A couple of back and forths and cooperative a.s.sault later, the Blood Maddened Lion had slightly over 10%, or around 7000, HP left.
The Sky Obsidian Greedy Wolf let out a howl and hit it five times in a row. Flurry Dance easily one-shot the weakened mob!
Pop!
The Level 128 shadow-rank mob"s drop rate was pretty high because we overcame a 28-level difference. It dropped two Phantasmal Magic Stones that we ignored completely because we had run out of s.p.a.ce even before we fell off a cliff. It also dropped a greenish metal armor wristguards that amused me deeply the moment I picked them up and gave them a look—
Bloodthirsty Wristguards (Gold-grade, Outstanding★)
Defense: 225
Magic Resist: 170
Strength: +55
Agility: +42
Pa.s.sive: Increases user"s physical attack evasion rate by 8%
Pa.s.sive: Increases user"s attack power by 4%
Property: Blood Maddened Lion Set, Wristguards
Level Requirement: 115
……
I could hardly control my excitement. A mob this generous was incredibly rare, not to mention one that dropped a 1-star Outstanding Gold-grade equipment. How awesome would it be if we managed to collect a full set?
I equipped the Bloodthirsty Wristguard and gave it a look. The set"s effects were—
Blood Maddened Lion Set (Metal Armor):
1 piece: Level Requirement reduced by 20
2 piece: +125 Strength
3 piece: +10% physical attack power
4 piece: Increase HP by 25%
5 piece: User gains "Bloodthirst”. The user burns Blood Maddened Lion"s bloodline and gains 45% attack speed and 10% movement speed
……
Lin Yixin stared at me blankly when I showed her the set"s effects. She murmured dreamily, "A… a Level 95 Outstanding equipment set? Even without the 45% attack speed, this set is absolutely insane for any Level 95 fighter…"
I nodded. "Yeah, this Blood Maddened Lion set is amazing for both PvP and PvE. If we can gather a full set, it"ll almost be as good as wearing a full a.s.sortment of high-level Dark Gold–grade equipment. Yiyi, this is our chance to get rich…"
Lin Yixin continued to daydream about RMB. Her eyes were sparkling with the golden l.u.s.ter of the money symbol.
Although the Blood Maddened Lion Set was incredibly powerful, it was ultimately beneath my notice. I would rather wear Outstanding Dark Gold or Purple Gold–grade equipment than this because they were almost always as good as what a Gold-grade set could offer, if not better. For example, the Obsidian Dragonscale Armor I was wearing right now was a Level 90 2-star Outstanding Purple Gold–grade chest armor. Both its stats and its properties outcla.s.sed the Blood Maddened Lion set completely.
……
We went back to the grind. Now that we knew that the Blood Maddened Lions had a chance of dropping the Blood Maddened Lion set pieces, we were absolutely overjoyed and motivated to kill every last one of them. Hurray, system!
We never dared to drop our guard, of course. Slowly, we lured the Blood Maddened Lions to us and killed them one by one. Sure, it took longer than usual, but it was what we had to do to survive. Both our weapons were running out of durability, but high-level Dark Gold–grade weapons naturally regenerated durability at a slow rate. So if we took our time our weapons should last a little longer...
The second floor of Arctic Temple finally looked like a proper high-level map. The corridors were winding and the mobs were plentiful, so we were able to kill a Blood Maddened Lion every one or two minutes or so. It wasn"t a bad pace, although the drop rate was definitely less than encouraging.
An hour or so and many, many dead Blood Maddened Lions later, we finally got the second set piece, Bloodthirsty War Boots. It was also Level 115 1-star Outstanding Gold-grade metal armor with pretty good stats. Well, it was to be expected considering how IMBA the full set was. At the very least, a fighter with a full Blood Maddened Lion set could slay mobs, players, and the hearts of beautiful women with ease. It took a greater adjective than IMBA to describe how great it was.
I checked the time and noticed that it was now past 7 pm. We hadn"t drank a drop of water since the morning, and Lin Yixin was worried she might not be able to last the entire map. I was worried for her myself, but neither of us dared to log off because there was a chance we might be booted from the map if we tried. This map was clearly special, and we wouldn"t even know it existed if G.o.ds of Destruction, Hegemon Palace, and Flower Room hadn"t knocked us off a cliff.
Moreover, the Blood Maddened Lion set was worth a ton of money, but only if we managed to gather a full set. Its price could very well be beyond our imagination, and it was only a matter of which G.o.d of wealth was willing to pay the price. Of course, all of this was just a pipe dream unless we gathered the full set, so if there ever was a time to pray to my own 15 Luck stat, it was now.
……
We fought until over 9 pm and got the chest armor and legguards. The only thing left to get was the Bloodthirsty Helmet now! We would be rich again if we completed the set!
It was at this moment Beiming Xue sent me a message: "Big bro, it"s been an entire day. You haven"t eaten, drunk, or even done your fourth-promotion quest during this time. What on earth are you doing?"
I replied with a smile, "Wait just a bit longer…"
"Well, Sister Mingyue and I are leaving for Chuyunge now. We wanted to invite you as well, but if you"re busy then…"
I couldn"t help but smile. "Next time, I promise. Next time we"ll form a three-man party and do a quest…"
"Well okay. See you!"
"See you!"
Chuyunge was a buffet restaurant we recently discovered. It cost 150 RMB per person, and it offered a huge variety of dishes. You could even find a spot for each of the 8 cuisines of China. Long story short, you could eat practically anything you wanted at this place, so it became a frequent spot for our workshop. From time to time, we would venture to the "map" that was Chuyunge and clear out the "mobs" there.
