Online Game: Evil Dragon Against The Heaven - 261

Fallen Wind Town was the closest settlement to Tianchen City, separated only by the Fallen Wind Plains. At an average player’s movement speed, it would take about an hour to travel between them.

As a result, this place was usually bustling with activity, with many players who trained in Fallen Wind Plains frequently stopping by to replenish supplies.

But today, the town felt eerily 『desolate』. A single glance revealed no players in sight.

What was going on?

Just as Ye Tian Xie was about to investigate, his communicator suddenly rang. Zuo Po Jun’s voice came through: “Second Brother… How did you get to Fallen Wind Town? Didn’t you say you were already in the southern Tianri City?”

“Of course, I used a teleport scroll. What’s so strange about that? Don’t tell me you don’t know what teleport scrolls are?” Ye Tian Xie scoffed. The map of the Lost Continent was larger than even that of the entire Huaxia Nation, and there were no modern means of transportation. To make travel more convenient, most established towns had their own return scrolls. As long as a player possessed a town’s return scroll, they could instantly teleport back.

Otherwise, just traveling from Tianchen City to a remote town could be so exhausting that players would rage-quit. Too much time in the game would be wasted simply on traveling.

“No, something’s wrong!” Zuo Po Jun sounded shocked. “The teleportation function to Fallen Wind Town has been shut down. I just tried it—it’s completely disabled! Second Brother, are you sure you used a return scroll to get there?”

Ye Tian Xie raised an eyebrow in surprise and asked, “Of course. Otherwise, even if I could fly, there’s no way I could have gotten here from Tianri City so fast… You’re saying Fallen Wind Town’s teleportation has been shut down? What do you mean?”

Zuo Po Jun was baffled. Yet another inexplicable event had happened around Ye Tian Xie. He was completely certain that the teleport function to Fallen Wind Town had been disabled—he had tested it multiple times just moments ago, only to receive system messages saying it was unavailable. Yet, knowing Ye Tian Xie wouldn’t joke about something like this, he spoke seriously, “It’s absolutely true, because… Fallen Wind Town is currently undergoing a city defense mission. The Red Leaf Alliance won the right to this mission, and during a city defense event, the return teleportation for the town is always disabled—it’s a strict game setting.” After a pause, he couldn’t help but ask again, “Second Brother… Are you really, truly sure you teleported here with a return scroll?”

“I see… Well, I did use a return scroll to get here. Whatever, it’s not a big deal. Maybe it was just a system oversight. Is this city defense mission difficult? Why… is there not a single player in sight?” Ye Tian Xie scanned the surroundings and asked.

“Because the Red Leaf Alliance is in trouble” Zuo Po Jun replied.

“Trouble?”

A 『city defense mission』 was far more than just 『defending a city』and 『completing a quest』.

For a faction or alliance to grow, territorial expansion was key. The Lost Continent had its own hierarchy of rulers, meaning cities and towns weren’t things players could just claim at will—unless they were strong enough to challenge the entire political system of the continent. One of the primary ways to expand influence was through city defense missions, which were exclusively available to guilds and alliances.

Low-tier guilds could only take on minor city defense tasks, but as players’ average level increased, they could undertake larger-scale, more challenging town defense missions. Higher-tier guilds could even attempt to defend major towns or small cities. The most powerful factions could eventually challenge the defense of large cities, or even main cities.

Completing a city defense mission rewarded experience points crucial for leveling up a guild… But more importantly, a successful defense granted the faction the right to establish a branch in that town. Additionally, only one city defense mission could be attempted per town each month. This meant that the first group to claim and complete a city defense mission could operate within the town for the next month without competition, giving them plenty of time to strengthen their foothold.

In the world of virtual online games, an unspoken rule exists—whoever first seizes and successfully completes a city defense mission, then consolidates their power, essentially claims that town as their own territory. If another force attempts to intervene after the month has passed, it is considered an 『invasion』and the original faction will go to great lengths to resist. Over time, if a faction remains in control and gains enough prestige, the local town citizens may begin to welcome and support them. Conversely, if their reputation is poor, they may face rejection or even expulsion.

If the defense fails, that faction will be barred from accepting another defense mission for the same town for the next two months, leaving the opportunity open for other forces to take over.

Once a faction accepts a city defense mission, they must protect the town for an entire day. During this period, the town will undergo at least four waves of monster invasions dispatched by the system. Generally, if the defending force successfully repels all four waves, the mission is considered completed—but that is just the standard scenario…

Another unfriendly aspect of the city defense mission is that if another faction launches an attack on the town during this period and breaches its defenses, they will become the ultimate victors. The attacking faction will gain the same rights as if they had completed the defense mission themselves—establishing their influence in the town. The only condition is that all four waves of monster attacks must be successfully repelled, regardless of who holds the town in the end.

