Chapter 85: The Artillery Fairy’s Fiery Debut

Su Yingning massacred the defenseless mages of Sword Sweeping the World, while I, maintaining the maximum range of my healing skills, plunged into the thick of the priests, incessantly striking and poking, utterly absorbed in dealing damage.

‘Alas, if only this priest’s staff possessed the destructive power of that sword…’ I lamented inwardly. ‘Yet, a priest’s staff remains a priest’s staff, its true purpose lying in prayer and communion with higher deities to beseech divine grace. Its ceremonial value far surpasses its utility in combat, and to wield it for killing would be a profound blasphemy against the gods themselves.’

I suspected the deities above were likely seething, their celestial brows furrowed with bulging veins as they contemplated whether to expel this scoundrel, who dared wield a sacred priest’s staff as a mere club, from their list of faithful and permanently consign him to their blacklist.

Ducking beneath a sweeping longsword, I jabbed my priest’s staff squarely into a male priest’s mouth, then, impaling him thus, I swung the staff in a wide 180-degree arc, flinging him directly into the murky swamp.

This ignominious demise would likely haunt his nightmares for the rest of his life.

“Guild Leader, we’re here!”

Three figures materialized at the dungeon entrance: Qingyu, a female mage, and a man said to be Qingyu’s friend.

Without a word, Qingyu vanished into stealth, only to reappear moments later by my side, seamlessly joining the fray. I was utterly astonished, realizing this fellow possessed the incredibly rare stealth skill.

After a resounding shout from the dungeon exit, the female mage began chanting on the spot. Even from a considerable distance, I could distinctly feel a terrifying wave of heat erupting the moment her incantation began! It was an unprecedented surge of boiling flame elements, a signal of immense power! Not even A’si had ever unleashed a skill of this magnitude!

“Damn it! It’s Flame Storm! Holy hell, that woman actually knows Flame Storm! Pour all your damage into stopping her!” A’si, startled, erupted into curses on the spot. Flame Storm was a mid-to-high tier, large-scale, high-damage AOE skill, one he himself possessed, yet he had never had the opportunity to cast it.

Aside from our small group, everyone else present belonged to Sword Sweeping the World. If he were to unleash Flame Storm here, would it not be a live demonstration of a ‘friendly fire’ incident? Even if guild members couldn’t inflict damage upon their allies, the sheer terror alone would paralyze their own people, rendering them utterly immobile!

The female mage stood on elevated ground, perfectly positioned to blanket the entire field with a single Flame Storm. With a roaring burst, a significant portion of the classes present—those with low magic resistance and meager health—would be instantly wiped out.

I stole a quick glance at the female mage’s ID. Unless I was mistaken, she must be the ‘Fairy Sister’ Su Yingning had spoken of. I was rather curious as to what kind of person would so brazenly and shamelessly refer to themselves as a fairy.

After reading it, I paused, momentarily stunned. Indeed, the characters for ‘Fairy’ were present in the ID above the female mage’s head, but it was far from the ‘Mary Sue’ aesthetic I had envisioned.

[Artillery Fairy]

‘Well done, little sister, that’s truly badass!’

Secretly, I gave her a hundred thumbs-ups. Snapping back to attention, I knocked a priestess sprawling with a single staff blow. Immediately afterward, Qingyu blinked behind the fallen priestess, striking seven or eight times in a flash, finishing her off with a dazzling combo. This display left me thoroughly impressed with Qingyu as well. Perhaps Su Yingning herself hadn’t realized her small guild was actually a place where ‘Hidden Dragons and Crouching Tigers’ (TL Note: A Chinese idiom referring to a place or organization with many undiscovered talents or powerful individuals) resided!

