Nirvana Flame into history, Xie Yao would leave that loser for him! He immersed himself in his delusions.
The crazed look in Qin Han's eyes caused Matchless Divine Sword to slowly inch away.
...
Calore, the Elder Council.
Nie Yan signed off on the application to move Asskickers United's guild headquarters from the Cripps Stronghold to Okoron. Looking at the time, there were still about three hours before the servers went offline. If he could stall the battle until then, victory would be his.
He finally utilized his authority as a Great Prophet and mobilized the troops in Calore.
Calore had the most powerful army among all the cities in the Viridian Empire, namely their special division, the Royal Griffon Corps. It was composed of 3,000 troops, among which were over 100 Masters while the rest were Level 180+ Elites or Lords. They were clad in the most elite imperial armour, and all of them were paired with Royal Griffons that were all at least Rank 6, with even a few Rank 8s and 9s mixed between. In comparison the NPC recruits in Okoron looked like nothing but a ragtag band of thugs.
After leaving the Elder Council, Nie Yan headed for the barracks in the north district of Calore and entered inside.
3,000 fully armed NPC soldiers were already waiting for him. They stood neatly in rank and file.
Nie Yan inspected the troops. Mage Battalion, Paladin Battalion, Warrior Battalion, he could easily tell which classes were which.
Several tall NPCs walked over to greet Nie Yan.
"Great Prophet, I am the Captain of the Calore Guard Legion, Santler," a tall Paladin saluted Nie Yan.
"Great Prophet, I am the captain of the Royal Mage Legion, Wayne."
The NPCs introduced themselves one after another. They treated Nie Yan with great respect.
"Brave soldiers, the abominable undead have already entered the territory of Calore. The troops in the Cripps Stronghold are fending off the invasion of the skeleton army as we speak! With Necromancer Vorderman appearing again, we must take action, or else the threat will reach the city. Come with me! We fight for the glory of the Viridian Empire!" Nie Yan said. He knew how to incite the fighting spirits of these NPCs.
"Great Prophet, we are willing to follow you into battle! Command as you wish! For the glory of the Viridian Empire!"
"For the glory of the Viridian Empire!" The NPCs cried out in unison.
"Follow me into battle! We'll defend the Viridian Empire with our lives!" Nie Yan summoned his Darkwing Dragon and took off in the air.
FWOOOSH! The NPCs summoned their flying mounts. 3,000 robust Royal Griffons covered in golden feathers emerged in the square.
The griffons took to the air, maintaining formation even in the sky.
This was a true military!
Seeing experienced, well-disciplined troops, Nie Yan was filled with confidence.
With Nie Yan in the lead, the 3,000 Royal Griffons streaked through the sky.
Surprisingly, the players in Calore didn't bat a single eye. Royal Griffons flying over Calore was simply too common of a sight. They believed this was just a normal training drill. Only a handful of players spotted the Darkwing Dragon among them.
...
The Cripps Stronghold was taking terrible damage from the bone dragon's rampage. Asskickers United's casualties were rapidly climbing, having already exceeded 300,000. If it weren't for the 1,000+ catapults beating back the invading skeletons, the stronghold would've already been lost.
Seeing the Cripps Stronghold's collapsed walls, Qin Han's heart was racing. He could hardly contain his elation. He commanded his undead army to attack with even greater ferocity. More and more skeletons stormed the Cripps Stronghold.
This was the Viridian Empire's most heavily fortified stronghold, but it would still end up crashing down in the flames of war.
While Qin Han was boisterously urging on his skeletons, an army appeared on a distant hillside. They wore a mish-mash of different armour, numbering over 3,000 troops in total. It was the NPC army from Okoron! Leading them were Paladin of the Elegy and Yallop.
"Men! Who was it that gave you work? Who was it that gave you dignity?" Yallop cried out.
"Lord Nirvana Flame!"
"Correct! The lord gave a bunch of vagrants like us work, allowed us to have the money to provide for ourselves and our families! It's time for us to pay back the lord's kindness. Let's wipe out these vile undead." Yallop raised his greatsword. His imposing aura influenced the surrounding NPCs.
Seeing these fired up NPCs, Paladin of the Elegy added, "The lord told me this, for every skeleton you kill, you will be rewarded 5 gold. Anyone that kills more than 1,000 skeletons will receive an Okoron Medal and the title of Baron."
The eyes of the NPCs blazed with a fanatical light. Just killing a single skeleton could net them 5 gold. This was an extremely attractive reward. NPCs had their own system. 5 gold was enough to cover their living expenses for a month or allow them to find a pretty lass at the tavern for a night. However, that was nothing compared to the reward for killing 1,000 skeletons. A noble title was an unreachable dream for most NPCs. It was something that meant good fortune not just for themselves, but for their entire family for generations to come. To become a baron, this was far more enticing than gold.
The last doubts were taken away. These NPCs burned with the urge to battle.
Seeing the appearances of these NPCs, Paladin of the Elegy couldn't help but feel deep respect for Nie Yan. He knew the hearts of these NPCs like the back of his hand. Once they heard the word 'baron', their eyes immediately blazed with desire.
"Men, let's slaughter those skeletons!"
"Let's beat those skeletons back into whatever hole they came from!"
...
The NPCs roared out one after another, like a pack of crazed wolves.
Yallop pointed his sword forward. 3,000 NPCs charged forth like a surging tide, killing everything in their path.
Yallop rushed out and took the lead, charging straight into the skeleton army. All the skeletons in his way were sent flying.
The other NPCs weren't weak either. They left piles of bones in their wake.
The weakest were Level 130 Elites with the strongest being Level 180 Elites. They had an enormous level advantage over the Level 100 skeletons. Before long, they wiped out 6,000 skeletons.
Noticing the commotion in the plains, Qin Han knitted his brows. "What's going on over there?"
"Boss, it's a group of 3,000 NPCs. They're the troops from Okoron," Matchless Divine Sword replied.
"Just an ant trying to shake a large oak. What difference will 3,000 NPCs make!?" Qin Han coldly snorted. He immediately had some Elite and Lord-class skeletons move to surround Yallop's group.
"Boss, we've got trouble!" Matchless Divine Sword anxiously cried out.
"What now!?" Qin Han asked unhappily. He hated it when people poured cold water over him.
"Calore's Royal Griffon Corps is making their way here. 3,000 fully armed NPCs. Leading them is Nirvana Flame," Matchless Divine Sword said. He felt an intense sense of unease. Could it be that the Viridian Empire decided to finally go all out against the skeleton army? If Qin Han were defeated, God Executioner Sword would be buried alongside him.
"Wait, what!?" Qin Han's heart trembled.