Chapter 278 ·Three Heroes Battle Dian Wei and the Final Showdown

At this moment.

On the battlefield of Old Wan City.

Dian Wei slaughtered them as easily as swatting flies.

Once again, he massacred the Scourge Army who foolishly attempted to shake a mighty tree with mere ants.

Although the Scourge Army had never been able to pose any threat to Dian Wei from beginning to end, after wave upon wave of relentless assaults, the forces of Old Wan City had been heavily worn down.

Even Dian Wei had suffered some degree of exhaustion.

Yet the Scourge Army still had not been defeated.

The momentum, sharpness, and combat strength of this force had declined somewhat over time, yet they still seemed utterly incapable of suffering any real losses.

Could these bizarre Offspring of the Stars truly be immortal?

This was the thought shared by every citizen of the Abyss, including Dian Wei. In theory, such a thing should have been impossible, yet it was happening before their eyes.

“General Dian!”

The Corrupted Lü Chen reported, “This subordinate has discovered that these Offspring are all being teleported from Matou Hamlet.”

The Corrupted Xu Ci added, “As long as we capture Matou Hamlet, we can rapidly weaken the offensive of this so-called Scourge Army.”

Dian Wei therefore ordered several of his generals to lead the remaining Abyssal troops in attacking the Blessing Point at Matou Hamlet, while he himself personally suppressed the forces of the Starsea Lord.

Although they had not yet found a way to eliminate the Scourge Army permanently, as long as they could reduce the frequency of its attacks, the losses suffered by Old Wan City would be greatly reduced.

All they had to do was endure a little longer.

Once the Abyssal Dream reset...

Cao Ang, Cao Anmin, and the other slain troops would all revive once more.

The Abyssal citizens of Old Wan City absolutely refused to believe that the resurrection of the Scourge Army came without a price. The fact that their combat strength had weakened after prolonged fighting was sufficient proof that, given enough time, this force could indeed be destroyed.

Old Wan City still had two thousand troops remaining.

Led by Dian Wei and several Abyssal citizens, these two thousand troops soon arrived near Matou Hamlet, where the Scourge Army had already received the news and was waiting for them.

“Damn!”

“This is bad!”

“These corrupted Abyssals are planning to seize our occupied teleportation point!”

“If we lose the teleportation point near the battlefield, we'll have to run all the way from Bowang every time!”

“That means we won't even be able to fight many battles in a day. We won't be able to maintain saturation attacks at all!”

“Don't panic! Matou Hamlet is outside the edge of the Core Corruption Zone. Dian Wei's movements will be restricted here. As for the other corrupted guys, they're just minor cannon fodder—not worth fearing!”

“……”

In truth, compared to the threat facing Matou Hamlet...

The Scourge Army was even more worried that the mission timer was nearly up, and judging from the current situation, it would likely be difficult to complete the objective.

There was no time for further thought.

The vast forces of Old Wan City came charging forward.

The Abyssal units consisted not only of the common Abyssal monsters from Old Wan City.

There were also several high-tier Abyssal unit types above Level 25.

Although the Abyssal army of Old Wan City had suffered devastating losses over the past day, those who remained were all elites, and their overall combat power was still extraordinarily formidable.

The moment the Scourge Army clashed with the troops of Old Wan City...

They were completely suppressed without suspense.

The casualty ratio was extremely lopsided.

The Scourge Army only had two to three hundred Tier-Three advanced Players. Had it not been for the roughly twenty top experts, each possessing Commander or quasi-Commander-level combat strength, they would have collapsed upon contact!

Fortunately, Players could rapidly revive in Bowang before teleporting back to the battlefield, continuously replenishing their fighting strength.

Even Dian Wei had to admit it.

This force was terrifying beyond measure.

It truly resembled an endless calamity.

It gave others the feeling that it was impossible to resist or overcome.

Dian Wei naturally had no intention of sitting back and waiting.

He threw out six hand halberds in one breath.

After instantly killing six high-tier Players, the six hand halberds transformed into demonic skeletal monsters, each possessing the strength of a first-rate Commander and exerting tremendous pressure on the Players.

The Scourge Army gradually became unable to hold the defensive line.

The Abyssal troops drew closer and closer to Matou Hamlet.

At that moment, several streams of Fate energy burst forth from Matou Hamlet, granting the Players multiple enhancements.

【You have received the “Light of Loyal Souls” blessing. Attack +30%, Strength +20%, Agility +20%. Duration: 1 hour!】

【You have received the “Tenacity Aura” blessing. Equipment Damage Negation +20%, Mental Resistance +20%. Duration: 1 hour!】

These were Zhou Cang's Fate Skills.

