Chapter 29

Chapter 29: Can't Do It

【Tough Prayer】

Holy Light School Active Skill

Mastery Requirements: Holy Light Knowledge Level 1

Cost/Restrictions: 15 Mana, 10 Faith Points, Requires Language Function

Effect: Prays for a designated target, increasing their Constitution by 3%, improving stamina recovery speed by 5%, and significantly alleviating bleeding effects. Duration: five minutes, cooldown: 120 seconds.

[Note: Perhaps you will die in battle, but please try to hold on for a few more minutes and make a deathbed confession to help boost my performance.]

Mo Tan's reaction was second only to Ned's. He had already acted before the latter had even finished speaking, casting Divine Decree: Shield on Futaba, who had the lowest Constitution, and then immediately following up with Tough Prayer on Ned, who was charging ahead. The interval between this divine spell, which currently provided a fairly strong buff, and the previous Holy Word spell was less than a second.

In *Innocent Realm*, spellcasting had no global cooldown. Theoretically, as long as a player's actions were fast enough, they could chain a series of skills that weren't on cooldown. However, this theory didn't hold up in practice, because even the most basic, brainless skills required corresponding movements, gestures, or incantations upon activation. Even some low-level warrior skills required an action like raising a weapon.

Shooting required drawing a bow and arrow or pulling a trigger; spellcasting required chanting or making gestures; using a Whirlwind skill wouldn't make sense if the character didn't spin around, right?

Mo Tan's two skill activations might not have seemed impressive to some NPCs or battle-hardened high-end players (who didn't exist yet), but for a rookie player, they were textbook-level skill usage.

While silently muttering the Decree at Futaba, Mo Tan's other hand was already steadily aimed at Ned. The moment Divine Decree: Shield took effect, he immediately turned back and made two gestures toward Ned that carried the meaning of "blessing" within the sect.

(PS: The skill description involves touching the pinky and thumb together, slightly curling the index finger, extending the ring and middle fingers, followed by a motion with the palm angled forty-five degrees downward.)

This wasn't due to some innate talent or being naturally good at games. It was simply because, compared to other players like Futaba, Mo Tan had a distinct advantage.

Experience!

Although Hei Fan's character had only used a skill once since creation—a simple illumination skill—that didn't mean Mo Tan lacked relevant experience.

When he was Tan Mo, he had once faced two Red Ridge Beasts simultaneously and subdued them on the spot.

When he was Mo, he had accumulated plenty of combat experience under the attacks of numerous cannon-fodder enemies.

While each character's mastery of skills was relatively limited, if you added them all together...

"Beautiful!" Ned, who was drawing his sword with a backhand, praised Mo Tan without turning his head, then waved backward. "Follow me!"

Yinna, who had been listless just moments ago, was the fastest. Relying on the innate lightness and flexibility of an elf, she followed closely behind Ned after just a few leaps, with two arrows already nocked on her longbow aimed diagonally at the ground. Her pointed ears twitched slightly as she shouted, "About four hundred meters ahead, beyond the slope, someone is fighting! I can't tell how many!"

"Not reliable at all!" the lizardman monk Salazar stomped the ground hard with his feet, which were twice the size of an average human's. In the next second, he had already appeared seven or eight meters away, faint streams of energy flowing over his gauntlets. As he swiftly caught up with the two ahead, he turned back and yelled, "Klab, you take care of Hei Fan and the others!"

The dark-skinned orc Klab, who looked like he might have come from an African tribe, had already scrambled to his feet. He curled his lips and muttered, "No need to tell me." Then he strode toward Mo Tan and Futaba...

"Hey! Wait! What are you doing, big guy?" Combining that with Salazar's earlier words, Futaba suddenly had a bad feeling.

Klab chuckled, slung his axe into the leather sheath on his back, and tucked one person under each arm before starting to run at a brisk pace: "You two spellcasters are too slow; someone needs to look after you."

Futaba immediately dispersed the fireball in her hand, covered her nose with her sleeve, and rolled her eyes repeatedly.

Even though Klab was a fairly clean orc with no strange smells, she still couldn't psychologically accept being carried like this...

Meanwhile, Mo Tan, tucked under the other arm, was much calmer. He was currently staring at his character panel, calculating his mana and Faith Points recovery rate, trying to better understand his role.

As the only support in the team, with only a few skills—one of which was basically a flashlight—Mo Tan felt a bit pressured...

