Chapter Thirty-One: A Decisive One-on-Five Victory

Chapter 31: A Perfect 1-vs-5 Victory

"Damn it, why do they have to be so well-informed? I’ve always wanted to keep a low profile!" Lin Zheng muttered to himself while hiding in the nearby vegetation. These greedy bastards—the moment they found out he had a Dark-Gold ring, their eyes turned as green as a wolf’s!

"From now on, we kill him every time we see him! We don't stop until he drops the Cold Star!" shouted Glorious Mage with a vicious expression. Lin Zheng curled his lip in disdain. Kill him every time? Do they think he’s made of mud? "Hmm—since you’re being so arrogant, I’ll start with you!" He pulled out his Shattered Moon and a dagger, aimed at Glorious Mage, and drew his bow. *Whoosh!* The dagger flew instantly, striking Glorious Mage square on. -3260! A bright red damage number floated up, and Glorious Mage looked on in disbelief before collapsing to the ground, his mission cut short! One-shot! The rest of the Glorious group immediately went on high alert.

"Damn!" Glorious Heavy Cavalry cursed. "Yiping, you scum, how dare you ambush us!"

"Tch!" Lin Zheng laughed dismissively. "So you’re allowed to ambush me, but I’m not allowed to ambush you? Does the logic of the world belong to your family now?"

"Are you determined to make an enemy of the Glorious guild?" Glorious Heavy Cavalry asked, his face dark.

"Who’s making an enemy of whom? From the start until now, you’ve been the ones causing me trouble. You’re washing your hands of it pretty cleanly, aren't you?"

"Damn it! This kid is too arrogant!" Glorious Rookie roared in frustration, raising an axe and charging at Lin Zheng. He activated "Dash," hurtling toward him. Lin Zheng tried to dodge, but *thwack!* An ice arrow struck him. The damage was low, but it slowed him down. Caught off guard, Lin Zheng was knocked aside by the charge. Seeing the perfect opening, Glorious Heavy Cavalry shouted, "Attack!" The others rushed in.

"Damn!" Lin Zheng rolled on the ground, avoiding the daggers of Glorious Heavy Cavalry and Glorious Berserker, though he was clipped by a Holy Light blast from the healer, losing a few hundred HP. Rolling a few times, he scrambled to his feet. *Clang!* The Shattered Moon in his hand split into two short swords. He whirled around and struck Glorious Berserker, who had been pursuing him. The Berserker, not expecting the sudden turn, took the blades straight to his chest. Blood sprayed everywhere—3450! A critical hit! Glorious Berserker groaned, his HP dropping to zero, and he collapsed, dead. Seeing this, a furious Glorious Heavy Cavalry swung his sword down at Lin Zheng. Having already committed to his momentum, Lin Zheng couldn't avoid the blow and lost 1500 HP. "Greatsword Stab!" After the first strike, the Heavy Cavalry pressed the attack. Crouched on the ground, Lin Zheng was in a passive position and had to resort to a long-unused throwing technique. The short sword left his hand and struck the Heavy Cavalry right in the eye. The man let out a miserable scream, his skill lock misfiring and slamming into the ground beside Lin Zheng. Strike while the iron is hot! Lin Zheng lunged forward, knocked the Heavy Cavalry down, and plunged his short sword into the man’s throat. *Squelch!* Blood splattered as the Heavy Cavalry lost 3500 HP. Roaring in anger, the Heavy Cavalry threw Lin Zheng off and swept his greatsword, forcing him back.

As the Heavy Cavalry scrambled up, holy light enveloped him—the healer was topping him off. He also downed a potion and some food, and in the blink of an eye, he was back to full health. "Damn!" Lin Zheng cursed. That blasted healer! He had to take that guy out first, or he’d be worn down by the Heavy Cavalry!

Reassembling his short swords into the Shattered Moon, Lin Zheng pulled out a dagger and fired at the Glorious Healer. But the guy was prepared, using a Z-step to dodge the shot before throwing a Holy Light blast in retaliation. "Damn it!" Lin Zheng dodged the blast, but the Heavy Cavalry had already charged in, delivering a heavy blow. Lin Zheng countered with a low kick, leaped backward to avoid the follow-up, and just as he was about to shoot the healer again, that cursed healing light landed on the Heavy Cavalry once more.

