If she had recklessly agreed to Dream Clouds' suggestion, then based on what Dream Clouds said, when they divided the spoils, she would have to give up thirty c.h.e.s.ts for Class One Hall, and Towering Palace would just have to accept whatever was left.
"Little Sister Musical Note, you must be joking. Forget about destroying the marshall's army, we can also get rid of the sects at the port if we work together. You are far too cautious," Dream Clouds said with a smile.
When the people from Towering Palace heard this, they thought that she sounded reasonable.
"That's not necessarily true."
Musical Note was Towering Palace's palace master. She walked to the front through the path the crowd cleared for her and nodded at her older sister, who took a step back without batting an eyelid. She allowed Musical Note to take over the negotiations.
Dream Clouds frowned slightly. She could be said to have wasted her breath saying all those words before.
"Since you are worried, then how should we split the loot based on your thoughts?"
"I do not think there is a need for us to work together."
When Musical Note said that, the people from Class One Hall and Towering Palace were both shocked.
Dream Clouds was dumbfounded.
"Could it be that you want to take all of the treasures from Eunuch Yang's Warehouse? Little Sister Musical Note, you are far greedier than your older sister. You should know that you must be careful not to die for wealth."
Dream Clouds s.u.c.k.e.d in a deep breath, and her complexion was no longer as pleasant as it was before.
"Eunuch Yang's Warehouse does not belong to anyone, and anyone can fight for it. I only think that we might not be able to take everything even with our powers combined. And by that time, we might end up angering the sect alliances by the coastal area.
"When that happens, you can just extract yourself from the situation and leave, but we will become the target of ridicule. Don't you think you have a lot of wishful thinking, Hall Master Dream?
"But I have to think about this carefully. Hence, I cannot agree to this cooperation. We will just rely on our own abilities to get as many treasure c.h.e.s.ts as we can."
Once she said those words, not only did Dream Clouds and Class One Hall's anger fade away to be replaced by resignation, even Towering Palace came to a realization.
Indeed. Right then, Eunuch Yang's Warehouse was a matter of great discussion. The players all over China had gathered in Yangzhou, and if Towering Palace worked together with Class One Hall, they would truly violate the world's taboo and become enemies with all the heroes of the world. They would create countless enemies for themselves out of the blue.
When they thought of this, it was indeed not necessary for Towering Palace to fall into such an awkward and dangerous situation for just a few demon vessels.
"Alright." Dream Clouds sighed. "Since you have your worries, I will not force you. We will rely on our own abilities to see how many treasure c.h.e.s.ts we can get. Goodbye."
Without Towering Palace serving as their support, Class One Hall would definitely suffer quite a lot of losses in the fight for the treasure c.h.e.s.ts against so many people, even if they had quite a lot of people with them.
Besides, they would definitely have to pay some respect to Towering Palace during the fight.
After all, Towering Palace was the leader of Yangzhou. With one order, they could mobilize their people and lock down the paths on water and land. At that time, it would be awkward if they could not transfer the treasure c.h.e.s.ts to their territory.
It was the reason why Dream Clouds' expression was so unpleasant after she was rejected.
*****
Just when the negotiations for a cooperation failed between Towering Palace and Class One Hall, the arrows from the port traveled forward like a swarm of locusts.
Pained screams rang out nonstop!
Due to a habitual thought they had formed while they were on their way, they ignored a possible attack from the elite heavy-armored cavaliers.
The elite heavy-armored cavaliers had never slowed down or stopped while they escorted the carriages and carts, so the people at the port thought that the cavaliers and carts would not hesitate about rushing into the narrow port.
The formation they had set up turned into a decoration because of the elite cavaliers suddenly stopping, and the situation turned incredibly awkward for them.
Whoosh!
The heavy-armored cavaliers brought out their crossbows and lifted them horizontally to point at the crowd at the port.
"Damn it!"
"Fire!"
"Hurry up and look for cover!"
While the defense of war shields was great, they were not the huge shields that could shield the entire body, since those were forbidden items that players could not buy or use.
Hence, when they saw the defensive formation the heavy-armored cavaliers set up on the spot with the purpose of pushing forward, the people at the spot instantly panicked.
Arrows flew all over the air.
Thud! Thud!
There was no order, but the cavaliers pushed their triggers at the same time. Rows of neat crossbow bolts gathered together into rows of horrifying lights accompanied by the shrill sounds of air being pierced.
The people at the port were so terrified that they felt as if their souls had left their bodies. Some of the shield-wielding elites at the front row were shot, and they jumped into the river because they were unable to handle the onslaught.
Without the protection of the people in the front, those behind were also forced to jump into the river. The ones who were slightly slower were instantly shot full of bolts and turned into porcupines.
The port had been full of a murderous air, and the players even had an orderly formation, but in an instant, corpses were strewn everywhere. Blood covered the river. Many people who were shot struggled in the river, which created a picture straight out of hell.
