MMORPG: The Elementalist

‘F*ck!

‘This damn waterfall!’

Qin Ruo was drenched from head to toe as he shabbily escaped the waterfall like the rest of the players from Netherspirit’s Claw. He could not help but curse at the detestable waterfall. After he pondered it for a while, he realized that if it had not been for his “perfect calculation”, which made him fly so high and far that he landed just below the waterfall, he would not have been pummeled by the waterfall and trapped underwater for so long.

Luckily, Cerberus was lured away by Bizarre Blade and Little Tiger. Otherwise, the Boss monster would have bitten off Qin Ruo’s head due to his mistake.

After he escaped from the waterfall, Qin Ruo felt more clear-headed as he instantly realized and noticed how large the cavern was. He also noticed the four Netherspirit’s Claw players who were rushing towards the unknown area ahead.

‘Sh*t! Have they found the treasure already?’

That was Qin Ruo’s first thought while he anxiously left the tunnel as fast as he could.

Once he left the tunnel, Qin Ruo was stunned at the sight of the magnificent Dimensional Portal before him.

It was a warp point!

A warp point that led to the extra-dimensional space of the Underworld!

Qin Ruo gasped as he noticed the four Netherspirit’s Claw players who were rushing straight towards the Dimensional Portal. He remembered the old man’s warning to him before he left.

Cerberus was the guardian of the Underworld. Its true strength was equivalent to a Divine Champion as it possessed Tier 7 strength. But its level was reduced greatly by two tiers because the Graveyard of the Gods suppressed creatures from the Underworld! Even though he was greatly weakened, there were rarely any Divine Champions or Demigod Champions who would dare challenge its might.

If Cerberus was successfully provoked, and it deemed its enemy strong enough to threaten its life, it would it invoke its authority as the guardian of the Dimensional Portal. Cerberus would temporarily counteract the mysterious force that was suppressing it and regain its full strength as a Tier 7 Elite Miniboss. Furthermore, since Cerberus was an entity composed of three individuals, its strength would be equivalent to three Tier 7 Divine Champions if they fought with their life on the line. It was also the reason why the old man was too afraid to go near the warp point to the Underworld.

As Qin Ruo furrowed his brows, he sensed that something was amiss.

He was unsure why but he had a constant feeling that the Dimensional Portal exuded a dangerous and repressing vibe. When he looked at the Dimensional Portal, he was instantly reminded of Cerberus’ nickname.

The guardian of the entrance to the Underworld!

In other words, it was Cerberus’ duty to protect the entrance to the Underworld.

Not to mention, it was a Boss monster equivalent to a Tier 7 Divine Champion. Even though its strength was repressed, its intelligence, however, could not have been possibly reduced to the point where it would be so dumb to be easily tricked into leaving its base. If so, how would it even be worthy of being the guardian?

While Qin Ruo thought about it, he finally noticed that the direction that the four players were heading in had a…

…treasure chest!

‘Damn it!’

Just thinking about what could be inside a treasure chest guarded by a Divine Champion monster was enough to entice him.

‘Sh*t!’

No matter what happened, he could not let the players from Netherspirit’s Claw get it. If that happened, he would regret it so badly that he would lose his appetite for days!

Qin Ruo’s eyes turned bloodshot as he stared at the enticing treasure chest.

“Poochie!”

The moment an anxious Qin Ruo called it, Poochie had already understood Qin Ruo’s intentions without further instructions. It instantly dashed forward like a streak of lightning and chased the four Netherspirit’s Claw players who were 100 m away from them.

Since he had already offended the people from Netherspirit’s Claw countless of times and even humiliated Dark Dragon, a Tier 7 Supreme Champion. It would not make any difference for another four insignificant players.

However, even though Qin Ruo was willing to get red-tagged to obtain the treasure chest, the four players from the Netherspirit’s Claw had already reached the treasure chest before Poochie could. To them, time was of the essence. They had to make every minute count since nobody knew when the Boss monster would suddenly return. It would be great if they could successfully leave the cave with the treasure chest, or at the very least, teleport with its contents.

Although Poochie moved extremely fast, a distance of a hundred and fifty meters was too large to cover in an instant. Even for a Shadowfox, it would take at least a few seconds to cover that distance.

‘Am I too late?’

Qin Ruo’s heart skipped a beat as he helplessly watched the players from Netherspirit’s Claw who could not wait to lay their hands on the treasure chest. Meanwhile, he was only able to urge Poochie to get there as fast as possible.