The four-hundred-meter distance passed in an instant. Even an ordinary person running that stretch wouldn't take more than two minutes, let alone Ned and the others.

In less than half a minute, the group had already crossed the low slope ahead. The terrain here was desolate, not far from the border of Marshall Territory, and normally there would be hardly any people around.

But now...

Just as Mo Tan was set down by a dazed Klab, he saw a tall figure flying through the air and crashing heavily to the ground in front of them with a loud bang.

It was a young man whose entire abdomen was nearly torn open. He wore a simple leather armor, and on his chest was a Flame Emblem. His chestnut hair was plastered to his forehead in strands by sweat and blood. His lips, pale from excessive blood loss, trembled constantly as foam bubbled from his mouth.

"Ah!" Futaba instinctively hid behind Klab, covering her eyes.

"So many well-trained orc soldiers!" As the other woman in the team, Yinna had much stronger endurance than Futaba. She looked at the dense cluster of dark figures not far away and reported loudly, "They bear the insignia of Fire Claw Territory!"

"I know! Let's check on him first." Ned's expression suddenly turned grim. He knelt on one knee and pressed firmly on the young soldier's abdomen, only to find that it still couldn't stop the blood from seeping out of the numerous wounds on the man's body. He immediately looked up and shouted, "Hei Fan, he needs hemostasis!"

Mo Tan, however, shook his head helplessly. The Tough Prayer, which could alleviate the effects of blood loss, was still on cooldown. His original intention in casting the prayer on Ned early was to quickly cycle the cooldown, so that in any potential upcoming battles, he could cover more people. But he never expected things to turn out like this...

[If I were Tan Mo right now, I definitely wouldn't have made this mistake...]

With a somewhat self-deprecating sigh, Mo Tan extended both hands flat. A faint golden light appeared around the critically wounded soldier, then slowly merged into the numerous gruesome wounds on his body.

That's right, this was the 'Holy Healing' he had learned earlier—a low-tier version...

A healing skill that restores a small amount of Health Points to a target, with a cooldown of only one minute.

Of course, Mo Tan also didn't forget to take out the Teaching Book that had cost him 20 Copper Coins. Although it had no combat capabilities (please don't think about attaching ramming spikes or chains to cosplay a flail), this off-hand equipment at least added 1 point of Intelligence, which should be somewhat useful.

And indeed, it did have some effect, though only 'some'...

The young human soldier forcefully swallowed a mouthful of bloody saliva, grabbed Ned's hands with difficulty, as if trying to say something...

Ned quickly leaned in, while Mo Tan stared at the Healing Prayer that was about to finish its cooldown. His other hand, not holding the Teaching Book, was already pointing at the soldier from the Ignition Squad.

Ten seconds until the skill cooldown was complete!

If the bleeding could be stopped, there was still hope of saving him, even though the menacing Orc warriors were slowly closing in on them, but...

Four seconds until the skill cooldown was complete!

Almost there!

Just as Mo Tan was about to make the first gesture, Ned straightened up and let out a long sigh.

"He's dead..."

[Skill use failed. Target status: Dead.]

The voice and the system notification came simultaneously. The soldier from the Ignition Squad ultimately hadn't made it in time for Mo Tan's skill cooldown. The earlier Holy Healing had been nothing more than a drop in the bucket, only enough to delay Death's steps and let him leave behind a final word...

"Here they come!" Salazar stepped to the front of the team, his gaze fixed on the roughly twenty or so Orcs below the slope, all clad in uniform half-plate armor. He said in a deep voice, "Looks like they don't intend to let us leave intact..."

Ned stood up gloomily, his brow furrowed tightly. "This game sucks. Terrible experience."

!?!?

The somewhat disheartened Mo Tan and Futaba, who had been hiding behind Klab, were both stunned, staring at Ned in shock.

What did he just say...

"Trash? What's so terrible?"

"I've witnessed death many times." Ned raised his sword, murmuring, "But this young man's last words are definitely the strangest... Alright, everyone, prepare for battle! Otherwise, we'll die here too!"

Mo Tan and Futaba exchanged a glance, both realizing at once that the deceased fellow before them wasn't an NPC but a player like themselves. After all, those 'last words' just now didn't sound like something a native of the Innocent Realm could come up with.

For some reason, knowing that the 'death' wasn't just a pile of data but a living player actually made Mo Tan breathe a sigh of relief. The slightly heavy mood he'd felt earlier eased considerably.

