In Sumeru, pretend to be a scholar!

Wang Yan waited quietly in Fiona's room.

But if you look closely, you'll find that Wang Yan is not as calm as he appears.

His hand occasionally brushed over the crossbow he had made, checking the trigger mechanism and bolts, and occasionally glancing at the runes engraved on it.

It felt like cramming for an exam.

The sky outside the window had completely darkened, and the noise outside the inn gradually subsided, but this quiet made his heartbeat even clearer.

Farusian sat at the table, flipping through a stack of yellowed sketches of the ruins by candlelight, her expression focused and calm, as if all the disturbances of the outside world were irrelevant to her.

The multifaceted He Yao floated quietly between the two, its azure cube surface shimmering with a faint halo of light.

Time passed slowly in silence and waiting.

Wang Yan could almost hear the sound of his own blood flowing, and each breath seemed exceptionally long.

Just as he was secretly adjusting his mindset and trying to calm the turmoil in his heart—

"Fire!"

A piercing scream abruptly shattered the tranquility of the night, followed by more chaotic shouts.

"Attack! Someone is attacking the inn!"

"Backyard! Fire in the backyard!"

"Quick, get some water! Stop them!"

The cacophony of voices, hurried footsteps, and the muffled thuds of collapsing wooden furniture all blended together instantly, rushing in all at once.

The firelight shone through the window, casting flickering shadows on the walls of the room, making the leaping shadows look menacing.

Wang Yan stiffened almost reflexively and looked sharply at Falushan.

Farusan closed the documents in her hand, raised her eyes, her gaze calm and unwavering, and simply nodded slightly at Wang Yan.

There was no hesitation, and no further words were needed.

Wang Yan took a deep breath, suppressing the last trace of unease in his heart, and whispered to He Yao, "Let's go!"

The azure cube turned gracefully, as if drawn by invisible threads, and swiftly flew to Wang Yan's side, maintaining a half-step distance from him. The halo on its surface swirled faster, as if it too had entered a state of readiness.

Wang Yan flung open the door, revealing a corridor filled with smoke, where panicked travelers were pushing and shoving each other toward the exit.

He went against the flow of people, relying on his memory to rush towards the side door leading to the backyard of the inn.

The heat and the smell of burning grew stronger, and the shouts of battle and the clanging of metal became clearer.

Pushing open the slightly hot wooden door, the scene in the backyard instantly came into view!

Flames shot into the sky!

The hay and miscellaneous items piled in the corner had been set ablaze, and the raging flames were greedily licking the roof of the nearby animal pen, with sparks rising along with thick smoke.

In the firelight, about a dozen guards were locked in a fierce battle with seven or eight burly bandits dressed in gilded turbans.

At first glance, the guards have the advantage in numbers, but the situation is not optimistic.

They were clearly divided into two groups: one group was desperately drawing water from the well in an attempt to control the fire; the other group was wielding swords and fighting with the bandits.

It was this division of forces that left the guards struggling to cope.

The bandits were clearly well-trained and coordinated, using the chaos created by the flames to fight the guards and even gaining the upper hand for a time.

Amidst the flashing swords and clashing blades, two guards had already fallen to the ground, their screams drowned out by the even louder commotion.

Wang Yan's pupils contracted slightly, and his finger instantly pulled the trigger of the crossbow.

The multifaceted body leaned slightly forward beside him, emitting an even brighter blue light.

Without time to think, his gaze quickly locked onto a bandit who was wielding a knife to force back two guards and attempting to throw a torch to spread the fire.

With a single shot, the crossbow bolt, enhanced by wind element runes, transformed into a streak of azure light, instantly piercing the bandit's throat.

Fresh blood gushed from the wound, appearing particularly glaring in the flickering firelight.

The bandit's movements suddenly froze, and the long knife in his hand fell to the ground with a "clang." He clutched his neck in disbelief and collapsed with a hoarse sound.

To Wang Yan's surprise, witnessing this bloody scene did not evoke the nausea or fear he had expected. Instead, a strange heat surged from his chest and quickly spread to his limbs and bones.

