Chapter 164 : Comprehensive Breakthrough
Chapter 164: Comprehensive Breakthrough! Explosive Growth in Strength!
“Roar—!”
The Thousand-Legged Dragon King let out a world-shaking roar. Immediately afterward, its enormous body completely emerged from the ground and, moving like lightning, coiled around a nearby giant boulder.
Its body stretched several hundred meters—longer than a train—baring its fangs and claws in a terrifying display, radiating an oppressive presence like a mountain.
The sky changed color.
A foul wind howled.
Centipede Valley seemed to be coated in a layer of blood-red.
The Thousand-Legged Dragon King sensed the threat from the lord and prepared to unleash its full power. Under its overwhelming presence, the nearby players were all affected. The air felt like cement about to solidify, making both movement and breathing difficult.
This was suppression from authority level.
When lower-tier beings faced higher-tier beings, they would naturally feel suppressed and weakened.
“Majestic King’s Might!”
A powerful pressure suddenly erupted from Hang Yu’s body. It spread in all directions, enveloping the Thousand-Legged Dragon King before him. It was as if countless invisible chains formed from the surrounding space and bound the creature.
In an instant, the pressure released by the Thousand-Legged Dragon King was completely neutralized.
This Tier-Two lord talent skill could be released as an area effect to create group crowd control. It could also be attached to other skills to greatly increase their power. Of course, it could also be focused on a single target for suppression.
Single-target suppression was stronger and lasted longer than indiscriminate group control.
In terms of tier, Hang Yu was Tier Two, while the Thousand-Legged Dragon King was Tier Three.
Hang Yu’s tier was lower than the boss.
However, he already possessed the authority level of an Abyss Overlord.
The Thousand-Legged Dragon King only possessed the authority level of an Abyss Commander.
The gap created by one level of tier was far smaller than the strength difference created by authority level.
The Thousand-Legged Dragon King’s overall strength was not even comparable to the Level 15 projection of Demonized Guan Yu—let alone Hang Yu, who had already reached Level 20.
Under the suppression of kingly might and killing intent, the dragon king’s limited intelligence clearly realized something.
If it dared to make any move, it would immediately face an unstoppable storm of attacks.
Instinctively, the Thousand-Legged Dragon King remained still in a tense standoff.
It intended to wait until the suppression and weakening effects disappeared—and until Hang Yu revealed a flaw—before making a move.
Thus, a stalemate formed.
In terms of size, Hang Yu looked like an insect that could be crushed at any moment compared to the Thousand-Legged Dragon King.
Yet in terms of aura, Hang Yu held the advantage—like a towering mountain.
“Incredible!”
“What an amazing clash!”
“The lord’s aura is too powerful!”
“He actually suppressed the Thousand-Legged Dragon King!”
“Quick, take photos! This is unbelievable! I’m printing this as a poster!”
The players were filled with admiration for their lord.
Many even took out Photography Crystals to capture the moment.
“Don’t just stand there!” Chimera Wraith shouted. “Clear the other monsters while we have the chance!”
Ye Li Meng added, “Kill as many as we can! Even if we can’t get the highest evaluation, we can’t get a low one! What if the lord’s favor drops?”
“Good point!”
“Kill them!”
There were still two Thousand-Legged Earth Dragons and dozens of Thousand-Eyed Centipedes in the canyon.
These monsters were still very dangerous and could interfere with the battle between Hang Yu and the boss.
The players immediately launched their final offensive.
Of course, the Calamity Army alone could not handle dozens of such powerful monsters.
At this moment, Zhou Cang led the Azure Dragon Guard into the fight again, assisting the players in clearing the remaining monsters.
One… two… three!
Ten… fifteen… twenty!
Centipede monsters fell one after another under the joint assault of the Calamity Army and the Azure Dragon Guard.
The Thousand-Legged Dragon King finally lost its patience.
Before the suppression from Majestic King’s Might had even faded, it launched an attack.
