Chapter 56: A Battle of Wits and Courage!

As these words fell, Lin Yu raised his eyebrows slightly.

One had to admit that Wang Defa truly lived up to his reputation as an old monster who had survived for decades. With the luxurious lineup available in the beginner village, he had still willingly taken the time to request reinforcements, handling everything with absolute airtight perfection.

"Therefore, I advise you to surrender now. You haven't made an irreversible mistake yet. Once the reinforcements from the main city arrive, it will be too late for regrets," Wang Defa said coldly, refusing to believe that Lin Yu was not afraid.

"Village Chief Wang, you jest. Firstly, as an adventurer, you possess no authority to judge me. Secondly, even if I were to kill you all and acquire a red name, I could simply spend some time clearing it away and remain completely unscathed."

However, faced with Village Chief Wang Defa's threats, the corners of Lin Yu's mouth curled up slightly, his intent to intimidate entirely unmasked.

He was laying his cards flat on the table for Wang Defa and the others, letting them know that the cost of killing them would not be too high, and they had better weigh the consequences carefully.

Furthermore, given his status as an adventurer, even the people from the main city would find it difficult to do anything to him.

Before the Divine Demon Continent had completely fused with the Blue Star, Lin Yu's identity was merely that of a player, and the people of this world had no legal right to detain him or take similar actions.

Even if he killed players and NPCs and turned red-named, the worst that could happen was being locked in a dungeon until the red name faded, after which he would be completely safe.

Thus, Wang Defa's threats could not exert any pressure on Lin Yu whatsoever.

Hearing this, the expressions of Wang Defa and the surrounding NPCs gradually turned ugly, particularly those of the villager NPCs.

Because Lin Yu's words struck like a heavy blow directly against their chests, the utterly asymmetrical cost forced them into deep hesitation.

Yet, Lin Yu remained completely unaffected by the shifting expressions on everyone's faces.

He continued, "Besides, do you really think that since I intended to destroy the Resurrection Altar, I wouldn't have prepared a backup plan?"

"To be frank with you, I've already had someone shut down the teleportation array leading to the outside world. It will take at least two hours to restart it, so your reinforcements are never going to arrive."

Clearly, Lin Yu had made preparations for this well in advance.

And this was precisely the reason why he had sought out the NPC guarding the teleportation array to share a drink yesterday.

"What?"

Upon hearing this, all the NPCs present stared at Lin Yu in shock, then snapped their heads in unison to look at Wang Defa.

They had never expected Lin Yu to be so thorough, anticipating even their attempt to call for backup.

"Village Chief, if what he says is true, we are in serious trouble," Li Youtian said, looking at Wang Defa with an exceptionally grave expression.

Without external support, attempting to subdue Lin Yu would be nothing short of wishful thinking.

Lin Yu's defense was simply too high; they were utterly helpless against him, let alone capturing him alive.

"What is there to panic about?" Wang Defa barked furiously.

Though he was currently experiencing extreme shock on the inside, he forced himself to appear composed, knowing that if even he showed fear, then everything today would truly be finished.

For now, he had no choice but to wait for news, as he had dispatched someone toward the teleportation array to request reinforcements the moment he arrived, and by now, they should be close to returning.

However, no sooner had his voice faded than a villager-dressed NPC came running over, breathing heavily.

With an extremely unsightly expression, the NPC looked at Wang Defa and reported, "Village Chief, the teleportation array has suddenly broken down. It will take at least two hours to repair."

As these words dropped, the scene instantly erupted into uproar. Everyone turned their gazes back to Lin Yu in unison, evidently astonished that he had truly made preparations concerning the teleportation array beforehand.

"How is this possible? Damn it!"

The person whose expression turned the absolute ugliest at this moment was none other than Village Chief Wang Defa. He never imagined he would be outmaneuvered by a mere adventurer.

And judging by the sound of this adventurer's voice, he wasn't even very old.

"Village Chief, what should we do now?"

Although Li Youtian's expression was equally grim, he stepped forward to inquire.

The path of seeking external reinforcements had undoubtedly been blocked entirely; in two hours, even the cold porridge would have gone cold.

