Chapter 59: Shearing the Kingdoms Wool
As she spoke, Leona tossed the Quest Scroll to Liam.
Liam caught the scroll and realized the objectives had already shifted.
Quest Update
Description: King Abraham of the Astral Kingdom refuses to abdicate. He has conspired to trap Tiana within the Altar of Restoration in the Royal Palace. Tiana requests that you pin down King Abraham.
Requirement: Cease all attacks on Tiana. Apply Lethal Lock-on to King Abraham and maintain it for three days. If Abraham dies within these three days, the quest will still be considered a success.
Penalty: Unknown.
Reward: Blessing of the Gods +1, AP +100.
The quest had changed from a direct assassination of Abraham to simply keeping him under the effects of the Tome of Mortality for three days. However, the AP reward had plummeted from a thousand to a mere hundred.
"Fine. I’ll take it," Liam said without a second thought.
He accepted the quest, wiped Tiana’s name from the Tome of Mortality, and scrawled King Abraham’s name in its place.
The Royal Palace, Altar of Restoration
Tiana felt the constant drain on her life force stop. She let out a long, shuddering breath of relief.
On the other side of the palace, within the Grand Throne Hall, King Abraham looked up from the stack of state affairs he was processing. He frowned as damage numbers began to pop up over his head in a steady stream.
"Heh. Is the Frost Monarch already getting restless?"
With his innate regeneration and the palace’s defenses, Liam’s Tome of Mortality wouldn't be enough to kill him without the Altar's amplification.
"Your Majesty, such an act is a blatant insult to your authority. He needs to be taught a lesson."
A warrior clad in Gold-grade armor stepped out from behind the throne, his gaze sharp and piercing.
"Arthur Thorne, there’s no rush to deal with the Frost Monarch. Tell me—what do you make of the situation in Blackwind City?"
Arthur Thorne paused to consider. "The Frost Monarch is formidable. I doubt Balthazar is any match for him." He hesitated, then added, "Furthermore, I’ve discovered that my brother and Grand Chancellor Kaslow intend to use the chaos in Blackwind City to stir up trouble."
Abraham offered a faint, unsurprised smile.
"Let them. We’ll let them make their move, and once they’ve played their hand, we’ll step in to finish the game. The Astral Kingdom is long overdue for a total reshuffle."
Arthur hesitated. "The kingdom is already facing threats from within and without. A purge at this time..."
"Arthur, do you know what difficulty setting the Frost Monarch chose for the Ruins of the Frost-Corpse?"
"Was it Hard mode?" Arthur guessed.
Given the inherent difficulty of that particular dungeon, clearing it on Easy was already a feat for most. Guessing Hard mode was Arthur’s way of showing significant respect to Liam’s abilities.
"No. He cleared it on Hell Mode."
Abraham didn't mince words, stating the difficulty flatly.
"What?!" Arthur couldn't believe his ears. The mere thought of the Traces of the Frost-Corpse on Hell Mode sent a shiver down his spine.
"I was surprised myself," Abraham continued. "But you should know what that implies, shouldn't you?"
Arthur’s eyes widened as the realization hit him like a physical blow. "Only Hell Mode can release the physical manifestation of our deity... The Great Eira, the Frost Goddess, is about to descend upon this world!"
Arthur’s hands trembled with excitement. He dropped to his knees in a fervent, pious display of worship. "Glory to our Goddess! She returns! The Goddess is eternal, and the Astral Kingdom is eternal!"
Abraham waved a hand dismissively. "Now you understand why I have the confidence to reshuffle the board."
Black-Water Lake
Liam watched as the item he wanted finally materialized, a grin spreading across his face.
"Leona, what about that prerequisite Quest Scroll for the Blessing of the Gods? You might as well give that to me too."
Leona gave him a playful, sharp-toothed grin. "Maybe later, Liam. If the opportunity arises."
