Chapter 25: Seduction and Ambush

"Vice Captain?"

Su Yu followed the sound, flying forward for a distance until a sudden brightness appeared before him. In the previously empty void, over a dozen flying boats of varying sizes suddenly materialized, packed with guild members. Standing at the prow of the central fifth-tier Spirit Wing Flying Boat was a familiar, graceful figure.

Compared to the stunning impression she left during their last meeting, Chu Xinyue appeared less gentle and far more stern and efficient.

"Where is this?"

He looked up and around, filled with astonishment.

At that moment, Chu Xiaoyu waved at him. "Come over."

As he flew onto the Spirit Wing Flying Boat, hundreds of gazes immediately turned toward him. The crowd whispered, looking at him with confusion, scrutiny, and a hint of surprise.

Su Yu held a serious expression, cupping his hands in a formal salute to each person as he spoke: "Sister Xiaoyu! Captain. Brothers, I am Su Yu!"

Su Xiaoyu immediately introduced him to the group: "Su Yu, top eight in the preliminary exam half a month ago. The Captain recruited him personally not long ago. He is one of our own."

The crowd came to a sudden realization, their expressions softening considerably.

Chu Xinyue had already turned her gaze away from the direction of the Chain Demon Stronghold and back toward him. She spoke, "There is a guild activity here: a siege to kill Li Yingshen, Captain of the Frostfire Guild's fourth main legion. There is a base reward of 100 guild contribution points. Killing a regular member grants 20 points, a squad leader 50, and a vice-captain 100. Do you wish to participate?"

Su Yu nodded immediately: "Of course!"

He had already realized that there were over a thousand people on these dozen or so flying boats. It seemed the elites of the Second Legion’s second and fifth battalions had been deployed specifically to ambush Li Yingshen. This was undoubtedly a welfare mission, a gift of guild contribution points—how could he miss it?

As a newcomer, all guild contribution points earned from guild activities this year were doubled. This meant his base reward would be 200 contribution points, comparable to a prize from the preliminary exams.

Chu Xinyue nodded upon hearing his answer. She turned to look behind her and said in a deep voice, "I need twenty people to lure Li Yingshen over. It carries great risk, but the reward is 100 guild contribution points. Is anyone willing to sign up?"

Before the words had even faded, people began to step forward impatiently.

"I'll sign up."

"Count me in."

Within seconds, nearly thirty people had stepped out. They were all young, spirited men, chests puffed out and standing straight, looking like roosters eager to show off. Su Yu glanced at them and saw that half of them looked at Chu Xinyue with undisguised admiration.

Chu Xinyue was long accustomed to this. She nodded: "You will be the ones. Please, ensure your own safety."

"We will not fail the Captain's expectations!"

The group took to the skies, flying off in twos and threes toward the Chain Demon Stronghold.

Chu Xinyue’s beautiful eyes turned to Su Yu, and she asked faintly, "And you, do you dare to take the task?"

Su Yu did not hesitate: "I do!"

"Good. No matter what method you use, just lead him here."

"Wait for my signal!"

Su Yu leaped into the air, transforming into a streak of sword light that shot toward the sky.

Standing beside Chu Xinyue, a middle-aged man with gray hair asked, "You think highly of him?"

Chu Xinyue nodded: "His innate foundation is average, but his talent for swordsmanship is extraordinary, enough to bridge the gap in his potential. Once he joins the Xuanzhen Immortal Sect and his sword talent is fully unleashed, there is no reason he cannot survive the Heavenly Tribulation in the future."

Hu Zhilin nodded upon hearing this: "Indeed. Sword immortals have always been formidable in combat, standing among the best of their peers. With proper cultivation, at the very least, he will become an elite expert not inferior to Li Yingshen."

Above the mountain ranges, a streak of sword light cut through the sky, moving against the flow of those fleeing, and soon approached the Chain Demon Stronghold.

The thirty people who had departed earlier were already engaged in battle with over a hundred Frostfire Guild members. They were at a severe numerical disadvantage and were fighting while retreating.

Su Yu, having just arrived, was immediately targeted by a Frostfire member. The enemy raised a hand and pointed, and a white sword light flashed toward him.

The sword light paused, revealing Su Yu, who extended a finger. His Ice Soul sword arrived first, and in a split second of clashing steel, a crisp chiming sound rang out. A second later, the enemy's white flying sword was knocked away.

The Ice Soul sword flashed and reached the man, circling him once; his protective qi shield warped and deformed. Before he could react, Su Yu struck with his palm, releasing a blast of Violet Origin Energy that shattered the damaged shield. The Ice Soul blade circled the man's neck, and his head was severed.

The speed was so great that he hadn't even had time to deploy his defensive dharma treasure.

"40 contribution points acquired."

The corpse’s spiritual light coalesced into a loot orb, which Su Yu retrieved with a flick of his sword light.

Several nearby Frostfire Guild players were shocked. After a chorus of shouts, they quickly closed in, activating their defensive treasures before launching a counterattack.

A bronze mirror rose, casting white light that pinned Su Yu in place. Another player raised a flame blade and slashed violently, a ten-meter-long fiery blade energy slamming into Su Yu’s head, dropping his protective shield by about two thousand points.

