Chapter Thirty-Three: The Boss Falls, the Instance Opens

No matter how I calculate it, the damage just isn’t enough. If I can't handle this boss now, in a few days I’ll still be stuck. Though my level rises quickly, my short-term damage output simply won’t see any dramatic improvement. Even if I manage to acquire the Frenzy skill book next, it only doubles attack speed for six seconds—hardly useful against this boss.

As for gear, there’s little room for improvement. I’m two accessories short, and even if I get them both, my attack power will only rise by about two hundred—not enough. My own progress is limited, but other players can boost their strength rapidly. If I don’t defeat this boss now, someone else might beat me to it in a few days.

I need a way to chip away at the boss’s three hundred thousand health first.

Wait—there might be a method worth trying.

The Hunter’s attack range isn’t the furthest, but it’s definitely farther than a Mage’s. If the boss never leaves the altar, maybe I can lure it to the edge: attack it twice, and if it can’t reach me, it should return to its original spot. I could keep pulling it out, landing a few hits each time. As long as I maintain aggro, its health could gradually be whittled down.

“Hey, everyone, is it possible to lure the boss to the edge of the altar, so it can’t hit me but I can still hit it?”

“You’ve got some nerve. You really think the boss won’t hit you? If it can’t reach you, it’ll just go back. Are you planning to cheese it from the edge and blast it to death?”

“If the boss returns, it’s fine—I’ll just lure it out again. A few hits each round, and eventually its health will drop.”

“In theory, that works, but how long do you plan to keep at it? Each run might not even net two hits, and one misstep could get you killed.”

“If I’m careful, it should be fine. Let me give it a try.”

“Try all you want, but you might not even outpace the boss’s regeneration.”

Of course, I know the boss will heal, but at first, its regeneration shouldn’t be too fast. I just need to bring its health down by thirty percent.

No matter—I’ll test it first.

I ran up to the altar, and before I could even attack, the boss turned to look at me. I bolted, and once outside the altar’s range, the boss stopped chasing. I quickly fired two shots, but then the boss was out of range.

Now it was my turn to chase. Whenever the boss turned back, I’d turn too, running away. Back and forth like this, each time landing a bit of damage.

Sometimes, I managed three or four hits per run, shaving several thousand HP off the boss. Most of the time, though, it was just one or two attacks before the boss moved out of reach. Plus, the boss would heal—each round of pulling, it could recover two or three thousand HP.

That meant each pull, I needed to hit it at least twice to actually reduce its health; otherwise, my damage wouldn’t keep up with its regeneration.

Every two or three minutes, I’d pull again. On a good run, I could knock off three or four thousand HP. On a bad run, the boss would heal two or three thousand. Still, the method worked.

“Brother Six, this won’t cut it. In ten minutes, you barely chip away a few thousand. And when the boss's HP gets low, its regeneration will speed up. You’ll never outpace its healing.”

“It’s fine. Once I bring its health down to seven hundred thousand, I’ll use the Silence Scroll. Before then, its healing shouldn’t ramp up too much. We have a chance.”

“You’re determined, huh? Thirty thousand HP will probably take you till dawn.”

“I don’t care. Even if it takes until night tomorrow, I’ll bring it down. This is a red boss—guaranteed to drop red gear, and it’s the first kill.”

“You’re ruthless.”

If there’s a chance, I won’t let it slip away. At least for now, it looks doable.

And so, I kept pulling the boss back and forth for over an hour, managing to shave just over thirty thousand HP. To bring it down by three hundred thousand, it would take ten hours? That’s absurd.

Mostly, I was too cautious. Many times, I botched my maneuver and failed to land any hits—a wasted run, and the boss healed several thousand HP. But practice makes perfect.

As I kept pulling and attacking, I grew more skilled. Now, I could land damage almost every time, fully suppressing the boss’s regeneration. On good runs, I’d deal an extra three or four thousand HP.

“Brother Six, you’re tough as nails. Keep at it—I’m off to bed.”

Gradually, the rest of the team logged off to rest, leaving only me still fighting the boss.

By three in the morning, I’d shaved off over a hundred thousand HP. By five, the boss was down to seven hundred thousand. To be safe, I kept pulling, and by nearly seven, some teammates had already woken up.

When the boss’s health dropped towards six hundred thousand, I realized my damage could no longer outpace its regeneration.

On the final pull, as the boss turned back to the altar, I rushed after it. The boss swung its staff, preparing to cast a skill, so I immediately used the Silence Scroll and summoned Panda Baby to attack.

Silenced, the boss kept waving its staff but couldn’t cast any skills.

Even silenced, it didn’t smack Panda Baby with its staff; it just kept swinging, as if still trying to cast skills.

“Haha, the boss is like an idiot after being silenced—can’t attack at all, not even staff strikes.”

“That’s normal. Mages behave this way. They only resort to staff strikes when they’re out of mana. If they have mana, they can only cast spells. The boss is silenced, but its mana is full, so it keeps trying to cast.”

Wind and Cloud explained in the team channel, having logged in early that day.

My damage rained down explosively, numbers popping up over the boss’s head nonstop.

Each hit was over sixteen hundred; sometimes, I landed a Holy Strike for eighteen thousand damage—terrifying.

In less than a minute, the boss’s HP dropped to just over four hundred thousand, and with four minutes left, I was sure to finish it off.

“Haha, this is the way to fight bosses! This is what life’s about!” I exulted.

After a night of struggle, with no sleep at all, I was finally about to reap my reward.

“A little success goes to your head.”

“Heh, that’s just jealousy.”

“Don’t fumble at the finish line.”

“No way—watch my explosive damage!”

Two minutes more, and with the HP down to two hundred thousand, the boss went berserk, its staff swinging even faster, but to no avail—it couldn’t cast a single skill.

In fact, after going berserk, the boss became even weaker; my damage per hit surged to nearly two thousand.

When the boss’s health bar ran empty, I stopped attacking and had Panda Baby use its combo skill.

A seven-hit combo finished it off.

The boss finally fell, streams of colored light poured into my backpack, and at the same time, a system announcement rang out.

System announcement: Congratulations to player Six-Bar Bodhisattva for successfully slaying the Demon Tribe Priest. Reward: Skill Point +1, Merit +100.

System announcement: Because a player has defeated a red boss, the New World instance system has been activated. Players can now enter instances through the Military Officer.