9 One master tactician leaves and another appears on the stage

As the normal players drew nearer, pro-players were gradually withdrawing from the ongoing fight. They already had this tendency before since it would be advantageous to save the strength for the boss. However, whenever someone tried to sneak out of the fight, others would try to drag him back to the fight.

Happy's players were the primary target of other teams but that didn't mean that different teams treated each other nicely. Whenever there was a chance, they literally stabbed someone in the back. Then whoever got stabbed wanted to revenge and the vicious cycle repeated.

The initial fight was more of an act of venting out emotions since everyone knew that it would be a long fight given the number of healers out there. Everyone's mind still remembered the boss but their eyes were currently focused on the incoming players.

The last gunshot rang out and a few heals descended. Then the fight stopped.

Only footsteps from incoming players could be heard. It sounded like the marching of an army.

Another message from Smiling Lake appeared in the world chat:

"Guilds Samsara, Tyranny, Blue Rain, Tiny Herb, Thunderclap are kicked out of the party because of the improper manners of their players, namely Zhou Zhekai, Huang Shaotian, Han Wenqing, Wang Jiexi, …"

Smiling Lake also commented at pro-players: "Remember that you are role models for your guild and should behave accordingly when invited somewhere."

"Stop with this nonsense already." Sun Xiang didn't find it as funny as Happy players.

"You started this pointless fight. " Smiling Lake replied.

"Hey Xiao Shiqin, where are you going? You should stay for the highlight!" Smiling Lake noticed that Xiao Shiqin and Thunderclap's troops are leaving.

It was a smart decision from Xiao Shiqin to retreat since their guild wouldn't stand a chance in the direct fight, especially not such a large-scale fight that was about to erupt. He planned to remain in the distance to observe the situation. It could happen that there will be another opportunity for them and he will be the last one to laugh.

Others were considering the attack on the boss but they quickly realized that it's better to wait. Whoever acted the first would have to deal with the attacks of other teams. Usually the stronger the team, the longer they can wait before acting. Ye Xiu is maybe just waiting for them to eliminate each other and then he would just come to harvest the fruits of their work.

Suddenly, the boss moved. He looked like a knight and also wore heavy knight armor. Thus he moved very slowly but when he slashed with his sword, he created a quick wave that threw away a few players. The next slash already killed them.

Some of the incoming players got too close and that's why the boss moved and attacked them. Now the boss could see other players in his aggro range and continued attacking other incoming players.

"Happy made arrangements to safely get their players towards their team." Zhang Xinjie concluded and also asked the guild leader to warn their players from entering the aggro range of the boss.

Afterward, he continued observing and noticed that Happy is not only transporting the players away from the boss but they are strategically arranging them as well.

Happy guild players were in the majority since the original party invitation in world chat called for all Ye Xiu's fans and supporters. Most of them were gathering near Happy's team and began forming a large circle around the rock where Ye Xiu was standing. It was as if he was a star who is about to perform on the stage. All the players indeed looked up to him.

Their expectations were soon fulfilled since Happy arranged 1 on 1 fights just for the show. Tang Rou and Mo Fan started and it quickly escalated to a very intense fight. When Mo Fan reached the red blood, the fight stopped. Afterward, both players received healing.

Already this first fight caused a lot of excitement among the watching players. Then there was a fight between Steamed Bun and Fang Rui that made the players crying because of laughing.

Qiao Yifan and Luo Ji were preparing for the next when Smiling Lake interrupted:

"Some players from the kicked out guilds ignored my warning and sneaked into our party. Before we continue, please kill them if they are standing near you!"

When the performance fights started, everyone wanted to get closer, including players from other guilds who haven't noticed this Smiling Lake's warning in the world chat. It was a bad idea to get surrounded by mostly Happy players. In the blink of an eye, all uninvited guests were killed and the show continued.

Lord Grim just went offline...

"Please don't panic. Ye Xiu is back soon and we will proceed with the highlight." Smiling Lake calmed down confused players. However, all Happy team members including Smiling Lake knew that this is the signal for something happening in the real world:

The door opened and Ye Xiu walked into the room.

"Hi, you finally arrived!" Su Mucheng sitting on a desk with two computers greeted Ye Xiu who was evidently surprised. He didn't know what is awaiting him.

"You're here." Ye Xiu said.

"Yes, others are already waiting for you." Su Mucheng handed Ye Xiu a card of Lord Grim.

Ye Xiu took the card and sat down next to Su Mucheng who was already smiling. She always thought that it was a pity that Ye Xiu didn't have any retirement ceremony with his fans like other players. However, she also knew that it wasn't Ye Xiu's style and he would prefer to spend time in Glory. Su Mucheng plotted a great plan together with Jiping, the player behind Light Flow that was checked Ye Xiu after Wei Chei's notice. Ye Xiu's report confirmed that it is safe to recruit Jiping. Su Mucheng and Jiping agreed that Ye Xiu coming back to the game would be a great occasion to organize a surprise welcome back party.

Ye Xiu inserted the card just like he did when he started in the tenth server. At that time, he was quite surprised by how popular Glory got since he appeared in the crowded area. However, that was nothing in comparison to the sight at Crystal Valley.

Players in-game were calling his name "Ye Xiu" in the attempt to bring him back. This has only intensified when he actually started appearing.

Ye Xiu's screen just loaded. His eyes widened and his mouth opened in a big surprise.

...

After Ye Xiu appeared online, he saw thousands of people just on the initial screen. Then he spun around and saw hundreds of thousands of people around. They were still yelling "Ye Xiu, welcome back!".

His name once again echoed throughout the whole Glory.