MMO: Pierce Heaven Til’ It Breaks

Li Yi zoomed in on Black Wing’s face and looked at it closely before it finally hit him. He finally recognized him.

Was this not the one they called the strongest knock-off powerhouse, Xia Qi the War God?

If he had not seen Black Wing’s face, there was no way Li Yi would have recognized him because this person had changed drastically from the previous life to this one. In the past, he had been a Warrior, and he had chosen to be a dark elf. In this life, he was an Ice Wizard, and a dwarf to boot.

Xia Qi the War God had been ninth in the God Wars rankings. In the past life, he had been known as the most famous knock-off because his name was based off a powerhouse in another game, Bai Qi the Slaughter God. In other words, he had ripped off Bai Qi the Slaughter God’s name.

However, this person was strong in that he was very skilled in the game. His name was a knock-off, but his abilities were the real deal. In the past life, when he first began to take the spotlight, countless players made fun of his name, but he never let it get to him. He had been low-key and unassuming at first, but he suddenly made a splash during the first Demonic Invasion, dominating the Foreignland Gate for three months all by himself. No one could take him down, and so his name became known to all.

He had changed classes, races, and even his name. If Li Yi had not gotten a good look at his face, how would he have recognized him?

The National Channel was a constant stream of curses, and many players who suffered losses even accused the country’s officials of negligence. Some even called out Li Yi and Jiaojiao personally, infuriating Queen Jiao, who then used her authority to mute players en masse.

That was the way the world worked, though. Sometimes, the more one tried to stop something, the harder the protestors resisted. Jiaojiao muted many players all over, but the fallout was intense. Some players who had meant to sow the seeds of discord found themselves unable to speak, so they resorted to actions instead, killing others at random.

“Let them riot, just do it! Ban anyone who riots!”

This time, even Li Yi lost his temper. His patience was running thin, too. It was always like this—when there were benefits to be shared, these people may stay silent, but after being killed just once, all of them crawled out of the woodwork to kick up a fuss.

A country had to be united. If such a small matter led to such chaos, then how could they possibly fight in the Imperial Wars later? Would they even be able to rally these troops?

“If anyone from the Iron Alliance dares to cause trouble now, they’ll be kicked out and never taken in ever again!”

This time, Li Yi was truly incensed.

Jiaojiao sent him a message. “Lil Yi’zi, do you got the balls to come with me to the Fluttering Snow Continent? Let’s kick their *sses to kingdom come!”

“I got the balls, but now’s not the time!”

“You’re chickening out again?”

“Chicken you in the *ss, can’t you see how many people are causing trouble in the country right now? Did you really think we can settle this just by going over there and killing Black Wing?”

“Why not?” Jiaojiao was confused.

“Of course not, no way. The people rioting on the streets now all assume it’s my duty to protect the country. If I don’t, they’ll scold me. If I don’t do it well, they’ll scold me even harder. When will they ever praise me? It’s only when they benefit from me.”

“I don’t get it…”

“Come to my room tonight for Netflix and chill, do you get that?”

“Yep. Let’s make it 10pm, I’ll make sure to scrub myself clean first…”

“…”

Li Yi let out a long breath. “The Fluttering Snow Continent isn’t what it used to be. Believe it or not, if we go to the Fluttering Snow Continent now, even if we manage to find Black Wing, we won’t ever be able to kill him.”

Jiaojiao was slightly stunned. “I don’t believe that.”

“If we kill Black Wing, those condemning us will praise us, but what if we can’t kill him? What’ll happen then?”

“They’ll definitely get even worse.”

“That’s why we can’t go now, or else the results will be disastrous.”

“Face it, you’re just chicken. Hmph-hmph, if you don’t got the balls to go, I’ll bring Unmatched with me!”

“No one goes without my orders!”

“Hmph!”

While Li Yi and Jiaojiao were talking, there was an intense discussion going on in the Iron Alliance Channel as well. Flower Underpants, Confused Fox and the like were all for heading to the Fluttering Snow Continent right now and fighting back to regain their honor, and their suggestion gained the approval of 80% of the Iron Alliance members. On the other hand, Jiaojiao obeyed Li Yi’s orders and did not join in the rally. Nevertheless, those players had already formed their own party and were now gathering at the Abyssal Canyon Crevice.

Li Yi had been keeping an eye on the alliance messages. At first, he had considered stopping them, but on second thoughts, he gave up on the idea.

Ever since Li Yi got the chance to start over, the Invincible Alliance had been dominating the charts. Under his leadership, the other two continents were completely overshadowed, and whenever he gathered his men to raid cities in the other continents, they almost always won. As time went on, many players began to believe that this was normal, that it was inevitable. What they had forgotten was that their opponents were not NPCs with AI, but actual living players, just like themselves!

Who would just lie there on the slaughter board willingly? Why was it taking so long to release the new version of King of Pantheon? It was all because the Invincible Continent was too domineering, and the developers were trying to balance things out.

As long as the level cap was in place, the difference between new and old players would only shrink. Now, the other two continents’ overall abilities were not that far off from the Invincible Continent’s anymore.

The reason why the Invincible Continent players reacted so harshly was because they had never suffered such a loss before. They were too high up their horses, and they always felt like they were stronger than the other side. Victory was only natural, but defeat had become unacceptable.