Although he could only bestow the power of Fate upon several hundred units...

The magnitude of the enhancement and its duration were both astonishing.

【You have received the “Guardian Aura” blessing. All abnormal status resistances +50. Recover 300 Health or Mana every minute. Duration: 25 minutes.】

【You have received the “Adamantine Defense Line” blessing. Equipment Independent Defense +20%. Gain 100 points of Damage Negation every minute. Duration: 25 minutes.】

Wen Pin's Fate Skills had somewhat weaker single-target effects and were more suitable for reinforcing defensive lines.

However, his greatest advantage was that his Fate power could affect a massive number of units, allowing all four thousand members of the Scourge Army present to receive the enhancement. The overall improvement it provided clearly surpassed even Zhou Cang's.

The Scourge Army's combat strength had declined after fighting for so long, not only because many Players had died too many times and lost levels, nor solely because many had entered a fatigued state.

The main reason was...

They had long since exhausted every BUFF available to them.

Whether it was the Lord's Aura, food buffs, Protection Talismans, Blood Sacrifice Talismans, or consumables such as pills and arrows, almost everything had been depleted. Naturally, this caused a severe decline in combat effectiveness.

Now, under the Fate blessings of the territory's two great generals...

The Scourge Army's combat power rose dramatically.

They successfully held back the assault.

Meanwhile...

Dian Wei sensed something.

A wave of shadow energy appeared behind him.

Then three figures emerged from it.

Two of them were Wen Pin and Zhou Cang.

The third was Jia Xu's Shadow Skeleton Puppet.

All three were crucial combat assets of the territory.

All three possessed Overlord-level combat strength.

Even Dian Wei had no choice but to face them seriously.

“The NPCs are making their move!”

“So we've finally reached this point.”

“It doesn't matter. We've already done everything we could. The rest depends on the territory's big shots!”

“Just watching isn't enough! Nobody give up! We fight until the very last moment!”

“Charge!”

“……”

After receiving the blessings of the territory's generals, both the morale and combat power of the Scourge Army surged dramatically.

At the same time, Dian Wei was tied down by Zhou Cang and Wen Pin.

The ordinary corrupted generals of Old Wan City alone...

Had no chance whatsoever of breaking through the defensive line under these circumstances.

Holding his massive saber, Zhou Cang laughed loudly at Dian Wei.

“General Dian, do you know how long I've been looking forward to this moment?”

Naturally, Dian Wei could sense the other's considerable strength.

Yet he still dismissed him.

Though they were both Level 30.

Though they were both Overlords.

The gap between them remained enormous.

Dian Wei said coldly, “You're not qualified to fight me. Don't waste my time. The lot of you can come at me together!”

“I'll go first!”

Without another word, Zhou Cang attacked.

The black-gold colossal blade erupted with blazing flames.

Even his pale Abyssal body spewed magma as his entire form transformed into a ferocious half-man, half-tiger demon.

A gigantic flaming saber appeared in the hands of the magma-and-fire tiger demon.

“Tiger Fiend Fury Flame Slash!”

This was a new technique Zhou Cang had developed.

By fusing Tiger Demon Descent with Fiery Tiger Wild Blade, he had ultimately created this even more devastating technique.

The next moment...

The tiger demon transformed into a blazing whirlwind accompanied by the roar of a tiger, circling Dian Wei at high speed to form a tornado.

Tiger-shaped blade qi shot out in rapid succession, bombarding Dian Wei wildly from every direction.

Every single Normal Attack possessed several times the power of a strengthened Frenzied Tiger Roar Slash!

-532!

-456!

-543!

……

At first glance, it looked as though Dian Wei was under siege by a pack of tigers.

Flaming tigers lunged at him simultaneously from every direction, unleashing one relentless wave of attacks after another.

The output was utterly insane.

In the blink of an eye, several thousand points of Health had been erased.

Watching from afar, every Player widened their eyes in astonishment, cheering excitedly at the spectacle.

“Nice!”

“What incredible sabersmanship!”

“What kind of skill is that?”

“General Zhou's strength has become absolutely monstrous!”

“As expected of one of the territory's great generals! He's finally getting revenge for our legion!”

“……”

However...

Dian Wei neither dodged nor defended.

He calmly endured every attack.

The demonic runes covering his massive body shone increasingly brighter.

His aura continued rising throughout the entire process.

Ye Li Meng's expression became grave.

