Genius Chapter 30: Rotating Sacrifice

Chapter 30: Rotating Sacrifice

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

LuckyScarletFruit, being the most popular game merchant recently, had a lot of attention whenever he posted about item trades, let alone a ticket-selling post. The post went live a little after 11 PM, and within minutes, there were heaps of replies.

[Whoa, ScarletFruit has started selling tickets!]

[??? Is the event group shopping now, Boss Fruit?]

[Not guaranteeing success and asking for 3000 gold? Boss Fruit, you’re asking too much!]

[3000 gold for a quest opportunity? Sounds fair to me!]

[!!!! I just got ditched by my friends; do I still have a chance? Check me out. [Performance link]]

[Everyone, don’t rush. The post says it doesn’t guarantee success. 3000 gold for a quest chest isn’t a sure thing.]

The initial reactions varied. Some were begging for a spot, some found the price too high, and others asked if they could join with their current gear. Generous wealthy players posted their performance and gear stats directly in the thread. Some were still watching, until certain top players posted introductions—

Apple: Magic swordsman, dungeon comprehensive S, good awareness [link]

FireworksAndLanterns: Considering a summoner? Dungeon comprehensive A+ [link]

ChatMasterWu: Assassin [link]

……

Other forum players: ??? Why are the leaderboard big shots joining in too!!!

[Whoa, if the big shots are joining…]

[Did you all forget? Momo’s team of four cleared the Misty Sea.]

This time, only six teams could clear it. To ensure success, other teams either brought their own friends or teamed up with stronger players. Once the big shots posted, combined with the precedent set by the Misty Sea, the success rate seemed to increase significantly. More and more professionals signed up, and there were thousands of replies even late at night.

ScarletFruit was very surprised. It was a sure thing! Even the leaderboard big shots were in.

He excitedly collected the professional data from the posts, compiled it, and discussed it with the group, exchanging thousands of messages with ClearWind.

Su Mo woke up at 6 AM for morning exercise and saw ScarletFruit’s data when he got back. After going through the posts, he picked a few professionals.

At 7 AM, with the others still asleep, Su Mo went through the data out of boredom and put the selected professionals in the group chat, planning to discuss them once the others woke up. At 7:30, UnchainedWanderer chimed in. Su Mo greeted him, and UnchainedWanderer circled the choices Su Mo posted.

UnchainedWanderer: The best DPS mix is a balance of melee and ranged. The top melee professions are Physical Swordsman and Assassin, and the top ranged are magic swordsman, Daoist Priest, and mage. These are the top DPS professions in the current dungeons. The ones I circled have good awareness and operations; you can consider them.

mo: 1 tank, 1 healer, 4 DPS?

UnchainedWanderer: Yes, pick a healer for the healing role.

In Celestial Horizon, there were only two healing professions: Spirit Sanctuary Druid, played by ScarletFruit, and the current strong healing profession, Cloak Residence Healer. The Spirit Sanctuary Druid was more of a support healer with a combat resurrection skill on a 10-minute cooldown. In contrast, the Cloak Residence Healer’s skills were predominantly healing-based, allowing for continuous healing as long as mana permits, with a combat resurrection cooldown of only 3 minutes. However, the Cloak Residence Healer lacked support skills and had only one survival skill.

Su Mo reviewed the data compiled by ScarletFruit again. Most applicants were DPS, with quite a few healers, but selecting a tank warrior was challenging. Their current lineup lacked a tank warrior, so the chosen warrior needed to bear significant responsibilities, manage aggro effectively, and stabilize the group during crucial moments.

The warrior applicants were of varying quality. Celestial Horizon has a specialized dungeon rating system that shows players’ damage taken, output, and healing data in each dungeon. These warriors had only average damage taken stats, indicating they were usable but not outstanding.

Yu Zhen had similar thoughts. The two best tank warriors in the group were already taken by CloudTraveller’s team. Other warriors were acceptable, but the early morning raid time was inconvenient for them.

