Chapter 332 - Encountering a Magic Weapon Once Again
Inside of the Blood Hand Association’s stronghold, it was like a maze. There were also many Level 30 Blood Hand Association Knights patrolling the construct. These NPCs wore red leather armor and wielded spears. They also had 200,000 HP. Moreover, these NPCs always moved in groups of ten, and their coordination made them extremely difficult to deal with.
If Shi Feng and the others recklessly charged into a group of these NPCs, even with a Tier 1 Swordsman like Kite protecting them, the result would be the same. These Knights would eliminate them in an instant.
In fact, even if Shi Feng’s group were strong enough to fight these Blood Hand Association Knights, they would still meet their deaths if they chose to confront these NPCs. This was due to the many hidden traps and mechanisms throughout the stronghold. In the past, World Dominators had paid a steep price because of these traps.
Naturally, Shi Feng would not behave as recklessly as World Dominators had in the past. Hence, he would always detour and bypass any Knights they met, avoiding a confrontation with the NPCs at all costs. In any case, the paths in this stronghold all connected in one way or another. As long as one was careful, it was possible to find the Blood Hand Association’s hidden warehouse without engaging in combat.
Finally, after a long time, Shi Feng’s group arrived before a pair of tightly-sealed, stone doors.
Two words were etched into the wall next to the doors—Control Room.
This was where all of the traps within the Blood Hand Association’s stronghold were controlled. As long as they disabled these traps, they would have nothing to worry about as they traveled through the construct.
Just after Cola forced open the heavy stone doors, the group immediately discovered an old, one-eyed man dressed in black robes inside the control room. The old man held a Redwood Staff as he manipulated a magic array.
[Inca Richter] (Tier 1 Elementalist)
Level 30
HP 1,000,000/1,000,000
Thank god it is as I speculated. He’s only Level 30 and not a Level 50 Tier 2 mage. Shi Feng could not help but sigh in relief when he saw Inca Richter’s information.
If not for the Crusade Quest, the old man before them would be near impossible to deal with. Although Inca Richter would only be Level 50, as a Tier 2 mage, he could kill a Level 50 Tier 1 player as easily as squishing a bug.
“Guild Leader, it’s a Level 30 Tier 1 Elementalist. I’m afraid that he might be somewhat difficult to deal with. Should we call for reinforcements?”
Cola had a clear understanding of his own abilities. Currently, he was only Level 22. If it were a Level 20 Tier 1 Elementalist, he could tank it. However, it was impossible for him to endure the attacks of a Level 30 Tier 1 Elementalist. The tier suppression alone would greatly increase the damage he received, not to mention the level suppression. With the two combined, even as the Chief MT of Zero Wing, he would be cannon fodder at best.
“Relax; you don’t need to tank.” Shi Feng smiled. He then looked at his personal guard, Kite, who stood beside him, saying, “Kite will be our MT. Cola, you’ll act as support. You just need to activate your Magic Resistance Aura and use Protection Blessing on Kite during crucial moments.”
Cola suddenly remembered that Shi Feng had a personal guard like Kite beside him. Kite had over 18,000 HP. Compared to Cola, Kite was far more durable as an MT.
Although Kite was far inferior to Inca Richter regarding HP, as a Level 30 Tier 1 Swordsman, Kite’s close combat capabilities far surpassed a Tier 1 Elementalist.
“Kite, you’ll tank Inca Richter. Violet, you’ll heal Kite. Cola, focus on using Protection Blessing on Kite when needed,” Shi Feng commanded.
Without hesitation, Kite charged Inca Richter, slashing his sword at the old man. A damage of over -4,000 appeared above Inca Richter’s head. Compared to the High Lord ranked Nebula Tiger, Inca Richter’s Defense was much lower.
“Despicable intruders, I’ll turn all of you into my lab rats!” Inca Richter used Instantaneous Movement, dodging Kite’s sword techniques. The old man then waved his staff, summoning an aqua-blue Magic Shield that covered his body.
The Magic Shield was one of the most frequently used defensive spells that Elementalists possessed, and it could protect the caster against a considerable amount of damage.
Following which, Inca Richter waved his free hand, summoning an Ice Wall to prevent Kite from advancing. However, Kite was no ordinary guard. Immediately, Kite activated Wind Blade and jumped. Kite effortlessly leaped across the Ice Wall in his path and arrived before Inca Richter. He then brandished his sword at the Elementalist multiple times in quick succession.
After taking a few hits from Kite’s sword, the Magic Shield surrounding Inca Richter’s body shattered into particles of light, leaving the caster’s feeble body vulnerable to Kite’s attacks. Fortunately for the old man, the Magic Shield had earned him enough time to cast Frozen Circle. White, bone-chilling mist spread out from Inca Richter and assaulted Kite. In response to the spell, Kite abruptly jumped into the air and dodged the Frozen Circle. Inca Richter cursed when he saw the Swordsman avoid another spell with such a simple action. In a fit of rage, Inca Richter pointed a finger at Kite, sending multiple Fireballs flying at the Swordsman who was still suspended in mid-air.
