CHAPTER 168 - FIGHTING AGAINST THE ADVENTURER GROUP

Han Wu jumped from cloud to cloud, searching for any clues leading to the Light Palace Lord. However, despite days of continuous searching, he ended up in the same frustrating situation as all the other adventurer groups—none of them had managed to find anything at all.

Meanwhile, Han Wu’s earlier actions had not gone unnoticed; in fact, he had captured the attention of the powerful adventurer guilds. As a result, the Gull Guild, the Fierce Tiger Clan, the Flying Dragon Clan, and several other renowned guilds soon issued a warrant for his capture.

Now, Han Wu had to face not only the light spirits but also the waves of adventurers sent to capture him. Despite this, he wasn’t afraid; his strength grew with every kill, regardless of whether the target was a light spirit or an adventurer. In fact, he grew even faster after eliminating the adventurers pursuing him.

He wasn’t worried about being surrounded either—he had the gatling gun. In just a few days, the tables turned, and Han Wu began hunting down the adventurers who had pursued him instead.

The guilds’ adventurers were terrified, constantly haunted by memories of Han Wu dominating the battlefield with his fearsome Genocider gatling gun. Some were so gripped by fear, even in the midst of battle, that they abandoned their guilds and fled in panic.

The guild leaders, witnessing the utter chaos into which their guilds had descended, knew they had to deal with the situation immediately. Han Wu’s mass killings had decimated their ranks to such an extent that they now had no choice but to eliminate him, no matter the cost, to appease their remaining members.

However, they knew perfectly well that Han Wu was too formidable for any one guild to face alone. Therefore, prioritizing their collective self-interest and survival, the guilds put aside their rivalries and banded together to forge an alliance with the sole purpose of defeating Han Wu.

With their considerable numbers, the allied guilds were able to continuously collect precise information regarding Han Wu’s whereabouts. He was, after all, the only “unauthorized” person present on the entire floor.

After confirming the authenticity, they hurried over to where Han Wu was last seen. The guild leaders were determined to kill Han Wu today at all costs, to avenge their fallen members.

Han Wu, however, remained completely unaware that the various guilds had put aside their differences and formed a unified alliance specifically to eliminate him. Even if he had known, it wouldn’t have bothered him in the slightest—he was clearly stronger than them. On the contrary, a confrontation would actually prove more advantageous for him; he could defeat them all in one fell swoop without wasting precious time tracking them down individually.

He kept hunting the light spirits, steadily improving his strength and resistance to light damage. It wasn’t long before the allied forces of the guilds surrounded him.

On a cloud roughly 1 sq km large, Han Wu found himself entirely hemmed in by the allied adventurer guilds. From their ranks, three Platinum ranked leaders, each leading an influential adventurer guild, stepped forward. All three were fixated on Han Wu’s gatling gun, their expressions undisguised with greed. Even before the fight began, they were already mentally divvying up the spoils, specifically who among them would get the weapon once Han Wu was defeated. However, the initial priority remained the same: Han Wu had to fall.

“Wall formation!” The leader of the Gull Guild commanded the adventurers positioned at the front lines to raise their shields, which were inscribed with various effects specifically designed to help them withstand and block the torrent of bullets from the gatling gun.

“Magicians, get ready!” bellowed the leader of the Fierce Tiger Clan, instructing the magic-wielding adventurers to start activating their respective spells. The air above the mages lit up with numerous different balls of light. Fireballs, icicles, wind blades, snow balls and various other magic attacks charged up.

“Fire!” the Flying Dragon Clan leader roared, commanding them to unleash their magic at Han Wu simultaneously. To their surprise, Han Wu merely chuckled at the incoming assault. He instantly activated his Black Dragon King Transformation, and with powerful flaps of his wings, he soared high into the air, avoiding every elemental attack launched his way.

A wave of shock rippled through the adventurers—none of them received any intel indicating that Han Wu possessed the ability to fly! However, it was far too late to retreat; they were already locked in a desperate battle with him. There was no turning back now; they had to eliminate him, regardless of his ability to fly, or they would all soon be dead.

The leaders quickly reorganized themselves and ordered, “Shoot him down!”

Numerous magic attacks were launched into the air, but Han Wu dodged all of them perfectly. At the same time, his gatling gun transformed into a massive cannon. He had turned it into a handheld cannon!

Han Wu charged the massive cannon with raw energy, then unleashed a devastating shot downwards, aiming directly for the most densely packed section of the crowd.

