The skeletal dragon’s gigantic claws swooped down from above. Nie Yan leaped forward just in time. With a thunderous boom, the spot where Nie Yan had been standing was crushed into pieces, as two massive stones were torn apart like tofu under the dragon’s claws, sending shards flying everywhere.
Good thing I dodged in time, or I might have been instantly killed!
Taking advantage of the skeletal dragon’s delay before its next attack, Nie Yan cast a Haste effect on himself and sprinted outward.
The skeletal dragon flapped its wings and soared into the air, locking its gaze onto Nie Yan before diving down again like lightning.
Shadow Dance!
Nie Yan accelerated to his maximum speed, fully exerting himself. The skeletal dragon’s attacks were terrifying, forcing him to use all his strength.
Fragments of stone flew through the air, smacking against his body. Several damage numbers, each in the hundreds, floated above his head. The invisibility he had painstakingly activated moments ago was also rendered useless.
The skeletal dragon missed again, but its assault didn’t end there. It flapped its wings once more and ascended into the air.
Qin Han and the necromancer Bodman flew rapidly toward the scene.
“Damn it, let’s take him down hard! This mad thief Nie Yan won’t escape this time!” Qin Han snarled, commanding the skeletal dragon to relentlessly attack Nie Yan.
Nie Yan narrowly dodged the skeletal dragon’s assault using Shadow Step and dashed into the jungle. The skeletal dragon rampaged through the forest, crashing through trees as if they were twigs, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake.
Thankfully, it could only launch physical attacks and had no offensive magical abilities; otherwise, Nie Yan would have been dead long ago. However, the skeletal dragon possessed a formidable innate ability—curses. Under Qin Han’s command, to prevent Nie Yan from escaping, the dragon cast a Curse of Warlock Chains on him. Unless the skeletal dragon was defeated, Nie Yan wouldn’t be able to use any random teleport scrolls.
Nie Yan fled in disarray, feeling frustrated. Was this really the end for him?
Seeing Nie Yan desperately running as the skeletal dragon relentlessly pursued him without any chance to counterattack, Qin Han grew even more arrogant and delighted. Together with the recovering necromancer Bodman, he quickly advanced toward Nie Yan, preparing to assist the skeletal dragon in finishing him off.
At seventy yards away, Nie Yan gradually entered Qin Han’s attack range. Waving his staff, Qin Han summoned waves of black flames from the sky, aiming to crash down upon Nie Yan’s location.
The searing flames rushed toward him. Just as he was about to be hit, Nie Yan suddenly vanished from the spot using a Blink Strike, reappearing on the skeletal dragon nearby and narrowly dodging Qin Han’s area-of-effect magic.
Nie Yan had cleverly repurposed Blink Strike, originally an offensive skill, into an escape mechanism.
After dodging the attack, Nie Yan wasted no time. He darted beneath the skeletal dragon, shot a strand of spider silk toward a distant tree trunk, and yanked himself upward, launching his body into the air and soaring for thirty to forty yards. As soon as he landed, he activated a Jump ability, propelling himself another thirty yards forward, escaping Qin Han’s attack range.
Nie Yan’s sudden burst of speed left Qin Han stunned.
Damn, he’s fast!
But escaping wouldn’t be that easy! Qin Han cast a Windwalk Haste on himself, dramatically increasing his speed as he charged toward Nie Yan. The skeletal dragon was even faster, already darting dozens of yards ahead, closely chasing Nie Yan. If it were a one-on-one duel, Qin Han wouldn’t dare pursue Nie Yan so recklessly. However, with the skeletal dragon’s support, the situation was entirely different.
The skeletal dragon’s normal attacks could easily eliminate Nie Yan. Under its threat, Nie Yan couldn’t afford to stop and fight Qin Han, allowing Qin Han to attack freely.
Nie Yan kept dodging and retreating, running over a thousand yards, yet he couldn’t shake off the skeletal dragon. Every time he managed to create a few hundred yards of distance, the skeletal dragon quickly closed the gap. However, Qin Han was falling further behind. As a slow-moving mage, there was no way he could keep up.
Cursing in frustration, Qin Han was determined not to let Nie Yan go without killing him. The necromancer Bodman was recovering, and in ten minutes, Nie Yan would face his doom. All he needed to do was prevent Nie Yan from escaping until then.
At that moment, Qin Han’s voice chat suddenly activated. He glanced down—it was a message from Shen Jian Wu Shuang.
“Boss Qin Han, the army from Karol City has mobilized, and the legendary priest Kars from the Temple is also on the move. Be careful—they’re heading toward the Sacred Mountains!” Shen Jian Wu Shuang explained, relaying intelligence from his spies in Karol City.
After reading the message, Qin Han furrowed his brows. With the necromancer Bodman already severely injured, encountering Kars would be disastrous. He quickly considered the situation. It would take at least ten minutes for the forces from Karol City to arrive. Within that time, he had to kill Nie Yan, or he would never forgive himself.
