Attack, Gamble, and Dignity

Under the cover of night, three teams with different configurations launched an attack on the village from three directions.

First was the elite scout team led by Akabane, leading Yueyue, Gaoshou Xiaobei, Shadow Weaver Poem, and other highly mobile players to infiltrate through the church on the east side, dealing with guards along the way and pushing toward the main gate.

This scout team was mostly composed of classes known for high agility attributes such as rogue, shadow striker, assassin, and demon hunter; most of them possessed the ability to conceal their tracks and aura, moving silently in a 'stealth' state, making them perfect for infiltration and intelligence missions.

In the dead of night, a rat-man held a blood-stained pitchfork, his snout twitching from time to time as he alertly surveyed his surroundings; just before he walked past a patch of bushes, shadows surged in the darkness and dark red hair fluttered out.

A girl quickly approached the rat-man from behind, covering his snout, while a short dagger flipped in her other hand; as a sharp cold light tore through the heavy darkness, a bloodstain erupted on the rat-man's neck, and his hunched body fell powerlessly to the ground.

Akabane stepped out of the shadows, looking down at the corpse whose life was rapidly draining away, skillfully dragging the rat-man's body into the building's shadow and pressing against the stone wall of the church; after confirming no monsters had noticed the movement, she nodded and gave an OK gesture to several team members who had already taken their positions.

With the cover of the moonlight, the group filed in one after another, slipping into the depths of the village; pale moonlight shone diagonally into the village, with blood-light appearing in corners from time to time.

Second was the vanguard led by Angelina, leading the grade 3 guardian Golden Beetle, the grade 3 street fighter Tyrant Bear, and ten grade 2 players of classes like warrior, thug, and fighter to launch an attack from the village's main gate to draw the main enemy fire.

The rat-man on duty thought it had misseen and rubbed its eyes.

It clearly saw a silver-haired girl walking toward it without any hesitation, her eyes cold and desolate, with killing intent spreading across the tip of her lance.

Just as it was about to let out a screech to warn its companions in town, the lance shot forward and violently pierced the rat-man's chest, pinning it to the gate; there were no horses here, only piles of rotting corpses, and the commotion startled the crows above, their piercing cries shattering the silence of the night.

The lance automatically flew back into Angelina's hand, and the team members behind her, who had been itching for a fight for a long time, let out battle cries one after another, buffing themselves before charging into the village, wishing they could make as much noise as possible.

This group of tough men was like sharks that had scented blood, killing any monster they saw, kicking down doors and rushing into buildings, sparing neither the old nor the weak, smashing pottery and other facilities all along the way.

At the same time, the countless rat-men wandering in the village raised their heads, crimson light flashing in their eyes as they sprinted toward them from all directions.

Soon, about two hundred rat-men were drawn by the noise at the village entrance, surging toward Angelina and the others like a tide; Xu Xiaoyou stood on the hillside, seeing this scene clearly through her binoculars.

The commotion alerted a drowsy corrupt crossbowman on a village watchtower.

It jumped up and looked down, seeing the silver-haired girl running through the streets amidst a blood mist, her long spear dancing like a storm, tearing apart the monsters that pounced before her one after another.

It drew its bow and notched an arrow, about to aim, when a red dot suddenly appeared on its forehead.

"Eh?" The rat-man froze.

In the next instant, a blood flower bloomed on its head!

The muffled sound unique to a silencer echoed over the village; Xu Xiaoyou adjusted the tactical headset by her ear, her eyes calm.

Beside her, a girl named Suosuo lay by a haystack, the Night Reaper sniper rifle propped on her shoulder; its body was entirely raven-blue, similar in form to an SV-98 sniper rifle, a light sniper rifle produced by Universal Heavy Industries sixty years ago, often appearing in intelligence and assassination work.

At this moment, faint smoke puffed from the muzzle of the sniper rifle; Suosuo did not hesitate, aiming at the next target and pulling the trigger again, resolving the enemy's long-range forces in the town one after another; just like the name of the sniper rifle, it was a reaper harvesting lives invisibly under the night, and every bullet exiting the chamber meant the passing of a life.

