Volume 1, Chapter 40: The Shocked Ten-Thousand Snake King-Jogos Online: Após Maximizar Defesa, Tornei-me uma Fonte Móvel(Fogo, fogo, fogo)

Leaving the blacksmith's shop, Lin Yu headed straight for the Myriad Snake Valley, the location of his quest.

The Myriad Snake Valley was nestled within a canyon a few miles outside the novice village. It earned its name because the valley was shrouded in mist year-round, and villagers frequently encountered snakes within its borders.

The Myriad Snake Valley certainly lived up to its reputation. As soon as Lin Yu stepped into it, he encountered a group of serpentine monsters.

[Green Bamboo Ring Snake (Common): Level 7.
HP: 1200/1200.
Energy: 170/170.
Attack: 55.
Defense: 23.
Skill: Venomous Fang.
Description: A native resident of the Myriad Snake Valley. Don't underestimate me just because I look pretty!]

However, for monsters of this level, Lin Yu chose to ignore them entirely. Slaughtering them yielded little more than a tiny amount of copper coins with no other gains whatsoever—it was sheer a waste of time.

As Lin Yu ventured deeper, the serpentine monsters multiplied. Yet, their levels were not particularly high, nor were they enough to make Lin Yu stop in his tracks. His main objective for this trip was the Myriad Snake King, so the other monsters failed to spark even the slightest interest in grinding for him. After all, compared to the allure of a full set of Black-Iron grade equipment, the drops from these ordinary monsters were simply not worth mentioning.

...

After trekking through the Myriad Snake Valley for over ten minutes, Lin Yu finally stopped not far from a cave. If nothing unexpected happened, the so-called Myriad Snake King should be inside that cave ahead.

Sure enough, just as Lin Yu predicted, less than ten meters away from the cave entrance, a system prompt rang in his ears.

[Warning! Warning! Because you have trespassed into restricted territory and disturbed the cultivation of the Myriad Snake Valley's master, the Myriad Snake King, you have provoked his intense displeasure. He will descend upon the scene in 30 seconds. Please evacuate immediately!]

...

As the three system prompts faded away, the next moment, a middle-aged man with a square face and blood-red cloth garments swept toward Lin Yu at a terrifying speed. Before Lin Yu could even recover from his momentary daze, the man mercilessly threw a punch at him. If Lin Yu's reflexes hadn't been fast enough, he truly would have been hit.

Even so, although Lin Yu managed to dodge the attack, he was forced back more than a dozen steps by the ferocious gale of the punch. Regaining his footing, Lin Yu finally looked up at the red-robed man who had ambushed him midway.

Then, the man's information materialized before his eyes.

[Myriad Snake King, Toldt (Bronze Boss): Level 25.
HP: 128000/153000.
Energy: 1250/1250.
Attack: 2189.
Defense: 245.
Skills: Blood Spirit Slash, Sacrifice.
Description: The new overlord of the Myriad Snake Valley. Though his identity is shrouded in mystery, his strength is immensely formidable. Novice players should just run for their lives upon encountering him!]

...

"No wonder Blacksmith Li didn't come himself. To think the Myriad Snake King is this powerful?"

Looking at the Myriad Snake King's attribute panel, Lin Yu's expression sank slightly. Although this Myriad Snake King was merely a Level 25 Bronze Boss, his attack power was not the least bit inferior to that of a Level 30 Boss. If Lin Yu guessed correctly, this fellow probably possessed one or two pieces of equipment that could significantly boost attack power.

In the setting of the game *Gods and Demons Continent*, humanoid Bosses were capable of carrying equipment. That was precisely why the attributes of humanoid Bosses far exceeded those of beast-type ones. Of course, while beast-type Bosses could not carry equipment, their base health pools vastly surpassed those of humanoids; both types had their respective advantages.

However, there was one more thing that puzzled Lin Yu: the enhancement skill this fellow possessed. Unexpectedly, it wasn't the Berserk or Fury commonly found on ordinary Bosses, but rather Sacrifice.

As far as he knew, the skill Sacrifice could only be learned by members of the Sanctuary Alliance. Furthermore, one had to be someone who had made tangible contributions to the Alliance to be qualified to cultivate it. Yet, the Myriad Snake King Toldt was clearly just a field Boss, and yet he knew it too. This came as quite a surprise to Lin Yu. Could this fellow have some sort of connection with the Sanctuary Alliance?

