The reappearance of the black-and-white pillar of light, along with the massive wave of destruction it brought, once again stunned everyone in the Stone Claw Mountains.
In that moment, everyone forgot about fighting. They all turned their heads to stare at the black-and-white pillar of light.
Such terrifying power made tens of thousands of elite players look like a complete joke — they could be wiped out in minutes.
Although the energy pulse hadn't actually killed that many players — only about a thousand — the fear it had planted in everyone's hearts ran bone deep. Nobody wanted to take a direct hit and be reduced to nothing.
Whether they were from the Star River Alliance or various other guilds, everyone had developed a deep fear of Zero Wing.
They were terrified that Zero Wing might launch another blast at any moment.
The first time the energy pulse appeared, they could console themselves by saying such an attack couldn't possibly happen again.
But now it had happened a second time, and there was no way to keep fooling themselves.
The death penalty for players was losing a level, and at level 30, that meant days of grinding to make up for it. Facing the prospect of being obliterated by a single shot, everyone in the Star River Alliance and the various guilds started playing it cautious. Every army stationed across the battlefield held back from going too aggressive — because pushing too hard might trigger doomsday all over again.
On the other side, Zero Wing and the Snake of the Body were riding a surge of morale, launching a fierce counterattack.
One side was holding back. The other was firing on all cylinders.
The outcome of the battle went without saying.
"Damn it! Where did Black Flame get his hands on this thing?!" Xinghe Wangxi's sharp brows furrowed tight. The energy pulse was far too great a threat to the Star River Alliance — if they didn't deal with it, they would inevitably lose.
If they lost this guild war, it would be a fatal blow to the Star River Alliance.
The experience and equipment lost by elite members was secondary. What really mattered was the reputation of being a first-rate guild.
They had proactively provoked Zero Wing, a newly rising guild, only to suffer a humiliating defeat. How were they supposed to compete with the Snake of the Body for the Star Moon Kingdom capital after this?
If Zero Wing won, their prestige would skyrocket, and even more players would want to join them. Their strength would only grow further — and then how would the Star River Alliance ever hope to capture Stone Forest Town?
"Chi Yu, take the main army right now and wipe out wherever Black Flame is positioned. You absolutely cannot let him fire that thing again!" After thinking it over, Xinghe Wangxi decided he could not allow Zero Wing to keep holding that high ground.
With that elevated position, Zero Wing had a clear view of the entire battlefield, giving them the freedom to fire the energy pulse at will from above. But if they drove Zero Wing off that high ground, the threat of the energy pulse would be significantly reduced.
So the top priority was to force Zero Wing off the advantageous terrain. As for Zero Wing's elite army, that was no longer important.
"Don't worry, Guild Leader. I'll take people over there and crush Black Flame right now." Chi Yu understood the critical nature of the situation, and this was also his chance to redeem himself.
Last time in White River City, he had only sent subordinates to deal with Black Flame, and none of the six had come back alive. This time, he would face the Star Moon Kingdom's number one player personally.
"Brother Rong Guang, could you contact the Seven Sins of the Flower? I hope they can act as soon as possible. That way, we can end this battle sooner rather than later, instead of being stuck here." For insurance, Xinghe Wangxi decided it was best to have the Seven Sins of the Flower make their move.
Originally, Liu Shishi had wanted Black Flame to experience true despair, so she had given specific orders: first eliminate all of Zero Wing's elites, then slowly deal with Black Flame and Zero Wing's leadership.
But now that was no longer an option.