MMORPG: The Elementalist

Bam!

After grinding through the battle for almost ten minutes, the blaze surrounding the Lethal Balrog finally vanished. Without its fiery appearance, the balrog’s once glaring lava body suddenly dimmed. The monster shattered into volcanic ashes after it was dealt the finishing blow by the Amethyst Orc. The blocks of ashes, still steaming with heat, dropped shabbily to the ground in slow motion.

After the battle, the fighters, including Qin Ruo, did not immediately approach the body or collect the rewards. Instead, they remained still and let out a long sigh of relief as they watched the abundant loot.

“That was close. We were almost done for.”

“Phew.”

Despite not getting involved, Subjugator, Judge, and Fateless were equally tense, observing the battle. It was as if they had also taken part in it. The final minute was especially torturing when they witnessed the Amethyst Orc’s HP plummet below 15,000, 10,000, then 5,000 until it reached the Weakened State. Such torment was unbearable to watch even for those of the strongest hearts.

The six of them had to almost directly face the Lethal Balrog’s wrath with their comparatively frail figures. The Burning Effect of the Lethal Balrog’s exterior flame would have doubled the amount of Damage inflicted on a melee Class and instantly removed a large portion of a warrior’s HP, which the warrior would not be able to replenish in time.

Fortunately, the Amethyst Orc hung on till the very last second. Qin Ruo and the two other attackers also maintained their composure to the very end. They overcame the equally-weakened Lethal Balrog in the last few fatal seconds by dealing the final blow first.

Though they may have still come out triumphant in the end, they could not afford to sacrifice the Amethyst Orc in exchange for a victory. The Amethyst Orc’s presence was irreplaceable as they were going to face a lot more vicious Bosses in future battles.

A victory with the Tier 5 Miniboss still alive and a victory built on its dead body were two very different scenarios.

The fighters began to retrieve their rewards while the three bystanders rejoiced.

“Haha! What a great harvest! Three Dark Gold equipment and a Magic Skill Book!” Black Rock stood excitedly near a few Dark Gold equipment while he swung the Magic Skill Book in his hands and shouted. Snowleaf, however, held up a bright red oval gem in her hand.

Qin Ruo just kept his head low and piled up the other rewards. He glanced at the excited Black Rock as well as Snowleaf from time to time and laughed discreetly. A Magic Skill Book… Was it really that rare? Besides, did all girls like shining gemstones that much? Or else, why would she keep looking at the Embedded Stone?

Qin Ruo did not know what the consequences would be if such thoughts were made known to those around him.

Although he had already gotten his hands on two Magic Skill Books previously, the drop rate of that particular item was still the lowest among all. In other words, it was even rarer than Legendary Equipment in the Graveyard of the Gods. The two Magic Skill Books Qin Ruo obtained earlier on were either exchanged using Redemption Points or gained through treasure chests. Thus, they could not be considered dropped items.

As for Snowleaf’s obsession towards Embedded Materials, she fancied its potential more than its glamorous outlook. Qin Ruo simply progressed too drastically in the game to be able to appreciate the true value of an Embedded Stone. He was somehow recently promoted and had only spent a relatively short time at Tier 4. Compared to other experienced players at the pinnacle of Tier 4, his knowledge apparently still fell short.

Every top-tier player knew one simple fact—Legendary Equipment only dropped in the most difficult locations of H&G, and the drops were pitifully sparse. Sometimes, not even the most powerful Tier 5 Supreme Champion was able to collect a complete set of Legendary Equipment, let alone a Tier 4 player.

However, with the help of Embedded Stones, such a seemingly impossible task became achievable. The reason was, a Dark Gold Equipment fully embedded with a superior quality Stone (or Mana Core) did not differ much from a Legendary tier in terms of its applicability.

Moreover, equipment of the Legendary Tier or higher were not upgradable like the lower tier ones. Therefore, besides strengthening their personal skills and levels to pursue the Tier 5 Advancement Quest, most Tier 4 players would also aim to gather a full set of embedded Dark Gold Equipment before they entered the next stage.

***

After all, the rewards were retrieved into the Sharing Column, the six human and three monsters did not immediately descend to the fourth level through the teleport point.

All six of them were highly tense because they understood how dangerous it would get once they stepped into the warp point.

The fourth level of the Graveyard of the Gods was one step away from the final arena of the godforsaken place. Even though the monsters on Level 4 were nothing close to the godlike creatures found on Level 5, it did not in any way lessen the tight competition and unforgiving environment of Level 4.

