Published: February 11, 2025
The double-horned sand monster standing beside Ye Zhongming waved a hand, and immediately, the sand on the ground coalesced into a sand stick, infused with the power of lightning, flying out. Due to the presence of puppets ahead, this sand stick was extremely stealthy. By the time the royal guild members detected it, the sand stick had already reached a warrior's front.
With a muffled thud, the sand stick struck the Black Mist Armor and pierced inside.
This seemed to act as a signal. Following the attack of the double-horned sand monster, all the puppets sprang into action.
These golden puppets did not let out morale-boosting roars; their silence only highlighted their strength. Especially in those battle formations, their movements followed a certain order. Some advanced forward, clearly initiating an attack, while others gathered around Gao Yi and Zhao Xiangxue, forming a solid defense formation. A few continuously shifted, seemingly waiting for something.
The scattered puppets were more direct, all lunging at the nearest royal warriors, their whistling fists striking out.
The royal guild, of course, would not sit back and take the hits. All the shield warriors shouted and stepped forward, raising their shields to meet the incoming attacks.
The long-gun warriors behind them continuously thrust their weapons forward from the shoulders of the shield warriors, aiming to inflict damage on the enemies ahead.
Those warriors wielding grappling hooks also made their first moves, as the flying grappling hooks began to soar toward the puppet group. From time to time, a puppet would get snagged by a hook around its head and yanked out, thrown outside the formation. It seemed these grappling hooks were imbued with some strange power; any puppet pulled out would stand back up swaying unsteadily, unable to fight for at least a short time.
The spears made of Black Mist were equally powerful. Although those black needles hadn't appeared, the black spears were surprisingly strong.
Against puppets that weren't very good at defense, each thrust could nearly penetrate the puppet's body. While a single thrust may not severely damage the puppets, repeated strikes would eventually create cracks on their bodies. As the cracks accumulated and grew larger, they would lead to the puppets' complete destruction.
Gao Yi dashed forward. He was not accustomed to being protected by others. With so many ‘comrades’ now able to fight alongside him, he was ensured he wouldn’t be surrounded. He immediately charged to the front line, engaging the enemy in direct hand-to-hand combat. Although he couldn’t use the Pangu Bloodline, the armor on his body, the Door Shield Sword in his hand, and his formidable personal combat capabilities made him far stronger than the puppets. He single-handedly attracted the assault of a dozen royal warriors.
Zhao Xiangxue also completed her transformation. Normally, faced with such an onslaught, she would maintain her human form to maximize group attacks.
However, ever since she learned that the royal warriors shared damage due to team enhancements, she transformed into a flame sprite master. In this form, her single-target attacks could produce a higher total damage output over a period compared to her human shape.
After unleashing a pillar of fire towards the royal clan leader, blazing flames shot from her short staff, spraying towards the nearest royal warrior.
The two knife-wielding sand soldiers released from the Sand Soldier Music Box had already reached the frontline. Their characteristics were speed and agility; while their regular attacks weren’t as powerful as imagined, at certain points, the two sand soldiers could unleash a powerful slash akin to blade radiance, delivering devastating damage.
Back in West Asia, when the seller of this equipment demonstrated it, the sand soldiers’ attacks were of this kind. Even when it was just a silver-level Sand Soldier Music Box, they could inflict substantial damage on the Holy City's ground. Now that the music box was green-level, the sand soldiers' attack power had naturally increased further.