A warrior… one with appropriate skills and outstanding capabilities.

Su Mo suddenly thought of a certain ID and hurriedly logged in. Sure enough, [SnackTimeBear] was online, so he sent an invitation.

By the time ScarletFruit woke up, the two big shots in the group had already chosen the team members. He quickly contacted the applicants through the forum and assembled the team before 8:50. Besides their four core members, the two big shots selected a healer, and the DPS roles were filled by a magic swordsman, a mage, an Assassin, and a Physical Swordsman. The warrior role didn’t need to be filled; Momo found an external aid, free of charge.

The group logged in and formed up. By 9:10, almost everyone was present, except for the Physical Swordsman.

ScarletFruit collected the fees from each member, quickly amassing 12,000 gold. For safety, he made a trip to the warehouse to deposit the money. “Why isn’t the Physical Swordsman online yet?”

Su Mo asked, “Did you tell him 9 o’clock?”

ScarletFruit frowned, “I did. He even replied, saying okay. It’s almost 20 minutes past now, and he still isn’t online.”

“Find a replacement,” Yu Zhen suggested. “We can’t waste everyone’s time.”

ScarletFruit reluctantly started searching through the forum posts again. “Finding a replacement is tough. It will probably take half an hour to contact someone. This Physical Swordsman is such a letdown.”

The group stood on the first floor of the Desert Inn, with people bustling around.

At this moment, a player approached the team. “Are you challenging the third stage?”

“Yes, why?” ScarletFruit responded, turning to see a female Assassin standing nearby. She had hidden her ID, and her petite frame stood out among the other players. She submitted a team application and, upon joining, posted a series of performance stats.

Dungeon rating: S, Level 70, ID: ZenSlasher.

“ZenSlasher? This ID sounds familiar,” ClearWind commented. “Where have I seen it before?”

Su Mo tilted his head slightly to look at her. He remembered this female Assassin from before; she was the solo occupant of the room opposite theirs during the second stage. Switching to team voice chat, he asked, “I remember you have the lodging rights at the Desert Inn.”

The female Assassin paused, seemingly surprised that someone had noticed this detail. After a moment of hesitation, she responded, “Yes, I also have the challenge rights.”

Challenge rights? So she cleared the second stage alone!?

ScarletFruit was stunned, “You cleared it solo? That’s impressive. With challenge rights, you could have easily formed your own team.”

“I used a special item to clear it,” the female Assassin explained, hesitating before continuing. “The dungeon challenge mechanism has been revised. Players without challenge rights can only get one chest, but there’s no restriction on merging two teams with challenge rights. I couldn’t clear it alone, so I had to find another team to cooperate with.”

At this point, ClearWind suddenly remembered something and switched to team voice chat, “Bro, I remember who ZenSlasher is now! She used to be with the big guild Temple of the Gods but got expelled. Now, she’s being hunted by them. I’ve heard about this; apparently, she had some conflicts with the guild’s management. Temple of the Gods members have been trash-talking her on the forums, calling her names, but she hasn’t responded to any of it.”

ClearWind continued, “No wonder she said she couldn’t form a team on her own. If she tried to recruit on the Global Channel, Temple of the Gods would definitely interfere.”

Su Mo paused slightly, “Are there any proofs in the posts?”

“I didn’t see any concrete evidence. Temple of the Gods has a mixed reputation, similar to Eternal Flame. Both guilds are rumored to be in an alliance,” ClearWind reflected. “The forum’s war section is dominated by the big guilds. This issue caused quite a stir back then. Now, she’s being hunted by the Temple of the Gods, but her skills are impressive. She was once in the top 20 of the Assassin rankings.”

“Then let’s include her. Her performance is good, and she can replace the melee Physical Swordsman, saving us time,” Su Mo said calmly. “Remember to collect the fee.”

ScarletFruit immediately spoke in the team channel, “Miss, we can include you, but our group charges a 3000 gold entry fee.”

