Chapter 46: Whack-a-Mole

After the light faded, Zhao Nan took a moment to survey his surroundings. The illumination was extremely dim, yet he could make out dozens of heads. Before him stood a somewhat bewildered player and another who had lost an arm. These two were among those who later followed Zuo Panglong into the instance; having completed it, they too were transported out.

The one with the severed arm was the same man who had been blasted off the cliff behind the cave earlier. He had not died—his face was pale, the stump of his arm hastily bandaged and soaked with blood. His lips were a dark, purplish hue, and frost lingered in his brows and hair.

“He killed the chief!” The man gritted his teeth, his throat seemingly frostbitten, his voice shrill and ghostly.

Ice Crystal Wall!

At the same time, an ice wall materialized in midair. Zhao Nan pulled Finina behind it. He’d anticipated the possibility of an ambush before leaving the instance. Finina, too, appeared calm and prepared.

“Smash them! Take revenge for the chief!” an impassioned shout rang out. After withstanding the first wave of attacks, the ice crystal wall shattered completely.

Zhao Nan drew a deep breath; the Sighing Scepter shot forth from the broken ice, and before the shards fell, he unleashed Meteor Shower!

This was a level 20 fire spell, the equivalent of casting several Explosive Fireballs simultaneously. Above the heads of the crowd, a five-meter-wide magical hexagram formed, launching fireballs in a straight line for five seconds.

“Crescent Slash!” An arc of sword light, waist-high, swept forward. Finina slashed fiercely, opening a gap among their foes.

“Stay calm! I refuse to believe so many can’t stop these two. Target the mage first!” someone commanded coolly. After weathering the Meteor Shower, though many were injured, none had died—they still had fight left in them.

“Quagmire!” The formation couldn’t regroup; the ground turned to mud, ensnaring several in its trap.

“Enthrall!” Zhao Nan had more than twenty skills at his disposal and cycled through them one by one—every ability’s cooldown was done. With ample mana, he could cast ceaselessly.

Gale Assault!

A dozen whirling blades carved another gap in their ranks.

Stone Armor!

A yellowish glow flashed over Finina. She leaped forth; enemy skills clanged harmlessly against her, failing to slow her in the slightest.

Star Combo! Twelve Strikes!

Two players collapsed with screams—they didn’t have time to use healing potions!

Dragon Flame Strike!!

Thunderous booms resounded—more cries echoed. The crowd of dozens was thrown into disarray by the relentless barrage of skills. Zhao Nan’s spells never ceased; Finina’s attacks were swift, uncanny, and devastating in single-target power.

She had already decapitated three in the chaos, her sword still gleaming, not a trace of blood upon it.

A massive fiery dragon head trailed its long tail, weaving through the cramped cavern. As they unleashed skill after skill, the two advanced while fighting. The recent monster-farming sessions had given Zhao Nan a sense for mage combat.

Of course, this was the combat style unique to an Ancient Arcanist. Ordinary mages—even those with hidden classes—could never sustain such uninterrupted spellcasting.

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“Shield Swordsmen, combine your skills!” After a brief shock, the Blood Shadow guild finally mounted a defense. Three balanced shield-swordsmen planted their blades into their shields and raised them, conjuring a thin barrier of light that formed a protective wall.

Star Combo! Twelve Strikes!

The sword tip struck the same spot on the barrier twelve times in rapid succession.

Ah—!

The central shield-swordsman’s barrier shattered instantly, his shield knocked aside, and his heart skewered by the blade. Zhao Nan had once told Finina the weak points for instant kills—beheading and the heart.

As the central swordsman fell, two massive tornadoes swept past Finina.

A level 13 wind spell, Double Spiral—average in power but forcibly pushes enemies aside! Its area of effect was three meters—already a clear path.

“Break through!” Zhao Nan hurried after them; his speed was astonishing. Now he understood why Haidien insisted he invest in agility rather than the mage’s usual spirit stat. With an Ancient Arcanist’s rapid skill casting and high mobility, he was a moving artillery battery on the battlefield!

Firebolt!

The Sighing Scepter swept behind him, launching four firebolts diagonally upward to shatter rocks from the cave ceiling, raising dust to obscure the enemy’s vision.

They were ahead of the Blood Shadow guild members.

