Chapter 417: Chapter 419: Title – Savior, The Far from Over Post-War Turbulence (7600 words)

Anos City.

Above the sky, the black clouds swirled like a vortex, exuding an icy and evil aura as if an abyss demon god capable of devouring the world was about to emerge.

The dull rumbling thunder did not stop after the God of Plague had been killed. The bright arcs within the clouds were like bent whips, tearing the cloud cover to shreds.

After the God of Plague was killed, Lide floated in mid-air gently like a feather, his pure white mage robe was dotted with bloodstains like plum blossoms.

Lide, stained with fresh blood, became the sole and eternal image against this dazzling Dark Type backdrop.

Billions of netizens in the official live broadcast room couldn’t help but feel surprised as they witnessed this scene; following the excitement of seeing the God of Plague being instantly killed, they found the calm after the storm even more enchanting.

At that time, Lide didn’t think too much. His lingering immobility in mid-air was merely because he had exhausted all his Bloodline Power with a single strike to kill the God of Plague.

His legs were weak from the exhaustion of his Bloodline Power, like the feeling of getting up at four in the morning after a night of repeated indulgence.

Feeble.

Other than replenishing through the consumption of fresh blood, Bloodline Power could only be restored slowly over a long time.

Killing the Level 24 God of Plague in a single second seemed effortless, but it was definitely not as easy as outsiders perceived.

Only after the weakness caused by the deficit of his Bloodline Power eased slightly did Lide begin to take stock of the situation below.

Anos City was now encased in ice.

29 mixed spells–Extreme Cold Thunderstorms–that were more powerful than level 5 spells directly dealt a devastating blow to the Fierce Half-Ratmen within the city.

Of course, there were quite a few that slipped through the net, but those Fierce Half-Ratmen who were not killed instantly lost their ferocious disregard for death after the God of Plague was vanquished, and began to run toward the outside of the city in a panic.

Within the vast city below, besides ice sculptures, only the Centaur Army at the city gates, which had not been affected by the Magic Fluctuations, remained. However, these centaurs also suffered a tragic hit, their numbers dropping from tens of thousands to less than 4,000, losing over 60%.

The players near the Anos Mage Tower and the Life Goddess temple were also spared from the Extreme Cold Thunderstorms because of Lide’s deliberate control, avoiding complete annihilation.

About ten thousand were left… From millions of players, only about ten thousand survived, a loss of 99%. It was more than just tragic.

Aside from these two areas, the rest of the buildings were draped in solid frost.

Bodies, blood, limbs, broken weapons, collapsed buildings, ice sculptures of the writhing Fierce Half-Ratmen, Death Flowers condensed by the power of extreme cold…

This apocalyptic scene was filled with desolation and an unspeakable eeriness.

The camera in the live broadcast room moved above Lide, and then billions of people saw the scene below from his perspective.

Instantly, they all went wild.

“I have to say, Lord Ilo is just insanely cool. He appeared and solved this big trouble with only two moves; it’s beyond words.”

“A whole city, frozen solid, that’s nuts. If NPCs are all this awesome, what’s even the point for us players…”

“I wonder if we could ever reach that level? I really hope to one day wave my hand and annihilate an entire city!!”

“This is the legendary Savior, appearing at the critical moment, one move to awe the entire field. If I wasn’t a guy, I’d do anything to sleep with him…”

“Cough cough, don’t be so fixated on gender, just because he’s a guy doesn’t mean you don’t stand a chance…”

The aftermath of the battle left players unable to calm down for a long time.

Whether it was freezing an entire city or tearing apart a 6-meter-tall giant monster with bare hands, the name ‘Lord Ilo’ became an indelible symbol in everyone’s hearts.

But just as the camera zoomed out, the livestream for over a billion people was abruptly interrupted.

In the livestream, all that remained was Lide in his blood-stained robe, floating in midair, his profound gaze overlooking the earth.

The engrossed players were stunned, then hurriedly tried to reconnect, only to find the message–The Battle of Anos City concluded, livestream system shut down.