Just before Qin Ruo could give Poochie further instructions to kill the four players, something strange occurred.

“Huh?”

“Why can’t we open it?”

Even though all four players from Netherspirit’s Claw had combined their strength to open the golden treasure chest, it refused to budge in the slightest, remaining stuck in its place.

Once Qin Ruo noticed it, he realized that a certain Class was required to open the chest!

A Bandit!

The treasure chest needed to be unlocked by a Bandit’s Lockpicking skill, which was impossible for them as they were all warriors.

After realizing the fact, Qin Ruo had a glimmer in his eyes as he quickly unsummoned Poochie.

Once Poochie disappeared from the cave, something unexpected happened!

Out of nowhere, there was a strange distortion in the shimmering glimmer of the Dimensional Portal, which led to the Underworld. It was as if a computer screen had been distorted by a strong magnetic field.

At the next moment, an incredible pressure could be felt coming from the Dimensional Portal. What followed next was a roar that shook the cave like an earthquake.

Roar!

Qin Ruo was stunned.

The four players from Netherspirit’s Claw who were closer to the Dimensional Portal were also stunned on the spot! As they slowly turned their heads, the first thing they saw was the body of a large monster with clearly-defined and well-developed muscles.

Huff! Huff! Huff!

Hot air from its massive nostrils hit the pale and fear-stricken faces of the four players. Next, the beast opened its three large jaws, which were filled with razor-sharp teeth. It began to drool, and its breath smelled like blood.

Facing a Boss monster at point-blank range was overwhelming. When the four players turned and looked at its three distinct pairs of demonic eyes—pale blue, bloody red and dark green—they trembled uncontrollably as their legs started to give out. They could not believe what was happening. They failed to understand why the Boss monster, which should have been lured away into the forest by Bizarre Blade and Little Tiger, had suddenly appeared before them.

To make matters worse, they were standing right before the treasure chest it was guarding.

At that moment!

The fate of the four players with pale and fearful faces immediately turned from heavenly to hellish!

Cerberus did not even bother to look at them as it raised its front paws and stomped on them. It was just an extremely ordinary movement of raising its legs and putting it down.

Thump!

After a light thumping sound resounded throughout the silent cave, Qin Ruo noticed that a huge bloody pattern had suddenly appeared on the floor where the four players from Netherspirit’s Claw stood earlier.

Blazing flames suddenly rose from the pattern! According to Qin Ruo’s estimation, a Tier 5 Elite Miniboss’ Magic Attack should be around 270 or above. The corpses of the four players were instantly burned to ashes, while their equipment dropped to the floor.

After it took care of the four low-level adventures who dared covet the treasure he guarded, Cerberus raised his three heads a little and looked in the direction of the waterfall entrance.

Qin Ruo was stunned. His heart skipped a beat when he sensed that Cerberus had locked on to his location.

‘Damn it! It really is a Tier 7 Boss monster that’s as powerful as the Divine Champions. My little tricks are useless against its eyes.’

Nonetheless, Qin Ruo was not so frightened by the Boss’ stare to actually start running.

He was at least two-hundred meters away from the Cerberus. Even if it really began to make a move, Qin Ruo was confident that he could leave the waterfall area before the Boss could reach him. Then he could use his newly-mastered Intermediate Aquamorph to get away from Cerberus.

Before that though, Qin Ruo wanted to solve a mystery surrounding Cerberus. He wanted to know how a Boss monster could instantly teleport to the Dimensional Portal!

Within his realm of knowledge, even if it was teleportation, it could not have been from such a long distance. Not to mention, there was great difficulty in teleporting from another area.

‘This can’t possibly be a skill that a Tier 5 Boss should have.’

Even a Divine Champion did not possess such a skill.

It had to have something to do with it being the guardian of the Underworld, and the Dimensional Portal it guarded. But such a skill should have certain restrictions right?

After a few seconds of Qin Ruo thinking and standing still while paying attention to Cerberus, a Dimensional Rift suddenly appeared next to a stationary Cerberus and instantly sucked it in.

…

Outside the waterfall, Bizarre Blade, who had just managed to escape, was kneeling on the ground gasping for air. He was confused about why Cerberus abruptly disappeared, no longer chasing him.

Slash!

All of a sudden, a large Dimensional Rift appeared before him and the domineering Cerberus emerged on the spot where he had vanished from earlier. It gazed upon its prey with its three pairs of ferocious eyes.

Bizarre Blade was immediately stupefied as he raised his head and muttered a few words with great difficulty.

“Damn you, monster!”