Capture the leader first to subdue the bandits!

“Xue, who is this person?”
The speaker was the vice president of the Stormcloud Guild, Stormcloud Red Dragon. He was a berserker, wielding two blue single-handed swords. As a berserker, managing to acquire two exquisite single-handed swords was quite impressive, and combined with his relentless fury skill, he could unleash considerable bursts of damage. Yet to Chenfeng, these were nothing but trash gear, barely worth a glance.

“Chenfeng, why are you using your clone alt?” Cheng Xue had seen Chenfeng’s clone alt before, but she hadn’t expected him to switch to it this time. She had assumed Chenfeng would tank the Wind Serpent King boss himself. Xue quickly recovered and introduced him to Stormcloud Red Dragon: “Vice President Red Dragon, he’s our guild’s tank, named Duan Chenfeng. This is his clone alt.”

“Clone alt?” Stormcloud Red Dragon knew about creating alternate characters, but had never heard of a clone alt.

Chenfeng could not be bothered to explain. He said, “Xue, if we try to kill the Wind Serpent King boss, word will leak out easily, and other guilds will surely come to steal it. If we block the entrance to Wind Serpent Valley now, it’ll save us a lot of trouble.”

“Alright, I’ll let my sister know. When she arrives, I’ll have people guard the valley entrance.” Xue hadn’t considered this problem; she’d only been thinking about how to kill the boss.

Stormcloud Red Dragon looked down on Chenfeng, but with Xue present, he held his tongue. Chenfeng walked aside with Cheng Xue to discuss matters needing attention for the boss fight. His status in the guild didn’t allow him to speak up, so Cheng Xue would have to command.

When everyone had assembled, there were over a thousand at the Wind Serpent Valley altar, and more than two thousand at the entrance — all elite members from the guilds. Players from Frostsnow Guild and Stormcloud Guild were racing to level up; to bring so many people for a boss fight was impressive. More had wanted to enter the altar, but the path from the entrance had spawned swarms of wind serpents, requiring time to clear. Now, the boss fight could begin.

“I’ll open the chest; the tank should pick up the boss!” Chenfeng transformed into a crow and flew above the altar, leaving everyone dumbfounded. None had ever seen a class capable of turning into a crow.

System: You have opened the Ancient Chest and obtained a White Gold Coin.

As Chenfeng finished opening the last Ancient Chest, a thirty-meter-long phantom serpent appeared at the altar, rapidly solidifying into a giant wind serpent.

Wind Serpent King: Level 30, 500,000 HP.

A scene boss with half a million health was an absolute nightmare for current players, and this boss could fly. The tank engaged, but without activating shield wall, was instantly killed by a single bite from the serpent. The boss immediately unleashed a powerful skill, followed by a tail sweep and a hurricane, wide-area attacks that caused the tanks’ health to plummet.

“White Gold Coin?” Stormcloud Red Dragon clearly saw Chenfeng stow the coin in his pack, then transform into a crow and perch on a branch to watch the battle. He’d heard from Cheng Xue that opening the chest triggered the boss fight, but hadn’t expected the chest to yield a White Gold Coin.

Others might not know its significance, but Stormcloud Red Dragon did — he’d been lucky enough to get one when leading the guild through a dungeon quest. It was worth fifty thousand gold coins, almost enough to buy a talent stone. If he’d known the chest could contain a White Gold Coin, he wouldn’t have hesitated to open it, even if the boss fight was imminent. What he didn’t know was that opening the chest required ten thousand gold coins, which he simply didn’t have.

White Gold Coin! Stormcloud Red Dragon’s smile turned greedy. The coin in his pack was supposed to be handed over to the guild leader, but if he could loot Chenfeng’s coin, it would be his. He didn’t know what Chenfeng’s class was, but he was certain Chenfeng wouldn’t dare offend Stormcloud Guild.

“Wild Boar, Iron Barrel, keep an eye on that crow. If there’s a chance, kill him.” Stormcloud Red Dragon quickly messaged two friends, asking for their help. He wanted to take out Chenfeng without attracting Frostsnow Guild’s attention — otherwise, things could get complicated.

“A crow? That guy called Jungle King?” Wild Boar, an elven hunter, had already noticed Chenfeng, especially after seeing him obtain the White Gold Coin. He guessed Red Dragon wanted to kill Chenfeng and loot the coin. Fifty thousand gold coins was a windfall.

“No problem!” Iron Barrel, a barbarian warrior, had wanted to loot the coin as soon as Chenfeng got it, but didn’t want to act in front of so many eyes, lest Frostsnow Guild’s beauties shield Chenfeng. Iron Barrel knew Chenfeng and Cheng Xue were close.

All three wanted to kill Chenfeng for the coin, but Chenfeng gave them no opportunity, simply perching on a branch to watch, never intending to help. If he kept this up, they’d get nowhere.

