The barrage of laughter exploded in chat.
"LMAO, there it is again Natalie's signature move!"
"Her Escape is getting smoother every time!"
"Honestly, I don't blame her. In New World's games, mastering that trick saves you from a lot of trauma."
After a few minutes to calm her nerves, Natalie reluctantly slid the VR helmet back on. Her vision cleared, and she respawned at the Buddha statue near the broken bridge.
"Why does it have to be a giant monster…" She frowned, gripping her blade. The White Serpent coiled deep within the ravine, blocking the only path to the main city. To move forward meant brushing against it.
But she had no tools to lure the monster away, no decoy bombs, no tricks.
"Fine. Let's try this again!" she muttered. Cowardice tugged at her heart, but stubbornness burned stronger. After all, she was the same woman who had faced the leviathans in Subnautica.
Once more, she crept to the cliffside. The serpent's massive head burst from the rock wall, scales glinting under the light.
Last time had taught her one lesson, staying still was death. If she hid too long in one place, the serpent would eventually sniff her out.
So, when its gaze shifted away, Natalie didn't hesitate. She fired her grappling hook, snagged the crooked tree across the ravine, and swung across.
The moment her boots hit the ground, she crouched low, vanishing into the tall grass.
Overhead, the serpent's gigantic head lowered, casting a vast shadow that swallowed her tiny body whole. Its coils stretched endlessly into the distance, slithering through the mountains like a living white river.
"Damn, another damn colossal beast!"
"I swear, that thing's at least 400 meters long!"
"Bruh, it's bigger than the Sea Emperor Leviathan!!"
"New World just can't resist building nightmare sized bosses!"
"Still… gotta admit, bigger is better. This thing is insane!"
"Imagine if it transformed, Women + Orochi fusion?? I'd pay to see that!"
"??? Bro how are you horny at a time like this??"
Heart hammering, Natalie forced herself to stay calm. The serpent's head lingered above her, tongue flicking, tasting the air. Then, at last, it turned away.
She seized the chance, sprinting forward, only to find herself at a barren clearing. No grass, no rocks, nowhere to hide.
The only thing nearby was an old, tattered sedan chair.
Behind her, the earth trembled again. The serpent was coming, fast.
"No choice!" She dashed inside the sedan chair, crouching low behind the faded curtains.
Through the ragged cloth, she saw it. The monstrous shadow loomed closer, scales scraping the stone as the serpent's head descended.
Its tongue flicked, hissing, searching. Then, as if sensing her, its eyes fixed on the very sedan chair she had hidden in.
"Please, don't come here…" she whispered, shrinking back.
But the serpent didn't care about prayers. Its enormous head pressed close, tilting, peering directly into the sedan.
"Shit, shit, shit!!!"
"Natalie's about to get caught!!"
"RUN, NATALIE, RUN!!!"
Her audience spammed the chat in panic. Natalie held her breath, every muscle rigid, terror rising like ice in her veins.
Then she saw it.
In the serpent's eye… a glowing red dot appeared.
The unmistakable marker of an instant-kill attack.
The moment she saw that glowing red dot, Natalie's heart sank.
She knew what it meant, her turn had come. Tony wouldn't design a chase without a chance to fight back. This was it.
"Alright, take this!!!"
Summoning every ounce of courage, Natalie roared, unsheathing her weapon from her waist. Like a wolf, she leapt forward. The silver blade gleamed in the dim light and stabbed straight into the serpent's enormous eyeball!
ROAAAR!!!
The White Serpent shrieked in pain, its scream shaking the very ravine. Natalie didn't hesitate, she slashed again, tearing across its eye before ripping her blade free. White fluids and blood sprayed everywhere, raining down around her.
"Holy shit, Natalie is insane!!"
"That strike was beautiful!"
"Bro, did you see that slash?! That's a highlight moment!!"
The chat exploded with admiration. Meanwhile, the White Serpent thrashed violently, its gigantic body slamming into cliffs and rock walls, triggering quakes even more violent than before.
"Run!!! RUN NOW!!!"
Natalie didn't need to be told twice. The instant the window to escape opened, she bolted from the shattered sedan chair and sprinted for her life.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The ground shook like thunder beneath her, knocking her down more than once. But each time, she scrambled up again, moving with the desperation of a wolf fleeing the hunt.
Up ahead loomed a cliff, and above it, the entrance to a stone cave.
Without hesitation, Natalie leapt high, her grappling hook snapping upward. It caught on the cave's edge, yanking her across the gap. She swung hard and dove into the cave just as the ground behind her exploded.
BOOM!!!
The shockwave hurled her forward, tumbling across the stone floor. When she looked back, her blood ran cold.
The White Serpent's massive head had rammed into the cave mouth. It couldn't squeeze its body through, but that didn't stop it from lunging forward, snapping its jaws inside. Its massive fangs gnashed inches from her, the slick, forked tongue lashing like a whip, close enough to almost lick her face.
"Holy shit!!!" Natalie cursed, scrambling backward on the floor. Her heart pounded so hard it felt like it would break her chest.
The serpent kept trying, hissing, smashing its skull against the rock, forcing its head deeper, but the cave was too small. Finally, after realizing it couldn't reach her, it let out one last furious hiss and slowly pulled its bloodied head back.
Only then did Natalie notice, its right eye was gone, blinded forever. The remaining left eye glared at her with cold, venomous hatred, memorizing her face as if swearing revenge.
Then it turned and slithered away, its colossal form fading into the mist.
Natalie collapsed against the cave wall, exhaling in relief.
"…I survived. God, I actually survived!"
Her voice trembled, half in fear, half in exhilaration.
"That was way too scary!!" she shouted, smacking her thigh. "Damn White Snake! Man eating monster! But..." A grin tugged at her lips. "It was also insanely cool. Doesn't matter if you're a god or a demon, today you got blinded by this heroine!"
She chuckled, the thrill of life and death struggle still buzzing through her veins.
"Bro, Natalie's got guts!"
"I was sweating the whole time, this sequence is nuts!"
"My blood pressure skyrocketed, but that stab in the eye? Perfection."
"New World really knows how to design boss encounters… goosebumps all the way through!"
Chat was still spamming praises as Natalie sat in the cave, regaining her breath and recovering her stamina. Once her hands stopped trembling, she pushed forward.
The cave wasn't long. After a few grappling swings and narrow jumps, she finally emerged from the ravine.
Her boots touched solid ground again.
But what awaited ahead was not safety.
A vast battlefield stretched before her. The earth was scorched, the air still heavy with smoke and the acrid stench of gunpowder. Corpses lay scattered everywhere, soldiers, ashigaru, taro warriors, horses, even dogs. The carnage painted the land in shades of red and gray.
Beyond the battlefield rose towering city walls, a massive wooden gate set firmly in their center.
A glowing prompt appeared before her eyes, [Ashina Castle Gate].
1240 Words.