The female Assassin was taken aback, her eyes showing a hint of surprise, but she quickly relaxed, “3000 gold, right? Give me a moment, I’ll fetch it from the warehouse.”

She soon paid the fee, and the dungeon group successfully assembled before 9:30. Besides the warrior SnackTimeBear and the female Assassin ZenSlasher, the other team members included notable leaderboard players: the magic swordsman Apple, the mage Mewminati, and the Assassin ChatMasterWu. The healer SubmergedFish was a dungeon-rated S healer.

[Detected 10 members in your team, with 5 members possessing challenge rights. Do you wish to start the challenge?]

Su Mo confirmed.

[Desert Inn ultimate dungeon has been activated. Based on the team’s overall evaluation, the difficulty level has been adjusted to S+. The boss level is set to nearly level 70, with temporary removal of the damage level decrement restriction. Good luck to all.]

“Whoa, it’s S+ difficulty?” ScarletFruit was shocked, “This is my first time encountering an S+ dungeon.”

Yu Zhen commented succinctly, “Not surprising, considering 2 of our team members have S-class ratings. They elevated the dungeon difficulty.”

ScarletFruit realized, “So that’s why. If I’d known, I would have formed a lower-rated team. Luckily, the level restriction is lifted.”

Apple, ChatMasterWu, and Mewminati: “…?” Are you implying we’re dragging the team down?

They had previously run dungeons with ReturnToSimplicity and knew he was tough and taciturn. This time, joining the group, they paid their fee under the complex gazes of their fellow explorers, enduring countless taunts and envy from FireworksAndLanterns. After finally getting into the group, they were now being complained about for having too high a dungeon rating?!

The ten-member team descended the stone steps from the inn’s room entrance into an eerie, damp environment.

ScarletFruit asked, “ClearWind, did you start the livestream?”

“It’s been on for a while,” ClearWind replied with a chuckle. “I even put up ads for your shop.”

The female Assassin paused, “You’re streaming this?”

“Yeah, this is the Desert Inn dungeon. We’re streaming to capitalize on the first wave of traffic,” ScarletFruit explained, plotting, “My shop relies on traffic, so it’s a win-win.”

ClearWind agreed, “Naturally.”

The group soon reached a strange crossroads where the narrow passage widened into a sunken path. As soon as they stepped in, they felt the discomfort of the terrain. The ground was muddy, with water reaching their ankles, and the deeper they went, the slower their movement became. Su Mo glanced at the quest status and saw a debuff that reduced their speed.

Apple coughed, “Last night, CloudTraveller’s first group failed twice here. The first failure was in this mud. According to them, the mud will reach waist-deep further in. The first boss appears after that and grabs someone every five seconds, prioritizing healers. They wiped the first time because both healers were grabbed, and the boss’s subsequent AoE attacks wiped them out.”

Su Mo had discussed this with UnchainedWanderer beforehand. UnchainedWanderer had obtained firsthand information from an unnamed source. CloudTraveller, the top warrior, led his team last night and was currently stuck at the second boss. Other teams had similar issues, mostly wiping here or lacking DPS, leading to the first boss’s enrage.

“Here’s a quick rundown of the situation. The first boss is a swamp monster with three skills,” Su Mo explained while walking. “The first skill is a grab. It targets someone every five seconds. The grabbed person takes continuous damage for five seconds, and squishy professions will likely get killed. The second skill is AoE. Given the terrain, there’s no place to hide. We’ll have to mitigate the damage with healing and damage reduction. The third skill is a cone-shaped AOE where the boss throws mud projectiles in our direction. This one can be dodged with positioning.”

“The boss has a timed enrage. From the moment we start dealing damage, it enrages in about ten minutes,” Su Mo continued. “So, once SnackTimeBear engages, all DPS must go all out. SubmergedFish will focus on keeping SnackTimeBear alive. ScarletFruit will handle group healing. Assassins and the Physical Swordsman will stay behind the boss to avoid its normal attacks. For the ranged professions, the array master will stay near ScarletFruit, and the mage will stay near SubmergedFish. If the boss targets a healer, the others must protect them.”