Seizing a moment, I cast a Moon God’s Blessing on Artillery Fairy. She was visibly stunned by the significant increase in her health cap, then suddenly recalled that the ‘Great God Sister’ Ning Beibei had spoken of was a priest. Comprehension dawned upon her: ‘So that beautiful woman over there, swinging a staff and wreaking havoc, isn’t some new Monk class after all, but rather a Great God Sister who plays her Priest like a Monk…’

“Ahahaha, Priest is so much fun! I truly regret not choosing Priest back then!” she declared, laughing heartily, before unleashing that utterly despair-inducing Flame Storm.

Her incantation speed was remarkably swift, suggesting she possessed some equipment that boosted casting speed. Although her level was not particularly high, only 26, she was bolstered by her Ice Block (TL Note: A common gaming term for a temporary invulnerability or stasis skill), my Moon God’s Blessing, and my formidable healing. Furthermore, her strategic distance from the core of the battle prevented Sword Sweeping the World players from closing in, allowing her to successfully unleash Flame Storm.

The sky-filling flames persisted for a full ten seconds, the rolling heatwaves accompanied by flashes of white light and agonizing screams. This single attack claimed the lives of at least forty assassins!

While her magic attack wasn’t exceptionally high, this was merely Sword Sweeping the World’s 029 branch guild, not one of their top ten main combat teams or the primary guild itself. Consequently, the players’ equipment and levels were equally modest, leading to many being swept away by that single devastating eruption.

The timing of that spell’s release was absolutely perfect, a truly once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! Even I couldn’t help but marvel at it. If her magic attack had been just a little higher, Su Yingning and I wouldn’t have to worry about the five-minute time limit at all—because we would have been able to clear the entire field within that timeframe!

At this point, two minutes of the allotted five had elapsed, and Sword Sweeping the World had lost approximately one hundred players. Their mage contingent was almost entirely annihilated, which significantly alleviated the pressure on us—after all, mages who could mindlessly unleash damage from a safe position were the most vexing opponents in a team battle!

With the arrival of Qingyu and Artillery Fairy, the already dwindling number of mages were forced to divide their firepower, indirectly reducing the damage aimed at Su Yingning and me. Moreover, their positioning was truly excellent; they didn’t waste any of my healing, proving themselves to be incredibly reliable and reassuring teammates.

On the other side of the log bridge, dozens of Gunfire Rose players remained. Catching sight of them in a brief moment, I mused that they were simply idling, a considerable waste of resources. ‘Perhaps it’s time to mobilize them all!’

[Listen up, everyone on the other side! I’m your Guild Leader’s CP—oh, no, I mean… her bonded healer! You know, that priest on the other side of the river, the one slaughtering everyone. Do you see me?]

As I broadcasted this voice message in the local channel, I seized a moment to jump up and wave vigorously towards the opposite bank of the river.

[Oh oh! Great God Sister!]

[Great God! Just give the order!]

[Great God! What do you need us to do? Sword Sweeping the World has blocked the log bridge, we want to help you, but we can’t get across!]

I quickly healed Su Yingning, then, with a wide swing of my staff, sent an unknown priest flying, before responding: ‘[As members of Gunfire Rose, you surely can’t stand by idly, watching your Guild Leader fight a bloody battle on the opposite bank without contributing, can you?]’

[Of course!]

[We understand the principle, but we can’t get across!]

[Great God Sister, just give the order! We all saw your relationship with the Guild Leader, she’s too busy to command now, so your words are the Guild Leader’s decree!]

I nodded in satisfaction: ‘[Excellent! Now, I have an exceedingly important mission to entrust to you. For the prosperity and glory of Gunfire Rose, you must dedicate your utmost efforts to complete it! Do you understand?]’

[Understood!]

[Absolutely! Just say the word! If we don’t do it, we’re bastards!]

I backflipped to evade an ice shard, then parried a dagger with my priest’s staff. ‘[Good! Truly worthy of Gunfire Rose, not a single coward among you! So, next… your task is to shout “666” (TL Note: A Chinese internet slang term, pronounced ‘liu liu liu’, used to express admiration, meaning ‘awesome’ or ‘impressive’)!]’