Chapter 77 - 77-A Hard Battle! (Part 1)
If [Lust] were to fully awaken, it would spell catastrophic disaster for the entire world!
With this in mind, John let out a deep breath, crushed the teleportation scroll, and arrived just outside the labyrinth.
Here, there were hardly any other players in sight, except for one person lazily perched on a tree branch, chewing on a blade of grass. Noticing John, he leapt down from the branch, dusting off his clothes.
"You\'re here early. Seems like you\'re really scared of [Lust]."
"Cut the crap. Tell me, what are our chances?"
"Sixty percent? Maybe seventy. Who knows? After all, private fights between [Apostles] are forbidden. If caught, both would face severe punishment. So, it\'s been a long time since I last fought [Lust].
Whether we can win depends on how much strength he has left."
"Well... let\'s hope we can win."
"Don\'t be so pessimistic. Come on, let\'s go!"
The [Deception Apostle] was surprisingly excited, seemingly eager to kill [Lust]. Since it was all to John\'s benefit, he didn\'t say much more and followed the [Deception Apostle] into the labyrinth.
Perhaps influenced by [Lust], the monsters in the labyrinth had become unusually aggressive. On their way, John was attacked by at least a hundred monsters.
Although dealing with them wasn\'t particularly difficult, John\'s stamina was inevitably drained, leaving him less than perfectly prepared to face [Lust].
In contrast, the [Deception Apostle] remained calm, as if the monsters couldn\'t see him, deliberately avoiding him and focusing all their attention on John.
The [Deception Apostle] showed no intention of helping, clearly enjoying watching John struggle.
"So, still holding up?"
Facing the [Deception Apostle]\'s slightly mocking gaze, John snorted and wiped the blood off his short sword.
"Piece of cake."
"That\'s good. I was worried you might not be able to handle it and I\'d be forced to help. I really don\'t want to intervene. If certain entities notice me and decide to erase my existence, it wouldn\'t be worth it."
"I\'m just a bit concerned. If the monsters inside the labyrinth are this aggressive, who knows how the ones outside are behaving? They might attack the Elven habitat."
John sighed, a hint of helplessness flashing in his eyes. At this point, all he could do was place his hopes in Helena, Lily, and the others.
...
Meanwhile, at the Elven habitat!
Elaria\'s condition was deteriorating.
The influence of lust made it nearly impossible for her to think clearly, forcing her to isolate herself and hand over command to Elowen.
"First squad, come here to receive chant essence. Make sure to hold off the monsters completely. We cannot let them break through the defenses and enter the habitat!"
"Archer squad! Use long-range attacks to continuously suppress the monsters, easing the burden on the first squad."
"Logistics squad, constantly resupply strategic materials--arrows, chant essence, logs, chevaux de frise! We can\'t afford any lapses in the defense lines due to a lack of supplies!
This is a matter of life and death for the Elven race. Master John and Her Majesty the Queen are fighting formidable enemies in the labyrinth, risking their lives for our survival. We must not let the Queen down!
We absolutely cannot let even a single monster break through the defense lines. Fight to the death!"
Elowen raised her arm in a rallying cry, feeling immensely gratified as she looked at her fellow Elves, whose spirits were high.
"As for you, Lady Helena, the task of breaking through the enemy lines is entrusted to you and your team. If any part of the defense line is overwhelmed, please resolve it immediately. Once this is over, the Elven race will offer generous rewards."
"That\'s fine. It\'s been too long since we\'ve had action; we\'re starting to get rusty."
Exiled Immortal smiled, and with a casual wave, a gust of green wind arose, like an invisible giant hand lifting him into the sky, overlooking the monsters below.
Seeing this, Helena exchanged a glance with Lily, then both drew their weapons and leapt from the treetops into the fray!
It was no exaggeration to say that this monster tide\'s invasion was even more ferocious than the goblin invasion during the large-scale event!
Under [Lust]\'s influence, the monsters inhabiting the labyrinth had lost all reason, turning into mindless beasts driven solely by their basest instincts.
Countless blood-red eyes fixed hungrily on the Elves.
There was no count of one, two, three to start the battle, no countdown to announce the war\'s commencement. The slaughter began abruptly!
"Deploy chant essence! We must withstand the first wave of attacks!"
Elowen crushed a chant essence, the shimmering light merging into the magic patterns on her body, and a light shield formed instantly!
In these three days, the Elves had gathered as many materials as possible.
John had managed to craft over a hundred sets of armor and weapons, barely enough to arm the Elves.
Though this number was far from sufficient, it was all John could achieve in the limited time!
Armed with light shields, the Elven warriors formed a wall of flesh and blood.
As long as they stood, no monster would breach their defenses!
"[Class skill * Sword Rain Fall!]"
From the sky, Exiled Immortal shouted, and countless sword shadows formed behind him, flying out under his command.
The sword energy crisscrossed, forming an impenetrable web, turning the area before him into a vacuum in an instant!
But the monstrous numbers filled the gaps in a blink, continuing their assault on the defenses!
"[Astreos, God of the Stars, please unleash your wrath and punish my enemies! Starfall!]"
As one of the few members with area-of-effect skills, Lily stood in the most perilous spot--a direct path leading from the labyrinth, where countless monsters gathered.
Despite the danger, her beautiful face showed not a hint of fear.
She simply gripped her staff tightly, her red lips parting to utter an intricate incantation.
Then, meteors began to fall from the sky, exploding again and again within the monster tide.
How many monsters she killed, Lily couldn\'t tell. She could only hear the incessant chime of experience points being gained, ringing continuously in her ears!
"Watch out!"
At that moment, over ten sonic bats suddenly burst out from the monster tide.
Having experienced their might before, Exiled Immortal immediately changed direction, ready to deal with them first.
But just then!
More than a dozen blood-red crossbow bolts flashed and pierced through the ugly skulls of the sonic bats with ease, leaving them no chance to resist.
They fell into the monster tide, trampled into pulp!
Exiled Immortal looked towards Helena, who smiled.
"Don\'t worry, I\'ll protect the both of you."
"Big sis, thank you."
For a moment, the situation reached a stalemate.
But neither Helena and her team nor the Elven Elowen showed any sign of relief in their eyes. Everyone knew this was just the beginning; the real challenge had yet to come!
"A gold-tier monster has appeared!"
Noticing a monster about five meters tall, Exiled Immortal swiftly moved with the wind, rushing forward!
If the gold-tier monster reached the defense line, the Elven warriors would not be able to hold it off. This monster had to be taken down now!
"Exiled Immortal, don\'t be reckless!"
"Master Exiled Immortal!"
The moment Exiled Immortal charged, both Elowen and Helena noticed, calling out to stop him, but it was already too late.
With Exiled Immortal gone, the pressure on the defense line suddenly increased!
Without someone who could see everything and strike with precision, the monster tide would no longer be held back!
"[Spirit Summoning!]"
Lily slammed her staff down, and the mountain of monster corpses before her moved like puppets on strings, attacking the monsters behind them.
Yet even this could only hold back the monster tide for a brief moment.
After all, the Elven warriors numbered only a hundred. Facing thousands, they couldn\'t hold out for long.
Unlike players, NPCs, once injured or exhausted, would lose their fighting capability completely.
They needed reinforcements, more and stronger ones!
Otherwise, the defense line would be breached in no time!