Chapter Seventy: The Grand Duke’s Pet (Part One)

Upon seeing the level 55 golden boss, several sharp intakes of breath echoed instantly.

“Look closely, it’s in a weakened state,” Zhao Nan, who was leading the way, pointed out.

Currently, Phoenicia was indeed in a weakened condition. Despite its massive size, every sway of its body caused a clanging noise—hundreds of cold, gleaming iron chains entwined around it, rising up from the ground.

On the ground beneath it was an enormous, azure six-pointed star, a strange magical formation.

Bang!

One of the chains suddenly snapped, crashing to the ground with a metallic clatter. Phoenicia began to thrash even more violently, seeming almost exhilarated.

“We need to finish it before it breaks free from the chains,” Zhao Nan urgently reminded the group, who were still in shock. “Once those chains are gone, we’ll be facing a boss at full strength, not a weakened one.”

“I’ll handle this,” Xu Feng quickly stepped past the others, took a deep breath, and began to vanish bit by bit until there was no trace of him left.

“What’s he up to?” Ximen Yu asked, puzzled.

“Scouting! We need to figure out what attacks this boss has, their intervals, its range of movement, destructive power, and so on,” Jiang Lun replied swiftly. “This was usually Nan’s job, but now Brother Xu Feng can handle it.”

Ximen Yu nodded thoughtfully. Compared to blindly attacking the boss with sheer numbers, this more calculated approach was indeed wiser.

Even though Xu Feng couldn’t be seen, Phoenicia seemed to sense someone was provoking it. It only wanted to break free from the chains but was now being taunted. Its three pitch-black eyes suddenly glowed, firing three beams of black light, which gouged straight, deep grooves into the ground.

At that moment, Phoenicia felt a slight pain in its leg—a damage number of -15 appeared.

With a furious roar, its left claw suddenly swelled, transforming into four massive conical talons, which it drove into the ground with tremendous force.

Boom!

The left paw plunged deep into the earth, sending not only mud but also fist-sized stones flying.

A low curse sounded. Amid the billowing dust, an odd disturbance caught Phoenicia’s attention. With a powerful twist, its glossy black tail swept across the ground with terrifying speed.

“Damn!”

The exclamation rang out, but it wasn’t a scream of pain—Xu Feng had dodged the attack. Phoenicia’s three eyes rotated in confusion, then it sniffed the air, opened its maw, and unleashed a torrent of black flame at a certain spot.

Hiding in the shadows, Xu Feng was startled and dodged repeatedly. Gritting his teeth, unwilling to give up so soon, he hunched low and barely slipped past the edge of the gray fire.

-19!

Another damage value appeared. It was clear the boss had used a more powerful attack skill this time.

Again, three beams of black light shot out...

Three minutes later, Xu Feng reappeared before the group, panting. The effect of his Phantom Veil skill had just worn off.

His face was a bit pale, yet his eyes held a trace of pride. “At least I didn’t embarrass myself.”

Zhao Nan clapped him on the shoulder. Xu Feng was now stepping into the role of a thief who could stand alone.

Xu Feng chuckled. “The black beams fire once a minute, the flame breath every two minutes. There’s no fixed damage, but the direct hits are deadly. Then there are the claws and the tail... Its senses are very keen; hiding isn’t very effective for attacks. Its combat range is about thirty meters.”

Zhao Nan nodded and said quickly, “We’ll stick to our usual tactics, but add two more people this time. Ximen Yu, what’s your brother’s profession?”

“Martial Artist.”

Just as Zhao Nan suspected. Previously, when they broke through the zombie rat horde, Ximen Xiao Wu had never used any weapons, relying solely on his body. Zhao Nan had guessed he might be a martial artist, but to think he was actually a Martial Artist—a hidden, close-combat class that becomes especially powerful later on.

Just where did these siblings acquire their hidden classes?

But now wasn’t the time to ponder that. After briefly discussing his strategy with Ximen Yu and his brother, Zhao Nan began organizing the formation.

With Phoenicia restrained by chains, its power was greatly reduced and its movement limited—much like a boss in a level-10 standard dungeon.

