Vol. 4: Chapter 3
Before the trio stood not two bosses, but one. Or rather, they had merged. The Marrow-Bite Ferret was now riding atop the Juggernaut Rat.
[Marrow-Bite Knight] (Level 39)
HP: 25,000,000
Physical Attack: 25,200
Magical Attack: 25,200
Physical Defense: 25,200
Magical Defense: 25,200
The perfectly balanced stats were a nightmare. The newly formed Knight immediately asserted its dominance, letting out a ferocious roar that sent a shockwave blasting outward.
-35,842 (Kael, Absorbed by Shield)
-92,739 (Clone)
His clones, with their 100k health, were left with just a sliver of life. The Knight then lowered its head and charged.
[Marrow-Bite Charge]
-30,581 (Absorbed by Shield)
-3,245 (HP Damage)
-10,000 (Poison)
-10,000 (Poison)
...
In an instant, Kael's shield shattered, and a poison DoT began eating away at his health. Seeing this, the sisters immediately tried to help.
Greater Dispel, Failed.
Greater Dispel, Failed.
Two consecutive failures meant Kael had to endure two more ticks of the potent poison.
-10,000 (Poison)
-10,000 (Poison)
Kael, however, was unfazed. He continued firing his bow while backpedaling away from the Knight. "Forget about me and run!" he ordered the sisters. "Get as far away as you can! I need you at least 90 yards from the boss!"
Grace and Peppa cast a Heal-over-Time spell on Kael and then turned and fled. Not long after they were clear, the Knight unleashed another sonic blast. Fortunately, the girls were out of range. The blast did, however, wipe out Kael’s three weakened clones.
He immediately resummoned them and kept up the pressure. From a safe distance, the sisters began spamming heals on him.
+4,181
+8,432 (Critical Heal)
Between their heals and his own potions, Kael managed to keep his health topped off.
Mounted atop the Juggernaut Rat, the Ferret’s resistances were significantly boosted. His Silkbind Shot, which should have rooted it for three seconds, now broke after only half a second. The moment it was free, it would charge him again. It was only thanks to the sheer number of clones he could summon, constantly triggering his passive slows, that he was able to maintain his distance.
Stolen story; please report.
He kited, fired, and kited some more. After several more charges and AoE blasts, under the relentless barrage of Kael’s arrows, the Marrow-Bite Knight finally collapsed.
System: Congratulations! You have defeated the [Marrow-Bite Knight] and earned 50,000,000 EXP.
System: Lucky Bonus triggered! You have earned an additional 50,000,000 EXP.
Even though the boss was higher level than those in the Hidden Realms, the experience was significantly lower. Defeating two such powerful bosses was only equivalent to clearing three packs of Leafcutter Ants.
Kael mused on this as he checked the loot. One Ascendant and three Legendary items had dropped, all level 35. He ignored the Legendaries, but the Ascendant piece was a pleasant surprise.
[Marrow-Bite Ring (Ascendant)] (Level 35)
Constitution: +900
[Crippled]: Attacks have a 10% chance to reduce the target's Attack and Movement Speed by 30%.
A single-stat item, and it was pure Constitution. For Kael, that meant another 18,000 HP and 1,800 attack power. It was a god-tier drop. He gave the two Legendary caster items to Grace and Peppa, who would be able to use them in two more levels.
On the ground, the bodies of the Juggernaut Rat and Marrow-Bite Ferret had separated. A special glow emanated from the Ferret's corpse.
"Sir, why is the little ferret's body glowing?" Grace asked.
"Yeah! Does that mean it's not really dead? Can we revive it?"
"Oh, that would be great! We could keep it as a pet!"
"Yes, please!"
This time, Kael actually explained. "The Ferret's corpse is a quest item. We'll need it later."
"Okay," the sisters said in unison, thoroughly disappointed.
Kael knelt and touched the glowing corpse.
System: You have obtained [Marrow-Bite Ferret Corpse]. Item will expire in: 3 hours.
A portal materialized in front of them. The trio stepped through and found themselves back in the Plague Hall, behind the ornate screen. Unlike before, they were alone; the other teams were still in their respective tunnels.
"Yeah, we're the first ones back!" Grace cheered.
"We finally got first place in something!"
"Speak for yourself. I've gotten first place before."
"You won a mud-puddle-jumping contest in elementary school. Once. Do you have to bring it up all the time?"
"Have you ever won first place, Grace?"
"I'm not talking to you anymore!"
"You're mad! You lost! Ha ha!"
"I am not mad! I just… I just want to go help the other teams clear their tunnels."
"Hee hee, you totally lost. Dawnbreaker, should we go help the others now?"
Kael had been listening to their banter with amusement, surprised when they suddenly stumbled onto a practical matter. He shook his head. "We can't. The entrances close three minutes after they're opened. After that, they only work as one-way exits."
"Aww, what a shame," they said, disappointed.
"See, Grace? Dumb idea."
"You wanted to help them a second ago too!"
"I was just giving you an out! And cheering them on in spirit!"
"You're so full of it…"
…
As the sisters’ daily bickering resumed, Kael sat down, listening with a smile.
While his team had faced a single, powerful boss, Lila's group was dealing with a different kind of problem: numbers. The tunnel they entered was swarming with a dense population of snakes.
[Obsidian Charger] (Level 36)
HP: 300,000
Physical Attack: 12,200 (Melee)
Physical Defense: 10,100
...
[Shard-Spitter Cobra] (Level 36)
HP: 250,000
Physical Attack: 13,200 (Ranged)
Physical Defense: 6,200
...
[Venom-Weaver] (Level 37)
HP: 250,000
Magical Attack: 14,200
Physical Defense: 6,100
Lila’s team was composed mostly of curse-based supports. The moment they engaged, they blanketed the snake swarms with every debuff imaginable: Attack Down, Magic Down, Defense Down, everything.
Lila, wielding Dragonbane, charged to the front. Her opening move was Rising Strike. Normally a single-target skill that launched an enemy into the air, Dragonbane's Cleave property turned it into a wide arc, sending every snake in front of her flying.
-53,931
-49,482
-100,454 (Critical Hit)
The debuffs were devastatingly effective. Her normal 30-40k hits were now landing for 40-50k. She followed up with Flurry Strikes, a three-hit combo with escalating power.
-42,741 (First Hit)
-52,972 (Second Hit)
-65,127 (Third Hit)
Then, she unleashed a skill she had learned recently: Hallowed Quake.
The entire tunnel shook. A shockwave of holy energy erupted outwards, and damage numbers exploded across the swarm of snakes within a 20-yard radius.
-67,473
-135,662 (Critical Hit)
-68,273
In seconds, the ground before her was littered with the corpses of snakes.