It attempted to overwhelm Hang Yu with lethal toxic fire breath and a storm of spells.
“Swiftflash Assault!”
Hang Yu instantly teleported to the dragon king’s side and struck with a single blade.
There were no fancy moves.
As the blade qi descended, dozens of giant legs were severed in one strike.
The Thousand-Legged Dragon King let out an enraged growl but had no time to retaliate.
Hang Yu seemed to continuously activate instant teleportation.
His figure vanished and reappeared repeatedly.
Each appearance came from a different position.
Each appearance delivered only a single strike.
Second strike.
Third strike.
Fourth strike!
Countless severed limbs flew through the air.
They fell and stabbed into the ground.
In an instant, Hang Yu severed nearly ninety percent of the dragon king’s centipede legs.
These legs were not only weapons—it also used them as conduits for casting spells.
Because Hang Yu understood the characteristics of the Thousand-Legged Demonic Dragon, he knew that destroying its legs would not deal significant damage but would greatly reduce its threat.
As expected—
After hundreds of legs were severed, the dragon king’s spellcasting ability dropped by seventy to eighty percent.
Yet its health had decreased by less than ten percent.
The countless human faces on the dragon king’s abdomen twisted into madness.
This meant the Thousand-Legged Demonic Dragon had entered extreme fury.
It was preparing to unleash powerful mental and breath attacks.
“Explosive Flame Blade!”
Hang Yu did not give it the chance.
With a flick of his finger, he released a blazing blade.
This skill resembled the Flame Blade but was not the same.
Flame Blade was a green-grade skill formed by combining the Wind Blade Technique and the Flame Arrow Spell.
The skill Hang Yu used now—Explosive Flame Blade—was created by fusing Flame Blade with Explosive Flame Spell.
Although it was still green-grade, its power was on an entirely different level.
With Hang Yu’s level and attributes amplifying it, the blade expanded dozens of times in size.
It became forty to fifty meters long and instantly struck the dragon king’s raised abdomen.
First came a scorching slash.
Then a chain of violent explosions followed.
-2632 (Critical!)
Hang Yu immediately activated more spells.
Great Peace Lightning Talisman
Great Peace Flame Talisman
Great Peace Ice Talisman
Great Peace Windstrike Talisman
Four talismans formed and blasted the dragon king one after another.
This round of attacks not only dealt significant damage but also destroyed the tumor-like human faces on its body.
Without these strange vocal organs, the dragon king’s mental attacks were greatly weakened.
After suffering continuous heavy damage, the Thousand-Legged Dragon King became hysterical.
Its massive body lunged toward Hang Yu, attempting to tear him apart in close combat.
A Frenzied Tiger Roar Slash struck the dragon king’s head.
One pair of dragon horns shattered instantly.
The Thousand-Legged Dragon King had now lost its blade legs, ghost faces, dragon horns, and most of its abilities.
Its combat strength dropped by more than half.
Yet its health was still abundant—at least sixty to seventy percent remained.
It continued attacking Hang Yu.
Even in madness.
Even attempting mutual destruction.
The dragon king still posed no threat.
Hang Yu moved swiftly around the dragon king’s massive body.
Each strike landed on non-lethal areas.
He severed the remaining legs and carved deep wounds across its body.
Blade lights intertwined and ravaged its body.
Soon the dragon king’s incredibly tough shell was cut open.
Before long, this powerful Tier-Three commander had been reduced to a miserable state—its limbs severed, body covered in wounds, slashed thousands of times, blood flowing everywhere.
Powerful.
Truly powerful.
The players finally understood.
Hang Yu could easily kill this Tier-Three boss.
Looking at how calm and effortless he appeared, they felt he could probably carve an entire painting like “Along the River During the Qingming Festival” onto the dragon king’s body if he wanted.
Just then—
The last remaining centipede monster fell.
Under Zhou Cang’s command, the Azure Dragon Guard suffered over a dozen injuries but no casualties.
The Calamity Army had taken heavier losses.
