Little Piglet left. Still recovering his health with Wind of Recovery, he and Shangguan Wan’er withdrew from the boss area while protecting Wang Dongliang.

Another group of people emerged from the back, but this time, their numbers were much bigger and varied than both the enemy forces we beat back earlier. They were all here for the Heaven-burning Tiger. The Level 194 Immortal Rank boss represented an unimaginable amount of profit, and the battle of the Soul Suppressing Tower was a chance for every guild to show off their strength. Moreover, the CGL committee was taking the results of this battle into account for the next update of the Guild Ranking, so of course everyone was giving it their all.

……

"Shit, it’s the Northern Alliance…" Lin Yixin’s eyes were full of worry as she dodged out of the way of the boss's attack while gazing toward the distance. "Quickly, we’re really running out of time…"

Failing to withdraw in time, Little Piglet and Wang Dongliang had no choice but to hide themselves in a corner.

The leader of the party was a rider with an angry expression on his face. He was none other than the best player of Hot Sand City and the Heroic Bannerman we had bested during the War of Dawn City, Eye of the Storm. He was accompanied by at least 300 players, and most of them were cavalry. It wasn’t a force we could afford to underestimate.

"This is bad…"

I repeated the trick that had annihilated two parties earlier and made the Heaven-burning Tiger fire a stream of flames at the Northern Alliance party, but...

"Retreat!" barked Eye of the Storm as he raised his shield and used Holy Shield at the same time. To my surprise, the Heaven-burning Tiger’s attack only dealt 60k+ damage to him. Eyes twinkling with cunning, he said, "Move to the corners and surround them!"

Shit! I felt a chill in my heart. Eye of the Storm was way smarter than Wang Dongliang, and he had figured out the best thing in this situation immediately. Lin Yixin and I were dead the moment we were surrounded.

I checked my stats screen, and I only had 17 Divine Energy Points left. It wasn’t nearly enough to defeat this many Vietnam cavalrymen. Lin Yixin and I would definitely be at a disadvantage in a head-to-head battle because we had exhausted most of our divine energy to kill the boss as quickly as possible.

……

Suddenly, a chorus of thundering hooves appeared from the sides. Very soon, a beautiful figure entered the boss area, and it was none other than a knightress of Ancient Sword Dreaming Souls, Heaven’s Rain!

"Stop them!"

Heaven’s Rain pointed at the enemy, and a troop of Dragonlight Cavalry instantly rushed toward Eye of the Storm.

Gui Guzi, He Yi, Li Chengfeng and everyone else appeared next. Standing at a corner, Murong Mingyue cast Pool of Life beneath our feet and restored our health. A couple more healing spells later, both Lin Yixin and my HP moved past the 70% mark.

A sweet smile bloomed across Lin Yixin’s face. "Ohh! I love you so much, Sister Mingyue…"

Murong Mingyue smiled back. "It’s not free! If the boss drops priest equipment, it’s mine…"

"Sure, no problem!"

……

Fights started breaking out all over the boss area. The guild had assembled quite the number of Dragonlight Cavalrymen—over 800 of them, in fact—and they were led by powerful players like He Yi, Li Chengfeng, Heaven’s Rain and High Fighting Spirits. They were able to tear apart Eye of the Storm and his Vietnamese players with ease.

"Hmm, it looks like we’re late…"

However, a new force emerged from the right, and it was Candle Dragon led by Candlelight Shadow, Blue Sky Scar, Tempest Shadow and God’s Dance.

Another force emerged from the left, and it was Warsky Alliance and the newly ascended Warsky. The guild leader activated Great Earth Transformation and rushed toward me with a hearty laugh. "Why so hasty, Lu Chen!? Do share the boss with us!"

Lin Bing Dou Zhe, Laughing At The Heavens, Hundred Battler and Farewell Song rushed me at once and added to my headache. Warsky Alliance would never be a trustworthy ally of Ancient Sword Dreaming Souls, and our conflicts would never end for as long as one of us dreams of ruling over all.

Thud thud thud...

I backed a few steps and drank a Rank 10 Saint Spirit Potion, restoring my HP and MP instantly. Then, while Lin Yixin’s Extreme Break was still active, I fired Purple Dragon Howl that absolutely devastated the Immortal Rank boss. The Heaven-burning Tiger screamed as damage numbers rose above its head—

117623!

129388!

120394!

……

The boss's last sliver of HP disappeared in just an instant. A warm feeling wrapped around my body as I jumped two levels in a row and reached Level 164!

After picking up all the equipment dropped by the Heaven-burning Tiger, Lin Yixin said with a smile, "Time to retreat. See you again on the ninth floor, Little Cheat…"

"Nooo! Let’s split the loot first!" I raced toward her.

Lin Yixin shot a glance at her own bag before tossing Tiger Soul Essence into my hands. She said, "An Earth-grade sword that Purple Marquis can use, a Heaven-grade cloak that I can use. Mmm, yeah. Don’t look so disappointed, Little Cheat. Here, this is for you! Now then, see you on the ninth floor!"

Lin Yixin equipped the dark red-colored Heaven-grade cloak she mentioned and improved her good looks instantly. She then tossed me an item with dancing flames before stepping through the portal that led to the ninth floor, disappearing in an instant.

My heart thumped wildly as I stared at the equipment in my hands. God damn, all that trouble we went through to kill the Heaven-burning Tiger was worth it after all!

