Chapter 64: Sweeping Through the Cave (Part 2)
As expected, the simultaneous attack of 4 Ravens immediately produced a miraculous effect. The Mini-Boss's second arrow was interrupted. Enraged, the Mini-Boss completely ignored me, raised its Bow and Arrow, and rapidly shot at the Ravens. Seeing this as an opportunity, I quickly seized it and advanced with heavy, stiff steps.
With a "swish," one Raven was hit. Its entire body immediately turned blue. It squawked a few times and actually flew away.
I was startled and couldn't help but turn back to look at the Raven beside me with a disdainful look. It was the first one I had Summoned. It had cooperated with me for so long; I really couldn't bear to use it as cannon fodder. Besides, I was still hoping it could become Mutated, gain a bit more Wisdom, and then serve a scouting role.
Noticing my gaze, this damned Lazy Crow also tilted its head. Its black, beady eyes looked as innocent as could be, as if saying, "That's it, I'm me. What are you looking at? I'm not that kind of Raven."
In the end, out of the four Ravens, three escaped and one died. However, by the time the Mini-Boss cleared away these minor annoyances and turned back, I had already appeared beside it with a ferocious Smile.
With a "smack," a huge Bear Paw sent her flying. Damn, that slap felt so good! That's for annoying me last time, for playing guerrilla tactics!
The Dark Wanderer itself has relatively low Defense, and this is true even for the Mini-Boss. That slap definitely made it feel terrible. By this time, the Ghost Wolf and Poison Creeper had already cleared out the other Mobs and were standing by, watching intently, just waiting for my command to swarm the Mini-Boss and tear it to shreds.
Of course, I wouldn't say something foolish like "You guys just watch, I'll solo this" to act like a Hero. That slap just now hit because the Ravens delayed it. Once the Mini-Boss reacted, with Ice Arrow and Guerrilla Tactics, my Werebear Transformation couldn't catch up. No matter how much Health or Defense I had, it would be useless.
Huh? There's still a bottle of dissolving potion? Why would I waste it on her? There are simpler, more economical methods. Was my Brain addled?
The Mini-Boss, left all alone, clearly had no power left to turn the tide. The Speed of both the Ghost Wolf and the Poison Creeper, as long as they weren't hit by her Frozen Arrow, was no slower than hers. Moreover, this Cave was a dead end with only one exit, which we were now blocking. Her most insidious Guerrilla Tactics couldn't be used, and her own Attack was useless. Besides death, did she have any other choice?
The only minor interlude was probably when the Poison Creeper's Chance to Bind finally triggered. Watching it suddenly emerge from the ground and wrap itself around the Mini-Boss circle by circle, even though the Bind only lasted for a short second, it almost made my legs go weak and stumble to the ground—wasn't this the legendary S.M. Binding invented in a certain island nation?
It's just a shame that the person (Monster?) being S.M.'d was truly too hideous, failing to spark anyone's Interest in the slightest.
"Ah—!!!"
When the Mini-Boss was left with just a sliver of Health, I immediately canceled the Summon of the other four Ghost Wolves, leaving only the last, more steady one. This was the legendary Elite Policy, also known as "Letting a portion of people get rich first."
As expected, after the Mini-Boss died, that Ghost Wolf didn't undergo any Transformation (having just been Summoned, it couldn't possibly Mutate that quickly). However, the dead Raven on my shoulder squawked loudly. Its entire body flashed with a White Light, and then it disappeared.
Just like that?
While overjoyed, I couldn't help but feel a bit puzzled—even if it wasn't earth-shattering, there should at least be brilliant light shooting out and lingering for a long time, right?
I opened the Raven's Stats panel. As expected, the originally simple Stats panel was now completely filled with text.
Raven: Level 8 (Level 1 Mutation). A Mutated Creature evolved from long-term Combat Experience accumulation. Mutation Level 1: Life +10%, Defense +10%, Speed + %, All Resistance +10. Has a greater Chance to interrupt the Enemy's Attack (Chance is related to the Enemy's Strength). Possesses a certain degree of low-level Wisdom.
Excellent! It seems that it's not just the Poison Creeper that can become Mutated. With this Raven's Mutation, I have even more confidence in the future Mutation of the Ghost Wolf, Feral Rage, and Grizzly. However...
I looked disdainfully at the Raven. Evolved from long-term Combat Experience accumulation? I think it evolved from long-term fleeing experience accumulation.
And what does "possesses a certain degree of low-level Wisdom" mean? Could it be...
I tried communicating with the Raven. Damn, it was still the same as before. It seems hoping for it to complete high-difficulty scouting tasks is still a long way off. But thinking about its usual Actions, I couldn't help but wonder—could it be that this Lazy Crow was born different? Other Ravens might be timid and afraid of death, but they wouldn't be lazy.
