MMORPG: The Elementalist

The sudden disappearance of Cerberus was not something that Qin Ruo had expected. Nevertheless, it was not a bad thing at the same time as it possibly implied the parameters of the monster’s teleportation.

Since Qin Ruo now knew that the guardian of the entrance to the Underworld, Cerberus had the ability to temporarily teleport to the Dimensional Portal, he would risk his life to go anywhere near the golden treasure chest anymore.

Since the warriors from Netherspirit’s Claw were not able to immediately open the treasure chest, it proved that the treasure chest was also another challenge to overcome. Without the Lockpicking skills of a Bandit, there was no way to obtain the treasure inside.

However, Qin Ruo was not discouraged because he did not believe that there would only be one treasure chest in such a large cavern.

The caverns behind the waterfall were very damp and secluded, which made the place ideal for Herbs of the highest grade to grow. It was the reason why Qin Ruo did not immediately leave.

Qin Ruo slowly entered the center of the caverns, and with the help of his Elemental Perception, he was able to perceive the whole area inside the caverns in his mind.

‘I was right!’

At the area near the edge of the caverns, a few rare Herbs, which Qin Ruo could not even identify, were visibly growing between the crevices on the walls and the ground.

When Qin Ruo went to the centermost area of the caverns, his Elemental Perception was able to cover the whole place, and he managed to discover three exceptional Herbs growing near the Dimensional Portal.

The three Herbs grew closely, side by side. The leaves were pitch black and filled with tiny blue dots. They were extremely mesmerizing like glowing star in the night sky. But due to the magnificent Dimensional Portal taking the spotlight, it was very hard to notice them.

“Could it be Grade 4 Herbs or maybe even Grade 3?”

Qin Ruo was excited, and he could not wait to rush over to gather the exceptional Herbs. But he was also aware that the higher the grade of the Herbs, the longer the time needed to gather them. At the same time, he could not ensure that the Boss monster would not suddenly appear from the Dimensional Portal or waterfall entrance while he was gathering the Herbs.

Besides, once Bizarre Blade and Little Tiger were taken care of by Cerberus, Qin Ruo had a feeling that the Boss monster would not let a human adventurer casually wander around its nest to gather Herbs.

On top of that, once they received news that four of their members were killed, the people from Netherspirit’s Claw would immediately log off to gain information about the situation inside the cave. The moment they learn about the treasure chest inside the cave, they may even send a Bandit to sneak in.

‘Time is short!

‘I’ll have to decide whether to gather the Herbs at the edge of the caverns or…

‘…fight?!’

Qin Ruo’s heart was beating fast as he realized for the first time in a while that he had trouble making a decision.

There were more than 20 Herbs growing at the edge of the caverns, and they were likely around Grade 4 to Grade 6. However, the problem was the required time. If the Herb was of a low grade, the time needed would be less, but it would also worthless; if it was of a higher grade, there would be little time to gather the Herbs peacefully.

If he chose to fight and use a Sealed Mana Core to pin down Cerberus, the success rate would be high. But Qin Ruo was uncertain if it was worth it to do so.

A Tier 5 Miniboss’ Sealed Mana Core was worth 1,000 Redemption Points! It was equivalent to twenty bottles of Great Tree Sap or twenty pieces of Special Roasted Snails. Qin Ruo was certain that even if he used the Mana Core, he still would not necessarily be able to win against Cerberus. However, if it was just to pin down the Boss and capture its attention, it would definitely work.

Despite that, was it worth such a high price?

Qin Ruo was uncertain if he could gain enough profit to even cover the price he had to pay.

After all, Qin Ruo had planned to use the Sealed Mana Core to venture into the higher floors of the Graveyard of the Gods. If he used it now, he was afraid that he would not be able to escape from Cerberus with it.

The price to pay was just too high!

…

While Qin Ruo was hesitating about his decision, his Elemental Perception had picked up on a golden treasure chest near the Dimensional Portal. It had a refined and elegant design with amazingly intricate details. The treasure chest was like an exceptional piece of art, which meant that it had to contain something extremely valuable.

Unfortunately, the treasure chest was tightly sealed, and the only thing Qin Ruo could think about was its dark keyhole.

If the contents of the treasure chest were at stake, Qin Ruo would use the Sealed Mana Core without any hesitation. But sadly, he was not a Bandit and he did not possess the Lockpicking skill or have any tools to pick the lock.

“If only Gold Digger Babe were here.”

