Chapter 42: Individual Leaderboard

"No way..."

Jie Yuanshao stared at this scene, her fingers digging so deeply into the wall that the stone began to crumble, yet she remained oblivious, her eyes locked onto the fallen lesser lizard demon in the distance.

"How is this possible?"

As the swarm of lesser lizard demons drew closer, the wooden ballistae roared into action, firing with relentless precision every three seconds. By the time the creatures reached the perimeter wall, their numbers had already been reduced by a third. With no reinforcements arriving, the six ballistae continued to whittle them down even as they battered the fortifications.

"Demons killed by the wooden ballistae... they don't resurrect?"

Shang Xinlei murmured, turning her head sharply toward Jiang Shi. "Did you know this beforehand?"

Jie Yuanshao also turned to look. The two most prominent scions of the Liang Kingdom fixed their intense, burning gazes upon Jiang Shi, a mere black-belt guard. Qian Gongyu, standing nearby, noticed their expressions. Though this was clearly a perfect opportunity to build rapport, for some reason, a deep sense of unease welled up within her.

"I didn't," Jiang Shi replied calmly. "This is my first time in the Manso Woodlands as well."

Jie Yuanshao opened her mouth, clearly burdened with a thousand questions, but she held back, returning her gaze to the battlefield through the window. Qian Gongyu crept up to Jiang Shi’s side, biting her lower lip; she was filled with anxiety, yet felt utterly helpless.

"Young Miss." Jiang Shi reached out and ruffled Qian Gongyu’s hair. "Don't worry."

*Wooooo-ha!!!*

With a thunderous roar that shook the earth, the massive greater lizard demon began to move toward the stone house! The perimeter wall was already half-destroyed, and despite the high efficiency of the ballistae, dozens of lesser lizard demons continued their assault.

Jiang Shi spoke up suddenly. "You need to help. If this continues, the wall will collapse. Once it does, the greater lizard demon will enter the courtyard and destroy the ballistae, and we will lose any chance of killing it."

"But how can we help?" Shang Xinlei asked. "The demons we kill just resurrect."

"How long does the resurrection take?" Jiang Shi asked.

"According to my family’s records," Jie Yuanshao replied instantly, "about ten breaths."

"Go out and kill the lesser lizard demons attacking the wall. Stop them from bringing it down and buy the ballistae time to focus on the greater lizard demon," Jiang Shi commanded.

"You're not going?" Shang Xinlei asked, surprised.

"I am not a Messenger yet."

*Not yet.*

Such arrogance—as if becoming a Messenger were as simple as choosing to be one. Yet, strangely, none of the three present doubted her words. Even more curiously, despite Jiang Shi being the weakest among them, all three Messengers deferred to her instructions.

Stepping out of the stone house, the roars of the lesser lizard demons became clearer and more aggressive, yet still within a manageable range. Jie Yuanshao and the others were not surprised; historical records indicated that the spiritual pressure exerted by a demon wave increased gradually. It was manageable at first, but after an hour, even second-rank Messengers would struggle to endure it.

Qian Gongyu stepped behind the wall, trembling. Watching a lesser lizard demon strike the wall, she seized an opening, flicked her finger, and precisely shattered the creature's skull.

Unlike the ballistae's kills, no blood sprayed when the skull burst, and the corpse vanished instantly. Ten breaths later, a brand-new lesser lizard demon appeared in the same spot, resuming its attack on the wall.

Compared to Qian Gongyu, Shang Xinlei and Jie Yuanshao were far more efficient. Shang Xinlei wielded a pair of flying rings that danced like boomerangs, slaughtering three or four demons every breath. Jie Yuanshao used a longsword, leaping into the air to unleash sword qi; her killing speed was on par with Shang Xinlei’s.

Under their fierce defense, the area outside the wall was cleared. All six ballistae locked onto the greater lizard demon as it entered range and fired in unison!

*Waaaaah!!*

The greater lizard demon let out a mournful howl. Blood spurted from the wounds torn into its body by the bolts; it was clearly severely injured. However, this only accelerated its advance. After the second volley from the ballistae, it slammed into the wall like a battering ram, obliterating half of what remained of the fortifications!

"Keep suppressing the lesser ones!" Jiang Shi commanded from the doorway. "The wall can still hold. It can't strike with that much force every time."

Sure enough, while the greater lizard demon’s subsequent attacks remained violent, they lacked the terror of the first impact. Still, the wall continued to crumble at a visible rate. Seeing that the wall was on the verge of total collapse, Jiang Shi stepped aside, waiting for them to retreat into the stone house for shelter.

Just then, the ballistae fired their fourth volley, turning the greater lizard demon into a bloody pincushion. The creature shrieked, but this time it could not muster another charge; it collapsed to the ground, transforming into a massive, lifeless husk.

Seeing this, Jiang Shi immediately blocked the door. "Quick! Protect the ballistae! Don't let the lesser demons destroy them!"

Even knowing Jiang Shi was right, even Qian Gongyu couldn't help but feel a tinge of resentment. Once all the demons had been picked off by the ballistae, they stood in the courtyard littered with demon corpses, looking around in silence. After a long moment, Jie Yuanshao asked uncertainly, "Is... is it over?"

"It is over," Jiang Shi said. "The next wave will arrive in two quarter-hours. So, everyone, it is time to go out and collect the resources."

***

Luo Weijin scrambled out of the thick fog in a state of terror, only breathing a sigh of relief when he saw the elderly guards waiting at the entrance. There were many aristocratic scions exiting the Manso Woodlands just like him; most had only come to earn their share of points, and surviving the first wave was the passing grade required to satisfy their families.

Once Luo Weijin calmed down, his first instinct was to search for the two members of the Qian family. Finding them absent, he sneered, "Lucky them..."

"Hurry over! Look, look!"

"What is happening? Why are the scores so high?"

"Is there a glitch in the secret realm?"

"I know! The Shang and Jie families must have uncovered the secret of the Manso Woodlands!"

"It must be! That explains why those two Young Misses came here!"

"But why is Young Miss Jie's score so low...?"

Discussions erupted nearby. Driven by curiosity, Luo Weijin went to check the scoreboard. Everyone who entered the Manso Woodlands had their name appear on the "Individual Scoreboard," with members of the same team grouped together.

Luo Weijin glanced at his own score: 5 points.

Most people were like him, as surviving the first wave only granted 5 points. Theoretically, the maximum possible score at this stage should have been 5, as increasing it required surviving the second wave.

Yet, among the sea of 5s, the top four names on the board shone like suns, so brilliant they blinded everyone. Luo Weijin rubbed his eyes repeatedly, reading the list over and over, until he could no longer suppress his shock. "How could the scores be this high?!"

[Jiang Shi: 256 points]

[Qian Gongyu: 190 points]

[Shang Xinlei: 180 points]

[Jie Yuanshao: 50 points]