While the big four were still picking up their asses from the floor, Jiang Fei was powering on — the girls of the Rosette Knighthood tailing him closely!
“Roar!”
Along with the furious roars were seven to eight bear pan-fry palms smacking Jiang Fei across the face. Each hit had dealt more than 200 damage — even when it was Jiang Fei! Fortunately, these Bearmen were significantly slower. If not, the two Priests behind him would have trouble keeping his Health Points up!
“Ah! This one’s coming my way!” cried Rosette Dragoness. It was hard to pick out a particular target from the mass of bodies before her. She had mistakenly prodded a target that had not yet been marked by Jiang Fei. It barely took anything to surpass the aggro Jiang Fei had on it — for he had only given it a normal hit!
-475!
As the bear palm collided with the beautiful Warrior, almost 500 points of damage popped up. Although Rosette Dragoness was decently decked out in a full set of Green tier equipment that Jiang Fei had crafted himself, she had not built her character to take hits. Her choice of Equipment and distribution of Ability Points were all offense-focused. She barely had over Health Points. It was only a matter of time before that ruthless Bear mauls her to death!
Based on Rosette Dragoness’s case, one could only surmise that Jiang Fei was not just tough — he was ridiculously so! Crafting classes would already start off with higher Defense attribute as compared to Combat classes. Moreover, Jiang Fei had pumped all his Ability Points into Vitality. His equipment had been customized to give him even more Vitality. Jiang Fei was the toughest nail of all tough nails!
Let us not downplay Jiang Fei’s craftsmanship. The main tanks of those premium guilds had yet to obtain full sets of Green tier equipment. Try as they might, even the most dedicated Ability Point distribution would just match that of Rosette Dragoness’ Defense, at best. One monster would still smack them around for 500 damage. If seven to eight monsters attacked at once, even 4,000 Health Points won’t take that, let alone 2,000 Health Points!
“Don’t hit him anymore, take some potions!” Jiang Fei quickly turned to the female Warrior’s rescue!
Blazing Hammer!
-668! (Critical hit!)
The critical hit at the crucial moment had turned the monster’s attention back to Jiang Fei!
“Everyone, be careful. I’m not a Warrior. I can’t grab aggro like those specialized tanks. Just… Look out for my marks!”
Jiang Fei sighed in relief. He had been extremely fortunate to have landed a critical hit. Otherwise, he might have been too late!
Ironically, Jiang Fei was not a true tank, but he was far tougher than most. But there was a flaw in his tactics that could not be rectified. He had no skills that could generate aggro. Warriors had Taunt. Druids in Bear Form had the skill Provoke. Jiang Fei had nothing. He could only stand on equal footing and wrestle for the aggro with the Offense Classes. At least, Jiang Fei had solid equipment and high Luck. His constant critical hits enabled him to maintain his footing with the girls within the party. Also, he was often the first person to initiate an attack. That was why he would be able to keep the monsters’ aggro to himself!
If such a delicate balance was ever offset, Jiang Fei would be helpless. He had no way of salvaging the situation!
“Okay!”
Rosette Dragoness stuck her tongue out, half sheepish, half cheeky. She knew full well how her carelessness had almost brought disaster upon the party.
The battle continued. The monsters were slain, wave after wave. Bearmen even started coming in groups of 10. As tough as Jiang Fei was, the stifling volume of attacks were starting to get to him. The two Priests were stretched to the limit, acting as extensions to his Health Bar. On Jiang Fei’s end, he had been spamming his Health Potions to no end. There was just no other way to get through this!
“Time out, time out!” After a long, hard battle with the Bearmen, Jiang Fei decided that it was time for much-needed rest and reorganization. If their subsequent battles were anything of this level, people would start slipping up, and fatal mistakes could occur!
After seeing to it that everyone was breathing easy and had fully restored their Health Points and Mana Points, Jiang Fei resumed the advance!
At that moment, the four big Guilds Masters once again held their reunion at the entrance of the dungeon!
“So… Which of you got the First Clear?” asked Southern Azuresword, uncertain of himself.
