Lords of the Heavens

Chapter 174 Hidden Plot (Bonus Chapter 10 for Alliance Leader lanruoruo)

"George! Give him to me!"

A large, no, a bald man rushed towards them, his voice full of energy. It was Pania, the blacksmith on duty. At that moment, she was wearing a set of leather armor, carrying a hammer, and she was running even faster than Li Wei.

At this moment, Li Wei did not hesitate at all and threw Joseph over directly. Whose credit it was, no doubt about it, and no one could escape it.

Moreover, without Hathaway's group to meet him, he would surely die, because the Black Witch's Blood Raven had already discovered him.

"Xilulu!"

Suddenly, the four-star hunter, John, summoned a snow-white warhorse, mounted it, and galloped over, seemingly to meet Li Wei!
But in reality, the next second, this guy pulled out a huge lance from somewhere, grazed Li Wei's side and charged over, man and horse as one, directly stabbing a fallen guard knight who had caught up into a candied hawthorn!

day!
What skill is this?
It's like a Soul-Severing Thorn!
Li Wei was amazed. Good heavens, is this a three-star knight or a two-star knight?
Despite his amazement, he didn't dare to relax at all, running as fast as an electric fan.

"George! My George!"

"George!"

A continuous sound came from the west of the city.

But Li Wei covered his ears and continued running frantically, only managing to catch up with Pania, who was carrying Joseph. This bald blacksmith is really fast; he must have 30 points of agility!

Behind them, Little John was like Zhao Zilong, fighting single-handedly against four fallen knights and hundreds of wild dogs, looking incredibly cool!
Sometimes a sharpshooter probes the sea, sometimes an arrow flies like a meteor!
In just two minutes, they managed to hold off their pursuers and then retreat with ease.

Of course, his pet warhorse was truly magnificent!

Whether in terms of speed, explosiveness, or agility, it far surpasses the warhorses of other Fallen Guardian Knights.

"Hurry, let's go to the mountains!"

It was Kreid's voice. He was firing a crossbow continuously, with a two-handed greatsword stuck beside him. Hathaway stood to the side, pale and somewhat listless, but thankfully, her eyes were shining brightly as she looked at Li Wei.

There was no time to say anything more. Li Wei didn't even have a chance to grab the bow and arrows on his back. There was only one word: run!

Even Hathaway ran faster than him.

These four-star players are really powerful.

Finally, it was Little John, who rode up on horseback, who grabbed Li Wei from behind and lifted him onto his warhorse.

Without even a word of thanks, Li Wei casually drew his short bow, nocked a hardwood arrow, and fired a shot into the air!
Hmm, it missed.

It didn't matter, because just a moment ago, a blood crow was rushing by, and his arrow startled it into flight.

He wasn't sure if it was just his imagination, but just a moment ago, the two-star Blood Raven that he had bound to his pet card suddenly flapped its wings and tried to fly away.

Although the tremor was very small, Li Wei still managed to detect it. He had been so close to the black-robed witch Missy near the Mare Inn before, but he hadn't experienced any reaction. Could it be that there was some special mechanism at play?

"Little John, take George away quickly!"

Hathaway shouted calmly, as if at this moment Li Wei's life was more important than Joseph's.

Little John spurred his horse forward, galloping at full speed, but after only a moment he shouted, "Dismount!"

"Xilulu!"

The warhorse neighed and vanished in a flash of white light. Little John performed a front flip, landed steadily, and instantly drew his bow, shooting it into the air and startling away a two-star blood crow that had been chasing him.

That set of moves was so cool.

Li Wei was slightly inferior.

However, he did a backflip, and the moment he landed, he didn't dissipate the force properly, causing him to stumble and almost fall. But he quickly regained his balance. After all, this was a galloping horse traveling at nearly 60 kilometers per hour, so to do that was quite impressive.

Even John Jr. showed a hint of surprise.

But it was only a tiny bit. This guy casually grabbed a quiver, kicked it with his foot, and the quiver flew through the air, with twelve arrows falling and landing perfectly in the soil.

He then magically put away the short bow in his hand and produced a powerful infantry bow from who-knows-where, which was definitely of three-star quality.

With a shout, the man drew the great bow to its full extent and unleashed a rapid three-shot burst, killing the warhorses of two pursuing Fallen Knights!

This smooth and seamless cover was truly eye-opening for Li Wei. By the time he took out his three-star war bow, Hathaway, Kled, and Pania had already successfully charged over.

"Stop fighting, let's go up the mountain!"

Well, that's what they mean by "there are always mountains beyond mountains and buildings beyond buildings," and "there's always someone stronger than you."

This time, Li Wei was certain that Little John was on the same path as him, being both an excellent scout and a powerful lancer, capable of both melee and ranged combat. His strength was definitely that of a key member of Hathaway's team!

Li Wei decisively sheathed his three-star battle bow, drew his short bow, and followed the others into the forest. Behind them, the sounds of men and horses collapsing and neighing filled the air, a terrifying cacophony. Five or six two-star blood crows took turns swooping down to harass them, while the black-robed witch Misi, riding her warhorse and accompanied by a dozen two-star blood wolves, pursued relentlessly. He couldn't be sure if the great witch Luna was still there, but that didn't matter anymore; they had to retreat, they had to go back. The forest, though vast, offered no further cover.