Ice Crystal Wall—its cooldown was ready! A massive ice wall blocked the path. The pursuers quickly split to circle around.

On one side, they faced Finina’s sword, swift as a meteor; on the other, a line of firebolts.

“Spread out! His spell range is limited!”

Behind the ice wall, the Blood Shadow guild soon abandoned their attack. Footsteps echoed as they regrouped: shield swordsmen in front, archers behind, and melee classes flanking. They prepared to advance slowly.

Too bad they had no mages… Zhao Nan muttered. All physical classes—wasn’t that a bit extreme?

Watching the ice wall withstand their combined assault as they advanced steadily, Zhao Nan laughed, pulled Finina, and sprinted away.

“Archers! Don’t let them escape!”

Swish, swish, swish!!

Sky Sword Saint! Shadow Step! Finina’s speed doubled instantly, she turned and grabbed Zhao Nan. Arrows landed only behind them, one after another.

The exit was just ahead!

When the Blood Shadow guild reached the exit, they cursed—Zhao Nan was already at the tree trunk outside, a firebolt in hand, which he tossed gently down.

Boom!

A dull thud, like a torpedo detonating underwater, echoed; those inside scrambled away from the entrance.

The cave-dwellers were in chaos. They couldn’t all rush out at once. If they did, they’d be picked off one by one. They were at a loss.

“Finina, gather some damp leaves—let’s smoke some fish.” Zhao Nan eyed the tree trunk, chuckling coldly.

Soon, he tossed burning branches into the cave entrance, and thick smoke began to billow inside. At first, Blood Shadow members managed to douse the branches, but soon, whenever they approached, firebolts rained down, making them recoil in terror!

Smoke gradually rose from the ground, gathered at the cave roof, then slowly sank, soon reaching their heads.

“Captain, this is bad—we’ll suffocate sooner or later!” a Blood Shadow member exclaimed anxiously.

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“Calm down!”

“How am I supposed to stay calm when we’re about to die?” someone shouted. “I quit! I surrender!”

“...You dare!” the captain barked. “Will you let the chief’s death go unavenged?”

“Hmph, Zuo Panglong keeps talking about restoring order in East Source City, but everyone knows what he’s really been up to this past month! I haven’t seen him restore anything—he just has us farming monsters and gold to boost his own strength! Same this time—if not for the instance, would we be in this mess?”

“I’ll gut you, bastard!” The captain’s face turned savage as he swung his axe.

“Hmph, I won’t wait to die!” the man retorted, “Brothers, if you don’t want to die, surrender with me! We only have one life!”

“Mutiny! Mutiny!” The captain was livid.

Clang, clang, clang!

At some unknown moment, the cave was filled with a cacophony—swearing, screams, weapons clashing.

Above, Zhao Nan and Finina exchanged glances. To monitor the situation below, both had cast Wind of Listening.

They heard everything happening in the cave with utmost clarity.

It was an internal conflict.

“Nan?”

“Let’s wait and see,” Zhao Nan frowned. “They seem well-trained—their morale shouldn’t collapse so quickly. This infighting feels odd… And though the fighting is fierce, no one has died.”

Besides Wind of Listening, they had Wind of Lightness.

After a long while, silence finally descended in the cave—no sound at all. Zhao Nan smirked; the group had all gone prone, yet he could hear their heartbeats—none were dead.

“A fine performance,” Zhao Nan laughed. “I should consider awarding you all an Oscar…”

He continued tossing burning branches into the cave. Smoke churned, filling every corner.

After a while, coughing echoed violently from below, growing more intense. Blood Shadow members finally stood up, unable to bear it, scrambling madly toward the cave mouth.

“Come, Finina, let me teach you whack-a-mole,” Zhao Nan said.

Standing at the tree trunk, he hefted the Sighing Scepter. Whenever a head appeared, he swung down hard.

With a scream, the first to poke his head out was knocked unconscious and tumbled back in.

Finina giggled and quickly joined in. She stabbed her sword into the bridge and knocked the second head back in.

It was pure torment.

The Blood Shadow members, already suffering from smoke inhalation, now wept copiously, their eyes stinging.

After some unknown time, the tears from the smoke became real tears.

“Please, we beg you—spare us!”

They were truly driven to tears by the two.

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