Chapter 58: God Turtle’s 10,000 HP! Claiming the Top Contributor Rewards
Whoosh!
Caelus and Sylvia’s vision blurred rapidly as a massive pulling force ripped them out of the Lower Expanse. Space collapsed and reformed in the blink of an eye. Their digital avatars materialized inside what appeared to be a gigantic, neon-lit stadium. Floating laser grids illuminated the massive arena floor.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Flashes of light signaled the arrival of dozens of other players. It was a bizarre cosmic gathering. There were humanoids with long pointed ears, towering figures with ash-grey skin, and some entities that looked downright monstrous. No one paid any attention to Caelus and Sylvia. The newcomers did not particularly stand out in the chaotic crowd.
[System: Welcome to the Multi-Expanse Raid.]
[Theme: FPS]
[System: Please choose your weapon.]
[1. Sniper Rifle (Deals 100% of your CS damage. Reload takes 5.0 seconds.)]
[2. Assault Rifle (Deals 40% of your CS damage. Reload takes 2.5 seconds.)]
[3. Sub-Machine Gun (Deals 15% of your CS damage. Reload takes 1.2 seconds.)]
[4. Semi-Auto Pistol (Deals 25% of your CS damage. Reload takes 1.8 seconds.)]
"Interesting," Caelus commented, looking at the holographic gun rack. It felt exactly like a virtual reality game.
He was a former professional FPS player, and stepping into a familiar shooter setting definitely made his blood pump with excitement. His first instinct was to grab the sniper, but camping was a terrible idea against an unknown raid boss. He needed mobility and consistent DPS. He went with the Assault Rifle.
He instructed Sylvia to do the exact same. It was the best option when diving into completely uncharted territory.
As soon as they selected their guns, a new prompt formed.
[System: Please load a skill into the Assault Rifle.]
"Oh? There are mechanics like this?" Caelus was genuinely surprised.
After weighing the pros and cons, he decided to embed Compressed Lightning Shot.
The instant he confirmed his choice, the digital assault rifle transformed. Golden-black lightning buzzed aggressively across its metallic surface, etching a glowing thunder symbol onto the barrel. It looked exquisite to say the least.
[Item: Assault Rifle (Legendary)]
[Effect: Deals 40% of your CS damage per bullet if uncharged. After charging for 3 seconds, deals 100% of damage per bullet. Charged bullets possess a 30% chance to critically hit. Critical hits inflict paralysis.]
Sylvia’s assault rifle also morphed. It took on a sleek, blood-red appearance with a burning crimson icon etched onto the side. She must have loaded her Epic Blood-Fire skill.
[System: Everyone has selected their weapons. Please move toward the arena!]
[Warning! A Raid Boss will now appear! Be prepared.]
[System Note: Physical attacks cannot harm the boss. Only the Origin Bullets formed from your equipped guns can deal damage. Please keep that in mind.]
Boom!
The stadium floor distorted. The central platform split open, releasing a thick cloud of dust and smoke. A gigantic turtle covered in glowing ancient runes slowly emerged from the depths of the arena.
VAUUURR! A terrifying, bone-rattling roar erupted from the beast.
[Monster: God Turtle (Fragment)]
[HP: 10,000/10,000]
[System Debuff: You have been inflicted with Terror. -20% Defense, -20% Speed, -20% Attack.]
"Huh?" Caelus’s expression darkened upon seeing the massive debuff penalty.
Just then, a frantic shout echoed across the arena. "Quick, dodge!"
The instant the voice rang out, a blinding beam of light erupted from the turtle’s maw.
Boom!
[System: Player 245 of Middle Expanse Server 1203 has been eliminated.]
"???" Everyone’s expressions twisted in sheer panic.
A one-hit kill?
Caelus and Sylvia immediately went on high alert.
A second laser beam sliced through the air, tracking straight toward Sylvia. She instantly triggered her Acceleration skill. Her figure blurred out of the crosshairs just in the nick of time, the laser scorching the ground where she stood a millisecond prior.
"Everyone, shoot at it! We need to deal damage!" a long-eared man shouted as the raid boss continued firing lethal beams of light.