Boom!

The fired energy slammed into its target with immense force, followed by a thunderous yet spectacular explosion. The resulting blast, imbued with light attribute damage and the 5% spiritual damage, proved catastrophic: ten Silver-ranked adventurers were instantly annihilated, and two Gold-ranked adventurers were left severely wounded.

All those present, including the guild leaders, were horrified at the sight.

Had he been toying with us this whole time?

Han Wu, entirely unconcerned by the terror etched on their faces, swiftly charged his massive cannon for a second shot and fired once more. The resulting explosion was so powerful that it shook the very cloud beneath their feet, killing even more adventurers as chaos and panic gripped their ranks.

“Run! We can’t win!”

“No, I don’t want to die! I don’t want to die... No, don’t shoot me! I don’t want to die... Don’t... don’t aim at—”

“Save me, mommy!”

“Let me leave! I want to withdraw from the guild!”

The adventurers’ panic spiraled out of control, and the entire area quickly devolved into utter chaos, a situation even the guild leaders were powerless to contain. The three Platinum guild leaders exchanged grim glances and nodded in unison. Since their numerical superiority no longer offered any significant advantage, they had no choice but to personally confront and eliminate Han Wu to salvage the situation and save what remained of their forces.

The three guild leaders simultaneously used their powers. The first morphed into a massive bird that immediately began firing razor-sharp arrows at Han Wu. Another transformed into a fierce tiger, directing powerful blasts of sound waves at their opponent, and the last leader turned into a massive flying dragon, its gaping maw spewing torrents scorching flames, intending to incinerate Han Wu.

The guild leaders had confidently assumed that their combined battle strength would be more than enough to defeat Han Wu. However, they had severely underestimated him. In his current form, Han Wu was as strong as a High Lord, which was the equivalent of a Diamond adventurer. The Platinum adventurers, therefore, were considerably outmatched and stood no chance of beating him.

With an agile spin, Han Wu flawlessly evaded every single attack launched at him, before flying directly towards the leader of the Gull Guild. In a swift motion, he transformed his cannon back into his greatsword and brought it down on a swift and brutal swing. With the combined might of the Genocider greatsword’s physical, light, and spiritual damage, the Gull Guild leader instantly perished.

As the corpse spiraled downwards, Han Wu turned his attention to the fire-breathing dragon. With incredible speed, he dodged the flames and appeared behind the dragon, grabbing its wings and ripping them off its back.

The dragon let out a deafening roar of agony as it plummeted from the skies. Without its wings, it could no longer stay aloft. In a cruel twist of fate, it tumbled directly into the path of one of the fierce tiger’s terrifying sound cannons. In a horrific spectacle, the leader of the Flying Dragon Clan was utterly annihilated by his own ally’s attack, his body splattering into countless pieces.

The leader of the Fierce Tiger Clan was gripped by profound terror at Han Wu’s undeniable and overwhelming strength. It had taken Han Wu shockingly little time to dispatch two Platinum adventurers! Desperate, the Clan leader turned to flee, but Han Wu proved to be even faster. With a swift, powerful swing of his greatsword, he cut the tiger in half, ending its life.

In the end, all three guild leaders lay dead, and the remaining adventurers scattered, fleeing for their lives. Han Wu was left standing alone on the cloud, breathing heavily as he undid his transformation. His head dropped, and his legs gave out, leaving him slumped on the ground. The intensity of the battle had most likely pushed him to his absolute limits.

In reality, this display of exhaustion was, however, nothing more than a carefully orchestrated ruse. Any discerning observer would have immediately noticed the unsettling calmness in Han Wu’s eyes. However, not a single soul remained alive or conscious on the corpse-covered cloud to see through his act.

Out of nowhere, a brilliant flash of light suddenly flared up behind him. Perceiving the attack instantly, Han Wu sharply twisted his body to evade it, then spun around to confront its source.

A massive light spirit stood there, a dazzling crown atop its head, holding a clear crystal ball that displayed an image of Han Wu battling the adventurers.

Han Wu smiled. His assumptions had been right; the Light Palace Lord really did exist, but it seemed it had been evading capture with the help of an artifact: the Foresight Crystal Ball. Seeing Han Wu seemingly dying from fatigue, it had intended to deliver the final blow.

It was at this moment that Han Wu realized the full extent of the Light Palace Lord’s cunning.

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