"Clang!"
A teeth-grinding metallic clang echoed through the camp.
Everyone assumed Ye Yi would be split in two by this sword strike, or at least sent flying.
But the scene before their eyes made everyone's jaws drop to the ground.
Ye Yi did not dodge.
He gripped the heaven-swallowing demon sword with both hands, not using the blade to parry, but rather using the spine of the sword at an incredibly precise angle to diagonally catch Tie Bi's greatsword.
This wasn't just a block; this was a—parry.
In the hidden mechanics of the era of apocalypse, if the weapon contact angle and timing are perfect, one can trigger a "Perfect Parry," negating 80% of physical damage.
However, this requires extremely high skill, and even top-tier warrior
players cannot guarantee success every time.
Yet Ye Yi, a mage, had done it.
"-45!"
An insignificant damage number floated above Ye Yi's head.
"How is that possible?!" Tie Bi felt as if his sword had struck a mountain, his web between thumb and index finger vibrating in numbness. "How is your Strength so high?!"
A mage's Strength Growth is extremely low; even if the parry was successful, logically, he should have been knocked back due to the disparity in Strength checks.
But what he didn't know was that the [heaven-swallowing demon sword] in Ye Yi's hand possessed the "Magic-Weapon" trait—half of his Intelligence is converted into Attack Power. During checks, this conversion is defaulted by the system as "Effective Strength."
At this moment, Ye Yi's "Effective Strength" was even higher than that of Tie Bi at full force!
"Surprised?"
Ye Yi's lips curled slightly.
"The more surprising part is yet to come."
Before Tie Bi could retract his move, the demon sword in Ye Yi's hand suddenly slid down along the opponent's blade.
The blades scraped against each other, sending sparks flying.
"Screech—"
This strike slashed directly toward Tie Bi's fingers.
Tie Bi was greatly alarmed and had to release one hand to retreat.
At that very instant, Ye Yi did not pursue Tie Bi, but instead slammed his body to the right, using his shoulder to knock aside the secondary tank warrior who was attempting a sneak attack.
Then, he faced the mage who had been throwing ice arrows from afar to harass him.
Distance: eight meters.
Ye Yi had no more movement skills.
A sinister grin appeared on the mage's face: "Die! Consecutive Fireballs!"
Three fireballs formed a triangle pattern, sealing off all of Ye Yi's movement paths.
Ye Yi still did not stop his advance.
He made a movement that filled the mage with despair.
He raised his left hand, palm facing the three fireballs.
"Mana Shield."
A layer of pale blue light membrane covered his entire body.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
The three fireballs slammed solidly into Ye Yi.
"-0"
"-0"
"-0"
Ye Yi's blue bar dropped by one-third instantly, but his HP remained completely unmoved, and his movements did not pause in the slightest.
This was the capital Ye Yi had to dare to engage in melee—trading mana for health. For someone with high Intelligence like him, mana was his second life.
"This... this is a fucking monster!" The mage completely broke down. He couldn't be damaged, couldn't be controlled, and ran incredibly fast.
In the blink of an eye, Ye Yi had already charged in front of the mage.
"Don't... don't kill me!" The mage retreated in terror, only to trip over a rock at his feet.
Ye Yi showed no mercy and swung the demon sword down.
"Squelch!"
The mage's head fell to the ground.
At the same time, a flash of red light appeared on Ye Yi's body.
[heaven-swallowing demon sword effect triggered: Bloodlust.]
[Restored HP: 15 points.]
Although it wasn't much, it was better than nothing.
"Bastard!!"
Tie Bi and the secondary tank finally caught up from behind. Watching his teammates fall one by one, Tie Bi's eyes turned red.
"I don't believe you're truly invincible! Even if I have to grind you down, I will grind you to death!"
Tie Bi roared and activated the warrior's burst skill [Berserker Stance], abandoning defense to significantly increase his attack power.
He and the secondary tank, one in front and one behind, formed a pincer attack on Ye Yi.
