Chapter 97 - 92: Someone Skyrockets...

Chapter 97: Chapter 92: Someone Skyrockets...

He felt a profound sense of pride.

"If there’s anything you don’t understand from now on, just ask me. I won’t hold anything back; I’ll teach you everything I know," Fu Jian said, thumping his chest.

"Look at how smug he is..." His friends were speechless.

"Tsk, tsk..."

"DING! Please follow the Assistant Elf. He will teach you how to survive in this world!"

Watching his teammates fumble clumsily as they followed the Assistant Elf’s instructions to complete the novice quests, Fu Jian decided to ignore them. He couldn’t flaunt his superiority anymore, making the situation suddenly feel rather dull. After lingering long enough to ensure his teammates wouldn’t run into any trouble, he left the area. He headed toward a monster-dense zone to hunt Yin Demons, picking up the quest he had left unfinished last time.

These people were too weak for him right now and couldn’t offer any help. Sticking around would just be a waste of time. He was better off hunting more Yin Demons and completing his quest as soon as possible.

"Take your time with the tutorial," he thought. "I’m off to do harder quests."

With his sword slung over his back, Fu Jian departed.

In the Marching Battlefield.

Dark clouds blanketed the sky all year round, creating gloomy weather that exuded an oppressive atmosphere. The terrain had mountains, valleys, and undulating slopes, but it was completely devoid of plant life. There was not a single speck of green. The landscape was nothing but white bones, dark storm clouds, gray mist, and the occasional bizarre, eerie rain.

SCREECH!

In a mountain col covered in gleaming white bones.

SWISH! A sharp iron sword was yanked out of a Yin Demon, sending blood splattering in all directions.

"PANT PANT..." Fu Jian gasped for air, looking thoroughly exhausted. "That makes twelve, but... I don’t have the strength to keep going. I should head back to those newbies."

Nearly an hour had passed. Having slain twelve Yin Demons, he was completely drained. Fu Jian rested for a moment to recover a sliver of stamina before deciding to return to his teammates. It didn’t take him long to make his way back to the login point.

His teammates were still there. They had finished receiving Qing’s guidance, completed their first novice quest, and gained a basic understanding of the Marching Battlefield. They were officially beginners.

"How’s it going, guys?" Fu Jian greeted them. "Looks like you didn’t do too badly. Not far off from my first time."

"You? I bet your first attempt wasn’t even as good as mine!" Fu Ling’Er rolled her eyes at him. Only people with a close relationship could bicker like this. They were a classic pair of squabbling siblings—loving each other dearly while relentlessly trading snarky barbs.

"When I logged into the Divine War Game for the first time, I cleared everything in minutes. I wasn’t slow like you guys," Fu Jian said with a shrug.

He swept his gaze over the group. "Wait... where’s Jialin?"

They were missing a teammate, and their strongest one at that. Fu Jian noticed it immediately.

"Oh, I get it. He must have finished the novice quest ages ago and moved on to the next one, right? Should we wait for him so we can all leave together?" He silently gloated at how weak the rest of them were in comparison.

"Jialin left a long time ago!" Fu Ling’Er said.

"What? Left?" Fu Jian asked in disbelief.

"Yeah. He said this game was just too boring and that cultivating in the real world was more authentic, so he left early. Before he logged off, he told us to pass a message to you: don’t waste your focus on the unorthodox distractions of a Virtual World. Cultivating properly in reality is the true path."

"You guys didn’t try to stop him?"

"What’s the point? You know how his temper is..."

Fu Jian knew full well that Jialin was incredibly stubborn.

"So, what about the rest of you? Are you planning to leave or keep playing?" he asked the remaining group, feeling a bit anxious.

"We’re keeping at it, of course," Fu Ling’Er said. "I think this Virtual World is really interesting. It actually makes you stronger, and the speed of improvement is two or three times faster than in the outside world! Wouldn’t we be idiots to leave such an amazing Sacred Land for cultivation?"

Someone asked, "Didn’t you say you had a date? Are you canceling it?"

"Tch... men aren’t nearly as fun as gaming. I’m not going! From now on, I’m taking up permanent residence in the Marching Battlefield!" Fu Ling’Er declared, patting her chest. After playing for just a short while, she had been completely captivated by the game.

