Skyslasher's face stiffened as he looked up at the night sky. A dark shadow was vaguely visible moving through the clouds.
"Damn it, is he still after us? It's Vanguard of Dark's doing. What does this have to do with us?" Skyslasher cursed darkly.
Ivy gave a bitter smile. "One of the guild's top players, and we've only seen the tip of his strength."
Skyslasher frowned. "He didn't kill us, so that means… he's headed for Bloodaxe City too?"
"I've made a deal with the Bloodaxe Clan. If Orgod wants to attack the city, we can't let him succeed easily!" Ivy's eyes were filled with determination. Though Usher had said it wasn't the right time to engage Orgod, they weren't the kind of people to let themselves be trampled on. They couldn't keep retreating in front of Orgod. They had to show their strength and make him reconsider!
Skyslasher said, "Usher's been summoned to the Rebellion and can't leave. Looks like we'll have to bring them in to hold the line."
Legion Channel: Skyslasher took a deep breath and shouted, "He's here."
Instantly, thousands of players in the legion channel reacted, creating a massive wave of chatter.
CrimsonTiger: "Everyone in Bloodaxe City, rally! That bastard wants to push them into the Endless Sea. We can't let him get away with it!"
EclipseRider: "If he dares show up, he better be prepared to get slashed down. This isn't the Light Dragon Territory, he's not invincible here!"
TitanBreaker: "Reaver, want revenge? Come to Bloodaxe City, and I'll help you fulfill your dream."
…
The eight top guild leaders spoke up. These were people from Usher's real-life circle, who had followed him into the Dark Dragon faction. Although they joined the game late, they were all influential figures in real life.
To these people, a former professional player was nothing but a toy for the capital. If it weren't for sparing Usher's face, they would have already wiped Orson off both online and offline.
"He's not as simple as you think. For now, he's unbeatable," Reaver coldly replied. He was holding two daggers and single-handedly cutting down an elite boss.
"Orgod... Orgod... I want you dead! I want you disgraced!" His chest burned with endless fury, but deep down, he knew that SSR was gone... Snow Dream had betrayed them, and Wedge and DonutWizard had likely quit.
With no choice, Reaver led a small group of former SSR players into the Celestial Warriors guild. Now, he was biding his time, waiting for the right moment to strike. A single SSR opportunity to take down Orson!
"You've found Bloodaxe City!"
"Hidden mission updated!"
At dawn, Orson appeared at the mission point outside Bloodaxe City, where Ninelra had been waiting for a while.
Inside a cave, over 800 half-orc warriors lay in wait, ready for the Queen's command to attack.
Ninelra: "Are you ready, God-Emperor's Blessed?"
"You need to hold Bloodaxe King Odes for at least 10 minutes to create an opportunity for me to take Bloodaxe City," the system said.
Orson rubbed his chin, deep in thought. "Do you think it's possible for me to solo Bloodaxe King? And, by the way, can you get me some more of that potion you showed me before?"
Ninelra's fuzzy ears twitched. She looked at him in disbelief, then snorted. "You're too arrogant. Even with the God-Emperor's blessing, Bloodaxe King will see you as nothing but grass."
"Are you sure?"
Orson smirked, and the Chaos Hexagram appeared beneath his feet. The Wind Elemental Goddess possessed him, and he smiled, "Awakened: Hurricane..."
"You!!"
Ninelra was startled. She had been injured by this attack before and stared at him in horror. "A god! Has a god descended?"
"Great Dragon God! This is a divine miracle from you again!"
At this moment, many of the half-orc soldiers saw the spectacle and immediately knelt in reverence, worshiping. Orson was dumbfounded.
He quickly interrupted his spell, looking back in confusion. He thought they were staring at the illusion of the Elemental Goddess, but when he turned around, he realized they were looking at something behind him.
Orson turned his head, and saw Crimson Lizard King's head sticking into the cave, looking greedily at the muscular half-orcs like they were food, saliva dripping from its mouth.
