Chapter 77 - 77-A Hard Battle! (Part 1)

John still left.

The resurrection of [Lust] was imminent, leaving no time for him to entangle with Elaria or anyone else.

If [Lust] were to fully awaken, it would spell catastrophic disaster for the entire world!

With this in mind, John let out a deep breath, crushed the teleportation scroll, and arrived just outside the labyrinth.

Here, there were hardly any other players in sight, except for one person lazily perched on a tree branch, chewing on a blade of grass. Noticing John, he leapt down from the branch, dusting off his clothes.

"You're here early. Seems like you're really scared of [Lust]."

"Cut the crap. Tell me, what are our chances?"

"Sixty percent? Maybe seventy. Who knows? After all, private fights between [Apostles] are forbidden. If caught, both would face severe punishment. So, it's been a long time since I last fought [Lust].

Whether we can win depends on how much strength he has left."

"Well... let's hope we can win."

"Don't be so pessimistic. Come on, let's go!"

The [Deception Apostle] was surprisingly excited, seemingly eager to kill [Lust]. Since it was all to John's benefit, he didn't say much more and followed the [Deception Apostle] into the labyrinth.

Perhaps influenced by [Lust], the monsters in the labyrinth had become unusually aggressive. On their way, John was attacked by at least a hundred monsters.

Although dealing with them wasn't particularly difficult, John's stamina was inevitably drained, leaving him less than perfectly prepared to face [Lust].

In contrast, the [Deception Apostle] remained calm, as if the monsters couldn't see him, deliberately avoiding him and focusing all their attention on John.

The [Deception Apostle] showed no intention of helping, clearly enjoying watching John struggle.

"So, still holding up?"

Facing the [Deception Apostle]'s slightly mocking gaze, John snorted and wiped the blood off his short sword.

"Piece of cake."

"That's good. I was worried you might not be able to handle it and I'd be forced to help. I really don't want to intervene. If certain entities notice me and decide to erase my existence, it wouldn't be worth it."

"I'm just a bit concerned. If the monsters inside the labyrinth are this aggressive, who knows how the ones outside are behaving? They might attack the Elven habitat."

John sighed, a hint of helplessness flashing in his eyes. At this point, all he could do was place his hopes in Helena, Lily, and the others.

...

Meanwhile, at the Elven habitat!

Elaria's condition was deteriorating.

The influence of lust made it nearly impossible for her to think clearly, forcing her to isolate herself and hand over command to Elowen.

"First squad, come here to receive chant essence. Make sure to hold off the monsters completely. We cannot let them break through the defenses and enter the habitat!"

Then, meteors began to fall from the sky, exploding again and again within the monster tide.

How many monsters she killed, Lily couldn't tell. She could only hear the incessant chime of experience points being gained, ringing continuously in her ears!

"Watch out!"

At that moment, over ten sonic bats suddenly burst out from the monster tide.

Having experienced their might before, Exiled Immortal immediately changed direction, ready to deal with them first.

But just then!

More than a dozen blood-red crossbow bolts flashed and pierced through the ugly skulls of the sonic bats with ease, leaving them no chance to resist.

They fell into the monster tide, trampled into pulp!

Exiled Immortal looked towards Helena, who smiled.

"Don't worry, I'll protect the both of you."

"Big sis, thank you."

For a moment, the situation reached a stalemate.

But neither Helena and her team nor the Elven Elowen showed any sign of relief in their eyes. Everyone knew this was just the beginning; the real challenge had yet to come!

"A gold-tier monster has appeared!"

Noticing a monster about five meters tall, Exiled Immortal swiftly moved with the wind, rushing forward!

If the gold-tier monster reached the defense line, the Elven warriors would not be able to hold it off. This monster had to be taken down now!

"Exiled Immortal, don't be reckless!"

"Master Exiled Immortal!"

The moment Exiled Immortal charged, both Elowen and Helena noticed, calling out to stop him, but it was already too late.

With Exiled Immortal gone, the pressure on the defense line suddenly increased!

Without someone who could see everything and strike with precision, the monster tide would no longer be held back!

"[Spirit Summoning!]"

Lily slammed her staff down, and the mountain of monster corpses before her moved like puppets on strings, attacking the monsters behind them.

Yet even this could only hold back the monster tide for a brief moment.

After all, the Elven warriors numbered only a hundred. Facing thousands, they couldn't hold out for long.

Unlike players, NPCs, once injured or exhausted, would lose their fighting capability completely.

They needed reinforcements, more and stronger ones!

Otherwise, the defense line would be breached in no time!