Chapter 162 - Chieftain One-eye
Level 15 monster area, Silent Swamp.
“Leader, where are we headed?”
“Brother Feng, wasn’t there a herd of Swamp Hippos just now?”
Blackie and Lonely Snow followed after s.h.i.+ Feng all this time, moving deeper into the Silent Swamp. They could not figure out just what kind of monster s.h.i.+ Feng intended to test the Stars of Light on.
“The Stars of Light has a Cooldown of half an hour. It would be a huge waste to use it on just a group of Level 15 common monsters. Right now, we’re going to a place with monsters that are much stronger and more numerous,” s.h.i.+ Feng explained.
Even the Level 17 Rare Elite Swamp Lizard died with ease. It was obvious just how high Blackie’s damage had become, not to mention a skill like the Stars of Light. The skill could possibly one-shot the Level 15 Swamp Hippos with only 2,000 HP each. That would not properly display the true might of the Stars of Light.
Only by seeing the skill’s full potential could s.h.i.+ Feng make an accurate judgment. He could then let Blackie lead the others to the most suitable high-level monster area to level up. That way, be it Martial Union or Underworld, neither could locate Blackie and the others, much less surround them.
Under s.h.i.+ Feng’s lead, after the trio reached the core area of the Silent Swamp, they discovered a large, naturally occurring, marsh. All around, there were a total of five groups of Level 20 Swamp Rhinos. Occasionally, they spotted a few Level 20 Elite Twin-horned Rhinos. There was also a small island situated in the middle of this large marsh, and a gigantic figure laid flat on this island. This gigantic figure was a two-story-tall rhino. From a distance, the trio could vaguely see the information of this large rhino. It was a monster named Rhino Chieftain One-eye.
“Brother Feng, isn’t this a little… too dangerous?” witnessing so many Level 20 rhinos gathered together, Blackie felt his confidence waver.
[Swamp Rhino] (Common Monster)
Level 20
HP 3,200/3,200
[Twin-horned Rhino] (Elite Monster)
Level 20
HP 17,500/17,5000
[Rhino Chieftain One-eye] (Special Elite)
Level 20
HP 50,000/50,000
Common monsters were still fine. However, it would be extremely dangerous to tangle with Elite monsters, not to mention Special Elites. Even if s.h.i.+ Feng were very powerful, and his movements extremely agile, when surrounded by so many monsters, he would still meet his end.
“Only here can the Stars of Light display its true might. I’ll think of a way to lure even more monsters, so choose when you cast the spell carefully,” s.h.i.+ Feng surveyed his surroundings, his mind planning his route.
“Leader, this is too dangerous. On the off chance that we die, it would be a huge loss,” Lonely Snow opposed.
The monsters here were not numbered in the twenties or thirties, but in the hundreds. Every one of them could trample a Level 15 player with ease, not to mention the Elite monsters or the Special Elite monster. Moreover, with their currently low levels, the monsters would have an easier time discovering them. They could easily be surrounded, and at that time, only death awaited them.
“If I activate a Speed Scroll, my speed will be faster than theirs. However, when I lure all of them over, Blackie, I need you to use Guardian of Light on me, then use Stars of Light. You don’t need to panic. Just maintain a calm heart, and you will be fine,” seeing Blackie’s nervous expression, s.h.i.+ Feng spoke with a smile.
“I get it,” Blackie nodded, suppressing the panic in his heart.
Soon after, s.h.i.+ Feng sent Blackie and Lonely Snow to a slightly elevated location. On his own, s.h.i.+ Feng activated a Speed Scroll before rus.h.i.+ng towards the rhinos.
The rhinos immersed in the marsh quickly discovered the intruder. After all, s.h.i.+ Feng’s level was simply too low. He was only Level 12, and there was a huge distance from Level 20. In addition, s.h.i.+ Feng did not attempt to hide his movements in the least, making it even easier for the monsters to discover him.
Within moments, over twenty rhinos stood and rushed towards s.h.i.+ Feng.
Although the marsh did not reduce Movement Speed by half, it still reduced it by 30%. Fortunately, this Movement Speed reduction was also effective against the rhinos. Now that s.h.i.+ Feng had used a Speed Scroll, catching up to him was impossible.
s.h.i.+ Feng followed along the route he had planned before and circled the central island. He intended to lure all the rhinos in the marsh, aside from the one atop the central island. The Rhino Chieftain One-eye on the central island was extremely difficult to deal with, and it would be a huge loss if he lost his life as a result of an accident. Hence, s.h.i.+ Feng had no intentions of luring it.
“Brother Feng!”