The elite heavy-armored cavaliers remained unmoved. They pushed forward slowly and continued to add crossbow bolts to their crossbows to fire at the martial artists in the river and the riverbank.
The crossbow bolt showers mercilessly harvested lives!
The thousand or so people hiding in the sparse forest behind the cavaliers s.u.c.k.e.d in sharp breaths.
They came to a realization that they had underestimated the combat ability of the marshall's heavy-armored cavaliers, and they had also underestimated the collective battle prowess of a truly powerful and legitimate army.
Silence fell among the people.
Not only did the people from Towering Palace fall silent, Class One Hall's Dream Clouds also did not give the order to attack after she personally witnessed the fighting strength of the marshall's army.
She only watched the elite heavy-armored cavaliers kill all the living near the port. There were numerous corpses left behind them!
Thud! Thud!
Once the elite cavaliers completed their task of killing the people, due to the unique terrain at the port, they finally began to change their formation. A group of people protected the sides of the port, and the others protected the carts while they entered the narrow area.
The transport boats in the river finally approached the port slowly.
The people from Towering Palace, who originally thought that there was no hope in them getting the treasure c.h.e.s.ts, along with the people from Class One Hall, rushed to the port almost at the same time.
The sounds of battle rose once more.
But this time, due to the carts at the port blocking the area, the firepower from the elite cavaliers was weakened by one-third of their original strength. Even with two rounds of crossbow bolts, they killed fewer than one hundred people.
Chapter 706 - The Marshall’s Army
If the advantage of numbers could allow players to get eighty million taels of silver and eighty demon vessels, then it would seem as if an important treasure like Eunuch Yang's Warehouse was not important, an
d that getting it was really just child's play.
The marshall's army used their actions to verify their strength and determination to defend Eunuch Yang's Warehouse when they faced the charge from nearly two thousand elite players from Towering Palace and Class One Hall.
Whoosh!
The elite cavaliers on the sides of the port switched their weapons at the same time!
A dull and neat sound rose, and they put away their crossbows to bring out their bronze spears and form a formation, instantly shifting from an immovable shooting fortress into a steel monster filled with savagery, murderous intent, and aggression.
The marshall's army switched their formation and battle tactics incredibly quickly!
The group of martial artists who charged ahead of the others went straight up against the spears standing tall before them.
The soldiers lowered them horizontally, thrust diagonally, and lifted the spears!
The dense spear forest caused the martial artists who rushed forward to suddenly find it hard to attack, and they were stuck in an awkward situation where it was difficult for them to stop the charge.
The people behind them urged them forward, so they had no possibility of slowing and avoiding the piercing of the spears.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
They braced themselves and activated their body fortifications while they shouted to face the spears. The result of it was that they used their physical bodies to dye the spear tips red.
The marshall's elite heavy-armored cavaliers moved incredibly orderly and quickly.
Usually, there were at least two spear tips that pierced the enemy right in front of the crowd. Then, the cavaliers would lift them up high and force back the martial artists at the back with the spears serving as shields. Then, they would throw away the corpses with great force.
Splash! Splash!
The longspears were just six and a half feet or ten feet away from the players.
But even though that distance was very short, it turned into a distance that separated them from life and death! It was a line of death that could not be crossed.
The spears took turns on what they were doing. They complemented each other, and their teamwork was impeccable. They did give the players any chance to take advantage of them.
Even if they occasionally revealed some weaknesses, the steel beasts remained standing in front of the players, and those who charged forward as vanguards found it hard to do anything. They were like insects trying to shake a vehicle. They went marching into their own deaths.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Plomp!
The elite heavy-armored cavaliers were like a fighting machine in perpetual motion. They stood outside the port like a steel fortress that no one could cross, and they continuously sent the elites from the two sects into the river behind them.
"Let me!"
When Grim Green saw that more than one hundred of his friends from the palace were instantly killed, he gritted his teeth and charged to the front with Vast Heaven. One of them had sword light shining everywhere, and his attacks were as sharp as lightning, while the other stood outside the attack range. In an instant, he executed four Six Pulses Divine Swords, and their momentum was astonishing.
Besides, the people who wore the heavy armors that weighed hundreds of pounds were clearly the elites of the marshall's army. They were an army with astonishing Affinity and Arm Strength.
Grim Green's expression changed slightly once he executed all sorts of attacks.
He felt as if his longsword had struck iron pillars, and the shock made his purlicue numb!
His body froze, and the spear forest released a few bloody sparks in the air. His body fortification shattered on the spot, and he staggered backward.
"Protect Vice Palace Master Grim!" A group of Towering Palace elites quickly surrounded Grim Green while they retreated to the back.
Vast Heaven was in a slightly better condition.
Since he relied on using sword qi to damage others from the distance, he did not suffer any damage dealt to him from rebounds. But his attacks with Six Pulses Divine Sword did not manage to cause any obvious damage to the heavy armor either.