“Clear my *ss. That Advanced Elite miniboss thing was just too much. When it entered the Frenzy Mode, our main tank was wiped out in a three-combo attack!” Daemon’s Grimace groaned. This time, he could not hide the distress in his face!
“Well! I gotta agree with you on that. That thing should not be allowed in the dungeon!” said Happy Drunk, nodding earnestly.
“Bullshit! I’m getting a totally different vibe from you. You’ve already taken down the first boss, haven’t you?” Lady Casanova was loud-mouthed and brash, but she was still a lady. And ladies could read through lines like a tick weaving through a mass body of fur. She saw through Happy Drunk’s expression with a glance!
“Almost. If I was any luckier, I might have broken through that phase!” After the boss got into a Frenzy, their tanks quickly became irrelevant. Stat-wise, at least. The party had adapted quickly and utilized the Taunt skill, kiting the boss and juggling it between their sub tanks. By the time the sub tanks fell, the main tank had already been fully healed by the party. They had delayed it long enough to outlast the boss’ frenzy mode. But when the boss released its ultimate, the party had no answer for it. Worst off, the boss had regained 5% of its Health Points with each kill. As a result, the still-living Heavily Armored members could only look on helplessly as the boss regained over two thousand health in the span of a few slashes! Disgruntled and frustrated, they could only allow the boss to rake through their armor!
The boss’ ultimate was indiscriminate and completely random. Happy Drunk and his members had been slightly unlucky. Their Priests and Magicians had been quick to fall first, leading to a tragedy. If Jiang Fei’s party had encountered the same situation, they might not have fared any better!
“Hey, boy! If you got to witness its ulti, how did you guys pull through the Frenzy?” Lady Casanova snapped.
“Heh heh! I’ll be happy to share all my secrets with you… After we get the first clear!” Happy Drunk was gentle and suave, but he was just as cunning.
It did not take long before the big four got to their feet and went for the first boss again. On this side of the universe, Jiang Fei was currently fighting for his life against the second boss of the dungeon!
Clomiir, the Demonic Bear (Humanoid, Advanced Elite!)
Level: 20
Health Points: 7,500
Attack Power: 475
Skill: Bash, Roar, Slam, Frenzy, Summon Bearmen, War Stomp.
“Holy f*ck! What did they feed this guy in the Elite dungeon?! Steroids alone won’t do this!”
Jiang Fei frowned at those ridiculous numbers. He was not about to ignore the part that said “Summon Bearmen” either. This was going to be a massive pain in the ass!
“Brother Glider, how do we do this?” asked Rosette Rose.
Jiang Fei was silent in thought for a moment. He finally said, “Guildmaster, I was about to delegate the minion Bearmen to you, but looks like things won’t be that simple. I have some ideas, but that might mean more work for you!”
“What is it?” Rosette Rose did not seem to mind it.
“I’ll need you to watch Dazzledance’s Health Points!” said Jiang Fei. As a knight, Rosette Rose belonged to a versatile class who was able to heal, attack, and defend. She was a jack of all trades, master of none.
“Okay!” said Rosette Rose, nodding.
“Dazzledance, grab ahold of some mobs. I’ll let you know when it’s time to do so!” Jiang Fei called out to Rosette Dazzledance.
Rosette Dragoness was also a Warrior, but she had added some Ability Points into Strength and Agility. She was not particularly durable, but with the aid of the Priests, she would be able to hold her own against a few monsters. But she would definitely be damned if a Strength-type Knight like Rosette Rose took up the healing role. As a player who had divided her Ability Points equally into her Vitality and Strength, Rosette Dazzledance was the first choice for the Sub-Tank position!
“Miaomiao and Peach, don’t hold back. Pour all of your Greater Heals onto me. Don’t hold back on those Mana Potions. This boss is quite the menace!” Jiang Fei pointedly warned the Priests.
“Don’t you worry!”
These girls did not lack money. Spamming their potions was not much of a problem!
“Alright, I’ll start things off!” Jiang Fei swung his Blacksmith Hammer and dashed forward. As usual, he went face first, putting on an expression that would provoke a sleeping buddha into action!