……
A few minutes later, both Murong Mingyue and Beiming Xue"s names faded from view while Lin Yixin and I were still killing the Blood Maddened Lions. The mobs were so strong that even my equipment had dropped to 10% or so. Supposed that a boss was waiting for us at the end of the map, I didn"t think we had the durability to last the whole fight.
The Purgatory Sword fared even worse, of course. It was burning red not because I was covering if with undead energy, but because it had 3% durability left!
I paused for a moment before saying, "Wait, I need to recover some weapon durability. Yiyi, you"re the main damage dealer for now. I"ll support you and the Sky Obsidian Greedy Wolf from behind with Dragon Slaying Slash…"
"Mn!"
Lin Yixin agreed easily.
Dragon Slaying Slash was a long-range offensive skill that didn"t cost any weapon durability to cast. It was a friendly skill to say the least.
After we switched roles, Lin Yixin and the Sky Obsidian Greedy Wolf became the main damage dealers while I supported them from behind. Dragon Slaying Slash was a bit too powerful, so occasionally the threat would slip over to me. In that case, I would use Thunderous Charge to stun the enemy before kiting with the Dragon Slaying Slash again. The fights went safely and without any hitches. We were two of the strongest experts in Sky City after all.
Unfortunately, there weren"t many Blood Maddened Lions left on the icy corridors. I couldn"t stop my heart from beating a little fast. f.u.c.k, don"t tell me that we"re going to miss the final set piece and lose a ton of gold. That"d truly be a tragedy...
"Roar roar roar…"
The Blood Maddened Lions dropped one after another, but we still didn"t find the Bloodthirsty Helmet. My heart was slowly but surely rising to my throat. Why is this happening, where is the last set piece we"re looking for...
We looked at each other when the last Blood Maddened Lion dropped to red health. Neither of us were willing to deal the killing blow and bear the potential responsibility of failure. That lasted until the Blood Maddened Lion slapped me across the face for 2784 damage. Motherf.u.c.ker, you do not hit a man in the face, especially when a pretty girl is right next to him!
I growled and stabbed the brute in the b.u.t.t-hole. When I pulled out my sword, a b.l.o.o.d.y helmet also tumbled into the open. Finally, it dropped, oh no, shat the last set piece we were looking for…
Bloodthirsty Helmet (Gold-grade, Outstanding★)
Defense: 210
Magic Resist: 150
Strength: +52
Agility: +40
Pa.s.sive: Increases user"s. .h.i.t rate by 3%
Pa.s.sive: Increases user"s Attack by 1%
Property: Blood Maddened Lion Set, Helmet
Level Requirement: 115
……
Alright! We finally completed the Blood Maddened Lion Set!
Both Lin Yixin and I were incredibly excited. We should"ve known that the heavens wouldn"t let our hard work go to waste! On their own, these five items added a total of 1100 Defense or so—which was pretty amazing—but if the set"s effects were factored into consideration as well, then it was one of the strongest, if not the strongest equipment set you could have right now. Its value was immeasurable!
I tossed the helmet into my bag and said, "Awesome. Let"s put it up for auction after we return to the city. Then, we split the profits in half!"
"It"s a deal…"
"Deal!"
Lin Yixin and I turned toward the final area of the Arctic Temple at the same time. Although the entire map was called the Arctic Temple, only this final area was where the temple actually was. There were no mobs inside the temple. The roof of the cave was covered in ice, and there were 12 totems with icy pictures on them in total surrounding the entire temple. They were so thick that it would take two people to hug it completely, and at the center of the totems was a gigantic blue magic formation that was glowing an impressive amount of magical energy. You could literally feel it in the air.
At the center of the magical formation was a kneeling warrior in blue metal armor. He held a sword with fire running across its surface, and the blade was engraved with ancient runes. It was clearly a divine weapon or sorts. Moreover, the warrior"s head was drooped in a way that suggested that he had been dead for a long time. At the very least, I could sense a thick aura of death from him.
……
"Who"s this guy?" Lin Yixin asked.
I shook my head. "I don"t know. You"ll have to ask him yourself…"
We were pretty close to the boss at this point, and a line of text appeared above its head. Its stat screen was pretty stunning—
Ziyu the Silver Radiance (Spirit Rank Boss)
Level: 140
Attack: ???
Defense: ???
HP: ???
Skills: ???
Introduction: Before the Spirit of Grief continent was destroyed, Ziyu served as the second legion commander of the Silver Knights Legion, also the first legion under Princess Fia. This human general was unusually obsessed with the concept of honor and loyalty, and after Princess Fia pa.s.sed away, he attacked the Undead Legion"s old nest with thirty thousand remaining troops. However, he was defeated and had his soul robbed away by Vatra the Sky Shadow. Despite having turned into an undead general, his lingering thoughts as a human kept him from submitting to the power of darkness, and he sealed himself in the deepest depths of this icy earth. Over time, he became an incredibly violent and restless wandering soul.
……
"The former commander of the Silver Knights Legion?" I murmured. "This boss is incredibly powerful. A Level 140 Spirit Rank boss is way beyond our ability to handle right now…"
Lin Yixin watched Ziyu closely before asking, "Should we head back to the city?"
"No!" I declared and took a step forward. "We are here now, so we might as well give it a shot. We can afford to lose levels and equipment, but we cannot lose the courage to overcome any obstacle in front of us!"
"Alright!" Lin Yixin smiled sweetly. "Then we"ll die together. At least it won"t be a lonely death!"
……
Sensing that someone had invaded his domain, Ziyu the Silver Radiance abruptly raised his head and stared at us with brown, emotionless eyes. He growled, "No one is allowed to defile Her Highness Fia"s domain. Die, arrogant adventurers!"
1. Imbalanced