Chapter 96: The Heirloom of Hell’s Breath and the Thunder God’s Fury

My original ID, Oleander, remains the same… a detail I’ve prudently kept from the curious members of our team.

Having weathered that close call, we could finally resume our normal damage output. The individual whose earlier blunder had nearly led to a team wipe was a friend of Qingyu’s. Given their immediate and profuse apologies for their error, the others found themselves with little to say, ultimately letting the matter slide.

The player, whose in-game ID was [Expert Pooper], had shown genuine remorse, promising repeatedly that they would not be distracted by chatting during the BOSS fight again. With their solemn vows, we resumed our assault on the BOSS.

Had their distraction merely led to an accidental Pyroblast, it might have been forgivable. Yet, a nagging doubt persisted: was the truth truly as they presented it?

I cast a penetrating glance their way, then settled into meditation to restore my condition, all while keeping a vigilant eye on Yingning’s health bar.

Qingyu, too, shot a frigid glare at them, seething with anger at their audacity to chat during a BOSS encounter. While a mage’s damage-dealing environment might be comfortable, allowing them to mindlessly unleash spells as long as the main tank holds aggro, such ease hardly grants one the privilege of being half-hearted while teammates valiantly battle on the front lines! This was especially true during the initial progression stage, where everyone’s nerves were taut, and the slightest misstep could spell a complete team wipe!

Even among friends, such individuals were utterly infuriating!

As time wore on, we ultimately managed to fell the highly venomous Ground Spider X-901, a feat accomplished with more relief than peril. A satisfying thud reverberated through the air, followed by a flash of blue light as a shower of items scattered across the ground.

The ground became carpeted with blue-tier crafting materials and gold coins; regardless of their actual worth, the sight itself was immensely gratifying. Amidst this bounty, a magnificent, gleaming golden treasure chest stood proudly.

Without a word, everyone collectively overlooked the scattered crafting materials, their gazes fixed with fervent intensity upon the central treasure chest.

After toiling tirelessly for what felt like an eternity, the moment had finally arrived to claim the spoils of our hard-won victory!

“I’ll open it!”

As per our agreement, Cannon Fairy was designated to open the chest, and with palpable excitement, she dashed towards the treasure box.

Only a single item appeared: a delicate, diminutive ring, floating conspicuously and solitary within the equipment slot of the team’s inventory.

Yet, the very color of this item elicited a collective gasp of astonishment from everyone present!

It was half blue, half purple!

This indicated a quality superior to blue, bordering on the esteemed purple tier!

Moreover, it was a ring—an item usable by anyone in our party!

“Ah ha ha, I told you I had good luck too!” Cannon Fairy declared, displaying the item’s attributes with a triumphant laugh.

[X-901’s Heirloom]

What an utterly peculiar name…

What could its attributes possibly be?

[Spell Attack +10 Healing Effect +20 Attached Skill: Hell’s Breath]

Upon seeing the “Healing Effect +20” attribute, everyone else immediately knew their hopes were dashed; this ring was unequivocally for healers.

Hell’s Breath!

The sheer霸气 (TL Note: A Chinese term for domineering, imposing, or powerful) of the skill’s name made my eyes gleam with anticipation, filling my heart with fervent hope!

I’m rich! Truly rich! It appears I’m destined for overnight fortune!

[Hell’s Breath: Summons Hell’s Breath, covering a 10-meter radius. Hell’s Breath has an extremely potent odor, capable of making even the strongest adults break down and cry loudly like children. (Friendly Reminder: Hold your breath before using.)]

An unsettling silence descended upon our surroundings. A moment later, the [X-901’s Heirloom] materialized, resting upon my middle finger.

Having been so thrilled at the prospect of acquiring a high-quality piece of equipment, I now found myself utterly devoid of joy upon receiving this particular item.

After all that anticipation, an item I could finally use had appeared, only to reveal itself as nothing more than a cruel jest?

The dizzying highs and lows of life seemed to rush past with the speed of a roller coaster.

The attributes of this equipment were, in truth, somewhat underwhelming, even compared to exceptional blue-tier items; they were far from outstanding. While it did boast an added bonus to healing effectiveness, the truly critical equipment skill itself was…

Perhaps as a small consolation, all the equipment materials that had dropped were bestowed upon me. This included five or six blue-quality magic crystals, two [X-901’s Poison Claws] capable of imbuing equipment with a poison attribute, and a generous pile of leather and other crafting components essential for tailoring skills.