“It seems Dian Wei has some kind of trait that lets him grow stronger the longer he fights. The more attacks he receives, the faster his overall strength skyrockets!”

Black-Eyed Rui Ge said, “He's waiting for an opportunity to counterattack!”

Hua Mulan shouted, “General Zhou, be careful!”

Dian Wei reached out.

The Blood Skeleton Overlord he had summoned instantly transformed back into a gigantic halberd, returning from the distant battlefield into his hand.

His aura surged violently once again.

“So that's all you've got!”

The moment Dian Wei assumed an offensive stance, Zhou Cang felt his aura completely locked onto him.

He instinctively knew...

There was no way he could evade the coming attack.

“Then you can die!”

Using all four arms, Dian Wei gripped the halberd.

Terrifying energy condensed into black lightning, instantly enveloping the weapon.

Then he swung it violently.

The halberd descended with enough force to tear apart the heavens.

Although Zhou Cang possessed an Abyssal physique with astonishing Health and respectable defense...

Taking this attack head-on would still exact a tremendous price.

Yet...

Zhou Cang still chose not to dodge.

With a furious roar, he gathered all the blade qi onto himself.

His tiger demon body rapidly expanded to over ten meters tall.

The colossal blade in his hands grew to several dozen meters in length.

Then he met Dian Wei's halberd head-on.

A deafening explosion erupted!

The flaming saber in Zhou Cang's hands shattered!

Dian Wei's halberd continued forward with undiminished force, crashing directly into Zhou Cang's body.

The next instant...

The flames and magma completely evaporated and disintegrated!

With a single strike, Dian Wei forcibly dispersed Zhou Cang's transformation.

The halberd, overflowing with destructive power, struck Zhou Cang's true body without the slightest obstruction.

“General Zhou!”

The Players were horrified.

Who could have imagined Dian Wei's attack would be so overwhelming?

Not only had it shattered Zhou Cang's ultimate saber technique...

It had also directly broken his transformation before launching a devastating attack upon his physical body!

Strong!

Far too strong!

Zhou Cang was now a genuine Overlord unit.

Yet even against Dian Wei of the same level, the difference remained enormous!

However...

Just as everyone was worried for Zhou Cang...

Dian Wei's halberd struck an invisible barrier.

Although Zhou Cang was blasted flying...

He suffered absolutely no damage.

-0!

Everyone present was stunned.

Even Dian Wei himself was surprised by the result.

He had already seen through Zhou Cang's techniques and strength.

Even if that strike could not kill him outright...

It should have at least severely wounded him.

There was no way it should have been completely blocked.

There was only one possibility.

The defensive power had come from an outside source!

Dian Wei immediately turned his gaze toward Wen Pin, who stood not far away.

“So it was you!”

Facing Dian Wei...

Wen Pin's emotions were extraordinarily complicated.

Never in his wildest imagination had he expected to one day confront Dian Wei in this state...

To stand face-to-face against the terrifying source of fear that had haunted countless living beings of Wan City for centuries.

“Yes, it was me!”

Wen Pin laughed openly.

“Dian Wei, in the past I only dared to hide within the army, relying on the Fate Array to suppress you while barely exchanging one or two moves. But the current me... no longer fears you!”

Zhou Cang leaped out of the enormous crater and returned to the battlefield.

Completely uninjured.

Not a single point of Health had been lost.

He laughed loudly.

“General Wen's Three Armies Shield truly lives up to its reputation!”

It turned out that Zhou Cang had escaped Dian Wei's devastating strike entirely because Wen Pin had cast Three Armies Shield upon him at the critical moment.

It was a Secret Art-type skill.

It gathered the protective energies surrounding allied units to form a defensive shield.

Such protective energy generally referred to the defensive force generated by equipment or skills—that is, the Damage Negation shown on the status panel. The stronger the individual, the stronger the protective energy that could be condensed.

This had already been an exceptionally powerful blue Secret Art.

Now, after mastering the complete Golden Light Guardian Technique, the effectiveness of Three Armies Shield had been further enhanced.

Combined with his own talents and Fate enhancements...

The power of this skill in Wen Pin's hands was no weaker than the purple-quality skills of ordinary cultivators.

“Seeking death? Then I'll grant your wish!”

Dian Wei had never expected someone like Wen Pin to dare act so arrogantly before him.

Over the years, the two had clashed countless times.

Yet every encounter had taken place with Wen Pin enjoying overwhelming geographical advantages.

The Six-Direction Fate Array alone had suppressed nearly half of Dian Wei's strength.

In addition...

