The opening war had now lasted a total of three hours and ten minutes.
To besiege and slay Wei Huan here, the Dark Beast race had used the lives of their royalty as bait to forcibly pin him in place. Simultaneously, exploiting the critical factor that the preparation window had not yet expired, they relocated their Royal Cities in a ring around him, encircling him completely.
Many details within this maneuver invited scrutiny. For instance, the fact that they could manifest the Thousand-Eyed form suggested the Dark Beast royalty were not merely physical brutes but possessed diverse abilities, including mental-type attacks. Furthermore, was Wei Huan's choice to bring only three vehicles to strike a Royal City—only to end up surrounded—part of the royalty's calculations?
In any case, the moment Wei Huan realized he was encircled and the Dark Beast royalty began to drop their veils, the time had come for both sides to draw their daggers for the final strike.
In the livestream:
[Disaster! He's fallen into the enemy's trap!]
[I knew it! I knew this would happen!! Who gave him the courage to penetrate so deep alone? Did he think killing a few royals made him invincible?]
[He was indeed too reckless. If the Dark Beast royalty were that easy to kill, our human heroes would have wiped them out years ago. He underestimated his opponent.]
[Quick! Who has the contact info for the Challenge Army Command? Contact them to rescue Wei Huan immediately! Nothing can happen to him!]
The atmosphere in the chat turned toxic instantly. Just as there are always those who face the sun and hope for a better tomorrow, there are those whose temperaments are perpetually stifled and pessimistic. Many had already been clamoring that Wei Huan's solo operation was inappropriate, but their voices had been drowned out by the cheers of celebration. Now, their roars were finally being heard.
The livestream cooled, momentarily dominated by defeatist comments. Amidst the chorus of "You were wrong," those with wavering convictions felt their hearts sink. All of Blue Star seemed to dim in that moment.
Of course, some argued back, but the fact remained that Wei Huan was surrounded. On the screen, the Primordial Spirits rising from the cities were growing increasingly massive. One after another, these fierce, thousand-meter monstrosities pressed toward the center. The three vehicles huddled in the middle looked small, helpless, and as fragile as a candle flame in a gale.
The hearts of the people of Blue Star were in their throats. Whether complaining or worrying, they were merely anxious for Wei Huan. Unfortunately, protected by the system's privacy settings, they could not see the actual expression on his face, nor could they know that his eyes had suddenly lit up.
The Dark Beast royalty were satisfied: 'We have finally surrounded him. There is no escape to heaven or earth. We will grind him down until he is dead!'
Wei Huan's eyes were bright: 'So many Dark Beast royals?'
Both sides were perfectly satisfied with the situation. Only the onlookers were terrified.
Wei Huan had been concerned that his Blessing states had less than two hours remaining. If every battle involved this much back-and-forth pulling and repetitive skirmishing, he might truly have to fight one day and rest the next, indefinitely prolonging this opening war. But now, it was fine. These royals had surrounded him of their own accord; he could farm them in a cluster.
As for the danger? Wei Huan wouldn't claim he was in no peril, but he had a Level 6 vehicle and a Level 7 shield. If he couldn't win, he could run. The ones truly afraid to let him leave were the Dark Beasts, who feared his continued growth and would pay any price to keep him here. He, however, could come and go with relative ease.
This was perfect. Should one call it "getting what one wished for"? It was unclear which "genius" had come up with this plan.
Beast King Lie: "..."
The Dark Beast King was closely monitoring the battle from his royal tent. Prostrate at his feet was a royal with slender limbs and a light, deer-like frame—Beast King Lie himself. The tent had been silent for a long time; no beast spoke. The opponent was too strong—so strong that failure to meet him with everything they had meant certain defeat.
But as the hunt was finalized and the illusions were torn away, the Dark Beast King said with some helplessness, "I could tolerate the Level 6 vehicle, but how did this human manage to make every component on his vehicle Level 7? Tier 7 weapons deal far too much damage to our race."
After a pause, the King murmured as if to himself, "We see a Level 6 vehicle today; next time, it may be Level 7. Fast or slow, it doesn't matter; as long as we kill him, we sever the hope of the human race. He shouldn't have come to the Great Battlefield. If he had focused solely on developing within the Challenge World, we would truly have lost the power to resist."
Lie nodded; this was exactly his thought. Time and again, they had recognized Wei Huan's threat and chose to hunt him, but they had always underestimated him and missed their opportunities. This time, if they failed to kill him, the Dark Beast race would face a true catastrophe.
Wei Huan must die!
Most of Lie's royal kin had been redeployed to the battlefield, accompanied by an incalculable number of Dark Beast thralls. The Primordial Spirits the human could see were only a portion; the twenty-odd manifested royals were not the full count, as the space could only accommodate so many.
