TSA Chapter 99

After returning to their dorms, the students didn’t actually rest. Instead, each of them opened their quantum computers and checked the game forums.

According to an official game announcement, guild wars would be introduced in next week’s update. The guild war would take place once a month, on the 15th, from 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM, lasting a full three hours. Any player who had joined a guild could participate. During the war, guilds could engage in unrestricted PvP, with all red-named players appearing as enemies. Players could earn battle achievements by defeating members of opposing guilds.

Once the war began, a massive crystal bearing the guild’s insignia would appear at the center of each guild’s stronghold. Destroying an enemy guild’s crystal would allow the attackers to claim the stronghold, at which point a new crystal marked with their insignia would be generated. At the end of the war, any guild that had successfully occupied at least one stronghold would be considered a winner. Victorious guilds would receive a substantial amount of experience points and valuable items—including Physical Exchange Coupons. These rewards would be distributed by the system based on each participant’s individual battle achievements—the higher the achievements, the better the rewards. Even the losing guilds would receive rewards based on their level of participation.

Additionally, the guild that occupied the most strongholds would receive a bonus of 30 Physical Exchange Coupons.

Thirty whole coupons—it was an absolutely insane number.

Major guilds immediately began recruiting elite players. Those who couldn’t get into the top guilds started forming teams to grind Abyss Dungeons, seizing every possible opportunity to obtain a Guild Summoning Order and establish their own guilds.

Invincible was, of course, preparing as well. When they had first chosen their guild stronghold, they had already factored in the guild wars and had deliberately picked a fortified island that was easy to defend but difficult to attack. Without flying mounts or ships, enemies could only access the island via NPC teleportation. Teleportation between strongholds would only be available during guild wars, and as long as the defending guild could protect its crystal, the crystal would grant periodic buffs every hour, enhancing their combat capabilities.

At this point, the average level of Invincible’s members was around 55—the absolute top tier of the game. Night Owl, now level 69, still held the number one spot on the leaderboard, just one step away from the level 70 cap. It was almost certain that he would be the first player in the game to reach the maximum level.

As the guild war approached, members were filled with both excitement and nervousness—but none of them felt fear. With Night Owl around, it was as if they had an unshakable pillar of support, bringing everyone a sense of security.

All the life-skill players were busy crafting equipment and combat supplies while Night Owl, Windstorm Jiangnan, and the other guild officers split up to lead different teams into the dungeons. Every extra level gained before the war was beneficial. Every additional piece of high-level gear or materials was an advantage. The dungeon runs also served as training, allowing members to grow more familiar with each other and develop better teamwork.

[System Announcement] The guild war is about to begin. Stronghold teleportation arrays have been temporarily activated. Please prepare for battle.

At 6:55 PM, the system issued a guild war notice.

All members of Invincible had gathered at their guild stronghold early. They expected that many guilds would target them today. After all, Invincible was the most developed guild in the game. Capturing their stronghold meant inheriting everything they had already built, which was far easier than painstakingly constructing a new stronghold from scratch.

“Everyone, check your equipment and items to make sure you haven’t forgotten anything,” Night Owl said in a deep voice.

“All set!” the members responded in unison.

The guild’s main force was stationed near the teleportation array, while Night Owl deployed two teams of Assassins to patrol the walls, preventing potential sneak attacks from the sea. Assassins had a natural advantage in this role—they were fast and could turn invisible, making them ideal for ambushes and reconnaissance.

At exactly 7:00 PM, the guild war began.

The system screen flashed with a series of war declarations, followed by a massive wave of red-named players teleporting into the stronghold—far more than expected. It looked like multiple mid-sized guilds had joined forces to take them down.

Ran Qi immediately spotted Zhang Shuo leading the charge. He was still clad in a set of extravagant purple gear, crafted at great expense, standing in the center of his group like a glowing beacon.

Unfortunately for them, Invincible had been lying in wait. The moment they arrived, they were surrounded and ambushed. As a level five guild, Invincible had 200 members—far more than enough to crush a coalition of smaller guilds. Dazzling skills exploded in every direction. If this had been a 21st-century computer game, the sheer graphical load would have probably caused a black screen.

Gu Le also noticed Zhang Shuo. Without hesitation, he raised his greatsword and charged forward. Ran Qi quickly cast a shield on him while continuously healing the nearby guild members.

Night Owl organized the mages, first using Firewall to block the enemies’ path, then slowing them down with Glacier, and finally unleashing large-scale damage skills to finish off the weakened players, racking up battle points at an insane rate.

However, no matter how many enemies fell, even more teleported in.

Since the guild war removed the death penalty, these players had no fear of dying. The moment they were killed, they immediately revived at their designated respawn points, which were located in their own guild bases. They would first gather at the teleportation NPC before warping in as a group, clearly a pre-planned strategy.

