Chapter 128: The Mountain-Shaking Lord

The entire team was stunned. Hundreds of gophers had erupted from the ground beneath the battlefield. The players stationed on the arrow towers watched in horror as their equipment vanished item by item, nearly driving them to madness. Those below were as anxious as ants on a hot pan, but with the Mountain-Shaking Lord blocking the gate, they were effectively trapped, forced to watch helplessly as the wretched gophers wreaked havoc and made off with the fruits of their labor.

"Brother Ye, do you have any idea what's going on? I thought all the monsters in the Demon Trial Grounds had been cleared. Where did all these damn gophers come from, and why on earth are they stealing our gear?" Long-Face shouted, nearly jumping in frustration as he watched silver and bronze equipment disappear from the battlefield. He fired skills frantically at the emerging gophers, but there were simply too many of them, and they would retreat into the earth the moment they snatched a piece of loot, rendering his efforts futile.

Ye Chen, of course, knew exactly what was happening; this was the devious plan he and 2058 had concocted. However, he wouldn't admit it even if his life depended on it. He donned a mask of confused indignation, shaking his head to signal his ignorance.

Long-Face, Monk Dingyuan, and the others didn't suspect a thing. To them, this was a completely unforeseen accident; they could never have dreamed it had anything to do with Ye Chen. As team members clamored—some shouting to charge out, others threatening to file complaints with the officials—the team channel dissolved into chaos. Ye Chen feigned anger as well, though inside, he was grinning from ear to ear. Seventy or eighty pieces of bronze gear and seven pieces of silver gear were now firmly in his pocket. As for complaints? Sorry, the Illusory Realm did indeed include this mechanic, and the officials wouldn't lift a finger.

"I remember! I remember now!" Amidst the chaos in the channel, Tiger suddenly knocked aside a Savage Bear with his spear and shouted excitedly, "I read about this in a book called 'Strange Encounters in the Southern Wilderness.' These gophers are from the hidden stage of the Demon King's Labyrinth in the Southern Wilderness Monster Domain. Normally, clearing the Demon Trial Grounds is enough to finish the instance, but since these gophers have appeared, the Demon King's Labyrinth must have been triggered as well. We have to clear the Labyrinth to truly complete the instance."

Ye Chen glanced at Tiger in surprise. This guy was incredibly well-read; to uncover such a secret, he must have pored over countless dry, boring historical biographies.

"Can we still get our gear back?" Xian Yun asked urgently. The others turned to look at Tiger, indifferent to the Labyrinth itself and focused entirely on their lost treasures.

Tiger gave a bitter smile and replied, "It's hard to say. Movement inside the Demon King's Labyrinth is completely random. Who knows where those gophers hid the gear? It’s entirely down to luck; the odds are probably not high."

"No matter how slim the odds, we have to try. I won't be able to rest in peace otherwise," Xian Yun insisted, his neck reddening. The other members voiced their agreement.

"Then everyone must be extremely careful. We'll have to split up once we're inside. Also, be warned: you will likely see illusions of treasure in the Labyrinth—high-quality gear or rare skill books—but I advise you not to be greedy. Most of those treasures are fake," Tiger warned, recalling the useful information he had read.

"Most are fake? So that means some are real?" Xian Yun’s eyes lit up, and the other members seemed similarly tempted.

Tiger was silent for a moment before nodding. "There are real ones, but they are fewer than one in ten. Don't pin your hopes on them. Furthermore, those illusions are dangerous. Triggering one might draw out monsters, and if you're unlucky, you could lose your life or even suffer attribute drain."

Despite Tiger's stern warning, the members, blinded by the lure of loot, paid little heed. They were convinced they would be the ones to find the real treasures. As for the danger? Hmph, perhaps Tiger was just trying to scare them off to claim the benefits for himself.

Monk Dingyuan, Long-Face, and Tiger exchanged glances, seeing the disappointment in each other's eyes. Tiger tried to say more, but the Monk stopped him with a soft, private message: "Let them be."

Tiger sighed and closed his mouth. Ye Chen watched this scene with a faint smile. The more these members acted this way, the less attached they would be when Monk Dingyuan and the others eventually decided to leave, ensuring a clean break.

"Alright, everyone, perk up! We still have a chance to recover our gear. Let's finish off this Dark Gold-tier behemoth first. This is a super-boss; even if it doesn't drop a Spirit-tier item, it'll at least drop several pieces of Gold-tier gear. One piece of Gold gear is worth dozens of pieces of Bronze. That's the real key to getting rich," Ye Chen said, stepping in to boost morale as he saw the team's spirits flagging.

"That's right! Gold-tier gear and above is the real deal. No matter how much Bronze gear we have, it's only good for a bit of pocket change. Once you’re decked out in Gold gear, you won't have to worry about getting more Bronze gear!" Long-Face added, fueling the fire.

The team's spirits were quickly reignited, and they set to work with renewed vigor, clearing the remaining low-health Savage Bears in minutes. The Mountain-Shaking Lord, which had been roaring and thrashing for over half an hour, finally presented an opening for a head-on assault.