This time, they would show this human the resolve of the Dark Beast race!!
"ROAR!!"
"AWOOOO!!"
Gargantuan, terrifying monsters towered into the sky, closing in on Wei Huan's vehicles. The seawater distorted their faces, making the scene appear absurd and fantastical. Wei Huan's vehicle had just broken its Level 7 shield; it required three minutes to recharge. And these three minutes were indeed his most dangerous moment.
"Commander, which way do I shoot?" Xu Qingqiang lit a cigarette, looking around with excitement. "Their mental illusions can't touch me. Let me take point so you guys stop dealing 'scratch' damage."
Captain Xue was not to be outdone: "I've already deployed the Criminal Sequence. The anchors are in place; we'll definitely hit our marks this time."
Mu Zhong added, "Everyone is ready. Give the order."
Wei Huan glanced at the three of them and nodded. When he spoke, his voice resonated throughout the vehicle: "To battle. This time, we kill to our hearts' content. We'll drink when we return."
"AWOOOO!"
"Hahaha, good! I love drinking!"
"Damn it, it's finally my turn to shine!"
"This battle will go down in the history books. Brothers, charge!!"
As the howls and cheers erupted, over a hundred war vehicles suddenly manifested beside Wei Huan's formation. They were all Level 5 vehicles, and many had upgraded all their components to Level 6, standing just one step away from becoming true Level 6 machines.
There was no helping it; Wei Huan opened treasure chests too fast. No one could keep up. Equipment below Silver grade on his vehicle was as cheap as cabbage, as were materials below Level 6. Since everyone had plenty of combat missions, they all held significant amounts of DKP (Dragon Kill Points). While it wasn't enough to trade for a single piece of high-tier gear, it only took a small amount of DKP to upgrade low-tier equipment and vehicles to the limit.
Strictly speaking, if Wei Huan hadn't handed over the higher-level blueprints to the state and only kept a few Level 6 vehicle blueprints for Xu Qingqiang and Captain Xue, all thirty-three of humanity's Level 6 vehicles would have belonged to him. Even at Level 5, these maxed-out vehicles were formidable.
Currently, the Dark Beasts' challenge progress was only at Level 5; only their royalty possessed Level 5 territories. Yet Wei Huan's formation easily boasted a hundred Level 5 vehicles. One Level 5 vehicle might not turn the tide, but a hundred certainly influenced the situation. Combined with the three Level 6 vehicles and Wei Huan's terrifying undead army, losing this fight would be difficult!
The crew members, who had always coordinated with the undead to teleport into cities, could finally control their own vehicles to slay the enemy. They were ecstatic! Leading their assigned crews under Mu Zhong's command, they split into three groups and charged in a single direction.
A hundred Level 5 max-out vehicles acted like a blade, simultaneously swarming a massive creature bristling with tentacles and arms that looked particularly formidable. The vehicles wove through the water with agility, firing constant beams of light. Level 6 Sentry Tower weapons left charred patches on the royal's body; if the same spot was hit two or three times, black smoke would billow as energy dissipated.
Furthermore, the long-range Challengers on the roofs—who had been "hungry" for glory and suppressed for far too long—were stationed on the War Platforms. They had been brooding and were now ready to vent their frustrations in one go.
'Tsk, we've only seen the melee guys getting the spotlight! On such a massive battlefield, isn't it time for the long-range units to shine? Ever since we followed Boss Wei, our status has plummeted!'
'What? Complain that Boss Wei hasn't deployed us? No, no, what nonsense! Low combat frequency but high benefits; we've been nourishing our spirits until we're so strong it's scary. This isn't 'no missions'—this is biding our time for a sudden outburst!!'
The people on the War Platforms unleashed their most powerful attacks. Bolstered by the platform's buffs, their damage was nearly equal to Level 6 Sentry Towers, riddling the Royal Primordial Spirits with countless plumes of black mist. This mist was the energy sacrificed by countless Dark Beast lives; once it dissipated, it was gone forever. To get more, they would have to sacrifice again.
But on a battlefield like this, how many beasts could supplement the consumption? Especially when they weren't facing one royal, but dozens!!
The hundred Level 5 vehicles were split into three groups to face the royals in the northeast. Each ten-car squad formed a sub-unit to besiege or pin down a single royal. In an instant, nearly ten Dark Beast royals were embroiled in the flames of war, locked in a group fight against the vehicle swarms.
To the northwest, a flamboyant red sports car sped out. This was Xu Qingqiang's vehicle. Influenced by Lu Jie, Xu Qingqiang had chosen this arrogant-looking car since there was no mandatory uniform specification for the legion's vehicles. The "skin" didn't add attributes, but the car's form seemed to make it more agile.