“Always be ready to switch positions!” Zhao Nan shouted. He tapped his Sighing Scepter, and the massive dragonhead roared forth, slamming into Phoenicia’s chest.

-29!

The damage number floated up in red. Ximen Yu was quick to follow; his twice-enchanted black staff swung, sending a thick bolt of lightning into the spot where the dragon attack had struck.

Crackle!

A torrent of black flame erupted, but an ice wall shot up from the ground, blocking it for a brief moment—just enough time for Zhao Nan and Ximen Yu to dodge.

The Thunder Mage’s attack skills not only paralyze but also boast the longest range (besides wind magic) and unmatched speed among attack spells. This allowed Ximen Yu to keep a safe distance from Phoenicia.

Zhao Nan, using the Windflash Wings, boosted his speed to dodge as well. Clenching a mana potion between his teeth, he tapped his staff, sending ten massive vines to entangle Phoenicia.

Meanwhile, Finina, Gao Mingyang, Xu Feng, and Ximen Xiao Wu began attacking from behind, drawing aggro.

Xu Fei darted around the battlefield, keeping everyone’s health up. His attacks weren’t needed here, but his healing was essential.

Jiang Lun, not far from Zhao Nan, harassed the boss with his attacks. As an earth mage, his summoned stone spikes slowed Phoenicia’s movements, giving the melee fighters an advantage.

Xu Yang closed her eyes in concentration. Her Radiant Light skill required a 20-second charge.

As the entangling vines’ effect began to fade, Zhao Nan shouted. At that instant, the agile Finina leapt into the air, twisted gracefully, and her sword flashed—Star Combo!

-100! -100! -100!...

Watching the string of damage numbers, Ximen Yu whistled softly and laughed, “Looks like I need to train one—no, two—dark mages of my own…”

Even if one did train a dark mage skilled in Thorned Vines, who else could, like Zhao Nan, cast another set before the first’s effect ended? The normal cooldown for that skill was longer than its duration. That’s why Ximen Yu said two were needed.

And even then, what melee fighter could unleash an eighteen-hit combo like that?

Ximen Yu frowned and finally said, “We’d need a dedicated team trained for this kind of tactic…”

Zhao Nan ignored his muttering; it was no secret. All his skills were those of a regular mage—he simply had an advantage in cooldown reduction, enabling him to make ordinary skills extraordinarily powerful.

Having completed one round of Thorned Vines, Zhao Nan had to withdraw from the combat zone to keep the strategy running smoothly.

Standing thirty meters away, Zhao Nan’s brow furrowed. Even just blocking Phoenicia’s attacks caused damage; its massive body and brute strength meant that even defending would deliver crushing force.

During this time, with the help of healing potions and Xu Fei’s spells, everyone’s health—except Finina’s—was steadily dropping.

Suddenly, seven-colored light shimmered as Finina was enveloped in a radiant glow.

Xu Yang had unleashed her Radiant Light.

It would last only three seconds. The three attackers instantly unleashed their most powerful single-target skills.

Before that, Jiang Lun bellowed, “Quagmire!”

Phoenicia’s body sank a full meter!

Falling Star Strike! The Sword Saint’s meteor-like sword light plummeted from above!

Iron Pursuit! Gao Mingyang appeared behind Phoenicia, striking savagely at its back.

Death’s Thrust!

Xu Feng’s body aligned perfectly, stabbing straight into Phoenicia’s thigh.

-151! -78! -69!

With the bonus from Radiant Light, their combined attacks inflicted nearly three hundred damage.

Then, a massive bolt of lightning as thick as a barrel, shaped like a spear, pierced Phoenicia’s chest in an instant.

-99! -500!

The first was the lightning’s base damage, the second a fixed damage value. The electric current writhed over Phoenicia’s body like a silver serpent. Ximen Yu exhaled, calmly pulled out a mana potion, and drank it down.

“This skill is called Thunder God. Shame it eats up so much mana,” he said softly, meeting Zhao Nan’s astonished gaze.