If Ye Yi were at full status, dealing with these two clumsy warriors would be easy. But at this moment, his mana was low, and his Mana Shield could break at any time. Once the shield broke, the mage's fragile frame would be severely injured after taking a few hits.
"Little Bing Xin."
Ye Yi called out in the team channel.
"Here!"
Little Bing Xin, who had been hiding behind a tree observing, poked her head out. Her previous Holy Light Strike had exhausted her mana, and she had been drinking potions to recover it.
"How much mana do you have left?"
"Enough... enough to cast one skill."
"That's enough." Ye Yi's eyes were sharp. "The moment that secondary tank strikes, cast Heal on him."
"Heal? On him?" Little Bing Xin was stunned. "Heal the enemy?"
"Do as I say!"
The battle situation changed in an instant; there was no time for explanations.
The secondary tank warrior saw that Ye Yi had his back to him and was overjoyed, raising his axe to strike down.
"Die!"
Just then, a green light landed on the secondary tank's head.
"+150!"
The secondary tank froze. What happened? Who is healing me?
In that 0.5 seconds of hesitation, his originally fluid attack motion faltered for a moment.
This 0.5-second pause was Ye Yi's path to survival.
Ye Yi turned abruptly, utilizing this fleeting opening to dodge the secondary tank's axe. At the same time, using the centrifugal force of his turn, he slashed the demon sword in his hand fiercely toward Tie Bi in front.
"Demon Sword Heavy Slash!"
This strike gathered the last of Ye Yi's stamina and spirit.
Tie Bi was attacking with full force and never expected Ye Yi to ignore the attack from behind.
"Clang!"
The demon sword collided with the greatsword.
But this time, the [Armor Break] effect on the heaven-swallowing demon sword triggered.
The black sword energy ignored the defense of Tie Bi's heavy armor and invaded directly into his body.
"-350!" (Armor Break + Critical Hit)
Tie Bi's HP bar emptied instantly as if by magic.
He looked at Ye Yi in disbelief, and the greatsword in his hand fell to the ground with a clang.
"How... possible..."
As Tie Bi dissipated into white light, only the secondary tank, who still hadn't figured out the situation, remained on the field.
The secondary tank looked at his empty surroundings where his teammates had been, then at Ye Yi, who was filled with murderous aura like a demon god, and the little loli who was holding a staff with a mischievous grin.
"Mommy!!"
The secondary tank let out a strange cry, dropped his weapon, and turned to run.
He broke down.
This wasn't a battle; it was a massacre.
Ye Yi did not pursue.
He stood in place, let out a long breath, and the demon sword in his hand was still dripping non-existent blood.
The surroundings were deathly silent.
The casual players watching, one by one, had their mouths wide open, not even daring to breathe loudly.
The scene just now completely overturned their perception of the game era of apocalypse.
A mage in melee? Parrying a warrior? Using Heal as crowd control?
What kind of god-tier operations are these?
Suddenly, someone in the crowd raised the system's built-in recording function.
"So awesome... if this video is posted, it will definitely be even more popular than the last one!"
Ye Yi put away the demon sword; the red name color on his body deepened, almost as if it were dripping blood.
He walked up to Little Bing Xin.
Little Bing Xin was looking up at him, her eyes filled with stars of adoration: "Captain! You are so amazing! Was that 'poison heal' tactic also your idea?"
"That was psychological warfare." Ye Yi smiled faintly; although his face was pale due to mental exhaustion, his eyes remained bright.
"Let's go."
"Where to?"
"Back to the city."
Ye Yi looked toward the looming teleportation station deep in the Mist Forest.
"This place can no longer hold us. The Angel Guild has lost so many people; next time, it might be hundreds who come."
"We are going to the main city. There is a bigger stage there, and also... stronger opponents."
Little Bing Xin nodded vigorously and trotted happily behind Ye Yi.
The sun set, and the shadows of the two were stretched long.
Behind them lay a ground full of corpses and a legend that was about to spread across the entire Nine Provinces Continent.
[System Prompt: You have left the Novice Village No. 999 area.]
[Destination reached: Azure Dragon Main City.]