Chapter Twenty-Nine: A Worthy Teammate!

The presence of teammates not only relieves the pressure on Ember in both offense and defense but also allows him to obtain crucial intelligence in advance and avoid numerous traps. Consequently, even though the Spider Leader is far more powerful than the Ant Leader, Ember can engage in battle with much greater composure.

...

Name: [Juvenile Shadow-Eater Bug] (Leader)
HP: 326/400
Attack Rating: Normal (20)
Defense Rating: Normal (30, limit)
Attack Speed: Relatively Fast
Alert Range: Normal
Skills: Enhanced Piercing (*3.0), Corrosive Venom
Description: The spider-form Juvenile Shadow-Eater Bug has not only shed its bloated physique and regained mobility, but the piercing effect of its spider spears has also been significantly improved. The breakthrough of its life shackles has caused its venom glands to mutate; after injecting corrosive venom into its prey with sharp fangs, it can dissolve body tissues within a very short time.
[Hint: Attacking the four pairs of insect limbs of the spider-form Juvenile Shadow-Eater Bug with sharp weapons has a chance to cause destructive effects.]

...

Compared to the other two leader bosses, the Spider Leader's weaknesses are quite direct; disabling its eight spider legs is basically equivalent to winning the battle. Although the three-person squad lacks specific counter-items obtained from the Mantis Matriarch, the melee skill [Sword Arts: Cleave], possessed by "Not an Expert," can also achieve a destructive effect. After losing one leg, the Spider Leader not only had its mobility impaired but also began to bleed, and the weakening magic cast by Lu Renjia made its situation even worse.

Since the beginning of the battle, the Spider Leader had been repeatedly wounded. It was supposed to be the one laying the ambush, but instead, it was caught off guard and ambushed itself. Its route back to the nest was completely sealed off, preventing it from successfully regrouping with the Spider Matriarch. Driven to a dead end, it had no choice but to fight the aggressive humans to the death. However, what made it even more desperate was that the attack range of the fierce human before it was comparable to its own. Two attempts at spider-spear piercing were blocked once and dodged once. Just as it prepared to use venom to kill its opponent, it was sneak-attacked again, losing another leg.

Stung by pain, the Spider Leader turned around in a rage, wanting to poison the human who had successfully snuck up on it, but a ball of black flame suddenly exploded before its eyes, causing it to fall into a temporary state of blindness. In its panic, it launched a hasty attack and, unsurprisingly, missed completely.

"The situation is good! Keep it up!"

Seeing "Not an Expert" escape successfully, Ember felt greatly encouraged. He gave Lu Renjia a thumbs-up without looking back and then charged toward the temporarily incapacitated Spider Leader.

Seeing this, Lu Renjia smiled knowingly and silently charged his next magic skill.

The coordination of the three was not exactly sophisticated, but it was very well-suited for fighting the Spider Leader. Ember, who was already adept at defense, could focus more on neutralizing attacks. While he firmly drew the aggro, the bold and meticulous "Not an Expert" could take the opportunity to launch surprise attacks. After succeeding, he didn't need to worry about how to escape; the blinding skill possessed by Lu Renjia was just enough to create an escape window for "Not an Expert," while also helping Ember showcase his damage-dealing capabilities.

[Hint: You activated the active skill "Stick Arts: Headshot," reducing the target's head defense rating by one point.] (30/2.5=12)
[Hint: You dealt thirty points of damage to the "Juvenile Shadow-Eater Bug."]
[Hint: The "Juvenile Shadow-Eater Bug's" agility rating is less than six points, so it cannot ignore the "Slow" status of "Normal" rating. For the next five seconds, both attack speed and movement speed are reduced by 25%.]

The Spider Leader, with an agility rating of five, resisted the paralysis status but was still affected by the slow effect, which practically sentenced it to death. Five seconds later, Ember not only brought the Spider Leader below half health but also took the opportunity to recover his stamina. "Not an Expert" and Lu Renjia also finished their skill cooldowns, launching another round of continuous attacks without pause.

Two consecutive combo sets left the Spider Leader with no power to retaliate. Just before dying, it managed to deal over thirty points of damage to Ember with an Enhanced Piercing attack, only to be headshot and killed by his Active Soft Bio-Arm.

[Hint: You have killed the leader-level boss "Juvenile Shadow-Eater Bug," gaining a large amount of contribution points and one kill point.]
[Broadcast: Foundation reserve employees "D037," "D1106," and University reserve student "U998" have successfully destroyed the tenth medium-sized insect nest!]

"That was fast. Only three large insect nests left to reach the assessment goal!"

Ember patted the spot where he had been stabbed by the spider spear and then smiled happily at his two teammates: "Pleasure working with you."

"As long as you don't act like Xiao Xifeng, our collaboration will definitely be very pleasant."

"Hahahaha!"

"Not an Expert" made a rare joke, causing Lu Renjia to immediately drop his cold facade. He looked at Ember and said earnestly, "You are stronger than I imagined."

