Chapter 75: Fighting the Iron-Armed Battle Ape Again

Dongliu Cangshui’s team seemed to have more people. Ye Rong took a quick look and noticed that the group had increased from just over thirty people three days ago to nearly fifty now.

However, only one additional player was qualified to deal with the Iron-Armed Battle Ape. It was said that this player had passed Dongliu Cangshui’s strict screening and had outstanding strength.

But Ye Rong questioned everything Dongliu Cangshui said after observing their skills. His expectations of how powerful these so-called experts could be had already lowered.

“If I borrowed a Flying Sword from Dongliu Cangshui, I’d have an eighty to ninety percent chance of killing the Iron-Armed Battle Ape by myself, with maybe just Manzhu Lver assisting me. There’s no need for these other players who’d just hold me back.”

With the Neither-Thought-Nor-Non-Thought Sword Scabbard, Ye Rong’s confidence soared. He now believed he could defeat enemies he previously wouldn’t have dared challenge.

Still, Ye Rong did not intend to reveal that he possessed the Neither-Thought-Nor-Non-Thought Sword Scabbard just yet. Keeping this trump card hidden would be more useful. Its first reveal should at least wait for a crucial match in the Sect Minor Competition.

“Yijian, I’ve received reliable news. Houdao Xiaosheng will gather people tomorrow to hunt down a quest boss. If they beat us to it, our next plans won’t go as smoothly.”

Since Ye Rong had displayed astonishing sword skills last time, Dongliu Cangshui treated him with more respect. Even Dongliu Cangshui’s subordinates no longer showed any signs of discontent.

“Then let’s kill the Iron-Armed Battle Ape today.”

Whether Houdao Xiaosheng or Dongliu Cangshui took the lead didn’t matter much to Ye Rong. Still, based on his impression, he preferred Dongliu Cangshui to succeed first. He also had a cooperation agreement with Dongliu Cangshui; those fifty Dreamyearn Grass still depended on them teaming up to kill Beauty Snakes.

As his power grew, so did his perspective. Ye Rong was now thinking about when to use the Immortal Mansion Key and how to complete the Golden Daily Quest.

Without realizing it, Ye Rong no longer saw Elite Monsters like the Iron-Armed Battle Ape as worthy opponents, especially after witnessing the three Rare Grade Pegasus Spirit Essences, all over level 100, at the Heavenly Horse Stone Monument.

No matter how difficult the Initiation Task was, it was aimed at low-level players. It might delay the emergence of large numbers of Sect players, but it wouldn’t be impossibly hard to complete.

Dongliu Cangshui and the others were stunned by Ye Rong’s casual, indifferent attitude. But those who knew his strength didn’t react much. Only the newly joined player’s expression seemed off. He seemed shocked by Ye Rong’s arrogance and puzzled by the respect Dongliu Cangshui and the others showed him. But as a newcomer, he couldn’t voice his doubts.

Everything proceeded step by step, just like last time. The preliminary tasks went very smoothly, without any mistakes.

To ensure success this time, Dongliu Cangshui even assigned a special ten-player squad from those clearing weaker monsters. Their role was to help restrain the Iron-Armed Battle Ape. Ye Rong remained neutral about this arrangement. These average-strength players probably wouldn’t be much help later; they might only chip away at the Iron-Armed Battle Ape’s Health Points a bit more when the Dragon Sparrow Ring took effect.

“I’ve been grinding monsters like crazy these past two days and put all the experience into my character level. I finally reached Level 30 this morning. Using the Dragon Sparrow Ring, I can restrain the Iron-Armed Battle Ape’s Prajna Madness Staff for thirty seconds.”

Dongliu Cangshui said this mainly to Ye Rong. His own subordinates already knew his level progress.

“Good.”

Ye Rong responded lightly, his gaze already fixed on the Iron-Armed Battle Ape.

Three days ago, Dongliu Cangshui’s Level was the same as Ye Rong’s. Now Dongliu Cangshui was Level 30, while Ye Rong was only Level 26.

Of course, part of the reason was that Ye Rong spent some time exploring the Water Mansion in the Tuo River and allocated much experience to the Qingcheng Sword Art. Still, even if he focused entirely on leveling, he felt it would be hard to reach Level 30.

Solo leveling and having a team’s support always made a difference. Moreover, Manzhu Lver could lend Dongliu Cangshui her set of Fire-element Magic Treasures with three attached spells, boosting his leveling efficiency even more.

Ye Rong’s current weakness was that none of his Magic Treasures had large-scale attack spells, and the same was true for the spells he had learned. This wasn’t a big issue in duels or sword fights, but it kept his monster-grinding efficiency low.

“Volley!”

Dongliu Cangshui shouted loudly. At the same time, he threw out the Dragon Sparrow Ring. The yellow ring light once again restrained the Prajna Madness Staff without any suspense. Even as just a component of a high-grade Magic Treasure, its power was more than a Level 30 Elite Monster could withstand.

The ten-player squad, along with Ye Rong and the other main fighters, unleashed their strongest regular attacks in that instant. Sword Lights crisscrossed the air.

But having more attackers wasn’t necessarily better in some ways. With Sword Lights crowded in such a small space, the Iron-Armed Battle Ape wildly swung its huge fleshy palms, almost swatting away a Sword Light with each swing, followed by muffled grunts from behind.

“So fast! I almost couldn’t control it!”

Ye Rong muttered to himself. He consciously slowed down his Flying Sword’s speed because the 300 speed boost from the Neither-Thought-Nor-Non-Thought Sword Scabbard took some getting used to. Compared to Ye Rong’s original speed, this was almost double, a huge difference.

Still, just dealing with the Iron-Armed Battle Ape’s palm swings wasn’t a problem for Ye Rong. He didn’t even need to pre-calculate attack paths or sword timing.

With a mere thought, the Taixuan Ice Soul Sword dipped, evading the pair of palms. The sophistication of the Free Control Style was on full display at this moment.

“Huh? What’s that guy doing?”

Ye Rong was the only one present who had the spare attention to observe other players. He noticed that the newly joined player was half-kneeling on the ground, hands clasped as if chanting a prayer, face pained, with large beads of sweat rolling down his forehead.

A glittering silver spark, like a star, slowly emerged between his palms. The silver light gradually spread and stretched. After struggling free from his palms, it transformed into a small, simple-looking silver sword that landed in his hand. The player himself looked nearly exhausted.

“Whoa, what kind of Magic Treasure or special technique is this? So bizarre and troublesome to activate!”

Though not yet used, the three-inch-long simple silver sword emitted a fierce, soaring sword aura, turning the player’s face pale.

“It’s a Sword Embryo! How is that possible? What kind of Sword Embryo could have such an astonishing sword aura? It even seems superior to Senior Brother Chen Taizhen’s unfinished Flying Sword?”