Gamers Are Fierce

Liu Wu Dai casually shot out an Exploding Arrow, blasting open the dome blocking the entrance to the subway station. Her figure leapt up like a willow leaf, nimbly jumping into the gap created by the explosion. Her toes skimmed the ground as she passed, effortlessly dissipating the momentum of her forward charge.

She got a clear look at the inside of the subway station. The spatial structure of the subway station had already partly collapsed due to fractures in the rock layer. The ground was covered with dense, deep cracks and scattered rubble, leaving barely any space to set foot. An endless fog surged from the crevices. This fog didn't resemble the dry ice smoke used in stage plays; instead, it condensed and gathered, forming a low-lying layer that crept along the floor.

The Resentful Demon lay on the ground, leaning against a beam, a giant wooden arrow firmly lodged in its chest. Its neck and spine had been brutally ground to dust, and the Gulu Lugu on its forehead had completely lost consciousness.

"HSSS..."

The Resentful Demon, now possessing a respiratory system after its fusion, breathed laboriously. Its green, gel-like muscles, embedded with white meridians, trembled constantly, like a quivering human-shaped jelly.

The only reason the Resentful Demon was still alive wasn't that Li Ang had shown leniency, but rather because a Light Longsword made entirely of radiance hung suspended above its head.

That Light Longsword continuously emitted an awe-inspiring, serene, bright, and pure white light. This light enveloped the Resentful Demon below it in a pillar, and in the air around the Light Longsword, holy chants—unlike any human voice and difficult to describe—seemed to resonate.

Also enveloped in the Light Longsword's glow were the All Bright Moon Palace Lantern and Ji Jiu, who was seated not far from the Resentful Demon's side.

「Time rewound to half a minute earlier.」

When Liu Wu Dai fired the arrow that hit the dying Resentful Demon, two Light Longswords flew in from the subway tunnel below. They hovered above the Resentful Demon and the All Bright Moon Palace Lantern, blocking Li Ang's attempt to finish off the Resentful Demon.

Explosions, punches, bullets, flames, Illusion Techniques—no form of attack could penetrate the range of the Light Longswords' protection. Neither Li Ang, Chu Yin, nor the others could harm the Resentful Demon beneath the Light Longswords, nor could they retrieve the similarly protected All Bright Moon Palace Lantern.

Under the Light Longswords, the space echoing with faint chants seemed completely isolated from the Grey-white World, as if they couldn't touch each other.

To everyone's surprise, Ji Jiu, who also had a Light Longsword hovering above his head, slowly emerged from the subway tunnel.

His physical condition at this moment was much better than the last time they met.

His broken body, which had been battered in turn by Li Ang and Miss Chai, was now smeared with pale yellow ointment, filling in all the wounds.

His formerly broken limbs had been replaced with prosthetics resembling white rubber arms and thighs. A thick layer of pale yellow ointment, emitting a strange and unpleasant smell, was applied at the joints.

Ji Jiu now looked like a badly damaged toy that had been barely repaired. Even his ordinary movements gave off a sense of fragility, as if he might fall apart at any moment.

Ji Jiu revealed a bitter smile under Li Ang's icy stare. He staggered closer and plopped down next to the unconscious Resentful Demon. "Thank goodness..." he said. "I finally caught up."

"Hurrying here to die?" Li Ang spoke calmly, his hands moving without pause as he expertly retrieved various explosive devices from his backpack. As he arranged them around Ji Jiu and the Resentful Demon, he remarked nonchalantly, "These Light Swords are supposed to make a few units invincible for a while, aren't they?

"Whether it's a skill, equipment, or an item, the greater its power, the more significant its limitations and the larger its consumption.

"I don't believe these Light Swords can last until the sixth barrier contraction is complete."

"..."

Ji Jiu didn't respond directly, silently watching Li Ang arrange the explosive devices, his eyes swirling with indiscernible emotions.

Li Ang was not mistaken; the item Ji Jiu used indeed had its limitations.

[Name: Light Seal Sword]

[Type: Consumable Item, disappears after one use]

[Quality: Perfect]

[Special Effect: Light Seal. After chanting for thirty seconds (being attacked or attacking will interrupt the chanting and consume the item without triggering the effect), designate three targets to enter a stasis state. Targets must be within a kilometer range and must not harbor hostility or resistance toward the user. Targets can move freely while in stasis but are unable to use skills, equipment, or items. They can't attack, be attacked, or be harmed. Existing injuries will not heal nor worsen. Spirit Power Value, Stamina Points, and Sanity Value cannot recover naturally. The stasis state lasts for ten minutes and cannot be voluntarily canceled. After the Light Seal effect ends, the user's Spirit Power Value is forcefully reduced to zero.]

[Consumption: 500 Spirit Power Value, 500 Stamina Points, 100 Sanity Value]

[Cooldown Time: None]

[Usage Condition: Must be able to read, understand, and chant in the Lunas language.]

[Note: Swords of light hang high in the sky, silently protecting all beings.]

This item, the Light Seal Sword, was Ji Jiu's greatest trump card, and its Special Effect was truly formidable and domineering.

As long as players were within the Light Seal, they could ignore all harm, whether from stepping into magma, walking on the seabed, facing a nuclear explosion, or breathing chlorine gas.

For those ten minutes, even if the heavens fell and the earth shattered, targets protected by the Light Seal Sword would remain unharmed.

Typically, the correct way to use this item would be in a scenario mission. For instance, when a team of players is challenging the mission's boss, the user could hide in a concealed spot and suddenly use the Light Seal Sword to seal the boss and its minions. This would buy time for the other teammates to recover and for their skills to come off cooldown.

It could also be used at a critical moment in a battle to protect a teammate on the verge of death.

The only significant flaws were likely the ten-minute duration and the fact that the user's Spirit Power Value would be forcefully reduced to zero once the effect ended.

A zero Spirit Power Value meant that most skills and equipment became unusable. The user would also suffer debuffs such as dizziness and mental exhaustion from the depleted Spirit Power Value, rendering them essentially helpless and at the mercy of others.

No matter how one looked at it, this item was ill-suited for the current deadly combat situation.

Ji Jiu leaned against a pillar, his expression extremely bitter. "You're right," he said.

He glanced at Li Ang and the others, who looked grim. With some effort, he lifted his white rubber arm, glanced at his wristwatch, and said slowly, "There's no need for such vigilance. With three Light Swords present, you can't harm us, nor can you take this All Bright Moon Palace Lantern.

"Eight players are already here, with only one foreign player yet to arrive—I presume he's on his way too.

"Why don't we have a proper talk?"

"...What do you want to talk about?" Li Ang asked calmly, having finished setting up the explosive devices.