Nowhere to Turn!

It was clear that the enemy’s purpose in besieging Monk and the others was to lure him out—Morning Breeze was not so foolish as to rush forward and throw his life away. If he were in his Blood Dragon form, he wouldn’t hesitate to charge—who lived or died would be another matter entirely. But his current burst power and survivability were lacking, especially his resistance to control skills. Yet it was just as difficult for him to abandon his companions, so he chose a compromise: break through their blockade himself and escape the Green Dragon Hills.

“In a moment, I’ll break through the lines and leave the Green Dragon Hills. Once they’ve diverted their forces, you look for your chance to break out,” Morning Breeze said. He understood their true goal was the Ring of Power; as long as he escaped, their chances of obtaining it would greatly diminish. The Divine War Guild had used his friends as bait to draw him out, but he, in turn, could use them as cover to slip away. They would surely realize this, so there was still a chance for his companions to escape.

“How dare the Divine War Guild besiege me! They’ll pay for this—this isn’t over!” Monk spat out harsh words, surrounded in a patch of forest just five hundred meters wide, with no hope of escape. Now war shackles were clamped upon him—even if he logged off, his character would remain rooted to the spot. There was simply no way to leave. Shadow and Battle Maniac wouldn’t abandon Monk, so the three of them were trapped together.

“Be careful—and don’t lose the Ring of Power!” Shadow worried Morning Breeze would lose the artifact, and then who knew what he would do. Morning Breeze had only come to help him and now was breaking through the lines to draw the enemy away.

Once the Ring of Power was worn, Morning Breeze’s location became impossible to determine. He vanished entirely from the hunters’ mini-maps, and even tools meant to track enemy coordinates were useless. This was a hidden ability of the ring: all information about its bearer instantly vanished, making him impossible to track.

Human warrior Zephyr King possessed an item that could locate enemy coordinates. Every three minutes, he would confirm Morning Breeze’s position, trying to predict which area he might appear in next. Zephyr King had always wanted to face Morning Breeze, but never had the chance. Now, though, the tracking item failed him—he had no idea where Morning Breeze was.

“Morning Duan has appeared at Position G in the western sector—he’s trying to break through and escape the Green Dragon Hills.” The border guards had already stationed players at every exit, but the area was vast and manpower thin. If Morning Breeze forced his way through, he might still escape. With everyone focused on surrounding Monk and his friends, it was difficult for reinforcements to come.

“Morning Duan wants to escape the Green Dragon Hills. This is his signal to us—if we don’t divert some of our forces from the siege of Monk and his friends, he’ll slip away for good,” Zephyr King reasoned. With Morning Breeze’s counter-siege skills, it would be hard to trap him. He could even simply log off to evade pursuit, but he didn’t, knowing full well that if he did, his friends would be slaughtered.

“Plan C! Surround and take down Morning Duan!” Divine War’s leader had long prepared multiple plans, treating Morning Breeze as a Blood Dragon-level threat. This time, he’d specially arranged a team to wait for Morning Breeze’s appearance. The moment he showed himself, they’d strike.

But to bait Morning Breeze, as Zephyr King had said, they needed to divert some of the siege force from Monk to encircle him at Position G. Monk, Shadow, and Battle Maniac didn’t have strong counter-siege abilities, so Divine War’s leader could easily finish them later. Dealing with Morning Breeze was another matter. He not only wanted the Ring of Power, but also the Brotherhood Sword.

“Scoundrel Breeze, we’re out! Hurry up and run!” Monk messaged as soon as he broke free.

Wait a minute—wasn’t this going too smoothly? Morning Breeze thought. With the kind of experts these guilds had, surely someone would have seen through his plan to break out. If so, they must have prepared another trap for him.

War shackles!

“Damn!” A rogue ambushed him from behind, afflicting him with war shackles. No matter what, even if he logged off, his character would remain for thirty minutes.

Morning Breeze instantly unleashed Bloodthirst, followed by two free Whirlwind Strikes, instantly killing the rogue. He activated Heroic Leap, jumping away, and vanished into stealth, fleeing at once.

“Still trying to run?” Several members of the Zephyr Team, all professional players, closed in quickly, with the hunters and rogues moving fastest. Morning Breeze had barely entered stealth before he was knocked out of it—he couldn’t hide at all.

Heroic Throw!

Morning Breeze hurled a spear straight at the hunter who had activated Panther Pack Hunt. Under its effect, the team’s movement speed increased by thirty percent, but taking damage would stun them for three seconds. His throw was meant to force the hunter out of that state.

