Chapter 72

In the game *Dragon Tomb*, it is rare for sieges to occur.

Player confrontations usually take the form of national wars. These are strategic battles between two countries, and compared to sieges, national wars are not only more interesting but also more exciting.

However, this does not mean that sieges never happen.

Compared to national wars, the simple conquest of one city at a time is too slow and ineffective.

Often, just as one side begins to act, the major guilds of the opposing country have already mobilized and launched a large-scale counterattack. The result is a large-scale PK, with the city itself becoming a mere pretext for the conflict. The only proper siege that Zhou Xian knew of was the Heavenly Treasure City Defense of the Eternal Dynasty, which was also when the Eternal Dynasty and the Chi Long Guild first became enemies.

However, there are exceptions to sieges.

—For example, neutral cities.

If any city in the Xuanwu or Zhuque countries is attacked, people from other places will come to support it. However, as a neutral city, Hundred Flowers City is like an orphan. Moreover, because of the many business opportunities in Hundred Flowers City, it is coveted by many.

In such a place, Jian Nanxing immediately realized that he could take advantage of the situation and capture it.

This was definitely a good thing.

At least, in Jian Nanxing's view, it was a good thing.

"System Notice: Xuanwu Country has launched a surprise attack on Hundred Flowers City. The relationship between Xuanwu Country and Hundred Flowers City has become hostile."

In a state of war, all trade between the two sides would cease, and some events and festivals would also be suspended.

However, Jian Nanxing was not worried, as he was confident that he could capture the city in just one day.

Hundred Flowers City had only the most basic walls and towers. From a distance, the catapults of Xuanwu Country launched a barrage, and the walls were instantly riddled with holes.

Under the cover of artillery fire, Xuanwu Country's warriors immediately advanced toward Hundred Flowers City.

At this moment, all the players in Hundred Flowers City received the news.

"Xuanwu Country has launched a siege?! We can't let them succeed!"

Some players from Zhuque Country immediately took action upon hearing the news.

"System Notice: Hundred Flowers City has begun a temporary recruitment. Players can sign up freely. After signing up, they can participate in the siege. Based on their performance in the siege, players can earn a certain amount of merit points, which can be used to exchange for special loot. Players participating in the defense will not lose experience points upon death."

"There's loot?!"

Some casual players who were just watching immediately perked up when they saw the system notice.

When they saw the loot, their eyes widened.

The third-tier loot was an entry ticket to the Ancient Battlefield!

This ancient battlefield is a special dungeon in Hundred Flowers City, where players can obtain high-level equipment for level 70 and materials to enhance weapons. Even if they only got this, it would be worth it!

The second-tier loot was even more eye-catching. It was the latest Hundred Flowers Puppet made by Hundred Flowers City. This puppet not only has formidable attack power but can also serve as a tank and provide healing. More impressively, it can transform into a living armor! However, there were only 1000 of these, and they were given on a first-come, first-served basis.

The first-tier loot was even more impressive. It was a weapon with a score of over 100! Although the Hundred Flowers Puppet is strong, a good weapon is even more important. This weapon was also limited, with only 10 available, reducing the number by 100 times.

Above that, there was a special-tier loot.

When the special-tier loot was revealed, it was not ordinary players who were envious, but the guild leaders and powerful figures in Hundred Flowers City.

"…An ancient holy weapon, the Dragon Breath Fire Cloud Staff!!! It's actually an ancient holy weapon!"

In the game, players judge equipment by system scores, but NPCs use terms like "divine weapon," "mystic weapon," and "legendary." Ancient holy weapons are even more terrifying.

Each of these weapons is a formidable existence.

Upon seeing that Hundred Flowers City had put up the ancient holy weapon Dragon Breath Fire Cloud Staff, ordinary players immediately knew that it was out of their reach.

—This thing is good, but how can one person compete with those major guilds?

Most people focused on the first-tier and second-tier loot.

"Xiao Dan, come quickly, or you'll miss your chance! An ancient holy weapon! It's an ancient holy weapon!"

"Da Wa, hurry up! Teleport over! A weapon with a score of over 100! Hundred Flowers City is giving away ten, come and grab them with me!"