The grab skill was the most troublesome. While the boss’s HP wasn’t high, the frequent grabs disrupted skill rotations, and grabbing healers was especially detrimental. The grab had to succeed; otherwise, it would keep trying until it did.

Apple sympathetically looked at Yu Zhen, “The boss’s HP is much higher at S+ difficulty. Are the array master and mage prepared for the damage output?”

“The array master and mage have two survival skills each; they can endure five seconds,” Su Mo replied simply. “Unless you want to take their place? Can you last five seconds?”

Known for being squishy, Apple quickly declined, “Let the array master handle it. He’s reliable.”

The group quickly reached the swamp monster’s location, where the mud debuff reduced everyone’s movement speed by 80%, making it impossible for professions with low mobility to move effectively.

“For the first wave, we’ll test the skill patterns. SnackTimeBear, if anything goes wrong, pull the boss away immediately,” Su Mo commanded. 

The warrior, SnackTimeBear, sprinted forward to engage the boss, and the rest of the team quickly positioned themselves. Su Mo summoned his familiar, opting for Veil Wraith over Soul Rabbit due to its suitability for this boss fight. The small Veil Wraith floated over the swamp, sticking close to Su Mo.

Fifteen seconds into the fight, the swamp monster initiated its first targeting sequence. It targeted ScarletFruit, the cleric. ScarletFruit hurriedly moved forward while Yu Zhen repositioned to take the hit. Mud tendrils emerged and ensnared the array master, dragging him down.

[Hey hey, got you! UnchainedWanderer]

While attacking, Su Mo’s attention shifted to UnchainedWanderer, who activated his shield. His health dropped to 40% but then stabilized. The boss then launched an AoE attack.

Su Mo’s eyes narrowed. Damn! UnchainedWanderer’s health is too low!

The AoE hit, dropping everyone’s health to 60%, but UnchainedWanderer survived, having used a health potion at a critical moment. “Targeting again,” he warned.

[I want to play with you~ ScarletFruit14~]

ScarletFruit cursed, “Damn! It’s me again!”

Yu Zhen, having just emerged from the mud, was too far to reach ScarletFruit in time. “Run!”

[I want to play with you~ ScarletFruit14~]

ScarletFruit ran, dodging twice, but on the third attempt, he was dragged underground, and his health was wiped out.

“How did the healer die?” asked Mewminati, the nearby mage.

Su Mo frowned, noticing a change in the boss’s status bar. “If it doesn’t catch someone, its skill damage increases. Scarlet dodged three times and took triple damage when he was finally caught.”

The team was stunned. How were they supposed to handle this if the boss kept targeting the healer?

Apple added, “CloudTraveller’s group used a substitution method, rotating four DPS to take the hits. They had a mage and a Daoist priest, not a magic swordsman or summoner.”

Magic swordsman and summoner professions lacked long-term survival skills, meaning they would likely die if grabbed. Su Mo pondered; using four players to alternate taking the hits wasn’t a reliable strategy. The cooldown on healer and spirit sanctuary’s resurrection skills was limited, making it impossible to maintain this rotation indefinitely. The team’s rhythm would break once the cycle failed.

Su Mo furrowed his brow. This isn’t right. Based on Celestial Horizon’s dungeon design, it’s unlikely they’d only allow professions with survival skills to complete the dungeon. There must be another strategy to counter this grab attack… but what?

[I want to play with you~ SubmergedFish~]

SubmergedFish nervously said, “It targeted me again.”

The mage had just substituted for her five seconds ago.

“You go, I’ll take over,” Apple, being the closest to the healer, didn’t hesitate and immediately went over.

In just three seconds, the magic swordsman died, and his body floated up from the mud.

ScarletFruit said, “This death is quite miserable.”

Apple was silent for a moment, “Sacrificing for the team is worth it.”