From over two hundred players, only about one hundred twenty remained.
“That should be enough.”
After weakening the dragon king and sealing most of its dangerous abilities, Hang Yu retreated with several swift movements.
“The rest of the battle is yours.”
The Calamity Army players were stunned for a moment.
Then their faces exploded with joy.
No wonder the lord had not delivered the killing blow earlier.
The elaborate carving on the dragon king’s body was not showing off—it was leaving the final credit to the Calamity Army!
“Long live the lord!”
“He really cares about us!”
“The Calamity Army will never disappoint the lord!”
“Brothers and sisters! Fight for the lord! No matter the cost, kill this beast!”
“Charge!”
The players surged forward with overwhelming momentum.
Led by Ye Li Meng, Little Bell, and Black-Eyed Rui Ge, the Calamity Army surrounded the Thousand-Legged Dragon King.
Under normal circumstances, a little over a hundred players could never defeat this boss.
But now the dragon king had already been crippled by Hang Yu.
It was like a tiger whose claws had been clipped, teeth pulled out, and had already run hundreds of miles.
If they still couldn’t win—
They might as well go home and shovel manure.
The Calamity Army launched their first wave of attacks.
The defense of the Thousand-Legged Demonic Dragon was even higher than that of the Thousand-Legged Earth Dragon.
However, Hang Yu’s carving attacks had shattered parts of its shell, greatly weakening its defense.
After one round of attacks, its health dropped by twenty to thirty percent.
Of course, the boss was not harmless.
Although it could no longer use mental attacks, spells, or several ultimate abilities, it still retained one terrifying move—
Breath attacks.
One blast of toxic fire could instantly cremate over a dozen players.
【Player “Qingchen” has died. Abyssal Essence Points +4000…】
【Player “Zhang Dahammer” has died. Abyssal Essence Points +3000…】
【Player “Street Slayer” has died. Abyssal Essence Points +8000…】
【……】
Watching the Abyssal Essence Points continue to rise rapidly, Hang Yu nodded in satisfaction.
Although this operation prioritized efficiency and did not deliberately torture the players too much, the total income from this event alone would still reach over four million essence.
Including accidental player deaths during exploration and monster farming elsewhere—
Today’s total income would likely approach five million essence.
In other words—
Over just two days, Hang Yu would gain nearly ten million essence.
Such an acquisition speed could only be described as terrifying.
He estimated that by the end of the day, the territory’s essence pool would exceed twelve million.
Breaking ten million.
Unprecedented.
Truly terrifying.
Under the relentless assault of the players, the wounded dragon king finally collapsed with an unwilling roar.
The Thousand-Legged Dragon King had fallen.
【You obtained “Lesser Abyssal Nightmare Source Fragment.”
Assimilate immediately? Yes / No】
“Assimilate.”
【Assimilation successful. Tier-Three Talent Points +2】
The quality of this Lesser Corruption Source was average.
It only provided two talent points—but that was enough.
After all, one Tier-Three Talent Point could be broken down into ten Tier-Two Talent Points.
One Tier-Three Talent Point alone could activate a Tier-Two talent.
Out of the 120 players who had participated in the final stage, only a little over fifty survived.
“We won!”
“Hahaha!”
“We actually won!”
“Long live the Calamity Army!”
“Long live the Azure Dragon Guard!”
“Long live the lord!”
“We cleared Centipede Valley!”
The surviving players stood atop the gigantic corpse of the dragon king, celebrating and taking photos.
This battle had been an epic experience.
When they saw the monstrous creature collapse like a fallen mountain, every player felt immense satisfaction.
If the entire battle had been recorded with high-definition cameras, the visual impact would rival a blockbuster film.
Watching it alone would be thrilling.
Participating personally was even more exhilarating.
Every player felt proud from the bottom of their hearts.
Although they had been the side constantly suffering casualties, no one had retreated.
They fought bravely from beginning to end.
This victory rightfully belonged partly to the Calamity Army.