Liam shrugged, watching her leave. Once she was out of sight, he pulled out his Wine Gourd.
Brewing Progress: 99%... 100%! Brewing Successful!
Liam uncorked the Miasma Vial and took a sniff. The aroma hit him instantly. Compared to the fine liquors of his past life, this was crude stuff, but it would do in a pinch.
Back in the old days—before the Cataclysm—Liam hadn't been much of a hard liquor drinker. His motto had been "A few pints of beer, cocktails all night, but not a drop of the hard stuff."
But after living through the life-and-death struggle of the Cataclysm, he’d learned that strong spirits were a godsend. Besides, after the world changed, the ingredients used for brewing were all rare herbs and celestial treasures. Even the standard "Wuliangye" was brewed from spirit-grains, making the taste far superior.
He took a small sip. A refreshing warmth spread through his chest.
System: You have gained the special buff [Burn]. Your attacks will deal Burn Damage to targets. 100 HP loss per second for 5 seconds. Can stack up to 6 times. Buff duration: 1 minute.
Liam smacked his lips. "Mediocre. Only a temporary buff? Trash."
Of course, only Liam would call it trash. Any other combat class would have been over the moon. One hit, one stack. Six hits, six stacks. In other words, after six attacks, the target would be losing 600 HP per second. Over the course of a minute, that was theoretically over 30,000 damage. At this stage of the game, even the tankiest players barely had that much health.
Liam stowed the gourd and sent a message to Monty.
Every little bit of progress counted. The reward for his own bounty wasn't massive, but in Monty’s hands, it was a different story.
Monty arrived looking ecstatic. With his current stats, he could kill Liam faster than ever. The process took only a few minutes.
Monty successfully claimed the 100 AP reward. After his innate talent’s multiplier, it became 500. With his balanced stat distribution, that effectively functioned as 5,000 points of raw power. Such an increase was nothing short of terrifying.
After the bounty was settled, Liam headed back toward Blackwind City. He had no choice; the Veiled Overseer’s quest required him to sack the city, and he wasn't about to let those rewards slip through his fingers.
As he descended upon Blackwind City once more, Castellan Balthazar didn't look nearly as panicked as before. He believed he had found the ultimate countermeasure: an astronomical bounty.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Liam wasn't one for speeches. As soon as he arrived, a deluge of arrows rained down on the city.
Regional Announcement: Due to the player Frost Monarch’s malicious assault on Blackwind City, the Castellan has issued a Bounty Quest. Kill Frost Monarch.
The players were used to it by now. This was the third time Liam had been targeted for attacking the city. However, when they saw the rewards this time, they completely lost their cool.
"Holy shit..."
"Holy shit! Am I seeing this right? Gold-grade weapons? Saintly-grade Awakening Stones? Full Bronze-grade sets? The Castellan has gone absolutely mental!"
The players gathered near Blackwind City were whipped into a frenzy.
Bounty Quest: Kill Frost Monarch.
Requirement: Kill Frost Monarch 10 times.
Penalty: None.
Reward: For each kill, gain AP +50 and a Level 25 Bronze set. The players responsible for the first three kills will each receive one Gold-grade gear piece or one Saintly-grade Awakening Stone.
Although the AP reward was lower than the last one, the gear and stones were top-tier items for the current stage of the game. Even though everyone knew Liam was a monster, the lure was simply too great.
"Fortune favors the bold! You can't get the cub without entering the tiger's den!" Victor Vane growled, his fists tightening. The rewards were just too tempting.
"A man has to take a gamble eventually," Vincent Vane added, his heart racing. "Our scouts say his resistances aren't that high. If we chain our combos perfectly, we can take him down."
"Getting on his bad side might cost us a level if we fail," Victor mused, already dreaming of the Gold gear. "But if we succeed..."
Valerie Vane raised a hand, her voice soft but firm. "Brothers, I think you're missing something very important. Why is he attacking Blackwind City?"
"Because of the King's decree?"