Well, no matter how harsh the death penalty was, players wouldn't truly die...

"Where are the rest of the Ignition Squad?" Klab pulled out his battle axe, walking over to Yinna and asking, "All... done for?"

Yinna gave a bitter laugh: "There are a few bodies in the distance. Comparing the numbers, that soldier who just died should have been the last of their squad..."

Crack!!

Salazar suddenly lunged in front of Yinna, raising his hand to strike sideways, snapping a spear that came whistling through the air into two pieces mid-flight. He growled, "Enough of that, they're here!"

Before his words faded, the orc battalion not far ahead drew their weapons in unison and charged with a roar, closing the distance between the two sides at an alarming speed.

Because they'd wasted a bit of time trying to save that soldier, the group now had little chance of escaping the enemy's attack range. Turning and running would undoubtedly result in being skewered like kebabs by a hail of thrown spears!

And if they faced the charge head-on...

The disparity in numbers seemed a bit too great!

"We can't escape now!" Ned stood at the very front of the formation, shouting loudly, "Double right-angle battle formation, retreat! I'll be the arrowhead! Drag them toward Layered Rock City!"

With that, he turned and swung his sword fiercely at an orc that had just charged up a low slope, aiming for its chest. Forcing the enemy to parry, he used the momentum to leap backward, only to find...

His own little jump had somehow landed him at the very back of the squad, while the members of the Fenrir Squad hadn't budged an inch.

"What are you all gawking at?!" Ned fumed, seeing stars. "Do it!"

"But Captain..." Klab was currently swinging his axe in a wide arc, slamming it toward an enemy who'd just crossed the low slope. After blasting his fellow orc, who'd tried to match his strength, back with a spray of blood, he blinked and bellowed, "What the hell is a right-angle formation, and what's an arrowhead mean?"

Salazar grabbed an orc warrior by the shoulder, sidestepped, spun, and drove an elbow strike viciously into the enemy's back. He then whipped his tail around, sweeping the orc off balance, and finished the dazzling flurry of monk strikes with a knee slam. He shrugged at Klab: "The Captain said a double right-angle battle formation."

"You understand that?" Yinna seemed to merge into Klab's towering shadow for a split second before reappearing alongside three arrows that shot forth. With a dagger clenched in her teeth, she tilted her head at Salazar, speaking indistinctly.

"I don't understand." The latter shook his head quite naturally, then pulled the slightly dazed Futaba backward, helping her dodge a powerful leaping slash from an orc, but nearly getting scratched himself in the process. "Focus! They're well-trained!"

By this time, Ned had already sprinted back, shielding both Mo Tan and Futaba, the two spellcasters, behind him while letting out a dry laugh. "Sorry, I forgot we're just a ragtag bunch."

By now, the small slope had been completely overrun by the twenty-plus enemies on the other side. The two orc warriors who had been knocked down earlier also got back up, seemingly not too badly injured...

"Lackeys of the Marshall Family!!" A gray-haired old orc wielding a warhammer roared as he charged straight at the group, his eyes wide with fury as he bellowed, "You all die!!"

A golden and a red trajectory howled out from behind Ned, forcibly halting the enemy's charge!

Fireball. Light Arrow.

Mo Tan and Futaba acted almost simultaneously, but after stopping the old orc, they realized this was merely a drop in the bucket...

"KILL!!"

Roars tore open the curtain of battle. These orc warriors, far from being a ragtag mob, pressed in uniformly from all directions, attacking the Fenrir Squad—who were at an absolute numerical disadvantage—with weapons, bodies, roars, and teeth, ferocious and frenzied!

The group was plunged into a bitter struggle almost from the moment the battle began. Ned, Klab, and Salazar each had to contend with three or four enemies at once. Yinna's nimble and agile footwork also lost all advantage on this small slope, forcing her to awkwardly flee while occasionally managing to fire off a few arrows.

As for Futaba and Mo Tan, who were protected in the very center...

The former's face was pale. Though the short staff in her hand kept waving continuously, the scattered Low-level Fireballs and Arcane Missiles could only barely manage to break through the enemies' defenses!

They had all been meticulously calculated by their caster, fired at the best angles and rhythm. Yet even these spell attacks, which would have amazed even a Grand Archmage, still struggled to achieve much.

As for the latter...

The moment all his support and healing skills went into cooldown simultaneously, Mo Tan's hands dropped limply.

[I can't do it...]

[I... can't do anything...]

Chapter 29: The End