Orson was puzzled. Unlike before, Crimson Lizard King was usually bloodthirsty toward dragons, but now it was eyeing the half-orcs like a meal.
"Ancient Dragon God!" Ninelra gasped, falling to one knee in front of Crimson Lizard King, her eyes filled with fanatic emotion.
"You… how many aliases do you have?"
Orson pulled out a stick and smacked it on Crimson Lizard King's head, forcing the beast's head out of the cave entrance.
Crimson Lizard King?
Death God Dragon Clan?
Now, even "Ancient Dragon God" had emerged.
So many flashy titles, Orson couldn't help but feel a bit envious of his pet.
"Has the Dragon God signed a contract with you?" Ninelra stared, wide-eyed, as if she had seen a ghost, fear seeping into her gaze.
Orson chuckled as he observed Ninelra's expression. He suspected she was about to say the word "heretic," but when she met Crimson Lizard King's blood-red eyes, she swallowed her words.
"Please, Dragon God, lead us half-orcs to rebuild our homeland! Your magnificent figure will once again soar through the kingdom's skies! We shall offer you endless sacrifices!"
A few priests, their eyes filled with tears, begged Orson.
Orson could only think, "Eat, want to eat, delicious..."
As they spoke, Crimson Lizard King poked its head back into the cave, clearly hungry.
Orson, irritated, shouted, "Eat your ass."
He raised the stick again, and Crimson Lizard King quickly withdrew.
"Ninelra, the Half-Orc Queen, agrees to your request."
"Mission Updated!"
"You will face Bloodaxe King alone!"
"Hidden mission extended!"
"Mission Two: Restore the Orc Kingdom!"
"Difficulty: Hell-level"
"You need to capture at least four cities or capitals for Ninelra."
"Given the high difficulty, abandoning Mission Two will not result in any penalty."
After a brief moment of thought, Orson decided to accept Mission Two.
If this mission were in the Light Dragon Empire, he'd drop it instantly. The Light Dragon Empire was unified, and any foreign invasion would face a fierce counterattack.
But the Dark Dragon Empire was different. The Dark Dragon Emperor didn't care about the weeds growing under his feet. The native factions here were complex, and the border areas, full of monsters, were like a lawless zone.
Besides, adding a small half-orc kingdom between the two empires wouldn't be a bad thing for the Dark Dragon Empire. It could act as a strategic buffer zone.
"Dragon God's blessing upon you!" Ninelra's eyes shimmered with tears.
Orson sneered as he looked at Crimson Lizard King's nervousness. "This fool will bless me? He'd be better off eating less of that junk."
"Attack!"
Ninelra's command rang out, and the half-orc soldiers surged from the cave, charging forward.
Sighing, Orson looked on helplessly.
The NPCs' stats weren't much different from the orc warriors, but their simple armor and spears made them look like farmers holding pitchforks.
"Enemy attack!!"
The horn sounded from the walls. Large groups of Bloodaxe Orcs appeared, throwing rocks and flying axes.
Several half-orc soldiers were instantly turned into minced meat.
"Now that's bravery!" Orson thought, scratching his head. These NPCs weren't really fighting; it was more like a small-scale street brawl. Less than a thousand people were trying to forcefully assault the front gate.
Ninelra, the first to charge, flashed with green light and easily leaped onto the wall like a spirit leopard.
"Ha!!"
The bloodlust was palpable!
Ninelra activated her damage-boosting skill. Her eyes turned pure black, and her claws and blades moved at an absurd speed, cutting through seven or eight powerful orcs in seconds.
Aside from Ninelra, only a handful of priests casting fireballs and a few half-orc warriors using giant logs as shields were enough to cover the assault on the city gates.
But they were soon struck by orc throwers, their bodies falling back temporarily.
"Just one and a half levels away from 50. Guess I'll grind some experience," Orson muttered. Crimson Lizard King spread its wings and jumped onto the battlefield.
It seemed the promise of endless sacrifices from the priests had fooled the beast. Before Orson could give an order, Crimson Lizard King unleashed a devastating breath of dragonfire toward the city gates.
Boom!