He only managed to leave behind white gashes on the heavy armor.
"Isn't this too strange?!"
Even though Blood Robes fought in front of his team and managed to affect one elite heavy-armored cavalier by using Star S.u.c.k.i.n.g Great Skill, he soon faced the crazed attack and hate from the entire team, and he nearly died on the frontlines.
"This isn't easy to deal with."
"Nearly two hundred of our people died. The strength of these cavaliers is too terrifying. Their defense is even higher than that of Inaction Realm martial artists! When their attacks gather together, they aren't any inferior to Inaction Realm martial artists."
"Yeah, it's like we're facing a group of Inaction Realm martial artists. There's no way we can fight against them."
When they saw that they were sending more of their own to die while the elites' formation remained as perfect as ever and they did not even take half a step back, the people from the two top-class sects standing at the back sent orders to stop attacking.
The black mass of people retreated like a wave, leaving behind an area covered in corpses, along with two hundred longspears dyed in blood, as well as the elite heavy-armored cavaliers who looked even more murderous than before. Their presences had only grown.
When they were further away from the port, both groups stared at the battle that had come to an end with solemn expressions. They scowled, and no one knew what they were thinking about.
*****
A woman with a white veil over her face moved her red lips slightly to speak in a light and echaning voice. "Looks like we can give up on our operation for Eunuch Yang's Warehouse."
Even Towering Palace and Class One Hall's hundreds of elites died when they attacked together, but they were still unable to make the cavaliers take even a step back. Wind Assault Tower was just a first-class sect, spo they would definitely suffer a worse fate if they went up against the elite group of heavy-armored cavaliers.
"They're too insane." Wu Kuo smiled in anguish and shook his head vigorously.
Right when he finished speaking, Phantasmal Shadow, who stared at the port in the distance, spoke in a slightly dazed fashion. "Perhaps this isn't a group quest at all…"
The people around her looked over with surprised expressions. "No matter how powerful a sect is, they won't be able to fight against an army!"
Phantasmal Shadow explained as if she had come to a realization. "At any period of time, regardless of which sect was at its greatest, they would never fight against the army, because the fighting power and unity of an army has always been head and shoulders above those of a normal sect. This is why the imperial courts in the past were able to suppress so many martial artists as well as the ambitious sects in the world of wanderers!"
"But there are quite a lot of imperial courts that were threatened by martial artists and destroyed in the end, right?" Wu Kuo remembered that he had seen a lot of shows that had this sort of plot.
"That's because the imperial court can become incredibly corrupted. Besides, the martial artists have always only served to provide assistance to the real leaders of the rebellion."
"That's true as well."
"But, tower master, are you saying that there is just no way to complete this quest?"
"It's not impossible, but when I think about the difficulty of Sky Demon Secret Cave and compare it to Eunuch Yang's Warehouse… In truth, even if so many people challenged Sky Demon Secret Cave, they would surely die.
"The problem is, we haven't gotten a hold over the key to the weaknesses of the elite cavaliers' attacks." A profound light shone in Phantasmal Shadow's eyes.
"There are plenty of traps in Sky Demon Secret Cave. If we take even one wrong step, we might end up with a party wipe. These people just used brute force to charge blindly, so they will naturally not be a
ble to get the treasures."
"The key weakness? What key weakness? This army doesn't have any weakness."
"That's not necessarily true." Phantasmal Shadow cast a glance at the lively port and said faintly, "If we attack from the port, our attacks will be limited by the terrain, and the fighting power of the elite heavy-armored cavaliers will also face incredibly great limitations.
"The situation will also become vastly different. But a pity, the c.h.e.s.ts have already been transferred on the boats. If we change our strategy now, it will be too late."
By the end of her speech, a faint black figure stepped on the water and flew over. He charged over to the army's transportation fleet.
Chapter 707 - Winning with Only A Few against Many
Stunned silence fell among the people.
The person was dressed in a black shirt and black pants, and his face was covered by a veil. He had appeared at some point in time behind the transportation boats. He tapped against the water in a relaxed and leisurely manner and shot more than thirty feet forward. Under countless surprised and contemplative gaze beyond the port, he jumped and landed on the pole of a large transportation boat.
"Who are you?!"
"Take him down!"
At that moment, the coachmen who got down from the carts and went on the transportation boat had already transformed into guards protecting the transportation boats. When they saw that someone had landed on one boat, they did not say anything but drew their swords to go up against that person.
Unfortunately for them, even though they had an aggressive presence with their heavy armor, the mysterious masked man calmly jumped to the port, where the people were still busy moving the c.h.e.s.ts to the transportation boats.
"That boy is just asking for death…"
Some of the people on the port who had been alerted thought that the newcomer was about to do something, but when they saw that the mysterious masked man's actions were akin to suicide, they were immediately delighted by his impending misfortune.
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