Lin Yu frowned tightly, clearly quite perplexed.

"Adventurer, I advise you to leave immediately, or else don't blame me for being ruthless."

Just as Lin Yu was deep in thought, Toldt on the opposite side stared at him with a gloomy expression and spoke. He hadn't expected a Level 9 adventurer to have the guts to come to his territory and stir up trouble. However, he didn't rush to attack, because Lin Yu's ability to dodge his attack so effortlessly a moment earlier was enough to demonstrate the latter's strength. Even he felt a fair degree of apprehension.

Toldt had always been cautious and never took unnecessary risks. Moreover, Lin Yu was an adventurer; there was no need for him to complicate things needlessly.

"Myriad Snake King, I don't wish to make an enemy of you. Just obediently hand over Blacksmith Li's Crimson Wave Crystal, and I will leave at once."

Seeing that Toldt did not attack immediately, Lin Yu stated the purpose of his visit. Blacksmith Li's quest only required him to retrieve the Crimson Wave Crystal; it did not mandate slaying the Myriad Snake King. Therefore, he only needed to get the crystal back. After all, the Myriad Snake King possessed exceptional strength, and even for Lin Yu, killing him would be no easy feat. Naturally, avoiding a fight was the best-case scenario for him.

"You're sent by that fellow Li Youtian?"

Hearing the name Blacksmith Li, Toldt's expression darkened significantly. Judging by his appearance, he seemed to harbor quite a grievance against the former. If Lin Yu guessed right, Blacksmith Li had probably come to the Myriad Snake Valley and given this fellow a hard time on multiple occasions in pursuit of that Crimson Wave Crystal. Otherwise, the Myriad Snake King would never react this way.

"Myriad Snake King, you've got it wrong. I wasn't sent by him; strictly speaking, this is just a cooperation."

Faced with the Myriad Snake King's interrogation, Lin Yu merely replied calmly, his demeanor remaining serene.

"Then I'll just have to see if you have the strength to back that up."

Seeing that Lin Yu did not deny it, Toldt's face turned as dark as water, and a heavier hint of murderous intent crept into the eyes he fixed on Lin Yu. The moment his words fell, he gripped his palm, and a large blood-red saber instantly appeared in his hand.

"Blood Spirit Slash!"

Toldt let out a sudden roar, violently slashing the blood-colored saber forward. Immediately afterward, a surge of red Qi wave roared outward like a blood-colored spirit snake, targeting Lin Yu directly.

Clearly, upon learning Lin Yu's identity, his attitude had undergone a complete one-eighty turn.

"Damn it, what kind of deep-seated hatred is this? Pulling out an ultimate skill right off the bat?" At this sight, Lin Yu frowned slightly. Although the intelligence of humanoid Bosses was far superior to that of ordinary monsters, it was extremely rare for one to unleash a major skill right at the start. This went to show how deep the fellow's resentment toward Blacksmith Li truly was.

Surprised though he was, Lin Yu reacted quickly, rapidly retreating his body in an attempt to dodge it. It was true that his high defense was an advantage, but there was no need to take such skill damage head-on.

"Kid, you think you can dodge it with your speed?"

Seeing Lin Yu's movement, Toldt let out a cold snort. As his words fell, the speed of that blood-colored Qi wave suddenly surged. The next second, it tore through the air, hurtling toward Lin Yu at an astonishing speed.

"He really does have some tricks up his sleeve!"

The sudden turn of events caused Lin Yu's expression to shift slightly. Knowing full well that he couldn't dodge it in time, he immediately summoned the Sword of Light and chose to take the blow head-on.

"You're simply courting death!"

Seeing that Lin Yu failed to dodge and actually intended to take the hit head-on, a sneer crept onto the corner of Toldt's mouth. His attacks were difficult for even powerhouses of the same level to parry, let alone an adventurer who hadn't even reached Level 10. Lin Yu's action was nothing short of seeking his own demise! Thus, in his eyes, Lin Yu was already nothing more than a corpse.

However, before the smile at the corner of his mouth could fully bloom, his expression abruptly turned unsightly the next moment.

"How is this possible?"

Toldt's eyes widened to the size of saucers, looking at Lin Yu as if he had seen a ghost. Because he discovered that his proudest strike hadn't dealt even a sliver of damage to Lin Yu!