Chapter 33: Boss Soul Lock
Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations
Editor: Karai
CloudTraveller received the temporary strategy from ReturnToSimplicity and quickly cleared the second stage. When he had some free time to check the group chat messages, he found FireworksAndLanterns crazily mentioning him in the group.
FireworksAndLanterns: “You didn’t mention me, CloudTraveller. Look at others’ groups.”
FireworksAndLanterns: “A summoner can even act as a deputy tank! @CloudTraveller”
CloudTraveller went through the chat records and only then realized that momo’s group not only cleared the second stage using dungeon mechanisms but also passed the first stage using coordinate substitution principles. This rapid clearing method truly caught his attention. There were also other posts shared in the group, and that’s when he learned that momo’s group had a livestreamer player who broadcasted the entire clearance process.
There were numerous discussions on the StarNet forum, with many real-time posts being followed from momo’s group’s first stage.
[Wow, this grabbing mechanism is too annoying.]
[Seriously, according to this logic, except for those few professions, are the other roles not worthy of this quest?]
[It’s tough; the DPS configuration in their group is too diverse…]
ClearWindIsHere only started the livestream without enabling barrage interaction to concentrate attention and was completely unaware of the heated discussion outside regarding their clearance. Many players weren’t very optimistic about their clearance method until the summoner started using card coordinates to substitute for grabs. This triggered a small climax in online discussions, and the livestream room went crazy.
[Isn’t this amazing? How does the summoner’s mind work? He commands so calmly.]
[To substitute for grabs, he needs to memorize the positions of his teammates and anticipate boss targetings in advance, letting summon creatures replace the coordinates in the first instance.]
[How does he manage with so many teammates?]
[Momo is too strong; I really want to join his group next time. It must be very comfortable.]
However, the first boss was just the appetizer. When the second boss, Frail Woman, appeared, both the livestream room and the forum were once again filled with doubts about life. A dungeon boss actually had such complex mechanisms: the shackles were deadly, the flying snow stacked debuffs and continuously pressured healers, and most importantly, there was an enhanced outbreak. Was this S+ ranked six-star difficulty event really this insane? Everyone watched the clearance with bated breath, especially during several close calls when they narrowly avoided being hit by flying snow, making the whole experience thrilling. And in the end, it turned out that this second boss was a mechanic monster, not the real boss!?
[It’s actually the innkeeper’s wife. I used to always hear the innkeeper on the bounty board mentioning her for travels, but this is the first time seeing her. She’s a beautiful NPC!]
[After hearing the summoner’s explanation, why do I feel like he thinks this dungeon is simple?]
[If the real-fake boss mechanism can be played like this, the difficulty indeed drops a bit from the beginning, but it’s not low, is it? Clearance without skills is simply hellish difficulty.]
[How did he manage to observe, think, and fight at the same time? And he’s playing as a summoner, if I remember correctly, summoners need to multitask, right?]
[Although CloudTraveller’s team provided skill intelligence… the summoner is still so strong, how long did they spend to clear the first and second stages?]
[I’m kind of looking forward to them fighting the third boss.]
CloudTraveller briefly scanned the forum posts, where other players summarized momo’s clearance techniques for the first two bosses. It had to be said that summoner momo’s clearance method was much stronger than theirs. Most of their team consisted of high-tier players, and when they tackled the first boss, they mainly relied on teamwork to push through, which still brought some pressure in practice.
Knowing the summoner’s method, their clearance time could be further reduced. After browsing through related posts, he suddenly noticed a link to a livestream room.
The summoner’s group should be at the third boss by now… CloudTraveller thought and decided to click in to check the situation. However, upon entering, he was greeted with a poker table and the familiar voices ringing in his ears.
Apple: “Damn, how did you win again?”
ChatMasterWu: “Something’s not right, are you cheating?”
ScarletFruit, with a flush face, collected the cards, “I yield, I yield. Shall we play another round?”
Livestreamer ClearWindIsHere was reporting on the situation at the poker table, “Alright, the tenth round has ended, the banker wins.”
[Wow, ScarletFruit won again, his cards are just too good, aren’t they?]
[As far as I know, ScarletFruit’s character’s luck value is extremely high, you can tell just by looking at how he opens equipment boxes.]
[Does luck value also affect playing cards? I should get a set of lucky gear too.]
Mewminati: “ChatMasterWu, are you going to play cards? Let me have a turn.”
SubmergedFish, timidly, “Can I try?”
The livestream room was lively. CloudTraveller, who had intended to gather information, looked up at the title of the livestream room — ‘Lunch Break Poker, Welcome to Place Your Bets’. Did he enter the wrong livestream room?