Qin Ruo suddenly missed Gold Digger Babe as he heard that her Lockpicking Skill had reached the Advanced Rank, which would have made opening such treasure chests a piece of cake.

However, since Qin Ruo was all alone, he could only stare at the frustrating keyhole while he let out a long sigh filled with feelings of frustration and hesitation.

After he compared his gains and losses, Qin Ruo finally decided to turn around and leave. Wasting a precious Sealed Mana Core for just a few Herbs was just too risky and not worth it.

Just as he was about to turn around, the sound splashing water could be heard from the waterfall entrance.

“Sh*t!”

Qin Ruo could only blame himself because he had spent too much time pondering about his losses that he had forgotten about Cerberus’ terrifying speed. It only took the Boss around ten seconds to run from the jungle to the waterfall.

The time that Qin Ruo spent to scan the caverns was more than 10 seconds.

Damn, it was the worst possible situation to be in!

The ferocious Cerberus had entered the cavern and dashed through the tunnel. It was now within Qin Ruo’s range of perception.

It was entering combat mode!

Thump! Thump!

Once Cerberus stepped into the cave, it instantly raced towards him at lightning speed.

As Qin Ruo noticed Cerberus getting closer to him, he gritted his teeth. He finally had sufficient reason to use the Sealed Mana Core.

In a one on one situation, it was impossible to escape the caverns. Thus, for the sake of his Dark Gold Equipment and the Herbs growing near the Dimensional Portal, he made his decision.

He was going to fight!

Qin Ruo gritted his teeth while he made his move. He began to retreat towards the Dimensional Portal and quickly put his hand into his backpack to retrieve the purple Sealed Mana Core. It was as large as his fists.

Cerberus continued to approach Qin Ruo with its intimidating presence, and Qin Ruo immediately channeled his magic into the Mana Core without delay.

There was silence in the atmosphere.

Cerberus’ intelligence was comparable to a player’s because it was a Divine Boss. The second Cerberus noticed the blinding purple glow coming from Qin Ruo’s hands, it immediately halted and bent its body to prepare itself. Its three pairs of eyes were filled with a murderous gleam, and Cerberus stared at the five-meter-tall purple Orc that spawned 50 m away from it.

Cerberus could sense a strong aura from the purple Orc. It was an aura only a monster of the same level would have. The summoned monster was equally matched with Cerberus’ current strength.

Roar!

As Cerberus roared, it felt a bloodthirsty vibe from the orc, which made it extremely uneasy while it bared its terrifying fangs at it.

However, the purple Orc on the other side was not afraid of Cerberus’ roars even though they were filled with murderous intent. As an Orc from the royal bloodline, the Amethyst Orc also had its own pride and dignity.

Facing against Cerberus’ taunts, the large and muscular Amethyst Orc used its own actions to express its displeasure towards Cerberus’ attitude.

It raised its left leg high and stomped hard on the rock-solid ground.

*Thump!*

The whole cave was slightly shaken!

The Orc stretched its arms wide and took a deep breath as it moved its upper body forward.

Roar!

Its deafening roars echoed throughout the cavern, and the echoes converged to a point where they sounded like sharp, piercing needles. That made Cerberus turn its heads away although it was fifty meters away from the orc.

When Cerberus turned back, Qin Ruo was able to clearly sense with his Elemental Perception that the Boss had sunk its feet into the ground with its razor-sharp claws.

‘Uh oh, this guy’s getting serious!’

Without delay, Qin Ruo immediately deactivated his Aquamorph. As he dashed towards the Dimensional Portal, he also activated his Frostbarrier. Simultaneously, he did not forget to order the Amethyst Orc to attack.

The battle between Cerberus and the Amethyst Orc finally began!

Black and purple lightning erupted from both sides as the two huge monsters decided to clash head-on without any feints or tricks.

Boom!

The caverns shook greatly like there was an earthquake!

…

Meanwhile, outside the waterfall…

After Cerberus returned to the caverns, Brony had followed the Summoner from the Hall of Heroes, leading the rest of the twenty plus guys to the lake nearby.

Before Brony could ask the Netherspirit’s Claw members who had just gone online anything, they were so shocked by the thunderous roar from within the waterfall that they retreated back into the jungle.

Everyone was looking at the waterfall entrance in confusion.

‘What just happened inside?’

‘Why has Cerberus suddenly returned to its resting place? Did another player just enter? What was all that ruckus about? It seems like Cerberus is facing a strong adversary. And it appears to be a monster too.’