Imprisoned Wen, after reporting Return to Spring’s Skillful Hands, was perplexed by the strange reaction and attitude of the other side. Suddenly, he heard Gentleman Fan’s reminder, “Be alert, someone is coming.”
As a top assassin who operated daily in the black market, Gentleman Fan had his own system for choosing geographic locations.
At this moment, they were in a crucial location, which was a must-pass area for respawning. Simultaneously, they had secured the high ground, providing them with a clear field of vision. Any unusual activity could be detected in no time, and this time was no exception.
Imprisoned Wen raised his head upon hearing the warning and indeed saw a group of people approaching them.
From their position, it was not difficult to determine that it was a reinforcement force sent by another guild.
Imprisoned Wen prepared himself for the incoming threat, and as the flames from the explosion caused by Deep Well Ice Player’s spell rose, he saw the in-game ID of the leader, which made his heart skip a beat. He wondered if he was overly fatigued.
Snake Scorpion Curse.
One of the three Gods of the Rattlesnake Guild was personally leading the team for support?
So, what they had done earlier must have attracted a significant amount of enmity!
After Gentleman Fan’s reminder, Deep Well Ice Player also noticed the approaching group.
Imprisoned Wen felt a thin layer of sweat forming in his palm as he gripped his staff. “Shouldn’t we…”
Gentleman Fan interrupted, “Of course.”
Imprisoned Wen was about to turn and flee at the mention, but he saw Gentleman Fan already approaching with his iron fan. He muttered under his breath, “…We’re definitely going head-on.”
Imprisoned Wen: “?”
His instincts told him that turning back now would mean certain death, but considering his goal of infiltrating the Seven Silver Coins, he gritted his teeth and followed, fully committed.
The enemy was not retreating but preparing to fight, which was unexpected for Snake Scorpion Curse.
As they got closer, Imprisoned Wen quickly glanced at the game IDs and professions of the enemy group.
In his hands, a potion vial had already begun to emit a faint poison gas.
The profession of Snake Scorpion Curse was a Potion Master among the Woodland Tribes.
As one of the four “artisan” professions, various types of pharmaceutical products were his primary means of output.
It was widely known that the main effect of these potions was various forms of debuffs, including poison.
Because of this, Snake Scorpion Curse, known as the top Potion Master, had earned the title of “Master Poison.”
Anyone who followed the recent professional league seasons knew that if the entire league had the dirtiest player, it was Yu Weize, and the most poisonous was undoubtedly Snake Scorpion Curse.
As soon as they met, almost at the moment they reached the maximum distance, Snake Scorpion Curse lifted a hand and cast a layer of chilling poison on Gentleman Fan, causing him to take damage over time along with a slowing effect.
The members of Rattlesnake Guild who came with him rushed forward.
However, in the instant they closed in, the Rogue’s figure flickered slightly and disappeared from their sight.
It was well known that nighttime was the most favorable time for Rogues to operate.
As the level 20 Stealth skill activated, he swiftly blended into the surrounding darkness, becoming the deadliest hunter.
Gentleman Fan’s timing for this Stealth was impeccable, and Rattlesnake Guild members missed their target. Before they could react, they were bombarded.
Snake Scorpion Curse glanced at the Dwarven artillery behind them, and his narrow snake-like eyes squinted slightly.
The coordination of their actions was quite impressive, from drawing the aggro to focused output; it was as if they were playing a mob pulling operation.
At this moment, Snake Scorpion Curse finally understood why those isolated teams had been wiped out one after another.
The skills of the two in front of him were clearly far above those of ordinary players. If it weren’t for their main force team, they would have faced a tough battle.
However, being chosen by Rattlesnake Guild as part of the main force team was a testament to their high skill level.
Their reactions were lightning-fast.
