Chapter 39

The Destroyer's move was extremely sudden, catching everyone off guard. First, he had already discarded a broken sniper rifle, and no one could have imagined that he still had a spatial magic artifact, and inside it was another gun, hidden so secretly. The timing of his ambush was also extremely lethal, right after Sun Ran had cast a Level 3 Fireball and was about to use an Ice Whirlblade to finish off his opponent. Normally, at this moment, Sun Ran would have had the victory in his grasp, and his guard would be the most relaxed. Using his trump card at this moment would have the highest chance of success. Henry aimed and fired, the entire process taking less than 0.1 seconds, firing the decisive shot at a speed that left no time for reaction. Whether it was the Destroyer Henry, the game administrators watching, or Bai Tingxuan and Ke'er on the side, they all believed that Sun Ran was doomed. If Sun Ran was eliminated, no one would be left to oppose the Destroyer, and he would surely escape back to the capital of the principality, leading to the failure of the mission.

"It's over," the administrators watching thought. Ke'er, who had lost an arm, immediately raised her hand, picked up a dagger, and was about to stab herself in the heart, intending to exit the game and leave her body for Sun Ran to take over. She was an assassin, and with a severed arm, her combat ability was almost completely lost. If Sun Ran took over, he could still exert significant combat power. This was the only way she could think of to possibly turn the tide, but the chances were slim because the Destroyer could easily finish her off with a single shot.

However, they did not understand Sun Ran. Sun Ran never took risky actions. In the past, his heart was extremely fragile, and any risky move that could stimulate his heart would lead to tragedy. Years of living cautiously had instilled in him the habit of always having a backup plan. Moreover, his defensive measures were not limited to just the Ice Shield spell.

In the virtual world, time continued to flow. Just 0.1 seconds after the muzzle flash, Sun Ran reacted. His eyes suddenly emitted a blinding white light, and the space around his body shook violently. Then, the air within a five-meter radius around him became as stagnant as water. Grass leaves blown by the wind, upon entering the area in front of Sun Ran, almost immediately slowed to a near stop. In the next instant, the leaves were propelled away by a powerful force lurking in the void, moving as swiftly as arrows.

Bai Tingxuan, who was at the edge of this force, was also affected. She felt a powerful, yet flexible force push her body, sending her flying backward for several meters before she landed. Almost the moment the space was formed, a small black shadow, the size of a peanut, appeared at the edge of the space and plunged in. Its speed rapidly slowed, revealing a bullet spinning at high speed and moving in a straight line. Due to the sudden increase in resistance from the medium, the bullet's straight-line motion lasted only a moment before it began to tumble randomly, and its trajectory turned into a curve, barely missing Sun Ran's head by ten centimeters, causing him no harm.

This life-and-death confrontation lasted only a brief moment. By the time it ended, Ke'er's dagger had not yet pierced her heart, Bai Tingxuan's scream of shock had not yet faded, and the game administrators were still in shock from the Destroyer's treacherous ambush, unable to react. When the gunshot faded and Sun Ran was still standing, everyone realized that the Destroyer's carefully planned decisive shot had been completely ineffective.

"What just happened?" Hao Qiang asked. The response was silence; no one knew what had happened. Could it have been a miss? This seemed impossible. Any Destroyer who could use a gun was undoubtedly a marksman who never missed. In the virtual world, everyone had enough time, energy, and resources to train. If you could fire a hundred thousand bullets a day for thirty years and still not become a marksman, there was something wrong with your brain.

Since it wasn't a miss, Sun Ran must have used some technique, but the speed was too fast, and the game administrators couldn't see what had happened. However, someone did see it: the Destroyer Henry. His face was filled with shock and fear. "Mind Power? Externalization of Spirit? Good, good spell, good mage!"

In the virtual world, mages rely on meditation to cultivate their power, a daily practice known as Mind Power. Over time, the thoughts in a mage's mind gradually become a mysterious force that can interfere with reality, known as Spirit. From the perspective of the virtual world, Spirit is the intuitive manifestation of data control. Among all the abilities of the native mages, the only one that could be instantly cast was Spirit. However, for an average mage, Spirit could only move leaves, and moving a stone weighing a dozen pounds was already a remarkable feat. The person in front of him could, in a single thought, forcibly alter the trajectory of a bullet. His spell cultivation, or rather, his data control ability, had reached an incredible level.

After firing the shot, Henry recognized the situation and realized that he could not possibly be the opponent of a mage who could use Spirit to deflect bullets. He lost all resistance and, without hesitation, put away the sniper rifle, leaned back to dodge the incoming Ice Whirlblade, and then jumped up, fleeing into the depths of the wilderness in a panic. This mage was too abnormal, and he had no confidence to continue the fight.

Sun Ran followed, and as he passed Bai Tingxuan, he said in a deep voice, "You immediately take Ke'er and leave here." According to legend, vampires could summon their descendants for help through blood power. This vampire would definitely not give up the aid of the bat army. If the army arrived, Bai Tingxuan and Ke'er would surely be doomed, so it was best to stay far away.

Bai Tingxuan said urgently, "I'll go with you." Not far away, Ke'er shouted loudly, "Husband, you and Sister Xuan go, I'll exit the game and wait for your good news." She stabbed herself in the heart with a dagger and fell backward, leaving the game world. She was too injured, and staying in the game had no meaning.

