Chapter Seventy-Four: You Are M

After clearing away the last three stone golem obstacles and passing through a forest of rocks ablaze with scorching heat, the party’s vision suddenly opened up. Ahead lay a vast expanse, and at its center, Ye Chen and his companions finally saw their target—the Fire Elemental Giant. The monster sprawled across the ground, its entire body composed of raging flames. Even its breathing sent streams of violet-red fire snorting from its nostrils, accompanied by thunderous snoring; clearly, the creature was still lost in slumber.

[Fire Elemental Giant] (Silver-level Boss)
Health: 100,000
Level: 26
Skills: Flame Spray, Fire Roar

“It’s actually a Silver-level boss!” Longteng Slash Star and the others couldn’t help but exclaim in surprise. In the Rock Forest on normal difficulty, the Fire Elemental Giant was merely an elite monster for this quest, with only 20,000 health. Now, the strength of this quest monster had multiplied several times.

“The Fire Elemental Giant in hard mode is just an Iron-level boss. I thought that in King-level, it would at most be Bronze, but it’s actually jumped two tiers.” Thief Never Empty frowned, glancing at Ye Chen. “This could be tough. The Flame Spray was already a headache at Iron-level. Silver-level must be even nastier, but without exact stats, it’s hard to judge.”

“Flame Spray from the Silver-level Fire Elemental Giant deals between 150 and 200 damage, covers a 60-yard radius, and the spray frequency is roughly every eight seconds.” Ye Chen stared at the snoring Fire Elemental Giant and commented offhandedly.

“Brother Ye Chen, you seem to know this King-level dungeon inside out.” A flash of light gleamed in Thief Never Empty’s eyes as he watched Ye Chen closely. Ye Chen’s performance had been so dazzling, it was hard to believe this was his first time in a King-level dungeon. While dungeon guides could be explained by keen observation, such precise data was impossible to know without prior experience.

“Oh? Haha, who doesn’t have a few remarkable friends? I just picked this up from them. They’re pretty reliable, so the data shouldn’t be wrong.” Ye Chen laughed nonchalantly, a reason he had prepared long ago, not worried about being exposed.

Thief Never Empty nodded. “Seems Brother Ye Chen has a wide circle—your friends must be experts from other cities. Clearing King-level dungeons marks them as outstanding figures. If there’s a chance in the future, you must introduce me.”

Thief Never Empty had no doubts. In his eyes, a master like Ye Chen would naturally have peers of the same caliber; what expert didn’t have their own network? He even felt some envy—sharing such guides meant their relationship must be very close. Imagining Ye Chen surrounded by a group of top-tier master friends, Thief Never Empty realized he should elevate the importance he attached to Ye Chen.

“Brother Chen, the Fire Elemental Giant’s Flame Spray is so formidable, I doubt we can defeat it. A 60-yard attack range means even the priests in the back will be hit,” Longteng Mad Bull said worriedly. The other team members’ expressions were grim; the few priest girls of Longteng were especially anxious.

“Heh, finished, aren’t you? I told you King-level dungeons aren’t so easily conquered. That Ye fellow is just playing games with you; he doesn’t have what it takes.” Left-Handed Myth seized the opportunity to attack Ye Chen, instantly stepping forward to mock him.

“Screw you, what benefit do you get if we fail the dungeon, you idiot?” Longteng Mad Bull glared angrily at Left-Handed Myth, and the others did the same.

“Who says I don’t have a way? I tell you, I actually do, but it requires your cooperation, Left-Hand. Are you willing?” Ye Chen smiled slyly at Left-Handed Myth. Bringing him along was precisely for this Fire Elemental Giant.

Left-Handed Myth felt uneasy under Ye Chen’s gaze and immediately shook his head. “Me? I can’t cooperate.”

“Can’t cooperate? You agreed to follow my commands when you joined the team. Are you backing out now?” Ye Chen looked at him with a half-smile.

“Damn, he wouldn’t dare. Left-Handed Myth, let me tell you, you’re in the team, you follow orders. If you slow down our progress, we won’t let you off!” Longteng Mad Bull grabbed Left-Handed Myth like a chicken, spraying saliva as he shouted. He’d long disliked Left-Handed Myth—always putting on airs, acting superior, just begging for a beating.

“That’s enough, Mad Bull, let him go. What do you think you’re doing?” Thief Never Empty gently pulled them apart, his expression serious as he said to Left-Handed Myth, “This dungeon concerns the honor of our guild. You know the significance of being the first to clear a King-level dungeon. I won’t say more—if you cause us to fail, you’ll be our enemy. And you know what that means.”

“Thief—Brother Thief, what do you mean? Are you threatening me?” Left-Handed Myth’s face changed. He could ignore Ye Chen, brush off Longteng Mad Bull, but Thief Never Empty speaking for Longteng carried real weight, even with his own status in Fierce Mountain City.

“Take it as a threat if you wish. You’d best think carefully.” Thief Never Empty patted his shoulder coldly.

“I—You all…” Left-Handed Myth opened his mouth to protest, but under Thief Never Empty’s cold stare, he finally gave in. “Fine, I’ll cooperate. I want to see how you handle this.” He shot Ye Chen a venomous glare; if looks could kill, Ye Chen would have died a hundred times over.

Ye Chen noticed his glare and smiled indifferently. With people like this, offending them was no loss. He pointed at Left-Handed Myth, then at the Fire Elemental Giant not far away, and ordered, “Left-Hand, you’ll be the main tank for this boss. Get ready.”

“Me as the main tank?” Left-Handed Myth looked at Ye Chen in disbelief and roared, “Are you joking? I’m a priest, not a tank!”

Thief Never Empty and the others were equally astonished, unsure what Ye Chen was planning. Assigning a priest as the tank—could this work?

“I know you’re a priest. If you weren’t, I wouldn’t want you up there,” Ye Chen glanced at him, then explained to the others, “The difficulty with the Fire Elemental Giant lies in its Flame Spray—a wide-area attack that poses immense threat to the team. But this skill can actually be avoided. If a spellcaster acts as the main tank and engages the Fire Elemental Giant in a magic duel, it won’t trigger Flame Spray. Of course, the prerequisite is that the spellcaster must have strong magic resistance and high attack. Left-Hand has a bronze set and a silver weapon, just enough for both. Most importantly, he’s our main priest—self-healing will stabilize aggro.”

“All right, Left-Hand, you can begin.” Ye Chen pointed at the now wakeful Fire Elemental Giant and issued the order to the gloomy Left-Handed Myth.