"Damn, it actually got away!" Watching the Golden Winged Great Peng vanish into the clouds in the blink of an eye, the group could only sigh in frustration.
Today’s battle was a hard-fought affair for the three of them; they ended up running around without any chance to shine.
Luckily, they managed to kill three unlucky fellows from the Azure Dragon Association who were on their way to provide Keep reading on NovelHub - where stories come alive!
And saving the rearguard was an accomplishment in itself.
Xiao Yi the Unrivaled spoke over voice chat, "Our side has repelled the Demon Masters, the rearguard is safe, I repeat, the rearguard is safe."
Longteng Sihai echoed, "We should retreat too, this fog is too eerie. Don’t stay in the valley too long, regroup on the clifftop, and everyone be careful not to get ambushed in the fog."
Fortunately, it seemed the Azure Dragon Association was too scared to attempt any ambushes or assassinations in the fog.
In fact, the Azure Dragon Association originally planned to use their assassin team to eliminate the opposing assassins, then summon fog to cover the battlefield and use their assassins’ ability to ambush and systematically break down Dragon Soaring.
Unfortunately, the plan went awry from the first step. Outnumbered three to ten, they were somehow upset, and the subsequent steps compounded those errors...
Twenty minutes later, members of the Dragon Soaring Knights gathered once again on the clifftop.
It was a decisive victory; they killed more than twenty members of the Azure Dragon Association while only losing three of their own.
One fell into a swamp during the charge and was hacked to death, another was shot off his horse while mounted shooting, killed by a barrage of arrows and spells.
One more died in a panic after the fog appeared, accidentally running into Zhao Kai, who then cut him down with one strike.
However, despite the favorable casualty ratio, the members didn’t feel much joy. This kind of battle brought little profit compared to fighting a BOSS, and even risked earning a red name.
Though killing an enemy did result in some minor loot drops, because guild wars hadn’t started yet, only trivial items from the backpacks were dropped – meager consolation.
Not to mention, the equipment of the three deceased core members of Dragon Soaring was gone, leading to both a painful loss of equipment and personnel.
What’s more troubling, those who had claimed kills now mostly bore red names.
Especially Xiao Jie, who due to his preemptive attack in the tunnel encounter, was deemed the aggressor by the system. Having killed six assassins himself, his name was now a dark shade of red, almost blackened.
He would now have to spend a considerable amount of time outside the city grinding away his red name.
Fortunately, with the backing of a large guild, supplies were not an issue as team members could bring them, and there was no fear of being hunted by Bounty Hunters, so it wasn’t a big problem.
Long Xingtianxia’s voice came serious and solemn over voice chat, "Everyone did well. Today’s battle has dealt a heavy blow to the Azure Dragon Association’s arrogance. We are set to take the White Dragon.
For the brothers who died in battle, we will bring back their bodies for burial. Don’t worry, when our plan is complete, the day will come when the brothers shall meet again."
"Don’t worry, Chief, we’re fine."
"Chief, we are mentally prepared. You don’t have to worry about us."
"Chief, you must keep your word, I still want to drink with you in the future."
Hearing the voices of the three fallen comrades in the voice chat, everyone felt considerable respect.
They were true tough guys, keeping such composure even in the face of life and death.
"Don’t worry, I, Long Xingtianxia, will never go back on my word. Si Hai, tally up the scores for this operation. After we capture the White Dragon and Immortal Treasure, rewards will be distributed based on merit. Everyone will get their share."
Long Xingtianxia knew how to boost morale. Although there wasn’t much to gain from all the killing, the upcoming Dragon Slayer and treasure hunting operations promised significant rewards. It was only natural to "sweeten the pot" to sustain morale for future endeavours.
With boosted morale, the group was ready for action.
Longteng Sihai quickly started tallying scores for everyone, with Xiao Jie unsurprisingly topping the chart by a wide margin.
He got +30 for participating in the investigation, killed six assassins worth a total of 152 points based on their levels.
He defeated the Ghost Shadow Assassin Wealth Blossoms, earning a major merit of +30 points.
Assisting Longteng Sihai in repelling Zhao Kai and breaking through the Azure Dragon Association’s defense was another major achievement, adding another +30 points, totaling an impressive 242 points.
This score was astronomical even before fighting the BOSS, which left everyone in awe.
But no one questioned it; Xiao Jie’s contributions were obvious.
The second place went to Dragon’s Illusion, +30 for the investigation, and he also killed two Over Level 30 Assassin Masters, scoring a total of 98 points.
The third place went to An Ran, +30 for the investigation, helped save three Mages and battled fiercely against the Demon Master Tiger for ten minutes, holding the line until reinforcements arrived, and secured the rearguard, earning a major merit of +30.
The others calculated their own gains: Hao Mie, Jiu Jianxian, and Heroic each scored 10 points for their Keep reading on NovelHub - where stories come alive!
The General’s group of twelve faced off against the main force of the Azure Dragon Association, collectively gaining a major merit...
As everyone’s scores were announced, the group recovered some of their morale.
Even if the points weren’t exchanged for equipment, they were worth a considerable amount of silver.
Xiao Jie was quite pleased with the results.
With over two hundred points, securing the Dragon Ball seemed almost guaranteed, and there might even be enough points left to claim some other desirable items, depending on what was available later.