Everyone was left with a face full of question marks.

This was just too damn annoying.

How could it just end when it was getting so exciting???

Netizens were furious, cursing the game developers, calling them inhuman.

Many players immediately went to the official forum to start a furious tirade against the operations and planners of “Glory.”

“Damn game planners, did a dog eat your brain?!! Cutting off the livestream at a time like this??!”

“Which idiotic operator is this! I want to see Lord Ilo!!! I need to see!!!”

“Give me back my livestream!! What’s the big deal with turning it back on? My Lord Ilo vanished… wah wah wah… I can’t handle this blow.”

“Lord Ilo is so cool, I’m in love with this handsome guy… No, I have to go to Anos City, I have to go and have his monkey babies.”

“Draw your swords, Lord Ilo is mine. I hereby declare, this man has caught my eye.”

…

Lide was unaware of the whole livestream incident and, after somewhat recovering, he headed straight above the Centaur Army.

Just as he was about to say something, he suddenly felt an unusual Magic Fluctuation in the surrounding space. With a slight gesture, a powerful wave of Magic Power surged out in all directions.

Those abnormal Magic Fluctuations were instantly subdued under the deliberate disruption of the shock wave, and the surroundings returned to normal.

Outside Anos City at this moment, the Spellcasters who had been using magic to observe the city’s scenes suddenly turned crimson, then spewed out a mouthful of fresh blood, clearly suffering significant injuries.

Unexpectedly, these Spellcasters were not dissatisfied but rather had expressions of relief and gratitude.

“Lord Ilo does not like outsiders spying with magic… Thankfully, thankfully it’s just a minor injury…”

A player beside them looked puzzled at the native Mage, “You’re injured and yet you look like you’ve found a Gold Puck?”

“Ignorant adventurers from the Lost Plane, what do you understand? His Lordship is an eternal Divine, to rashly spy on the Divine is a sin of sacrilege, it is only the magnanimity of the great Lord Ilo that prevented us from being turned into idiots by the backlash of our own Magic Power… Lord Ilo held back…”

After finishing, the Mage’s face was full of admiration, “Truly worthy of Lord Ilo, even us lowly Mages are treated so kindly, a perfect existence…”

The players exchanged glances upon hearing this, lowly Mages? Damn, if you Mages are lowly, then no one in this world can be considered lowly, not even the proud Elves could be as conceited as you…

But then they also felt a touch of envy, this Lord Ilo really was something else, to have them injured and still feeling extremely honored…

Ah, if only they could be that cool, then they’d have whatever beauties they wanted and as many Gold Pucks as they wished… Several players were lost in their fantasies.

Little did they dream that Lord Ilo, whom they were eyeing with envy, was also from Earth, just like them…

Upon seeing Lide descend, the Centaur Army all placed their right fists over their hearts in salute.

“Good day, my Lord!”

This Centaur Army was the Iron Hoof Tribe’s military force, which had once stormed into Risier City under Lide’s command.

Although these rank-and-file warriors weren’t very clear about the true relation between the Iron Hoof Tribe and Lide, they knew it was enough to serve the sovereign they pledged loyalty to.

Prince Anos of Anos City, standing before the centaurs, had his armor not only stained black and red with blood but also nearly shattered. Even his greatsword had several noticeable notches. One could tell at a glance that he had faced a bitter battle.

Upon seeing Lide, Prince Anos promptly dismounted and bowed his head in the most humble gesture.

“My Lord, good day.”

Then he stood up slightly, his expression somewhat bitter, “I’ve let you down, Anos City…”

Lide waved his hand to interrupt Prince Nolan.

“No need for more words. Anos City is not strong enough yet. To hold up against the assault of millions of Divine Servants is already commendable.”

After speaking, he turned his head to look at the devastated city around him, “Your next task is to rebuild Anos City.

The Ancient Evil Gods will descend when snow covers the land.

We don’t have much time left.”

Being attacked by the God of Plague was highly likely. The Ancient Evil Gods’ return wasn’t just about them re-entering this world; they would inevitably contest with the existing powers for living space, perhaps even devour all life on the Main Plane.