Players who managed to go in and survive Level 4 were surely the elites among the elites of the H&G world. Loners, in general, were powerful Champions, whereas parties that survived usually had extraordinary combat capability.

To survive in the Graveyard of the Gods, an individual, and a party’s condition had to be tip-top. The reason was, the most gruesome attack by rival faction players could come at any time and any place in there.

Ironically, none of them could currently be considered “fine”. First of all, the party lacked potions. One set of HP Potion (L) given by Qin Ruo was not going to suffice. In case they were ambushed by a larger group, the potions they had would be used up really quick. These fights were usually extended ones, and they greatly disfavored the side with less supplies.

In terms of Magic Scrolls… Aside from Qin Ruo, the other two spellcasters had burnt all of theirs; so did Snowleaf with her Mana Core.

Under such circumstances, Qin Ruo who carried a powerful Summoned Beast automatically became the only reliable force in the party. He was the beacon of hope to the other party members on their quest to reach the final level of the Graveyard of the Gods.

***

Subjugator, Judge, Fateless, and Black Rock kept watch while Cryospider, Snowleaf, and Qin Ruo (all Water-type players) sat down together. They began to restore the Amethyst Orc’s HP with Aquaheal.

The Amethyst Orc’s battle prowess had gained a nod from everyone in the party. They recognized that the Tier 5 Miniboss was the key to whether they could stay safe in the fourth level and march on to the fifth—if and only if they were able to discover the teleport point before the Amethyst Orc disappeared.

While they were busy healing the Amethyst Orc, the party members did not forget to distribute the loot in the Sharing Column. Since the Graveyard of the Gods was such a dangerous place, any one of them could be killed unexpectedly and chased out from the graveyard at any point. If that happened, the deceased player would immediately be detached from the party and be disallowed from claiming any rewards gained by the party in the graveyard.

To avoid losing out on the rewards, six of them discussed how to distribute the drops from the Lethal Balrog. Subjugator headed the discussion and provided the suggestion, while other members only needed to either agree or provide a different opinion.

The rewards dropped from the Lethal Balrog were far more luxurious than the rewards from the Greenstone Demon.

Out of the three Dark Gold Equipment, two of them were obviously items that belonged to the Elementalist Class—they were gaiters, boots, and a Dark Gold staff.

Other than that, there was also the Lethal Balrog’s Fire Mana Core, one bright red gem with unknown attributes and one Magic Skill Book in addition to a rare item among the Gold Tier drops—a ring.

However, all those items were outshone by the most surprising gain of the battle—a Lethal Balrog Pet Egg!

The value of a Tier 5 Elite Boss Pet Egg surpassed any other drop from the Lethal Balrog by a huge margin, be it the Magic Skill Book with an unknown spell or the Dark Gold Equipment. Hence, it was a no-brainer that it was given the most attention.

“Haih, I hate to say this, but without you, this fight would never have been possible. So Qin Ruo, you’ll still be the first to pick. This time, you can take any three rewards you like. Then, one each for Black Rock and Snowleaf. Any objections?”

Right after Subjugator finished his sentence, an unhappy Fateless punched the tree beside him out of frustration. “Damn it! I have an opinion. Why haven’t we been given the chance to fight? Two damn times in a row!”

Judge faked a cough before he raised his hand and said, “Forgive him. He’s just venting. Go on guys, go on.”

Honestly, no one in the party would object the privilege given to Qin Ruo to pick first. He totally deserved it because they believed that the Aquamancer could take down the two Bosses using the same strategy even without their aid. It may take him longer, but it was doable nonetheless.

Besides, if they wished to have Qin Ruo in the party and enter the final level with his help, there was no room for bargain. Subjugator believed that the minimum offer to retain him would have to be three items, at least.

So naturally, everyone approved of Subjugator’s proposal. Once it was approved, they knew what to expect next: no more Pet Egg and Magic Skill Book, that was for sure. But their eyes were still fixed upon the more than ten items listed in the Sharing Column. Pressure was mounting on Qin Ruo as he was feeling sorry for their edginess.

Nevertheless, the apologetic feeling lasted only for a few seconds. He picked the Balrog Pet Egg first, followed by the Magic Skill Book, and lastly, the Dark Gold staff.

Everyone wanted the Pet Egg, but it was impossible for him to be so kind and leave it to Black Rock or Snowleaf. Although the former was friendly and the latter was likable, Qin Ruo was not about to give up on a Pet Egg of the highest grade just because of some fleeting friendship built from a temporarily formed party. It could be worth two million coins.

He was, after all, no longer a naive young boy who would blindly believe in pure friendship or stuff like that.