Chapter 29: A Sudden Assault!

Li Xia watched as lines of text flowed out before his eyes, shimmering with a faint white light, completely different from the Hall of Transcendence.

[Notification: You have entered Trial Battlefield No. 19]
[World Name: Trial Ground No. 19 - The Lord of the Rings: Middle-earth]
[Trial Difficulty: B (Difficult)]
[Chance of Transcendence: 0%]
[World Overview: Fire dragons, dwarves, elves, men, orcs... This is a magical epic and a stirring war song. The dwarves have vowed to reclaim their ancient fortress usurped by the dragon Smaug, but the day of their success is also the day the horn of war is sounded. Endless wealth will inevitably attract covetous eyes from all sides. The men of Lake-town and the elves of Mirkwood gather in succession, while the Orc legions, led by Azog, surge forth. A storm capable of changing Middle-earth is gathering.]
[Number of milestones available in this world: 6. Please view details in the panel.]
[Main Trial Quest: Participate in the 'Battle of the Five Armies' and survive until the end.]
[Notification: This joint trial serves as a selection process; your final performance will influence the evaluation by the 'Mountain of Light'.]
[Notification: Your appearance has been temporarily disguised and will return to normal after leaving this world. The language of this world has been mastered.]
[Teleportation initiated!]

Li Xia felt the solid ground beneath his feet vanish in an instant, and the sensation of weightlessness overwhelmed him. The sudden whistling of wind sounded in his ears. He squinted and looked around, seeing over a hundred people falling rapidly from the high altitude just like him. Below was a vast continent, growing larger by the second.

What a wild way to descend—just throwing people down from such a height?

The earth drew closer, yet the speed of the descent began to slow. As an endless forest appeared below, a transparent shield suddenly enveloped Li Xia’s body.

"Clack!"

A deformed bullet shell stuck to the shield wall and slowly slid down.

[Apostle No. 337623 has launched an attack on you. This attack has triggered the descent protection device.]
[You may launch a counterattack against Apostle No. 337623.]
[Notification: Only malicious attacks can trigger counterattack authority (malicious attack refers to ignoring Hall notifications before striking).]

Li Xia suddenly looked up, his eyes narrowing as he gazed into the distance.

"Too bad, a wrong guess..."

A young man in casual clothes lowered his sniper rifle and sighed, his expression exceptionally calm. "I thought I could eliminate a competitor early on. You gave me the impression of a strong enemy."

He held up his index and middle fingers in a salute, tinged with the regret of missing his prey. "Bye. Hope to kill you next time."

The vast, dense forest swallowed them both in an instant. Messy branches struck the protective shield with a rustling sound.

The surroundings suddenly grew dark; even the sunlight could not penetrate such a dense forest. Only occasional fragments of light filtered through, lending a hint of fantasy to the gloomy woods.

No wonder he was so confident... In a dense forest comparable to a primeval wilderness, a distance of a hundred meters was like a chasm, making it nearly impossible to catch up.

Li Xia’s feet landed on the leaf-covered ground. His knees bent slightly, and his monocle locked firmly onto the target. The Scott combat assistance system had sacrificed precise attribute scouting in exchange for other conveniences.

For instance...

[Distance: 94.5m, Weapon: McMillan Tac-50, Combat Power: 8]

His mouth opened slightly, and the fallen leaves nearby seemed to be pulled by an invisible gravity, drifting unconsciously toward Li Xia. The unique scent of soil in the forest, carried by the damp air, surged into his lungs.

Total Concentration Breathing...

If Tanjiro could use the Sun Breathing to mimic the Thunder Breathing and increase his speed, then surely he could do the same with his own integrated breathing technique!

The muscles in his legs bulged instantly, and the vibration of the airflow within his body emitted a sharp sound like thunder.

"Whoosh!"

The leaves under his feet exploded, and his entire body shot forward like an arrow released from a string. The wind whistled in his ears, and the scenery flew past so quickly that the entire forest seemed to blur into lines.

In the blink of an eye, he covered dozens of meters. Everywhere he passed, the grass was flattened to both sides as if cut by a sharp blade. His figure wove through the dappled tree shadows like a ghost, racing toward his target as if intending to break through all obstacles at the limit of speed.

[Distance: 80m... 70m... 50m... 20m...]

In his wavering field of vision, a figure was crouched on the ground, pulling something out.

A pitch-black spear slowly emerged from the palm Li Xia extended behind him.

Got you!

...

Jack had crouched down the moment he landed, pulling equipment from his personal space with a look of anticipation.

He looks... furious, right?

If only he would chase after me... Jack felt a pang of heartache as he looked at the claymore mine in his hands. He had bought it at the Trading Street for 100 points, and he had only earned less than 2,000 points in his entire solo trial. But if he could ambush that kid, it would definitely be worth it.

He thought of his talent: Danger Sense, and his eyes grew gloomy. Damn it, a seemingly ordinary young man had actually made him feel a sense of danger. Jack had studied the status of newcomers; generally, the enhancements one could obtain in a trial world were limited. His B+ rating was quite good, with a reward of 1,900 points and three pieces of green-tier equipment. Plus, having joined the reserve group of the Adventurer's Guild, he could purchase green gear with a discount.

In that room earlier, only that kid had made him feel threatened, so he had to die! According to the information he had obtained, the Hall did not encourage killing between participants, but it did not forbid it either. If he could eliminate this threat, he would inevitably gain an advantage in the final evaluation. Receiving a special mark from the Hall was the first step toward rising to power!

Jack looked at the sniper rifle beside him and chuckled softly. He had already begun to fantasize about the opponent rushing over in a blind rage. First, he would be blasted by the claymore, then finished off with a few sniper shots. If he miraculously survived and charged forward, he would find out... Jack glanced at his skill bar.

[Dagger Combat] LV3 (Proficient).

Long-range was just a disguise; close combat was his true strength!

"Swish!"

Jack suddenly looked up, staring in confusion at the brush nearby. He hadn't even finished setting the claymore.

He's here?

No! How could he be this fast!

The man-high shrubbery exploded. Amidst the flying branches, leaves, and dust, a figure shot out like lightning. The pitch-black spear had only a silver-white edge, and the dappled sunlight falling through the swaying branches cast a dazzling luster upon the blade.

In an instant, a cold gleam arrived first!

Jack’s pupils constricted, his expression filled with horror. With a flick of his wrists, two gleaming military daggers appeared in his hands, and he moved to parry the spear.

Damn it! How long had it been? It hadn't even been twenty seconds since landing!

"Pfft!" The spear blade pierced through his neck, and a spray of blood erupted from the wound.

Li Xia pulled the spear back with one arm, his lips parting slightly as a strong current of air exhaled from between them.

"Hiss—"

Jack collapsed to the ground, his hands desperately clutching the wound on his throat. He twitched twice, then slowly lost all signs of life.

[You have killed Apostle No. 337623. Because you are in the counterattack authority phase, you will randomly loot one piece of equipment from Apostle No. 337623.]
[Looting... You have obtained the Tac-50!]

Li Xia's gaze swept over the claymore mine and the two daggers beside Jack's corpse. He twisted his wrist, shaking the blood droplets off the spear blade.

You say... why are you so weak? Why play the 'pig eating the tiger' and pretend to be weak?