When Su Mo came online, ScarletFruit had already amassed a fortune. He noticed that some members of the team were in low spirits while others were high-spirited. He couldn’t help but look at UnchainedWanderer beside him and asked, “Did they not rest well during lunch break?”
Yu Zhen hesitated slightly at Su Mo’s question, “They should have rested.”
Playing cards was considered entertainment and relaxation.
The group geared up and headed towards the deepest part of the underground passage. The NPC innkeeper’s wife led the way, quickly bringing the players to the deepest part where they stood on a high platform overlooking a glowing symbol array. Half of the array was damaged, emitting a strong black aura. The final boss, Soul Lock, had most of its body buried underground, enveloped in black mist with three shackles attached to it, and several mist tentacles emerged from above the array.
“My body is buried beneath it. Only by killing it can I be rescued,” said the innkeeper’s wife, pausing for a moment before continuing, “And its seal is about to be broken. If it’s not stopped, the Northern Wasteland might completely fall.”
“Wow, are we about to start saving Global?” ClearWind exclaimed excitedly. “Don’t worry, sister, with us here, this ugly thing won’t be able to escape.”
The innkeeper’s wife went through the plot as usual, explaining some details about the Soul Lock monster, and finally reminded the players, “You must pay attention to its shackles; they are very dangerous.”
Su Mo observed the terrain, “Is your flying rope still there?”
Yu Zhen took out the item, “Do you need my help?”
“I’ll go down and take a look, you guys wait up here,” Su Mo said as he grabbed the flying rope. With Yu Zhen’s help, he successfully landed above the array. The array seemed illusory, but it was actually walkable. He roughly estimated the range where teammates could participate in the event and found several suitable positions for ranged players.
Just by looking at the appearance of the Soul Lock, it seemed unable to move, but the shackles on its body and the misty tentacles might pose a threat to ranged professions. Judging from the current difficulty, this final boss’s skills should not exceed six. There would likely be AoE attacks, single-target heavy hits, control… maybe even target designation.
“We need to pay attention to these points. Besides the shackles mentioned by the NPC, there should be two AoE attacks, two single-target attacks, and one control skill,” Su Mo frowned. “There might also be a frenzy. Let’s try out our skills first.”
Since it was a skill trial, nobody fought seriously. Instead, they each focused on observing the boss’s skill changes.
Little Bear tested the pull-off distance but couldn’t pull off even at the edge. He had to rely on the flying rope to return to their original high entrance for the boss to be considered truly pulled off. The boss’s skills were intricate; at 5% health, nearly six single-target attacks appeared, five of which were normal attacks with very high damage to the main tank, while the other one was a random single-target attack directed at one member of the team, causing a fixed half-blood damage.
At the first test at 5% health, two AoE attacks and two random single-target attacks appeared. The AoE attacks had a wide range, and one could be avoided by positioning, while the random single-target attack was from its misty tentacle and couldn’t be dodged.
At the second test at 10% health, a new skill appeared, a frontal seal skill that targeted three random players (healers couldn’t heal, DPS couldn’t activate frontal protection skills).
At the third test at 15% health, another single-target skill appeared; the boss’s three tentacles rushed towards players, instantly killing squishy players.
…It took over half an hour for everyone to test out the skills of the first 20%.
“This boss puts immense pressure on healers; the team takes a lot of AoE damage. SubmergedFish will still be the main healer, with Little Fish as the off-healer. ScarletFruit, you’ll be the secondary healer. Other DPS, pay attention to your positioning, try to stay within the healing range, and don’t add pressure to them,” Su Mo frowned. “We need to pay attention to two skills: the frontal seal and the single-target pounce.”
“Except for the single-target pounce, which may result in death, the other skills pose no significant threat to DPS,” the mage frowned. “But the pressure on healers is enormous; the frequency of AoE damage is too high. If healers are sealed, what should we do?”
“The seal lasts for five seconds. If one healer is sealed, the other healer will heal the main tank, melee players activate survival skills, and ranged players hide inside the defensive array created by the array master,” Su Mo said, “If healers are sealed, others should use potions to survive the five seconds. It randomly targets three people; let’s not mess up the rhythm, most of us should be able to survive.”
ClearWind chimed in, “Bro, what if it targets two healers?”
Everyone looked at him, ScarletFruit couldn’t help but say, “Can you stop being so pessimistic! With ten people, getting targeted by three, it’s unlikely that both healers will be targeted!!”
ClearWind replied, “Oh, I’m just preparing for the worst, you know?”
Apple patted ClearWind’s shoulder heavily, “Don’t you know? In Celestial Horizon, don’t casually set flags before entering a dungeon.”
The female assassin ZenSlasher spoke up, “The game’s running authority is ApexMind.”