Hearing this, the others cast their gazes over as well.

Yet, ignoring the inquiries of the crowd, Wang Defa turned his eyes toward Lin Yu opposite him and said coldly, "Adventurer, do you have any idea what terrifying consequences will follow if the Resurrection Altar is destroyed?"

"Putting everything else aside, you alone as the destroyer will be cursed by the Shrine, forever barred from receiving the Shrine's baptism."

"So, are you still going to persist in this delusion?"

Having exhausted every single trump card capable of threatening Lin Yu, he was forced to resort to an emotional appeal.

He believed Lin Yu understood the pros and cons clearly and would see no reason to commit an act that harmed others without benefiting himself simply out of a momentary impulse.

"Thank you for the warning, Village Chief. Since I have come here today, I naturally made my preparations long ago. You needn't waste your breath any further—if you want to fight, then let's fight." Lin Yu held his Blood Serpent Blade horizontally before him, already assuming a battle stance.

With that, he glanced back at the crowd of NPCs behind Wang Defa and added, "Of course, if anyone has a death wish, you are welcome to come at me together."

At these words, the crowd instantly stirred, and several NPCs quietly took a few steps backward.

No one present was a fool; they naturally understood where their best interests lay.

"Adventurer, are you truly determined to walk this path of stubbornness?!" Seeing that the surrounding crowd had lost all will to fight, Wang Defa's expression sank as he glared coldly at Lin Yu.

However, the only response he received was Lin Yu's fierce and razor-sharp blade strike.

"In that case, let us fight!"

Seeing that Lin Yu showed no sign of remorse, Wang Defa let out a sudden roar and lunged forward like a bolt of lightning.

Yet, behind him, merely a handful of people followed; even Li Youtian and his companion remained standing in place without moving an inch.

"Li Youtian, you—!"

At this sight, Wang Defa felt a surge of intense rage flood his chest, never expecting that even Li Youtian and the others would choose to sit back and watch the show.

"Village Chief, we all have elders above and children below to care for; we have to look out for ourselves." Faced with Wang Defa's accusation, Li Youtian and the other shrugged, their tones carrying a hint of schadenfreude.

Lin Yu had anticipated this development long ago. While investigating Beginner Village 331, he had already discovered the lingering friction between Blacksmith Li and Wang Defa.

This was precisely why, from the very beginning, he had been willing to waste time constantly emphasizing that his sole objective was destroying the Resurrection Altar and that he had no desire to make enemies of everyone.

Because even if the Resurrection Altar were destroyed, apart from Wang Defa, the punishment inflicted upon the others would not be severe.

Hearing Li Youtian's reply, the few NPCs who had still retained some fighting spirit a moment ago instantly wilted. Taking advantage of the fact that Village Chief Wang Defa wasn't paying attention, they hurriedly slipped back into the safety of the crowd.

Li Youtian was right: let the other guy die, just not oneself. These small fry had no reason to throw away their lives for Wang Defa.

After all, with the destruction of the Resurrection Altar, the primary burden of punishment would fall upon Village Chief Wang Defa; at worst, the rest of them would only be penalized for poor management.

"You bastards!"

Finding himself reduced to a commander with no troops in the blink of an eye, Wang Defa's weathered face instantly flushed the color of a bruised liver.

He never imagined that these fellows would all mutiny at once.

"Fine, fine, fine!"

Driven to laughter by his own fury, Wang Defa gave the crowd a deep, lingering look before turning back to Lin Yu. "Adventurer, old man as I am, I truly admire your methods. But if you think you can use my life to establish your prestige, it won't be quite that easy."

With a death pact already formed in his heart, Wang Defa faced Lin Yu with a fearless aura.

As his words faded, a layer of crimson light surged across his entire body, and his presence exploded upward in an instant.

Simultaneously, a system warning sounded sharply in Lin Yu's ears:

[System Warning: Village Chief Wang Defa has activated the "Battle Intent Erupting" state, gaining damage amplification at the cost of burning his life force.]

[System Warning: Village Chief Wang Defa has activated the "Battle Intent Erupting" state, gaining damage amplification at the cost of burning his life force!]