ScarletFruit immediately revived him, “Both of our combat resurrections are on cooldown.”

[Really want to play with you~ ScarletFruit14~]

ScarletFruit said, “Damn, it targeted me again!”

Yu Zhen calmly stepped in, “Don’t panic, Momo, be ready.”

Su Mo moved to ScarletFruit’s side, continuing to output damage while noting ScarletFruit’s coordinates. An idea struck him, and he summoned LunarFeline, adjusting the coordinates, and took a step forward. At this moment, the Swamp Monster targeted again, predictably aiming for ScarletFruit. When the grabbing hand emerged from the ground, the area attack and mud bullets appeared simultaneously. SnackTimeBear promptly adjusted the boss’s facing, but the two nearby assassins were hit twice by the mud bullets, reducing their health to zero.

Seeing the situation going awry, Su Mo ordered, “Little Bear, pull the boss off.”

SnackTimeBear decisively pulled the boss away, running out of range, and the boss reset.

SubmergedFish said, “Cooldowns still have a while. Too many died in this wave.”

“The mud bullets are very fast, with no skill indicators, and the attack range is closer than we thought,” Su Mo frowned, “Melee DPS shouldn’t get too close.”

The two assassins lay on the ground, waiting for rescue.

The others disengaged and moved to a distance. Seeing this, ScarletFruit said in surprise, “Brother, you didn’t get pulled in just now?”

Su Mo replied, “No. Little Bear, taunt the monster again. When the cooldowns are ready, you two go revive the assassins.”

A full team wipe would result in failure. This time they hadn’t wiped, and the dungeon’s conditions allowed pulling the boss off. It was better to rest and then challenge again.

SubmergedFish waited for the cooldowns, and with Little Bear’s help, they took turns reviving the two assassins, “There’s no other way. The healer and I can’t keep up with the combat resurrections. The healer’s combat resurrection cooldown is short, but every revival triggers a global cooldown, and too many deaths can cause a healing gap.”

The mage Mewminati added, “Four ranged taking turns to handle the grabs will also cause an output gap. We can’t withstand the 10-minute enrage.”

Everyone looked at the team’s only commander, waiting for the summoner’s decision.

Su Mo calmly said, “Then let’s change the strategy. The four ranged don’t need to protect the healers, focus on full output.”

Everyone, “???”

ScarletFruit said, “Brother, although I’m usually a bit stingy, SubmergedFish is innocent.”

Yu Zhen looked at the summoner in confusion, “Do you have a way?”

“Yes.” Su Mo reviewed the combat logs and skill list, “I guarantee it won’t grab you.”

Author’s note: 

ScarletFruit: When will I be able to get into my brother’s heart? 

ClearWind: Your brother even sells Brother Wanderer. 

ScarletFruit: That’s because Brother Wanderer isn’t competent.

—

SnackTimeBear is a warrior who appeared in chapter 26 and added Momo as a friend.

Clarifications for terms in the comments section:

Flaming Thunder Mountain warrior: A warrior in Celestial Horizon profession, referred to as warrior in the text, usually a tank (T).

DPS: Damage Per Second, meaning very violent damage dealers, such as Daoist priest, Swordsman, summoner, mage, and array master.

Healer: A profession that heals, referred to as healer, cleric or druid in the text.

Combat Res: Combat resurrection, which allows reviving a dead teammate.

Pull off: Pulling away to disengage from combat, meaning the whole team disengages, and the boss’s health resets to 100% before re-engaging.

Typical dungeon configuration: 1 tank, 1 healer, 3 DPS (per team).

—

This dungeon team’s configuration:

Main Tank: SnackTimeBear;  

Melee DPS: Physical Sword (ClearWindIsHere), Assassins (ChatMasterWu, ZenSlasher);  

Ranged DPS: Summoner (Momo), magic sword (Apple), Array Master (UnchainedWanderer), mage (Mewminati);  

Healers: Cleric (ScarletFruit), Healer (SubmergedFish).