Chapter 159: The Troubles of Fiery Conflict Across the Sky
After what felt like an eternity of waiting…
The main forces from all sides had finally ceased their bickering, calming down like a cat that just got its tail stepped on.
At last, the Players gathered at all four main directions of the Illusion Forest.
Just when the countdown timer hit 27:00, a thunderous boom resonated, and a fiery red ball exploded in the air!
Thus commenced the grand offensive into the Illusion Forest.
Yuliya chose a little shrub slightly to the east, slipping in like a sneaky ninja.
She distanced herself from the main troop of Huaxia Server players but stayed close enough to sprint back at a moment’s notice.
This way, she could eavesdrop on any juicy gossip.
With such a vast area to explore, going in solo would have her bumping around like a headless chicken or charging straight toward the center like an anxious bull in a china shop.
Neither seemed particularly wise!
As for jumping in with the massive crowd? Forget it! The more people there are, the slower the progress, and the endless chatter would drive her up the wall.
No, no, she’d stick to her plan of stealthily scouting, checking in occasionally to correct her course. Now that was the way to go!
The advantage of having a crowd is that they can split up and quickly map out the landscape—figuring out where it’s dangerous versus safe, spots bursting with treasure versus those teeming with monsters.
Sure, the information would be outdated, but sometimes you could snag a deal here and there.
At first, she hovered around the big group, progressing alongside them.
But once they ventured deeper and the safety circle shrank, Yuliya would completely peel away and enter her solo exploration phase.
After all, the outer area wasn’t worth her time; she’d taken the opportunity to pave the way for the main troop like a generous tipper.
The Illusion Forest was aptly named! From afar, the whole mountain was shrouded in a whimsical mist.
Beyond the lush green, it was enwrapped in billowing smoke, resembling a heavenly realm amidst the mundane world.
But stepping inside revealed the stark truth: it was all a mirage.
The trees were dark, bordering on black, and the mist? Oh, it was a hot blend of smoke, fog, dust, and stones—not to mention a few irritating little white bugs.
All of this together was like a recipe for a headache that could easily lead you astray.
Not to mention, if you accidentally inhaled some of that mist, it’d make you dizzy, blurring the lines between reality and illusion.
Yuliya could spot that trouble a mile away—the mist was a real nuisance.
Thanks to her Golden Eyes, the usual visual disorientation didn’t faze her, but the mist seemed to pack some kind of mental punch.
Even her formidable mind struggled to linger too long in there, let alone gulp down vast quantities of that smoky goodness.
If it was this tough for her, it was a total nightmare for the other players.
Barely had they crossed into the forest before some players, unable to move forward thanks to the chaos, had to crabwalk back to team up with the Green Shade City scouting squad.
And many scouts sent to explore returned looking like they’d just experienced a bad acid trip, some even turning on their own!
Thankfully, with friendly fire turned off, those scouts would ease back into sanity after a short crazy spree.
The overall commander for the Huaxia Server players in the Illusion Forest was Fiery Conflict Across the Sky, and he was tearing his hair out.
Sure, he foresaw the impending chaos, but he didn’t expect it to spiral out of control so quickly.
He had actively volunteered to come to the Illusion Forest.
One, because he thought the terrain was complicated enough to warrant a big name with strong abilities to keep things together.
As the current third-highest on the leaderboard, he was qualified for the job.
Two, he thought the Illusion Forest was small enough that once they wrapped things up, they could hurry to Green Shade City for a bite.
Now, it seemed that second plan was teetering on the edge of failing miserably.
The environment was messing with their speed far too much!
“Scout teams will split into two. One will avoid the mist and focus on mapping, while the other will go into the mist for intel. We’ll steer clear of the wide fog, but can probe the small patches,” he ordered methodically.
“The first team will go solo—if they encounter monsters, just dodge and report back.”
“For the second team, pair up, and take a five-person combat team to cover outside the mist. If they run into weaker monsters, deal with them; if they’re tougher or in large numbers, back out and report.”
Fiery Conflict Across the Sky handled it all like a pro.
The total number for the Huaxia Server strategy team in the Illusion Forest was around three thousand, with over five thousand already sauntering toward Green Shade City.
Those three thousand were neatly divided into six squads: one logistics and communications team and five combat squads.
Each combat group was designated as vanguard, left wing, right wing, center, and rear guard.
Everything was humming along smoothly, as the first three groups were responsible for mapping out.
With his extensive gaming experience and picturesque family background leading to a lifetime of tactical training, coordinating three thousand players without causing chaos was no problem for him; he even had the leeway to issue basic commands.
Yuliya watched from a distance, nodding in approval.
This kid had some serious leadership vibes, a hint of Hobert in him.
Wait, who’s Hobert?
Yuliya tilted her head in frustration, but the memory remained locked away.
Oh well! Occasionally random thoughts pop into her head, but when she tries to ponder them, it’s like grasping at smoke. What’s meant to be known will come to her eventually.
Speaking of which, she could lead too, but even those ideas felt foggy.
The Golden Princess was no mere decorative flower!
Even if she forgot for now, it didn’t matter—she was currently in a solo push mode, a heartless shark in a sea of chaos.
Thanks to Fiery Conflict Across the Sky’s relentless coordination, the main troop’s pace was picking up again.
His method was simple: ditch the prior plan of bulldozing and shift to a concentrated breakthrough strategy.
In order to bulldoze through, you had to clear everything in your path, ensuring maximum safety for the team, but with the trouble arising, that strategy was starting to look like a wet noodle.
Instead, the concentrated breakthrough focused on packing a punch from small areas inward.
This sped things up nicely—after all, the outer regions didn’t hold much value anyway, no need to waste time there!
But this junior tunnel vision came with a catch: it was all too easy to get flanked by monsters lurking on both sides, turning them into monster dumplings.
If they truly got surrounded in a place like this, it could mean total annihilation.
This strategy definitely came with its own risks.
But hey, there were ways to counter this flaw: just charge ahead quickly; the rear would have no chance to wrap around!
“I really wish we had a strong bruiser,” Fiery Conflict Across the Sky sighed, gazing into the distance.
Sure, their vanguard team was the strongest, but they lacked a decisive figure.
He could fill that role, but as the commander, he had to stay in the center and control the overall flow.
“d*mn it! Why did I trust those guys’s nonsense and come here all alone at the start?”
At the outset, four powerful, respected Huaxia Server players were assigned to command—each one at the top of the scoreboard and head of their guild.
But because he rashly volunteered for the trip, the other three high-tailed it to Green Shade City!
Why? Because those three cocky guys had said, “Don’t worry, he’s definitely heading to the forest.”
And guess what? Not a single shadow of them to be found!
