Chapter 139: A Pitfall for One's Own Father

The Forgotten Holy Mountain is the highest-level mid-tier map in Yangcheng City, requiring a minimum level of 2 to enter and supporting combat up to level 4. Due to its high difficulty, exploration of this map has been sluggish. Within it, two 20-player raids and one 40-player large-scale raid remain unconquered, and several level 4 bosses hide in its corners, still awaiting their first defeat.

Today, in a chamber within the 40-player raid, a team of forty is engaged in battle with a magic dragon. This space lies at the very heart of the Demon-Suppressing Palace, located beneath the Forgotten Holy Mountain. To enter, one must complete a series of tasks, activate a portal, and equip a cloak capable of resisting fire damage.

Upon entering, one is greeted by an endless void. The players stand on a floating mountain, beneath which drifts the massive, lifeless body of a magic dragon. Once combat is initiated, the corpse erupts, and a three-headed magic dragon emerges, flying to the summit of the floating mountain. Each head takes turns attacking the mountain. After a certain threshold of damage is dealt, the three heads simultaneously lunge at the crowd, sweeping across from three directions.

This magic dragon is a level 4 boss that has been conquered before. Strategy guides state that five players at level 3 or higher, supported by thirty-five level 2 players, are sufficient to take it down. Today, however, there are nine level 3 players facing the dragon, and behind them, the level 2 players are all elites nearing level 3. They stand in strict formation, as if facing the monster for the first time, with every detail meticulously arranged and no one daring to deviate from their assigned positions.

The dragon, oblivious to the increased strength of its foes, soon finds its health bar halved. At this moment, it lets out a roar, retracting its fire-breathing head as its massive body looms over the sky like a dark cloud.

Finally, all three heads appear in the air simultaneously. The center head spews fire, the right spits freezing mist, and the left sprays poison, preparing to sweep across the entire battlefield. The team commander shouts, "Now! Pin it down!"

Four level 3 players leap out, grouping into pairs to intercept the side heads. Two are physical combatants, and two are mages. The mages unleash spells to strike their respective heads, while the physical attackers cast iron chains to bind them tightly. Unable to use its side heads, the dragon is forced to intensify the output of its central fire head. The commander draws a glowing, crimson longsword and charges directly into the flames. Under the stimulation of the dragon fire, the sword grows increasingly white and thin.

With all three heads obstructed, the remaining four level 3 players in the backline coordinate the next phase of the battle while whispering to each other.

"It seems the battle is going smoothly. With two more rounds of magic fire, Boss Hanfeng’s Flame Dragon Sword will be reforged into the True Flame Dragon Sword. Once he ascends to level 4 as the Flame Dragon Sword Saint, our Hanfeng Mercenary Group will finally be promoted."

"Indeed. But we should keep an eye on those little ones. I told Boss Hanfeng that we have enough of our own people and don't need outsiders. Look at them; they don't listen to orders at all. If it were up to me, I would have kicked them out long ago."

"It couldn't be helped. While we have level 3 strength, we lack the ability to control the frost and poison heads, so we had to hire help. But once the Boss hits level 4, we’ll just withhold their rewards and see what they can do about it."

"Better not. The Boss said once he reaches level 4, he intends to apply for a government position. We’ll be officials then, and we’ll need to maintain our reputation. We can't just go around robbing others like we used to."

As they spoke, a sudden anomaly occurred on the main battlefield. The commander, who was holding the Flame Dragon Sword to absorb the dragon's fire, suddenly encountered trouble and froze in place, unable to move.

This sight terrified the level 3 players. They cried out "Lord Hanfeng!" and rushed toward him. Before they could take more than a few steps, golden characters began to surge from the commander's body. These characters looked like a contract, but the script was inverted, coiling around his body as if attempting to brand him.

One player screamed, "It's a contract backlash! Something is wrong. Did the Lord rob someone of a quest recently?"

"No. For ten years, the Lord hasn't personally robbed anyone of a quest. To him, level 2 quests aren't worth it, and level 3 quests are too dangerous—the potential backlash could hinder his advancement. He hasn't robbed anyone in a long time."

"Then how could there be a backlash? And this isn't some old affair; it’s clearly recent. Look at the terms—the contract is incredibly harsh. Beyond just the quest, it forbids him from entering the game for a year and forces those who joined him to abandon the quest. Wait, this isn't right. For the other party, it’s just a year, but why is it a tenfold multiplier instead of a standard or demotion backlash? This is a backlash for provoking a superior—how could the Boss possibly provoke a level 4 player?"

"If it were a level 4 player, they wouldn't use a backlash; they would have attacked directly. I recall the Young Master saying recently he wanted to steal a quest from a player who already possessed a True Name and level 4 clearance. Don't tell me the Young Master failed?"

"If he failed, that would be one thing. Even if the Young Master died in battle, it wouldn't matter—once the Boss hit level 4, he could deal with that player however he pleased. But the current situation is clearly the Young Master stamping a seal before the Boss could even advance. This is truly sabotaging one's own father."

As they spoke, the inverted contract fully imprinted itself onto the commander. The Flame Dragon Sword he held to counter the dragon shattered instantly, dissolving into countless motes of light that vanished into the void. Staring at the remaining hilt in his hand and the massive dragon head before him, the commander was filled with disbelief and helplessness. He shouted, "What is happening? My entire team's twenty-five years of hard work, we were at the final moment! How could it all be gone? My quest! My..."