Chapter 53: The Six-Legged Panda and the Electrified Horn

“The two of them endured for forty seconds. Coincidence or not, we absolutely must secure them for our guild! We can afford to offer a significantly higher price!” Jiangu declared, his voice ringing with unshakeable resolve. “Female experts are already a rare commodity, but those possessing such exceptional skill are akin to a six-legged panda—a rarity among rarities! Simply showcasing these two would serve as a golden signboard, drawing people in like idols! We cannot, under any circumstances, allow them to join another!”

‘A six-legged panda…’

‘The guild leader was once again resorting to an embarrassingly awkward analogy.’

‘What was even more terrifying was his complete unawareness of it.’

Black Mirror Healer let out a sigh. “I’ve done my utmost to reassure them, but shouldn’t we be engaging by now? Lingering as mere spectators might well breed resentment in them!”

“Indeed, it’s time,” Jiangu affirmed with a nod, sweeping his staff through the air. “It appears the BOSS’s third phase will only unleash a single area-of-effect instant kill, and its attack repertoire has merely gained an additional lightning strike. All melee damage dealers, prepare! Maintain your positions behind the main tank and unleash your attacks!”

Following this, he cast a significant glance at the burly, shield-bearing warrior at his side, then resumed issuing commands. “We have now entered the final stage of the battle! The main tank will switch to the elite squad’s Green Giant! The entire priest contingent must prioritize his health above all else! Even if the entire melee team falls, Green Giant must, under no circumstances, perish! Alright, move out!”

The elite squad’s Divine-blooded shield warrior, Green Giant, truly embodied his moniker; though his skin bore no verdant hue, he, like all Divine-blooded players, had inherited the innate towering stature of his lineage, a bloodline that far eclipsed that of both humans and demons.

Even the women of the Divine-blooded lineage stood over two meters tall; the men, naturally, were even more imposing.

As Green Giant observed the two charming young women before him, repeatedly snatching survival from the jaws of death, barely escaping the monster’s talons again and again, he could no longer contain the surging battlelust within his heart. He yearned ceaselessly for an opportunity to display his prowess before these two beauties, to gallantly rescue them, and perhaps, just perhaps, even win their hearts and hands in return…

Disregarding the convoluted plot he was no doubt conjuring in his mind, he, with an air of magnificent heroism, let out a thunderous roar in the local chat channel.

“Your humble servant has arrived!”

Executing an ultra-long-distance jump-slash combined with a charge from halfway up the mountain, he landed with a resounding thud directly upon the Red Water Dragon’s head!

‘Uh… brother… if my memory serves me correctly… the Red Water Dragon has horns on its head, doesn’t it?’

“Sizzle!”

‘Oh, good heavens…’

‘And those horns, they’re electrified, aren’t they?’

‘My dear fellow, are you still conscious?’

Observing the scene, I couldn’t help but instinctively clasp my tailbone in empathetic solidarity, a distinct chill tracing its way down my spine.

While pain sensitivity within the game was fully adjustable, Green Giant, regrettably, had chosen to set his pain tolerance identically to real life. This was his chosen method for enhancing his in-game reaction speed and fully immersing himself in the visceral thrill of a ‘true man.’

With the elite squad’s main tank incapacitated, victory was declared for the Red Water Dragon.

Red Water Dragon: ???

The colossal beast, dazed from the impact, was still struggling to comprehend the events that had just unfolded.

Having inexplicably dispatched one of its most significant threats, the Red Water Dragon experienced no surge of triumph. Instead, it thrashed about with even greater fury, leaving Green Giant with an expression of utter, existential resignation as he was flung repeatedly.

‘…It’s lodged so deeply, it hasn’t even been shaken free.’

Observing this player, whose head bore the prominent ID “Green Giant”—a name he hadn’t bothered to conceal like the others—I found myself beginning to question the collective intelligence of Sword Sweeping the World’s guild members…

Moreover, this man, clad in blue-quality equipment that emanated a faint, ethereal azure glow, ought to possess considerable strength. Even if he wasn’t one of the fabled elite squad members, he certainly couldn’t be far below their caliber…

‘Yet, this particular entrance…’

In that instant, an overwhelming urge struck me to brand the Sword Sweeping the World guild with the label: [Weaklings, utterly negligible].

Jiangu’s lips twitched involuntarily as he watched Green Giant convulsing atop the Red Water Dragon’s head…

“Ahem… get the off-tank in!”

Nevertheless, the intelligence of the other players remained reassuringly normal. Witnessing the elite squad’s main tank meet such a bewildering demise immediately after his 霸气 (TL Note: “Overbearing presence” or “dominant aura”) roar, the off-tank momentarily froze. Yet, he swiftly recovered, executing a charge followed by a taunt, successfully drawing the BOSS’s aggro away from Su Yingning and me.

Su Yingning and I exhaled in relief, hastily retreating to catch our breath. However, a peculiar sight then unfolded before us.

Impaled upon the BOSS’s razor-sharp horn was a towering, heavily muscled warrior, clad entirely in golden-hued iron. This warrior, still affixed to the horn, was then swung directly toward the off-tank.

The burly warrior’s face had taken on a somewhat greenish tint.