Chapter Fifteen: Victory

As for that corpse, in such a terrifying collision, all the bones were shattered, and the flesh was mangled into a heap of indistinguishable gore.

“Dragon!” Fire Phoenix cried out in surprise.

“Are you alright, Dragon?” Roc also exclaimed.

“I’m fine!” I had just gotten up when, from the other side, the female mage screamed, “No!” Her voice was abruptly cut off—she was killed instantly by a single swipe from the Black Bear boss, the last one to return to the city.

“This monster is really powerful!” I had been knocked flying by the impact, and now my position was quite far from the Black Bear boss.

Roc and Fire Phoenix, both archers, naturally kept their distance and stayed behind, while I ended up even farther back, indicating just how far I’d been hurled.

A warrior’s speed is hardly comparable to other classes, only faster than mages, but archers are quick. Yet even the male archer, with speed-enhancing boots, couldn’t escape the Black Bear boss’s grasp, revealing just how fast this boss could move.

After tearing apart the female mage, the Black Bear boss turned its attention to the three of us. Its mountain-like, obese body merely swayed slightly, and in a flash, it moved to within five meters, now less than five meters from Roc, the closest. Its terrifying speed meant that with the next movement, it would certainly reach Roc, and if it caught him, a single swipe would likely send him straight back to the city.

The little black dog was barking wildly, then tucked its tail and ran toward me.

“Uncle!” I got up without turning to flee, instead charging forward, shouting, “Uncle, attack now! If you don’t, we’ll die!” Almost as soon as my words left my mouth, the Black Bear boss made its second move, swaying to within five meters, its massive body now right in front of Roc, raising its enormous paw and swiping down.

At the same time, Roc shouted fiercely, and a white light burst from his body, enveloping him in a holy glow as he rushed at the Bear Spirit.

The Bear Spirit’s giant paw was less than a foot from Roc’s body when Roc collided with its chest.

A thunderous crash echoed.

The Bear Spirit roared, its massive body shaken by the impact, its paw hesitated momentarily, then swept past Roc.

“That was close! Thanks, Dragon,” Roc said, having barely escaped death’s door, taking a deep breath to calm himself, his panic fading.

With that, he dashed forward, engaging the Black Bear boss in battle. In an instant, Roc struck the boss no less than three times, but the Bear Spirit simply swung a paw—Roc let out a wretched cry as his body was sent flying, landing with a cloud of dust.

“Uncle!” cried Fire Phoenix.

Roc was hurled more than ten meters away, coughing up blood, his health nearly depleted; a bear paw print was stamped on his chest, his armor dented inward.

By now, I had charged from Fire Phoenix’s side straight toward the boss.

Fire Phoenix was shocked: everyone had seen how easily the Black Bear boss killed a warrior with a single swipe. How much health could a summoner possibly have? Charging in like this was surely suicide.

“Dragon, don’t!” Fire Phoenix couldn’t help but shout, spinning around and raising her short bow.

“Ah!” Roc shouted fiercely, standing again, pausing briefly, then shooting toward the Black Bear boss like an arrow. Although he was farther away, he and I almost reached the boss at the same time.

Fire Phoenix’s arrow was the fastest, slicing through the air and striking the Bear Spirit directly.

With a hiss, the long arrow pierced the Black Bear boss’s massive, fatty body, and half a second later, Roc crashed into its chest.

I let out a long howl, both hands clenched into iron fists, pounding heavily at the boss’s leg joint.

It could ignore Fire Phoenix’s sharp arrow, dismiss Roc’s charge, and even shrug off a warrior’s sword thrust. With its thick layer of subcutaneous fat, minor wounds meant little. But this time, with my strike, the Black Bear boss suddenly let out a roar, its body trembling and then collapsing.

Everyone was momentarily stunned. Fire Phoenix immediately called out, “The boss’s legs are its weak point—attack its legs!”

The Black Bear boss howled, and as it fell, it swiped a paw, knocking Roc—who’d just restored his health—flying once again.

Seizing the moment, I gathered all my strength and smashed its leg joint again.

With over a hundred points of attack, full force unleashed, thousands of pounds of power—no matter how formidable the Black Bear boss, its leg joint gave a resounding crack and was thrown out of alignment.

