52: Chapter 52: The Abyss launched a sneak attack and was wiped out.

The eastern trade route was still bustling.

Potions, armor, ores, and scrolls were selling rapidly.

Players crowded in front of the stalls, their noisy chatter reaching a fever pitch.

However, Lin Zhe had already withdrawn his gaze from the trade route.

That faint, probing, unfamiliar ripple from earlier had not dissipated.

Instead, it had grown stronger.

Furthermore, it wasn't human.

It was cold, slimy, and carried the unique corrosive scent of the Abyss.

Golden patterns flashed deep within Lin Zhe's eyes as Rule Perception spread out directly.

Beyond the western boundary, fifty dark figures were creeping inward, hugging the edge of the woods.

Each wore a Shadow Cloak, and their footsteps were incredibly light.

The leader held a pitch-black Battering Ram in his hand.

Their objectives were clear.

First, Ling Xi.

Second, the Luofeng Secret Realm portal.

Lin Zhe's expression remained unchanged as he spoke calmly.

"The Abyss again."

Xing Jianwan was organizing the manifests sent from the trade route; hearing this, she immediately looked up.

"How many?"

"Fifty."

Lin Chen had been sitting on a crate of Enchantment Scrolls swinging his legs, but upon hearing this, his small face instantly grew stern.

"They still dare to come and snatch people."

"They even want to smash our dungeon."

As his childish voice fell, the surrounding temperature seemed to drop several degrees.

Ling Xi was standing nearby, helping Qing Luo identify several Elven Herbs. Hearing the word "Abyss," her gaze instantly sharpened, and her fingertips tensed.

Clearly, she had also guessed who it was.

They had failed to capture her last time.

This time, they had actually crept into the Novice Area.

Lin Zhe looked toward Lin Chen.

"Those things at the boundary can be used now."

Lin Chen's eyes lit up, and he clapped his small hands together.

"Good!"

After the Abyss attacked Ling Xi a few days ago, Lin Chen had added a new layer of rules to the western boundary.

It wasn't a wolf pack.

It wasn't expulsion.

It was an Invisible Poison Barb Trap.

Specially prepared for things that liked to sneak in.

At this moment, the fifty Shadow Hunters had already crept into the boundary grasslands.

The person at the front raised a hand to signal for silence, his voice raspy.

"Everyone, stay quiet."

"Capture the Elf Princess first, then destroy the portal."

"Withdraw as soon as it's done."

The people behind him let out low, cold sneers.

"It's just a novice village."

"She was lucky last time."

"This time, no one can save her."

Just as the words were spoken—

*Click!*

The ground suddenly sank slightly.

The expressions of the three Shadow Hunters in the front row changed simultaneously.

"Something's wrong—"

*Puff, puff, puff, puff, puff!*

In the next second, a vast field of translucent poison barbs violently exploded from beneath the grass!

They were densely packed!

Fast as a burst of black rain!

The fifty people didn't even have time to react before their legs, waists, shoulders, and backs were instantly riddled with barbs!

"Argh—!"

Just as the screams of agony began, the toxin took effect.

Their health bars plummeted!

-120!

-138!

-151!

Their health collapsed chunk by chunk!

"There's a trap!"

"Pull out the barbs! Pull them out quickly!"

"I can't move!"

That was right.

It wasn't just health loss.

The poison barbs were also imbued with a rule-based Root effect.

Just as the fifty Shadow Hunters tried to retreat, circles of faint golden light patterns lit up beneath their feet.

*Hum—*

The entire group was pinned down!

They couldn't lift their legs.

They couldn't activate Stealth.

Even half of their skill bars had turned gray!

The leading Shadow Hunter's eyes turned bloodshot as he stared fixedly ahead.

"Who is it!"

On the other side of the boundary, Lin Chen had already stood up from the earthen slope, hands on his hips, as he announced in his childish voice.

"It's me."

"Bad people stepping on traps—you deserve it."

At the same time, the solo players patrolling near the boundary also received a regional alert.

[Warning: Abyssal invaders discovered at the western boundary]

[Current Status: Poisoned, Rooted]

[Suggestion: Eliminate immediately]

Seeing this prompt, the players farming mobs and patrolling nearby were stunned for a moment.

Then, they all went wild!

"People from the Abyss are here again?"

"And they're rooted?"

"Charge! Snatch the kills!"

"Don't let them get away!"

A dozen solo parties and dozens of patrolling players all rushed over in a swarm.

The one charging at the very front was a familiar solo player named Buzzcut Warrior.

When he saw that group of Shadow Hunters, who had been turned into hedgehogs by the poison barbs and had only a sliver of health left, his eyes instantly lit up.

"Brothers, time to harvest!"

"Kill!"

*Boom!*

A dozen weapons fell simultaneously.

The Shadow Hunters, who were already near death, couldn't possibly hold out.

The first row turned into white light on the spot.

The ones behind them gritted their teeth and tried to struggle, but as soon as they looked up, they were hit in the face by mage fireballs.

"Boom!"

"Boom!"

Archers, Assassins, Warriors, and Mages were all delivering finishing blows.

Some cursed as they hacked away.

"Capture the princess?"

"Destroy the dungeon?"

"Who do you think you are!"

In less than two minutes.

Fifty Shadow Hunters—wiped out!

White lights exploded one after another, and items clattered onto the ground in a heap.

Black ore chunks.

Dark-patterned bone fragments.

Abyssal poison sacs.

There were also several rare forging materials gleaming with a dark luster.

A sharp-eyed lifestyle player picked one up, his voice changing in excitement.

"Holy crap! Dark Iron!"

"And Corrupt Shadow Bone Crystals!"

"This stuff isn't even available on the black market!"

The surrounding players became even more excited.

"We're rich!"

"Those Abyssal bastards dropped some pretty fat loot!"

"Quick, pick it up! Turn it in to the public warehouse for registration first!"

Lin Chen looked at the pile of materials from afar, his small face very satisfied.

"This time's trap is very useful."

Standing to the side, Ling Xi saw fifty Abyssal Shadow Hunters easily crushed by the boundary rules and patrolling players; the shock in her eyes deepened.

This place really wasn't an ordinary Novice Area anymore.

Lin Zhe didn't speak, merely watching the rule patterns at the western boundary as they slowly faded away.

In this attempt, the Abyss had not only failed to capture anyone but hadn't even touched the dungeon entrance.

They had even delivered a batch of materials for free.

The world channel soon exploded as well.

[Fifty people from the Abyss infiltrated Luofeng Village, stepped on a poison barb trap as soon as they entered the boundary, and the whole squad was hacked back to the respawn point!]

[They actually wanted to capture the Elf Princess and destroy the Luofeng Secret Realm portal!]

[In the end, they didn't even touch a soul before getting themselves wiped out!]

Players were spamming the chat frantically.

"The boundary of Luofeng Village is that fierce now?"

"Even the Abyss is coming here just to deliver loot!"

"That NPC family—whoever touches them dies!"

On the earthen slope, the trade route remained bustling.

However, the looks all the players gave the father and son, Lin Zhe and Lin Chen, were now several degrees more reverent than before.

And in the direction of the dark western woods, that cold aura belonging to the Abyss had not completely dissipated.

It had simply retreated further away.