"ROAR!"

The Mountain-Shaking Lord let out a thunderous bellow, its mountain-like body slamming into the primary crossbeam above the city gate.

*Crack.* The stone beam snapped under the force, crumbling into a pile of rubble.

"D-damn it, Brother Ye Chen, didn't you say this guy wouldn't bash the wall?" Monk Dingyuan’s jaw dropped in horror, and the other members looked equally pale.

"I said he wouldn't bash the wall, but I never said he wouldn't bash the gate. He’s that big—how else is he supposed to get in?" Ye Chen rolled his eyes and quickly called out to those on the arrow towers, "You lot had better get down immediately, or you're likely to lose your lives."

As he spoke, another *crack* echoed as the second crossbeam snapped. Xian Yun seemed to realize the danger and, with a jolt of panic, scrambled down from the tower. Long-Face’s expression shifted, and he quickly descended as well. However, the other tower guards were sluggish. Aside from the Holy Priest on the Holy Light Tower who hesitated before coming down, the guards on the other three towers remained, reluctant to move. The towers provided an attack bonus, and they weren't willing to lose out on the extra experience from the boss.

*Crack.* The final crossbeam was smashed by the Mountain-Shaking Lord. The mountain-like monster charged into the stronghold, let out a heaven-shaking roar, and swung its massive iron hammer toward the Flame Tower at the front!

Despite its bulky size, the Mountain-Shaking Lord’s attack speed was blistering. It gave the Elemental Mage on the Flame Tower no time to react. The mage only felt a dark shadow suddenly blot out the sky, heard a sickening crunch, and then knew nothing more.

*Boom!*

The giant hammer slammed into the ground. The fifteen-yard-high Flame Tower had vanished, leaving only pulverized debris in its wake.

Ye Chen’s eyelid twitched violently as he clicked his tongue. "That is the price of not following orders."

The surrounding team members shuddered. Monk Dingyuan and his two companions secretly vowed that if they ever joined Ye Chen’s team, they would be good, obedient soldiers. The fate of those who disobeyed was simply too miserable.

Though the Mountain-Shaking Lord had demolished the Flame Tower, it clearly had no intention of stopping. It swung its giant hammer again, howling as it smashed toward the next target, the Earth Tower. The guard on the Earth Tower was scrambling to climb down, but he was clearly not fast enough. *Boom!* Another massive crash. Looking up, the Earth Tower—and the guard—were gone.

The guard on the Web Tower was pale with terror. As he climbed down, he shrieked, "Captain Ye, save me! Brother Monk, save me!"

Monk Dingyuan wanted to help; he had been trying to pull the boss's aggro ever since it broke through, but the Mountain-Shaking Lord ignored him entirely, fixated only on the six arrow towers. He could only watch helplessly.

"Jump! Jump down, or you're a dead man!" Ye Chen decided to show a shred of mercy.

"It’s too high! I’ll fall to my death!" The tower was fifteen yards high; for a fragile mage, that was a genuine risk.

Ye Chen barked back, "You idiot! If you jump, you might die; if you don't, you're guaranteed to die. Suit yourself!"

The mage understood the impasse. Weighing a slim chance against certain death, he gritted his teeth and jumped into the void with his eyes shut. The moment he left the structure, the Mountain-Shaking Lord’s hammer landed. *Boom!* The Web Tower was pulverized.

*Thud.* A dull impact sounded as the mage hit the ground. A massive damage number floated above his head: -980.

With his health doubled, he had exactly one thousand HP, and he was fortunate enough not to die from the fall.

"Holy Priest, heal him! Everyone else, prepare for battle!" Ye Chen shouted coldly, and the team braced themselves.

*Boom! Boom! Boom!* Three more crashes followed as the remaining arrow towers were smashed to pieces. The Mountain-Shaking Lord seemed to have vented its rage, pausing for a moment before turning toward Ye Chen and his group. Its massive form loomed over them, casting a shadow that pressed down on everyone. But to the team's surprise, the Mountain-Shaking Lord didn't attack Monk Dingyuan, who had been taunting it the whole time. Instead, it fixed its carriage-wheel-sized eyes on the Soul-Reaping Rider and roared, "Traitor! You shall be punished!"

The booming voice made their ears ring. It was bizarre that the beast would target a summoned creature first, but everyone was relieved. The Soul-Reaping Rider still had nearly 200,000 HP and would surely hold the line for a while, saving them a lot of effort. The members were already flexing their muscles, ready to unleash their full output.

But just then, Ye Chen suddenly shouted, "Retreat! Retreat! Fall back fifty yards!"

Hearing the order, the team didn't know why they should retreat instead of seizing this perfect opportunity to attack. But having seen the fate of the three unfortunate tower guards, no one dared to hesitate. They followed Ye Chen’s command and sprinted back into the stronghold. The mage who had barely escaped death treated Ye Chen’s order as gospel; the moment he heard the word "retreat," he bolted like a frightened rabbit, his speed putting even the Thieves to shame.