After teleporting back, only eight members remained on the team.

“A bunch of losers we’ve already beaten won’t be able to stop us,” Captain Zhang Shihao said, full of confidence.

This wasn’t baseless arrogance.

The enemy couldn’t possibly have a large group of top-tier experts gathered at their Rune Core, nor could they summon such reinforcements on short notice. On the contrary, it was highly probable that a mob of fighters with wildly inconsistent power levels would rush over to join the fray.

Still, to be safe, he wouldn’t advocate for needlessly gambling with their lives, which was why the members who had exhausted their Rune Energy were right to leave ahead of time.

Moreover, they had Su Chen, the number one player on the contribution leaderboard.

He had almost single-handedly orchestrated the assassination mission moments ago, successfully killing Matel Lorenz.

That old bastard had no real combat talent—his rank on the contribution leaderboard probably wasn’t even in the top fifty. He was only able to wreak havoc by relying on his Soul Artifact. The fact that Su Chen could cut through a crowd, breach the core defenses, and kill him in an instant was proof that his personal strength was completely beyond imagination.

“Don’t worry. If I want to slip away, no one can stop me.” Little Zeus’s body transformed into lightning. As long as he wasn’t hit with a disabling effect or spatially restricted, he was capable of a leap that would take him beyond the horizon.

“I have Magic Guide Crystal Pillars. I can help shield us at any time.”

Xiaohu chimed in. The kid had looted plenty of spoils during the raid on the manor. Using his Soul Pocket, he had managed to grab two Magic Guide Crystal Pillars and a large amount of Spiritual Minerals.

He wasn’t the only one.

Another ghost operative, who also possessed a spatial storage Rune, had snatched a Magic Guide Crystal Pillar and a large pile of various elemental crystals.

According to him, the three-cubic-meter capacity of his pocket space was the only reason he could only make off with a small fraction of the rare materials in the manor’s warehouse.

“No need for that,” Su Chen said. “The enemy is in a rush and hasn’t established a solid defense. We’ll just fight our way straight through. Sniper, take out their Teleportation Gate beforehand.”

Huh…

As everyone listened to his casually delivered plan, they somehow didn’t detect a hint of arrogance.

“Get ready.”

A member of the Sharp Fang Team warned.

Immediately, a dual-layer Invisibility Skill and a camouflage skill were cast upon the eight of them in succession.

The caster clearly knew who the team’s pillar was, as they made sure to place the concealing buffs on Su Chen first.

Before long.

They spotted several large, avian beasts flying on the horizon.

A direct confrontation erupted moments later.

WHOOSH!

A vicious sniper round blew the head clean off a massive thunderhawk in mid-air. Such was the shot’s incredible piercing power that it continued on to kill the Summoning Skill wielder on its back.

A shower of blood rained down from the sky, heralding the explosive start of the battle.

‘All Things Decree: Wood!’

Su Chen executed a silent leap, ambushing a crowd of enemies within the forest.

His eyes narrowed slightly, and his will washed over the entire forest like a tidal wave.

“Arise!”

RUMBLE!

Within a 300-meter radius, the earth trembled and the ancient trees sang in unison. The once-tranquil forest suddenly erupted. Towering trees stirred like awakening giants, their bark splitting open to reveal what looked like pairs of furious eyes.

Their branches twisted into arms, transforming into a thousand inky-black, python-like vines that swept out to bind the nearby figures.

“FUCK!”

Some were too slow to dodge and were instantly impaled through the abdomen and chest by the spear-like tips of the vines. Elsewhere, thick roots surged from the ground, violently tossing several enemies high into the air.

In a single instant, the area filled with ceaseless wails. Everyone was shocked by this overwhelming display of nature’s wrath.

A gunman rolled to his feet, trying to flee, but a branch from a massive ancient tree slammed into his midsection. He was sent flying like a kite with a cut string, crashing into a thicket of thorns.

Instantly, a thousand poisonous barbs sank into his flesh, covering his body in countless tiny puncture wounds. Even his scream was strangled in his throat.

‘The forest is my natural home turf, alright.’

The thought flashed through Su Chen’s mind as he spread his right hand open.

VMMM!

The Runes on his glove flared. Seven scarlet-gold serpentine shadows erupted from between his fingers. Each Fire Snake was imbued with Spiritual Energy. At his mental command, the seven Fire Snakes shot out like arrows loosed from a bow, automatically tracking the heat signatures and Rune fluctuations of the remaining enemies.

He had just acquired the Level 8 Fire Snake Skill and had already embedded it into his control-gauntlet to put it to good use.

“No!”

A Water-Element Warlock shrieked in terror. A Fire Snake had circled behind her and bitten through a corner of her protective barrier. As the snake’s body rapidly coiled around her, her struggles grew sluggish.

Before anyone could come to her aid, the Fire Snake imploded, blasting her into a cloud of charred dust.

Some managed to fight back and destroy the Fire Snakes; others were hopelessly entangled and couldn’t break free. Regardless, with its combination of tracking, binding, and impressive destructive power, the Fire Snake Skill was proving to be an excellent mob-clearing tool.

“What a motley crew. A bunch of grunts actually dare to stand in our way.”

With a cold laugh, Little Zeus’s flesh and blood transformed into liquid lightning. He became a living thunderbolt, crashing into the enemy ranks. He left a web of crackling energy in his wake; his afterimage hadn’t even faded when his true body reappeared hundreds of meters away.

As he reformed, his left hand was already clamped around a Warlock’s throat. He channeled lightning energy into the man, causing the Runes throughout his body to instantly overload and detonate.

On the other side of the battlefield,

Fire Man had also been spurred into a frenzy.

‘Earth Fire Raging Wild!’

By comboing his Geothermal Skill and Burning Skill in a dual cast, he made the ground erupt with crimson magma. The molten rock not only rapidly incinerated a swath of the forest but also left numerous enemies screaming and writhing on the ground, their flesh scorched black.

Of course, the enemy ranks also included some powerful fighters.

For example, the steel-clad behemoth who had just managed to destroy one of the Fire Snakes was carrying a death-substitution doll. However, when he foolishly drew his sword and charged head-on at Su Chen, his fate was sealed.

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