Chapter 323 – Awed
Countless players applied to Asskickers United every day, but only a tiny fraction of them were accepted due to the stringent screening process. This was why Asskickers United had far fewer members than other major guilds. But what they lacked in numbers they made up for in quality. Every member of Asskickers United was an elite. So other than experts, ordinary players generally weren’t a match for them.
It remained to be seen whether the bounty notice Bloodlust Blades put up would have any effect. But with such high rewards offered, it would undoubtedly tempt many players.
With Bloodlust Blades acting so aggressively, Nie Yan obviously had to fight back with even greater ferocity. In the previous timeline, he had been repeatedly hunted down by major guilds, especially the five under Cao Xu’s command. He was absolutely reviled by them, because he often popped up out of nowhere to launch sneak attacks and kill their players. With his hit-and-run tactics, he had killed hundreds of their guild members, an extraordinary accomplishment that had garnered their hatred. Of course, such a deed had its price: he had died five times during his ambushes. Because of this, Nie Yan absolutely abhorred this kind of large-scale bounty hunting. Now that he had the money, he would definitely take back every inch of skin he had lost!
This sort of bounty notice was a war of resources, a competition to see who had more gold.
Nie Yan added further details to the bounty notice he released in the Union of Assassins. The reward would differ depending on the player’s level. The higher the level, the better the reward. The leadership and strongest members had larger bounties put on their heads, upwards of several hundred gold. Bloodlust Mad Blade was at the very top with 3,000 gold. Level 30 or below players netted no reward because Bloodlust Blades didn’t accept anyone that weak. The vast majority of their players were around Level 35. Killing the same player repeatedly would net diminished rewards: 2 gold for the first time, 1 gold for the second, 50 silver for the third, and so on. Furthermore, the reward for killing a red named player and making them drop all their equipment was 5 gold. A kill didn’t count if the nearby enemy Priests weren’t all eliminated.
When Nie Yan passed down this bounty notice to the Union of Assassin, it immediately garnered the attention of the entire organization. Such high rewards were extremely enticing, much more lucrative than the usual leveling missions.
The Union of Assassins had gathered professional players from all across the nation. All of them showed great interest in the mission. The transfer points in Calore lit up brilliantly as waves of professional players flocked to Glory City.
It was impossible to predict how much success the Union of Assassins would have. But one thing was certain. The vast majority of professional players were highly skilled experts. Nie Yan’s bounty notice even caused some professional players who joined Asskickers United to depart for Glory City.
It would take a while for the Union of Assassins to show some results. Meanwhile, back on the thread Bloodlust Blades issued out on the forums, the kill count was still rapidly rising. Over 300 players from Asskickers United had already been killed. Bloodlust blades was only required to pay out 600 gold for this while Asskickers United had suffered several thousand gold in damages. Seeing how effective it was, Bloodlust Blades issued out the bounty notice in every city’s forum.
Nie Yan quickly issued out an order for the players of Asskickers United to conceal their identities while going out levelling.
Even Asskickers United couldn’t deal with being pursued by so many ordinary players!
Nie Yan also released the bounty notice he put on Bloodlust Blades out to the public.
The two guilds entered a war of attrition as gold flowed out like water, seeing which side could hold out the longest.
Nie Yan didn’t know if Asskickers United’s finances could support this war for very long. The entire guild nervously got to work, preparing for any dangers that might arise.
All the players in the Viridian Empire could smell the gunpowder in the air. The forums were full of heated discussion regarding the conflict.
「I think Bloodlust Blades is only pulling this kind of gambit because they want to reclaim some face for the ruckus Asskickers United caused in Glory City.」
「Who do you guys think will win?」
「I don’t know. But if I had to pick a side, I would go after the players from Bloodlust Blades. I’m not willing to antagonize Asskickers United. I heard they’re all quite ruthless. With a single word in their guild chat, you’ll be instantly swarmed by thousands of their players. That kind of guild unity is too terrifying.」
「It’s hard to say. Bloodlust Blades is really wealthy. They already have six strongholds, three of which are up and running while the other three are still under construction. I heard the Century Financial Group gave them a ton of money. Not to mention they have virtually no rivals in Glory City, so they grow unimpeded. Each one of their members have a lot of gold. If we’re comparing resources, Asskickers United isn’t necessarily a match for Bloodlust Blades.」
…
Out of these numerous discussions, two consensuses were reached. The first was that if this conflict lasted for more than 20 days, Asskickers United and Bloodlust Blades would have to personally get involved. The other was that from the very beginning, Bloodlust Blades planned to see this war of attrition against Asskickers United through to the very end!
Which side was going to collapse first?
Nie Yan thought for a moment. If this conflict was going to last beyond a few days, he would have no choice but to prepare a few countermeasures to subsidize the cost, such as expanding Asskickers United’s funding source, acquiring a few more strongholds, and expanding his businesses.
