Chapter 210
Chapter 210: Raid: DPS Force Through
Apart from shouting the exact same line that a famous spirit lord from a past game had once cried out, the [Lord of Storms] that had entered Phase 2 was truly terrifying.
This was because the 'fall death'—a raid environmental factor selected by the 'Reverse Planet' community as the worst—had been added, and solo tanking was no longer permitted.
The raid boss's gaze was still fixed on Baek Woohyun, but the much fiercer rain and wind now assaulted all raid members.
[Let the rain and wind rage!]
Kwagagaga!
"Watch out for the AoE!"
"[Lake's Blessing]!" "[Wave Fissure]!"
-The AoE is insane ㄷㄷ
-Phase 2 is fucking hard, huh?
-At least it's only hitting Hackphysical with basic attacks;;
-If you mess up, even blocking will send you flying off the edge
Moreover, whenever the [Lord of Storms], which had been targeting only Baek Woohyun, used an area-of-effect skill, it became an emergency for the raid members.
The ground crumbled, limiting the range of movement and making evasion impossible, ultimately forcing them to block, but even that wasn't easy.
If they failed to deflect the aftershock and took a direct hit, they'd go flying straight into the fall death zone.
"Whoa, aaaaah-!"
"Dr. Cheon!" "Too late!"
'ㅇㅇ' donated 1000 won!
[At least give us something!]
-He held out well but in the end ㅜㅜ
-The first casualty goes out so anticlimactically;;
-Dying even after blocking is too much, isn't it? ㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-This is why I hate fall death mechanics ㅅㅂ
"─Even if I go! [Thousand Bolts of Lightning]!"
Two people actually died from fall deaths this way, including the first raid member to fall, 'Dr. Cheon.'
Despite this being their first try, they had shown the miracle of reaching Phase 2 without anyone dying, but they lost two raid members in an instant.
The difficulty that shot up as if claiming Phase 1 had merely been a warm-up made both raid members and viewers instinctively gasp.
As a side note, the scene of Dr. Cheon unleashing his ultimate right before falling became a minor hot topic.
Seeing him open his eyes wide and launch a final attack while being swept away by the aftershock made people understand why he was chosen as a raid member.
Thanks to that, even though he was the first to die during the raid, there were hardly any who criticized him.
[──!]
Huuuung, kwaaa!
"──!"
Even amidst this chaos, Baek Woohyun remained unchanged. He didn't care at all who died and continued to face the [Lord of Storms].
Unless a situation arose where all raid members died and they were wiped, his attitude would remain the same. He would faithfully fulfill his role and do what he could.
This was his inherent nature, whether in 'that place,' reality, or 'Reverse Planet.'
However, the fact that [Lord of Storms] Phase 2 was extremely difficult was starkly revealed through him as well.
Baek Woohyun, who had evaded all attacks and counterattacked to overwhelm the boss up until Phase 1, gradually accumulated more wounds once Phase 2 began.
The powerful fists of a giant over several dozen meters tall, followed by waterspouts—they were that powerful.
"Tsk."
Baek Woohyun clicked his tongue as he wiped away a drop of blood flowing down his cheek with the back of his hand. A stinging sensation transmitted from the skin torn by the sharp wind.
His brow furrowed at the damage accumulating on his body faster than expected. At this rate, he'd have to revise all the plans he'd formulated in his head during Phase 1.
The DPS he'd deal alone would be significantly weaker than now, and time-wise, there was a high probability that he'd be the one unable to endure and collapse.
'Will I get a bit better than now when I reach max level?'
Fortunately, Baek Woohyun hadn't yet reached max level in 'Reverse Planet.' He still had room to grow.
If he became stronger than now and obtained several Core Elements and the additional elements derived from them, he'd become much stronger than now.
Though it wouldn't match 'that place,' it would be enough to declare the unprecedented challenge of a 'solo raid' and see a chance of success.
"Haaaat!"
Taat!
A clear trajectory carved through the air!
The 「Soul Eater」 that Baek Woohyun wielded boasted transcendent power equal to the strength of the one who held it.
Even the [Lord of Storms] that had entered Phase 2, the moment it allowed the blade through, had parts of its amorphous body torn to shreds.
Though it wasn't clearly visible due to its enormous size, if you looked closely, it was definitely there. Wounds that rippled here and there, unable to be hidden.
The [Lord of Storms] wasn't watching only Baek Woohyun from the start until now for no reason.
After calculating everything, the combat AI's judgment that it wouldn't be able to endure if it tried to eliminate other raid members first was truly correct.
Moreover, unlike raid members who barely managed to boost their DPS by using supernatural ability skills—especially ultimate skills—Baek Woohyun continuously poured out tremendous DPS, didn't he?
Viewers thought he dealt several times more, but that was wrong. The DPS he dealt was close to several dozen times that of a single raid member.
"Everyone, keep it up! [Earth Strike]!"
"[Wrath of the Storm God]!"
-Still, they're dealing better DPS than expected
-ㄹㅇ; Why are they so good
-This is without buffs, right? ㄷㄷ
-You have to be this good to be picked as a raid member, huh
Was it because they were talents that Baek Woohyun had personally selected, chosen, and even taught?
The raid members' performance was truly at an amazing level. Most viewers reacted that they didn't know they'd do this well, so what more needed to be said?
Even in a situation without buffs and facing the extreme circumstances of a raid, the sight of them forcing in as much DPS as possible naturally drew admiration.
[──!]
Kwaaang!
"[Thorn ─aaagh!"
"Party 3's Bioreu Han is down!"
"Confirmed! Party 3, move together with Party 4 now! The survivors are Party 3!"