Thus, the real threat in city defense missions often isn’t the monsters—it’s other player factions. However, large-scale faction invasions are rare. The reason is simple: such an attack inevitably results in long-term hostility between the two factions. In the densely populated Huaxia War Zone, where alliances and guilds were as numerous as the stars in the sky, conflicts and competition were constant. Everyone understood that while gaining allies was difficult, making enemies was far too easy—and best avoided whenever possible.

Fallen Wind Town was a small settlement, requiring no more than a thousand players to defend effectively. For mid-to-small guilds with only a few hundred or even dozens of members, completing even the lowest-tier city defense mission was a daunting challenge. But for the Red Leaf Alliance—one of the top ten most prestigious factions in Huaxia, with a solid foundation and enough influence to gather tens of thousands of players within days—this mission should have been trivial.

The Red Leaf Alliance deployed a total of two thousand players for this city defense mission. By morning, they had easily repelled all four waves of monster invasions. Then, they encountered what Zuo Po Jun had referred to as 『trouble』.

Factions had no player limit—as long as one had enough prestige and strength, they could recruit as many members as they wished. Logically, no one should have wanted to provoke a powerhouse like the Red Leaf Alliance. For smaller guilds, antagonizing them would be suicidal. Even the few factions on par with them—or the even rarer, larger ones—had no reason to make unnecessary enemies, as it would be a major hassle for both sides.

But today, against all expectations, a force had launched a surprise assault on Fallen Wind Town right after the monster invasions ended.

It’s the Wings That Obstruct the Heavens!

“…To be honest, the Red Leaf Alliance may be strong, but they weren’t completely careless. They had been keeping an eye on their surroundings to prevent any faction from attacking. However, Wings That Obstruct the Heavens played this move very cunningly. Throughout the morning, they scattered numerous small player groups across Fallen Wind Plains, pretending to level up. As they fought monsters, they subtly pushed further south, making it impossible for Red Leaf’s scouts to notice anything unusual. Then, about ten minutes ago, in the southern part of Fallen Wind Plains, Wings That Obstruct the Heavens suddenly gathered in force and launched an assault on Fallen Wind Town. Their numbers are around five thousand. Based on the timing, they should be arriving soon.

After the previous monster siege, though Red Leaf Alliance defended with ease, over a hundred of their players died and were sent back to Tianchen City. Now, they have fewer than two thousand remaining. They have already requested reinforcements from their headquarters, but with teleportation to Fallen Wind Town disabled, it will take at least an hour for backup to arrive. Additionally, Wings That Obstruct the Heavens has only dispatched their elite players this time. There’s almost no way Red Leaf Alliance can hold the town.” Zuo Po Jun explained in detail.

“Fallen Wind Town isn’t large. Why would Wings That Obstruct the Heavens risk provoking the Red Leaf Alliance? Red Leaf may not be as strong as them, but they’re not to be underestimated either.” Ye Tian Xie asked, his eyes flashing with a trace of cold calculation at the mention of Wings That Obstruct the Heavens.

“Fallen Wind Town may be small, but its close proximity to Tianchen City makes it a prime location. It will continue to attract heavy player traffic for a long time. Because of this, many factions fought over the town’s defense mission, but in the end, Red Leaf Alliance secured it… With Yun Sihai’s personality, it’s not surprising that he’d pull something like this.” Zuo Po Jun said.

Yet, one thing still puzzled him—if Fallen Wind Town’s teleportation system had been disabled, then how did Ye Tian Xie manage to return using a teleport scroll? If other players could do the same, then there’d be no point in defending the town at all—enemy factions could simply teleport in, rendering city defense missions meaningless.

“Po Jun, how do you know all of this so clearly?” Ye Tian Xie suddenly asked.

“Heh…” Zuo Po Jun let out a mischievous chuckle. “With Big Sis’s connections and influence, every major faction, guild, and alliance has at least a few of her people embedded inside. Finding out their movements is as easy as flipping a hand… Second Brother, Red Leaf Alliance and Wings That Obstruct the Heavens should be clashing any moment now. What do you plan to do?”

“I’m going to join the fun. You don’t need to come over. I won’t take too long before heading back.” Setting down his communicator, a chilling, sinister smile spread across Ye Tian Xie’s otherwise calm face.

How could a vengeful person like him not take this opportunity to intervene?

Especially when the ones involved were Wings That Obstruct the Heavens—a faction that had touched upon one of his greatest taboos!

As for how he managed to use a return scroll to get here…