Major Announcement: Forever City is now in full war mode. Players will be unable to use cross-city teleportation arrays until one side is defeated.
Major Announcement: Pope Jenonis of the Holy Light Church has issued a final ultimatum to all hostile players and NPC factions—surrender voluntarily and you will face no penalties!
"Surrender? Hah! I surrender your grandma. Killing NPCs for loot is the real path to glory. Orgod, wait for me!"
"Anyone heading to support Forever City, type 1! I'll pull you into our battle group!"
"Damn, running this map takes over ten hours… you maniacs really going on foot? Forget it, I'll go loot the NPC logistics instead!"
With the battle against Usher concluded, Orson's fame hit an all-time high. Countless players self-organized into squads, joining the crusade against the Light Dragon Empire.
With teleportation disabled, most players could only tune into livestreams to watch the war unfold while trekking across maps to reach the frontline on foot.
Smarter players, however, started targeting NPC military caravans along the way. Who cared about Infamy or penalties? Even low-level players could profit by dragging down a few NPCs with them.
Riftrock City – Chaos Hills
The rugged hills, sharp as bamboo shoots, jutted out of the earth. The Godslayer Alliance, thanks to their God-Emperor Earrings, had arrived early to take up strategic positions.
"What the hell are they thinking? A few thousand players trying to ambush forces from four religious orders and five imperial noble houses?"
"Yeah, Chaos Hills is a tough terrain, but the Light Dragon Empire brought three Dawn-class warships. Those are officially stronger than high-tier dragons!"
"Who's leading this? This is pure suicide!"
"If they lose control of Riftrock City, the NPCs will turn it into a teleport hub and start pouring troops into Forever City nonstop!"
Viewers in the livestreams lost their minds.
Players from Supreme Guild, Slaughter, Glory Seekers, and Godslayer, along with two allied guilds, split into groups of 1,000 to 2,000. Each force was hidden behind separate hillsides.
The air was thick with tension. Even seasoned veteran players showed signs of unease.
According to intel, they were facing nearly twenty times their number in NPC troops—a practically impossible task.
"Hold steady! Don't panic!" Madman barked.
Normally, someone would've cracked a joke at his expense. But today, half-step Dragon King Quarla stood beside him, radiating sheer, suffocating power. No one dared say a word. If anything, they looked at Madman with new respect.
Magical Fiancée: "The enemy's main force has halted. They must suspect danger nearby."
"Our flank may be compromised," added an archer from Supreme Guild. "My rogues spotted a squad of enemy scouts on flying drakes approaching our ambush zone."
The speaker was Kieran, a level 50 A-rank archer—and Drunken Dream's younger brother. Trusted.
"Don't worry. The guild leader will handle it."
Raven's voice was calm, as if he had seen this coming.
"Magical Fiancée, prep the decoy."
"Why me?" she scowled. Everyone knew what "decoy" meant—rush in, die fast, and lure the enemy forward. And with teleportation disabled, dying meant walking all the way back from Forever City.
"Simple. You haven't earned the guild leader's trust," Raven replied bluntly.
"Bullshit! We're supposed to be allies and now you're pulling this crap?" a Glory Seekers player snapped.
An arrow thudded into the ground at his feet.
"Anyone unwilling can leave now and avoid punishment," Raven said coldly.
Behind him, a Chimera raised its monstrous head, electricity pulsing in its mismatched eyes. Its elemental aura weighed down the air. The beast was part elemental, rivaling dragons in size. It couldn't match a dragon in melee, but its magical dominance was unmatched—capable of casting three-elemental spell barrages.
"Pfft! Big talk. If it's such a noble mission, why don't you do it?" the Glory Seekers player spat, summoning his own fire dragon, which bared its teeth at the chimera.
"Back to your post, all of you!"
Magical Fiancée's voice snapped like a whip. She glared at Raven. "I don't trust you. I trust Orgod."
Madman let out a cackling laugh. "Now that's a guild leader who knows what she's doing. You climbed into this thief's bed—uh, metaphorically speaking. Trust me, you'll get your reward."
She shot him a glare that could melt steel, then led over 400 players around the hill and to the front line.
As soon as Glory Seekers moved, the minimap lit up with two dozen red markers—fast-moving units. Imperial flying drake scouts.
"Oh no! They're about to expose the ambush!"
Commentators in the livestream started shouting. If the scouts spotted them, the imperial army would change tactics, flank them, or circle around to trap the Godslayer forces. A total disaster.
Suddenly, streaks of deep red shot through the sky like missile salvos, raining down on the imperial scouts!
"Godslayer-controlled zone—no-fly policy."
A cold, commanding voice echoed across the hills. All heads turned toward the ridge—
"OMG! That's a 15-kilometer shot?! 15,000 meters?!"
"Bro, what is this—US rocket artillery inheritance? What is this ridiculous range?!"
"Hah… I underestimated him. Godslayer's side has a walking turret now. Bring more troops, die faster!"
He stood there with a staff in hand, unleashing Chaos Magic Balls so fast the sky lit up like a festival of death.
The drake scouts panicked and began to pray. Their AI minds couldn't comprehend what they were facing.
In mere seconds, the flying scouts and their drakes were vaporized mid-air. Blood and charred limbs rained from the sky.
Two King-tier NPCs—one from the barbarian tribes, one from the Frostwolf clans—watched in stunned silence.
That kind of range and damage? Not even a Dragon King could match it.
Yet it came from a player. An adventurer, no less—creatures that most NPCs viewed as ants.
Magical Fiancée saw the sky erupt and felt a wave of calm sweep over her. She raised her staff high.
She led the charge down the hillside, casting a wide-range petrification spell—
"Awakened: Medusa's Tear!"
A gray mist rolled across the battlefield, glittering like crushed glass. It drifted over the front lines of the empire's forces.
All-attribute debuff!
In one sweep, hundreds of imperial soldiers froze mid-expression, bodies turning to stone.
Immediately afterward, a storm of Enchanted Arrows followed, shredding the petrified targets into shards.
The Barbarian King exploded in fury. He raised a black-gold war banner and bellowed, "Kill these damned insects to the last one!"