In an instant, players started sending emails and making phone calls.

In less than five minutes, the number of defenders in Hundred Flowers City increased from the thousands to the tens of thousands. After the first wave of Xuanwu Country's attack, the number had already reached 30,000.

In the first wave of the assault, Zhou Xian's guards and the combat forces of the Flowing Cloud Temple did not join the fight. The players alone were enough to hold off the enemy.

"Truly worthy of the City Lord, just one reward has made these people so crazy." On the highest tower of Hundred Flowers Palace, Zhou Xian was observing the situation. By his side was Fairy Caidie, responsible for coordinating the defense.

"It's nothing, just because I understand these people."

Players are such creatures; they can get excited over a small reward and die countless times for a weapon.

Seeing the players' enthusiasm for the weapons, Zhou Xian couldn't help but sigh.

These people can treat *Dragon Tomb* as a game, but for Zhou Xian, it was no longer possible. He possessed too much power, and the restriction was that he could not "die" in the game.

In this regard, ordinary players were truly fortunate.

"But I didn't expect that I would encounter such a thing as soon as I returned."

In the real world, Zhou Xian had just dealt with the assassins, and in the game world, Xuanwu Country was already making moves.

Although Xuanwu Country had never been friendly toward him, at least they had not acted rashly.

But now, who knows what was going on.

If there was no one behind the scenes stirring things up, Zhou Xian would not believe it.

Not far away, two waves of players had already clashed.

The battle between the players was a "chaos."

There was no organized combat, no brilliant tactics.

When the two groups collided, Zhou Xian could only see the colorful light of the players' skills.

The moment the two groups made contact, the chaos made the situation incredibly complex.

"The battle is at a stalemate."

Because of the chaos, Zhou Xian stopped watching the large-scale "brawl" that was impossible to "appreciate" and instead opened his system map. He marked his side in red and the enemy in blue, then observed through the small map.

Through the small map, the chaos of the players' battle was even more evident. Although the Xuanwu Country side seemed more organized, they could not handle the groups of "rabble" from Hundred Flowers City, and their own formations began to fall apart due to the influence of Hundred Flowers City.

On the small map, Zhou Xian clearly saw a circular combat area where the red and blue lights were completely mixed together. It was impossible to separate these small colored blocks.

"Master, one thousand combat puppets equipped with Fire Dragon Cannons are now ready and can set out at any time!"

A small black octopus appeared behind Zhou Xian.

This black octopus was small and round, and at first glance, it looked quite cute.

"Good work, Xiao Hei."

Despite its cute appearance, this black octopus was once a terrifying Hundred Demons, a member of the demon race. It had become Zhou Xian's subordinate to save its life. However, the contract Zhou Xian had signed with it could bind its soul, so he was not afraid of betrayal.

Xiao Hei possessed the knowledge and skills of the demon race, making him far superior to humans and demons in technical expertise.

"It's no problem, Master. Using these people as test subjects is actually a good choice."

Uh, although the players were still very enthusiastic, they probably did not know that the Hundred Flowers Puppets they were looking forward to were actually just test subjects for Xiao Hei's experiments to create puppetized living armor or armorized living puppets. By participating in the exchange for these Hundred Flowers Puppets, they were actually helping Xiao Hei with his experiments.

As for the ten first-tier swords, they were just Martin Luther King's rations...

The third-tier loot was not worth mentioning. Although it was limited, it was actually a completely worthless and cost-free protective item.

As for the Dragon Breath Fire Cloud Staff, which many people were crazy about, Zhou Xian did not care at all. He had no intention of giving it away. Although the Dragon Breath Fire Cloud Staff had a score of zero and was already damaged when Zhou Xian obtained it, who says a broken thing can't be played with?

"Xuanwu Country has invested so many catapults at once. It seems they are preparing for a decisive battle, but now that is unlikely. So, their next step should be to seek reinforcements from their country and have other guilds organize players to come in, right?"

Unlike the flag-capturing mode in national wars, in a siege, only by occupying the enemy's camp can one win completely. This increases the difficulty of the game. Once Xuanwu Country cannot capture Hundred Flowers City in one go, their plans will be in vain.