22: Miracles happen with great effort

Newbie Map, Forest of Hope.

Su Yan's arrival quickly caught the attention of the veteran players.

"That person is..."

"Demon Slayer! It's Demon Slayer!"

"My god, it really is Demon Slayer! I finally see him in person!"

"I didn't expect to run into Demon Slayer here, but why is he still Rank 1? What is he doing here?"

These veteran players were overjoyed, whispering among themselves.

They had no idea why Demon Slayer would come here.

According to common sense...

This place was usually only visited by players who had completed their Breakthrough quests.

Don't be fooled by the starry sky tonight.

One must know that usually, this Forest of Hope is a Human Race Forbidden Ground, shrouded in mist all year round.

Forget entering the forest; even approaching the forest's edge would mean death.

Today, because Old Wang was opening a star gate, the mist had receded, allowing the Forest of Hope to see the light of day again.

So the veteran players were even more puzzled.

It was impossible for Demon Slayer to know Old Wang was opening a star gate, so why did he come?

Was he exploring the map and just happened to wander over here?

The ancient, dense forest blocked out the starlight.

A cool night breeze blew from the other side of the boundary wall, brushing against the backs of the veteran players.

In their eyes, the large Rank 1 indicator above Demon Slayer's head was blindingly bright.

"Is this the future Human Emperor? He's truly young and handsome, almost catching up to how I was back in the day."

Until Demon Slayer drew near and his features became clear, one of them couldn't help but sigh in admiration.

Yet no one stepped forward to greet him; they simply moved aside to clear a path.

As players of advanced age, they had long found it difficult to maintain the passion and vitality of youth.

At this moment, their hearts were calm, and they watched Demon Slayer with the steady gaze one gives to the strong.

This was the highest etiquette they could offer in this lifetime... Su Yan walked quickly through the crowd and came to a halt before the towering, shimmering boundary wall.

He looked up, his expression solemn.

[Note: You don't have much time left. In 5 minutes, the Forest of Hope will be covered in poisonous mist.]

His Talent, Eye of the Gods, issued a prompt.

Su Yan frowned and nodded. "I know."

The conclusion of that research report was that miracles happen through brute force.

He vaguely understood the meaning, yet he wasn't quite certain.

So coming here this time, he actually didn't hold much hope; he only planned to give it a superficial try.

If it succeeded, it would be a huge gain; if not, it wouldn't matter much.

At this moment, Su Yan took two steps back and gripped blood dawn tightly in his hand.

But his peripheral vision suddenly caught something, and he turned to frown at the spectating veteran players.

"Why haven't you left yet?"

In the crowd, a balding old mage hesitated for a moment before asking in confusion, "Demon Slayer, may I ask what you are planning to do?"

Just seeing this old mage standing there made Su Yan feel a pang of distress.

His legs were trembling, seemingly due to chronic joint pain.

The hand holding the staff was also shaking; the grip of the staff had already been worn down to a smooth patina.

In the Land of Divine Punishment, time is synchronized with reality.

In other words, a player's appearance will naturally age here.

The specific degree of aging is related to personal Rank, Physique, maintenance, and so on.

Under normal circumstances, once ordinary players reach the age of 60...

Their appearance will undergo a drastic change, becoming rapidly old and frail.

Of course, there are exceptions.

For example, the four Human Emperors; the oldest, Ye Zhibai, is already 215 years old.

Even the youngest, Li Yueqing, is already over a hundred years old.

But it is said that Li Yueqing is still incredibly beautiful, retaining her charm with skin maintained like that of a young girl.

Of course, there are also some people who go bald and suffer from kidney deficiency in their twenties; they should reflect on themselves.

Back to the point.

Facing the old mage's inquiry, Su Yan didn't plan to hide anything and said calmly:

"I want to try and see if I can break through this boundary wall, so it might get very dangerous here in a moment. You'd better leave."

"What? Break the boundary wall!"

Unsurprisingly, as soon as he spoke, the group of veteran players was instantly shocked.

The old mage's aged eyes trembled as he murmured, "Is this for real? Demon Slayer actually wants to break the boundary wall..."

Breaking the wall was something they had never heard of!

Over the past two hundred years, although there had been some players who saw no hope of Breakthrough and researched some unorthodox paths...

In the end, it was proven that these unorthodox paths were all unviable.

Only by working hard to Rank up and Breakthrough was the only way to enter higher-level maps.

But now.

If any other player stood here and told them they wanted to try breaking the boundary wall...

They would surely laugh and mock them, and maybe even curse them for being brain-dead.

But right now was different.

The one who said this was the future Human Emperor, Demon Slayer!

It was the Demon Slayer who, at Rank 1, cleared the Wolf King Valley Dungeon solo in 4 seconds.

And left a permanent sword seal in the dungeon!

Before the boundary wall,

This group of veteran players felt a long-lost excitement, their gazes toward Demon Slayer filled with disbelief.

The old mage immediately used his staff as a cane, his shaking hand trembling even more, yet his aged eyes were bright as he requested:

"Demon Slayer, we old folks aren't afraid of death. Please allow us to stay!"

Even though they knew it was impossible.

Even for Demon Slayer, it was impossible to achieve.

But they still decided to stay and witness this crazy moment!

Su Yan could probably understand the mindset of these veteran players at this moment.

He didn't waste any more words, simply telling the veteran players to move back, and back again.

They didn't stop until they had retreated several hundred meters.

He took a deep breath.

Facing the cool night breeze blowing from the other side of the boundary wall, Su Yan slowly raised his staff.

"Fireball Spell!"

First, he'd try with a small fireball.

Bang!

Instantly, the released small fireball slammed straight into the boundary wall and exploded.

-123,879!

A damage number jumped out.

The boundary wall didn't budge, not even leaving a single mark.

But Su Yan's eyes lit up with joy.

"It seems it's just as I thought; 'miracles through brute force' is meant literally!"

The Fireball Spell just now dealt damage!

That meant the boundary wall in front of him could be attacked!

Although no health bar appeared, since it could be attacked, then everything was fine!

At this time, there were 4 minutes left before the mist would shroud the forest.

Su Yan didn't hesitate and went straight for his ultimate!

"Help me, Dawn!"

With a shout in his heart, he pressed the golden skill, Summon God.

"Yes, Master!"

Responding to him was the gentle voice of the Goddess of Dawn.

In an instant, with Su Yan as the center, a terrifying Divine Power rippled out like a shockwave.

In a flash, it enveloped the entire Forest of Hope!

In what was a starry late night, the light of Dawn suddenly lit up on the eastern horizon.

The light expanded rapidly,

In a mere moment, the Dawn had pierced through the night, illuminating heaven and earth.

And Su Yan, at this time, was wrapped in Divine Power, slowly floating into the air.

With the help of the Goddess of Dawn's Divine Power, Su Yan charged up frantically and then threw a fierce punch toward the boundary wall.

"Break for me!"

Boom!

In front of Su Yan's thrown fist, a giant fist of light manifested from Divine Power instantly slammed into the shimmering, eerie boundary wall.

In an instant!

The world trembled, and divine light swallowed everything.

-999,999,999,999!

A terrifying damage number appeared before everyone's eyes.