The boss howled in agony, struggling to stand, swiping at me—I’d already retreated several steps to avoid it.

With one leg broken, the Black Bear boss could no longer stand, its power greatly diminished.

Seeing this, Roc immediately stood up, gripped his double-edged sword, and slashed at the boss’s paw.

Blood splattered as the Bear Spirit roared, swinging its paw, shaking the ground with each blow. Roc shouted again, slashing fiercely at the wound, and with a hiss, cut the boss’s paw cleanly in half.

I had broken one leg, and Roc had severed the other paw. The Black Bear boss roared in pain like thunder, but now it was utterly unable to stand.

Everyone breathed a little easier—a boss that can’t get up is like a toothless tiger, still fearsome in place but unable to hit anyone.

The question now was how to kill it. The boss still had plenty of health, and with its thick subcutaneous fat, even a warrior’s double-edged sword couldn’t inflict a fatal wound. Avoiding its wildly swinging paws to finish it off was no easy task.

Fire Phoenix called out, “What do we do? We've crippled its legs, but can’t get close—it’s still too dangerous with those paws.” She fired a few arrows, but they had little effect, and she frowned.

I said nothing, my mind racing to figure out how to deal with it. Glancing around, I noticed many large stones nearby, and inspiration struck. I ran to the side where the Bear Spirit's head was facing, picked up a big rock, and hurled it hard at the boss’s head.

A loud crash sounded as the stone struck the Black Bear boss’s head, blood spraying instantly. The Bear Spirit howled in misery, swiping at its head. I threw three stones, landing two; only one was knocked away by chance. Each stone chipped away dozens of health points—for a boss now immobilized, this was the most effective method.

Everyone caught on quickly. Roc shouted, “Great idea!” and rushed to the other side, grabbing stones and throwing them from a distance—no need to get close, and still able to hurt the boss.

Fire Phoenix said, “Dragon, you’re smart! You look a bit silly, but I didn’t expect you to come up with something like this in a pinch.”

After tossing a stone, I replied, “Are you complimenting me or insulting me?”

Fire Phoenix said, “Of course I’m complimenting you.”

“Feels a bit odd,” I said.

One after another, we hurled stones, battering the Black Bear boss’s head until blood sprayed everywhere. Its skull was tough, but couldn’t withstand repeated attacks. The force of its resistance weakened, and gradually it lost all strength.

Seeing the boss’s health was nearly gone, I picked up a final stone and smashed it onto the boss’s forehead, splattering blood and tissue onto my face, which then slowly dripped down.

This terrifying, seemingly invincible Black Bear boss had fallen before the players’ wit—its head ruined, white brain matter mingled with blood, oozing from its forehead. All of us gained a huge amount of experience; I instantly leveled up twice. Meanwhile, the little black dog that had been barking suddenly curled up and lay down, disappearing, and the system notified me: the little black dog is evolving and cannot be summoned.

Now I’m praying that after evolution, this black dog becomes more powerful, otherwise I might just delete my account.

Roc said, “Dragon, you’re so formidable—you really shouldn’t have chosen summoner. If you were a warrior, you’d be even more amazing.”

Fire Phoenix chimed in, “I agree! Dragon, you’re awesome—truly mighty!”

I smiled slightly. Roc continued, “Hey, tell me, how did you manage to hit the boss’s leg joint at that crucial moment? Did you spot the weakness right away, or was it just luck?”

I replied, “You hit its chest, so I couldn’t reach it—had to go for the leg instead, and I never expected it’d topple so easily, haha.” I scratched my head, somewhat embarrassed.

After the boss died, two items dropped from its massive corpse.

One was a two-meter-long staff, shimmering with an eerie black glow, with a giant bear paw-shaped grip at one end. The other was a pair of leg guards.

Bear Paw Staff

Grade: Light Blue

Attack: 70

Health: +250

Defense: +5

Required Level: 15

The leg guards were white-quality. I didn’t need the staff—I already had bronze knuckle-dusters with 100 attack, far superior. So I gave the staff to Roc, the leg guards to Fire Phoenix, and took the three gold coins that dropped. After dividing the loot, we logged off for dinner, then continued on our journey.