Chapter 1 Some Concerns

Nie Yan pondered. Although Century Financial Group had withdrawn its capital from Carol City, failing to acquire Holy Light Flame, he felt a sense of apprehension. He couldn't help but wonder where Cao Xu's capital would flow, which guilds it would ultimately acquire, and whether it would continue to extend its reach towards Nirvana Guild and War God Tribe.

Nie Yan considered that regardless of future circumstances, enhancing one's own strength would always be the most important thing. As long as Nirvana Guild grew strong enough, what was there to fear from Century Financial Group!

Once he understood this, Nie Yan stopped worrying about the matter. He focused on the present, dealing with Triumph Empire and Holy Light Flame first.

"I'll go scout out the Valley of the Damned first. Be careful, and don't be reckless without my orders," Nie Yan said. If Triumph Empire and Holy Light Flame were lying in ambush there, they would need to be prepared.

Nie Yan left the town ahead of them, summoning Faulkner's Warhorse. The tall steed galloped away, leaving behind only a trail of dust.

The team members stared blankly at Nie Yan's departing figure.

Was their boss riding a mount?

Currently, players hadn't even seen a mount, let alone owned one. Mounts raised at the NPC horse farms cost hundreds of gold for good ones, or dozens of gold for poorer ones. They weren't even in the same class as the mount Nie Yan was riding.

Nie Yan's Faulkner's Warhorse was tall and imposing, covered in silver-white chain armor. Its movement speed was frighteningly fast. Just how many movement speed points did it add!

"Damn, the boss has a mount! Why didn't he mention it!"

"That warhorse looks amazing. Where did he get it? Did he buy it?"

"The boss definitely wouldn't spend the money to buy such a good mount." Unkillable Bad Egg and others who were more familiar with Nie Yan knew him quite well.

The cheapest mounts sold at the NPC horse farms cost dozens of gold and only added about 50% movement speed. Those that added 100% or more cost hundreds of gold, while those that added 200% or more cost thousands of gold. And Nie Yan's Faulkner's Warhorse added far more than 200%! Where could one buy such a warhorse? By selling off Nirvana Guild's entire guild warehouse?

"Probably got it from a quest."

The guild members wore envious expressions. Their boss's equipment was becoming more and more incredible. He even had such high-end goods.

Nie Yan rode Faulkner's Warhorse, galloping madly along the road. The scenery on either side flew by quickly.

He searched around outside the Valley of the Damned and found scattered players active there: some from the Holy Roman Empire, some from Triumph Empire, and some from Holy Light Flame and the Garan Divine Temple. They were all eyes and ears placed there by the four major guilds.

Nie Yan sped past on his steed, looking towards the nearby forest. A Thief from Triumph Empire was wandering in that direction.

When the Thief saw Nie Yan, his gaze clearly froze for a moment.

What the hell? Was he seeing things? How could he see Mad Rogue Nie Yan, the boss of Nirvana Guild, here?

And riding a warhorse, no less!

What a fierce and imposing figure!

Even from a distance of over ten yards, he still recognized Nie Yan at a glance. Mad Rogue Nie Yan's appearance was already familiar to countless players.

Just then, a flash of cold light streaked past, a movement of peak speed.

The Triumph Empire Thief was just about to react when a cold light struck the back of his head. A gleaming dagger sliced across his neck, and blood gushed out. Then, another cold light struck his forehead.

A faint figure appeared before the Triumph Empire player, swiftly sending him back to town.

Nie Yan reined in his horse, looking towards the location of the battle. That Thief was quite fast. He wondered who it was. He glanced at the person, who looked to be twenty-three or twenty-four years old, wearing a set of not-so-great leather armor, at best Silver-grade. The dagger in his hand wasn't bad, though.

Taking a closer look, he realized it was someone from Nirvana Guild, named Wudao. That name sounded somewhat familiar.

"Greetings, Leader Nie Yan." Wudao greeted Nie Yan excitedly. He hadn't expected Nie Yan to appear here.

"Hello," Nie Yan nodded, glancing at the corpse on the ground, and said, "Nice technique."

Wudao had killed the Triumph Empire player very cleanly and efficiently.

"I've been watching Leader Nie Yan's videos lately and practicing a lot. I've found it to be quite effective." A huge sense of happiness surged in Wudao's heart. He hadn't expected to be praised by Nie Yan. This was Nie Yan's acknowledgement of him! This sentence would be forever engraved in his mind, something he could proudly savor.

"Are you leveling up here?" Nie Yan asked, wondering why Wudao was here.

"I'm from the Thief Hundred-Man Squad. Leader Guo Huai sent us here to scout." Wudao explained.

To ensure the safety of Nie Yan and the others, Guo Huai had placed many scouts outside the Valley of the Damned. The entire Thief Hundred-Man Squad had been mobilized. In addition to monitoring the surrounding movements, they had also eliminated many of Triumph Empire and Holy Light Flame's eyes and ears.

