Chapter 2664: Retrieve the National Heirloom Treasure
Displaying his power proved that he could not only escape from the sanatorium but also single-handedly dismantle Lian Qingkong's plans ahead of time.
The chilling, murderous intent, as tangible as frost, had already surrounded them from all directions, but it did not advance another inch. After a few seconds, it receded along with the darkness.
By now, the room was filled with players. The distance between Xu Huo and the hospital bed had widened, and several players had surrounded him tightly, forming a human wall. Various items had also sealed him within a two-meter space, giving him no chance to approach Lian Qingkong.
"Cough, cough!" The sound of Lian Qingkong's coughing echoed in the room, which quickly turned into laughter. He waved away the players beside him, looked at Xu Huo, and said, "Then I'll take this gamble with you!"
Xu Huo stood up and gave him a slight nod in acknowledgment.
"Dai He, go with him." Lian Qingkong raised his hand slightly, and a middle-aged man stepped forward.
The deal was thus concluded.
However, just before leaving, Xu Huo added, "I heard that the highest worship of the Supreme Goddess Cult in Isle Country is darkness, and the deity has no specific form. I wonder if this is related to the Assassin Clan. Mr. Lian, do you go by the surname Gao or Peng?"
Lian Qingkong did not answer this question.
Of course, Xu Huo wasn't really seeking an answer, but after they walked out of the Government Building, Dai He voluntarily said, "In Isle Country, anyone can go by the surname Gao or Peng."
Xu Huo glanced at him, then dialed a contact on his communicator. Once connected, he said directly, "I'm going to retrieve the National Heirloom Treasure. Arrange some people to protect me. I'm in front of the Capital City Government Building now. We'll depart in five minutes. I'll tell you the address when we leave."
"Xu Zhi!" Xiao Mei ran over from a distance, asking hurriedly, "Do you have a way to clear the instance?"
"I'm about to go get the National Heirloom Treasure," Xu Huo said. "Do you want to come along?"
"Of course I do!" Xiao Mei said with surprise. "I didn't expect things to have progressed this far in just a day or two. Don't worry, I'll give it my all!"
Xu Huo smiled. After five minutes passed, he sent the address to Wan Ping and then used a Teleportation Item to head to Mie City.
Space Teleportation Item—outsiders didn't know his destination, so catching up might take some time. Thus, upon arriving in Mie City, he blew up Gao Hui's hometown, which had already turned into a garbage mountain, and used a Robot to dig underground for over ten minutes before finally "retrieving" a box.
By the time the box was in his hands, the other players finally arrived belatedly. Space items and devices interfered with each other, making long-distance teleportation impossible. So Xu Huo, Dai He, Painting Woman, and Xiao Mei split into two groups to rush back to Capital City.
There was no definitive news confirming that what Xu Huo had found was the National Heirloom Treasure, but since he had come out of the Government Building, seemingly met with Lian Qingkong, and had Dai He accompanying him, the group secretly went to Gao Hui's hometown and caused such a huge explosion—it was hard not to be suspicious.
Suspicion wasn't confirmation, but it was enough.
The ones who came in the greatest numbers were naturally the Stranded Players. Whether it was real or fake, they had to intercept him, especially since Xu Huo had caused such a commotion.
From the moment Xu Huo and his group stepped out of Mie City, they were subjected to relentless pursuit. The Advanced Players stranded there who had survived until now were all skilled, and their various items were endless, capable of tripping up the two at any moment.
As someone who could become a person close to the next Grand Archon, Dai He's strength was certainly not lacking, but facing multiple opponents, even having eight arms wouldn't be enough.
Although he had long known about the arrangements at the sanatorium and understood that freeing up too many hands at this time was impossible, he still seized a gap to send a distress signal to the government side.
Just at that moment, two players' Trait powers converged on him. After being knocked to the ground, he had no chance to escape and could only activate a Defense Barrier to endure. However, to his surprise, the two powers suddenly disappeared as they approached him, and then, one after another, corpses fell from the sky not far away!
In the lush forest, figures could be faintly seen flashing by at incredible speeds, too fast for the naked eye to capture. By the time one belatedly sensed their presence, they had already changed positions, followed by another player's corpse.
"Friend or foe?" Dai He asked Xu Huo, who had just shaken off the entanglement of several other players.
"Everyone appearing here is here to snatch the National Heirloom Treasure. None of them are your friends." Xu Huo wiped the blood splattered on his face. "Stay sharp. There are still several days to go."
Dai He noticed that Xu Huo was smiling. How could he still smile in a situation like this? This was a continuous siege by players, where a single slip could mean death. Was he really willing to gamble this big just to clear an instance?
A hundred-meter-long sword energy blade swept across in front of them, cutting down large swaths of trees. As the view opened up, nearly twenty players appeared ahead of them one after another. These people were full of energy and well-stocked with items, clearly not about to retreat easily.
"Brother, need some help?" Some people also arrived from behind, the speaker being a masked player.
"Kidnapper?" Xu Huo raised an eyebrow. "You're still alive?"
"The guy who can kill me hasn't been born yet," the masked man said with a grin. "How about this? You give me the National Heirloom Treasure, and I'll help you draw their fire. What do you say?"
Xu Huo also smiled. Then he took out a sound-amplifying item and said to the surrounding people, "The National Heirloom Treasure has been found. It should disappear after this instance ends. Both those who succeed and those who fail in clearing the instance can leave Zone 039 smoothly. As for those players who haven't been stranded for too long, you can take this chance to make a gamble too."
"Players interested in clearing the instance and leaving can join my team now. After a successful clearance, the rewards will be split equally!"
This was quite a tempting bait. There was risk, no doubt, but who wouldn't want to hitch a ride?
"You're not really going to believe him, are you?" the masked man said at this point. "He's holding the National Heirloom Treasure and is definitely going to find Lian Qingkong. He has people from the Isle Country government with him. Leading them over might not be to let you clear the instance. Maybe the National Heirloom Treasure is fake, and the goal is to wipe out all the Stranded Players before Lian Qingkong dies!"
"He's already pulled this trick once!"
This kind of reasoning was more plausible. If Lian Qingkong knew the whereabouts of the National Heirloom Treasure, why wouldn't he go get it himself, instead of waiting until he was dying to send an Outer Zone Player to retrieve it?
But anything was possible. What if it was real?
For those players stranded for several years or even over a decade, once the National Heirloom Treasure was found and given to Lian Qingkong, it would be equivalent to a death sentence!
"What a pity. Not many people are on my side." Xu Huo surveyed the surrounding crowd, put away the Black Blade, and flexed his wrists. "Taking a short rest like this is fine."
As soon as he finished speaking, he pressed down with one hand. Every player encircling the area, without exception, was slammed to the ground. Among them were several players who had been hiding with exceptional skill.
These few were most likely reinforcements sent by the Two Surnames faction. Their faces and bodies could be faked, and they appeared to be Outer Zone Players... but their true identities no longer mattered. Once the instance ended, no one in Zone 039 would be searching for the descendants of the Two Surnames.