022 The Treacherous Baru!

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The Most Hated Desert Fight!
Chen Feng and Baru clashed fiercely, exchanging attacks and parries without raising their shields, simply striking back and forth. Baru was fond of sneaky moves—kicking and flicking black sand into Chen Feng’s eyes were common tactics. Chen Feng had never expected a berserker to resort to such underhanded tricks; after being kicked earlier, he already suspected Baru wasn’t a good guy.

Baru was highly skilled at these sly tactics, so much so that Chen Feng couldn’t imitate him. If Baru fought Chen Feng straightforwardly, he would be no match, as Chen Feng’s attacks were far craftier, making it difficult for Baru to dodge. Chen Feng had two more years of experience as a berserker; even if Baru had prior experience, fighting Chen Feng wasn’t easy.

“Flowing Sand, strike now!”

Hearing Baru’s call, Chen Feng immediately recalled being ambushed earlier by the Bone Sand Scorpion and jumped back in fear of having his feet grabbed. So far, Flowing Sand hadn’t acted, seemingly waiting for the right moment to ambush. Baru’s shout was surely a signal to strike early. Chen Feng knew that if his feet were caught, he’d be finished.

Rage Strike!

“Damn! You’re playing dirty?” The Bone Sand Scorpion didn’t appear—it was just one of Baru’s tricks. Seeing Chen Feng retreat, Baru found an opening and slashed with a furious strike, immediately taking a chunk off Chen Feng’s health bar.

“Dirty tactics, so what?”

Baru pressed the attack with a spinning kick that sent Chen Feng flying back several steps, nearly toppling over. Baru, a former special forces soldier, was known for his deadly footwork; his sly moves left no trace. Were it not for Chen Feng’s armor, Baru’s speed would be even faster.

In truth, Baru admired Chen Feng greatly. Since starting the game, Baru always chose the most violent melee class. The berserker was unbelievably brutal, and until now, no one could gain the upper hand in close combat against him. Yet Chen Feng, this wretched man, could—and consistently pressured him. Baru’s use of sneaky tactics was simply to end fights more easily. Being suppressed by Chen Feng forced him to counterattack underhandedly.

This is a master! Peter was right!

Shockwave!

Chen Feng unleashed a shockwave slash, but the barbaric berserker leapt aside, evading the attack. In the desert, getting up quickly wasn’t easy. After the shockwave, Chen Feng flipped toward Baru’s position, creating an eight-meter gap between them.

Intercept!

Chen Feng charged forward, knocking Baru to the ground just as he was regaining footing, rendering him unconscious. Chen Feng immediately unleashed a reserved Rage Slash, slicing off a large portion of Baru’s health, then followed up with Thunder Strike and Tiger Strike, rapidly draining Baru’s vitality.

Piercing Assault!

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As Chen Feng seized the opportunity to unleash his burst, the Bone Sand Scorpion, Flowing Sand, attempted a sneak attack from behind. But Chen Feng was prepared; the Phantom Rhino burst out from spatial space. It was difficult for the Phantom Rhino to hit the Bone Sand Scorpion, but pushing Chen Feng aside was easier. Since Chen Feng was knocked back, the sneak attack failed.

As the Bone Sand Scorpion was about to land, Chen Feng let out a terrifying roar, instilling fear that caused it to flee wildly. Baru, nearby, was also caught in the fear and ran about frantically.

Bloodthirst!

Chen Feng didn’t wait for the fear to wear off before activating his skill. This time, luck was on his side—he triggered a free Gale Strike. His left hand instantly wielded the Brotherhood Sword and rapidly struck with Gale Strike. The Bone Sand Scorpion used Selfishness to remove the fear effect, but landing again proved difficult. Chen Feng stomped with Thunderous Trample, stunning the scorpion for a second—just enough time for Chen Feng to burst.

Rage of Fury!

As Chen Feng unleashed two more Gale Strikes, hammering down the vulnerable Bone Sand Scorpion, Baru activated Rage of Fury, dispelling fear and charging at Chen Feng. The orange one-handed sword combined with Gale Strike’s burst was terrifying. One second was enough for Chen Feng to finish off the frail Flowing Sand.

But Chen Feng feared Baru. After activating Rage of Fury, Baru gained two Rage Strike skills. If Baru unleashed his ultimate and focused attacks on Chen Feng now, Chen Feng would be in serious trouble. Chen Feng’s back was turned to Baru while killing Flowing Sand—it was a dangerous moment even with the magic ring’s skills.

But could Chen Feng use the magic ring’s skills recklessly? With so many magic ring bearers present, being focused down meant certain death. Chen Feng didn’t expect to get a magic ring quickly; he only hoped to survive this seven-person battle. The magic ring could be sought later, but he couldn’t risk his life now.

