Compared to ordinary players, the team Bai Xia now belonged to was undeniably far more formidable.
Consider this five-person lineup: a legally loli assassin who doubled as their team’s mascot, a warrior who was both a legendary expert and a wealthy patron, a healer whose restorative power (physical, no less) was explosive, a fire mage whose chest size was inversely proportional to their combat prowess, and a tank who appeared to be a veritable winner at life.
What could possibly stand against such a team… yet, for Bai Xia and her companions, this daily dungeon presented a genuine challenge.
Firstly, this was their inaugural dungeon run, and as ‘pioneers,’ they possessed virtually no useful intel.
Secondly, the immense level disparity meant most were still novices in their respective classes.
Even Tian Zheng and Qian Zhong, despite their familiarity with each other’s strengths, were experiencing their first team dungeon run in a holographic online game, thus necessitating a period of adjustment for their synergy.
In such circumstances, confronting a dungeon of this caliber, a sudden and explosive defeat seemed far from impossible.
However, neither Bai Xia nor the others bore much psychological burden regarding this endeavor; ultimately, they were merely using this dungeon as a proving ground for their teamwork and a chance to gauge the difficulty of this unique challenge.
Failure would cost them nothing, certainly not a pound of flesh, nor would it lead to the ignominious streaking penalty they’d faced last time.
While a relaxed mindset during combat was indeed beneficial, an overly casual approach would undoubtedly be tantamount to courting disaster.
Thus, before the battle commenced, Bai Xia wasted no time.
As tendrils of purplish-black mist coalesced around her, her attire transformed, enveloped by a black and crimson sailor uniform, a clear indication that she was prepared to unleash her full power from the outset.
Yet, before she could fully commit…
“Magical girl transformation?!”
A startled exclamation from beside her nearly caused Bai Xia to stumble and fall.
Casting a speechless glance at the overly dramatic Qian Qiao and the curiously observing Dream Butterfly, Bai Xia, too disinclined to offer a response, merely maintained her poker face, resuming her role as the stoic, ‘three-no’ loli.
Fortunately, just as they prepared to interrogate her, an Elemental Spirit on the other side moved in first, prompting Bai Xia to decisively charge forward to meet it.
The Elemental Spirits possessed an undeniably charming appearance.
Lacking both hands and feet, they nonetheless floated effortlessly in mid-air, moving with remarkable swiftness, drifting within the group’s attack range in the blink of an eye.
As Bai Xia drew near, the Elemental Spirit’s large, dewy eyes instantly narrowed into mere slits.
Then, the ice wisps that had been swirling around it converged rapidly, transforming in a blink into three ice spikes, each as long as a human arm!
The instant these ice spikes materialized, they locked onto Bai Xia, hurtling towards her with a faint, slicing whisper through the air.
“Shadow Step!”
Bai Xia harbored no desire to experience the impact of a Level 15 monster’s attack, even if it was merely from a common variant.
Therefore, in the very next moment, she unhesitatingly activated the new skill she had recently mastered.
Shadow Step, a skill attainable by assassins upon reaching Level 10.
Once activated, it continuously consumes mana to enhance the user’s movement speed and evasion rate, while simultaneously offering a chance to leave behind a deceptive trail of afterimages during movement, thereby confounding adversaries.
Upon activating Shadow Step, a swirling vortex of illusory grey mist abruptly materialized around Shura’s Fatal Strike (TL Note: A weapon or skill name).
This ethereal shroud enveloped Bai Xia’s form, propelling her speed to yet another heightened level, while the trailing succession of grey afterimages mimicked the fleeting blurs left by objects moving at their absolute zenith.
With Swift Wind, equipment bonuses, and Shadow Step—a triple stacking of enhancements—Bai Xia traversed the distance to the Elemental Spirit in less than two seconds, the three ice spikes failing to even graze the hem of her garment.
As she closed in, the Shadow Dagger clutched tightly in Bai Xia’s hand suddenly became wreathed in a lurid crimson glow.
The ominous radiance shimmered, filled with an unsettling hue, reminiscent of a demon’s wide, cold, vertical pupil.
“Fatal Strike!”
Fatal Strike, another skill available to assassins upon reaching Level 10.
When activated, it momentarily amplifies damage, guarantees a critical hit on the next strike, and, when targeting a weak point, carries a small probability of triggering a double critical hit!
Thus…
“Pop!”
The Shadow Dagger plunged mercilessly into the Elemental Spirit’s rotund body.
A colossal damage number erupted from its form, and then, like a bursting bubble, its entire being detonated into a myriad of shimmering ice wisps.
Backstab, amplified Fatal Strike damage, bonus damage from Shura’s Fatal Strike, increased skill attack power, a weak point hit, and a high critical rate… a complete instant kill!
“Eh?”
Bai Xia, utterly unprepared for an instant kill, found herself momentarily bewildered.
She couldn’t fathom how a weak point attack had been triggered; after all, the Elemental Spirit had appeared to be nothing more than a sphere.
What weak point could a mere sphere possess?
Then, as if in direct response to her unspoken query, the system’s voice suddenly chimed in.
[Hint: All monsters in this trial are formed from natural forces, thus only by dealing damage to the ‘Natural Core’ within the monster’s body can a weak point attack be triggered, inflicting additional damage.
Normal weak point attacks receive no bonus.]
Bai Xia: “…”
Could such a thing truly be?
Had she merely been a blind cat stumbling upon a dead mouse, her dagger coincidentally piercing directly into this ‘Natural Core’ hidden within the Elemental Spirit?
Whether it was an extraordinary coincidence or simply a stroke of luck, dispatching an Elemental Spirit with a single strike was, ultimately, a positive outcome.
Concurrently, not far away, another Elemental Spirit that had been poised to ambush Bai Xia was engulfed by a massive deluge of flames descending from above just as it began to coalesce ice spikes.
Tian Zheng arrived immediately thereafter, utilizing the Warrior’s Level 10 skill, Skyfall (TL Note: A warrior skill), to leap high and smash the creature to the ground with a powerful sword strike.
Skyfall, a skill accessible to warriors upon reaching Level 10, not only inflicts damage and impact upon descent, but also stuns the weapon’s target for up to two seconds.
Tian Zheng then unhesitatingly brought down his cleaver, and with the aid of Qian Qiao’s fiery arrows, cleaved the stunned creature into fragments.
While two Level 15 monsters might pose a significant challenge to ordinary players at this stage, for Bai Xia and Qing Qiu, who had witnessed far more formidable entities, they were mere trifles, especially with the combined efforts of their teammates.
Yet, the elimination of two Elemental Spirits hardly signaled the end; instead, it marked merely the beginning, for the first wave of the trial demanded the eradication of no less than twenty Elemental Spirits!
If they were to emerge in pairs, they would pose no discernible threat, and Bai Xia alone could effortlessly dispatch them.
But could the system truly permit such an easy victory?
The answer, naturally, was a resounding no.
Thus, mere seconds after the two Elemental Spirits were vanquished, four entirely new Elemental Spirits manifested around them!
Moreover, unlike the preceding pair, this second wave of four Elemental Spirits included two fire-attributed variants, capable of conjuring both fireballs and barrages of flame.
These two fire-attributed Elemental Spirits presented a minor complication for the group, as Qian Qiao’s primary fire magic inflicted only half its usual damage upon them.
Yet, this was but a fleeting inconvenience.
Under the relentless assault of Tian Zheng and Bai Xia, they failed to endure even three minutes before returning to the natural world alongside their fallen companions.