"Tanks, get ready to take over!"
"Haha, easy! I have fully recovered!"
"I even recovered a few points of stance!"
"Let's end this!"
The players were fired up. The frost giants indeed relieved some pressure from the players. If it weren't for the need to dodge meteors all the time, this would have been the most relaxed part of the fight. Under the collaboration of frost giants and players the world boss fell below 100.000HP. This was still more than a boss of the same level would have, but to the players it didn't feel like much.
"Die! Die! Burn!"
Tuechou was anything but calm. He shot magma beams from his fingers which finally killed the last two frost giants. And yet about 700 players remained. What he initially only saw as buzzing insects had now become a serious threat. Tuechou scanned the players with suns in his eyes. Multiple magic circles suddenly appeared on the floor. No one dared to stand too close. Lights flashed and mini rock men appeared on the magic circles. With dull eyes and not much taler than a child. A brief check revealed that they only had 5 HP each.
"Quick! Attack!"
Liam shouted, his voice serious. Although the players thought that these small guys were quite adorable, they weren't stupid. No one would underestimate something created by the world boss. Before Tuechou could continue his plan, nearly half of the one hundred rock men had already been shattered. The world boss let out a snort as the fiery symbol on his chest shone intensely. Rays of sunlight fell on each of the rock men. Their body glowed red-hot, steam rose from their heads, and magma flowed out of the cracks of their skin.
The players were not daunted by these changes and continued attacking. In a moment three more rock men had their HP reduced to zero. This time, however, they didn't fall apart. Instead, they glowed red all over, emitting a terrifying heat.
"This doesn't look good…"
"Don't stand there! Get away!"
The players who were close to these particular rock men had a bad premonition. They urgently tried to increase the distance. What magma ponds? Who cares about that right now?!
However, even so the players were too slow. It took only one seconds for the rock men to explode, shooting magma blobs and solid stone in all directions. Those caught by the immediate explosion lost at least 4000HP while those hit by the flying projectiles also suffered greatly. Two players died on the spot and others were afflicted with frightening damage over time after walking through magma and yet still not escaping from the aftermath of the explosion.
At this moment the other rock men began moving, their pace quicker than one would have expected. Chaos spread amongst the players.
"Idiot! Don't attack now! Let me escape first!"
"Careful! It's coming. Escape through the magma!"
"Wait, wait. How about we don't attack them at all?"
Some players had the idea of letting the rock men live. But the skill couldn't be outplayed that easily. The moving rock men continuously accumulated more heat. Should they be ignored by the players they would still explode with even more force. Liam urgently warned everyone. Thus, the players had no choice but to take the rock men out even at the cost of some casualties.
Meanwhile Tuechou didn't sit still. He continued attacking the tanks. This wouldn't be much of a problem if not for a few rock men also running towards the tank teams.
"Take them out! Don't hide like cowards! If you have enough HP, it's not dangerous to tank an explosion!"
Earthquake angrily bellowed at his fellow guild members who avoided the rock men. He appeared behind two of the small threats and swung his great sword wildly, unleashing a wide arc of light. The two rock men couldn't survive the attack. Earthquake saw them stopping and hastily tried to gain some distance. However, it was impossible to escape in time. The rock men erupted with a violent explosion, striking the orc's body, dealing almost ten thousand points of damage.
Despite knowing that his action was necessary, Earthquake still drew a sharp breath. But right at the next moment an extremely potent [Heal] fell on his body, recovering all his HP. The [Heal] came from Balm, who overlooked the battlefield from a safe spot. She had just used a mana potion and was now wildly spending her mana again to rescue heavily wounded players everywhere. Even so she had to watch as two dozen new players were sent to the graveyard. One rock man even managed to reach the rows of the healers, killing two of them.
The chaos lasted for more than five minutes before all the rock men were vanquished. The guilds suffered another round of casualties. Many took deep breaths, staring at the world boss.
"This… should be it right?"