-Already five people dead ㄷㄷ
-Phase 2 is where it really begins ㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-No wonder Phase 1 felt a bit easy
-If this wasn't Hackphysical's raid, they'd have wiped already ㄹㅇ
"As safely as possible! Prioritize survival over DPS!"
"Anyway, Woohyun's solidly filling the DPS! We just need to survive!"
"Yes!" "Understood!"
Nevertheless, the [Lord of Storms] raid was absolutely not easy.
Shortly after Phase 2 began, two people suffered fall deaths, and as damage gradually accumulated, three more people met their deaths.
Out of a total of sixteen people, five had disappeared, meaning by simple calculation, already a third of the raid's power had been reduced.
Of course, this was only when excluding Baek Woohyun, but anyway.
'DPS is... sufficient. Thanks to Hackphysical, there won't be a shortage. Then what about mechanics? The next mechanic should be coming soon.'
'We need to proceed thinking we're down one party. Same for the mechanic clear order.'
'If it's a mechanic that needs four parties, Party 1 with the strongest power goes first─ No, in that case, rather─'
Redok's mind, naturally taking on the raid leader role, couldn't help but be busy.
What should be prioritized among DPS, survival, and mechanics?
After weighing options and making and breaking plans, he finally reached a conclusion.
"We'll proceed with the next mechanic with ten people excluding Hackphysical-nim!"
"Will that, oof, be possible?!"
"I don't know! We have to try! Just remember it like that for now! Hackphysical-nim, please go full DPS even during mechanics! Join the mechanic when we request it!"
-Drastic measures ㄷㄷ
-Go full DPS first!! Mechanics come after!!
-We need to deal as much DPS as possible and check if there's a berserk pattern
-With five dead, clearing seems difficult ㅇㅇ
"Confirmed!"
Baek Woohyun didn't refuse the raid leader's order.
Not only did he not have time to judge whether the instruction was appropriate or not while busy trading blows with the [Lord of Storms], but he also trusted Redok that much.
As he had confirmed while watching Team All-In, Redok could perform the raid leader role more reliably than anyone.
Furthermore.
'Let's try it.'
Baek Woohyun himself had one card up his sleeve.
A means that he'd have to try to know whether it would work or not.
If this worked properly, the probability of clearing the [Lord of Storms] raid in this attempt would increase exponentially.
In that sense, Redok's instruction was extremely appropriate. Though it probably wasn't what he was aiming for.
[Storm─! Obey my command─!]
"Mechanic incoming!"
Gooooooo─!
Finally, as the damage Baek Woohyun and the raid inflicted dropped the raid boss's health below a certain level, a new mechanic began.
As it had always done when casting mechanics, the [Lord of Storms] let out a comprehensible cry and raised both hands high.
This time too, the intense wind that swirled around it blew everything away, including Baek Woohyun and several raid members.
However, neither the blown-away Baek Woohyun nor the raid members paid attention to that. Not only did they have no time to spare as the mechanic began, but the scene before their eyes was too tremendous.
As the giant of several dozen meters raised both hands above its head, it looked as if it would reach the sky. No, perhaps it actually did reach it.
The dark clouds that were virtually substituting for the sky in this space connected with its two hands and spat out lightning, rain, and wind with a kureureung.
-Something big is coming ㄷㄷ
-What's it trying to do going that far
-Do we need to block it? There's nothing else appearing?
-Just from the presence, it looks like a wipe mechanic that'll kill everyone the moment it strikes down
"That thing, I think we absolutely have to block it?!"
"Check around for changes and report please!"
"The patterns from before! They've appeared again─"
"Over here─"
"......"
Baek Woohyun didn't look back at the raid members running around busily. They had their job to do, and he had his.
In silence, he leapt over the partially remaining ground and approached the [Lord of Storms] again. It was a surprisingly fast speed.
The boss, which would normally have attacked him in shock, was busy raising both arms and drawing in the power of the dark clouds, easily allowing his approach.
A raid boss defenseless while progressing a mechanic.
Standing before it, Baek Woohyun didn't swing the 「Soul Eater」. He merely took out something from inside his clothes and leapt high.
Instead of the 「Soul Eater」, what he held was an enormously large purple gemstone. A gem with a subtle blue radiance that couldn't be compared to an amethyst.
'Now is the time to use this!'
Among gaming terms, there's something called 'DPS force through.'
This is an abbreviation of forcing through with 'DPS (damage),' a term used when powerful dealing makes matchups or patterns meaningless.
Since 'Reverse Planet' was also a game, DPS force through was possible if done well. It was just forgotten in raids because such DPS couldn't suddenly burst out.
However, what everyone thought impossible was precisely Baek Woohyun's card. Because he possessed the heavy punch called an Otherworld Stone.
A bomb disguised as a gem that any ability user would be overwhelmed by the tremendous power swirling inside the moment they saw it.
If he used the Otherworld Stone he'd been saving during the mechanic to brutally blow away the [Lord of Storms]' health─
Hwiiik!
'It went in!'
Baek Woohyun threw the Otherworld Stone he was holding forcefully toward the passage pierced in the [Lord of Storms]' chest.
Hurled with superhuman strength, the Otherworld Stone that flew in a straight line slipped right into the black passage.
And immediately after.
Kwaaaaang─!
[Kuaaaaaak!]
"What?!"
"Everyone be careful!"
-ㅁㅊ?
-? What's that DPS
-What did he just do??
-Ah, he threw the Otherworld Stone ㅅㅂ I thought Hackphysical did something Hackphysical again
The explosion that burst through the passage swept over the [Lord of Storms]' upper body.
Baek Woohyun's guess when he first saw the Otherworld Stone—that it contained power that would sweep away a radius of several hundred meters—was truly correct.
Though the power clearly extended from beyond the passage, the aftershock from the Otherworld Stone easily swept over the giant of several dozen meters before spreading to the surroundings.