Sun Ran was slightly taken aback, then gave a self-deprecating smile. He still hadn't fully adapted to the role of a Maintainer and, when focused, would unconsciously forget that this was a virtual world. "Alright, you follow me!" He grabbed Bai Tingxuan's hand and chased after the Destroyer.

Henry's speed was not slow. At full speed, he was only slightly slower than Sun Ran, who had the Speed Charm. He was also skilled at using the terrain to his advantage, and after several twists and turns, he managed to negate Sun Ran's speed advantage. The three of them raced across the wilderness, maintaining a distance of about two hundred meters.

After a few minutes, Henry, seeing that he couldn't shake off his pursuers, threatened, "Stop chasing me, you won't catch me. Once I reach the capital of the principality, you'll be shot to death by arrows!"

Sun Ran's voice was calm. "The direction you're running isn't toward Targovishte. In less than twenty miles, you'll be blocked by the Danube River. If you turn, I'll catch up to you immediately. So, no matter what, you're finished!"

Twenty miles, at their current speed, would take fifteen minutes to cover. When they reached the river, the Destroyer's progress would be hindered, and Sun Ran could easily kill him with a spell.

Sun Ran was telling the truth, and Henry knew it. His tone softened. "Brother, I'm just trying to make a living. Let me go."

"The administrators are watching, and everything is monitored. Will begging me do any good?" Sun Ran found it amusing.

Henry chuckled, looking somewhat embarrassed. Suddenly, Bai Tingxuan drew a rune with a magic artifact and lightly touched her and Sun Ran's ears.

"Wind Ear," she explained. "Listen, there are hoofbeats, at least three hundred riders coming from the direction of Targovishte."

Sun Ran also heard it and asked, "Vampire, is that your bat army?"

Unlike Sun Ran, who had the Speed Charm, Henry had been relying on the vampire's physical strength to run at full speed, and he was already panting. If he continued, he would definitely be finished. He panted and laughed, "Indeed, my army is coming to save me. They are riding the best horses, which are as fast as we are. Just watch, the outcome today will be you being shot to death by arrows."

The game administrators also contacted Sun Ran: "Cavalry has appeared, numbering 323. They are currently ten miles to the east and, at their current speed, will intercept you on your path."

The situation was reversed again. If they continued to chase, encountering the cavalry would be very troublesome. It wasn't that they couldn't fight, but if Sun Ran started to gather data and cast a powerful Level 4 spell, he could wipe out the three hundred riders in one hit. The problem was that these were all ordinary players, and killing a few was fine, but killing all of them would bankrupt the game company.

With the cavalry approaching, Sun Ran began to cast spells to accelerate, preparing for a quick resolution. He first spent ten seconds casting an Ice Shield in front of him, maintaining it with his staff, and then, using his multitasking ability, cast a Wind Bridge with his other hand.

With a 'whoosh,' the wind enveloped them, and both Sun Ran and Bai Tingxuan's speed increased significantly, rapidly closing the distance. Seeing this, Henry moved his hand, took out the sniper rifle again, aimed at Sun Ran, and shouted, "I warn you, don't take any risks. If you get any closer, I'll shoot!"

He didn't believe that Sun Ran could maintain the Ice Shield flawlessly while multitasking. Sun Ran ignored his threat and continued to accelerate. Soon, the distance between them was reduced to a hundred meters, within spell range. During this time, Henry kept aiming, but every time he moved his gun, the Ice Shield in front of Sun Ran would change position, blocking the bullet trajectory with perfect precision, never showing any weakness.

"Damn, this isn't human!" Henry was on the verge of tears, finally giving up on the sniper plan and resorting to the vampire's ultimate skill: Blood Escape.

Blood Escape, a vampire's burst skill, Level 2, uses blood essence to significantly enhance physical attributes, especially agility, until the blood essence is exhausted. The Destroyer's body was enveloped in a faint red blood shadow, and his speed increased even further, surpassing Sun Ran and Bai Tingxuan.

Sun Ran frowned, not expecting this move. This guy was tough. He changed his strategy, using his multitasking ability to maintain the Ice Shield and Wind Bridge while casting Ice Whirlblades at the Destroyer. Due to the limitations of his multitasking, the casting speed of the Ice Whirlblades slowed, from one per second to one every two seconds, continuously attacking the Destroyer.

Henry dodged left and right, his super agility from Blood Escape giving him a slim chance of survival. He managed to avoid the critical hits from the Ice Whirlblades, so although his body was covered in blood, he wasn't seriously injured and continued to run quickly. This life-and-death situation was unbearable for Henry, and he could only hope that his reinforcements would arrive soon to save him. He was almost at his limit, and without support, he would be kicked out of the game by this abnormal mage.

Finally, when Sun Ran used an Ice Whirlblade to sever one of Henry's hands and an ear, the rumbling of hooves sounded, and a black line appeared on the horizon. The bat army had arrived. Henry was overjoyed, almost crying with relief. He had managed to hold on, which was already a superhuman effort.

Sun Ran frowned, not expecting his opponent to be so tough. Did he have to use his big move? At this moment, Bai Tingxuan, who had been silent, suddenly spoke. "Sun Ran, you go after him. I'll hold off the cavalry!"