Nie Yan had already taken two Pages of Order from him. It would be extremely difficult to catch Nie Yan again, and he might even transfer the Pages of Order elsewhere in the meantime.
Clutching onto a sliver of hope that Kars wouldn’t arrive so quickly, Qin Han refused to retreat. Under his command, the skeletal dragon intensified its assault on Nie Yan. Nie Yan had nearly exhausted all his escape abilities and was struggling to dodge.
The skeletal dragon circled in the sky for a moment before diving toward Nie Yan once again.
Nie Yan sprinted while glancing back. The skeletal dragon in the sky was drawing closer, like a dark cloud descending upon him.
This time, he was done for. Nie Yan glanced at his skill bar—no usable skills remained. With only basic movements, he couldn’t evade the attack. The skeletal dragon’s massive body meant that a single claw strike could reduce everything within a five-yard radius to fragments.
The skeletal dragon loomed directly above Nie Yan, its overwhelming dragon aura pressing down like a mountain, causing Nie Yan’s movements to stiffen.
There was no escape. Despair filled Nie Yan’s heart.
Just at this critical moment, Guardian Angel Kalenna, perched on Nie Yan’s shoulder, lazily stretched and disdainfully muttered, “I hate these stinky reptiles.”
With a flick of her tiny wand, she conjured a circular white light shield around Nie Yan, enveloping him in protection. The shield outwardly resembled an ordinary Holy Light Shield, prompting Nie Yan to bitterly chuckle—what use could such a shield possibly be?
With a loud crash, the skeletal dragon’s massive claw struck the white light shield. The dragon’s body slightly recoiled, pushed back a short distance, while the white shield remained completely unshaken by the impact.
The white shield was indestructible, effortlessly withstanding the skeletal dragon’s attack. Nie Yan stared in disbelief—never had he imagined such a sudden turn of events. Ever since obtaining Guardian Angel Kalenna, Nie Yan had only seen her cast beneficial spells on teammates, occasionally using a Dispel or purifying fallen skeletons. He never expected her to possess such a powerful ability, one capable of shrugging off the skeletal dragon’s assault. What an incredible skill!
From a distance, Qin Han, rapidly approaching Nie Yan, saw the skeletal dragon’s claws strike Nie Yan and assumed he had been eliminated. His heart pounded with excitement—finally, he could avenge his previous defeat! He eagerly anticipated collecting the spoils of victory. However, to his shock, the skeletal dragon was repelled. In the distant clearing, Nie Yan remained unscathed, protected by the white light shield.
Qin Han’s expression froze—how was this possible!
Ever since the necromancer Bodman resurrected the skeletal dragon, Qin Han had never seen any unit withstand even a single strike from it. Even heavily armored shield warriors, protected by five or six defensive spells, were instantly killed by a single blow. Yet now, Nie Yan’s seemingly ordinary white light shield had effortlessly endured the skeletal dragon’s attack without any damage—this was simply unbelievable!
Nie Yan recovered from his initial shock and examined the shield’s properties.
Kalenna’s Guardian Shield: 99% damage reduction, Holy-type defense, Durability 125,786/132,000.
Seeing this seemingly invincible shield, Nie Yan transitioned from shock to astonishment, then to exhilaration. With such a shield, even facing the skeletal dragon head-on posed no threat. Based on the shield’s durability, it would take twenty consecutive attacks from the skeletal dragon to break through Kalenna’s Guardian Shield.
Nie Yan glanced at Kalenna, who lazily dozed on his left shoulder, and couldn’t help but mutter in admiration—this girl was truly monstrous!
Since acquiring Guardian Angel Kalenna, Nie Yan had rarely explored her abilities in depth, nor had he engaged in much conversation with her. He had assumed she was just an ordinary guardian spirit, and to his frustration, he couldn’t control her actions. Kalenna used her skills purely based on her own whims, which was incredibly frustrating. Nie Yan silently resolved that after this incident, he would thoroughly investigate Kalenna’s secrets.
Perhaps Guardian Angel Kalenna was an even more powerful entity than the necromancer Bodman, and he had simply been unaware all along!
Kalenna’s Guardian Shield was merely the tip of the iceberg. If not for this emergency, he would never have discovered that she possessed such an extraordinary ability!
Nie Yan gazed at the bewildered Qin Han in the distance, a playful smile forming on his lips. After being chased so desperately by the skeletal dragon, it was time to return the favor—with interest!
With such an overwhelmingly powerful shield, Nie Yan could afford to play around however he wanted!
The tides had turned!
Qin Han, unwilling to believe what he was seeing, commanded the skeletal dragon to charge Nie Yan once more. With another loud crash, the dragon was repelled again, and Nie Yan’s Guardian Shield remained completely intact. What the hell was that thing! Qin Han had never encountered such a resilient shield before.
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