[Guild] June Snow: Brother Ran, please revive me.

[Guild] Alice: Brother Ran, help!

Ran Qi, who was busy healing the team, suddenly realized that several priests on their side had been taken out. It was obvious that Zhang Shuo’s team had planned in advance to eliminate Invincible’s healers first.

In Guild Wars, players couldn’t revive on the spot after being killed. They either had to return to their respawn point or wait for a teammate to resurrect them.

The guild base was huge. If they returned to their respawn point, they might be intercepted on their way back. After all, not every priest was as formidable as Ran Qi.

Fortunately, the strongest priest, Ran Qi, was present. With a single [Resurrection], he pulled them back from the ground. Fully healed, they were ready to fight again.

Soon, the enemy realized that as long as Bai Ran was alive, the players they killed would keep getting back up.

“Kill Bai Ran! Take him out first!” Someone suddenly shouted, and immediately, several different attacks targeted Ran Qi. He swiftly dodged, but an assassin rushed in, breaking his shield with skill. At that moment, a sharp pain shot through his right shoulder—a stray arrow had pierced straight through it.

Luckily, with the shield’s damage reduction and his auto-healing from Recovery, Ran Qi barely lost any health. He yanked out the arrow with one hand and immediately cast another shield on himself before activating the area-of-effect skill [Light Rain].

Brilliant beams of light illuminated the night sky, raining down on the enemy ranks like a downpour, dealing massive damage. Many low-health players were wiped out instantly, boosting Ran Qi’s battle score significantly.

As the fight dragged on, the enemies started to feel like they were fighting a boss rather than a player. Ran Qi seemed like a tanky raid boss with ridiculously high HP and defense, nearly impossible to break through.

Invincible successfully defended their crystal for an hour, earning a 20% max HP boost from the crystal’s buff, further increasing their survivability.

The relentless battle finally took a toll on the allied guilds. Their coordination faltered, their formation fell apart, and even their revival process became chaotic.

Soul Chaser couldn’t hold back his urge to counterattack. “Should I take a team to raid their base?”

Night Owl thought for a moment before agreeing. “Alright, you and Plume Ink take the second and third squads. Warp in, take them out once, and if you can’t capture the base, retreat immediately. Don’t get greedy.”

“Got it!” Soul Chaser was eager. “Time to show them what a real siege looks like!”

“Charge!”

Leading two squads, Soul Chaser stormed the allied guilds’ base. Though they had left some players behind to guard the teleportation array, they were no match for Soul Chaser’s team and were quickly overwhelmed.

[System Announcement] The Guild [Invincible] has successfully destroyed the crystal of the [Jiu Zhou] Guild. Base ownership has transferred to [Invincible].

[System Announcement] The Guild [Invincible] has successfully destroyed the crystal of the [Brilliant Star] Guild. Base ownership has transferred to [Invincible].

[System Announcement] The Guild [Invincible] has successfully destroyed the crystal of the [Shu Shan] Guild. Base ownership has transferred to [Invincible].

Soul Chaser executed a blitzkrieg-style assault, swiftly eliminating the base defenders and destroying multiple guild crystals in one go.

Seeing their bases lost, the allied guilds panicked and scrambled to defend their remaining territory. Their temporary alliance collapsed instantly.

With the main enemy forces retreating, Soul Chaser didn’t push his luck. He withdrew his team immediately.

Perhaps realizing that Invincible wasn’t an easy target, the number of guilds attacking their base dwindled. However, Night Owl remained vigilant. He knew that the real battle would take place in the final 30 minutes. Once a crystal was destroyed in the last moments, recapturing it would be nearly impossible—that was when victory or defeat would truly be decided.

As it turned out, Night Owl’s prediction was spot on. In the final 30 minutes, not only did the allied guilds launch a comeback, but even the members of the Liu Li Pavilion Guild appeared at the teleportation array. Clearly, their wealthy guild leader was also interested in capturing Invincible’s base.

Liu Li Pavilion’s guild leader was named Liuli Yue. Her character was a blonde, blue-eyed, beautiful priest, dressed in a set of dazzling purple gear just like Zhang Shuo. In just two months, her guild had reached Level 4, proving that she had invested a massive amount of resources. Her team consisted of many skilled players, all recognizable names from the rankings. Recruiting them must have taken considerable effort.

However, Invincible wasn’t intimidated in the slightest. After all, the strongest players in the game were on their side. Plus, they had already defended their crystal for two hours, stacking a double-layered buff that made them feel like they were playing on cheat mode.

They counterattacked in an organized manner—warriors stood at the front, forming an impenetrable fortress; mages and archers launched ranged attacks; priests remained in the back, constantly healing with the group-wide [Holy Light]; assassins darted through the chaos, swiftly executing low-health enemies.