"If you're from the Thief Hundred-Man Squad, why is your equipment so poor?" Nie Yan pointed to Wudao's gear. It didn't make sense. How could a player with such good technique be wearing such trash equipment! Guo Huai hadn't been stingy with the Thief Hundred-Man Squad. They enjoyed the best equipment in the entire guild. There was no way they should be as shabby as Wudao.

Wudao smiled sheepishly and explained, "I ran into a group of seven from Triumph Empire a few days ago. I killed three of them, but after turning red, I was accidentally killed. All my equipment was looted, and I haven't gotten it back yet." He concealed the embarrassing fact that he had been killed while trying to show off in front of a beautiful female teammate.

Wudao was currently Level 25 or 26, so he must have been at least Level 27 or 28 before. His level was considered quite good. However, being killed while red-named was indeed a tragic matter.

"Go to the guild warehouse and pick out a suitable set of equipment. If you don't have enough guild contribution points, just owe them for now. Tell Guo Huai I said so," Nie Yan said to Wudao. It was a real pity for a player with such good technique to be wearing such poor equipment.

"Thank you, Leader."

"Be careful. Don't get looted again."

"It won't happen again this time." Wudao rubbed his head, smiling awkwardly.

"I'll be going now." Nie Yan spurred Faulkner's Warhorse, riding towards the Valley of the Damned.

"Goodbye, Leader Nie Yan."

Nie Yan rode Faulkner's Warhorse, flying towards the distance. He muttered a name under his breath, "Wudao, Wudao... this name is so familiar, but I just can't remember." After thinking for a moment, he decided to forget it. After all, Nie Yan couldn't possibly remember everyone he had ever met.

Nie Yan entered the entrance to the Valley of the Damned. The terrain of the Valley of the Damned was truly treacherous. In the middle was a stretch of flat ground, overgrown with various weeds, about a dozen yards wide. On either side were steep rock walls, as smooth as if they had been cleaved by a knife.

Looking up, he could only see a line of sky. The cliffs were hundreds of yards high.

Looking at this peculiar terrain, Nie Yan was somewhat inclined to believe the legend. Could this valley really have been cleaved open? Legends weren't necessarily baseless. It was very possible that players had come into contact with some information and then revealed it.

Just like Nie Yan, after reading the Book of Order, he had gained some unknown information.

This canyon was two or three hundred yards long, truly a place where one person could hold off ten thousand.

Nie Yan's gaze searched the rock walls, finding seven or eight caves on either side.

The terrain of the Valley of the Damned was very complex, and there were many caves.

"Guo Huai, how many Feather Fall Gems have we gotten in the guild?" Nie Yan asked. He had mentioned Feather Fall Gems to Guo Huai, asking him to collect more.

"We've only gotten two. There's nothing we can do. The Expert-grade Treant Forest only opens once every five days. Our levels are too high to go in there and fight the treants. We can only send some low-level teams to go," Guo Huai said. Did Nie Yan need to use Feather Fall Gems?

Only two Feather Fall Gems. Nie Yan's idea was shattered.

After thinking for a moment, he had an idea. He would find a way to deal with Triumph Empire and Holy Light Flame later.

He passed through the narrow canyon, rushing towards the center of the Valley of the Damned. As he swept across the open plains, he discovered many battlefields filled with people from Triumph Empire, the Holy Roman Empire, Holy Light Flame, and the Garan Divine Temple. They were all engaged in a chaotic battle.

"Enter the Valley of the Damned!" Nie Yan sent a message to the Nirvana Guild members behind him.

Seeing the lively scene here, Nie Yan couldn't help but feel a little excited. He stowed his horse and took action, killing a few members of Triumph Empire or Holy Light Flame.

"Where are you guys right now?" Nie Yan sent a message to Half-Asleep Fox.

"Damn, you're finally here. Over seven thousand of my brothers have already been killed!" Half-Asleep Fox said in a depressed tone. If Nirvana Guild hadn't come, he would have started cursing Nie Yan for being a bad friend. "We're in the center of the Valley of the Damned, at coordinates 673. We're already fighting the Gold Dragon. People from Triumph Empire and Holy Light Flame are here too."

From Half-Asleep Fox's words, Nie Yan could roughly imagine the chaotic scene!

"I'll be there soon." Nie Yan looked at the coordinates. The 673 Half-Asleep Fox mentioned was the last digit of the coordinates, a simplified way of referring to it. In a relatively small area, a single digit of the coordinates could express the exact location.

Nie Yan rushed quickly in the direction Half-Asleep Fox had mentioned.

Soon, Nie Yan saw a tall figure in the distance. It was the Gold Dragon, about eight or nine yards tall, covered in dark gold scales. Its abdomen bulged out, and it had thick limbs and sharp claws, giving it a powerful feeling. It had a pair of wings on its back, but they were somewhat degenerate and atrophied. These wings clearly couldn't support its huge body.

Normally, Gold Dragons were golden in color. Seeing the strange black light emanating from the gold on the Gold Dragon's body, along with the black lines like runes covering its entire body, Nie Yan's heart tightened. This was a sign of demonization!

A Level 40 demonized Sub Legendary Lord, Gold Dragon!

Around 12 o'clock there will be another update...