Level 6 vehicles could fly; they did not fear thousand-meter Primordial Spirits and could fly directly to the head for a kill shot. His "hit and run" style, though only dealing scratch damage so far, successfully baited four or five royals into chasing him. If left alone, Xu Qingqiang would fly back for endless sneak attacks.
By comparison, Captain Xue's vehicle was in the thick of the most violent combat. From the start, Wei Huan had worried that Xue's "Natural Taunt Face" talent would work even from inside a vehicle, so he had assigned the strongest long-range crew to him. Additionally, the Sequence 5 driver, Old Soldier, was stationed there. If the vehicle took damage, Old Soldier's maintenance speed was triple that of an average driver.
This arrangement proved correct. Aside from Wei Huan—the primary target—Captain Xue's vehicle was surrounded by the most royals. Countless tentacles and arms lunged from eerie angles, slamming into the vehicle like a dense net trying to crush him.
Xue's vehicle was controlled by the "Heart of Steel," including weapon systems. Only the attacks from the War Platforms were manual; Xue and his melee squad were mascots for the first time. Even hiding in the car, they faced constant peril. At the start of the fight, the Level 6 shield took two heavy hits and barely escaped before being shattered. Old Soldier and the driver rushed to repair the shield; though it was a drop in the bucket, every extra hit absorbed in such a high-intensity battle was a blessing.
The "Heart of Steel" directed weapons at different royals; what looked like random rapid fire was actually concentrated shots aimed at the same points. As the vehicle sped past, two severed tentacles fell behind, black energy geysering from the stumps.
Wei Huan naturally bore the brunt of the war, yet he was the most at ease. With a Level 7 shield, he was practically invincible, making the enemy hesitant to strike. Of course, to kill Wei Huan, they would have to blow up his car first, which meant enduring the backlash of a Level 7 shield—a sacrifice they were willing to make for victory.
However, the reality was that they couldn't even touch the side of his vehicle before being pushed back by a tide of undead. The 4x-boosted undead were at their peak strength and endurance. They poured out from the teleportation portals around the vehicle, filling the sea in a short time.
A royal's immense power might crush a swarm of undead with one stomp, but some stragglers always managed to cling to their bodies. The gargantuan forms couldn't feel the pinpricks of pain until it was too late—by the time they realized, black smoke was billowing from their Primordial Spirits as their power drained away. Fighting from within a giant's body had always been the undead's specialty.
Furthermore, with the distance so close—Wei Huan was less than three kilometers from the nearest royal—even if the undead died in swathes, they were back on the battlefield in the next second.
Suddenly, in the densest area of Dark Beast royals, a powerful vortex manifested out of thin air, ensnaring two royals. They were tossed helplessly as if in a washing machine filled with razor blades, screaming in agony. Above the dense black smoke, a pair of eyes drawn with golden lines opened and closed, slowly fading before reappearing over another vehicle to deliver a high-powered shot or a devastating Level 6 scroll. This phantom presence became the most nerve-wracking element on the battlefield.
Suddenly, a massive surge of energy erupted, followed by several royals being blown backward—some with severed necks, others with punctured chests, or seven or eight tentacles hacked off. Amidst the billowing black smoke, one unlucky royal had its Primordial Spirit shattered entirely, exposing its fragile original body.
Had a vehicle's shield broken?
Wei Huan turned to look. The exploding vehicle was Captain Xue's, which had indeed drawn the most fire. Had Xue not drawn the majority of the heat, Wei Huan's side wouldn't have been this easy. But with so many royals besieging him, there were bound to be unavoidable hits, and their Level 6 shield had finally been smashed.
The shield's burst damage knocked back the surrounding royals, but some stabilized quickly and slapped the vehicle with a backhand strike.
BANG!
The vehicle was swatted like a volleyball, crashing into a Dark Beast whose neck had been sliced open. As a manifested spirit, the beast wouldn't die from losing its head, but it lacked vision and was struck by the flying vehicle. One might have expected Xue's vehicle to be crushed and the crew doomed.
Instead, in the next second, what hit the headless royal was not a "soft persimmon" but a blade of refined steel.
BANG!
The headless royal's Primordial Spirit actually exploded! A dazed original body of a Dark Beast royal appeared in the swirling smoke, taking several moments to react.
This was a Level 6 vehicle! Setting aside how hard a Level 6 shell was, if it had been upgraded to Level 7, even letting the beasts slap it would be difficult to break! And it just so happened...
While Xue's vehicle lacked a Level 7 shield, it 'did' have a Level 7 shell. A Level 7 shell plus a Level 6 anti-collision bar, combined with the "Heart of Steel's" clever calculation to borrow momentum, turned the vehicle into a lethal projectile that shattered a royal's Primordial Spirit.