The only regrettable thing is that this Lazy Crow also Leveled Up only after I killed the Mini-Boss. This makes me unable to figure out whether only killing Monsters of Minor Boss Level or higher can make Summons Mutate and Level Up, or if these two instances were just coincidences.
Putting aside the doubts in my heart, I carefully examined the Equipment that dropped on the ground. This was a Mini-Boss; it should drop some good Items, right? As for the other nine Mobs, I had glanced at them earlier when I had a moment, and they only dropped a few Gold Coins.
The first thing that caught my eye was a blue Long Bow. There was no helping it; it was too big and stood out among the pile of Items.
Holding it, the Long Bow felt particularly substantial. Compared to the shoddy products in the Training Ground, it was worlds apart. I quickly took out an Identify Scroll and slapped it onto the bow.
Light Moon Elf's Long Bow
Damage: 7-13
Required Strength: 22
Required Dexterity: 19
Required Level: 8
Bow Mastery: Fast Attack Speed
+25% Damage
+3 Minimum Damage
+50% Damage to Demons
It actually had 3 Stats and was Excellent Grade Magic Equipment! And the Stats were all quite good, especially the +50% Damage to Demons. You know, most of the Monsters in the Rogue Encampment are Demon types. Too bad I'm not very good with bows right now. Annoying...
Next, my eyes continued scanning the ground.
Ooh, ooh, ooh, what's this? A short, exquisite staff with a round green bead embedded in it. Relying on my remaining memories, I immediately determined this should be a Sorceress's Class-Specific Item, an Orb. This was the first time I had dropped a Class-Specific Item.
Although this Orb didn't emit any Glow, I wasn't disappointed by that. For this type of Class-Specific Item, what matters isn't the color, but the Stats it comes with. Also, unlike in the Game, where only the specific Class can equip them, here all Classes can use them. However, except for Wizards, other Classes cannot utilize the Item's Base Stats and can only treat it as a relatively exquisite everyday Item. For example, although I can use this Orb, I cannot gain the Base Damage attached to it.
However, I wasn't planning to hit people with this staff anyway, so whether it has Damage or not doesn't matter. The most important thing is that it absolutely must have more and better Spells attached!
I muttered in my heart, invoking all the Gods and Buddhas, before slowly picking up the staff.
Orb
One-Hand Damage: 2-5
Durability: -
Staff Class: Fast Attack Speed
+3 Warmth
How should I describe my mood at this moment? I can only say, uh, it's quite complicated...
Besides this staff, the last piece of Equipment on the ground was a Normal Skull Cap, like a Minor inverted Iron Pot. Picking it up, I realized it was extraordinary. It was a special type, Gray Equipment, with 2 Sockets.
Skull Cap (Gray)
Defense: 11
Durability: 18
Required Strength 15
Has Sockets (2)
Good stuff! If I socket anything into it later, it won't be any worse than a piece of Magic Equipment. Plus, I happened to need a Hat. I immediately put it on. It felt a bit like having a small Iron Pot hanging on my head.
What was left included a bottle of Full Rejuvenation Potion. Yeah, yeah, a life-saving Potion! But I had already accumulated 5 bottles on my Body during this time, so I wasn't particularly excited to see it now.
A Chipped Ruby (Stats not listed, everyone knows!)
2 bottles of Light Mana Potion, and 11 Gold Coins.
Overall, the drops from this Mini-Boss were quite good, definitely no worse than Bishibosh. Just the Orb alone, its Rarity could rival a piece of Golden Equipment. Uh, although the Stats were quite speechless...
Defeating this Mini-Boss didn't take much effort, so I saved my Rest time and rushed non-stop towards the Entrance of Cave Level 2. Competition was fierce now. The Cave was just a low-level Trial Zone. Besides the Mini-Boss I just fought, other Monsters were no match for many Parties. The Chests on the second level were naturally often visited. If I walked one step slower, someone else might get there first.
After canceling the Summon of the other four Ghost Wolves, and based on the Elite Policy, I didn't Summon them again. Although I still didn't know if killing normal Mobs could also give the Ghost Wolves the Experience needed for Mutation, with my current Strength/Power, taking just one Ghost Wolf was more than enough unless I encountered a Monster of Minor Boss Level. Summoning too many Ghost Wolves and winning too easily might make me feel arrogant. Born from hardship, died in comfort—I understood this principle.
The Cave of the second level was right before my eyes. The Chill emanating from inside was even colder and more biting than the first level. Sticking to my old routine, I used Transformation into Werebear Form and stepped down. I refused to believe there was any Monster in the Cave that could cause me significant Damage!