Fury started to appear on the young king"s face as he said, “The Nine Sovereigns of h.e.l.l. Each and every one of them is said to possess the power of a G.o.d and their powers of destruction stretch far beyond our imagination. Coldblade"s return is imminent, and since that is the case, the only thing left for us to do is to accept it. Any struggle or resistance would be futile anyway. I chose to ally myself with Coldblade in order to preserve our dignity and ensure our survival.”
A cold chuckle unwittingly escaped from my mouth. “So you"re planning on letting Coldblade use Sky City as a stepping stone to sweep through the other human nations on the continent? Do you really think that the Night Creatures will allow Sky City to live after they have eradicated every living thing on this continent?”
Mylin also spoke up in support of me. “That"s right, Your Majesty! The human alliance is made up of nations who all depend on each other for survival. We definitely must not act in such a disgraceful and dishonorable manner! We will only be despised and mocked by our descendants for all the ages to come!”
“Enough!” The young king"s lips curled up into a sinister smile. “The Violet Empire has always been bossy and overbearing, Vanished G.o.d City never does anything, and Floating Ice City"s Karinshan has always been trying to expand her power and territory. I have done so many things for Sky City, all of you just don"t know it! Hahaha, but just wait and see! When Lord Coldblade arrives at the head of his h.e.l.lish army, Sky City"s era will have arrived! We will have lords.h.i.+p and dominion over everyone else!”
As he said this, the king suddenly swept his sword toward us and let out a sinister laugh. “As for you lot, you will become the first sacrifices we offer up to Lord Coldblade! Hahahaha!”
……
It was clear that this b.a.s.t.a.r.d king had no intention of letting us leave this place alive.
Thud!
I grabbed Mylin and said in a low voice, “Hurry up and run! Follow me! We can"t stay in this place any longer!”
Mylin was a mage, so even though she was a high-level NPC, she could never be a match for those high-powered Imperial Swordsmen who specialized in the chaotic milieu of melee combat. She was the key to completing this mission, so I couldn"t let any harm befall her!
A bunch of guards drew their swords and bellowed with rage as they charged our way.
The young king also sprang into action. He rushed over, his jeweled sword streaking across the air along with its wielder. He was a Spirit Rank boss, so I couldn"t afford to let down my guard!
“Hand over your life, you nosy brat!”
The king raised his sharp sword high above him and leaped into the air. Thick flames ignited on his longsword as he sent a mighty slash hurtling downward. He was trying to finish us off in a single strike!
I clenched my teeth and pushed Mylin behind me. Then, I immediately raised my sword above my head to block that strike! I"ll think about my next move after this!
Clang!
2782!
Sparks flew everywhere with the collision of our weapons. The web between my thumb and index finger grew numb, and my body shook violently. Even though I had used Guard successfully, the impact pushed me all the way back. As I was sliding backward, energy suddenly burst out from my sword. I used the new skill that I had just learned—Burning Blade Slas.h.!.+
Flames burned brightly on the Heaven-stealing Sword before three fiery blades of energy came whistling out of it!
Bang! Bang! Bang!
4784!
6745!
9047!
I was greatly surprised when I saw the ruler of Sky City being pushed back by those three consecutive strikes. He had the same authority as Sophia and Karinshan, and I wouldn"t be surprised if either of the latter two could kill me in one strike. But the ruler of Sky City turned out to be way weaker than them. It was clear that his over-indulgence in wine and s.e.x had done a number on his body. It was also pretty clear to me that the people who governed Sky City would have never become so thoroughly rotten if not for this foolish wastrel of a ruler.
Mylin whirled around, a fireball floating above her palm. However, she looked extremely unwilling to attack. As a royal mage, it was nearly impossible to get her to attack her king at this moment.
I hurriedly stretched out a hand to grab Mylin"s arm. I shouted, “We need to go! Now!”
We rushed outside only to discover even more guards waiting for us. It was also at this moment that a heroic and ferocious figure dashed through the crowd, his longsword sweeping aside everyone in front of him. Shockwaves exploded from his vibrating blade as they sent whole groups of Imperial Swordsmen flying through the air.