Windstep!

If this were a normal day, Morning Breeze wouldn’t fear professional players. But facing seven at once, even he was overwhelmed by sheer numbers. If a rogue managed to ambush or kidney shot him, he’d be focus-fired and killed. If he got bogged down, reinforcements would arrive and he’d be finished.

“What’s this, a rapids?” Morning Breeze nearly despaired. He’d run a short distance, hoping to lose his pursuers, only to find himself facing a rushing torrent. The Green Dragon Hills had four such rapids crossing the terrain. He hadn’t noticed them before, but now he realized the pros had deliberately herded him this way.

“Morning Duan, where do you think you’re going? Hand over the Ring of Power and the Brotherhood Sword, and we’ll make your death quick!” Zephyr King emerged from the woods—he’d been waiting here all along. Now, Morning Breeze had no way out.

Zephyr King? The guy who’d once tried to loot his Blood Dragon Ring?

The Ring of Power would definitely drop if he died, but the Brotherhood Sword was another matter. No one could guarantee both would fall at once. If Morning Breeze was foolish enough to hand it over, all the better—but he wasn’t that naïve.

“And if I refuse?” Never in his time in the game had Morning Breeze been cornered so badly. He yearned to transform into the Blood Dragon and show them the price of hunting him!

“Every member of Zephyr Team will hunt you down, permanently! We won’t stop until every piece of your gear has dropped—or you quit the game forever!” Zephyr King wasn’t bluffing. Professional players rarely went so far, but Morning Breeze’s arrogance had pushed him too far. Zephyr King was determined to wipe him out.

For some reason, Zephyr King couldn’t stand the look in Morning Breeze’s eyes. He didn’t know why this guy was so confident, so disdainful even when facing their whole team. If he didn’t show Morning Breeze his place, the man would really think himself invincible.

“Just you?” Morning Breeze had made many enemies, but he didn’t recall offending this man. What grudge could there be? If Divine War’s leader had said this, Morning Breeze might have brushed it off as madness. But did Zephyr King truly think he ruled this world? With such an arrogant name, did he believe himself unbeatable?

“Yes, just me!” Zephyr King’s eyes were full of scorn—he detested Morning Breeze’s attitude above all.

The other pros quickly surrounded him—there was nowhere left to run. Unless Morning Breeze could kill them all, he would fall here. On the other side of the rapids, a squad of hunters had already raised their bows, locking onto him. Rogues lay in wait nearby, ready to strike if he tried to cross.

Earlier, Morning Breeze hadn’t immediately used his flight skill to cross; he knew that, if they’d forced him here, there must be a trap on the other side. Flying over would only hasten his death.

“Zephyr King, remember this! The grudge of today—I’ll pay it back a hundredfold!” Without another word, Morning Breeze leapt into the rushing torrent. If it had been a river, he might have fought underwater for a while, but the current swept him away at once.

Even if the Ring of Power was lost forever in the rapids, he would never hand it to Zephyr Team. As a psychic assassin, Morning Breeze had often escaped by leaping from buildings or into rivers when forced. Now, thrown into the torrent, he did his best to steady himself, but the water’s force was overwhelming. He was battered and tossed downstream.

If only he’d sent a clone instead! As a crow he could have scouted; as a seal, swum through the rapids! Everything had gone too smoothly lately, and he’d overlooked this. Now he was forced to plunge into the torrent.

“Not far ahead is a waterfall—there are people waiting below. He won’t escape this time, even if he had wings!” Zephyr King seemed to think killing him would take some time. If Morning Breeze used all his skills, jumping into the torrent was no problem. Shackled by war, even death would leave his corpse behind—and the Ring of Power with it. All they had to do was wait below the falls for his body.

Before plunging into the water, Morning Breeze had gulped a potion for underwater breathing, giving him a little more time. But the raging current tossed him about, depleting his health rapidly. He activated Desperate Stand to restore it as best he could.

A waterfall?

Swept to the brink, Morning Breeze tumbled over the falls. As he shot downward, he glimpsed a crowd waiting below—clearly, they’d anticipated he could survive the rapids. If he fell straight down, it would be a disaster.

The force of the torrent had prevented him from using his flight skill to escape the water earlier, but now, as he cascaded down, he could only use it to slow his fall.

Wait—a cave?

Activating his flight skill, Morning Breeze braced himself against the waterfall’s pressure and spotted a cave behind the curtain of water. Without hesitation, he threw all his strength into darting inside…