Infinite Range: The Sniper Mage

Chapter 168 168: Field Battle Strategies

Bradley raised his hand and gave Ruby a flick on the forehead. Ruby pouted, clutching her head and whining, "But I meant it! Love is love. Can't we call it what it is?"Nôv(el)B\\jnn

"Time for the exit ceremony—let's send Ruby out of the guild!" Bradley roared, and the others immediately joined in the teasing, shouting, "Farewell, Dick Fan!"

"Meanies!" Ruby playfully covered her mouth, eyes sparkling with mischief.

Orson looked around at the group. Many of the core members were unfamiliar faces, so he took a moment to introduce himself to everyone. Even within the guild, only a few members had frequent opportunities to meet him.

"You've all worked hard these past days. Such attacks will only increase, not decrease," Orson said with a smile, nodding in acknowledgment. Then he continued, "Members who meet the combat power requirements can submit their pledge contracts to reserve new legendary gear."

"New gear!?"

The group was stunned. Iron Cavalry, the "loot king," reacted the fastest. "Me! Me! Sign me up!"

"Your pledge contract is still on cooldown—invalid!" Bradley snapped at him. "Do you think the guild is your personal ATM?"

"Orson, what legendary gear are you talking about? Even if we just cleared out a batch of unwanted gear and skill books, we can't sustain this kind of spending," Bradley said, pulling Orson aside.

The ongoing plans with Nightshade were already exceeding budget expectations, practically draining the gold coins they'd earned from selling base locations. Now Orson was talking about distributing legendary gear—it seemed reckless.

"Running low on funds is indeed an issue, but we can't halt progress on combat power," Orson replied with a small smile. He then turned to the guild channel and made an announcement:

"UJ server players have dared to tread on our land. Are we going to tolerate this?"

Absolute Kid: "Hell no! Let's crush those brats and smash their eggs!"

Heartbroken Loli: "Ooh, such passion, such violence. I love it! Absolute Kid, you're so awesome!"

Old Yin: "Tolerate? My foot!"

Ride Donkey: "Next time, if they don't run fast enough, I'm taking them alive—bound and gagged!"

Madman: "Kindred spirit! Whips, candles, and wax—they should all experience what we have to offer. Finally found someone on my wavelength!"

...

Within seconds, the guild channel devolved into a heated debate about which types of UJ server girls were the easiest to conquer. Orson facepalmed, momentarily speechless.

"That's genius! We have a ton of blue gear in the warehouse, and junk items will lower the chance of gear drops!"

The group quickly saw the merit in the plan. The guild's warehouse held over 5,000 pieces of Level 20–35 blue gear. Much of it was leftovers from Madman's sales, and the stash was only so big thanks to Orson's relentless farming and Bradley's dungeon-grinding efforts.

"But what if we can't win while wearing blue gear?" Ride Donkey asked sheepishly, scratching his head.

"Practice more, noob!" the group shouted in unison, their disdainful glares piercing through him.

Orson's plan wasn't just about reducing losses—it was about teaching them valuable skills. Field battles in Infinite Dimensions were nothing like base wars.

Base wars were about numbers and coordination, with players following commands to unleash skills en masse. Field battles, however, demanded adaptability:

Utilizing terrain advantages. Timing attacks precisely. Tracking enemy cooldowns. Comparing relative combat stats.

Orson hoped to toughen up the guild members by forcing them to fight under less-than-ideal conditions. This preparation was vital for future trials, where they might face overwhelming disadvantages or outright annihilation.

Once everything was set, Orson donned a disguise and set off for Pondenorlin City. His long-awaited shipment had finally arrived!

But as he reached the city's main street, something felt off. The blacksmith shop's door was locked tight.

"Where's my personal blacksmith?" Orson muttered, his scalp tingling. Had the gray dwarf swindled him and fled?

The main street was filled with NPCs hurriedly fleeing with their families.

"Wait! You still owe me some buffed beast meat!" shouted Paradise Path, chasing after a fleeing NPC.

"This is absurd! My enchanted gear isn't finished yet!" grumbled King of Kings. "Are the NPCs running some kind of scam now?"

"What's going on? NPCs are all running away!" Orson muttered, puzzled.

Among the fleeing crowd, he spotted a familiar dwarf clutching a ragged bag.

"You're not running off with my goods!" Orson stormed forward, grabbing Veijander by the shoulder.

Before the dwarf could reply, a district-wide announcement appeared:

"Due to Pondenorlin's lord, Cain, declaring war on the Godslayer guild, over 50% of the city's NPCs will cease offering services to players for the next five days."