Anos City was only three to four hundred kilometers from Risier City, not far for the beings of this world, and with the Ancient players causing trouble, being targeted was not strange at all.

Although the crisis was averted, city construction was the next crucial task.

After pondering for a moment, Lide’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“Anos City needs to continue strengthening its construction, and I will send you 500 One-eyed Giants later.”

500 One-eyed Giants were equivalent to 500 flesh and blood excavators. Their efficiency was bound to satisfy.

“My Lord, Anos City will never face today’s situation again! I guarantee it with my life!” Prince Anos said, filled with gratitude and determination.

Lide just waved his hand without saying much.

This city, newly established for a year, to possess such strength was already remarkable.

What was Dawn City like when it was established for a year? Not to mention facing millions of Divine Servants, even a hundred thousand would be a struggle.

As Lide was discussing the future development of Anos City with Prince Anos, a cautious group of players approached the city walls, emerging from the ice sculptures that had not yet thawed.

The Centaur Army, however, stopped them in their tracks.

“Prince Anos…

“Lord Ilo…”

Hearing the players’ shouts, Lide turned slightly to look at the excited and eager group, which made him secretly amused.

At this moment, these players were probably thinking that they had finally seen the big boss, and were likely scheming to get some benefits from him, ideally a Divine Artifact or two.

“Let them in.”

“Yes, my Lord.”

After receiving the order, the centaurs no longer blocked the players, who were bursting with excitement at the prospect of getting closer.

They were about to meet Lord Ilo, the ultimate being who had frozen the entire city, who had killed over a million Fierce Half-Ratmen.

This was amazing! If they could gain favor with this super boss, they would be set for life. The player known as the ‘Broken Sword Knight’ wouldn’t matter at all.

Every one of them carried the thought of winning favor, their eyes shining with anticipation.

As Zhao Yue drew closer to Lord Ilo, her feelings became increasingly strange.

Despite Lide’s significantly altered appearance, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she had seen Lord Ilo somewhere before.

But how could she forget such a high-level being that she had met, especially one so handsome…

“Great Lord Ilo, the Baby Gold Water Guild offers you our most respectful greetings.”

“Lord Ilo, I am the President of Qiuming Mountain Fast Lane Guild. It is an honor to meet you.”

“Good day, Lord Ilo, I am Zhao Buqun, President of the Five Mountains Sword Sects Guild…”

“I am from the Mountain Climbing Team Guild…”

“I am from the Rat’s Tail Guild…”

The Presidents of these guilds had all commanded players in battle below, so they had survived to the end. Reaching Lide, each one greeted him with shining eyes, their excitement surpassing that of discovering a gold mine.

Lide’s mouth twitched fiercely upon hearing the names of these guilds; Baby Gold Water? Qiuming Mountain Fast Lane? And Zhao Buqun?

What on earth were these ridiculous people thinking? Could they actually get their guild names registered at the Mercenary Guild? How many Gold Pucks did they have to stuff to get their families to accept them??

Ignoring these absurd players trying to curry favor, his gaze turned to Zhao Yue, who was looking at him with a doubtful expression and a furrowed brow.

Seeing this voluptuous sister, Lide felt somewhat guilty inside. After all, he had delegated the huge responsibility of the Crimson Moon Guild to her, which was truly treating her like a tool…

But after thinking for a bit, Lide, the old capitalist, reassured himself. He was training Zhao Yue! If he didn’t trust her, how could he entrust such an important company to her? He was enhancing her abilities, and besides, he was paying her a salary…

Casting aside his slight guilt, he looked towards Zhao Yue with an air of righteousness.

“President Yue, good day…”

Hmm?

This??

The guild leaders around him who were trying to curry favor widened their eyes?

What on earth?

Lord Ilo actually took the initiative to greet someone??

Each and every one of them turned their gazes towards Zhao Yue, clad in assassin leather armor and of extremely voluptuous build, their eyes filled with curiosity.

