Great news!
We hit the 200 Power Stone goal last week.
So this week, you'll get 3 daily chapters. And remember, for every 200 Power Stones we get this week, we'll add another extra chapter to the daily total for next week.
Thanks for your support!
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Chapter 115: What a Damn Oppressive Feeling!
Sarah was in a circular courtyard, with a cliff to the right and countless tombstones and lit candles to the left. In the center was Gundyr, the Judge of Cinder, a sculptural figure.
But what truly captivated Sarah were not these things, but the bloodstains on the ground. Next to Gundyr, Sarah could see at least twenty or thirty bloodstains. In Dark Souls, when players play online, data is automatically uploaded to the server.
Unlike other games, in addition to tips, images of deaths within the game also appear in other players' worlds. Of course, this was random, prioritizing the most recent death. The main reason for this large number of bloodstains on Gundyr's side was to offer some comfort to players, to let them know that they were not alone in this hopeless world.
Getting a sermon from Uncle Gundyr upon entering the game was not exclusive to Sarah. The twenty or thirty bloodstains before Sarah indicated that twenty or thirty people had already fallen on that very ground.
"Oh my God! How many people have died!" The feeling of anguish Sarah felt intensified.
Controlling the game's '123', Sarah approached one of the blood puddles and pressed the interaction button. Then, Sarah saw how the blood on the ground transformed into a red shadow that rolled twice. Then, she saw that an unknown force had thrown it into the sky and that it then fell again, struggling to collapse.
She continued to examine the other nearby bloodstains. The causes of death were very diverse. Some were thrown directly into the air, others seemed crushed, and others seemed to have been stabbed. But the only constant was that these shadows rolled on the ground before dying.
"It's over! I think this Judge of Cinder, Gundyr, seems very powerful!" Sarah observed with fear.
Mike, standing beside him, also perceived that the water temperature was off, but still offered his analysis: "If you think that, I think you've been fooled. Why can't you just see the moment of death?"
"It's Alex's plan! He's using this method to disturb the player's judgment, making him more and more nervous. After all, the unknown is the most terrifying thing, as in the original Outlast," Mike declared confidently.
Sarah reflected: "Are you saying that Gundyr, the Judge of Cinder, might be a weakling, and that Alex is just trying to be mysterious?"
Mike shook his head. "No... I mean, you should kill the boss quickly. If he dies, I'll take over."
"Go away!" Sarah was speechless.
With some nervousness, she took a deep breath and controlled her game character to move forward and activate the scene. The character, firmly, held the coiled sword plunged into Gundyr's chest with both hands and slowly pulled it out.
"Puff!"
A stream of black blood gushed from Gundyr's chest, and at the same time, the coiled sword was slowly pulled out of him. Upon drawing it completely, the screen trembled. Then, Gundyr, who had been kneeling on the ground like a stone statue, stood up with the halberd in his hand.
Sarah had seen the boss, Gundyr, Judge of Cinder, in the video from the previous online press conference. But watching a video and playing it in person were two completely different experiences.
The huge grayish figure stood up, taller than the three numbers 1, 2, and 3 in the game combined. His immense bulk darkened the cold sunlight, creating an overwhelming scene. As Gundyr stood up, the game's majestic background music, accompanied by a deep chant, gradually filled the air, creating an epic atmosphere that inexplicably excited Sarah.
At the same time, a long health bar appeared at the bottom of the screen, along with the boss's name: Gundyr, Judge of Cinder.
This was only the game's first boss battle, but it gave Sarah a feeling similar to facing the final boss in other games. It can be said that Dark Souls is simply explosive in its atmosphere!
"This will be a fight to the death! Don't you dare stop me from passing the flame!" Hearing the game's vast and majestic background music, Sarah felt her whole body ignite, a sudden feeling of dramatics washing over her.
Meanwhile, inside the game, Gundyr, the Judge of Cinder, awakened, had already launched the first attack.
Gundyr, the Judge of Cinder, moved towards Sarah. A cloud of dust rose, and the huge halberd he held in his hand felt weightless as he swept it.
Instinctively, Sarah rolled back twice. After all, she doubted that her small broken shield could withstand Gundyr's halberd. After all, after having watched Mike's first life, she already knew the importance of the stamina bar in the game.
If it ran out immediately, the situation would be even more precarious. Therefore, she thought that rolling would offer her a greater margin of error.
Gundyr, after overcoming the first halberd, continued to move forward, jumping and attacking Sarah. This time, Sarah was not so lucky. Upon taking a direct hit, her health bar was reduced by half, as if a dagger had been plunged into an artery.
"Oh my God! Too much damage!" Sarah was completely stunned.
She finally understood why the death scenes she had seen before were all about falling. Was this boss really a novice boss? Squirming on the ground, Sarah wondered.
Previously, when she had seen Mike fight the Crystal Lizard, she had been able to offer him advice. But watching and playing were two different things. Once she started playing, she realized that something was wrong! The Crystal Lizard was fine; there was a "Go back" sign at the entrance.
But what about this Judge of Cinder, Gundyr? What a damn oppressive feeling! How could it be so overwhelming! Exactly! It was oppressive!
For Sarah, her first time playing Dark Souls, this boss battle was pure oppression. The imposing and gigantic Gundyr wielded his halberd with powerful blows and slashes, each of which demonstrated a daunting presence. The halberd's blows, accompanied by sound effects and clouds of smoke and dust, were truly oppressive.
Faced with Gundyr, the Judge of Cinder, Sarah spent the entire encounter in a panic, her head in her hands. She mustered the courage and attacked him twice between each attack. However, due to low stamina, she couldn't roll and was hit by the halberd. This single blow cost her half of her life.
All she had left was her last bottle of orange juice. With her ammunition and food completely exhausted, she was practically at her wit's end.
Observing Gundyr, whose health had been reduced by approximately a tenth, and then her own skin, which was now just a shell of blood, Sarah bravely charged forward, controlling her character, '123'. She gave Gundyr a perfect foot massage.
It was a considerable loss, in fact. After two blows with the drumstick, Gundyr's health bar was visibly reduced by approximately a tenth. But the next instant, Gundyr raised his halberd.
The game character flew, accompanied by a tragic cry of "Ah!" Three words appeared in the center of the screen: "You have died."