Who was Captain Xue? He was the premier MT (Main Tank) of Wei Huan's fleet, a man with a natural taunt face. He knew his nature; he was the type who would be targeted by monsters even if he did nothing. If he didn't stack defense like a madman, did he want to die?
Vehicle defense is still defense! He couldn't find a Level 7 shield blueprint, but he had found plenty for Level 7 shells, and Xue had been the first to apply for them, arming his car to the teeth. Most equipment on Wei Huan's vehicle required DKP, but the gear and materials for core members were prioritized. Captain Xue's vehicle was like a turtle shell—so hard it would break the teeth of anything that bit it. Otherwise, Wei Huan would never have felt safe letting Xue bait over ten royals alone.
Furthermore, following that string of damage, the driver team led by Old Soldier used their abilities to repair. Soon, the dented exterior of the vehicle was restored.
Captain Xue stood with hands on his hips, laughing: "Come on! Come hit your grandpa!"
The Dark Beast royals seemed clouded by a mysterious hatred, their eyes red as they recklessly pursued Xue's vehicle.
At that moment, a notification popped up on Wei Huan's screen.
[Obtained 82,300 Points]
Eighty-two thousand points!? That meant a royal had been killed?
Mu Zhong was surprised by the message. He looked at Wei Huan via the video feed and saw his calm, composed eyes; he knew this was Wei Huan's doing. Wei Huan didn't need to manage the vehicle fleet's combat—Mu Zhong had the Heart of Steel and a human staff room behind him. Wei Huan had only one task: control the undead to kill the royalty.
The royals were incredibly hard to kill. Their Primordial Spirits were massive and powerful, but once broken, they would shift into inconspicuous forms to hide and flee. Letting a royal escape was like letting a tiger return to its lair; Wei Huan would not allow it.
He first targeted the four royals who had been half-killed in the initial siege. He didn't care that a general war had started; they wouldn't escape. In fact, most of the undead army's attention was focused on them. On the main front, one could only see a sea of undead swarming the manifested giants. But his elite Hidden Demons were on a separate battlefield, hunting those four.
Without their Primordial Spirits, as long as they didn't break line-of-sight to transform and flee, they weren't that hard to kill. The Hidden Demons first slew the Thousand-Eyed one. As the creature lay scattered on the ground, Wei Huan received the points notification. That meant it was dead for good.
The freed Hidden Demons moved to other targets. As the balance shifted, a second notification arrived.
[Obtained 73,400 Points]
This belonged to the grotesque Thousand-Armed Centipede. Its body had been broken into several segments and smashed to pulp, ensuring the "centipede that does not die when dead" stayed down.
With two massive point drops added to his previous total, Wei Huan traded for three more Golden Scrolls and had them delivered to Yake.
'Sustaining war through war?' This was the epitome of it. As long as he killed more royals, he gained more strategic weapons. He would kill every single one here; none would escape!!
After killing two, Wei Huan recalled a small portion of the Hidden Demons to the main battlefield. He hadn't forgotten the two Primordial Spirits that had just been shattered; it was time to harvest. The remaining demons continued hunting the other two.
BOOM!
A sudden commotion drew Wei Huan's attention. It was Xu Qingqiang coordinating a joint operation with the Level 5 vehicle fleet. They had not only shattered a Primordial Spirit but killed the royal in one go. The vehicles withdrew flawlessly, having taken no damage. This action fully demonstrated the advantage of tactical maneuvers—some drew aggro, some suppressed with fire, and others cruised the perimeter on standby.
Throughout this, they cleverly utilized shield-burst damage and anti-collision bar damage. But the ultimate feat was achieved by a component Wei Huan had largely ignored: the External Net Launcher.
On Wei Huan's own vehicle, the Net Launcher was useless. Its primary function was crowd control—capture a monster, then kill it. Since Wei Huan's undead usually fought thirty kilometers away, close-quarters vehicle combat was rare, and the net was redundant.
However, in this vehicle guerrilla warfare, the net was exceptionally useful. They systematically isolated and trapped a royal until Xu Qingqiang arrived. A Level 7 External Net descended from above, ensnaring a royal. The Tier 7 net didn't just immobilize; it constricted. Even after the Primordial Spirit was shattered, the original body remained trapped in the net and was easily dispatched.
[Obtained 62,300 Points]
Wei Huan glanced at the latest points. He was a bit dissatisfied. What's with these royals? The points are getting lower. Is it because the Dark Beast population is thinning? Or was the deployment too rushed to gather enough sacrifices?
Wei Huan paused. Never mind. Continuing that train of thought bordered on arrogance. He couldn't underestimate the Dark Beast race.