Liu Li Pavilion’s forces couldn’t even break through the front lines. Instead, they suffered heavy casualties.

After repeated failed attempts, for some reason, Liu Li Pavilion suddenly switched tactics, focusing all attacks on Night Owl, as if killing him would turn the tide. Mages were even squishier than priests—high attack power but low defense. Normally, a mage caught in concentrated fire would die instantly. But Night Owl wasn’t just any mage. He was a walking artillery cannon with terrifying attack power.

His numerous titles had given him absurdly high base stats. He was equipped with a Level 60 set crafted by Bai Ran, enhanced by the crystal buff, and further boosted by his black dragon pet. His damage output had reached a downright terrifying level. [Firewall], [Rocket], [Flame Storm], [Glacier], [Blizzard], [Thunder Strike], [Thunderstorm]—a relentless barrage of AoE skills rained down, leaving almost no survivors.

As Liu Li Pavilion’s forces respawned and rushed back to their base, Soul Chaser and Plume Ink led a lightning-fast assault. Liu Li Pavilion’s base was massive, meaning their respawn point was a fair distance from their crystal. By the time they received reports from the remaining defenders and hurried back, their crystal had already been destroyed.

Invincible rarely initiated hostilities. If Liu Li Pavilion hadn’t tried to seize their crystal, Soul Chaser and the others wouldn’t have attacked their base in return.

Trying to steal but losing everything instead—if there was ever a perfect example of that saying, this was it.

Liu Li Pavilion’s players naturally wanted to reclaim their crystal, but there simply wasn’t enough time.

[System Announcement] The guild war has ended. Rewards are being distributed.

This guild war concluded with Invincible not only defending their original base but also capturing three additional guild bases, including Liu Li Pavilion’s. Unsurprisingly, they secured the extra rewards.

Night Owl’s battle score exceeded 700, meaning he had taken over 700 kills in just three hours—by far the highest in the entire event. After the score-based reward distribution, he instantly reached the maximum level.

[System Announcement] Congratulations to player [Night Owl] for becoming the first to reach Level 70! Rewards: Title [Pioneer], [Physical Exchange Coupons *10], and 100,000,000 Star Coins.

The world chat exploded.

[World] Longquan: This must be what it feels like to be a top player…

[World] Jiuxi: Holy crap, a hundred million Star Coins! I’ve never seen that many zeroes in my life!

[World] Unbreakable Mountain and River: I always thought one hundred million Star Coins was just a marketing gimmick from the game company… but it’s real?!

[World] Evernight: Am I the only one drooling over those ten exchange coupons?

“Congrats, Boss!”

“Boss, you’re amazing!”

The members of Invincible gathered around Night Owl, genuinely celebrating his victory.

Night Owl rarely showed emotion, but this time, a faint smile appeared on his face. After nodding to everyone, he slowly walked over to Ran Qi and asked in a low voice, “How many exchange coupons did you get this time?”

“Five,” Ran Qi answered honestly.

Although Ran Qi was a priest, his healing output ranked first in the entire guild. On top of that, he had secured quite a few kills, placing him in the top ten of the battle rankings. As a result, he received substantial experience rewards and was also awarded five Physical Exchange Coupons—two from participation rewards and three from the thirty extra coupons given to the guild that captured the most bases.

Night Owl knew that Ran Qi was trying to save up 500 exchange coupons for enhancement potions. Without hesitation, he handed over all the coupons he had—more than eighty in total.

“Why so many?” Ran Qi looked surprised.

“I knew you needed them, so I collected some from Shura and the others. Is this enough?”

“It’s more than enough!” Ran Qi was overjoyed. Though he had his own method for farming coupons, he used them just as quickly as he earned them. After saving up for so long, he still hadn’t reached 500, but with Night Owl’s additional eighty-plus coupons, he finally had enough.

As Ran Qi lifted his head, his face radiant with happiness, his clear eyes reflecting only Night Owl, something stirred deep within Night Owl’s heart. A sudden urge to kiss this person swept over him. However, mindful of the people around them, he simply pulled Ran Qi into his arms and, taking advantage of the embrace, placed a gentle kiss on the top of his silver-haired head.

The opening of the guild war became the hottest topic among players, even catching the attention of news media. That very day, headlines were dominated by the guild war and the first player to reach max level—Night Owl.

Somehow, the media got hold of an in-game screenshot: a tall and handsome black-haired mage looking down at a bright-smiling, silver-haired priest as they gazed at each other. Whatever filter was used, the image portrayed them as the perfect blend of strength and beauty, black and white, making it impossible for viewers not to admire how well they suited each other.

(The End)