A third person waved a bone-black banner, and a black vortex appeared on its surface. A skull wreathed in demonic fire flew out, growing to the size of a round table in the wind. Its demonic eyes flared with black flames, shooting two black lasers that struck Su Yu.

The final person threw a small seal, which rapidly expanded to the size of a house, crashing down like a meteor.

However, the binding effect of the bronze mirror only lasted three seconds. Once the two black lasers hit his shield, Su Yu recovered. He shifted in mid-air to avoid the seal's lock-on and launched the Ice Soul sword like a laser into the banner-wielder, the immense force knocking the man backward.

"Chaos Clouds Scattering!"

The Ice Soul sword flickered, transforming into eight sword shadows that struck down.

Before the momentum ended, he changed his technique. The flying sword circled him, executing a flurry of strikes; eight segments of damage popped up almost simultaneously, and the dharma treasure’s thirteen-thousand-point defense was instantly reduced to just over two thousand.

"What the!"

Startled, he instinctively clapped a hand to his chest, and his dharma robe lit up with a brilliant glow.

Generally, a personal defensive treasure cannot coexist with a protective qi shield, but it can coexist with the defenses provided by dharma robes, other equipment, and area-of-effect defensive treasures.

Just as the robe glowed, before he could activate another treasure, the Ice Soul blade had already circled back. The treasure's defensive light shattered, and the sword light was blocked by the robe.

"So strong!"

The man waved his black banner, recalling the skull. He took a deep breath, and a powerful gravitational force pulled at the Ice Soul sword, drawing it toward the skull’s mouth.

Meanwhile, the other two saw their comrade in danger and rushed to support him. The bronze mirror illuminated him again, pinning him down, while another player threw a red jade ruler. Flames expanded, and a ten-meter-long fire dragon emerged, lunging at the immobilized Su Yu and biting down.

The last man raised his flame blade, spat essence qi onto it, and threw it into the air, where it expanded into a ten-meter-long flaming saber hovering over Su Yu. Endless flames gathered on the blade, manifesting as five-foot-long fiery blade energies that rained down.

-420, -415, -423...

Seventeen blade energies struck without missing, instantly shattering his protective qi shield. The Black Water Profound Pearl glowed, automatically triggering a shield to block the fire dragon's bite.

Su Yu remained expressionless, completely ignoring the siege. He communicated with the Ice Soul sword through his mind and pointed his sword finger. The Ice Soul vibrated, breaking free from the gravitational pull and grazing past the skull's maw.

With a few swift strikes, he tore through the robe's defense, only to be blocked again by a quickly raised qi shield. He couldn't help but complain, "What a turtle shell!"

Defensive treasures, dharma robes, and protective qi shields derived from Qi Refining techniques were the standard for ninety-nine percent of players, himself included. This made it extremely difficult to kill someone unless the gap in strength was significant and the output was high.

But Su Yu’s output happened to be exceptionally high. While others had to strike one blow at a time, his exquisite swordsmanship allowed a single strike to cause eight segments of damage, unleashing a burst far beyond his cultivation level.

With a few more strikes, he pursued his target. No matter how the man dodged, he could not escape the sword light that clung to him like bone-eating maggots. Within seconds, thirty to forty segments of damage tore the protective shield apart, the Ice Soul blade circled the neck, and a perfectly good head fell away.

In just seven or eight seconds, he had killed two people in a row. The remaining two panicked and turned to flee in unison.

"Damn it, this guy is fierce! Retreat!"

"Trying to run now? Too late."

The Ice Soul sword soared into the sky, wrapping around the flame blade as it tried to return, clashing repeatedly. The blade shook violently as large swathes of flame were sliced away.

"Clang!"

A familiar bell toll came from afar. A second later, a telepathic message reached Su Yu's ears: "Li Yingshen is here. Prepare to withdraw!"

Su Yu paused slightly, his mana driving his attacks even harder.

"What the!"

Wang Qing felt his connection to his dharma treasure flickering, as if it were about to be severed at any moment. He hurriedly stopped to focus his mind on retrieving the treasure.

This pause was all the Ice Soul needed to abandon the flame blade and pounce.

"Great River Flows East!"

Su Yu took advantage of his opponent's hesitation to unleash his ultimate move. Consuming 30% of his mana in one go, his sword light surged, striking Wang Qing with a critical hit that sent him flying. Eight sword shadows from the 'Chaos Clouds Scattering' technique pierced down, followed by a blast of Violet Origin Energy that struck down the defensive treasure on the spot.

Finally, the Ice Soul circled once, cutting through the low-grade dharma robe, and the corpse fell in three pieces.

The burst of power lasted less than a second—the victim hadn't even had time to raise his protective shield.

The last person had already run far away. Su Yu did not pursue. He first retrieved the loot orbs, popped a top-grade Spirit Recovery Pill into his mouth, and turned to run.

Looking into the distance, he could already see the two other Taiyi Green Spirit Boats of the Frostfire Guild. Li Yingshen had arrived.