"Yes. This must be the boss's final struggle!"
The players convinced themselves. They ignored their fatigue and once again threw themselves at the boss. Tuechou's HP were reduced step by step. Seventy, sixty, fifty thousand…
"He won't go berserk, right?", murmured a mage as he tiredly swung his staff. Immediately a shiver ran down his spine. He felt multiple angry gazes from all around. The mage shut up, afraid that he would become a jinx.
Forty thousand HP. Thiry thousand. There were still no signs of the boss entering a berserk mode. Instead, even the rock giant began to show weakness. His solid skin started to crumble. His eyes lost power. The fire on his chest waned.
"I can't accept this!"
Tuechou let out a shout filled with unwillingness. The players all tensed up. Magic circles formed in the sky, and another meteor shower fell.
"It's just the same old skill, nothing to fear!"
"Just ignore it! Take down the boss!"
"Charge!"
Mobilizing their last power reserves all the survivors fiercely attacked the boss. Meteors rained down on them, but they didn't even bother dodging. All that mattered was finally eliminating the world boss. Ten thousand HP left. Five thousand. Zero!
"That's it! Finally! The boss is down!"
"Fall, you stubborn giant!"
"Good job guys, good job…"
Finally, a wave of relief washed over everyone. The players supported themselves with their hands on their knees. Exhaustion could be seen in their eyes. Fortune stood on a slightly elevated position, recording the moment of victory, producing commentary for her viewers. But right at that moment an urgent message appeared in the chat.
[Bleary Mirage: Run! Get away from the boss!]
Earthquake was stunned for a moment when he saw Bleary Mirage suddenly turn around and run. He looked up at the boss and saw steam escaping through the cracks of his skin.
"Oh damn… Boys! Go!"
Movement came into the players. Some escaped in panic while others fell to their butts, deciding that they were too lazy to run. Even if they died here, so what? Let's just watch the firework.
"Impossible! The power of the sun! It is not something you mortals can possess! It shall be mine! Mine! Mine!"
The crazed words of Tuechou continued to echo through the ancient city. A blinding light shone from his chest. More and more power of the sun gathered. Tall, scalding flames erupted. The magma giant's body continued increasing, heating up. Magma escaped from the cracks of his skin.
"I… I will…"
Suddenly Tuechou stopped. He seemed to realize something. Struggle could be seen in his eyes.
"My precious power… I can't control it! Why?! NOOO!"
Boom!
An enormous explosion shook the entire burial site. Even players adventuring through the pyramid were experiencing an earthquake. Thus, the situation in the ancient city could be imagined. A shockwave spread, tearing down even the last few walls. Everything in its way turned to dust. The players caught up by the shockwave were launched through the air. Parts of the ceiling gave in, raining down rocks. It was a scene of pure destruction.
When the tremors subsided the shocked players slowly walked towards the source of the explosion. What they found was a crater filled with magma. Tuechou's body laid on its shore, now the height of a human with cracked, rock-like skin, motionless.
"It's finally over…"
The players sighed in relief. Looking around there were only 450 players remaining. More than a hundred died in the explosion just now. However, all of this didn't matter. Everyone's eyes sparkled as they fell on the abundance of loot which surrounded the magma lake.
"Haha, let's go! Let's go!"
The first to rush forward was undoubtedly Cyclone. She grabbed everything she could get her hands on. The joy she exuded was almost infectious. A moment later dozens of people went to loot everything. The more than two hundred items disappeared in a flash.
Cyclone wore a broad grin as she stared inside her inventory. Unfortunately, she couldn't keep everything. When the three guilds formed an alliance, the rules had already been formed. The guild discovering the world boss would receive a share of 50% with the right to choose the first item. The other two would each receive 25% of the loot.
However, this was not a losing deal for Dream Avenue. With the help of Force of Nature and Nest of Flames the chances were higher to kill Tuechou upon his respawn. For the foreseeable future the three guilds might be able to monopolise this world boss.