He raised his pistol. A small typhoon coalesced at the barrel before a bullet shot out, striking the massive shell.
[Leaderboard]
[1. Nasi - 10 Damage]
"It has a heavy resistance mod!" another player yelled in despair.
"Everyone be careful! We need to chip the boss down to 50% HP before we can deal real damage!"
Seeing this, Sylvia and Caelus looked at each other and shared a firm nod.
Bzzt! Caelus’s assault rifle crackled with golden-black lightning as the charging animation played out. He did not pull the trigger immediately. He let the energy build.
Bzzzzzzzzt!
As soon as the charge meter hit one hundred percent, he activated his Chaos Perception Eyes. In a fraction of a second, the glowing weak points of the Raid Boss were highlighted in his vision. By now, Sylvia had also cast her origin buffs on him.
Caelus pulled the trigger. The condensed lightning converted into a single, blinding line of energy that struck the turtle’s glowing weak point with flawless precision.
[Critical Hit!]
[-17 HP]
"Similar to Baal, huh?" Caelus clicked his tongue at the low damage.
But a confident grin quickly spread across his face as an arena-wide notification rang out.
[System: The Boss has been inflicted with Chaos Erosion.]
Chaos Erosion was an immensely powerful trait. No matter what cosmic entity he was fighting, the defense-shattering debuff would always apply! This was the true specialty of his talent.
Just then, another notification chimed.
[System: The Boss has been inflicted with Corruption Bleed.]
Caelus glanced over at Sylvia. She gave him a playful wink over the iron sights of her red rifle.
"Our two powers combined should make some real difference," she smiled.
Boom!
The turtle stopped shooting lasers. Enraged by the stacking debuffs, it suddenly turned its massive body and rushed directly toward Caelus and Sylvia with terrifying speed.
Seeing the incoming behemoth, Caelus grunted. He activated Projection Frame, his figure blurring past the danger zone. He grabbed Sylvia by the waist and pushed them both out of the crash trajectory just as the turtle slammed into the stadium wall.
"Hit the exact area I instruct, okay?" Caelus ordered, turning to Sylvia.
His Chaos Perception Eyes could see through the ever-changing weaknesses of their enemies. He was the only player in the entire Domain who could track the shifting vulnerabilities in real-time.
Shnn!
He spotted the weak point shifting to the beast’s underbelly just as the boss was momentarily stunned by the stun effect of his chaos perception eyes.
"Right on its chest!" Caelus shouted, rapidly firing his assault rifle without letting up.
[Critical Hit!]
[Critical Hit!]
Both Caelus and Sylvia landed their shots in perfect unison. She was incredibly fast to react to his callouts.
[-50 HP]
They both became overjoyed seeing the damage spike. But at the exact same time, the other players in the stadium were left completely stunned.
"What? 50 HP?" The surrounding fighters gasped, unable to believe their eyes.
How did a simple Bleed and Erosion combo cause such a massive effect? What sort of ridiculous debuffs were they using to degrade a boss’s resistance shield this fast?
"Keep shooting, Sylvia!" Caelus commanded, the recoil of his rifle vibrating through his digital avatar as he reloaded with practiced precision.
"Got it!"
[-60 HP]
[-120 HP]
[-130 HP]
[-140 HP]
Floating red numbers rained out from the boss. Within a few short minutes, the giant turtle’s impenetrable defense was completely shredded.
Seeing the monster’s health bar finally melting, the other players exchanged bewildered glances and eagerly joined the fray, unloading their clips.
Exactly five minutes later, the massive beast collapsed.
[System: The Raid Boss has been defeated.]
[Damage Leaderboard]
[1. Caelus Kross - 4,872 Dmg]
[2. Sylvia Reign - 3,482 Dmg]
[3. Nasi - 594 Dmg]
[4. Stern - 212 Dmg]
[5. Miso - 122 Dmg]
There was no doubt about it. Caelus and Sylvia had carried the entire raid, completely dominating the damage charts.
[System: The Raid Chest rewards can now be claimed.]
[System: The Top 5 contributors will receive +5 Levels.]
[System: All surviving participants will receive +1 Level.]