It was the royal general who had just been demoted by the king, Jacelyn!
“Brave and upright adventurer, I will make sure that you and Mage Mylin escape from here! It"s time to leave this rotten inst.i.tution of n.o.bles!”
I nodded my head. Jacelyn and I rushed forward to sweep away all the enemies before us, and Mylin stayed right behind us at all times. Soon, the other two royal generals also drew their swords and joined our case. With 3 NPCs clearing the way, it wasn"t hard for us to escape the palace. It was only when we got to the main street that I realized in my despair that the mission in Sky City had already begun. All of the guards" names had turned red and I had been marked as a fugitive by the NPC authorities of Sky City!
Boom!
I turned around and unleashed a Thousand Ice Slash at the crowd of enemies behind us, freezing a large group of Imperial Swordsmen in place.
Jacelyn slowly drew out the sword he had sunk into his opponent"s belly before he turned around and bellowed, “Let"s kill our way out of the capital! We"ll go to a base located at the foot of Dragonbone Mountain Range. My army is stationed there and it is one hundred thousand strong! It"s strong enough to deter our enemies at the border or defend the core of our nation, so it"s definitely strong enough to prevent those weak and cowardly n.o.bles from burying our country!”
I nodded my head. “Let"s go!”
……
f.u.c.king h.e.l.l, this rebellious nature of mine must have been drilled into my very bones. My heart was actually racing with excitement when I rebelled together with Jacelyn and Mylin!
The young king"s face warped into a mask of malice and hatred as he stared at our shrinking figures. His expression was strange and sinister as he bellowed, “Inform the Mage Guild that they are to activate the Purgatory Dragon Scepter with all due haste! The spatial bridge must be summoned at all costs! The time is ripe for Lord Coldblade to descend upon the mortal plane once more! I want the nations of this world to cower before me, I want the entire world to know that the brilliant ruler of Sky City is the imminent ruler of all humanity!”
The sound of the system notice reverberated in the air above Sky City.
Oh s.h.i.+t!
Ding~!
System Announcement: All players, please be informed that the situation in Sky City has changed dramatically! The Purgatory Dragon Scepter is currently being activated and the return of Coldblade"s army is imminent! Time until spatial bridge is fully formed: 600 seconds!
……
d.a.m.n, that was quick! We only had ten minutes before the spatial bridge was formed!
I sprinted out of the capital while also closing up Air Force One. I couldn"t let White Fox get killed, I"d stand to lose too much if I did. I could wait until the city returned to normal before setting up shop again.
The guild channel was in complete chaos and everyone was in a complete fl.u.s.ter as questions flew in from all corners.
I shouted in a deep voice, “Everyone, we need to move quickly! Repair your equipment immediately and fill your inventory with potions. After that, teleport straight to Dark Moon City. I"m afraid that we"ll have to hole up in Dark Moon City for a good long while after this. Whatever it is, everyone is to leave the city within the next ten minutes!”
Li Chengfeng: “Lu Chen, what"s going on?”
He Yi: “Yeah, what happened?”
I replied in a somber voice: “When I was completing my fifth cla.s.s promotion quest, I activated a quest related to the main storyline. Sky City"s n.o.bles have decided to betray the human alliance. They have decided to summon an army from h.e.l.l to help them conquer the rest of the continent. All of us need to leave Sky City immediately because it will soon be drowning in Night Creatures!”
Li Chengfeng: “Okay, I got it. Everyone, immediately resupply now and teleport yourselves to Dark Moon City! We"ll play things by the ear for now! Don"t hesitate and listen to the guild leader"s commands! He won"t be wrong!”
Li Chengfeng, Xu Yang, and the others took control of the situation. They coordinated the withdrawal of the entire Ancient Sword Dreaming Souls guild from the city.
I took this opportunity to send a message to our allies, Lin Yixin and Ling Xueshang, so that they could retreat from Sky City as well. If not, all of us would be dead meat when Coldblade returned at the head of his army of Night Creatures. Coldblade himself was the biggest threat. As one of the nine nastiest bosses in the current game, commander and one of the Nine Sovereigns, he definitely wasn"t an opponent any of the current players could deal with.
