Chapter 23: Malicious PK

"Hey, ladies, want to come play with us?" Li Ren turned his head to see a group of men clad in flashy armor crowding around a sleazy-looking fellow, outnumbering them by a wide margin.

Upon seeing these men, Luoyue's face betrayed undisguised disgust. Yet, faced with their overwhelming numbers, her expression subtly shifted. A mage named Softwater, who always accompanied Luoyue, noticed Li Ren's confusion—he had only joined them on the way back to Selan City—and quietly explained the situation.

It was another cliché scenario. The leader of this bunch was Shuigen, who, having once caught sight of Luoyue and her companions' beauty, harbored ill intentions. He had provoked them without cause, only to be brutally defeated, losing an entire level in the process. Notably, when players engage in malicious PvP, the aggressor drops a level upon death.

That group had been wiped out before, and thus bore a grudge against Luoyue and her friends. Now, having encountered them just after the front-line warriors had been slain by Gale Demon Wolves, their numbers were fewer than usual. Seeing an opportunity, coupled with envy over the equipment dropped by the wolves, they orchestrated this confrontation.

Luoyue silently calculated the time. According to her estimate, their teammates who had died should be on their way back now; she could only send messages urging them to hurry. If a team battle broke out at this moment, it would be highly disadvantageous—outnumbered and poorly configured, they were at a great disadvantage.

She glanced at Li Ren, who had originally just been passing by with them, and offered a slightly apologetic smile. Li Ren shook his head in response.

"Well, you still won't give in, huh? We've got plenty of handsome guys; you can take your pick." Shuigen spoke with a mocking tone, prompting a chorus of howls from his crew, who clearly didn't regard Luoyue and her friends as threats.

"Hey, who's this guy?" Shuigen pointed at Li Ren. "So you already found yourself a lover, huh? Always claiming to be a pure female organization, but you still took in this guy?"

Shuigen’s leering expression made Li Ren deeply uncomfortable. Though he hadn’t spent much time with Luoyue and her group, small details had shown that their quality as female players was exceptionally high. He had no fondness whatsoever for Shuigen’s crowd.

"With that scrawny body of yours? How many could you handle in a night? Look at those wild girls—if you can't manage, we'll help you out!" Shuigen laughed arrogantly, his crew jeering behind him. Li Ren’s anger grew.

Li Ren was usually quiet, but beneath that reserved exterior burned a passionate heart. Now, Shuigen had ignited that fire, and it blazed fiercely.

Seeing the faces of Luoyue and her friends, flushed with fury and shame, Li Ren knew their fate was sealed. It was only a matter of waiting for them to make the first move. If Li Ren struck first, their losses would be minimal—just one death, a bit of experience, maybe some equipment. But if Shuigen’s group attacked first, killing them all would cost them an entire level, making it well worth the risk.

Without a word, Li Ren stepped forward, switching to the newly acquired one-handed sword. Luoyue watched his murderous intent and wanted to say something, but she held back. If they dropped a level, so be it; they could always train it back. She glanced at her teammates, then at Li Ren moving ahead, steeling herself.

"Look at this pretty boy, still daring to challenge us?! Hahaha, brothers, finish him!" Shuigen, surprised at first by Li Ren's indifference, quickly shouted arrogantly.

Though this seemed foolish, Shuigen was no idiot. He was calculating the timing—if Luoyue's melee classes arrived, they might lose, so they needed to wrap things up quickly and perhaps kill the returning warriors again.

It was a clever plan, but it played right into Li Ren’s hands.

Li Ren didn’t even need to provoke them; they acted on their own. An archer shot a Wind Arrow, which struck Li Ren’s raised shield. "You have been maliciously attacked by Shuigen’s team. You may retaliate in self-defense."

Upon hearing this prompt and seeing the players' names turn blood-red, Li Ren smiled—a cold, cruel smile that sent chills through their hearts.

He had hoped for a peaceful entry into the player world, searching for clues about Mo Ran, but trouble found him immediately. If peace wasn’t possible, then he’d make a grand entrance. The greater his reputation, the easier his search would be.

Li Ren gave Luoyue a hand signal used universally by gamers: "Heal me, I’ll tank the front!"

With 45,000 HP and all attributes around 450, he had nothing to fear, especially with the support of priests and mages behind him.

Players gained attribute points each level—besides the base 5, extra points depending on their constitution. Regular players earned about 10 per level; the more skilled ones gained up to 15. Luoyue’s group averaged 12 or 13 points per level, so their total attributes were about 450. With equipment bonuses, they might reach 600, which was impressive. But Li Ren had 450 in all attributes.

Whether in speed, constitution, attack, or defense, he outclassed everyone.

With priests and mages behind him, he was like a boss with a horde of healers—unless they killed the healers first, the boss was unstoppable.

Yet Li Ren wouldn’t let them reach the rear so easily. The answer was obvious.

He slashed at the swordsman who charged at him—Triple Slash! With a shout, he struck three times, instantly killing the leather-armored swordsman before he could even attack. The watching players, who thought Li Ren was just a shield warrior, were stunned.

Did Li Ren pause because of their surprise? Of course not. He charged forward, eliminating a rogue who hadn’t managed to stealth, then rampaged through Shuigen’s team like a god of slaughter.

Spells and attacks rained down on him.

Luoyue was prepared; as soon as Li Ren plunged into the group, she cast Angel’s Guard, reducing his damage taken by 30% for 15 seconds.

Not only Luoyue, but the other priests showered Li Ren with healing spells. After a round of attacks, his health bar barely dipped. Shuigen was utterly shocked—just one man charging in, and they were struggling. He had both offense and defense, and even if they ignored Li Ren and charged at Luoyue’s group, the mages would inflict heavy casualties. If they left Li Ren alone, their rear lines would be decimated.

Luoyue and her companions, inspired by Li Ren’s valor, unleashed their anger from the earlier humiliation. The consequences of provoking these women were terrifying—attacks beyond all reason.

With Li Ren tanking, they had no fear for their lives, especially since they were in self-defense—no worries about losses.

Facing the dense enemy crowd, Li Ren activated his self-learned skill: Crescent Slash! Waves of sword light swept from his blade, slicing through the enemy ranks. The battle had just begun, and the mages at the back, led by Shuigen, shouted commands, but none could harm Li Ren.

The rear mages’ coordinated spells covered the battlefield. With Li Ren’s powerful attacks, the enemy priests couldn’t heal fast enough; melee classes dropped left and right. Li Ren, with ample HP and strong healing, bulldozed through like a tank.

This was a massacre—a pure, unadulterated massacre.

Seeing the situation slipping out of control, Shuigen quickly changed tactics, ordering his men to distract Li Ren while rogues and hunters rushed at Luoyue’s group.

Li Ren didn’t mind. He had already decimated their strength. The remaining rogues and hunters were few, and Luoyue’s team had enough mages, hunters, and priests to defend themselves—even if they couldn’t wipe out the attackers, self-preservation was assured.

To Li Ren, Shuigen had made a fatal mistake. He hadn’t realized that no matter how many men he brought, with Li Ren present, the outcome would be the same. The initial assault had proven this—none of their attacks could harm Li Ren, especially after losing so many men.

From the outset, this battle was hopelessly one-sided—Shuigen’s defeat was inevitable, though he didn’t realize it, foolishly offering up experience and equipment. Li Ren gladly accepted.

Soon, Shuigen’s group lost all will to fight and began to flee. But under the relentless pursuit of Luoyue’s girls, only a handful managed to escape using precious teleport scrolls; the rest perished. Watching these female players’ sudden surge in combat power, Li Ren chuckled, "How interesting."