Nie Yan stood up, ready to use a recall scroll to return to the auction house and clear out his backpack, which had only seven empty slots left. Picking up a few more items would fill it completely.
A low, guttural roar tore through the sky. Nie Yan paused mid-motion, stowing the recall scroll away. From the sound, it should be an elite or sub-elite Ghoul King! These creatures occasionally roared to assert dominance over their territory, forcing weaker players to hastily retreat.
After searching for nearly two days, he had finally encountered a monster of elite caliber.
Nie Yan moved toward the source of the sound, passing through a field of scattered boulders. In the open area ahead, a giant ghoul appeared in his sight. This ghoul stood three yards tall, pitch-black in color, its body covered in lumps exuding foul-smelling pus. Its forelimbs were extremely long, sharp as steel blades, and painted a vivid crimson.
Nie Yan cast “Scout” on the ghoul ahead.
Ghoul King: Level 10 Elite, 3200/3200 HP.
It was an elite creature. Nie Yan hesitated briefly, scanning the surroundings. The only usable terrain here was the scattered boulders. Taking this creature down shouldn’t be a problem. However, using flash dust, spiderweb scrolls, and polymorph scrolls would be somewhat costly. Still, the loot from defeating the Ghoul King should more than cover the cost of these consumables. He leapt onto a rock, raised his Bloody Crossbow, aimed at the Ghoul King, and fired three bolts in quick succession. The arrows flew straight toward the Ghoul King.
Thud! Thud! Thud! All three bolts struck the Ghoul King’s back.
-13, -12, -15…
After being attacked, the Ghoul King turned furiously, scanning the boulders for its assailant.
Nie Yan nimbly darted among the rocks, continuously firing arrows at the Ghoul King.
After searching for a while, the Ghoul King finally locked onto Nie Yan and charged at him in rage.
Nie Yan immediately fled into the boulders, his Bloody Crossbow never ceasing fire. He would first wear down the Ghoul King’s HP with crossbow bolts.
The Ghoul King roared in fury, searching for Nie Yan, swiping its claws to clear nearby boulders, rapidly closing in.
Suddenly, a puff of flash dust exploded in front of the Ghoul King.
The intense light temporarily blinded the Ghoul King, pain shooting through its eyes as it let out a piercing scream.
Seeing the nearly frenzied Ghoul King, Nie Yan smiled slightly. He circled behind it, executed a brutal strike followed by a cut, draining 120 HP from the Ghoul King. Then, a series of -10 bleed damage numbers floated above its head.
The blindness effect from the flash dust probably lasted only a few seconds. After finishing the attack, Nie Yan quickly retreated. Bleed damage from brutal strike and cut stacked over time, increasing the total damage.
Nie Yan continued shooting crossbow bolts. Since the Ghoul King was a same-level enemy, the damage was quite significant.
The Ghoul King finally recovered from blindness and charged toward Nie Yan again.
As it neared, Nie Yan used another spiderweb scroll. The Ghoul King was tightly bound in place.
Nie Yan leapt high, delivering a critical strike with his dagger across the Ghoul King’s neck, landing gracefully behind it. He immediately followed up with a backstab into the Ghoul King’s back.
After these two attacks, Nie Yan quickly retreated, switching back to crossbow bolts, firing them rapidly.
With Nie Yan’s low HP and fragile leather armor, he couldn’t withstand even a single hit from the Ghoul King. Normally, elite monsters required a team of at least five players to defeat. The team would need a high-healing priest, a fully armored shield warrior, and antidotes because the Ghoul King’s attacks carried a potent fire toxin, causing at least 30 HP damage per second until death. Therefore, Nie Yan had to be extremely cautious, avoiding any direct hit from the Ghoul King.
Under Nie Yan’s steady attacks, the Ghoul King’s HP steadily dropped. However, it couldn’t even touch him. Nie Yan continuously disrupted its attacks, rendering its rage useless.
“That sound seems to come from over there.”
“Let’s go check it out.”
Three players swiftly moved through the boulders. They belonged to the guild Triumph, capable of coming to the Black Gold Mine at this time for grinding and leveling, indicating their exceptional skill within the guild.
Among them were a combat rogue, a berserker, and a female mage. They were farming ghouls not far away when they heard the commotion and came to investigate.
“Night Shadow, hurry up and check it out,” the berserker said to the combat rogue.