"Exactly. He doesn't even give the King face. Do you really think he'll stop at just taking one level from us? If we fail—or even if we succeed—he will hunt us until we're forced to quit the game. Mark my words, he only needs one arrow to end us."
Victor and Vincent went quiet. They couldn't deny her logic. If Liam was the type to hold a grudge, their ending would be miserable regardless of the outcome.
"So, we just sit this out?" Victor asked, unwilling to let the chance slip.
Valerie shook her head. "Not everyone is as rational as we are. There will be plenty of fools who try. We’ll just wait to scavenge the remains."
Liam’s damage output was making Balthazar’s heart skip beats. Driven by desperation, the Castellan activated the City Defense Array. He calculated that the shield would be enough to hold Liam back.
Sure enough, Liam stopped attacking.
It wasn't because of the shield, however. It was because a group of overeager players had finally decided to make their move.
"Frost Monarch, nothing personal. Blame the Castellan for offering too much," a short player muttered, his name hidden. He immediately vanished into Stealth.
Liam shook his head. Too naive.
Snap!
Liam released an arrow. He knew there wasn't just one assassin lurking.
Quintuple Shot!
One assassin was struck mid-stride and collapsed instantly, his body dissolving into light.
Liam’s lips curled into a faint smile. He began to rain down Quintuple Shots indiscriminately. Under the relentless barrage, the cloaked assassins were being picked off before they could even get within striking distance.
How was he hitting them while they were invisible?
Prediction. Based on his own positioning, he predicted the most likely paths an assassin would take. Then, it was simply a matter of firing a hundred arrows a second. Even with a 5% accuracy rate, five assassins died every second. The closer they got to him, the higher the lethality.
"He's a freak!" Ezekiel Asura spat. "Stay back, all of you! Don't you dare touch him without my direct order."
Ezekiel wasn't the only one; leaders of every major guild were issuing the same commands. A solo player might take the risk, but a guild couldn't afford to make an enemy of Liam. If they crossed him, their future in the game would be over.
However, the sheer number of solo players was still massive.
In less than five minutes, Liam had broken them. Without a coordinated plan, they were just fodder for his Chain Lightning and area-of-effect damage. To him, they were just walking delivery services for loot.
"Scavenge everything!" Ezekiel ordered with a grin. "Gold-farming teams, move in. Elite squads, stay put."
With so many players dying, the ground was littered with dropped gear.
Liam glanced at the scavengers but didn't stop them. He had originally planned to crush the city in one go, but now he was hesitating.
If Blackwind City could offer a bounty this massive, did that mean other capital cities would do the same? If so, he could turn this into a cycle of "wool-shearing." He could farm the bounties to boost Monty and Barney.
Their innate talents were Saintly-grade, which was impressive but not game-breaking on its own. But with his help?
Take Barney, for instance. If he bound to a normal player, a 100,000 HP boost would be a miracle. But Monty was different. With the AP Liam was funneling to him, Monty’s health and resistances were skyrocketing. He was becoming the perfect anchor for Barney.
With that plan in mind, Liam retreated.
He let Monty kill him ten times to clear his own bounty.
Ten kills meant another 500 Free Attribute Points for Monty, ten sets of Bronze gear, one Gold-grade ring, and two Saintly-grade Awakening Stones.
A tidy profit. Combined with the previous sessions, Liam had already helped Monty "shear" 1,600 AP from Blackwind City alone.
"Next up... Frostfall City."
Liam’s smile widened. He wanted to see if the other cities were just as generous.
World Megaphone (Frost Monarch): I will be attacking Frostfall City in fifteen minutes. Players are advised to evacuate. Stay at your own peril.
The announcement sparked immediate outrage. When he attacked Blackwind City, people watched for the drama. But now that he was targeting Frostfall, the players there were furious that he was disrupting their quests.
The advance reading chapters on have reached 12chapters. Thank you for reading!
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