Calamity Messenger

Chapter 230 - 183: Black Wolf Pharmacist’s Wish

In the realm of MMORPGs, BOSS battles have always been a vital component of the gaming experience. A significant number of players are drawn to the game specifically for BOSS battles. One might even say that everything else is just an embellishment. The core gameplay cycle for players is to defeat a BOSS, obtain equipment upgrades, and then defeat an even stronger BOSS.

Game designers thus employ various divine techniques, introducing numerous baffling mechanics in BOSS battles: dynamic swords, poison transmission, mahjong targeting, eight-directional swords... Later on, even mechanisms as absurd as future predictions and time stops appear. Players must continuously attack while observing these mechanics, ensuring they experience a game as taxing on the brain as possible.

Don’t ask if the experience is good; rest assured, you will certainly be kept busy.

Among these, shared death penalties are a common mechanism. The response method is within the name itself, requiring everyone to share the penalty together. However, Corpse King Dragon Roaming is not merely a shared death penalty; it further relates to detonating the team with a berserk phase. If you fail to withstand or evade the shared penalty, the game will instantly enter a berserk phase.

Generally speaking, such a mechanism will not appear in standard dungeons. "Messenger" categorizes dungeons into five dimensions: regular, difficult, extreme, desperate, and special. Thief’s House falls into the latter special dungeon category. Only dungeons at or above the difficult level may have team devastation mechanisms, and such dungeons come with clear warnings. Corpse Bone Forest is just a regular dungeon.

Recalling the similarly powerful mechanics of Skull Tower and the Red-clothed Demon Fiend, Yan Qing had a suspicion: does activating the karma bar elevate the strength of elites and the Demon King to a higher level? From regular to difficult, with new mechanics introduced?

"Share the damage together?"

Prajna repeated the sentence word by word, his expression like someone being asked to kill Tang Monk and his disciples, hoping the other person simply misspoke or he misheard.

"I don’t doubt your judgment, Star Rain Heroine, but in fact, we have no other choice," Beiyou said. "But are you sure that us standing together will share the damage rather than being directly slapped to death by the Corpse King?"

"Since we can share it, let’s find more people," Blood Phase squinted. "Even if they can’t withstand much damage, at least they can alleviate some pressure. After all, we’ve cleared the previous demons. It doesn’t matter how many people come in."

Pharmacist’s Wish immediately shook his head upon hearing this: "No, although the number of Demon Kings won’t increase with more people, the power of critical strikes will exponentially rise. If everyone must share here, the more weaklings, the more damage we suffer."

Prajna also nodded: "Moreover, does this shared damage require everyone to withstand it, or does it instantly trigger the Corpse King’s ground-slam if anyone dies? If the latter, then more weaklings are meaningless."

Facing everyone’s gaze, Rabbit Heroine responded to all the doubts with one sentence:

"I’m not sure."

If this were a fully equipped Third-Turn Messenger team, Yan Qing could confidently command them, with any oversight being a shame on him as a player. But there were only five people here, three of whom were Demonic Messengers with ulterior motives, and even Rabbit Heroine was just a Second-Turn Messenger. How could he guarantee it?

Seeing the grave expressions on everyone’s faces, Yan Qing was helpless. If it were any other mechanism, he might attempt a solo solution, but bearing a shared death penalty alone is impossible; everyone must work together to overcome this challenge.

This differs from the previous Skull Tower and Red-clothed Demon Fiend. Previously, no matter how chaotic, it only increased the Secret Realm’s difficulty, causing a stall. But here, it’s about enduring a death penalty, so Yan Qing understood everyone’s hesitation and was even prepared to give up.

After all, for him, this is just a game where he might lose a small account at most, but for others, it’s a high-stakes gamble with their lives. It’s like voluntarily placing one’s head under Death’s scythe, betting that their necks together can withstand the blade’s fall.

Suddenly, Blood Phase walked towards Rabbit Heroine and stood still behind her. No one thought he intended to backstab; with Blood Phase’s speed, within ten steps, he could reach anyone effortlessly. His action could only signify one possibility.

"Uncle, although this heroine knows she’s adorable, I’m clearly a young girl," Rabbit Heroine clutched her Seven Steps to Buddha, warily hiding behind Pharmacist’s Wish. "Get real, I killed your brother—no, are you planning to avenge him like this? That’s disgusting."

Blood Phase’s forehead veins bulged, his mouth twitched into a ferocious smile: "Rest assured, I’ve never forgotten Zhong Ji. Once the inheritance is secured, I’ll naturally give you an explanation."

"But before that, I’m willing to follow your arrangements," he said, eyes cold and determined. "I’ve wasted ten years here, just one step away from the inheritance. I’m unwilling to give up."

"I’m not bluffing you all; I’m genuinely unsure. We might face a situation where insufficient numbers result in everyone being slapped to death together," Rabbit Heroine warned. "Without truly withstanding the Dragon-Slaying Seal, who knows if we can withstand it?"

"But there’s no other option," Beiyou also walked over, standing beside Blood Phase. "Besides us at Shu Dao Mountain, only Fu Nan and Dongxing are Third-Turn Messengers, but their defense artifacts aren’t Third-Turn, unqualified to share with us."

Rabbit Heroine: "Didn’t Zhong Ji have a Heart-Protecting Mirror?"

"You smashed it. There aren’t many of those in the Liang Kingdom," Blood Phase said coldly. "If you’d spared him, our chances would be better now."

"Oh," Rabbit Heroine responded mercilessly.

"Since you’ve all decided, I can only risk my life," Prajna sighed. "If I refuse, you’ll surely eliminate me first."