Deep Well Ice Player’s bombing was perfectly timed, and the members of Rattlesnake Guild swiftly retreated, skillfully avoiding fatal damage. The healing player in their group rapidly restored their health, and following Snake Scorpion Curse’s concise instructions, they made a direct charge towards the Dwarf who had been firing the cannon.
Deep Well Ice Player also acted decisively.
He placed several minefields on the ground and, while retreating, fired a series of shots into the faces of their opponents.
The explosions created a bright flash in the darkness.
Snake Scorpion Curse watched as his teammates continued their pursuit while he maintained a cautious distance from the rear.
His primary focus remained on the dark environment surrounding them.
The Rogue who had gone invisible since earlier had not moved far. It was clear that he was waiting for a single, deadly opportunity.
Snake Scorpion Curse was also waiting.
However, what he was waiting for was the moment when the opponent launched an attack to dispel his invisibility.
In the stillness, the distant chain of explosions became the most chilling background noise.
Even each breath seemed to vividly echo in his ears.
Finally, a glint of cold light flashed by.
At that very moment, several vials of potions were also thrown simultaneously. As they exploded around Snake Scorpion Curse, a perfect poison zone covered the entire corner around him, creating an ideal defense line.
As Gentleman Fan’s figure reappeared, the iron fan in his hand was already aiming at Snake Scorpion Curse’s throat.
At such close range, Snake Scorpion Curse finally displayed a hint of surprise in his cold eyes as he examined the appearance of Gentleman Fan’s weapon.
The explosive damage from the Rogue caused Snake Scorpion Curse’s health to rapidly decrease before his eyes.
With bated breath, Snake Scorpion Curse’s health bar was depleting at a visible rate.
Just when it seemed he was about to reach the brink, Gentleman Fan was forced to step into the poison zone during his approach, and the poison effect on him instantly stacked up to 10 layers.
Under the continuous effects of bleeding, slowing, weakness, and multiple other debuffs, Gentleman Fan executed a precise thrust, sending Snake Scorpion Curse flying in mid-air.
He had planned to finish off Snake Scorpion Curse with a killing blow skill when his health dropped to 5%, but he saw his opponent using three potion vials the moment he landed. He promptly raised his health, in addition to gaining a brief defensive buff.
Gentleman Fan: “…”
This reaction speed.
What made Potion Masters most detested by their enemies was their extreme resilience.
Their two abilities, [Chain Reaction] and [Potion Shield,] could trigger passive effects within 5 seconds of activation. Each use of a potion could restore 5% of their health and increase their defense by 5%, which could play a significant role in turning the tide at critical moments.
At this point, after baiting out the Rogue’s burst earlier, Snake Scorpion Curse took another shot.
With a series of actions, he forced Gentleman Fan, who had 10 layers of poison, into a situation where he was isolated and without support.
Once again, he stacked different poison effects on his opponent. Snake Scorpion Curse watched as Gentleman Fan, utilizing Stealth, attempted to retreat invisibly, without any haste in pursuit.
Turning to support the pursuit team at the Dwarven artillery, it didn’t take long for him to receive the notification of a kill.
The ongoing poison effects ultimately deprived Junzi Fan of his remaining health.
Naturally, Gentleman Fan’s teammates had witnessed the entire process of him succumbing to the poison.
[[Team] Deep Well Ice Player: ?]
Gentleman Fan: “…My bad. He’s really poisonous.”
Under normal circumstances, Deep Well Ice Player would have enjoyed teasing him for a while, but right now, Rattlesnake Guild’s main force was relentlessly pursuing him. With just him and the priest, they had barely managed to kill two people, but with the addition of Snake Scorpion Curse to the battlefield, they couldn’t escape their fate.
The three lying on the ground fell silent for a moment.
In the team voice chat, Jiang Shi’s voice came, “What happened? Did you all wipe?”
Obviously, the other two action groups had also noticed the team wipe on this side.
“Yeah, we wiped,” Gentleman Fan, lying on the ground, replied calmly, “Rattlesnake brought a team, and there’s a particularly poisonous Potion Master among them.”