ChatMasterWu added, “Bro, say less.”
Mewminati quipped, “Say less, hit more. When you’re good, I’m good, we’re all good.”
“Well, this situation isn’t too bad,” ClearWind said, “What if it targets three of us, and Brother Wander along with two healers are sealed? Are we doomed?”
Others remained silent.
Yu Zhen asked, “?”
Su Mo glanced at ClearWind and muted his voice chat. “Let’s get ready.”
SnackTimeBear charged in to pull the boss, and everyone began outputting damage from the suitable positions they had found during the previous tests. Su Mo cautiously observed the situation on the field; the AoE attacks weren’t too frequent, and the AoE heals from both healers managed to keep up… but there was a hidden danger: the shackles mentioned by the innkeeper’s wife hadn’t appeared yet.
“Watch out, frontal seal,” Su Mo warned.
The mist from the Soul Lock spread out, sealing Little Bear, Mewminati, and ChatMasterWu. After the seal, it followed up with two AoE attacks, but thankfully, the healing cooldowns were ready, and Su Mo kept an eye on the skill rhythm. “Watch out, single-target attack.”
As he spoke, three tentacles rushed out and struck Mewminati directly, causing the mage’s death.
Su Mo kept track of the time; the seal skill occurred every 20 seconds, while the single-target pounce occurred every 10 seconds, interspersed with AoE and single-target attacks. The pressure on healers was immense. “ScarletFruit, summon the tree, and keep an eye on your mana.”
The summoning tree could replenish mana. After summoning the tree, ScarletFruit summoned a rock monster to increase the team’s defense. As a druid with both healing and support abilities, ScarletFruit’s healing skills weren’t as extensive as a dedicated healer’s, but different summons had different effects, providing powerful support when necessary.
Suddenly, the single-target pounce targeted the array master behind Su Mo. The array master’s health dropped to 5%, but he didn’t die.
Su Mo furrowed his brows slightly, then noticed something. “Apple and mage, take three steps forward, while Wanderer, stand at the back.”
Yu Zhen quickly stepped back a few paces. ScarletFruit managed to heal him up in a few seconds, but then the Soul Lock’s three chains struck him again. He instantly understood. “The single-target pounce only targets the furthest player. SubmergedFish, take two steps forward, and ScarletFruit, move to the left.”
“Got it,” Su Mo noted his position. “Is your range enough?”
“It’s barely within range,” Yu Zhen frowned. “Everyone else, pay attention to your positions; don’t be the last one.”
Mage Mewminati and magic swordsman Apple quickly stepped forward a few paces, afraid of being targeted by the boss’s single-target pounce if they were at the back.
ScarletFruit breathed a sigh of relief. “It’s a good thing Wanderer has thick HP; he can withstand it without dying.”
Among those present, besides the main tank Little Bear, the array master UnchainedWanderer and the physical swordsman ClearWindIsHere had the highest HP. If it were anyone else, they would have been instantly killed by the single-target pounce.
With no further worries, the other DPS focused on outputting damage. Su Mo saw ClearWind typing in the team chat and promptly unmuted him. “Speak less.”
“Okay, okay, but not being able to talk is suffocating me,” ClearWind said after being unmuted, feeling more alive. “Suddenly, it feels quite relaxed.”
ScarletFruit retorted, “You’re relaxed; why don’t you come heal then?”
ClearWind backed down immediately. “My bad, please take care of me.”
The boss’s health steadily decreased, and the team’s HP fluctuated like a roller coaster, making the healing process for both healers heart-pounding. When the boss’s health dropped below 80%, Su Mo became vigilant. They were entering unfamiliar territory now, where they hadn’t tested the boss’s skills.
At 75% health, the boss’s attack skills remained unchanged.
ScarletFruit gradually adjusted to the healing rhythm under momo’s command, controlling the group’s cooldowns for healing. At that moment, his field of vision suddenly changed; all nearby teammates turned red, and his healing targets instantly became uncastable. His hands lifted uncontrollably.
ChatMasterWu exclaimed, “Wait, something’s odd about the boss’s health.”
ClearWind dumbfoundedly asked, “What’s with that flower?”
Mewminati cursed, “Damn it! ScarletFruit, what are you doing?”
The healer’s summoning flower turned red, and it was currently emitting healing light towards the Soul Lock in the distance. To everyone’s horror, it exploded with a healing bonus, increasing the boss’s health by 1%.
“Hold on,” ScarletFruit said, “My flower seems to have a mind of its own… no, wait, my hands seem to have a mind of their own.”
Others were left speechless.
Su Mo looked up at the boss and noticed that one shackle was missing from its body, and that shackle was now wrapped around ScarletFruit.
🙀