Cannon Fairy offered a sympathetic pat on my shoulder. “Calm down, calm down,” she began, struggling to suppress a laugh. “This skill is actually quite potent… *pfft*… *cough*! Look, the moment you activate it, anyone hoping to harm you would have to completely nullify their sense of smell… *pfft ha*… *cough cough cough cough*! In essence, this is a remarkably rare piece of equipment! And it comes with a skill absolutely nobody has ever heard of! Regardless, the name itself is incredibly imposing! Just imagine shouting it out during combat—it would surely startle your opponents! This isn’t a loss at all!”

“Don’t bother suppressing it; just laugh if you must,” I said with a sigh.

“Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha…”

Even Yingning let out a soft chuckle, covering her mouth as she sent a private message: [It’s alright, Xiaoya. Once we return, I’ll buy you some excellent equipment…]

The gear I currently wore represented the finest Yingning had managed to procure, yet it still offered considerable room for improvement. After reaching level 36, we had immediately hastened to the swamp, leaving us no opportunity to meticulously select appropriate level 30 equipment from the auction house. Consequently, I was still relying on hastily acquired level 30 green-tier items.

[No need to buy them. I want to earn them myself,] I declared, pouting indignantly.

[Alright, alright, you’ll earn them yourself! I’ll buy the materials for you!] Yingning responded, her voice laced with a gentle, coaxing chuckle, as if soothing a child.

[Mmm… It’s a deal!]

****

“Ugh, this is just too hard,” Green Giant sighed, emerging from the dungeon’s resurrection point. “The hard difficulty Spider’s Lair feels like an entirely different game compared to easy mode…”

Sword Sweeping the World’s expedition into the hard difficulty Spider’s Lair had been anything but smooth. To this point, they hadn’t even managed to defeat the first BOSS, the Exploding Ground Spider S-2000.

This particular monster imposed exceptionally harsh demands on healers, requiring not only substantial sustained healing but also an incredibly potent burst healing capability. This translated into extremely high requirements for a healer’s operational skill and spell power. While [Green Dog], the team’s healer, was certainly adept in his movements and possessed top-tier spell attack power for his level, the monsters in the hard difficulty Spider’s Lair were already above level 40. Under such a significant level disparity, his healing output felt comparatively insufficient.

Defeating this creature was largely a matter of pure chance, for its spell attack power was explosive, augmented by erratic, convulsive bombardments that covered the entire map. In the event of successive bombardments, Green Dog found himself utterly incapable of keeping up with the healing, forced to watch in despair as his teammates were obliterated. The elite squad of Sword Sweeping the World had, by sheer luck, managed to conquer this monster once before, only to become hopelessly stalled at the illusion of the second BOSS, the Spider Queen. Unable to progress, they had eventually abandoned the dungeon, a decision that unfortunately reset their entire dungeon progress, forcing them to begin anew.

“We’ve already deciphered the trick to beating the second BOSS,” Green Giant admitted, a grimace on his face, “but who would have thought we’d get stuck on the first? There’s nothing for it; the first BOSS is simply too reliant on luck. Let’s try again.”

Jiangu nodded, serving not only as the guild master but also as the undisputed captain of the elite squad.

“Let’s go,” Jiangu commanded, “but there’s no need to fret. Even if others manage to clear the first BOSS, they’ll undoubtedly hit a wall at the second. The second BOSS absolutely requires lightning-attribute attacks to inflict damage, and this secret is currently known only to us. By the time they discover it and then seek out high-level lightning mages, who knows how much time will have passed? So, there’s no rush. Haste only breeds chaos and makes team wipes more likely. Green Giant, you pull the monster!”

“Alright!” Green Giant roared, launching into a leaping charge before landing squarely on the BOSS’s head with his backside. Mercifully, the BOSS’s head was flat this time.

“You still haven’t learned your lesson,” Jiangu sighed, shaking his head. “One day, this habit will be your downfall.” He locked onto the BOSS and began to chant a spell: “Oh, servant of the Thunder God, slumbering within the eternal abode of thunder! Grant your immense power to my form, let my unwavering faith shatter the barriers of space and time, and summon forth your destructive might! I=U/R, I=E/(r+R)… Feel the Thunder God’s fury! Thunder Curse – Ohm’s Roar!”