As the Fireballs approached him, Kite calmly twisted his body and brandished his sword so fast that only bright afterimages were visible. He sliced the incoming Fireballs in half, one after another.
The speed of Kite and Inca Richter’s exchange was stunning, and any ordinary player would have difficulty following the fight. Standing at a distance, both Cola and Violet Cloud were dumbfounded by the scene before them.
This was the first time they had witnessed a fight between NPCs. Never would they have expected that a fight between NPCs could actually be more exciting than a fight between experts. The longer they watched, the more felt ashamed of themselves. Inwardly, they also began to estimate how they would fare if they fought Inca Richter if they were the same level and tier.
However, as they continued watching the exchange between Kite and Inca Richter, they soon reached a shocking conclusion.
They were not even opponents for Inca Richter!
The reason they came to such a conclusion, however, was not because of the great disparity between their HPs. Instead, it was because of the difference in combat techniques. This conclusion left them both speechless.
“What are you two daydreaming about? They are both high-level NPCs. Ordinary monsters cannot compare to them. It’s no big deal if your current combat techniques are not a match for theirs. As long as you participate in more battles and accumulate experience, you will surpass Inca Richter sooner or later.” Shi Feng could not help but console the two. Naturally, he could discern their thoughts.
Inca Richter was different from the Blood Hand Association Elites battling outside the town. Before the Crusade Quest had weakened him, Inca Richter had originally been a Tier 2 NPC. Thus, his combat proficiency was superior to those ordinary NPCs.
As for Kite, not only was he a Dark-Gold ranked personal guard, but he had also been a Tier 2 Sword Master in the past. His combat techniques were excellent.
In truth, Shi Feng had also been shocked when he had first witnessed a battle between high-level NPCs. It was especially true for battles involving Tier 3 NPCs or above. Regarding control over personal combat power, these NPCs could actually exhibit more than 70% of their strength. According to the evaluation criteria of God’s Domain, those capable of exhibiting more than 70% of their personal combat power were considered first-rate experts. These NPCs were far superior to the current top-tier experts. Moreover, even an NPC like Inca Richter was only capable of exhibiting 60% of his personal combat power.
Hence, it was natural for Cola and Violet Cloud to be inferior to NPCs like Kite and Inca Richter.
Following which, Violet Cloud began healing the Tier 1 Swordsman while Shi Feng supported Kite from the sides. From time to time, Shi Feng would use control skills such as Thunder Flame Explosion and Abyssal Bind to restrain Inca Richter. Shi Feng also used the Seven Luminaries Ring, swapping between Aura of Time and Aura of Fire. While Aura of Time was activated, Shi Feng would cast Absolute Time. While Aura of Fire was activated, Shi Feng would use Firestorm.
Whenever Inca Richter was about to cast a powerful spell, Shi Feng would deftly activate Absolute Time, interrupting Inca Richter’s spell and forcing the old man to defend against Kite’s sword techniques using his staff. A mage that could not cast spells was like a tiger that without its fangs and claws. In such circumstances, Inca Richter could only endure Shi Feng and everyone else’s attacks helplessly.
Very quickly, Inca Richter’s 1,000,000 HP fell rapidly.
90%... 70%... 30%...
After more than ten minutes, Inca Richter’s body finally dropped to the floor, transforming into an abundance of EXP. Shi Feng reached Level 24 with the sudden influx of EXP.
Following which, Shi Feng turned off all of the traps within the Blood Hand Association’s stronghold. Now that there were no more traps, it would be much easier to deal with the enemy NPCs.
Suddenly, Cola excitedly ran towards Shi Feng’s side and asked, “Guild Leader, I found a key beside this old man’s body. What do you think this is?”
“A key?” Shi Feng was slightly puzzled. Logically, none of the Blood Hand Association NPCs should drop any items.
Shi Feng received the purple-gold key from Cola and examined it. There were complex runes carved onto the body of this key. To Shi Feng’s surprise, he could not obtain any information about the key. Everything displayed as “Unknown.”
“What a strange key.” In Shi Feng’s memory, there were no records mentioning this key. However, since Inca Richter had dropped it, it should be extraordinary. “It seems that we will have to look for an Appraiser after we return to White River City.”
When considering unknown items, Shi Feng suddenly remembered the additional skill of his Golden Stigmata, Omniscient Eyes.
The Omniscient Eyes could obtain all information on any items. This skill was far more amazing than the Appraising Eyes of Appraisers.
“Let’s have a look, then.” Shi Feng activated Omniscient Eyes and took a look at the key in his hand once more.
This time, the information displayed was no longer “Unknown.” All secrets about the key unveiled before Shi Feng’s eyes.
“It’s actually a Magic Weapon!” Shock filled Shi Feng’s heart as he investigated the purple-gold key in his hand.