At first, Li Wei didn't say anything when he saw Hathaway and the others heading north, but after running for more than ten miles along the mountain road, they suddenly headed east.

Is there another plan?

"Hathaway, I suggest we return to camp immediately!" Li Wei said quickly.

"Nonsense, we're heading back now. Little John knows the way, he'll lead us back. Stay close, don't fall behind."

“But this route is wrong. If we go any further, we will encounter a cliff five miles ahead. We will have to go around to the south. This way, we will travel at least ten miles more. Moreover, there is a valley to the south with a small path. If the Mad Baron’s cavalry is strong enough, they can easily catch up from there. We will be intercepted in about fifteen miles.”

Li Wei said quickly, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, while Hathaway looked at him in surprise, and then decisively said, "You lead the way!"

"Alright! Keep up. We definitely can't shake off the blood crows in the sky, and we'll probably be caught by those dozen or so blood wolves. But blood wolves aren't invincible. We need to find a good spot to ambush them, as long as that great witch Luna doesn't come—"

Li Wei was speaking when he suddenly stopped!
"what happened?"

Hathaway raised an eyebrow. "Why are you still making such a fuss?"

“Missie the black-robed witch has returned with her pack of wolves, leaving only a blood raven in the sky.”

Li Wei looked up. He could feel it because at the height of the attack, he almost thought his two-star Blood Raven would break through the barrier and escape, but now it had suddenly become quiet.

"It might be a trap. Don't worry about that. We need to get back to camp as soon as possible!"

Hathaway shouted, but before she could finish speaking, two blood-red messages flashed before everyone's eyes.

[Family member Mike was killed by Mad Baron Mark. Family member Ron fought hard to retrieve his body but was still injured and fled the battlefield in panic. The Mad Baron and the Great Witch's allied forces did not continue to pursue him. The battle ended. The family head Hathaway's strategy and tactics were too rigid and weak. Although she also contributed to the rescue of her ally George, she was still not exempt from the blame. She was forcibly deducted 500 points of family contribution and will be impeached at the end of the month.]

[Ron, a family member, was too arrogant and failed to accurately anticipate the enemy's tactical changes. As a result, he was caught off guard and the team was surrounded. However, he was ultimately incredibly brave and resilient, managing to withstand the Mad Baron's attacks and retrieve his teammates' bodies. His merits outweighed his demerits!]

-

Holy crap, is Ron that strong?

Li Wei was shocked, but dared not linger any longer. Under the thick darkness of the night, he led the group like an old horse that knew the way well, traveling almost in a straight line for more than a hundred miles, and finally returned to the family camp at dawn.

When the mercenaries patrolling the camp spotted them and rang the warning bell, lines of purple-gold information appeared before all family members and mercenaries.

[Family member George triggers a crucial hidden event: he rescues the dying Second-Rank Priest Joseph from the treacherous city of Kah! This drastically alters the questline! It may even change the far-reaching quest storyline!]

He gained 3000 temple reputation points.

[Hathaway, the head of the family, led her team to successfully rescue family member George and assist in the rescue of Second-Rank Priest Joseph, earning her 300 Temple Reputation points.]

Family members John, Kled, and Parya each gained 100 points of Temple Reputation.

Family members Ron, Roddy, Snape, and Carson provided passive distraction and cover for the rescue of Second-Rank Priest Joseph, and each gained 50 points of Temple reputation.

[Family member George completed the monthly main quest, earning him 80 contribution points.]

-

Good heavens, temple reputation?

But why is there no family contribution? Oh, because this matter has nothing to do with the family.

At this moment, Hathaway's expression changed slightly. She had already guessed it. Being able to save a second-level priest was a significant contribution.
Sigh, I'm so tired. How did this kid get so lucky? How did he manage to sneak into Kah City without getting past those stray dogs?

But there's no point in saying all this now.

The group quickly returned to the One-Star Fortress, where they began treating patients, administering medication, cleaning wounds, and suturing them. It was a flurry of activity, as saving the Second-Level Priest Joseph would be a tremendous victory.

Since Li Wei couldn't help, he simply took the time to rest, because the allied forces of the Mad Baron and the Great Witch might launch a northward attack in a fit of rage.

Around noon, Ron, Roddy, Snape, and Carson returned with two mercenaries. This meant that they had suffered heavy losses in this battle, losing not only a four-star player, Mike, but also three three-star mercenaries.

Ron looked terrible; he was also injured, with a large dent in his breastplate.

"Teacher, are you alright?"

Li Wei and Hathaway immediately went to greet them, extremely worried.

“It’s nothing serious, it’s just that this set of armor is ruined, and I need a better set.” Ron’s words were loaded with meaning, but Li Wei and Hathaway had no objections this time. Facing the extremely powerful Mad Baron Mark, they did indeed need an absolutely powerful front-line tank.

(End of this chapter)