Chapter 57: Displaying Divine Power

Hearing Dai Guang’s voice through the communicator, Lu Kuan slapped his forehead. Oh no, I almost forgot about this! I’d better hurry over, or Dai Guang will start teasing me again for putting romance before friendship…

Since Dai Guang had chosen to complete the quest as a team, the location was set in the Trial Grounds of the Holy Temple of Light. By the time Lu Kuan arrived, Dai Guang and four others were already sitting forlornly at the edge of the grounds, looking utterly defeated.

“This is maddening! Why is it so hard? I thought choosing a team quest would make it easier… If I’d known, I would’ve picked the solo quest instead…” From a distance, Lu Kuan could already hear Dai Guang grumbling loudly.

“What a terrible quest! My Druid’s advancement quest was just planting some flowers, and this one is so difficult?”

“Dai Guang, why don’t you just give up and try a solo quest? We’ve been stuck here for ages—it’s just a waste of time…”

Lu Kuan recognized everyone present—they were all classmates from high school. But it was obvious that everyone’s patience was wearing thin, and their enthusiasm had all but evaporated.

Dai Guang, of course, wasn’t willing to give up. He stood up to say something, but just as he lifted his head, he spotted Lu Kuan approaching and his face lit up with delight.

“You finally made it!”

Dai Guang laughed heartily, hurried over, and punched Lu Kuan playfully on the shoulder. “Why weren’t you online earlier? I failed another attempt because of you.”

“I had to log off for a bit,” Lu Kuan replied with a smile, greeting the other classmates as well.

Their expressions were mixed. Most probably hadn’t heard about Lu Kuan’s world-first achievement or his purple gear yet, but everyone in their circle who played “Echoes of the Gods” already knew. Suddenly, the ordinary guy among them had become a “pro,” and naturally, everyone had their own thoughts.

Dai Guang’s hope was rekindled, and he hurried to organize things. “Alright, since you’re here, Li Ming, you should leave the party for now. Lu Kuan, I’ll fill you in on the quest—”

“Don’t bother, I already read the guide online,” Lu Kuan interrupted with a wave of his hand, casually adding, “Let’s get started. This quest is easy.”

The others stared in disbelief. Easy? Come on, the five of them had been trying for two days straight, getting thrashed by those five NPCs every time—they couldn’t even withstand the first wave!

“Lu Kuan, I know you were lucky enough to get a purple item, but you don’t have to act so cocky…”

One of the boys, apparently unimpressed with Lu Kuan, spoke in a sour tone, “The scribe by the Trial Grounds keeps records, and less than a hundred people in Lava Fortress have completed the Priest’s advancement quest. And you call it easy?”

The speaker was Li Ming, also a Ranger like Lu Kuan. Lu Kuan glanced at him, merely smiled, and motioned for Dai Guang to start the quest.

Dai Guang had absolute faith in Lu Kuan and immediately beckoned the remaining three teammates to the trial entrance. Li Ming, meanwhile, watched from the sidelines with a sneer and discreetly activated the recording function.

“This Lu Kuan, acting all high and mighty. He’s not even a good student, barely talks, and now he lucks into a purple item? I’ll record this and upload it later—let everyone see what this so-called expert is really like.”

Lu Kuan, unaware of Li Ming’s little scheme, led the five-man party into the Trial Grounds.

The area was an oval pit, seventy or eighty meters long, with sturdy stone flooring and four massive iron doors at each compass point. When Dai Guang initiated the quest, a countdown appeared in all five players’ vision.

“Trial of the Brave (First Wave) will commence soon. Prepare yourselves. Countdown: 30 seconds, 29, 28…”

The group immediately began casting spells and buffing each other. Dai Guang handed out several potions—temporary health boosters, resistance elixirs, and more. Most of them were supplies Lu Kuan had given Dai Guang previously.

“Here you go, Lu Kuan,” Dai Guang said, offering a few vials.

Lu Kuan waved them off. “Save those for yourself. There’s a cooldown on potion crafting now—only three per day. I can’t make more than that.”

Mentioning this reminded Lu Kuan of the bottles he’d discarded when being chased by the Flame Demon Sword people. The thought made his heart ache—those potions cost a fortune!

Dai Guang nodded quickly and grinning, stuffed the bottles back into his pack. The others exchanged looks, thinking Lu Kuan was overconfident, but said nothing out of courtesy.

Still, they couldn’t help but think: This is bad. Looks like Lu Kuan isn’t reliable either. Even if dying here doesn’t cost experience, equipment repairs are expensive…

Soon, the iron door in front of them creaked open. Five fully armored soldiers emerged—each a different race, but together they formed a complete party: warrior, mage, priest, rogue, and a jack-of-all-trades paladin.

Following standard procedure, the NPCs assembled into a textbook sweep formation: the warrior and paladin shielded at the front, the priest just behind with a shield, the rogue vanished into stealth, and the mage kept a safe distance, casting buffs.

“We’ll stick to the same plan—flank them from both sides…” Dai Guang said nervously in the party chat, but before he could finish, a series of “thwang! thwang! thwang!” sounds came from behind—Lu Kuan had already loosed his arrows!

A sigh escaped the classmates. Lu Kuan, if you want to show off, at least don’t rush like that. At this range, what are you trying to accomplish? Scare them?

Outside, Li Ming muttered under his breath, “Idiot.”

But then, screams echoed through the trial grounds. The group looked up in astonishment.

The NPC mage, who had been hiding behind the shields, suddenly had a string of blood-red damage numbers pop above his head. Before anyone could react, he dissolved into a beam of white light—dead just like that!

Not only were Lu Kuan’s teammates stunned, but even the four remaining NPCs were baffled. They glanced at the mage’s corpse, their advance coming to an abrupt halt.

The mystery was solved in the next instant.

Lu Kuan, after firing several arrows, had triggered his ring’s special effect. He immediately activated his Arcane Shot skill, nocking another arrow. The hunting bow gleamed with light, and the arrow, trailing a pale blue glow, shot straight for the priest.

“-30! -5!”

“-66! -12!”

“-71! -15!”

“-80! -17!”

“-13! -3!”

This time, not a single person blinked. They watched as a spectacular stream of damage numbers erupted! The priest barely managed to raise his small round shield, blocking only Lu Kuan’s final Crushing Arrow—but it was far too late.