The Invincible Continent Army gathered quickly. Although Queen Jiao was not involved, the defeat had been too serious for them to bear, so the players were gathering at a speed equivalent to the summons of a King’s Order. Within merely half an hour, there were more than five hundred thousand players gathered at the Abyssal Canyon Crevice.

Li Yi sighed. “Jiaojiao, go issue a King’s Order…”

Jiaojiao said happily, “Changed your mind?”

“No, but they forced our hand. We don’t have a choice but to go now.”

The way things were going, if Li Yi did not go, the others would definitely call him a coward. If he went, however, he was certain that the enemy was ready for him. There was no way they would let him get revenge so easily.

Once the King’s Order appeared, Li Yi just tapped it lightly, and he was teleported to the Abyssal Canyon Crevice.

Riding the Crimson Emperor Warhorse and wielding her black greatsword, Jiaojiao ran up to the front of the army.

The first major city on the Fluttering Snow Continent that was closest to the Abyssal Canyon Crevice had been renamed Fluttering Snow City, and Fluttering Snow Purple Water Chestnut was its Castellan.

Fluttering Snow Purple Water Chestnut was riding a Crimson Emperor Warhorse too, standing outside the city. Behind her, the Fluttering Snow Continent players numbered in the millions.

The headhunt was just the beginning. When the Invincible Continent players first began gathering to form an army, the Fluttering Snow Continent had already made preparations to meet them in battle.

Bai Xiaoya rode a flaming-red fox and stood on Fluttering Snow Purple Water Chestnut’s left. As usual, she wore a silver mask and spun her flute between her fingers, the very picture of serenity.

On Fluttering Snow Purple Water Chestnut’s right, the Fluttering Snow Alliance’s three Vice Alliance Leaders stood together. They did not ride their mounts, but they just stood there, engaged in cheerful chatter.

Fluttering Snow Purple Water Chestnut asked Bai Xiaoya, “Baibai, do you think we’ll win this time?”

“In the eight years we’ve been playing, when have we ever lost?” Bai Xiaoya paused before adding, “Well, except to that pervert…”

Fluttering Snow Purple Water Chestnut’s face reddened, and she shook her head.

Bai Xiaoya chuckled. “Don’t worry, Lil Purple, we’ll win this for sure.

Fluttering Snow Purple Water Chestnut shook her head. “I just have a feeling.”

“What kind of feeling?”

“Don’t you think that Dark Wing from the Invincible Continent… is a little similar to that pervert?”

“Similar?” Bai Xiaoya was taken aback, but she immediately waved it off. “They’re not similar at all. That pervert is famous for being the scum of the earth, he’s the lowest of the low. No matter how you look at it, that Dark Wing still has some standards. They’re different as night and day.”

“Famous for being the scum of the earth? Hahahaha…”

Bai Xiaoya laughed too, but she soon stopped, pointing forth with her flute. “Alright, stop laughing. Here they come.”

In the distance, Queen Jiao was leading the pack on horseback, bringing the army straight at them.

“Ready the ballistae!”

Bai Xiaoya raised her hand.

“Rattattattatta…”

Several thousand Large-sized Iron Ballistae appeared from within the Fluttering Snow City walls, aiming straight ahead.

“Catapults, ready! Begin loading the Heavy Bombs!”

Several thousand catapults were pushed out of the ranks, and the cannoneers began to load them with the Heavy Bombs.

By now, King of Pantheon had been running for three years, and Snickersnee had long since ceased to be the only Master Ironsmith. Now, each of the three continents had the ability to create weapons of war like Large-sized Iron Ballistae and catapults.

Bai Xiaoya continued to issue her orders. “Activate the Gravitational Spell Circle!”

The Wizards in Fluttering Snow City, up to tens of thousands of them, sang the incantation in unison. Soon enough, a huge hexagram rose into the sky slowly, enveloping the entire city.

The Gravitational Spell Circle did not deal any damage. Its only function was to prevent flight, as once this spell circle was activated, neither side could take to the skies anymore, either with mounts or skills. Even if they forcefully tried it, they would only crash to the ground in the next instant.

“I knew it… It’s just as I thought.”

Li Yi rode the Holy Light Warhorse behind Jiaojiao, and when he saw the Gravitational Spell Circle, his heart sank.

Once the Gravitational Spell Circle was in the air, neither side could fly. It seemed like the Fluttering Snow Alliance was ready to fight to the death this time…

“Lil Yi’zi, why the long face?”

Jiaojiao tilted her head as she looked at Li Yi, and then she winked and sent him a private message. “I’ll scrub myself clean and drop by your place tonight, kays?”

“Pfft—”

Li Yi nearly spat out, but thankfully he managed to control himself. Trying to keep his expression, he pointed ahead.

“There are several thousand ballistae and several thousand catapults ahead. Also, they even fired up the Gravitational Spell Circle. I’m guessing that they have other tricks up their sleeves too, perhaps even a Forbidden Curse like Asteroid. That’s why I’m willing to bet that if we charge in there now, we’ll definitely suffer monumental losses…”

“So what do we do?”

“Call for a retreat now, and let all their preparations go to waste. Hmph-hmph, activating a Gravitational Spell Circle would take at least five million Gold Coins’ worth of materials, and the Heavy Bombs can’t be kept for long either. Those probably cost over three million in themselves. If we leave now, they’ll be the only ones to suffer losses.

Jiaojiao suddenly turned around and raised her greatsword high above her head, roaring, “Brothers, we retreat!”

…