One Man Army Chapter 180

Chapter 145 [Episode 74] Unexpected…. 2

'Sky grade ship….. What is this?'

The appearance of the Sky-grade Ships meant that other users have appeared. At least so far  as Sang Hyuk knew it didn't make sense for other users to show up here.

He always checked the situation of other users, and the latest news from the community was that the leaders have arrived at the 34th island.

However, with seven large Sky-grade Ships appearing here, it must have been embarrassing for him.

"What? Hey….. aren't they Sky-grade Ships?"

Gye Baek also looked at the Sky-grade Ships, which to his eyes, were so faint they could barely be made out.

"Darn…. I think I was too complacent."

Sang Hyuk acknowledged his mistake.He really had been negligent. It was too sloppy of him to  only check the major trends and top posts in the community without investigating in detail.

"But who are they? And why are they in a convoy?"

"It doesn't matter why they're in a formation…"

Even in his past life, there were many cases where the Sky-grade Ships like that had sailed in a coalition. Certainly if several Sky-grade Ship formed a convoy, they would be safer.

Of course, as the numbers increased, the distribution of karma or loot would be greatly reduced, but a formation could be formed anytime when safety was the priority.

'I'm getting a bad feeling….'

Sang Hyuk looked at the seven large Sky-grade Ships and bit his lip.

Something didn't feel right.

"Why do you look like that? Aren't they just other users?"

Gye Baek didn't feel good about other users catching up to their lead, but he didn't think it would be a big deal. Honestly, if this had happened because they had been preoccupied with EL Revolution, he would have no objection if they started a speed run.  He also thought they could shake them off if they decided to run again.

"I hope it just another user…"

Sang Hyuk once again focused and looked at the seven Sky-grade Ships.

All seven ships were almost triple size and seemed to be of quadrgrade. He would say that there was no single force in EL capable of building seven large Sky-grade Ships.

Based on that premise, that meant the seven Sky-grade Ships in front of him were very likely to be an allied force.

'Collusion…. Collusion…. Don't tell me it is….. '

Following the ideas in his head reminded Sang Hyuk of one possibility.

And when that possibility came to his mind, Sang Hyuk took a closer look at the seven Sky-grade Ships, reinforcing his vision skills to the limits.

Thanks to this, Sang Hyuk was able to identify the black dragon carved on the Sky-grade Ship leading the pack.

'Dark Dragon….'

As soon as he identified it, the possibilities became a reality.

"It's an enemy."

Sang Hyuk frowned and spoke to Gye Baek and Dark Knight.

"Huh? Enemy?"

"The Sky-grade Ship at the most front is the Sky-grade Ship of the Dark Dragon Guild. There's only one reason they're chasing me."

The bad-blood between Sang Hyuk and Line Dark was something that everyone knew about. Naturally, Gye Baek and Dark Knight also knew that the Dark Dragon guild would never, ever let Sang Hyuk go.

'It looks like they found us…but isn't it better to just run away from them?'

Sang Hyuk seriously thought of 'escaping'. Of course, he wasn't afraid to fight. But there were a few things troubling him.

First was Gye Baek and Dark Knight.

Sang Hyuk had the confidence to fight as much as he wanted to if he was alone. But he didn't have the confidence to fight while protecting both of them.

Especially, the opponent came with seven Sky-grade Ships that seemed to be quadrgrade. Since it was likely that at least 700 elite rankers were on board, then the chances of Gye Baek and Dark Knight holding them off was almost zero.

And the other thing to consider is the Ink-Black Dragon. Sang Hyuk has always fought using 'guerilla tactics' with large-scale guilds or coalitions. When the minority was facing the majority, they had no choice but to fight this way.

But guerilla tactics couldn't be easily used on the Sky-Sea. Basically, as long as your Sky-grade Ship exists, if Sang Hyuk tries to use hit-and-run tactics, then the Sky-grade Ship will likely be destroyed.

Moreover, it was impossible to put the ship in the spirit virtual space and do battle. Basically, sky-grade ship could not be put into the spirit virtual space while floating on the sky-sea.

For Sang Hyuk, even if he destroyed his enemy, it would be a pyrrhic victory indeed if Ink-Black Dragon was destroyed.

When Sky-Grade Ships are fighting on the Sky-Sea, the side with greater numbers has an overwhelming advantage because of the presence of cannon.

'Tch, Why of all things on the Sky-Sea….'

What seemed to be the best plan was the 36th rule of The Thirty-Six Stratagems. (TL note: The Thirty-Six Stratagems, a Chinese essay used to illustrate a series of stratagems used in politics, war, and in civil interaction. It said that fleeing is the best.)

But Sang Hyuk didn't want to run away, even when he knew that was the smart move. And though he had explored leisurely, the fact that the enemy had followed him meant that they had a special trick of their own.

As a result, even if they managed to escape, it was more likely that they would catch up again.

"Guys. Get ready for battle. This is the enemy that we have to fight anyway…. let's just fight now and see it through to the end."

The reason Sang Hyuk made this bold choice was simple.

It was because he was confident.

There were many difficult things, but he was confident that he would overcome it all and smash the seven Sky-grade Ships.

Of course, the process was clearly not going to be easy.

'Well, has there ever been an easy enemy?'

Sang Hyuk always enjoyed the most difficult games, so he didn't worry too much.

Rather, it was Gye Baek and Dark Knight who were worried.

"Hahaha, hasn't it been a long time since I felt a thrill?"

[What do I do?]

Fortunately, neither were very nervous.

"From now on, I'm going to break through among those large Sky-grade Ships. Gye Baek, I need continuous rapidfire. The target is their guns. Neutralize as many of their guns as you can."

He didn't know what grade the opponent's Sky-grade ships were.

But, Sang Hyuk was confident that the Ink-Black Dragon was in top condition.

Chapter end