Chapter 48: The Azure Dragon’s Second Wind and a Timely Arrival

Despite their deep suspicions regarding Kabasiji, Hank and Xue Hu found no further reason for doubt beyond his initial moment of distraction, and so their assault on the Azure Dragon continued.

‘Could it be that this guy deliberately altered the sequence, calculating that he would be the one to tank the final wave of damage? That way, he’d have a justified reason to get closer to the Azure Dragon and be the first to claim the corpse,’ Hank mused, attacking the Azure Dragon. ‘But if I remember correctly, this is only the Azure Dragon’s first life. After suffering a fatal blow, it releases a clone and quickly regenerates its health. So what exactly is he planning?’

After a rather uneventful period of combat, the Azure Dragon’s health was whittled down to two-thirds.

The Azure Dragon suddenly ceased its attacks, letting out a furious roar as its entire body erupted with green light, causing all the surrounding plants to spring to life!

“They’re here! Everyone, keep clear of the surrounding flora and fauna; don’t get hit!” Hank immediately shouted upon witnessing the scene. “Gather around me; I’m about to cast a defensive spell!”

While Yi Ye Zhixia possessed many unique items, which everyone greatly envied, this did not mean the trio had no reserves of their own. Though their items might not be as straightforward as Yi Ye Zhixia’s, as long as they were effective, there was no issue!

“Golden Bell Shield (TL Note: A protective martial arts technique, literally ‘Golden Bell Shield’)!” Kabasiji and Xue Hu immediately rushed to Hank’s side. Hank promptly crushed a white orb, a metallic-attribute orb that was notably defensive rather than offensive. White light swirled around Hank’s hands, and an oval-shaped defensive barrier rose from beneath his feet, instantly enveloping the three of them.

The ‘revived’ plants and trees quickly coiled towards the trio, but the moment they touched the white defensive barrier, they recoiled instantly, as if severed by blades. Trapped within the barrier, the three could not attack the Azure Dragon, but neither could the Azure Dragon attack them. Only after all the ‘revived’ plants and trees had been ‘severed’ did Hank deactivate the barrier.

“I’ll go replenish my mana; you two continue the offensive!” Hank wiped non-existent sweat from his brow before retreating to use potions to restore his mana. During the barrier’s duration, Xue Hu and Kabasiji had fully restored their status, but Hank had no time to do so, as he was busy maintaining the defensive barrier’s existence.

Next came another period of uninspired combat, slowly whittling down the monster’s health. The Azure Dragon unleashed no other abilities, and the trio had no particularly special offensive capabilities. When the Azure Dragon’s health reached one-third, it suddenly stopped attacking again and began to roar furiously.

“Again? No way, the ‘Golden Bell Shield’ is on cooldown; what do we do?” The trio grew frantic, having not anticipated the Azure Dragon would have another ultimate move at one-third health. Hank cursed loudly, “Damn it, when that guy fought the Azure Dragon before, why didn’t it have a skill at one-third health?”

“Last time at one-third health, that guy seemed to instantly kill the Azure Dragon with a single strike, so it probably didn’t get a chance to use it, right?” Kabasiji, who had just been drawing the Azure Dragon’s aggro and whose health was still relatively low, was naturally more anxious than anyone else. His mind raced as he proposed, “Maximize our damage output and force the Azure Dragon to split; that should stop this skill!”

“Easier said than done! If we could hit that fast, wouldn’t we have killed the Azure Dragon by now? Why would we have waited until now?” snapped Hank irritably. “If only we had a ‘White Tiger’ battle pet. I bet that blade was also a ‘White Tiger’ battle pet skill. I just don’t understand why both of you opposed me capturing the White Tiger. With our current levels, couldn’t we defeat the White Tiger?”

“Is saying all this now useful? Right now, we should be thinking about how to survive the upcoming attack!” Kabasiji retorted impolitely. “If we can’t tank it, we’ll just die. Who will you blame then?”

Unlike the previous skill where all the plants and trees ‘sprang to life,’ this time, the flora remained motionless. Instead, the ambient moisture seemed to intensify, gradually transforming into patches of mist. Isn’t this Azure Dragon wood-attribute? Why does this skill look more like a water-attribute one?

Just as the group was growing anxious and bewildered, a clear, bright voice rang out, seemingly instilling a glimmer of hope in their hearts.

“Ah! Don’t steal my monster! Shadow Dance Slash (TL Note: Shadow Dance Slash)!” A figure leaped from a patch of grass, a white longblade, trailing phantoms, striking the Azure Dragon’s body.