Chapter 84: Joyful Banquet Preparations~

The houses surrounding the square had mostly been caught in the crossfire, each one collapsing with a thunderous crash, sending up clouds of dust that filled the air.

Players scattered across the outer city had almost all fled in panic, desperately searching for places to hide.

Boyang and Dancing Elephant’s original team remained frozen in place, their expressions tense and legs trembling slightly.

Even so, they did not leave.

In contrast, those who had come seeking refuge had long since disappeared into unknown corners.

After all, they were nothing more than fair-weather friends.

“This is bad, bad! That White Knight is useless—he can’t even beat the giant! He was all show earlier; I thought he actually had some skill! Ahhh, this is really bad, bad!”

Inside a certain house, a player curled up in the corner of the room, trembling all over, muttering to himself.

Tat-tat-tat!

Suddenly, footsteps sounded nearby, causing his body to stiffen and his pupils to shrink to the size of needles, his face as pale as printer paper.

Thump-thump~ thump-thump~ thump-thump-thump-thump!

His heart raced wildly, panic nearly bursting forth from his chest.

(Don’t come closer, don’t come closer, don’t come closer!)

He screamed silently in his mind, feeling as though his soul might leave his body.

Yet the footsteps grew louder and clearer.

Tat-tat-tat~

Each step felt like a bullet piercing his heart.

It was pure agony.

Suddenly, the footsteps stopped.

They were replaced by a cracking, rattling sound.

The lock on the door trembled as if something was trying to open it.

But he had locked this door from the inside.

Nothing outside could open it.

“Is someone there?” At that moment, instead of any movement from the lock, a young man’s voice spoke up.

The voice sounded young.

However, the player couldn’t understand the language.

(Hua Q, so it’s a player! Almost scared me to death!)

The player hiding in the corner let out a breath of relief.

He had nearly been scared half to death—what a shame.

Luckily, no one else was here…

“Gurgle-gurgle!” Suddenly, a strange noise cut through his thoughts.

He instinctively looked up and saw a gray-black Octopus Monster suddenly swelling.

Its dense, twisted eyes greedily fixed on him, sharp teeth gleaming ominously.

With a swift snap, before he could scream, the Octopus Monster bit down hard on his head, its sharp teeth sinking deep into his brain.

His body twitched a few times before going completely still.

Crack!

At the same time, the door was forced open, revealing a young player.

He smiled wickedly at the Octopus Monster.

If Xingyue and Dancing Elephant had been here, they would surely have recognized him.

This player was none other than Ayu!

“The preparations for the banquet need to be sped up~ I wonder if His Majesty the Demon Emperor will like it. I’m really looking forward to it!”

Clasping his hands together, Ayu looked up with a joyful smile.

***

At the square, the Gray Giant continued its furious assault.

Though it couldn’t land a hit on Ye Lian, who dodged everywhere, its destruction of the surrounding area was catastrophic.

This place had truly become a wasteland!

Bai Xue hid among the rubble of a collapsed house, watching quietly.

At first, she had been worried.

But after noticing that her master seemed to be preparing a powerful move, she calmed down considerably.

“Like an angry gorilla, really.”

Ye Lian narrowly avoided a round of attacks, only for the next barrage to come immediately after.

It was utterly exhausting.

She touched the ground lightly with her toes and sprang up like a catapult, spinning rapidly in midair, then kicked the Gray Giant square in its unsuspecting face.

A loud crack echoed through the air.

Even that massive body was nearly spun around by the force of the kick.

One could imagine just how powerful that blow was.

Though its attack was interrupted and its face was swollen, the Gray Giant’s rage remained undiminished.

It seemed oblivious to pain as it quickly turned and lunged at Ye Lian with its thick arms.

Its blade-like claws gleamed with terrifying sharpness.

For an ordinary person caught midair and attacked, this would be a dire situation.

But for Ye Lian, it was nothing.

With a whoosh, she used her powerful spatial ability to shift, evading the Gray Giant’s deadly strike.

“It’s time to end this.”

Landing on the roof of the only half-destroyed house left, Ye Lian stared at the Gray Giant with an expressionless face.

There was a trace of coldness in her voice.