So this is what you were like, Lord Ilo… Here we thought you were a decent person, it turns out you’re just like us…

If we knew you liked this type, we would have brought our secretaries over…

Zhao Yue was stunned for a moment; she hadn’t expected this super boss to greet her, but after Lide spoke, she felt an even stronger sense of familiarity.

“Good day, Lord Ilo…” Zhao Yue responded with a hint of hesitation, “Please forgive my impertinence, but I can’t shake the feeling that I know you…”

Know him?

The guild leaders around her were instantly intrigued.

Among the twenty-something guild leaders present, only Zhao Yue and another plain-looking middle-aged woman were female guild leaders, and with Zhao Yue’s hotness, she naturally attracted a lot of attention.

There’s something scandalous here… These old LSPs all had faces full of gossip, fantasizing about a hundred and eighty scenarios in their minds…

Lide was also a bit surprised; he hadn’t expected to still be recognized by Zhao Yue even after all his efforts. Were women so unreasonable in this respect??

His thoughts whirred as he spoke slowly.

“Know me? That’s interesting…” Seeing that Lide spoke so casually, Zhao Yue’s doubt somewhat faded, and just as she was about to speak, Lide’s next sentence made her eyes widen.

“The president of your Crimson Moon Guild is currently visiting my temple, and it was he who reported to me the news of Anos City being besieged by the Ancient Evil God.”

Now it dawned on Zhao Yue; she had always felt that Lord Ilo was very familiar, and she finally realized that familiar feeling was Lide.

This Lord Ilo had a strangely similar vibe to that heartless boss…

“Lord Ilo, how is our president doing now?”

Zhao Yue couldn’t help being curious; at this stage, Lide was actually able to contact someone of Lord Ilo’s caliber, no wonder he hadn’t returned to Crimson Moon for a long time.

“He is currently carrying out a mission for me, you needn’t worry, this mission is very important and will take a long time…”

Lide spoke confidently, finding a perfect excuse for his own slacking off.

Seeing Zhao Yue about to speak up again, Lide quickly cut off the older sister; he didn’t want to reveal too much to the meticulous Zhao Yue, as saying too much could lead to trouble.

His expression turned serious.

“The old days are coming, you all go down and prepare. I will establish Dawn Temple in Anos City in the future, we will meet again.”

Zhao Yue still had a lot she wanted to say, but Lide had issued a command to leave and she could only retreat reluctantly.

The other players were even more resentful, having finally got such an opportunity, but before they could finish their words, they were sent away… Sigh, when would they ever be truly qualified to interact with such high-level individuals.

After the players left, Lide relaxed his expression, considering that at their current stage, players could only be left to develop on their own; they would only be useful to him once they grew stronger.

He turned his head again to look at Prince Anos.

“Those fallen adventurers can be given certain rewards, such as contribution points for Anos City or the right to enter certain regulated areas, or you can grant them the right to exchange equipment.

In any case, make sure these adventurers receive some benefits, to more closely bind them with Anos City.”

“Lord, this will cost quite a lot…” Prince Anos hesitated.

“Don’t worry, I will provide support for the missing materials, and besides, Anos City has now reached the scale where it can collect business taxes; in the future, you can keep the taxes collected from adventurer transactions for your own development.”

Initially, in order to develop Anos City and attract players to settle down, the entire city was tax-free. Now that the players had grown wings, it was time to harvest them.

“Yes, Lord…”

As Lide tasked Prince Anos, the last Fierce Half-Ratman silently sneaked out from atop the city walls of Anos City.

When no other creatures existed in Anos City, the system’s prompt sounded.

“Ding~ You have reversed the battle of Anos City and saved a city; in the process, you killed over a million Fierce Half-Ratmen, and under the watchful eyes of countless people, you killed the body of a Level 24 giant Fierce Half-Ratman controlled by the Ancient Evil God.

You have gained 100,000 experience points and acquired the title–Savior.”

“Savior: You have single-handedly slain over a million monsters and always appear at the most dire moments, everyone sees you as the reliance to reverse adverse situations, Legend Level +30.

