Located in the invasion dimension.
A group of orc priests knelt before a figure dressed in pitch-black armor.
The orcs in this dimension primarily wore tattered animal skins, except for this figure, whose magical-engraved armor seemed out of place.
"Lord Airey, outside the portal... a human has already killed nearly a hundred of our soldiers," the orc priest reported fearfully to the armored figure addressed as Airey.
As soon as he finished speaking, his head fell to the ground. The armored knight known as Airey turned around, his helmet forged from some creature's skull, with ghostly blue flames flickering in his eyes.
Airey's longsword was stained with crimson blood.
"You orcs from these inferior dimensions, you don't even possess a tenth of your ancestors' power. Expecting you to conquer this dimension is naive."
Airey kicked away the orc's corpse and slowly walked towards a glowing rift in time and space in the distance.
On the other side of the rift was the food street of Jiang City on Blue Star.
At this moment, the street had been utterly destroyed by the orc army. Flames consumed the goods in the shops on both sides of the street, and two orcs were fighting to the death over a piece of fried chicken.
But in the next second, the two orcs were blown to pieces by a Spiritual Energy Cannon, and the fried chicken they were fighting over rolled to Airey's feet, along with the orc's head, who died with unseeing eyes.
"I'm quite surprised." Airey crushed the orc's head underfoot, looked up, and saw the ghostly blue flames in his helmet reflecting the figure of Zhao Mingwei, the Mind Energy Master.
"In a world so weak that all its magical energy is depleted, there's such a powerful mage like you."
Airey's armored arm brushed against his blade, and sinister runes appeared on his longsword.
"Are you their boss?" Zhao Mingwei used a reconnaissance technique on Airey, and the information quickly displayed before him.
'Airey, Vengeful Vanguard of the Obliteration Legion, Abyss Lord-level Boss, Level LV35, Health: ???...'
Lord Boss?!
Seeing a level thirty-five Lord Boss, Zhao Mingwei dared not have any thoughts of underestimating his opponent.
The highest-level boss he had ever faced in the game was only level twenty-seven, and the orcs he had just blasted with the Spiritual Energy Cannon averaged only around level twenty.
A level thirty-five boss could undoubtedly one-shot him.
"I can smell the fear on you," Airey said, walking slowly towards Zhao Mingwei, "but you have no chance to escape."
Escape?
From a professional player's perspective, the best decision Zhao Mingwei could make now was indeed to run away. Fighting monsters ten levels higher was a challenge hardcore players might enjoy.
But fighting a boss ten levels higher! That's not hardcore; that's foolish, unless there's a bug to exploit.
But this was not a game world; it was reality.
Zhao Mingwei glanced back at the burning food street and thought that the fried chicken shop there might be closed for a while.
No, if something happened to the fried chicken owner, maybe he wouldn't get to eat that anymore?
Zhao Mingwei's mind was a mess because he didn't know if dying in the real world meant he was truly dead.
What finally made Zhao Mingwei decide was the new information his reconnaissance technique revealed.
'Abyss Lord loot list: Ghost Ring, Light Elf's Memory, Redemption Gloves, Walking Bird Reins...'
This data on equipment loot was like the temptation of a demon, luring Zhao Mingwei towards the abyss of death.
He didn't have time to hesitate anymore. Airey, holding his longsword, had already charged at him, the blade with evil runes thrusting towards Zhao Mingwei.
Zhao Mingwei stepped aside quickly, dodging Airey's stab with a sidestep, and clenched his left fist to unleash the fighter's common skill, Burst Punch!
The Burst Punch infused with the Telekinesis Beast·Dragon Tiger Roar surrounded Zhao Mingwei's fist with the roaring shadow of a dragon and tiger, biting fiercely at Airey's abdomen.
The punch landed squarely on Airey's abdomen, the sound of the punch hitting armor and electrical arcs exploding was clearly heard by Zhao Mingwei.
-130.
A decent damage number appeared above Airey's head. Zhao Mingwei could feel the violent spiritual energy he injected into Airey's body.
"Impressive strength!" Airey showed no signs of injury, and the runes on his longsword glowed brightly, slashing sideways at Zhao Mingwei's neck.
The slash was too fast! Zhao Mingwei couldn't dodge it in time. The Spiritual Energy Orb around him blocked the slash, but the engraved sword shattered the orb and grazed Zhao Mingwei's neck.
Zhao Mingwei felt a chilling sensation on his neck and quickly jumped back to distance himself from Airey.
He touched his neck, finding no wounds, his head still intact, but his health points had dropped significantly.
-1632!
Zhao Mingwei, as a Mind Energy Master, already had low health, only 2700 points. Airey's strike cut nearly half of his health.
"You're not human." Airey's soul fire flickered with surprise; he couldn't comprehend what Zhao Mingwei was.
Zhao Mingwei didn't understand how to fight this boss either. Small size, fast attack, and super armor! It was also level thirty-five! Was this boss designed to harvest players' experience?
Wait... officials...
"Are you a monster from a game?" Zhao Mingwei loudly asked Airey.
"Game? What is that? I am a warrior of the great Obliteration Legion, seeking new hunting grounds for my master. This dimension is suitable, and what are you?" Airey leaped, thrusting his sword at Zhao Mingwei, ignoring his question.
To Airey, Zhao Mingwei was the only minor obstacle in his invasion; once disposed of, no one in this world could oppose him.
Zhao Mingwei saw the thrust coming and tried to jump back, but noticed his feet were bound by translucent arms! 'You are bound!' The system prompt flashed before Zhao Mingwei, who watched the incoming sword with a hint of fear of death rising within him.
Zhao Mingwei closed his eyes, but after a few seconds, the death prompt didn't sound. Instead, a new prompt appeared in his vision.
'Player AddHealerNotPriceYailed has cast Holy Protection on you!'
Seeing this prompt, Zhao Mingwei opened his eyes, seeing Airey's sword hit a transparent Magic Barrier, which began to crack under the force.
As Airey tried to shatter the barrier for a fatal strike, a fireball hit his face.
Zhao Mingwei turned to see Jiang Qiao, holding a magic wand, standing beside him.
"Let me answer that question," Jiang Qiao said softly, waving his magic wand and looking at the warrior from the Obliteration Legion before him, "we're players!"
Jiang Qiao's voice echoed over the flaming Jiang City food street.
"No matter how many weaklings come..." Airey's voice abruptly stopped as a fireball exploded on his face, followed by an arrow hitting his chest armor, and then a missile landing at his feet, forcing him back several steps.
Done? Far from it.
The missile was just the beginning. Airey was subsequently hit by Frost Arrows, Thunder Strike Techniques, Blast Magic Balls, Laser Cannons, Frozen Hand Grenades, and Evil Light Slashes, attacks spanning from medieval magic to modern sci-fi eras.
In rage, Airey drew a Magic Barrier with his longsword to block the barrage of attacks.
Behind the Magic Barrier, Airey saw one bizarre-looking figure after another emerging behind Jiang Qiao.
These figures had names above their heads that Airey couldn't understand: MapleFlame, BarrelInMyJungle, NoFeedbackHandShake, DespairTuanTuan, BigTailWolf, and more.
The most unsettling thing for Airey was their gazes, making him feel like he was a delicious feast.
"Let's begin round two."
Jiang Qiao summoned his Water Spirit and Fire Spirit, and the number of players in the Abyss hunting area rose from three to three hundred seventy-two in an instant.
Zhao Mingwei looked at the familiar and unfamiliar players behind him, smiling wryly.
This field boss's loot would surely be snatched now. But Zhao Mingwei realized one thing at this moment.
Players are never alone!