"Damn!" Lin Zheng cursed, fired an arrow at the Heavy Cavalry, and took advantage of the slow effect to sprint toward the healer. He wanted to end this! But the guy was incredibly cunning, hiding near the Heavy Cavalry. To kill him, Lin Zheng had to get through the Heavy Cavalry first! But the guy was thick-skinned, and with the healer’s support, he was hard to kill. With the mission timer running out, Lin Zheng’s eyes turned red, and he roared as he charged at the Heavy Cavalry! Seeing this, the man grinned, thinking Lin Zheng had lost his mind by choosing a melee fight against a metal-clad class. He slashed at Lin Zheng, and Lin Zheng returned the blow. But Lin Zheng didn't have time to heal, while the Heavy Cavalry did. After three exchanges, Lin Zheng was down to one-third HP, while the Heavy Cavalry still had three-quarters! The triumphant Heavy Cavalry smiled insidiously at Lin Zheng—until he suddenly froze. Lin Zheng was smiling back at him just as wickedly! Suddenly, the Heavy Cavalry remembered something and retreated in terror, but it was too late!

"Explode!" Lin Zheng roared, stomping his foot onto the ground. Violent flames instantly engulfed everything within a ten-meter radius. Amidst the inferno, the Heavy Cavalry let out a final, unwilling cry, a massive -5690 damage number appearing over his head as he collapsed to the ground! One-shot. Let’s see how that healer brings him back now! Boiling with pent-up frustration, Lin Zheng turned his malicious gaze toward the stunned healer. A golden opportunity! He fired his bow; the distracted healer took the arrow—2650 damage! It didn't one-shot him, which surprised Lin Zheng, but what did a second arrow matter? The rhythm of the battle broken, the healer couldn't escape the second shot, taking another 2350 damage and dying instantly.

With the Glorious family members dealt with, the remaining mission time was tight. Lin Zheng didn't linger, rushing to Wang Hu to turn in the quest.

"Thank you so much, big brother! This is a token of my appreciation; please, take it!" Wang Hu said gratefully. Lin Zheng received a notification:

"Completed 'Night Feast I'. Received 20 Gold Coins, 200,000 EXP, and the Silver-grade equipment 'Night Raid Leather Boots'!" Before Lin Zheng could even celebrate, another notification sounded:

"Successfully completed 'Night Feast I'. Triggered mission 'Night Feast II'. Mission difficulty: C-tier, Intermediate. Do you accept?"

Hoho! A mission with such generous rewards—how could he refuse?

Wang Hu looked embarrassed. "Um, big brother, I have one more favor to ask. You see, the Princess of Red South City loves desserts. To make her favorite, I need fresh, high-quality honey. It can only be collected in the Poison Bee Forest, but the bees there are too terrifying; I can't get near their hives. Could you go to the Poison Bee Forest and collect 200 portions of honey for me? If you do, I will reward you handsomely!"

"Mission accepted. During the mission, you can collect the Level 8 material 'Honey'! Time limit: 120 minutes. Collect 200 portions. Upon completion, return to Wang Hu at the City Lord’s Mansion. Failure to complete within the time limit results in mission failure and the loss of all skill proficiency gained from collecting honey!"

Another gathering mission! Lin Zheng was delighted. Wouldn't this allow him to reach Level 4 Gathering? Bidding farewell to Wang Hu, he opened his map to locate the Poison Bee Forest. It was right next to the Gloom Mine, a level 35-45 leveling zone. It would take about 20 minutes to get there. Since time was of the essence, Lin Zheng didn't want to waste it on travel. He took out a Return Pearl worth one gold coin—a luxurious move—to return to the city first before heading to the forest, saving him nearly ten minutes! On the way, he checked the Night Raid Leather Boots:

Night Raid Leather Boots: Requires Level 35, Silver-grade.
Physical Defense: 110, Magic Defense: 110.
Agility: 20.
Fleet Foot: Movement Speed +5%.
Quick Hands: Attack Speed +5%.
Part of the Night Raid Set.

*Hiss—* Lin Zheng gasped. These boots were incredibly powerful. Dual 5% speed bonuses alone made them superior to many same-level Gold or even Dark-Gold items! Add the 20 Agility, and they were tailor-made for a Hunter. And they were part of a set! The set bonuses were also fierce: two pieces grant +400 Physical Defense, three pieces +3% Critical Hit Rate, four pieces +20 Strength and +20 Agility, and the full five-piece set grants 20% damage reduction. Could the "Night Feast" series of quests reward an entire set? At the thought, Lin Zheng’s heart burned with anticipation; he couldn't wait to finish the missions and find out!

A few minutes later, Lin Zheng arrived at the Poison Bee Forest. Although it was marked as a level 35-45 zone, there were many players around. Few players were cautious, and most preferred to challenge higher-level monsters for faster leveling, especially since it was the early stage of the game and rushing levels was crucial.

On the outskirts of the forest, many players were looking for teammates. Lin Zheng, clad in his Ice Ape set, looked quite impressive, every bit the expert. Being alone, he received many invitations, but he wasn't here to level up; he was here for the mission. Grouping up would only slow him down. He declined all invitations and entered the Poison Bee Forest alone.