Retreat! Chen Feng performed a heroic leap to escape. If Baru pursued, Chen Feng could counterattack as Baru landed or charged. But Baru didn’t attack; instead, reckless Baru wielded dual great axes to finish off the Bone Sand Scorpion instantly.

The Bone Sand Scorpion’s ambush ability was powerful, but its survivability was poor. After failing the sneak attack, escape was difficult. In a straight fight, it was no match for Chen Feng. Flowing Sand was unfamiliar with the scorpion’s attack style—attacking while prone and standing were completely different.

Seeing Chen Feng evade and the Bone Sand Scorpion nearly dead, Baru didn’t hesitate. He immediately left the team and launched a burst attack against the scorpion. Yes, they were teammates and shouldn’t attack each other—but Baru never considered them as teammates. That was his thinking. Even though Flowing Sand had saved him earlier, to Baru it was unnecessary because he already had a follow-up move.

Watching Baru pick up the equipment of Flowing Sand and the Bone Sand Scorpion, Chen Feng felt this guy was truly terrifying. He could instantly betray a teammate who just saved him. Who was to blame? Only Flowing Sand for not understanding the cruelty of human nature. In the open world, there were no friends in wild teams, only interests—that was the truth. Among the magic ring bearers, there was no real team—just a gathering for mutual benefit. Chen Feng and Outrace fought each other, let alone the four of them.

“Excellent magic ring! My barbarian ring can absorb its transformation ability now!” The magic ring was the strongest synthesis state. Baru hadn’t fused two rings before, but this time he directly integrated the new ring into his magic ring. This was possible—gaining another ring’s abilities but without enhancing all attributes of the magic ring.

The magic ring could be synthesized and equipped immediately. After obtaining the scorpion transformation ability, Baru transformed and quickly burrowed into the black sand. This was his most terrifying state. How could anyone deal with a sneaky, explosive enemy who had disappeared underground?

Not just Chen Feng and the others were afraid—both the Dragon Knight and Dark Demon felt uneasy. Baru was ruthless enough to kill teammates and so decisive that it chilled them all.

“Ceasefire!” The Dark Demon turned into a wisp of black smoke and vanished, seemingly using a teleportation skill. With someone as cunning as Baru around, any magic ring bearer was reluctant to continue fighting.

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Invincible Hearthstone!

The Dragon Knight and Outrace immediately activated invincible hearthstone recalls. Stan flew backward, seemingly with a way to escape. Chen Feng was quick too—he summoned his super-powered mech, donned a shrinking ring, jumped aboard, and fled. From the mech, the Bone Sand Scorpion couldn’t sneak attack him.

Besides, Baru wasn’t stupid. Chen Feng had the Phantom Rhino ready; if the ambush failed, Chen Feng could easily counterkill Baru. Baru burrowing into the sand was just a tactic to disperse everyone and create a chance to return to town. Securing a magic ring was already impressive; there was no need to keep fighting here. He needed to study the Bone Sand Scorpion’s body.

“Crow, did my strategy work? It successfully dismantled their team,” Outrace said over the comms to Chen Feng. He felt exactly as he thought—if possible, Baru would turn on his teammates.

Outrace had indeed hoped Chen Feng would do this, but Chen Feng forgot as he entered the fight. His retreat was instinctive. Outrace assumed Chen Feng had deliberately let Baru kill Flowing Sand. If he could, Chen Feng would have gladly killed Flowing Sand himself to get another magic ring.

“Never thought this guy would betray his own teammate!” Chen Feng sighed. “Shorty, if you get the chance, would you betray my magic ring too?”

“Definitely. Wouldn’t you?” Outrace’s answer surprised Chen Feng, but it felt truthful. If Chen Feng said he wouldn’t, he’d be lying—just moments ago they witnessed a teammate betrayal.

“So you must be careful. Don’t give me the chance. I really hope you make it to the final four,” Chen Feng said, feeling some camaraderie with Outrace. They all knew that as magic ring bearers, they would fight each other eventually—it was just a matter of when.

“Same to you!” Outrace sounded a bit tired. “Good show tonight. I’m exhausted. See you tomorrow!”

“Don’t lose my magic ring—I want to take yours,” Chen Feng joked tiredly. After putting some distance between himself and the others in his super mech, he logged off. There was still an epic quest here, but he didn’t want to come back tomorrow. Logging off here was fine.

After a full day of chaos on the open world map, Chen Feng was exhausted. Baru had left a deep impression—deceitful and ruthless enough to betray teammates without hesitation. Such a person was truly terrifying. The open world was going to be interesting from now on.

Outrace was an intriguing teammate; Stan was good at gathering intelligence and analysis; Baru was a thoroughly devious character. Chen Feng really wanted to know who would ultimately win the Battle of the Magic Rings and claim the final legendary ring.