“Stop taking pictures!”
“Pick up the loot!”
“Don’t let it go to waste!”
“Yeah! If the essence disappears we’ll regret it!”
Little Bell located the loot and collected it.
【You obtained loot:
Essence +250,000
Mana Crystal +2000
Thousand-Legged Demonic Dragon Meat +532
Thousand-Legged Demonic Dragon Bones +324
Thousand-Legged Demonic Dragon Blood +319
Thousand-Legged Demonic Dragon Shell +205
Thousand-Legged Demonic Dragon Blade Legs +221
Thousand-Legged Demonic Dragon Gems +50】
The drops were similar to those of the Thousand-Legged Earth Dragon.
However, both quantity and quality were higher.
Most importantly, the material tier was higher.
These were Tier-Three materials.
Tier-Three materials meant they could produce Tier-Three green-grade potions or equipment.
Selling them on the trading market could generate enormous wealth.
After this single run through Centipede Valley, the territory would not need to worry about finances for a long time.
Much of this income was thanks to the Calamity Army’s drop-rate bonus.
However—
It was time to strengthen the Calamity Army.
Otherwise, they would not be able to face future enemies.
The moment to reward the army had arrived.
Players soon received notifications from Xiao Ba.
【Quest Complete.
Essence +50,000
Contribution Points +70,000
Silver Treasure Chest ×1】
【Quest Complete.
Essence +50,000
Contribution Points +65,000
Silver Treasure Chest ×1】
【Quest Complete.
Essence +45,000
Contribution Points +70,000
Silver Treasure Chest ×1】
【……】
【Quest Complete.
Essence +30,000
Contribution Points +60,000
Bronze Treasure Chest ×1】
【Quest Complete.
Essence +10,000
Contribution Points +20,000】
Hang Yu distributed more than 8.5 million essence and over ten million contribution points.
In other words—
More than eighty percent of the massive essence income from the past two days was returned to the Calamity Army.
A total of 420 players participated.
The average reward was about twenty thousand essence per person.
Of course, distribution was uneven.
Top players received forty to fifty thousand essence.
Lower-contribution players received around ten thousand.
For the players—
This was an extraordinary feast.
The number of Level 15 players increased to over twenty.
Tier-Two players increased to around four hundred.
In addition to quest rewards, they also earned over three million essence from monster kills.
Altogether, the total distribution exceeded twelve million essence.
After dividing it among over four hundred players, the average gain approached thirty thousand essence each.
If many players had not reserved essence for skill learning and skill fusion, the number of Level 15 players could have doubled.
Even if levels did not skyrocket immediately, the players’ skill strength would increase dramatically.
That was the purpose of this large-scale event.
As player levels increased and Tier-Two players became more numerous, the territory’s income base would also grow.
Even without such large, high-casualty events, daily income would greatly improve.
Short-term expenditure did not matter.
In the long run, every unit of essence Hang Yu spent cultivating the Calamity Army would generate dozens or even hundreds of times its value.
Although most essence was returned to the players, Hang Yu still retained significant reserves.
His personal essence reserve was now about 4.4 million.
For an army of thousands, this was not huge.
But for Hang Yu personally, it was more than enough.
Meanwhile, over ten million contribution points were issued.
This alleviated the players’ financial shortages.
However, contribution points were quickly spent.
For example—
Right after the battle, Ye Li Meng and Little Bell decided to host a grand feast at Kiba Grand Restaurant for the Calamity Army and the Azure Dragon Guard to celebrate their victory.
Hang Yu paid little attention to the players’ celebrations.
After the battle ended, he immediately returned to the Lord’s Fortress.
For him—
The breakthrough was the most important matter.
【Activating Tier-Two Lord Talent “Starsea Overlord.”
Activation requires 10 Tier-Two Talent Points. Confirm?】
“Activate.”
【Starsea Overlord】
Tier-Two Lord Talent.
For each Abyssal Nightmare you conquer, your health and mana increase by 5%. This effect stacks without limit.
