Chapter 5: The Attack of the Harpy Queen

The harpy witches descended upon Li Bin’s ranks, not as the others had predicted—shouting provocations like “Intruders must die”—but instead immediately dividing into three groups and launching a crisscrossing assault. Their attack speed was so swift that even the seasoned Forest Pursuers, accustomed to navigating dense jungles, struggled to react; in the very first exchange, several Pursuers were slashed and wounded.

Realizing things were amiss, Li Bin promptly instructed Sannei to cast Wind Rush upon the Forest Pursuers, enhancing their speed, while he himself unleashed a curse to weaken the harpies’ attack power. At this moment, the Pursuers demonstrated their abilities as intermediate units: twelve massive black bears rose up on their hind legs, forming a barrier around the Pursuers and absorbing every blow from the harpy witches with sheer brute strength.

From her vantage point behind the lines, the Harpy Queen sensed the tide turning and immediately altered her tactics. While two squads continued their harassment, several witches withdrew to her side. Sannei, who was in the midst of casting Body Stone Skin on the bears, suddenly looked up and cried, “There’s a surge of magical energy—they’re preparing to cast a spell!”

Li Bin, of course, didn’t believe the harpies would use something as basic as a lightning whirlwind that a single witch could conjure. He ordered the Pursuers to improvise, while he rifled through his spellbook. Soon, he found the incantation he’d recently learned from Hoof Village: the Language Curse.

With this curse, any mage affected would have a 40% higher chance of mispronouncing their spell within half an hour. Combined with Li Bin’s mummy’s 20% curse potency bonus, any magic user targeted by Li Bin would, regardless of their level, have more than a fifty percent chance of botching their incantation.

The Harpy Queen was not exempt. After flubbing her spell several times and accidentally knocking two or three of her own from the sky, she decisively abandoned chanting altogether. Instead, she simply continued to amass magical energy, which the witches beside her then converted into silvery arrows and shot forth.

“Magic Arrows?” Li Bin recognized the spell at once, but he couldn’t understand why the harpy witches, possessing the much more powerful Lightning Whirlwind, resorted to this basic, first-level magic. Nevertheless, he prudently cast a Great Atmospheric Shield to protect his forces from ranged attacks.

By now, several harpy witches had been felled by the Pursuers’ arrows, and the battle increasingly favored Li Bin’s side.

Yet, Li Bin noticed a flash of desperate resolve in the Harpy Queen’s eyes. Recalling how all the witches’ reckless assaults had forced his troops into a tight cluster, Li Bin suddenly understood. He shouted, “Scatter! Everyone, spread out—!”

But it was too late. The Harpy Queen let out a fierce cry, and the vast magical energy she’d gathered within her exploded. Those witches around her, with their last breaths, unleashed a volley of magic arrows.

Previously, Li Bin had dismissed these arrows as inconsequential, but propelled by the shockwave of the explosion, they pierced through his Great Atmospheric Shield and struck deep into the bodies of the Forest Pursuers.

No matter how quickly Li Bin administered medicine, one Pursuer died in the blast, another was gravely wounded—unable to fight for at least three days—and several of their bears and panthers were killed as well. Though they could be resummoned, it drained the Pursuers’ magical reserves considerably.

This loss ignited Li Bin’s fury. He cast aside the harpy corpses and began using necromantic preservation magic upon them. He intended to use their bodies to offset his losses. Spotting a fallen Forest Pursuer nearby, he expanded his spell’s range to include him as well.

By the time Li Bin finished his work, Honghong Niu and the others arrived with their troops. Upon learning what Li Bin had endured, their expressions grew grim. They understood that, had they faced such an enemy, their casualties might have been even worse. As they prepared to console Li Bin, he suddenly said, “Don't stay here. Everyone, hurry into the abandoned mine tunnel.”

Looking up, Honghong Niu and the others saw a new swarm of harpies emerging from their nest. This time, not only were there the units Li Bin had faced, but also elite squads composed solely of pure Harpy Queens.

Seeing this, they wasted no time; Honghong Niu led the charge, while the others rushed toward the mine.

As he fled, Li Bin’s anger gradually subsided. He replayed the events from the moment they encountered the harpy force, and something struck him as odd. It was as if these harpies knew exactly why they had come, attacking without a word and giving Li Bin’s party no chance to prepare.

Moreover, their tactics were precise—using encirclement to force Li Bin’s troops together, then having the Harpy Queen accumulate magical energy for a devastating area spell. If not for Li Bin’s Language Curse, he doubted he could have forced the Queen into a suicidal explosion.

From these clues, Li Bin could tell that these harpies were sent specifically to deplete player teams, but what benefit could that possibly offer them? Considering their route had been quite secretive, who had tipped off the harpies?

Pondering this, Li Bin glanced at the other players and found them all casting suspicious looks at their companions. He knew that distrust was now spreading through the group.

Li Bin sighed, mounted his undead scorpion, and followed the main force in silence. After some time, the group came to an abrupt halt.

Captain Honghong Niu pointed to the terrain nearby and said, “We’re here. Everyone, stay sharp.”

Li Bin looked up and realized they were now inside an abandoned mine shaft. At the end of the cart tracks, several magical runes hovered above a bottomless pit.

Checking the system prompt, Li Bin understood that this was the entrance to the underground world, occupying a third of the game’s total map. Their quest, it seemed, would unfold in this subterranean realm, not in a dungeon or basement as Li Bin had originally expected.

Honghong Niu called out, then leaped into the pit with his minotaur guards. The other players, apparently encountering this scenario for the first time, hesitated briefly before jumping in with their squads.

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