280: Chapter 280 Leader of the Righteous Path, Alliance Master Lu!

At this moment, inside the Forbidden Zone No. 009 dungeon, amidst the desolate ruins of an ancient city filled with broken stone pillars and abandoned buildings.

*Swish!*

An extremely cold blade glow flashed past.

A Tier 3 demonic beast, a Red-tailed Scorpion, attempting a sneak attack, was sliced precisely in half in mid-air, its foul-smelling blood splattering all over the ground.

*Clang!*

Along with the crisp sound of a blade being sheathed.

Lu Xingye, wearing his black trench coat with its tattered hem and sporting two bruised, swollen panda eyes, stood with his back to the crowd in an extremely showy manner. Gazing up at the sky at a forty-five-degree angle, he left them with a desolate silhouette of "one who seeks defeat in loneliness."

"Wow!!!"

"So cool! So strong!"

"As expected of a top genius from Magic City Martial Arts University! This blade technique is simply superb!"

Behind Lu Xingye, a grand crowd of fifteen or sixteen people was actually following him!

Most of these players wore the team uniforms of various obscure, small academies, or were solo players who had the misfortune of being separated from their teams right upon landing.

They generally only had the strength of peak Tier 3 or newly entered Tier 4. In this S-grade secret realm filled with high-tier demonic beasts and abnormal overachievers, they originally could only shiver in fear and wait for death.

But they never expected that they would actually run into one of the legendary "Double Madmen of Magic City"!

The captain of the Magic City Second Team, Lu Xingye!

Although this big shot's style was extremely unique—sporting two panda eyes, a tattered trench coat, and frantically muttering words like "Black Flame" and "Abyss" that normal people couldn't understand.

But there was no denying that he was a genuine powerhouse to rely on! Just now,

as they walked along this path, Tier 3 demonic beasts couldn't even survive a single move against him!

At this moment, listening to the heartfelt exclamations of the group of "little brothers" behind him,

the corners of Lu Xingye's mouth on his cold face—with his back still turned to everyone—were curving upward frantically at an almost uncontrollable angle!

His facial muscles were even about to cramp from holding back his laughter!

"Awesome! This is so awesome!"

"This is the kind of treatment a protagonist deserves! Standing in the spotlight, with all heroes submitting! This is my absolute domain of dominance!"

Lu Xingye roared frantically in his mind, but he knew very well that his persona of a "cool and aloof demon king" must never collapse.

He forcefully suppressed the smile at the corners of his mouth, coughed twice dryly, and slowly turned around. Using his single, bloodshot eye, he scanned the crowd with a feigned depth of emotion.

"They are merely low-tier reptiles kept in captivity by the old order. They are not even worth mentioning."

Lu Xingye waved his hand dismissively, then leaned against an ancient stone pillar, a hint of the "loneliness at the top" vicissitude showing in his eyes:

"You need not be so surprised. After all, in this hypocritical world, those who can see through to my true strength are few and far between."

A captain from a small academy tactfully approached, obsequiously handing over an unopened bottle of high-grade energy drink. "Brother Lu! You are too modest! We've all heard outside that you are the Twin Star of Magic City Martial Arts University!"

"But... there are rumors outside saying that because you had your spot stolen by that guy named Jiang You... uh, had a conflict, you were forced to settle for being the captain of the Second Team?"

"Absurd! It is simply the biggest joke in the world!"

Lu Xingye fiercely whipped his tattered cloak, letting out an extremely disdainful sneer:

"Jiang You? Heh... He is merely a lackey I deliberately pushed to the forefront for cover!"

"Do you really think the mere empty title of First Team captain could catch my eye?"

"The reason I willingly gave up the position of First Team captain is because within my right eye, the Black Flame Dragon, which is capable of destroying the world, is sealed! I bear the endless darkness and destiny of this world. To prevent demonic energy from affecting those innocent mortals, I willingly retreated to the Second Team, silently acting as the... Blade-wielder who guards humanity from the shadows!"

As soon as these words were spoken,

the dozen or so solo players present collectively gasped!

A few of the younger, naive college students were actually deeply moved by Lu Xingye's tragic, grand, and flawless "savior's declaration," their eyes filled with fanatical admiration!

"So... so this is the truth!"

"Heavens! To protect the world, Captain Lu would actually rather bear the misunderstandings and ridicule of the world! What noble sentiment!"

Meanwhile, the other slightly older, quick-witted captains, though frantically complaining in their hearts that "this guy is definitely a severe mental case," acted their parts with utmost realism on the surface!

Who cared if he was a psycho!

In this secret realm where they could be eliminated at any moment, with a Tier 4 super combatant willing to be the sucker protecting them, they would be willing to call Lu Xingye the Jade Emperor if asked!

"Brother Lu is so righteous! Brother Lu is so magnificent!"

"What 'Brother Lu'? Call him Alliance Leader Lu!!!"

An extremely clever solo player immediately shouted at the top of his lungs, "In this crisis-ridden forbidden zone, only a peerless genius as broad-minded and benevolent as Alliance Leader Lu is worthy of leading us!"

"Yes! We are willing to follow Alliance Leader Lu! We will form the Xingye Coalition! We will fight against those selfish overachievers from famous schools!"

"Long live Alliance Leader Lu!"

"Light of the Human Race! Leader of the Righteous Path!"

For a moment, all kinds of extremely sickening and highly exaggerated flattery completely submerged Lu Xingye like a tidal wave!

"Ahem... Keep a low profile, everyone keep a low profile."

Lu Xingye tried hard to cover his mouth with his hand, but the corners of his mouth, which simply couldn't be kept down, completely exposed his ultimate pleasure—he was feeling so good his soul was practically leaving his body!

"Alliance Leader Lu! They called me Alliance Leader Lu! And even the Leader of the Righteous Path!"

Lu Xingye felt as if he could split the sky open with a single slash right now. He waved his hand with immense grandeur and made a righteous oath:

"Thank you all for your recognition of this Alliance Leader!"

"Since you all understand the truth of destiny and are willing to follow me, then as the Light of the Human Race and the commander of the Xingye Coalition, I will surely ensure your safety!"

"As long as I am here, absolutely no evil in this secret realm shall harm a single hair on your heads!"

Once these words were spoken, this group of players from small places, who originally lacked any sense of security, were truly touched.

In this brutal battle royale, being able to encounter such a "warm-hearted" super powerhouse to lean on was like their ancestral graves were billowing green smoke!

The way everyone looked at Lu Xingye became increasingly devoted.

Just like that, an extremely absurd "Xingye Coalition" composed of a severe case of chuunibyou and a bunch of flattery machines began to sweep through the outer resources of this S-grade secret realm in a grand fashion.

"Alliance Leader Lu! There is a peak Tier 3 Explosive Bear ahead!"

"Stand back! Let my Black Flame purify it!"

"Alliance Leader Lu! There is a treasure chest here!"

"Put it into the Coalition treasury! I view money as dirt!"

Along the way, Lu Xingye acted cool to the absolute limit, and his lackeys flattered him to the absolute limit. The team, which originally had around a dozen people, had already expanded to over twenty!

The atmosphere of the entire team had actually reached an extremely bizarre level of harmony.

However,

just as everyone was bragging and chatting along the way, fully loaded and preparing to head toward the central area of the secret realm,

"Rumble!!!"

at the extremely distant end of the horizon, an incredibly terrifying, violent energy fluctuation suddenly erupted, causing even the earth to tremble slightly!

Vaguely, one could also see yellow sand raging across the sky and golden flames soaring into the air, churning that part of the sky into a chaotic mess!