“Why are you slacking off up there? Get down and fight the boss!” Iron Barrel found an excuse to lure Chenfeng down. If Chenfeng descended, he’d have a chance to kill him for the coin.

“Sorry, my current form can’t deal damage!” Never flaunt wealth. Chenfeng saw through Iron Barrel’s attempt; he’d clearly spotted the White Gold Coin and wanted to kill him for it.

If they knew its value, did they have one themselves? Chenfeng’s gaze fell on Stormcloud Red Dragon, the highest-ranking guild member present. If there was a coin, it ought to be with him. Chenfeng wasn’t sure, but if Red Dragon tried anything, he’d happily kill him.

With himself labeled as a slacker, Chenfeng simply flew away, waiting for a chance to counterattack.

Stormcloud Red Dragon complained as Chenfeng left, “Opens the chest and then slacks off, doesn’t fight the boss — what kind of person is that!”

The chest belonged to Chenfeng, so it was only natural he claimed it, especially since it cost ten thousand gold to open. Cheng Xue ignored Red Dragon’s complaints, but as the guilds were allied, she couldn’t say so outright.

“Who do Stormcloud Guild and Frostsnow Guild think they are? Our Divine Battle Guild is training in Wind Serpent Valley; you think you can block us?” At the valley entrance, Chenfeng saw Frostsnow Guild facing off against Divine Battle Guild. Clearly, Divine Battle Guild was well informed; as soon as Frostsnow and Stormcloud began gathering players, they knew something was up. Now that the boss fight had started, they’d summoned Night Guild and Windrunners Guild to join the raid.

Rumor had it that scene bosses had a minute chance to drop talent stones, so every guild was searching for bosses in every area. But scene bosses weren’t easy to find — hidden scene quests had to be completed first. Now that Frostsnow Guild had found the Wind Serpent Valley scene boss, Divine Battle Guild immediately rallied their allies to contest it.

Even at eleven at night, players online were numerous. Frostsnow and Stormcloud Guilds had over two thousand guarding the valley entrance, but Divine Battle Guild, Night Guild, and Windrunners Guild had brought even more — perhaps over ten thousand. Many battlefield reporters had caught wind of the event, forums were in uproar, and crowds were gathering to watch.

“Don’t mind Divine Battle Guild’s trash talk. They may have numbers, but we have the terrain; holding the entrance lets us hold out for a long time.” Chenfeng told Cheng Xue, who relayed the message on guild and raid channels. With his aerial advantage, Chenfeng could see the entire field, making him the ideal commander.

“Divine Battle Guild? Stormcloud Guild is conducting business in Wind Serpent Valley, just borrowing the space for a bit.” Stormcloud Guild wasn’t intimidated by Divine Battle Guild, which was merely a new guild relying on generous benefits to recruit. In terms of unity, Stormcloud Guild had the edge.

“Is Wind Serpent Valley yours? You dare claim it for exclusive training? Divine Battle Guild declares here: if you don’t clear out in three seconds, from now on we’re enemy guilds. Any member of Frostsnow or Stormcloud will be killed on sight!” Divine Battle Sky One was imposing, not bothering with arguments, announcing directly in the world channel.

To be enemies with Divine Battle Guild? The Stormcloud Guild stewards were troubled, but with events at this stage, what was there to fear? If they cowered before a new guild, they’d lose the hearts of many. Besides, with the terrain advantage, even if outnumbered, holding their ground was possible.

“Red Dragon, we’ll try to stall Divine Battle Guild’s alliance; you focus on killing the boss!” Stormcloud Hero had no other option. He only hoped the sacrifices of his brothers wouldn’t be in vain — if they could take down the scene boss, not only would they reap a huge haul, but guild reputation would soar, faster than any dungeon run.

“We’ll do our best. This Wind Serpent King isn’t easy; it’s ferocious, and we’ve already lost quite a few!” Red Dragon watched his fallen comrades, resolved to see it through, though he wasn’t confident.

“Three, two, one! Attack, kill them all!” Divine Battle Sky One roared, and impatient guild members surged forward. This was what games were about — fighting. Many joined Divine Battle Guild precisely for these large-scale missions; the thrill of battle was irresistible. Though death meant being logged off, guild compensation was generous.

A great battle was imminent. The entrance to Wind Serpent Valley instantly became a battlefield as five guilds clashed — within ten seconds, swathes of players fell. Overhead, a crow flew unnoticed. The crow landed behind a tree near Divine Battle Sky One, then transformed into human form.

“Catch the ringleader first!” Chenfeng shifted to leopard form, entered stealth, and crept toward Divine Battle Sky One. If he could kill him, the morale of the three allied guilds would plummet; without command, their attack would falter, buying precious time.