"So the Forgotten Hall is just a carbon copy of the Abyss..."
Sister Guoguo complained as she faced the two elite monsters on screen. But this level of difficulty? Her Wende could probably solo it, to be honest!
[Yep, a classic miHoYo specialty. They use this to make a killing!]
[Yep, they use this to get killed, financially!]
[The unseen blade is the deadliest!]
[I feel like you said something, but at the same time, you said nothing at all.]
[As if said.]
[I want to slowly and smoothly lick March's soles!]
[I call dibs on the heels!]
[Are you guys the little fish in a foot-bath pond?]
[What? Jade Foot Pond?]
[This 'jade' obsession of yours is going to be your downfall!]
Sister Guoguo was already getting used to her chat's manic episodes. Perhaps she was just desensitized, or perhaps she now looked down on such plain, uninspired frenzies. What she sought was a frenzy with more class!
The Forgotten Hall, which had made most players break out in a cold sweat during the closed beta, suddenly seemed to have lost its edge after the official launch. Many players cleared all the difficulties with relative ease, and those with well-built characters were already starting to challenge the Memory of Chaos.
Tracing it back to the source, the reason players could so easily clear the Forgotten Hall right from the start was quickly found. It was Wende, who had appeared like a godsend at the game's launch!
As one of the initial 4-star healers, Wende's appearance shattered the situation most players faced of only having one starter 4-star healer. Two healers meant you could support two full teams. Furthermore, the investment cost for a 4-star healer was ridiculously low. You didn't even have to farm their dedicated gear; just giving them the off-set pieces you got from farming for others was enough.
At worst, you could just give all the good gear to Wende, and then give Wende's hand-me-downs to Natasha. It worked!
[Yifu! No, Father! How could I live without you!!!]
[Bailu: So love really does disappear, right?]
[No, I still love you, I swear!]
[Open up! Xianzhou Cloud Knights!]
[Wende: She may not have parents, but she still has me. I can be her father... (referring to a Jing Yuan, Tingyun, Wende, Bailu team)]
[That team comp of yours... is actually beefy as hell while also dishing out high damage!]
[So Wende and Tingyun are supposed to tank all the damage, right?]
[Doesn't seem wrong.]
Wende, Welt, and March 7th were squatting as usual on the bench near the courtyard, reading the latest news while simultaneously observing the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus's lookouts around the area.
"There are more hidden agents this time, and some of them are carrying things. It seems a big shot from the Disciples really is coming this time."
"So should we just go up and grab that big shot?" March asked, eager for action.
"No. We'll wait for Stelle to come out before we decide," Welt said, shaking his head. "The capture of the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus... it cannot be done by the Astral Express."
"Huh? Why not, Mr. Yang?" March's face was a mask of confusion.
"Hmm..."
Wende instantly understood Welt's meaning. As expected of a master strategist. Indeed, the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus had been entrenched on the Xianzhou for many years. If they were taken down by a few unknown outsiders, the Xianzhou's internal public credibility might plummet.
"Ugh... I feel like you two are thinking about things I don't understand again."
March fiddled with her pink hair. Seeing the "if you know, you know" expressions on Welt's and Wende's faces, she ultimately gave up on trying to think. At that moment, she suddenly thought of Dan Heng. If that guy were here, it would probably be the three of them making the exact same expression right now.
"Wende, someone's coming," Welt said with sharp vigilance. A member of the Disciples seemed to be walking toward them.
"I'll lead them away. Mr. Yang, you and March keep watching."
Wende spoke decisively to Welt. He then picked up his newspaper and, pretending to be in a hurry, walked into a nearby alley.
"Heh heh, Lord Green Hibiscus was right. There really are Xianzhou spies here! Let's follow him, quickly!" a low-ranking Disciple sneered, watching Wende hastily run into the small alley.
"Boss? There are still two people over there... Should we..."
"A pink-haired woman, she looks dumb as a rock. And an old man. They're clearly outworlders, just pitiful short-life species."
"Everyone, surround that man! He must be a spy for those who worship the Demon Bow! We absolutely cannot let him take the intel back!"
"Boss... the way you say that, it makes us sound like the villains..."
"I told you to read fewer of those novels written by the Demon Bow worshippers!"
Seeing the dead end in front of him, Wende cursed himself for his miscalculation. He watched as the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus gradually surrounded him with lecherous grins, and the corner of his mouth twitched involuntarily.
What kind of cliché novel-like encounter was this? And could their expressions be any more normal? What was with the lecherous grins? He was a bona fide man!
"Hehehe, boy, there's nowhere left for you to run. Judging by your face, you're not from the Xianzhou, are you? Why do you work for the Demon Bow? Why not come and believe in the Merciful Medicine King, who can grant you long life!" the leading Disciple goon shouted manically.
"Hm?"
Wende frowned. The Yin energy within these Disciples before him was rapidly intensifying, as if they had taken some kind of drug. The "Yang" within their bodies, which symbolized consciousness, was shrinking drastically.
"This is just so... cliché... Cornering someone in an alley after taking some kind of stimulant drug..."
"What are you mumbling about, kid? I'll ask you one more time: will you join our great Disciples of Sanctus Medicus and become a holy follower of the Medicine King, or will you choose to walk the path of destruction with the Demon Bow!"
"Dammit! Not talking, huh?! If you won't talk, then you won't leave here alive!!!"
Seeing the mocking expression on Wende's face, the Disciple minion let out a furious roar. The aura of life erupted from within his body, quickly transforming him into an Abomination of Abundance.
"ROAR!!"
The Abomination roared at Wende, the sharp blade in its hand glinting with a menacing cold light.
"It's not that... did you even give me a chance to speak?" Wende said with a sense of helplessness.
Seeing their leader take the initiative and transform into an Abomination of Abundance, the minions behind him also began to "transform" and charged toward Wende.