Chapter Thirty-Two: The Demon Berserker

Glancing at the mine entrance, now sealed so tightly not even a breeze could pass through, Ye Chen abandoned his plan for a quiet infiltration. With a cold chuckle, he turned a corner and drifted toward the valley floor of the Demon Gorge—the area where monsters were most densely packed.

This time, Ye Chen did not move quickly. Instead, he frequently paused to compare his small map with the real surroundings, memorizing every potential obstacle along his route. After all, once he lured a horde of level 30 monsters, any misstep or bottleneck could mean instant death.

He continued deeper, soon reaching the heart of Demon Gorge. Surrounded by little devils wielding tridents, he was about to attack one at random to break his stealth and start the lure, when a flash from the corner of his eye caught his attention. There, in a recess between the rocks, stood a berserker gripping a golden greatsword.

Someone’s here? Ye Chen’s heart skipped a beat. He crept cautiously toward the crevice.

The figure wielded a golden greatsword and wore armor of deep violet and black. Though his features resembled a human’s, a jet-black horn jutted from his brow. As Ye Chen took in the full appearance of this berserker, his heart began to race violently.

Demon Berserker (Gold-Rank Boss)
Level: 32
Health: 150,000
Normal Abilities: All second-tier Berserker skills
Special Ability: Demon Frenzy, increases attack damage by 50% for 6 seconds
Description: A lesser demon who escaped into this world when Dallas, Lord of Demons, tore open the rift. Possesses innate evil power.

A boss—a humanoid boss—one of gold rank, and a rare demon-type at that!

Ye Chen trembled, not from fear but from excitement. If he could lure a swarm of little devils along with this Demon Berserker, it would be a magnificent gift for the Fierce Tiger Clan. Tiger’s Roar would be beside himself.

Swallowing his nerves, Ye Chen crept closer to the Demon Berserker, moving so slowly his steps were almost imperceptible. The moment his target came within range of his Black Fireball spell, he stopped dead. He dared not move closer; a second-tier warrior had a charge ability, and getting too near meant risking instant death by the demon’s sword.

He stood his ground and began chanting the incantation for Black Fireball in a low voice, locking his attack on the Demon Berserker.

With a whoosh, the newly formed Black Fireball shot from the tip of his staff.

-286. A blood-red number floated above the Demon Berserker’s head. Roaring in fury, the boss lunged from the crevice, the ground trembling beneath his feet. Like a rampaging tank, he charged straight toward Ye Chen’s original position.

Fortunately, Ye Chen had anticipated this and bolted away the instant he released the spell. Otherwise, he would have already fallen to the Demon Berserker’s sword.

The Berserker moved with terrifying speed, even faster than the little devils. But, having consumed a Ghost Pill, Ye Chen was faster still. Even so, with a gold-ranked boss hot on his heels, Ye Chen dared not weave around to gather more monsters; all he could do was make a beeline for the mine. By the time he neared the entrance, two or three dozen chittering little devils had joined the chase, and the Demon Berserker was now lost in the midst of the mob.

Ye Chen’s footwork was nimble, veering left and right, expertly employing the kiting techniques he’d learned from combat videos. The monsters crowded together, slowing themselves down, and even the Demon Berserker found his speed advantage nullified, roaring in rage amid the press of lesser devils.

Seeing the mine entrance just around the next bend, Ye Chen worried the monsters might lag behind, so he stopped dodging and stood his ground, letting the horde close in.

When the swiftest little devils were almost upon him, Ye Chen burst into motion, rounding the corner in a few swift strides and charging straight at Tiger’s Roar and his group.

“Hey, Roar, check him out—he’s moving fast as a bike!” exclaimed a hunter, whose class afforded the best vision and who spotted Ye Chen first.

“Must’ve had an adrenaline shot.” With the dim light, Tiger’s Roar didn’t recognize Ye Chen. He glanced over absentmindedly, then returned his attention to the team chat, grumbling, “Those women are slippery as eels. Old Five and the others still haven’t caught anyone. Damn, such a waste of leveling time.”

“Wait, that kid’s headed right for us.” The red-named rogue, ever cautious, tensed as he noticed Ye Chen’s trajectory.

“Wind Song, you’re such a coward. You think he’d attack us alone? Look how jumpy you get when you’re red-named,” scoffed a red-named berserker, turning his attention back to team chat to butter up Tiger’s Roar.

“Damn it, Roar, look—it’s Nightfall! The one who wiped us at Murloc Lake.” The rogue, eyes fixed on the charging figure, recognized Ye Chen as the distance closed.

At this, Tiger’s Roar instantly shut down team chat, snapped his head up, and recognized Ye Chen too. His face flushed purple with anger. “Damn, it really is him. He dares show up without a high-level buff? I’ll settle that score for the arrow he shot me! Don’t attack—let him come. I’ll kill him myself!”

That morning, after being wiped out, Tiger’s Roar had filed a complaint with the game officials and learned that Ye Chen’s one-shot was thanks to a high-level attack aura, which had long since expired. Now, he wasn’t afraid and looked forward to reclaiming his pride.

No one paid any mind to the few little devils trailing after Ye Chen, dismissing them as random mobs he’d aggroed. They had no idea that a massive horde was following behind—and that a gold-ranked boss led them.

Ye Chen was briefly surprised when the group didn’t attack him immediately, but then he caught sight of Tiger’s Roar, brandishing his greatsword with a twisted grin. Instantly, Ye Chen understood. This man wanted to kill him personally. How pretentious—he’d regret not stopping Ye Chen, that was certain.

In the blink of an eye, Ye Chen was among Tiger’s Roar and his group. At that moment, the monster horde rounded the corner and came into view. The expressions of the Fierce Tiger players changed dramatically, their eyes wide with terror.