……
Mylin and I ran after Jacelyn and the two other generals, and it was an hour before we reached the foot of Dragonbone Mountain Range. I could hear the whinnying of warhorses in the distance and when we climbed up a small hill. To my shock, I discovered an entire army of heroic-looking warriors a.s.sembled in a vast plain. Neat formations of cavalry thundered by as countless troops diligently worked on their skills! I could even see the faint figures of Gryphon Knights in the distance!
Jacelyn pointed down at the army a.s.sembled at the foot of these mountains as he patted me on the shoulder. He grinned as he said, “Brother, how do you like that?! This is the Sky Empire"s most elite army, the Mad Lion Legion! And I am their commander. Now that we have this majestic army of one hundred and forty thousand men, we can definitely give Coldblade"s army a run for their money!”
My brows knit together as I said, “I"m sorry that I have to rain on your parade, but the Mad Lion Legion won"t even be able to give Coldblade"s army a decent fight at its current strength. The one who is leading the Night Creatures this time is Coldblade himself, and his strength is unfathomable. We don"t have a single person who can face him in combat and his troops will be like an unending wave that will keep pouring out of the depths of h.e.l.l.”
Jacelyn nodded his head. “I"m aware of this as well, but it"s already too late to stop the activation of the Purgatory Dragon Scepter. It seems like the only plan we have going forward is to boldly throw ourselves into battle and charge back into Sky City at the head of this great army. We"ll rush into the center of the city and destroy the Purgatory Dragon Scepter. But I"m afraid that we"ll have to pay an obscenely high price in blood in order to achieve our objective.”
“Well there"s nothing else we can do.”
I gave him a small smile before I asked, “So let"s say we do manage to defeat Coldblade, what are you going to do after that? Are you going to claim the throne after we depose that despot? Or?”
Jacelyn shook his head as he replied in a firm and unyielding voice, “I, Jacelyn, am bound by my honor as a knight. I will never betray my country or the kings of humanity. Since the authorities of Sky City have already grown rotten to the core, I will purge them with fire and blood and bend my knee to the next king to replace them. As such, I have something that I need to ask you to help me with.”
“What do I have to do?”
“Take these letters written by Eliza, Drex, and I, and make your way to Floating Ice City. When you are there, seek an audience with Princess Karinshan and ask her to dispatch her armies to retake Sky City. Princess Karinshan comes from the most sacred of royal bloodlines, and she is a most cunning and resourceful ruler! She is the best choice to take over Sky City. Furthermore, Floating Ice City has been steadily expanding their army and preparing for war for years now, so its soldiers are strong and well-equipped. With their help, we will definitely be able to wrest Sky City back from Coldblade"s grasp!”
“Okay, leave this matter to me!”
I took all three letters, my chest swelling with excitement. I couldn"t beat Coldblade in a d.a.m.ned duel, but I definitely didn"t have a problem with delivering letters in a dangerous situation like this.
……
It was at this exact moment that Sky City started falling into chaos. A gigantic azure magic formation started rising up from the palace like a giant pillar as streams of spatial energy started to vibrate violently. Before too long, countless Night Creatures began to pour out from portals connected straight to h.e.l.l. The rotted beastman warriors with their gigantic war mauls. The gigantic beasts swathed in chains, whose breaths smelled like decay and death.
These gigantic monsters which had never been seen before began to appear one after the other. They rampaged across Sky City"s once-peaceful plaza and the many players who had not escaped the city in time were being slaughtered one by one. This tranquil and peaceful city was soon drenched in an ocean of blood!
I watched the proceedings silently. All of this had happened because of my mission. My sins were truly grave this time.
However, when I thought about it, I realised that this event would have still come to pa.s.s even if I hadn"t accepted this mission. Karinshan would still end up taking over Sky City, it was something that was inevitable. After all, Sky City needed a brilliant and mighty ruler. A sovereign who could rally the people to fight against the darkness! Not some pathetic poseur who was all too eager to bend the knee.
After I teleported to Dark Moon City, I immediately chose to teleport to Floating Ice City! It was time to deliver those letters!