When you are on the losing side, you will receive the Power of Salvation for 10 minutes. Power of Salvation: All Attributes increase by 2000%, and all friendly soldiers gain the morale boost trait reinforcement.”

Lide showed a hint of surprise upon hearing the system’s prompt.

Savior?

This title was quite impressive.

He would gain the Power of Salvation lasting 10 minutes when at a disadvantage, not only increasing all attributes by 2000%, but also boosting the morale of all soldiers.

Unbelievably strong.

Lide was in a great mood.

Compared to the invaluable title of Savior, those 100,000 experience points didn’t seem like much.

His emotions surged for a while before calming down, and after re-reading the system prompts a few times, Lide’s eyes showed a hint of contemplation.

You had to single-handedly kill over a million monsters and save a city to get this title… That’s no low bar.

If he hadn’t learned to fuse spells while soloing in Half-Elf Main City before, it would’ve been impossible to freeze an entire city.

But regardless of how high the threshold was, he had now reached it.

The next time he came to the rescue, he might not even need to expend those 100,000 Power of Faith to tear apart a Level 24 God of Plague with his bare hands.

Thinking this, Lide felt a bit of regret because killing the God of Plague didn’t drop anything, not even a Divine Artifact or Divine Calamity.

If the God of Plague had known what Lide was thinking at that moment, he would have cursed vehemently. “You’ve stolen my arms, my head, my Divine Position, and even my Divine Artifacts… and you still claim you haven’t gained anything? What the hell?”

After being tricked several times, the God of Plague had learned his lesson and this time only descended with part of his soul power, without bringing any Divine Artifacts or infusing this body with divinity…

The previous encounters with this Ancient Evil God had psychologically scarred Lide, especially that time at the Land of Bone-Burying–when the God of Plague transferred his divinity into the Land of Bone-Burying using a Divine Artifact, aiming for a deadly blow to Lide. In the end, though, Lide managed to cut off the Space Gate, not only causing the God of Plague to lose a massive amount of divinity but also to misplace the Divine Artifact.

The incident nearly shattered the God of Plague’s soul, from which he developed a habit of being cautious and vigilant… If Lide knew the God of Plague’s current state, he would certainly be very pleased and make the other party thank him for it.

Even though he couldn’t plunder anything else from the God of Plague, acquiring the title of Savior was enough to compensate for his losses.

After merrily exiting the attribute panel, Lide, Prince of Anos, watched the surrounding centaurs waiting for his command and raised an eyebrow.

“Gather the corpses of the centaurs and record each of their names.

We will hold a public funeral after the players have resurrected. Our heroes should not be forgotten.”

These words moved the centaurs nearby, as no warrior would not wish to be buried with honor after death, and naturally, centaurs were no exception.

“As you command, my Lord…”

And with the end of the Battle for Anos City, the real storm was just beginning.

Lide couldn’t be said to have become famous overnight because his legend had already been circulating in the martial world before, recognized by both the players on forums and the original inhabitants of Green City.

But this time, Lide became even more prominent, becoming the center of energetic discussions among netizens across the entire Earth without his knowledge.

Most players had only seen pictures of “Glory” online before and had never watched such a direct and impressive live broadcast of “Glory.”

Those who watched the Battle for Anos City using gaming pods and helmets experienced the charm of “Glory” firsthand.

Whether it was the ferocity of the Fierce Half-Ratmen, the variety of tactics employed by the players in resistance, or the vicious assault of the Centaur Army as they charged through the camps, all left a deep impression on them.

Of course, there was only one protagonist of this war–Lord Ilo.

Lord Ilo’s appearance in times of crisis to save everyone and his overwhelming power to freeze an entire city left a deep impression on the netizens.

Added to that his near-perfect looks, he completely ignited the players’ enthusiasm.

Lord Ilo, a name that became known to the entire Earth.

Powerful, mysterious, handsome, charming… it seemed all positive adjectives could be applied to him.

For several consecutive days, “Lord Ilo” related terms occupied the top three spots on all search rankings.