It wasn't a bloodthirsty excitement, but a sense of dread brought on by a surge of adrenaline, as if the body had instinctively adapted to the bloody scene.

The ingenious mechanism inside the crossbow emitted a subtle "click" sound. Powered by the elemental fragments, the crossbow string automatically reset, and a new short arrow popped out of the quiver and precisely locked into the slot.

Wang Yan barely paused; with a slight movement of his arm, he aimed the crossbow at another bandit whose back was to him.

However, the sudden death of their companion had alerted the remaining bandits.

Just as Wang Yan pulled the trigger, the bandit seemed to sense something and suddenly turned his head and body to the side!

The crossbow bolt grazed his cheek, leaving a trail of blood, before embedding itself deeply into the wooden post behind him.

The burning pain on the bandit's face filled him with both shock and rage, and his gaze instantly locked onto the direction from which the crossbow bolt had come!

"Over there! Someone's shooting arrows from the shadows! Take care of him first!" The bandit who was almost hit shouted hoarsely, his voice sharp with shock and anger.

It must be admitted that this criminal gang is definitely a well-trained veteran.

Upon hearing the commotion, the bandit closest to Wang Yan immediately forced back the guard in front of him with a slash and then turned to pounce on Wang Yan.

He moved with lightning speed, rushing forward in a few strides. With the momentum of his charge, he wielded a gleaming longsword and slashed fiercely at Wang Yan's head with the force of splitting a mountain!

The wind from the blade was chilling, carrying a heavy stench of blood and killing intent.

Faced with this deadly attack, Wang Yan did not retreat or dodge. Instead, his heart sank, and he steadily raised his crossbow with both hands. The front of the crossbow was almost touching the bandit's chest. His eyes were calm as he pulled the trigger.

"Boom!"

The crossbow string vibrated, and the short arrow, enhanced by the [Swift] and [Pierce] runes, transformed into a blur that was difficult to catch with the naked eye, shooting out and piercing the bandit's heart with unparalleled precision.

The bandit's momentum came to an abrupt halt. He looked down at his chest, which was instantly stained red with blood. His pupils contracted sharply, and his face was a mixture of disbelief, despair, and the ferocity of someone on the verge of death.

He used his last bit of strength, and the trajectory of his long sword as he slashed down remained unchanged. He still used inertia to fiercely strike Wang Yan's head, trying to take him down with him!

As the blade approached his body, Wang Yan could even feel the cold metallic aura, yet he felt no fear whatsoever.

At this critical moment, the multifaceted He Yao that had been quietly floating beside him suddenly shone brightly with a blue light and trembled violently!

"Buzz—!"

A visible pale blue gale suddenly erupted from the center of the Heyao multifaceted object, spreading rapidly outward in a ring.

The fierce gust of wind not only struck the bandit's slashing long knife precisely, but also directly impacted the bandit's body.

With a sharp clang, the longsword was sent flying high into the air, and the bandit was struck as if by a heavy hammer. The sudden force sent him flying backward, crashing heavily to the ground several meters away. He twitched a couple of times and then lay still.

Wang Yan watched this scene, and the corner of his mouth twitched slightly. Perhaps... he didn't need guards or himself; He Yao alone could handle these bandits on his own.

Seeing such a powerful elemental attack, the remaining six bandits who were fighting with the guards were also stunned and showed a hint of fear.

Although the commander's orders were to make a big fuss and attract the warehouse guards to come back for reinforcements, ... in the current situation, continuing like this could lead to our deaths.

It's okay to do bad things, but you can't actually risk your life for them.

"That's enough, the fire's already started, let's retreat." One of the bandits shouted, forcing back the inn's guards with a single blow, then turned and ran.

The other bandits followed suit.

Some guards wanted to give chase, but looking at the surrounding fire, they could only grit their teeth and turn around to fight the fire.

Only Wang Yan glanced at the multifaceted He Yao still hovering beside him, then took off chasing after it.

If you don't follow the lead of a max-level player in a dungeon now, when will you?