He looked in the other direction; the others were already retreating, with the Frostfire Guild members in hot pursuit. Those who dared to take this mission were quite capable and fast—many were even faster than Su Yu—but fortunately, he wasn't the slowest.

In just this short time, the group of 28 had dwindled to 24; four had fallen in battle.

The group chased and fled, quickly returning to the vicinity of the guild’s ambush zone.

"Turn back and resist to buy more time," Chu Xinyue’s voice came to Su Yu’s ears. "Wait for their main force to arrive and converge."

He turned back. The hundred or so people chasing them were not the Frostfire Guild's main force; Li Yingshen was on the flying boats behind, still some distance away.

This telepathic message was not just for Su Yu. The other twenty-plus people also stopped to engage the enemy.

Su Yu quickly approached the formation. Not far away, a Frostfire Guild player raised a Thousand Soul Banner and waved it, sending hundreds of level 50-60 wraiths rushing toward them.

Su Yu clapped his chest, raising the defensive light of his dharma robe, and slashed down. With a twist of his wrist, sparks of sword light exploded, tearing a wraith apart and causing it to dissipate into black smoke.

A second later, hundreds of wraiths swarmed him, wrapping him tightly. Fierce ghosts with black-smoke claws scratched frantically, and his defensive light shook violently. In just a few seconds, his dharma robe’s twenty-thousand-point defensive shield had lost half its strength.

"Can't hold it."

Su Yu decisively used 'Fire Burning Clouds', the flames erupting and forcing the wraiths back. He seized the opportunity to fly his sword through a gap in the swarm.

"My means are too limited," he thought. "Sword output is high, but my area-of-effect damage is lacking."

Su Yu considered that he needed to find an opportunity to learn a powerful lightning technique. Lightning was the bane of demons and ghosts; in such a situation, a single strike of divine lightning could scatter a whole group, or even wipe them out instantly if the level was high enough.

Fortunately, he didn't need to fight to the death right now; he only needed to stall for a moment.

The Taiyi Green Spirit Boats were extremely fast. Within six or seven seconds, he received Chu Xinyue’s telepathic message: "Withdraw. Follow the plan and lead them into the ambush zone."

The group, struggling to hold on, immediately turned and fled. In those few seconds, two more had died.

For a normal PK death, the penalty was 5 years of lifespan, and according to guild regulations, there would be 500 guild contribution points awarded. Additionally, the mission they were assigned would count as a success.

"Don't let them run!"

Li Yingshen stood on his flying boat, commanding his subordinates. The other two Taiyi Green Spirit Boats flanked from left and right.

"Collect some heads before we reach Sand-Sinking Town; it’s the perfect way to establish our prestige!"

However, the smile on his face did not last long. In that short time, the group from the Qianyu Guild reached a certain airspace and suddenly stopped, wearing mocking smiles.

Li Yingshen’s heart sank, and he quickly scanned his surroundings: "No good! It’s an ambush! Retreat!"

As soon as he spoke, the world suddenly brightened. The previously empty void was suddenly filled with countless fine runes, covering the entire sky in the blink of an eye.

"Chu Xinyue!" Li Yingshen screamed, grabbing the precious bell in his hand and throwing it into the air.

"Clang!"

The deafening sound of the bell echoed through the world. Invisible ripples exploded outward, spreading until they hit something in the distance and rebounded.

By now, the Qianyu Guild team that had been hidden in the void had revealed themselves. Chu Xinyue stood at the prow of the Spirit Wing Flying Boat and said in a deep voice: "Li Yingshen, didn't you say you wanted to challenge me? I'm here now."

Li Yingshen held the bell, a hint of helplessness on his face: "So be it. One who walks by the river often gets their shoes wet. Caught by you today, I accept the loss."

"But I will not admit defeat. Before I die, I'll take a few of you down with me."

He threw the bell, which rapidly expanded into a house-sized yellow bell, carved with various exotic beasts. He leaped onto the bell and struck it with his palm. Accompanied by a loud chime, invisible waves exploded, and the void visibly distorted.

Seeing this, Chu Xinyue let out a cold snort. She made a grasping motion with her hand, and the runes filling the sky flowed rapidly, converging into four thick, luminous chains that descended, crisscrossing to lock the bell in place.

"Clang!"

"Clang!"

The bell chimed frantically, but it was sealed and unable to move.

"Kill!"

Hu Zhilin, captain of the Fifth Battalion, waved his hand. The Qianyu Guild members, who had been waiting impatiently, swarmed forward to slaughter the Frostfire Fourth Legion trapped in this space.

This time, the Qianyu Guild held the absolute advantage: over a thousand people surrounding three hundred.

For this operation, Chu Xinyue had deployed all the experts from the second and fifth battalions. Their average strength was no worse than their opponents', and they held an advantage in top-tier masters as well.

Su Yu mingled in the crowd, using the Ice Soul sword to launch sneak attacks.

He controlled his sword from afar, keeping a low profile. The Frostfire Guild members, under siege, had no time to spare for him.

Relying on his high burst damage, he could harvest a head every few strikes. Although the contribution points were split when killing together—earning him only about 5 points, or 10 with the newcomer bonus—it was risk-free and very fast.