Ever since receiving Gentleman Fan’s attack signal earlier, Imprisoned Wen had felt that something was amiss. At this point, he couldn’t help but ask in the team chat, “…Do you guys not know who the God Snake is?”
Gentleman Fan: “Huh? Who’s that?”
Imprisoned Wen: “…”
Indeed, that’s why they were so resolute earlier. These returning players simply don’t recognize the current industry legends!
On the other side, Jiang Shi also seemed a bit puzzled.
Before he could ask, Han Yuze’s voice came through the team voice chat, and he patiently provided some information: “Snake Scorpion Curse from Rattlesnake Guild, known as the ‘Old Poison,’ lives up to his name—both sneaky and toxic. It’s quite a display for him to personally lead the team in a situation like this.”
Having observed the professional league for a while, Jiang Shi was initially not familiar with the term “God Snake,” but upon hearing the ID [Snake Scorpion Curse] he suddenly realized and couldn’t help but chuckle.
Just as Han Yuze said, at this crucial moment when they were vying for the first boss kill, the fact that a top-tier figure from Rattlesnake Guild, like Snake Scorpion Curse, was willing to personally welcome them was indeed impressive.
Since they were being shown this kind of respect, it was only appropriate to reciprocate it.
Gentleman Fan couldn’t hear the internal voice chat of the fifth team, so he didn’t know what Han Yuze had said. However, in the subtle silence within the team channel, he could sense that their opponents seemed to have significant background. He inquired, “Huh? Is he very formidable?”
At this point, What Pen Carries Fragrance couldn’t help but interject, “A top-tier legend who has been dominating since the second season, how could he not be formidable! By the way, did the Old Poison personally come to intercept you? Can you still escape, or should we come to support?”
“No need, save some resurrection time. Don’t feed them kills now.”
Jiang Shi, who was already rushing towards the location of the three players, pondered briefly and then succinctly added, “Gentleman, wait for us to arrive before resurrecting. After getting up, head directly to the southern resurrection point to continue hunting the lone players. We’ll handle things here.”
Gentleman Fan had been lurking in the black market for many years, and one of his most important principles was never to recklessly act as a hero.
What he despised the most was being in a situation where he couldn’t take down an opponent who was giving him a hard time and where there was a noticeable difference in equipment, as he had realized from their initial encounter. If their gear were on the same level, he would certainly be eager to go for the kill, but now he was well aware of the hardware gap and didn’t insist at all. “OK.”
On the other side, after clearing the three players, Snake Scorpion Curse did not remain in the same place but headed towards the nearest resurrection point. Not seeing Gentleman Fan and the others resurrect, he waited patiently, escorting his own team members back to the resurrection point while simultaneously clearing out enemy forces from two other guilds that were also camping there.
The members of Sword and Wine Guilds carefully resurrected, relieved that they didn’t encounter the three persistent Seven Silver Coins members again. However, as they lifted their heads, they were met with the sight of Snake Scorpion Curse’s main team, and they felt tears welling up in their eyes.
After standing there for a while, Snake Scorpion Curse saw the appearance of Gentleman Fan and his group at the resurrection point, which finally emerged from the ground that had been covered with a dense poison area. This poison area quickly added several layers of poison debuffs to the three players who had just resurrected.
Snake Scorpion Curse was about to make a move when he heard a sound. He swiftly evaded the attack with a side roll and, when he looked up, noticed a dense trail of bullet impacts on the ground where he had been standing just moments ago.
He had no time to think.
The intensive suppressive fire caused him and his teammates to step back involuntarily.
And this was just the beginning.
Suddenly, without warning, a runic area rose from the ground where they had recently set foot, and vines emerged from the soil, tightly ensnaring the ankles of Snake Scorpion Curse and his teammates.
Snake Scorpion Curse: “…”
A Rune Master?
When did they lay in wait here?