“Leader’s movement technique is truly powerful. If I were in his place, those rhinos would have already turned me into meat paste.”
Standing on high ground, Blackie and Lonely Snow watched s.h.i.+ Feng use various movements and methods to dodge the attacks from the group of rhinos. They could not help but wipe away the sweat permeating their foreheads. The number of rhinos s.h.i.+ Feng lured grew larger and larger. He had only run half the distance, yet, he lured over a hundred rhinos. Every time he dodged an attack, the rhinos would dangerously sc.r.a.p past his body.
However, after witnessing this scene repeat itself over and over, Blackie and Lonely Snow discovered that s.h.i.+ Feng successfully dodged every single time. He would always dodge the attack at the very last millisecond. He relied purely on technique to do so, and there was not a hint of luck or coincidence at all.
Blackie and Lonely Snow both engraved this scene deeply into their minds, resolving themselves to learn from s.h.i.+ Feng in the future. With an expert like s.h.i.+ Feng demonstrating the moves, they would not have to spend time slowly exploring these techniques. After watching for only a moment, the two of them had benefitted greatly. They could not help but wish they could try out these dodging techniques right this instant.
Just when s.h.i.+ Feng thought that all was within his control...
An Elite Twin-horned Rhino suddenly appeared in front of s.h.i.+ Feng, charging at him.
Although s.h.i.+ Feng used Parry to block this attack, his entire person was still sent flying. By rotten luck, he landed on the edges of the central island, alarming the Rhino Chieftain One-eye.
Discovering that a human had disturbed its rest, One-eye abruptly stood up. It glared at s.h.i.+ Feng with its blood-red eye, its front hoofs gouging the solid ground as it released an angry roar. Suddenly, it charged at s.h.i.+ Feng with its steel-like horn.
Compared to the other rhinos, this Rhino Chieftain One-eye possessed an extremely fast speed, and not even the marsh could impede its immense charging power.
This was the Rhino Chieftain One-eye’s skill, Violent Charge.
Even a Level 20 MT would instantly die if One-eye’s horn smashed into them.
“Come,” knowing that he wouldn’t be able to dodge, s.h.i.+ Feng activated Defensive Blade. He then used Chop, the Abyssal Blade slas.h.i.+ng at One-eye’s horn.
Due to the Defensive Blade’s absolute defense effect, s.h.i.+ Feng did not retreat by even an inch. Instead, a damage of -367 points appeared above the Rhino Chieftain One-eye’s head.
Such a tough defense! s.h.i.+ Feng was slightly shocked.
However, s.h.i.+ Feng did not intend to continue entangling with the Rhino Chieftain One-eye. The moment One-eye used War Trample, s.h.i.+ Feng used Silent Steps to appear behind a Swamp Rhino that was 30 yards away, successfully evading One-eye’s attack.
“Aoo!” One-eye became further enraged when it saw that its target had evaded. It immediately charged at s.h.i.+ Feng. However, it did not use Violent Charge this time, so its speed was only slightly faster than the other rhinos.
“Blackie, use the skill,” after arriving at the appointed location, s.h.i.+ Feng stopped and spoke into the party chat.
Although his plan did not include luring the Rhino Chieftain One-eye, the plan still had to proceed. He simply had to be more careful now.
“Leave it to me,” Blackie had long since waited with antic.i.p.ation.
Immediately, a golden brilliance descended upon s.h.i.+ Feng’s form. This was the effect of the first additional skill of Mavis's Guard, Guardian of Light. For 20 seconds, s.h.i.+ Feng became immune to all magic damage. He also enjoyed 80% physical damage reduction and 5% HP recovery every second.
Following which, s.h.i.+ Feng activated the Tier 2 Life s.h.i.+eld, his maximum HP soaring.
Over 200 rhinos surrounded s.h.i.+ Feng. If it were a Level 20 MT standing in place of s.h.i.+ Feng, that MT would have long since been trampled to death. However, s.h.i.+ Feng could hold on. Through evading alone, s.h.i.+ Feng managed to dodge over 60% of the attacks sent at him. In addition to Guardian of Light recovering 5% of his HP every second, he was able to hold onto his life.
“Almost! s.h.i.+ne out, Stars of Light!”
When Blackie saw all those monsters grouped together, he used Mavis's Guard’s other skill, Stars of Light. After chanting the final verse of the incantation, Blackie lost half of his mana in an instant.
Immediately after, Blackie pointed his staff towards the sky. The dark clouds hovering above the large marsh were instantly pierced and disappeared. The sky trembled, and suddenly, a gigantic golden magic circle appeared in the sky, s.h.i.+ning down on the core of the Silent Swamp.