“Lord Ilo is the strongest boss in ‘Glory,'” “The most handsome NPC in history,” “My husband Ilo,” “Twelve little tricks to win over Ilo,” “Secrets I must not tell about Lord Ilo”…

Due to the live broadcast, “Glory” significantly increased in influence, drawing a large number of players who frantically urged the production of “Glory” gaming pods, not satisfied without posting dozens of messages each day.

Especially Ilo’s little fangirls, who were going so crazy that they wished they could strangle the manufacturers of “Glory.” This resulted in the market price of “Glory” gaming pods skyrocketing; the original factory price of 100,000 soared to a market value where no one would sell even for 1,000,000…

Lide was unaware that he had caused such a stir on Earth and that Lord Ilo had become a household name. After resolving the issues in Anos City, he immediately prepared to return to Dawn City.

Although the war in the Underworld had temporarily ceased, there were still many issues that required his strategic decision-making, particularly as the time of the Ancient Descent approached, he felt an increasing sense of urgency.

A crisis was bound to erupt soon, and he needed to prepare more.

However, just as he was about to set off, a sudden report from Prince Anos caught him by surprise.

“Your Highness, the City Lord of Green City, Duke O’Kelly Nolan has come to request an audience…”

Duke O’Kelly Nolan, a member of the Nolan Royal Family, the ruler of the southern province…

Lide’s eyebrows rose; what did this royal noble want with him?

He had met Duke O’Kelly once before, when the Crimson Mage Tower was completed. The Duke had visited to extend his congratulations, courtesy of Lide’s teacher Spark, but their interaction had merely consisted of a nod and polite greetings.

During the battle of Risier City, though Duke O’Kelly had deployed his troops, at the time Lide was preoccupied with resolving the God of Plague issue and didn’t pay much attention to the human armies, nor had he any encounters with them.

Why would Duke O’Kelly come to him now… no, what did he want with Lord Ilo?

After a brief moment of contemplation, his gaze turned towards the attributes of his alternate identity, Ilo,

When using the Ilo identity in Green City, Legend Level +30, granted the titles Dark Myth and Mythical Mentor.

Dark Myth: Most people in Green City regard you as a legendary figure. Regardless of Dark Creatures or the Light Sect, your favorability naturally rises to the level of respect.

And it comes with the following traits: 1. When facing life forms with a Legend Level 10 points below yours, you gain the Dignity Effect; enemies will fear you, and All Attributes will decrease by 30%,

2. A very high chance to intimidate Dark Creatures with a lower Level than you, compelling them to join you,

3. Holding high reputation among the Green City Nobles and various Sects, granting the right to establish a church and proselytize in Green City.

It had to be admitted that his gains from the previous encounter in Risier City were astonishingly large, just the Legend Level associated with Lord Ilo’s identity alone was enough to let him act unbridled in Green City.

“Let Duke O’Kelly in,” he said.

A spark of keenness appeared in Lide’s eyes, and he would take this opportunity to negotiate with the Duke. The Dawn Sect was now at a stage where it could begin to expand outward.

If this ruler of Green City would collaborate with him in establishing a church, then the subsequent proselytizing would undoubtedly be much easier.

As Lide pondered how to deal with this member of the Nolan Royal Family and ruler of the southern province, footsteps approached.

Prince Anos led a nobleman in his 50s, dressed in magnificent armor, into the hall.

But after the two had met, the Duke, a man of eminent repute and lofty position from the south, did something that left Lide utterly astonished.

As Duke O’Kelly approached him, he suddenly brought his right hand to his chest and then knelt on one knee.

The ruler of the south knelt before him, paying respects as if he were the most devout believer in the presence of their god, or as if a humble subject were supplicating before their sovereign.

“Respected Lord Ilo, I, O’Kelly Nolan, extend to you my most respectful greetings…”

Isn’t this Duke O’Kelly the ruler of the south?

Lide suddenly felt somewhat confounded, the clever arguments he had prepared were all choked back.

His expression quite peculiar.

I haven’t even started, and you’re already like this, young man, can’t we follow the procedure in the future…