novelraw Chapter 180-1: Arrow of Dragon-Slaying (1)
Chapter 180-1: Arrow of Dragon-Slaying (1)
Among the three options, only the third fit Lin Xun’s plan for a surprise attack.
As for the second option, an aerial battle, Lin Xun suspected that the Blackthorn Demon also possessed the ability to fly.
If he chose aerial combat, the Valkyrie wouldn’t be able to attack while carrying him, which would effectively cripple his offensive capability.
Having made up his mind, he issued the command for the Valkyrie to attack, then selected the third option.
[You raised your staff and began chanting an incantation…]
[The Battle Angel – Valkyrie drew her longbow and softly sang a melody. Runes flowed across the arrow’s surface, flickering with white light…]
[She released the bowstring. A streak of white light cut through the darkness, the arrow speeding toward that small, warm glow.]
[With a flash of white, a howl echoed across the abyss floor, ringing in your ears.]
[You spoke the final syllable of your incantation.]
[Brilliant starlight converged before you, golden lightning coiling around the gathered radiance…][In the blink of an eye, the starlight erupted!]
[The entire abyss floor blazed as bright as day, and you beheld the Blackthorn Demon’s true form…]
[It appeared like an unimaginably enlarged serpent, its back bristling with black spines. Four enormous black wings covered most of its coiled body, which resembled a snake’s trunk joined to two massive heads.]
[One head was a grotesque human-like face, a lantern-like warm light dangling from its crown. The other was a savage, monstrous serpent’s maw.]
[Bathed in the starlight, the Blackthorn Demon seemed to suffer some injury, the bizarre human face contorting in pain.]
[Meanwhile, the serpent head opened its maw, baring its fangs as it lunged toward you…]
Lin Xun executed the tactic he’d prepared in advance, issuing commands to the Valkyrie.
As long as the Valkyrie moved in to pin down the boss, he could safely output damage from the rear.
[The Battle Angel – Valkyrie beat her wings and soared into the air. She loosed arrow after arrow, trying to draw the Blackthorn Demon’s attention.]
[Blood bloomed in patches across the Blackthorn Demon’s body, yet the enormous serpent head did not falter, barreling straight toward you!]
“…This boss doesn’t play by the rules!”
He never imagined that the tactic which had never failed before would be useless this time.
The Blackthorn Demon ignored the Valkyrie’s attacks entirely, single-mindedly bent on killing him in the back line.
Lin Xun took a deep breath, utterly unflustered.
Because his cautious nature had prepared a Plan B.
[You raised your hand. The Stored Spell Treasure Ring flared with light…]
[A Knowledge Barrier rose from the ground, encasing you in protection!]
[As the foul stench gusted toward you, you calmly opened a single pink eye…]
[Special skill Pleasure-Hazed Sight activated!]
[The massive serpent head froze stiff in mid-lunge…]
[Seizing the chance, you retreated swiftly to a safe distance and conjured another Knowledge Barrier around yourself.]
[You feel slightly fatigued!]
Lin Xun smiled faintly.
The demon boss’s strength was indeed formidable. Even a Legendary-grade skill like Falling Starlight could only inflict some damage.
But the mage Shell could alternate crowd control and damage output. Though it consumed a great deal of mental stamina, it was enough to wear the boss down to half health.
According to his plan, when his fatigue neared the limit, he would swap out the overtaxed President Shell and switch to the Earth Giant to deliver the finishing blow.
The tactic was flawless!
[The enormous serpent head remained frozen in the distance. You lifted your staff and began chanting once more…]
[…]
[In the midst of chanting, you suddenly sensed something wrong. Though the serpent head seemed immobile, its tongue kept flicking in and out.]
[It felt as though a mocking glint flickered in the vertical slit of its eye…]
[From the darkness behind you, a giant monstrous face silently emerged. It bit through the Knowledge Barrier in a single snap and swallowed you whole!]
[Your vision went black…]
[…]
[You have died!]
???
“What the hell?! I just got a free trip back to the city?”
Lin Xun’s eyes widened in disbelief.
[Your ordinary wandering soul is reborn in the Multivision Association…]
The bad news was that he was dead. The good news was that the Valkyrie hadn’t been killed.
He reviewed the death log for clues.
The Blackthorn Demon’s defense didn’t seem particularly high, the Valkyrie’s arrows could break through it easily.
When the Legendary-grade Falling Starlight hit, it did respectable damage as well.
Judging by the usual tempo, even if the crowd control plan failed, he could have fallen back on Plan B, alternating control and damage to deal massive harm.
Pleasure-Hazed Sight had indeed immobilized the boss, but its duration was much shorter than he’d hoped, not long enough to channel Falling Starlight.
Most importantly, when one of the demon’s heads was controlled, the other could still act freely.
That was far beyond what he had anticipated.
“How on earth do I kill the Blackthorn Demon?”
Lin Xun fell into deep thought.
He opened his inventory, searching through his items.
He rifled through for a long time but still couldn’t find anything suited to countering the boss.
“Could it be that the Overlord’s Summoning Eye is meant to be used here?”
It was a powerful item worthy of being called a trump card. Lin Xun was reluctant to spend it so easily.
If there was any other method to topple the boss, he would absolutely save that ace in the hole.
Suddenly, something in his inventory caught his eye, an eyeball he hadn’t yet transplanted.
[Eye of the Subterranean Shadow Fiend King (Epic-grade)… This item must be implanted in an empty eye socket. After use, there is a chance to gain the special effect Dim Shadow.]
His eyes lit up, and he immediately headed for the second floor of the building, the Eyeball Laboratory.