The countless arrays, barriers, defensive installations, and carefully prepared tactics developed throughout New Wan City over the past century had all been specifically designed to weaken Dian Wei.

Only with the assistance of experts such as Jia Xu and Zhang Xiu...

Had Wen Pin barely managed to resist Dian Wei's offensives.

But now things were different.

There was no Fate Array here.

In fact, they were inside the Core Corruption Zone.

Not only could Dian Wei unleash his full strength...

He now held the geographical advantage instead.

How could someone like Wen Pin possibly catch his eye?

Three Armies Shield was indeed an exceptionally powerful Secret Technique.

But it consumed the protective energy accumulated on everyone.

In other words...

As long as the attacks were fierce enough...

He could strike before that protective energy recovered!

Dian Wei flashed forward, appearing directly before Wen Pin.

He gave him no opportunity to dodge or even catch his breath.

At some unknown moment, the massive halberd split into two, both weapons smashing toward the human general simultaneously.

“As expected... you're still this violent!”

Wen Pin knew exactly how fast Dian Wei was.

With his own mobility, reacting or dodging was utterly impossible.

He had already made preparations.

His entire body instantly turned golden.

Secret Technique: Iron Skin Golden Bones Technique!

At the same time...

The shield in Wen Pin's hand erupted with boundless golden radiance.

The instant Dian Wei's weapons descended...

The golden light surrounding him instantly condensed into an enormous shield.

Boom!

A deafening explosion erupted!

The Three Armies Shield was torn apart.

Countless cracks also appeared across the surface of Wen Pin's blue skill, Golden Light Giant Shield.

Massive amounts of violent energy surged through...

Yet they were blocked by Wen Pin's Iron Skin Golden Bones.

-0!

“I'd like to see just how many times you can block me!”

Dian Wei roared as he continued his assault.

His terrifying Abyssal Aura shot into the heavens, causing the environment for several miles around to undergo dramatic changes.

Even Wen Pin had not expected Dian Wei's strength to be this overwhelming.

At this rate...

Even the combination of Three Armies Shield, Iron Skin Golden Bones, and Golden Light Giant Shield might not withstand five exchanges!

Three layers weren't enough?

Then add another!

Wen Pin activated his final blue defensive skill—

Earth Shield.

His body seemed to root itself firmly into the earth.

By completely sacrificing mobility, this skill elevated Wen Pin's defense to an entirely new level.

For a time...

Even Dian Wei's violent assault failed to shake him.

-0!

-0!

-0!

The sight of Wen Pin resisting Dian Wei's attacks...

Left every Player present utterly dumbfounded.

Each of Dian Wei's strikes summoned heavenly thunder.

Every blow radiated an aura of utter destruction.

It was simply beyond the imagination of the Scourge Army!

Under such attacks...

Whether it was Ye Li Meng with the finest equipment or Mad Blade Old Wang with the highest defense...

Both would undoubtedly have been killed instantly.

Yet Wen Pin stood unmoving like Mount Tai.

Although he had no opportunity to counterattack...

At least for a certain period of time...

Even Dian Wei could do nothing to him!

Mad Blade Old Wang shouted, “Holy crap! So this is what real defense looks like!”

Ye Li Meng yelled, “General Wen is freaking amazing! (voice cracking)”

Black-Eyed Rui Ge exclaimed, “This guy is absolutely a five-star defensive god general!”

“Anyone with High-Grade Photography Crystals!”

“Hurry up and record this!”

“This footage is priceless!”

“It'll definitely go viral across the entire world!”

“Go, General Wen!”

“……”

Clearly...

The current Wen Pin...

Was undoubtedly an Overlord-level unit as well.

Empowered by his talents, his Golden Light Guardian Technique had become so formidable that even a terrifying existence like Dian Wei required considerable time and effort to break through his defenses.

However...

Right then...

Countless invisible arrows flew out from the void.

This was precisely the Shadow Skeleton's ultimate technique—

Shadow Arrow Rain.

The countless arrows rained down upon Dian Wei.

Although they dealt little damage...

They interrupted his offensive.

For a brief moment...

Wen Pin gained a chance to catch his breath.

He was able to restore Three Armies Shield and reconstruct the Golden Light Giant Shield.

At the same time...

Zhou Cang charged back into battle.

-512!

-921!

-1850!

A complete combo of The Martial Saint's Three Strikes!

Even Dian Wei was forced backward by two or three steps.

“Excellent!”

“Well done!”

“What an incredible Three Heroes Battle Against Dian Wei!”

“This is unbelievably satisfying!”

“……”

The morale of the Scourge Army soared.