"Since that’s the case... let’s form a permanent party," someone suggested. "From now on, we’ll explore the Divine War Game, hunt Yin Demons, and grow stronger together!"

"It’s just a shame Jialin isn’t here..."

"Sigh... Without him, we’re definitely missing a key fighter. But we all know what he’s like. Once he makes up his mind, there’s no changing it."

"Forget it. I’ll go drag Feng in tomorrow so we can complete our Seven Kills Array!"

"Yeah, let’s do that."

The six of them formally established their team. After resting for a bit, they set off to hunt Yin Demons. Their tacit teamwork vastly improved their combat efficiency.

Inside the Divine Mansion, Su Tan, the Little White Wolf, and the Fat Monk had been keeping a close eye on the group’s activities. They thought very highly of the team’s capabilities.

"That six-person team is seriously impressive. They instantly kill any ordinary Yin Demon they encounter!"

"Looking at their trajectory... it seems they’re about to run into a big guy. I wonder if they can handle it?" the Fat Monk said.

Su Tan expanded his Overlord Body Realm. The monk was right. Fu Jian’s team was on a direct collision course with a Grandmaster-level Yin Demon. Could they defeat it?

THUMP, THUMP, THUMP!

The inevitable encounter occurred.

"Set up the Array!"

The six of them weren’t individually powerful. Their strongest member was only at the eighth layer of the Grandmaster realm, and one was still stuck at the Body Refinement stage. To be honest, even Su Tan had his doubts about them, assuming they would be wiped out by the Yin Demon.

However, the six quickly fell into an Array formation. After a fierce battle, they actually managed to slay the Grandmaster-level Yin Demon! It was a jaw-dropping display.

"Interesting... Combined with a rather high-grade, bizarre Array, this group can actually boost their combat power by that much?" the Fat Monk remarked.

Upon the death of the Grandmaster-level Yin Demon, Su Tan felt a massive surge of Spiritual Qi swell within his body. The feedback this time was incredibly potent. But the benefits reaped by the six people in the Marching Battlefield were even more astounding.

Four of them actually broke through right on the spot.

Fu Jian, Fu Ling’Er, and the two cultivators at the Body Refinement stage all leveled up. The remaining two didn’t achieve a breakthrough, but they still gained immense benefits. Their Spiritual Qi reserves had grown and their foundations had solidified, making their eventual breakthroughs only a matter of time.

"This... this... this..."

"We actually... actually broke through?"

"Holy crap... all because... we killed one Grandmaster-level Yin Demon?"

"Oh my god... I thought that even if we got some rewards, it wouldn’t be much. But now... this is just too lucrative! It’s even more effective than a Ten-Perfection Rejuvenation Pill!"

The six of them were in absolute shock. They had never anticipated such an outcome.

"This place truly is a Sacred Land for cultivation!" By now, they were entirely convinced by the Marching Battlefield.

"I plan to live here full-time. Don’t even bother inviting me on any forest expeditions from now on. With a place like this, who the hell needs to go train in some forest?"

"Me too!"

"I’ve completely fallen in love with this place!"

If their earlier talks about taking up permanent residence had been half-joking, they were completely serious now.

Some scoffed in disdain, while others soared to new heights! Fu Jialin had left in disdain, missing out on the opportunity to break through. Meanwhile, Fu Jian and the others chose to stay and skyrocketed in power. This was the true nature of fortune.

Su Tan gladly sensed their surging excitement. He was certain that if word of this got out, countless cultivators would come flooding into the Divine War Game.

At this point, the promotional phase could be considered a success. His next step was to figure out how to design quests and create dungeons based on the Yin Demons’ movements, preparing to welcome even more players.

Because the Yin Demons were actual living creatures and not in-game NPCs, they wouldn’t stay rooted in one spot forever. Unexpected situations were bound to arise. For that reason, Su Tan didn’t create a static, unchanging main questline.

Others could treat the Marching Battlefield like a game, but he couldn’t. He knew this wasn’t a game; it was a real war. If they lost, not only the Void God Realm but the real world as well would face an apocalyptic catastrophe!