Chapter 1884: Flag Battle
The two of them didn’t speak again after that. When half an hour was up, Xu Huo closed his umbrella and left first, while Pink Hair also headed off in another direction.
Without the rain to mask the sounds, fighting noises came from different directions almost simultaneously. Xu Huo found an open spot and saw that Deng Xiahei and Juan Er had already climbed to the top of the tallest building, planting the flag representing Zone 010 on the rooftop.
Because instruments had been set up throughout the city, players who had already arrived from other safe zones hadn’t fully entered the city. But when they saw the Zone 010 flag flying high outside, they couldn’t help but feel a surge of energy. Some even cheered loudly. At that moment, Deng Xiahei stood on the rooftop, holding a megaphone, shouting that Zone 010 players had already occupied the Sand Sea Safe Zone, urging those still struggling to hold on—the main force would arrive soon.
The information about how to clear the instance and the emergence of an A-rank player in Zone 010 couldn’t be spread by them directly. So the former was left to Brother Wu, Big Comb-Back, and Xiao Hui, while the latter was left to Zone 010 players. Having these two pieces of news come from different factions would make them more credible.
With neither Zone 010 nor the Sand Sea Safe Zone having a clear advantage, it was hard for a situation like the earlier destruction of Zone 010’s safe zone to repeat itself. Once the battle spread across the city, dragging things out wasn’t difficult.
Sounds of fighting occasionally came from different directions, sometimes accompanied by barriers breaking and then reforming. As the number of Zone 010 players gradually increased, the outer zone players who had been in the middle hesitated and were no longer as eager to fight as before. The Sand Sea side began to struggle. Adding to that, news spread that Zone 010 had hung their flag on the city’s highest point. Whether they realized the flag might affect combat effectiveness or simply wanted to fight for pride, players started rushing toward the tallest building one after another.
A battle over the flag had begun.
As time passed, the flag changed hands several times. More and more players gathered near the building. The previously scattered battlefield converged again, all centered around the tallest building. Whether they had entered the building or were stuck outside, whether they could free up their hands or not, anyone who saw the flag on top wasn’t theirs would find a way to knock it down.
Not only that, but they seemed to have started a game of planting and pulling flags. Both Zone 010 and Sand Sea sides had likely emptied their inventories, planting their own flags on various rooftops across the city. Some even took the time to order custom flags through Under Dimension—Xu Huo knew this because he happened to pass by the two people who were ordering them.
In terms of stockpiles, Zone 010 definitely had the advantage. But once the Sand Sea side’s custom flags arrived, Zone 010 fell behind for a moment, forcing them to scramble for flags everywhere.
Just as the flag battle was reaching its peak, someone used an item to stir up a sandstorm—“Umbrella Means Rain” didn’t have a large enough coverage area. After all, the city had been battered by yellow sand for years, and sand to obscure vision could be found in any direction.
The situation became chaotic for a while. No one could find the culprit, and there was no suitable item to stop the sandstorm in time.
So Xu Huo went to the area near the tallest building and made the rain fall again.
The swirling sandstorm quickly subsided. As the rain gradually lightened, everyone realized that almost all the flags they had painstakingly planted had been blown away by the wind. When they looked at the tallest building, they saw that Zone 010’s flag was still flying, but now a person in a black cloak and black mask stood beside it.
But with just one glance, Xu Huo entered the building. This wasn’t the instance he needed to clear; he only needed to disguise himself as an A-rank player from Zone 010 to disrupt the battle’s direction.
The gift from the game creator of the “Ember Maiden” instance was very effective. It could conceal his appearance and prevent others from seeing his evolution level, making his identity hard to recognize. Appearing at such a coincidental time, it was hard not to make people speculate about his identity. When two Sand Sea Safe Zone players were thrown out of the building, everyone realized that Zone 010 might really have an A-rank player.
Brother Xia and the others still had some brains. They said to Zhang Kai and the others, whose hearts were pounding, “If he really were an A-rank player, why would he hide in the building and not come out? This is Zone 010’s trick!”
But it wasn’t just Sand Sea players trying to enter the building. A few clearance players who wanted to test Xu Huo’s strength also tried and were thrown out. So far, it seemed no one could reach the rooftop or tear down Zone 010’s flag.
Brother Xia and the others certainly didn’t want to believe this fact, but seeing everyone who entered the building return in defeat, they were uncertain.
People like Zhang Kai, who had come to Zone 010 early and occupied the Sand Sea Safe Zone, didn’t want to give up their territory. Giving up meant they would become homeless dogs from now on. Brother Xia’s group were later clearance players stuck here, unable to leave. They wanted to take the Sand Sea Safe Zone to gain control, but if Zone 010 really had an A-rank player, there was no need for them to risk their lives… Unfortunately, Brother Xia and his group had just planned an attack on the safe zone and successfully carried it out with good results. Even if they wanted to switch sides now, they had to consider whether Zone 010 would settle scores later.
Zhang Kai and the others weren’t stupid either. They immediately used this to incite Brother Xia’s group to fight to the death with Zone 010.
Liao Xiaoyi’s side realized the possibility of winning over Brother Xia’s group—even if the ringleader Brother Xia was out of the question, the others who had followed along might be swayed. So after gaining a certain advantage, they started negotiating with the remaining players. As long as they stopped siding with the cannibal players and opposing them, Zone 010 would let bygones be bygones and treat them as their own. After all, they were stuck here and couldn’t clear the instance anyway, so they might as well help build Zone 010.
This sounded reasonable. Even though people like Zhang Kai, who had various reasons for not wanting the Sand Sea Safe Zone to return to Zone 010, kept provoking and shouting, they couldn’t stop those who didn’t want to fight anymore.
But just as Zone 010 was about to win, the flag on the tallest building was suddenly broken. Although no one knew who did it, a Sand Sea player stepped forward to claim responsibility. “Zone 010 people are vengeful. We’ve all killed people from Zone 010. Bowing our heads will only lead to retaliation! Take the Sand Sea Safe Zone, and we’ll be the ones in charge here!”
Where there was a leader, there were followers. The battle, which had just calmed down, shifted again. The Sand Sea side regrouped. Someone stood in a conspicuous spot, pointing at the tallest building. “That’s not an A-rank player at all—just an outer zone player pretending to be one!”
(End of chapter)