84: Chapter 84 War Breaks Out

"I didn't expect... my surprise attack would actually fail."

Zen stared blankly at the Subspace barrier leading to the other world, whispering to himself.

As a veteran assassin who had undergone assassin training since childhood and walked in the shadows for twenty years, his figure had silently glided behind countless targets, harvesting lives as naturally as breathing.

Given his seniority and status, he originally had no need to personally hunt down a newcomer adventurer.

It was only due to the sensitive identity of being a disciple of Helm, and the almost forceful demand of Prince Mian, that he had to set aside his arrogance and come to the front lines himself.

Even so, he still adhered to the first rule of an assassin: never underestimate the enemy.

Before the mission, he had, as always, collected all the intelligence he could find.

Although his tracking skills could not lock onto a target using a teleportation gem, through several imperial lords who had contact with Fu Hao, he still pieced together detailed intelligence.

"Is this... Subspace?"

Zen gently extended his finger, touching the oval black barrier before him.

Where his fingertip touched, it felt as if he were passing through a mass of invisible dense fog, reaching the other side.

"What a... miraculous magic."

He turned back into a shadow, blending into the darkness of a corner in the lord's office.

This was the first time in twenty years that he had been forced into a passive lurking state during a mission.

Thirty minutes later, Fu Hao emerged from the Subspace a step earlier than expected.

Facing this prey that showed no fear, Zen simply revealed himself and spoke in a cold voice:

"Why come out so early? Thinking that an early death means an early rebirth?"

Zen had always been indifferent to his targets—they were mostly just mission numbers.

But Fu Hao was different; he was the first person to survive his fatal strike, which was enough to pique his interest.

Of course, the premise of this curiosity was: even if he missed, it wouldn't come to being counter-killed.

"I only have one question." Fu Hao did not reply, but asked in return: "Who sent you?"

This question actually made Zen tremble slightly, with an inexplicable palpitation arising in his heart.

It had been too long; since he entered this profession, no target had ever lasted long enough to talk to him.

Moreover, this question was exactly what he had always wanted to hear—

He suppressed his excitement, about to slowly open his mouth to utter the line he had rehearsed countless times in his mind—however:

"Never mind, I don't even need to guess to know it's Prince Mian."

"How did you..."

Before Zen could finish his sentence, the two swords and five spears floating around Fu Hao suddenly shot toward him.

Even with his extraordinary reaction speed, Zen could hardly dodge seven auto-locking weapons in an instant.

He chose the sword that seemed to pose the least threat, but he didn't expect it to be a +10 enhanced weapon, carrying a powerful debuff:

[Deals 104 damage to the enemy.]

[Enemy is stunned for 0.2 seconds.]

[Gain 1 second of invincibility.]

As a level 500 top-tier assassin, Zen possessed amazing debuff resistance, and the Emperor's Light Sword magic could only cause a 0.2-second stun—but that was enough.

[Deals 930 damage to the enemy.]

[Attack increased by 10% for 10 seconds.]

[Continuous melee attack successful.]

[Enemy is stunned for 0.2 seconds.]

As the "troll sword +10" pierced into his body, five red iron spears +7 penetrated his body one after another. The greatest advantage of the Light Sword was: the weapons would automatically track the designated target, and the attack judgment was as if the caster had attacked personally.

[Attack speed increased by 10% for 10 seconds.]

[Attack speed increased by another 10% for 10 seconds.]

Fu Hao, stacking the effect of seven +10 gloves, activated Spatial Slash, and the crimson flame katana in his hand drew a fatal arc:

[Critical Hit!]

[Deals 42,540 damage to the enemy.]

[Enemy is additionally stunned for 0.06 seconds.]

"Argh!"

Zen, who had been able to endure being pierced by the long spears earlier, finally groaned in a low voice due to the intense pain.

Fu Hao's attack buffs were being applied synchronously via the "Light Sword"; those two swords and five long spears kept spinning in the air, piercing his body all at once again.

Immediately followed by Shield Charge.

[Enemy is additionally stunned for 0.06 seconds x 5]

["Master Mai" tipped 50 yuan. (Infinite stun is too brutal)]

["Class" tipped 50 yuan. (7 weapons attacking, who can withstand that?)]

