Dark Night Empire, Winter Night Fortress.
Though the great battle had yet to begin, the invasion of Outer World NPC armies had already brought their forces to the borders of many kingdoms and empires across the East Continent of the Divine Realm. Along the Dark Night Empire's northern frontier at Winter Night Fortress, skirmishes and full-blown clashes had already broken out in multiple locations.
"Guild Leader Lu, this is going to be a tough one. The Outer World NPC armies vastly outnumber ours. We don't have many Outer World player armies on our side, and expecting players like us to help the imperial forces hold the fortress is going to be a tall order." Yun Yinshan, the Fifth Tower Master of the super guild Nine Heavens Tower, furrowed his brows as he reviewed the latest intelligence reports on the Outer World NPC troop movements transmitted by his subordinates. "If we can't even hold the line here, forget about mounting a counterattack against the Outer World NPC armies and reclaiming Zero Wing's two cities inside the Beastman Empire…"
During the last war between the two worlds, both sides had concentrated their forces for decisive engagements. This time, however, the Outer World NPC armies were nothing like before — they had completely exceeded every major power's expectations. Instead of concentrating their forces, the Outer World NPCs had split into dozens of separate armies, each one advancing on a different kingdom or empire. The East Continent's major empires had been given particularly heavy attention, and the sheer scale of the operation dwarfed anything seen in the previous war.
As a result, every kingdom and empire on the East Continent of the Divine Realm was now forced to fight on its own.
Judging by the current situation, the major empires were bearing the brunt of the onslaught…
The original plan — to sit back and watch both Twin Towers and the Star Moon Kingdom fall, then lead the armies of the East Continent's empires and kingdoms to reclaim the Star Moon Kingdom while seizing Zero Wing's Ancient Rock City and Silver Wing City — was clearly no longer feasible.
"Rest easy, Brother Yinshan," Lu Tiandi said with a calm smile, glancing at the visibly worried Yun Yinshan. "According to my sources, the neighbouring kingdoms around the Dark Night Empire that haven't been attacked have already begun mobilizing their armies and sending them toward the Dark Night Empire. Once those armies arrive, combined with our player forces, holding off the Outer World NPC armies — which don't have much player support themselves — should be far from impossible."
"As for Zero Wing's two guild cities, even if we can't completely seize them according to plan, once the Twin Towers Kingdom falls, Zero Wing will have no choice but to swallow its pride and come to us for help in defending the Star Moon Kingdom if it wants to keep those two guild cities. At that point, forget about getting shares in those two cities — we might even be able to claim shares in Zero Wing City itself."
Yun Yinshan heard this and found it rather convincing.
Though the plan had shifted, the current situation wasn't necessarily unfavorable to them. After all, they held the advantage in player numbers, and holding the line shouldn't be too difficult — NPCs killed in battle didn't respawn easily, whereas players had nothing to fear from death. What's more, the Dark Night Empire had opened its imperial treasury to players this time around; by killing Outer World NPC forces, players could earn imperial contribution points to exchange for weapons and equipment. So the issue of gear losses was no longer a significant concern.
The only variable left was Zero Wing's choice.
Would Zero Wing abandon the Star Moon Kingdom and its two guild cities — everything it had spent so long building — in order to defend its interests at Zero Wing City? Or would it choose to hold onto the Star Moon Kingdom and the two guild cities, even at the cost of sacrificing some of its stake in Zero Wing City?
Just as Lu Tiandi, Yun Yinshan, and the other executives of the various super powers were discussing their next move, the players inside Winter Night Fortress suddenly erupted into a clamor — and the commotion only grew louder.
*Follow our official account: Player Outpost — follow now for free cash and coins!* The rising noise caught the attention of Lu Tiandi and the others as they held their meeting on the fortress walls, leaving them exchanging puzzled glances.
"Guild Leader! Something big has happened!"
A middle-aged man burst through the crowd and rushed over to Lu Tiandi in a panic. This was none other than Lu Tiandi's steward, Yi Kui — though at the moment, the calm composure he typically carried as a high-level expert was nowhere to be seen, replaced entirely by an expression of urgent alarm.
"What happened to make you so flustered?" Lu Tiandi shot Yi Kui a displeased look. "As my steward and guild assistant, you represent both Star Ring Guild and me personally. Making a scene like this in front of all the other super power executives is downright embarrassing."
"This…"
Yi Kui hesitated, his eyes darting toward the other executives gathered around them.
Lu Tiandi read the hesitation on the steward's face and understood that whatever this was, it had to be of utmost importance. "If you can't say it out loud, just send me the message directly."
Yi Kui didn't hesitate any further — he transmitted the message straight to Lu Tiandi.
The surrounding executives didn't comment. Every guild had its own secrets, and nobody expected full transparency. Still, they were all rather curious about what could have rattled Yi Kui so badly.
But before even ten seconds had passed, Lu Tiandi's face drained of all color, and his voice shot up to a near-shriek.
"How is this possible?!"
Lu Tiandi's sudden loss of composure left the assembled executives stunned. Just moments ago he had been admonishing Yi Kui for his undignified behavior, and now here he was, looking far worse than his steward ever had…
While the executives were still wondering what news could have provoked such a reaction, the message alert tones of their own devices chimed one after another — messages forwarded from their respective subordinates.
As each executive opened the messages, the entire gathering fell into a silence as deathly as a tomb.
The content of the message was simple enough — it even included combat footage.
In the video, a young man raised his sword and swung it toward the Outer World player army. A nine-headed giant serpent stretching nearly a thousand meters long, along with over a million elite players, lost more than a quarter of their numbers in a single strike. The forest across the entire region was wiped clean off the map. The Outer World player army scattered and fled in every direction, while the young man who had unleashed the blow simply boarded a Red Dragon Airship and departed…