Chapter 72: The True Strong One

In his previous life, the post made by the player who discovered this treasure was indeed rather vague, and at that thought, Lu Kuan no longer felt as tense as before.

“I’ll just wait and see what happens—perhaps things aren’t as bad as I feared,” Lu Kuan could only comfort himself this way.

Splash—

The huge fish that had brought the two of them ashore flicked its tail, affectionately circled the old man once, then turned and swam off into the depths of the dark lake.

The old man, carrying Lu Kuan in one hand, strode onto the bank with remarkable agility, dashing east at a speed so swift that even Lu Kuan, himself an agility class, felt somewhat ashamed.

“Stop!”

“Block him!”

But before the old man had gone far, several players suddenly jumped out from nearby bushes, shouting as they brandished their weapons and charged over.

Lu Kuan took one look and cursed inwardly—these guys actually had the patience to ambush me here?

This was bad, very bad. With his hands and feet still bound, Lu Kuan felt like his misfortune was compounding—when it rains, it pours.

But since the opposition had shown themselves openly this time, Lu Kuan easily recognized the guild emblem on their chests.

“Blade of the Flame Demon?”

He was honestly surprised; he had thought it would be the Glory Guild, or at worst, that dwarf warrior from yesterday seeking revenge with backup. He hadn’t expected this to be the work of Blade of the Flame Demon.

After all, both sides had relied on their own skills—Lu Kuan had just beaten them to the treasure. How could this count as a grudge worth a dedicated ambush?

His impression of Blade of the Flame Demon took a sharp dive.

The old man didn’t notice Lu Kuan’s change in expression. He slowed slightly, dodging a flying arrow, and frowned as he addressed the group ahead. “Don’t block the way—move aside.”

“Oh? Acting so tough, are we?”

The Blade of the Flame Demon members were unimpressed by the old man’s domineering manner. “Put him down! If you resist, I’ll cut you down right now!”

More Blade of the Flame Demon members arrived, swiftly surrounding the old man and Lu Kuan. The gnome rogue, Grasshopper, squeezed in from the outside. He froze for a second when he saw the scene before him.

“Why waste words? Let’s just take him down! Time to teach this drowned rat a lesson!” someone jeered, setting off a round of laughter and heckling.

Lu Kuan’s sorry state delighted the crowd. Remembering how this kid had made a fool of them and cost them face, they were itching to lay into him.

Lu Kuan knew his only hope in this predicament was the old man beside him, whose strength was unfathomable.

“Stop bragging. If you have the guts, fight me for three hundred rounds—I’ll even let you bind my hands and feet! Come on, whoever beats me, I’ll hand over the purple gear I took from the treasure, both hands! It’s right in my bag now—” Lu Kuan shouted at the top of his lungs.

At this, the crowd erupted: What? This kid got purple gear from the treasure?

Someone immediately lost patience, raising his staff to cast a spell at Lu Kuan’s face, hoping to make him drop the gear.

“Stop!” Grasshopper quickly waved to halt his comrade, his tone stern.

As a core member of Blade of the Flame Demon’s main party, Grasshopper was experienced and sensed something was off.

To play it safe, he said kindly to the old man, “Sir, the person you’re holding has a bit of a history with us—could you leave him here?”

“No.”

The old man refused flatly. “I don’t care about your quarrels, but I need him for something now. Move aside—I don’t want to hurt anybody.”

Grasshopper hadn’t expected such a hardline response. He frowned.

Sensing an opportunity, Lu Kuan burst out laughing. “A bunch of losers! Get out of the way—you’re scared stiff by a guy whose hands and feet are tied! Blade of the Flame Demon should rename themselves the Coward’s League—ha!”

The crowd’s faces darkened—how arrogant! How insufferable! How could they stand for this?

“That old guy must be an NPC, probably Old Deer’s quest. Perfect chance to ruin it for him!” someone shouted, erasing the last trace of hesitation from the group. Four or five arrows whistled toward Lu Kuan, targeting the old man as well.

In truth, Grasshopper was also infuriated by Lu Kuan’s arrogance, so when his teammates acted, he hesitated and didn’t stop them.

“Courting death,” the old man muttered. Without moving his feet, he raised his left hand high. A burst of golden light exploded from his palm.

The Blade of the Flame Demon players were blinded, instinctively turning away, while Lu Kuan stared wide-eyed, determined to see the skill the old man would unleash.

System message: You are affected by the skill ‘Advanced Iron Wall’: Armor +1000, All Magic Resistances +300, lasts 10 seconds.

You were hit by player “Old Iron Next Door”’s Shattering Arrowhead, damage received: 1 point.

You were hit… damage received: 1 point.

…

Within the dazzling light, Lu Kuan saw a string of system prompts flashing rapidly. In that instant, the old man’s figure blurred and vanished from Lu Kuan’s sight—he had used Phantom Step again!

“Watch out!”

“Ah—!”

Suddenly, cries of alarm and pain rang out. The first to suffer were the reckless rangers who’d attacked.

All anyone could see was a shadow darting through the crowd, too fast for the eye to follow. The rangers barely knew what was happening before they were sent flying, vanishing into beams of white light while still airborne.

One-hit kills!

The onlookers were stunned. But this was Blade of the Flame Demon’s elite team—battle-hardened and disciplined. After a brief moment of panic, several squad leaders began shouting orders.

The Blade of the Flame Demon members quickly split into groups, backs to each other, forming a tight defensive formation. Even Lu Kuan silently nodded in approval.

This was the most reliable formation against a speed-type boss. These players had clearly trained rigorously; if it had been an ordinary group, the old man’s rampage would have scattered them instantly.

However, the old man did not go on a killing spree. After dispatching a few reckless rangers, he flashed back to his original spot at astonishing speed. With a flick of his right hand, he tossed several longbows seized from the rangers onto the ground.

“Amazing!” Lu Kuan rolled over, turning his back to the old man, and with his hands still tied behind him, gave a heartfelt thumbs-up.

The old man glanced at the grinning Lu Kuan but ignored him. To the tense Blade of the Flame Demon members, he said, “I don’t want to kill. Step aside.”

The players glanced at each other, and finally, all eyes settled on Grasshopper, the only main party member present.

Grasshopper had been thoroughly shaken; as if recalling something terrifying, he swallowed hard and made a gesture of invitation. “It was our fault, sir. Please, go ahead.”