The equipment was a battle armor with dancing flames on its surface and craggy scales. At the center of the battle armor was the sinister image of a bloody tiger. I could even hear the faint roars of a tiger from time to time. When I brought up its stats screen, what I saw blew my mind away—

Heaven-burning Armor (Immortal-grade, Outstanding★★★★★★)

Defense: 2900

Magic Resist: 2750

Strength: +850

Stamina: +820

Agility: +750

Tactics: +89

Passive: Increases user’s Defense by 65%

Passive: Increases user’s max HP by 40000

Passive: Increases user’s Magic Resist by 110%

Outstanding Property: Heaven-burning Flame. When attacked, 2% chance to damage all enemies around you with heavenly flames.

Slots: 12

Introduction: During the ancient times, the Fire God gifted the humans heavenly flames so they could cook their food over the fire. However, the gods perished after the War of Gods and Devils, and the divine flames scattered across the human world and melted into tall mountains. Tens of thousands of years later, it was finally discovered by a stonemason and brought to a divine smith. The divine smith used it to create this legendary Heaven-burning Armor.

Level Requirement: 160

Reputation Requirement: 250000

……

Tak! I immediately removed the Crimson Rock Dragon Armor and replaced it with the Heaven-burning Armor. Like seriously, my precious Crimson Rock Dragon Armor was practically trash compared to this baby! Not only did it give a whopping 2900 Defense, it boosted my Magic Resist toward all types of magic by 110%! This meant that I was growing more and more resistant toward mages despite my class disadvantage. Even better, the armor gave me 40k HP, which put me at a total HP of 155k. If I buffed myself with cards, bard buffs and Famous General Skills for a maximum HP boost of 200%, that number would be 450k! How awesome was that?

All smiles, I looked around me. The Dragonlight Cavalry was already withdrawing, and plenty of people jumped into the teleportation formation floating above the dead body of the Heaven-burning Tiger. As He Yi, Gui Guzi, Beiming Xue and everyone else walked toward me, Gui Guzi greeted me with a smile, "Let’s go, Boss Broken Halberd! The final, greatest clash of titans is soon to begin!"

Noticing my new armor, Beiming climbed up the Armored Ice Qilin Horse and gave the Heaven-burning Armor a good rub. She giggled and said, "You got new equipment, big bro? Let’s see…"

As she checked the equipment ranking, her eyes widened in astonishment. "Hmm? The best chest armor right now is a Level 160 Immortal Rank metal armor called the Heaven-burning Armor. Big bro, could it be…"

I looked down on my armor and the red flames dancing around it. I asked her back, "Does this look like a Heaven-burning Armor, Beiming?"

"Totally…" He Yi said from the side.

"Then I suppose it is, hahahaha…"

Words couldn’t describe how pleased i was feeling right now. Whether or not I managed to collect all nine Tiger Soul Essences in the end, there was no changing the fact that I had gotten two Immortal-grade items, the Necklace of War God’s Broken Blade and Heaven-burning Armor from this trip. This alone was enough to make me the biggest winner of the battle of Nine Tigers Soul Suppressing Tower. Once again, I couldn’t help but feel deep gratitude toward Lin Yixin. She was acting generous, probably to make up for the Devil Bell I had gifted her.

Next, I took out a gorgeous, moon-colored cloak from my bag. It was none other than the super Heaven-grade cloak, Daphne’s Cloak. Its Outstanding Property, Daphne’s Grasp, allowed its wearer to go into stealth, making it the perfect item for archers who were well-versed in the art of forest warfare and stealth operations.

"Here, Beiming. This is yours!"

I passed the Daphne’s Cloak to Beiming Xue. When she touched the cloak and saw its stats, happiness instantly bloomed in her eyes, "Wah, this cloak is so beautiful… so powerful..."

The girl was so excited that she hugged me tightly before planting a kiss on my cheeks. Before I could react, she jumped off my mount, spun on her feet and equipped the gorgeous cloak. A "swhoosh" later, the Dark Archer vanished into thin air, just like that.

……

"Heavens, an archer who can enter stealth? What were the devs thinking…" Li Chengfeng curled his lips in incredulity and disbelief.

I smiled again and tossed the Augustus’ Spear next into Li Chengfeng’s hands. The dragon warrior caught the weapon, took a glance at its stats and exclaimed in astonishment, "Holy shit, these stats are crazy. Is this for me?"

I nodded. "Yep, I had to argue with Beauty Lin long and hard to get this. What, you don’t know how to use a spear? That’s fine, Gui Guzi can have it then…"

Li Chengfeng hastily slipped the Heaven-grade spear into his bag and said, "Of course I know how to use a spear. In fact, I’m a weapons master who can wield even a meteor hammer since youth, much less a spear! By the way, how do you want me to repay you, Lu Chen? This weapon is too amazing!"

Chaos Moon said from the side, "I got an idea. Why don’t you learn from Beiming Xue and give him a kiss? Guys, give them a round of applause, please!"

The fucking Dragonlight Cavalry actually obeyed her order and clapped. Feeling a twitch at the corner of my lips, I said, "Come on, let’s go to the ninth floor already!"

……

Thankfully, I wasn’t the only one who was feeling awkward. Candlelight Shadow, Warsky, October Rain, God’s Dance and everyone else couldn’t untwist their faces for a very long time.