“Fine, this kind of grunt work always falls to me,” Night Shadow replied helplessly. As an agility-based rogue, his speed was over 20% faster than warriors, even without considering skills. Thus, scouting was naturally his responsibility.
“Swift!”
Night Shadow’s speed suddenly increased significantly, dashing forward like a streak of light.
“I think there might be an elite ahead. Orange, if it’s an elite, Night Shadow and I will hold it down. It’s up to you then,” the berserker said. As a berserker, tanking an elite Ghoul King was difficult, but he had recently acquired Life Activation, a skill lasting twenty minutes with a two-day cooldown, allowing him to barely survive against an elite Ghoul.
“Should we ask the guild leader to send a priest? This elite Ghoul looks tough,” Orange frowned. Her appearance was unremarkable, but her status in Triumph was very high.
“No need. By the time a priest arrives, who knows what will have happened. Can you cast Arcane Stability?”
“Arcane Stability has a two-day cooldown, and I need it for a raid tomorrow.”
“Then forget it. We’ll see how it goes.”
Nie Yan continued to chip away at the Ghoul King’s health. When its HP fell below 20%, a sense of unease crept over him. Given his current level, his perception attribute was exceptionally high, enabling him to keenly detect even the faintest disturbances in the vicinity. Without hesitation, he swiftly activated another spiderweb scroll. A sticky web descended from above, trapping the Ghoul King once more.
Night Shadow struggled to describe his shock at this moment. They considered themselves among the more outstanding members of Triumph, even if not top ten, certainly within the top twenty. He, Orange, and Zangdao working together to fight an elite Ghoul King still required careful consideration. Yet this rogue alone had already drained 80% of the Ghoul King’s HP, seemingly effortlessly capable of finishing it off. This exceeded his comprehension.
He used the Scout ability and found the rogue’s name: Nie Yan!
It was him!
Night Shadow recalled this person. During a campaign against the Goblins, someone named Nie Yan had killed Zihuo and successfully escaped amid a group pursuit. After this incident, many guild members discussed it. Remembering such a formidable figure was unavoidable.
Night Shadow never expected to encounter him here!
As members of Triumph, they acted boldly and recklessly. If anyone opposed them, they would surely retaliate. Especially regarding the humiliating incident of losing a member and allowing the perpetrator to escape.
Night Shadow smiled slightly. If they could eliminate Nie Yan, they could not only claim the Ghoul King’s experience and loot but also collect the guild bounty. Why not?
As strong as Nie Yan was alone, could he withstand being caught between the Ghoul King and their trio?
Remember, the Ghoul King’s entire aggro was focused on Nie Yan!
“Hurry over, we’ve got a big catch!” Night Shadow messaged Zangdao and Orange.
“Night Shadow has something,” Zangdao and Orange exchanged glances, quickening their pace to rush in.
If the Ghoul King’s HP was drained completely, it would be a loss. Zangdao and Orange should arrive soon. Night Shadow activated stealth, slowly creeping behind Nie Yan, whose back was completely exposed in his vision. He was very confident in his stealth ability.
Unexpectedly, Nie Yan suddenly turned his head.
True Sight!
Bloodshot eyes turned crimson, radiating a terrifying divine light. Under the sweep of True Sight, a faint figure appeared in Nie Yan’s vision, approaching him. Nie Yan’s lips curled into a cold smile. Thinking of a surprise attack? Not so easily. He pulled out a flash dust and exploded it with a bang, emitting an intensely blinding light, turning the surroundings dazzling white.
Night Shadow was gradually approaching Nie Yan when he suddenly noticed Nie Yan turning his head, eyes bloodshot, radiating a divine light. This light seemed to pierce through everything, as if he were completely exposed before Nie Yan. His heart jolted. Had he been detected?
Before he could react, Nie Yan unleashed a blinding flash from his hand, like a sharp knife, instantly blinding his eyes.
Bad! A strong sense of unease surged in Night Shadow’s mind. He quickly retreated, activating Haste. The uneven ground and total loss of vision caused him to trip, falling toward the ground.
Nevertheless, as a ranked expert, he instantly understood the flash dust’s blinding effect. He balanced his body, right hand supporting him, performing a side flip to stabilize his stance. At that moment, a sharp cold light pierced toward his face.
In an instant!
So fast!
A flash of despair crossed Night Shadow’s mind. Under such a fierce attack, no one could possibly evade. He somewhat understood why Nie Yan had been able to kill Zihuo and escape unscathed.
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