The effect was simple.
The more maps Hang Yu opened, the stronger his health and mana became.
Hang Yu currently had vision over four maps, three of which he controlled.
Thus his health and mana increased by 15%.
The boost was not huge now.
But unlike Pioneer’s Heart, this talent had no cap.
Its effect could stack infinitely.
If the amplification seemed insufficient, upgrading the talent would strengthen it further.
However, Hang Yu’s true purpose in activating it was advancement.
His Tier-Two talents were finally maxed out.
Upgrading from Level 20 to Level 21 required 300,000 essence.
For Hang Yu, this was trivial.
He immediately spent the essence.
【Level Up: Level 21】
Health +300
Mana +300
Strength +30
Agility +30
Spirit +30
Will +30
【Breakthrough Successful — Tier Three Achieved】
Health +4000
Mana +4000
Strength +400
Agility +400
Spirit +400
Will +400
The breakthrough succeeded.
Hang Yu clearly felt a powerful surge of energy erupt inside his body.
The magnitude of the increase felt like complete rebirth.
Tier-One Lords gained:
Health/Mana +50 per level
Attributes +5 per level.
Tier-Two Lords gained:
Health/Mana +100 per level
Attributes +10 per level.
Tier-Three Lords gained:
Health/Mana +300 per level
Attributes +30 per level.
When Hang Yu reached Tier Three, all twenty of his previous levels were recalculated under the Tier-Three growth standard.
That was why his attributes increased so dramatically.
All attributes +400.
This meant a total increase of 1600 attribute points.
With talents like Pioneer’s Heart and Lord’s Aura, the effective increase exceeded 2000 attribute points.
Hang Yu’s attributes doubled.
His actual combat strength increased by far more than double.
He opened his personal panel.
Name: Hang Yu
Level: 21
Race: Human
Tier: Tier Three
Lord Talents:
Master of Calamity (Hidden Talent)
Lord’s Aura
Pioneer’s Heart
Soul of the King
Starsea Overlord
Human Emperor Physique (Inactive)
Human Emperor Will (Inactive)
Human Emperor Domain (Inactive)
Other Skills:
The Martial Saint’s Three Strikes
Swiftflash Assault
Fiery Tiger Wild Blade
Explosive Flame Blade
A Tier-Three Lord possessed three talents:
Human Emperor Physique
Human Emperor Will
Human Emperor Domain
Each required ten Tier-Three Talent Points to activate.
Only after activating all three could one advance to Tier Four.
This showed how difficult advancement was.
No wonder his mentor Xuan Qingfeng was considered the most outstanding human lord of Sacred Cang City in the past century.
He reached Tier Four in only forty years.
But now—
Hang Yu had become a Tier-Three Lord.
Among Starsea Lords, Tier Three already counted as elite.
Among human lords, it meant entering the ranks of the powerful and wealthy.
Less than two months after becoming a lord—
Hang Yu had reached Tier Three.
At this rate, surpassing his mentor within a year seemed possible.
Such growth speed was terrifying.
Even high-tier races would gasp in shock.
“Now I can finally feel at ease.”
Hang Yu had always been cautious.
Without reaching Tier Three, he would not have dared explore the Wan City Region deeply.
But now—
With this breakthrough, everything changed.
As a Tier-Three Lord, his attributes increased dramatically, and he could now use Tier-Three equipment.
More importantly—
He could construct Tier-Three buildings and recruit Tier-Three followers.
Zhou Cang could be raised to Tier Three.
Any Azure Dragon Guard, native character, or player could also reach Tier Three.
Before this breakthrough, none of his followers could exceed Level 20.
For the territory—
Individual strength mattered little.
What mattered was systemic power.
If previous exploration of Wan City had only been a test—
Then from this moment onward—
The true conquest had begun.
Now Hang Yu had the confidence to meet Jia Xu, Dian Wei, Zhang Xiu, and Cao Ang face to face.