The third team was the support team personally led by her, composed of seven long-range and buffing classes, including herself, the sniper Suosuo, the cleric Ruomeng Mao, the ranger Xixi, and the card master Chunqing Xiaojiu.

Xu Xiaoyou was responsible for commanding the battle, and they followed her orders, hitting whatever she pointed at, covering the scout team's advance or creating conditions for the vanguard's breakthrough.

With her current strength, if she personally participated in the combat, it might not be this much trouble; she, Angelina, and Akabane alone would be enough to take down this outpost effortlessly, saving time and energy, but Xu Xiaoyou did not do that.

Currently, these guild members were not yet fully convinced by her; she needed to develop an armed force in Oasis with excellent combat quality that obeyed her absolutely; the cultivation of coordination, cohesion, and fighting spirit could not be achieved overnight but needed to be accumulated gradually through battles large and small.

There was nothing more suitable for tempering these new members of Light-Chaser Garden than personally participating in a campaign; she would personally command these people until they were familiar with her combat style, to the point where they would know exactly what to do next without her even having to issue an order.

She would cultivate these guild members into a sharp spear, fearless and undaunted, a spear capable of piercing through all obstacles blocking her way.

As the three teams completed their deployment, Xu Xiaoyou was finally able to show her fangs; she stood on high ground, taking in the entire town, her eyes calm as she began issuing tactical instructions in an orderly fashion.

"Scout team, advance toward the southwest, bypass the beer hall, and do not disturb the lord inside."

"Mm-hmm, got it, Yuzu," Akabane's lighthearted voice came through the tactical headset.

"Don't be so quick to agree; if this operation fails because of you, you won't be participating in combat operations next time."

As if startled by the golden-haired girl's serious tone, it took a while before Akabane responded in a small voice.

"I get it already."

Xu Xiaoyou remained unmoved, and the two teams continued to push forward under her command.

Thirteen minutes had passed since the attack order was issued. Under Xu Xiaoyou's command, the three teams moved flexibly and cooperated closely, quickly taking control of the battle and showing initial results.

The Mist Village Harbor map had about a thousand hostile creatures, including a nightmare-level lord, the Plague Heavy Gunner, and over sixty elite gnawing parasite creatures such as clickers, vomit monsters, swollen trolls, and rotting nightshades.

Only after scouting the scene did she realize that this was an underworld-like outpost full of monster-stacking, complex terrain, and the sheer malice of Oasis; if the main force was not careful, they would be surrounded by dense monsters, falling into a bitter struggle or even a desperate situation.

Normally, attacking such an outpost would require a medium-sized guild with at least a hundred members after a fierce battle to possibly capture it, and they would have to be prepared to pay a heavy price.

With Light-Chaser Garden's current strength, launching an attack on Mist Village Harbor was no different from throwing an egg against a stone; any mistake in decision-making would be fatal, potentially dragging the guild into an irreversible abyss, and even she herself would be kicked right off the gambling table, losing her chance at the league.

But who was Xu Xiaoyou?

It was just a grand gamble; since she left that foul-smelling junkyard and swore to win her dignity, whether for profit or for those around her, she could no longer remember how many times she had gone all-in on such grand gambles. Betting against the Lion Group and Wilson, venturing into Alley No. 5 at her own risk, then the siren miracle, the dealings with Section 6, and even the favorability plot with Tang Xin.

Family, a guide, or a grandfather in a pill bottle? She had none of those; she started with absolutely nothing.

Rather, everything Xu Xiaoyou possessed was won. Even now, she still viewed everything she had as chips, constantly raising the stakes to tip the scales of the world, causing endless wealth and treasures to pour toward her.

A single misstep and all would be lost?

No, she did not have the right to choose total defeat; losing meant her body and bones would be crushed, at which point death itself would become her release.