Volume One, Chapter Seven: The First Boss, the Ghost Scorpion King

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Ghost Scorpion Valley seemed to be an obscure hidden map, at least in Lin Yu’s previous life, he had never heard any information about it. Fortunately, with the map given by the village chief, Lin Yu found the exact location of Ghost Scorpion Valley in just over ten minutes.

However, the moment he stepped into the valley and saw the scene with his own eyes, he couldn’t help but draw in a sharp breath.

Before Lin Yu stretched a swamp roughly thirty feet long and ten feet wide. Within the murky marsh, pairs of glowing crimson eyes watched him warily.

[Ghost Scorpion (Common): Level 8.
HP: 1200/1200.
Energy: 130/130.
Attack: 88.
Defense: 32.
Skill: Poison Sting.
Description: Indigenous to Ghost Scorpion Swamp, they seem to say, “If you dare mess with me, I’ll sting you so hard you’ll regret it!”]

Seeing this, Lin Yu finally understood why the unfortunate soul in his previous life had never revealed any follow-up information about the quest—it was simply impossible to complete.

“With the terrifying number of ghost scorpions in this swamp, it’s truly a herculean task for any player in the newbie village to finish this quest,” Lin Yu thought, feeling a pang of sympathy for the unlucky predecessor.

According to the map’s markings, the village chief’s treasured sword was hidden in a cave behind this swamp. That meant to retrieve the sword, one had to cross the swamp first—a daunting challenge for any newbie player.

After all, players who stayed in the newbie village were all below level ten. Facing these ghost scorpions, even one-on-one battles were tricky, let alone the sheer numbers lurking in the marsh.

“However, for me, this isn’t an impossible feat,” Lin Yu said quietly, his eyes gleaming not with fear but with faint anticipation.

With that, he strode confidently across the swamp that felt like a deadly gauntlet to almost every newbie player.

“Miss!”
“Miss!”
“Miss!”
...

As expected! As Lin Yu had predicted, after a full day of training against the Red Feather Chickens—raising his defense to an impressive 452—the ghost scorpions’ attacks no longer inflicted even the slightest damage.

Moreover, as the ghost scorpions kept attacking, Lin Yu’s defense slowly but steadily increased.

“This Ghost Scorpion Valley might just become my ideal place to hone absolute defense,” Lin Yu muttered, feeling the changes within himself.

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Compared to the Red Feather Chickens, the ghost scorpions not only came in greater numbers but also attacked more frequently.

More importantly, their Poison Sting skill inflicted lingering poison damage, which accelerated the growth of Lin Yu’s absolute defense far beyond previous rates.

After spending merely ten seconds traversing the swamp, his defense had risen by three or four points—nearly double the speed from before.

Still, Lin Yu didn’t get distracted; his priority was to complete the quest as soon as possible. As for passively grinding absolute defense, he had plenty of time ahead.

...

After about two or three minutes, Lin Yu finally crossed the swamp and arrived at the entrance of the cave behind it.

Pitch-black as ink, the cave was so dark that not even his hand was visible before his eyes.

Just as Lin Yu stood at the entrance, repeated warning tones sounded in his ears.

[Ding! This area is extremely dangerous; please leave immediately!]
[Ding! This area is extremely dangerous; please leave immediately!]

Frowning lightly at the warnings, Lin Yu suspected something terrifying dwelled within the cave; otherwise, the system wouldn’t alert him so sternly.

He recalled that when crossing the swamp, the system hadn’t issued a single warning.

Despite this, Lin Yu had no intention of retreating easily. Not only was he not one to give up halfway, but now, with his strength, even if he couldn’t defeat the threat, escaping wouldn’t be a problem.

After all, his defense had surpassed four hundred; not even the newbie village’s bosses could one-shot him.

“Since I’ve come this far, I must go in and see for myself,” Lin Yu said, his gaze hardening as he stepped inside without hesitation.

A thick, metallic stench of blood hit him the moment he entered, forcing him to cough.

At the same time, a terrifying aura surged out, pressing down on him so heavily he instinctively stopped.

“What a formidable presence. The owner of this aura must rival some bosses around level fifteen,” Lin Yu squinted, his expression grave.

Drawing from his past experience, he quickly assessed the cave occupant’s approximate strength.

Facing such a powerful being, even with his current survival skills, Lin Yu dared not be careless.

A level fifteen boss was practically the pinnacle in the newbie village; ordinary players would need a team of at least ten to stand a chance.

“Well, I’ll go in and take a look first. If it’s too much, I’ll just raise my absolute defense further and return later,” Lin Yu muttered, frowning.

Clearly, he wasn’t ready to give up just yet.

Yet, as Lin Yu lifted his foot and took a few steps forward, deep inside the cave, a colossal beast suddenly opened its eyes, glowing like lanterns in the dark.

Boom!

The entire cave trembled violently as stones rained down.

Then, a fearsome roar echoed through the cavern!

As the roar faded, a system warning sounded in Lin Yu’s ears.

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[Ding! You have trespassed into the Ghost Scorpion Cave, provoking the Ghost Scorpion King’s intense displeasure. It will arrive on the battlefield in 30 seconds. Please leave immediately.]

“So it finally shows itself,” Lin Yu said as a pair of lantern-like eyes suddenly appeared in his sight.

Then, a massive body, as large as a small mountain, charged straight at him.

[Ghost Scorpion King (Black Iron Boss): Level 13.
HP: 98,000/98,000.
Energy: 400/400.
Attack: 203.
Defense: 138.
Skills: Fierce Suppression, Poisonous Scorpion Tail, Frenzy.
Description: Overlord of Ghost Scorpion Valley, possesses staggering power. Proceed with caution!]

“Luckily, its attack isn’t too high!” Lin Yu breathed a sigh of relief after studying the king’s attributes.

With his defense now over 450, he could completely negate the damage.

However, a headache swiftly followed.

Though his defense was formidable, his own attack was pitifully low.

Even if he allocated all future free attribute points to attack, he would barely reach 52 points.

In other words, he couldn’t penetrate the Ghost Scorpion King’s defense either.

This meant his only damage-dealing option was the true damage reflected through the absolute defense passive.

But since this was a boss, it wouldn’t foolishly attack mindlessly like common mobs and kill itself by reflection damage.

At Lin Yu’s current strength, he had no effective way to defeat the Ghost Scorpion King.

Although he possessed the “Taunt” skill, its duration was too short.

Given his current reflected damage output, ending the battle within three minutes was clearly impossible.

“Forget it. I’ll have to level up more or find gear that boosts attack before trying again,” Lin Yu sighed, feeling the urge to retreat.

After all, even if he managed to wear down the king’s HP with reflection and taunt, if the boss didn’t attack, he could only stand helplessly by, wasting time.

For now, it was better to gain levels outside, then return to finish off this beast.

“Swish!”

Just as Lin Yu was about to retreat, the Ghost Scorpion King didn’t let him go so easily.

Its massive scorpion tail whipped out with lightning speed, slicing through the air with a terrifying whoosh.