"Likewise."

Ember's response was also sincere. According to Beijiu Jiannong's introduction, although the university does not restrict a player's development path, the current "courses" are mainly related to heat, meaning most university players can only learn Ice and Fire magic skills for the time being. Skills like the Taoist's lightning magic, Lu Renjia's dark magic, and even Beijiu Jiannong's crossbow skills require special conditions to be mastered.

Therefore, in a sense, Lu Renjia's existence was even more special than Ember's. At least the latter had not yet deviated from the conventional path; the two weapons in his hands were both melee, and he was not as versatile as "Not an Expert." This inspired Ember: it was time to bench the Dire Wolf Gauntlets, switch to a firearm, or find a shield to fully transition into a melee tank.

"I wonder when Abyssal Paradise will open up off-hand equipment and two-handed weapons?"

Ember shook his head and then checked the Spider Leader's loot: a venomous fang and a weapon enhancement material shaped like a spider spear. Having already obtained one weapon material, he gave it to "Not an Expert." As for the spider fang, he kept it; this item would have a restraining effect on the Ant Lord, making it more suitable for him to carry. Afterward, the three worked together to kill two Spider Matriarchs, obtaining a spider egg and a Flame Badge with a "Golden Body" effect.

"Take it. My Sun Badge already has a Golden Body effect. In a critical moment, you can use it to save your life."

"This... it's better to give it to Expert first. He's melee and needs it more than I do."

"No, your stat allocation is too heavily skewed toward perception, and your skills aren't purely for survival. If you encounter an accident, it's easy to die suddenly. With Ember as the main tank, the pressure on me won't be too great, so you don't need to worry about me. Just take the badge."

"Thank you, truly, thank you."

"It's what you deserve, no need to thank me."

Seeing Lu Renjia accept the Sun Badge quite solemnly, Ember and "Not an Expert" smiled at each other. At least from now on, the three-person squad was on the right track, and if they encountered an unexpected situation, they could safely entrust their backs to their teammates.

With the spider egg in hand, they naturally needed to find another Ant Leader to obtain the counter-item, which would ensure they had a way to restrain the Water Company's leader boss. The small mantis, which had not appeared in the battle with the Spider Leader, had also raised its strength beyond the elite level by absorbing the life essence of one leader and two bosses. Ember estimated that after clearing at most two or three more medium-sized insect nests, it would be able to break through its life shackles and reach the juvenile stage.

"The growth rate isn't as fast as the Blood Vine, but it's still terrifying. This creature's structure is more complex, and its combat ability is stronger. I wonder what the mother form of the Shadow-Eater Bug looks like? Will it also be carved on that Evil God mural?"

While Ember and the others were searching for medium-sized insect nests, the third Shadow Storm arrived on schedule. This time, the ruins of the school were swallowed by the storm, further compressing the players' activity space. Players who had rushed into the center of the island early on clashed with the latecomers who had "fled from the wind," and the first wave of chaotic battle broke out. Within seven minutes, there were as many as thirteen kill notifications.

This made the players who hadn't entered the central town feel the suffocating scent of blood.

The many players who successfully fought their way through gained a visceral understanding of the cruel nature of the Island of Slaughter.

"There are fifty minutes left in the game time, and there are only about forty players left. Do you think it's possible that we won't be able to finish the assessment goal by the end?"

"That would be hilarious!"

"If we really fail the assessment, it'll definitely count as a broadcast accident. Since Singularity Company dared to broadcast it, they should have enough confidence. I think even if there are only a handful of players left, they'll create conditions to reach the goal."

"The main quests scattered on the isolated island all point to the same location. Generally speaking, the purpose of main quests is to help players achieve the assessment goal. Although the assessment goal of the Island of Slaughter and the mission requirements overlap, according to my judgment, either you get special items after completing the main quests to clear the other two large insect nests, or the extra kill points have some unknown use."

"That makes sense!"

In the beta player discussion group, the chaos triggered another wave of intense discussion. Many eliminated players also expressed their feelings one after another. Most could keep their emotions in check, only complaining about bad luck or regretting not getting more points, but a few furious ones chose to curse on the public screen, which attracted many onlookers.

The most famous among them were "Sweeping Through the Army" and "Xiao Xifeng." Both stated they would kill Ember and force him to delete his account after the official launch to vent their hatred. However, the statements of these two famous figures were, unsurprisingly, met with a barrage of spit from the masses. Their elimination processes were all on the live broadcast; one was a land-grabbing bully, the other was shameless, and they were naturally on the opposite side of the public. Publicly denouncing Ember, the righteous hero who cleared the pests for the people, in the discussion group was no different from asking for trouble.

The discussion group's moderators didn't hold back, directly deleting posts and banning them. Even though these two were wealthy sponsors who were hard to offend, the problem was that not doing so would offend even more sponsors.

Because even in the online world, there are more good people than bad.