They felt that there was no need for the Lord himself to intervene.

With the current lineup alone...

They should already be capable of confronting Dian Wei.

The territory's foundation was simply too powerful!

Its great generals were truly incredible!

“Dian Wei, even you won't defeat us so easily!” Zhou Cang declared.

Magma dripped from his body.

The battle saber resting upon his shoulder continuously spewed flames.

He stood shoulder to shoulder with Wen Pin.

Meanwhile...

The Shadow Skeleton remained invisible, moving around the battlefield...

Constantly firing shadow arrows...

While preparing another round of Arrow Rain.

At that moment, Wen Pin also spoke.

“Mr. Jia hasn't even made his move yet. If you can't even get past us, then don't even dream of challenging Lord Hang Yu!”

Faced with such provocation...

Dian Wei merely replied coldly, “Why are you so naïve as to think... that this is all the strength I possess?”

The moment those words were spoken...

The expressions of Wen Pin and Zhou Cang grew solemn.

Their faces became filled with vigilance.

Dian Wei was simply too powerful.

What he had displayed so far...

Was likely only a portion of his true strength.

And their performance...

Had clearly enraged him.

The coming battle...

Would not be easy.

In fact...

That was indeed the case.

The strength of Wen Pin, Zhou Cang, and the Shadow Skeleton was only slightly greater than Zhang Xiu's Corrupted Child form.

Back then...

Hang Yu had killed Corrupted Child Zhang Xiu within only a few exchanges without even using his full strength.

At the time...

There had still been a noticeable gap between his power and that of the strongest Overlords.

Dian Wei was absolutely not that simple!

“Jia Xu! Stop hiding! I know you're here! Get the hell out here!”

As Dian Wei roared, he released a terrifying shockwave of energy.

Not far away, space distorted.

From within the shattered camouflage...

Two figures appeared simultaneously.

One was Jia Xu.

The other was Zhang Zhongjing.

Jia Xu sighed with admiration.

“You were actually able to break my camouflage Secret Art. As expected of Dian Wei. Truly overbearing.”

All four Hero Units of the territory had arrived!

One possessed overwhelming offensive power.

One had monstrous defense.

One was a supreme healer and support.

The last wielded bizarre methods that defied all reason.

Four against one?

How could they possibly lose?

Jia Xu's current overall strength alone had already reached the level of a super first-rate Overlord.

Combined with the territory's talent abilities...

The mutual enhancement provided by the two generals and Zhang Zhongjing...

He was fully capable of battling the strongest Overlords head-on without falling behind.

Yet Dian Wei showed not the slightest sign of being suppressed.

Instead...

His battle intent grew even fiercer.

His killing intent became increasingly frenzied and overwhelming.

“Good! Perfect timing! I'll kill every last one of you in one go!”

Jia Xu replied, “You're far too arrogant!”

Though he said so...

He possessed the talent to seek fortune and avoid disaster.

Naturally...

He could sense Dian Wei's terror more clearly than anyone else.

Theoretically speaking...

With the support of the two generals and Divine Physician Zhang...

And with himself going all out...

They were fully capable of defeating this formidable opponent.

But that was merely the comparison of paper strength...

A conclusion reached only in theory.

Jia Xu trusted his instincts.

If this battle continued...

It would be extremely dangerous!

If they insisted on fighting to the very end...

Determining both victory and life or death...

Then even the best possible outcome would likely be mutual destruction.

Dian Wei's explosive power and true limits...

Could not be judged by common sense.

At that tense moment...

Light suddenly radiated from the void.

A figure gradually took shape within it.

He wore dark-gold armor.

He wielded a dual-edged spear.

He rode a divine beast resembling a qilin.

Like a heavenly divine general descending into the mortal world...

He radiated overwhelming majesty and unmatched authority.

“Lord!”

Whether it was the Scourge Army...

Or Jia Xu, Wen Pin, and the others...

The moment they saw the Lord appear, every one of them either beamed with joy or let out a long sigh of relief.

Jia Xu could tell from the manner of his arrival...

That what had descended here was most likely only one of the Lord's mirrored projections.

Yet even a single projection...

Could replicate every one of the Lord's abilities.

Whether his cultivation technique...

His mount...

His equipment...

Or his talents...

The strength it could unleash...

Was beyond imagination.

The instant Dian Wei saw Hang Yu...

An instinct originating from his nature as a citizen of the Abyss caused him to become even more violent and murderous.

“Starsea Lord? You've come seeking death too!”

Hang Yu replied calmly, “I came to end this battle... because it's already time for this battle to end!”