In the end, Zen could not withstand the "stun hell" built by the Light Sword with seven weapons and extreme attack speed, dissolving into points of light. His death was in stark contrast to his imposing entrance.

[Enemy defeated.]

[Acquired 'Shadow Mask']

[Acquired 'Jet Black Dagger']

[First time defeating a target with a level difference of over 200.]

[Acquired title "Level Breaker".]

- "Now even level 500s can be killed easily."

- "Another hidden title."

- "Can you learn Magic Sword Art now?"

The battle had just ended, and Fu Hao looked at the swords and spears still floating in mid-air, whispering to himself: "Weaker than I imagined... far too weak."

Although he easily killed a level 500 assassin by relying on "infinite stun," he knew that the power of the Emperor's so-called "strongest single-target magic" was actually not that impressive.

If Zen's resistance had been slightly stronger, it might have been him who fell.

In fact, the Emperor had not lied; the power of the "Light Sword" skill depended on the caster's attributes and weapon strength. If the Emperor personally used the "Holy Sword" to cast it, it could indeed destroy the world.

"Look on the bright side." Fu Hao patted his +10 chest armor, consoling himself, "At least this magic can still grow... and I have seven weapons. Once they are all enhanced to +10, maybe even the Emperor will have to look up to me."

He casually turned off the magic effect and began to check the new title he had just acquired:

<Level Breaker>

*When the enemy's level is higher than your own, attack power increases by 1% for every 5-level difference.

This passive, which was useless to ordinary players, was crucial to Fu Hao.

He was always challenging enemies far above his own level; this effect was truly a timely help.

He was about to continue looking through the loot when the door was suddenly slammed open—Administrator Lapis rushed in with a pale face:

"Lord! Something is wrong! Marquis Levi and Marquis Alfen have declared war on our territory and are attacking the border!"

- "So fast?"

- "This is too quick."

- "Coming right after fighting the assassin?"

The use of teleportation gems was far more than just moving personnel. Besides marking coordinates and mass-teleporting residents, Fu Hao also used them for real-time intelligence gathering.

He sent residents with keen perception to guard key strongholds, and once they detected any abnormality, they would immediately use a teleportation gem to return to the territory and report to Administrator Lapis.

Although this method was costly, it was superior in speed and safety, without worrying about intelligence delays or leaks.

"Didn't you analyze before that they wouldn't take action personally?" Fu Hao's brows were tightly locked.

"I'm sorry..."

Levi and Alfen were typical nobles of the Second Prince's faction, and coincidentally, their territories were adjacent to the Lote Territory, Maya Territory, and Rena Territory that Fu Hao had newly acquired.

Previously, Administrator Lapis had analyzed that given their personalities, the probability of them taking the initiative to attack was extremely low.

"Is it because of the assassin?" Fu Hao pondered.

Although he had won the hearts of the people through means such as tax cuts and salary increases, and had established prestige by relying on the identity of being a disciple of Helm, the residents of the new territories did not view him as their savior like the residents of Lepis Territory, nor were they as absolutely loyal as the first batch of knights—if it weren't for him, the new territories would have long been trampled by enemy forces, and the enemy clearly knew this.

"Thanks to you." He said in a low voice, gently stroking the +10 chest armor on his body.

If not for this piece of equipment, he might not even be able to log into the game at this moment, let alone defend the territory.

After this battle, he made up his mind: no matter how inconspicuous an equipment effect was, he would never underestimate it.

Thinking that hostile players might be mixed into the civil war, Fu Hao turned off the live streaming audio and ordered Administrator Lapis:

"Summon the knights and order the soldiers to enter a state of level one alert."

"Just an alert? What about the other territories? Although territory wars are ostensibly a duel between knights, the real battle... the number of soldiers is the key to victory."

"I know." Fu Hao revealed a sinister smile, "I have my own way—let them stall the enemy for now."

He took a teleportation gem out of his backpack. If anyone asked him how he defined this item, he would answer like this:

"This is the most terrifying war tool in the world."