"Of course," Beiyou chuckled, patting his shoulder: "Even if I die, I’ll drag you two along; going alone to the Underworld is too dull."

Blood Phase said lightly: "I’m not planning on dying, but after defeating the Corpse King, we’ll definitely be weakened. How can we let someone on the outside safely enjoy the spoils?"

Blood Phase’s words conveyed the Three Guardians’ attitude: either no one goes, or everyone goes together. At this point, there’s no room to stand aloof; even if dying, it would be without regret.

Seeing them determined to gamble everything, Yan Qing wasn’t pleased with his teammates’ reliability, as he genuinely wasn’t confident they could survive the shared death penalty.

Rabbit Heroine pulled Pharmacist’s Wish aside, making her squat and whispered in her ear: "Let’s go. I’ll give you the Whip Mountain and Move Stone Seal. With the Celestial Spirits and Earthly Fiends, you have a chance to reach Foundation Establishment. Inside, there might not even be a Foundation Establishment Pill; we don’t need to take this risk."

Pharmacist’s Wish asked: "What about your brother’s mission? Didn’t he want you to obtain Si Wuxie’s inheritance?"

"To hell with it," Rabbit Heroine shrugged, then said seriously: "Don’t worry about me. I’ve already gained more than my brother expected on this trip. Even if I leave now, he’ll be very satisfied. Besides, even if he’s not satisfied, so what? Will he force-feed me bitter melon?"

"If I’m not here, would you still leave?" Pharmacist’s Wish asked calmly.

The Rabbit Heroine on the screen and Yan Qing outside the screen were both momentarily speechless.

Pharmacist’s Wish already knew the answer to this question in her heart; lying was meaningless. Along the way, the Rabbit Heroine had slain Helan Que, fought the Demon Dao, provoked the Blood Steward, slaughtered her way through Shu Dao Mountain, and subdued the Three Guardians. All these actions showed she was a reckless person unafraid of life and death. If not for Pharmacist’s Wish, she would certainly not hesitate to rally with the Three Guardians to challenge the Corpse King, even if she was betrayed immediately after the fight, she would only be filled with anticipation.

"It’s different."

"Why is it different?"

"Because you are important to me, I don’t want you to be in danger," said the Rabbit Heroine, looking somewhat embarrassed. "For my sister, I can give up Si Wuxie’s legacy."

Pharmacist’s Wish blinked, and her eyes gradually curved into a smile, visibly cheerful even with a mask on. She hugged the Rabbit Heroine and gently said, "My sister is very important to me too."

"Then—"

"So I also want to fight for a piece of the legacy for you," said Pharmacist’s Wish. "Even if I succeed in Foundation Establishment, I don’t know how long it would take to secure Foundation Establishment resources for you, and will the Fourth-Turn Secret Realm be any easier than the Corpse Bone Forest? Si Wuxie’s legacy is right before us, and the difficulty is not high. Even they dare to risk it, I have no reason to give up."

The Rabbit Heroine became anxious, "I don’t need your help, my brother will naturally prepare it for me."

"On the contrary, it’s more likely you helping your brother prepare," Pharmacist’s Wish laughed. "Moreover, I am not impulsive; I came prepared, look."

In her palm appeared a small blue porcelain bottle, with dragon and tiger patterns carved on it. Yan Qing found it very familiar.

"This is..."

"The Life-Saving Pill," Pharmacist’s Wish whispered. "This is my biggest secret; taking this elixir will ensure survival no matter how severe the injury."

Yan Qing’s pupils contracted, but what surprised him more was what Pharmacist’s Wish said next.

"Come, open your mouth."

Pharmacist’s Wish poured out the elixir and brought it to the Rabbit Heroine’s lips, who instinctively shook her head, lips tightly sealed: "I won’t eat it, you eat it yourself!"

"You really want me to eat it?"

"Yes!"

"Then I’ll eat it." Pharmacist’s Wish promptly consumed the Life-Saving Pill, laughing, "Now you’re not afraid I’ll be killed by the Dragon-Slaying Seal, right?"

The Rabbit Heroine widened her eyes and murmured, "But... why are you so insistent? Si Wuxie’s legacy really isn’t that important to me."

"I can’t resolve your loyalty obsession with your brother, but I can help you become very strong, strong enough to protect yourself even if your brother sends you to the ends of the earth," said Pharmacist’s Wish. "After all, we might part ways soon; I must seize this opportunity to earn Foundation Establishment resources for you... better than you having to fight yourself for it later."

She paused: "Remember to stay behind me, and in case I can’t hold it, I have the Life-Saving Pill up front to protect you."

The Rabbit Heroine was silent for a long while and sighed like a small adult, "I really can’t handle you, dear sister, so willful."

"Willfulness is a virtue of the strong," Pharmacist’s Wish smiled, "The strong should dare to arrange others’ lives; let’s go, they are probably getting impatient."

"Actually..."

"Hmm?"

"If you have a way to take me to other Third-Turn Secret Realms... I could go with you..." the Rabbit Heroine said softly, "But at least have some reliable people to attack the Secret Realm together, not like the Demonic Messenger."

"Even if you say so, I still want to fight for Si Wuxie’s legacy, who knows if your brother will suddenly go crazy and send you on a mission."

"Tsk."

"But I’m really happy," Pharmacist’s Wish giggled, "I had already decided that if you insisted on parting, I’d take you away, what a relief you’re so proactive, it saves me a lot of trouble."

"Even if we are sisters, you can’t just take me away!"

"If you have any objections, let your brother talk to me," Pharmacist’s Wish declared imposingly.

Yan Qing’s mouth twitched, thinking I wouldn’t dare trouble you.

You’re the number one expert in our Thief’s House, the Black Wolf Pharmacist’s Wish.