While Nie Yan was handling a few administrative affairs in the auction house, he received a message from Yao Yao. After reading it, he rushed over to Calore’s east entrance.
…
Calore’s east entrance.
This was a wide open street with store fronts lining both sides. There were all kinds of shops selling a large variety of items, such as potions, equipment, and so on. The number of people who passed through the east entrance were numerous, flowing in and out like a continuous stream.
Five youths were gathered here. There were four guys and a girl. One of them was Liu Rui. They were currently chatting while waiting. Liu Rui was a Level 42 Arcane Mage called Sky Piercer. As for the others, one was Level 43, two were Level 44, and one was Level 45. They were considered some of the strongest among ordinary players. There were two Warriors, one Priest, and two Mages. All their equipment was Level 40 Gold-grade. Of course, none of them wore sets.
“God damnit, Sky Piercer, your girlfriend sure is full of herself. She’s made us wait for this long!” a young man who looked like a thug exclaimed. He was called Sky Pivot. He and Liu Rui had met at a bar. He was the type who wandered the streets late at night.
“What level is your girlfriend?” the short girl in the group asked. Her face was pretty, but she was short and chubby, making for a weird contrast. She was called Heavenly Silk.
“I think she’s around Level 35. Her friend is also Level 30 something,” Liu Rui replied. From his memory, Xie Yao’s skills weren’t half bad. But compared to Victorious Return elites like them, she was far too lacking. After all, he was ranked in the top 100 players of all of Victorious Return! This position was a huge source of pride and something he had always liked to show off. Among his classmates, there was no one better than him!
“So low? Don’t invite trash like that over next time. All they do is sit around and leech experience. If it wasn’t for us giving you face, we wouldn’t even bother bringing her along. Not to mention she’s inviting another guy with her,” Sky Pivot said with great annoyance.
“Xie Yao is my woman. If the levelling is too slow, I’ll make it up to you guys some other time. As for the guy she invited, we can think of a way to get rid of him,” Liu Rui said. He didn’t know who Xie Yao invited, but because it was a guy, there was no need to be hospitable.
“It’s fine, we’re doing this for you after all. Otherwise, we wouldn’t bother bringing them along.” Sky Pivot’s eyes lit up as he feigned compromise after hearing Liu Rui’s words.
“I understand, thank you Seventh Bro,” Liu Rui said in a fawning tone.
The group waited for a long time. Just when they were about to break out in curses, they saw Xie Yao walking towards them from the distance.
Xie Yao wore whites robes and held an azure staff in her hand. She was beautiful and elegant, resembling a goddess who had descended down to earth. She didn’t carry the slightest bit of arrogance. All of the players on the streets halted in their tracks to stare after her. When their gazes fell on her face, it was difficult to look away.
Sky Pivot and the other guys felt their breathing turn ragged. Xie Yao carried a type of noble air around her. Even for people like them, who had seen their fair share of beauties, their hearts were still moved. They inwardly muttered, I’ll be damned. That kid’s luck with women isn’t half bad.
Seeing the tall and beautiful beyond compare Xie Yao, Heavenly Silk felt an intense surge of jealousy. In front of this dazzling beauty, she immediately felt her own radiance dim to nothing. She felt like she was the firefly’s glimmer to the radiance of a full moon, or rubble to fine jade.
Seeing Xie Yao walking over, Liu Rui happily went up and greeted, “Yao Yao, you’re here!” When he inspected her level, he petrified. He rubbed his eyes and checked again to make sure he wasn’t seeing things. She was Level 47!
At this moment, a hard to describe emotion surfaced in Liu Rui’s heart. He felt a sense of inferiority combined with shame welling up inside him. Previously, he had bragged to Xie Yao that he would take her levelling. But looking at the situation now, wasn’t it the other way around?
Looking at Xie Yao’s equipment, she was wearing the full Radiant Samsara Set, a top-tier Level 45 Gold-grade set. Even the strongest Holy Mage in Victorious Return, Fresh Fish, had only gathered three pieces of this set, a testament to its rarity.
At this time, Sky Pivot and the others also noticed Xie Yao’s level and equipment. They were stupefied.
What the hell!? Level 47 with the full Radiant Samsara Set, just where did this powerful woman pop up from!?
Sky Pivot stiffly turned to Liu Rui and asked with his voice a bit hoarse, “She’s Yao Yao? The one you want us to take levelling with?” He was already cursing in his heart. What the hell was that brat Liu Rui pulling!? A Level 47 player with the full Radiant Samsara Set was an unapproachable existence! Even if you gave them the most generous evaluation, there was still no way they could compare to her. Yet just a moment ago, they were calling her trash that could only leech experience?