Chapter Fourteen: A Moment’s Carelessness

As Moon Rabbit retreated onto the stone bridge, the three-headed ice bear had already been vanquished midway. Wu Hua let out a slight breath of relief; three people taking on a boss head-on had little chance of victory—it all depended on their tactics.

But before he could fully relax, Wu Hua realized trouble was brewing again. The Blue Ice Guardian was charging onto the bridge, less than ten meters from Moon Rabbit. Wu Hua and his companions had spread out at their end of the bridge, forming an equilateral triangle, intending to attack from three directions and avoid being swept away by the boss’s claws in one blow.

Yet as the Blue Ice Guardian crossed the bridge, Wu Hua recognized his tactical error. The bamboo grove was suddenly shrouded in a pale blue mist, identical to the fog at the previous fork—clearly emanating from the Blue Ice Guardian. The moment Wu Hua touched the mist, he felt a bone-chilling cold, as if countless needles were stabbing him. Looking down, he saw his HP dropping at a rate of five points per second.

“My God, this combat suit has a water resistance of fifty-six percent, and it still can't withstand this fog.” Wu Hua was stunned; without this suit, he might have frozen to death instantly.

Looking across, he saw values of “-10” constantly floating above Motorola’s head—his combat suit's water resistance was evidently even lower. Only Flying Girl remained unscathed, her cold-resistant suit’s water resistance far superior.

As the icy mist spread, their legs felt weighed down, almost impossible to lift.

“Movement speed is down,” Wu Hua shouted. “Don’t move recklessly—open fire!”

In just a second or two, the Blue Ice Guardian arrived. Three guns blazed from three different angles: MP7A1, Desert Eagle, and FAMAS—all distinct ammunition types with varying effects—armor-piercing, explosive, and spiked rounds. Yet the numbers displayed were “-79, -1210, -302,” surprising Wu Hua. The boss’s defense was formidable—even AE rounds inflicted only half their usual damage.

But to their delight, a cracking sound came from the Blue Ice Guardian’s chest—the boss was stuck to the spot, immobilized.

“Switch! Flash!” Wu Hua called out while firing. Five seconds was their window to reload. The Blue Ice Guardian first lunged at Wu Hua with a move resembling an eagle swooping through the sky. Wu Hua dodged to the side.

A sharp pain tore through his back. Checking his HP, he found 981 points gone from a single swipe—he could withstand only three more hits.

Wu Hua was alarmed. “One claw deals a thousand points of damage. Stay alert!” With that, he quickly slapped a healing agent onto his thigh.

Motorola took Wu Hua’s warning to heart, but Flying Girl seemed not to hear it. Her earlier fear was gone; the Blue Ice Guardian’s icy mist was potent, but Moon Rabbit was a robot, unaffected by it, and they could pin the boss down.

“Watch this!” Flying Girl manipulated her remote, sending Moon Rabbit sliding almost right up to the Blue Ice Guardian. She unleashed a barrage of bullets at its head, numbers “-300, -302, -304” appearing in quick succession. Flying Girl clearly understood some principles of firearms—she knew close-range “point-blank” attacks increased damage.

“Yes!” A smile lit up her face.

“Stop, retreat!” Wu Hua shouted urgently.

Flying Girl scoffed, “What’s there to fear? Rabbit is fast!” Her remote control skills were superb; after the successful volley, Moon Rabbit retreated quickly, instantly opening up more than ten meters of distance.

But she overlooked a crucial point: monsters in Star Wars have AI—they won’t simply let themselves be slaughtered.

By the fourth volley, Wu Hua’s confidence began to waver. The boss had already lost at least ten thousand HP; judging by its endurance, it had no less than twenty or thirty thousand. Continuing like this wasn’t necessarily safe, for Wu Hua sensed the boss had more tricks up its sleeve—a feeling only a battle-hardened veteran like him could have.

Sure enough, as Moon Rabbit made its fifth close-range attack, all three saw it clearly: the Blue Ice Guardian’s body began to change color, as if gathering energy from the air. Countless red rays converged on its twin claws, forming crimson energy spheres.

“Retreat!” Wu Hua roared.

Flying Girl’s expression changed; anyone could now see the boss was about to unleash its power.

Unfortunately, Moon Rabbit wasn’t quite fast enough—it retreated a little too slowly.

With two sharp swishes, two beams of red light shot forth, and Wu Hua and Motorola froze. The Blue Ice Guardian’s claws detached from its body, morphing into crescent-shaped blades enveloped in red light, seemingly ablaze. They spun toward Moon Rabbit, crossing in midair to form an “8”—a sudden and bizarre move, impossible to dodge.

With a crisp snap, all three watched as Moon Rabbit was sliced clean in half. Its torso fell to the ground, sparking with electricity.

A robot made of twelve-element alloy was instantly obliterated. If those blades had struck a human, no matter who, no matter what equipment, the outcome would have been identical.

A chill surged through Wu Hua—this was just a minor boss. He dared not imagine what the main boss would be like.

Flying Girl, stunned, broke into sobs. “Oh, my Rabbit! My materials! Oh, my loss!” She wept as she rushed to the pile of scrap metal.

“Get down! It’s dangerous!” Wu Hua yelled desperately, but Flying Girl was beyond reason. Seeing her beloved robot destroyed, she’d lost all composure.

In the snow, she barely made it halfway to the wreckage before her body, too, was sliced cleanly in two—she didn’t even have time to cry out, vanishing in a flash of white light.

The two crescent blades, having flown out, traced a strange S-shaped curve, returning to finish her off. The boss’s deadly skill was breathtaking.

Wu Hua was utterly stunned. With Flying Girl gone, just the two of them had no hope of pinning the boss down—now, they could only await its wrath.

One misstep, and all was lost. Impulsiveness was truly the enemy.

Motorola’s eyes turned blood-red. Witnessing his sister’s tragic death, rage overwhelmed him. He gripped his FAMAS and charged forward, his finger pressing the trigger so hard it hurt.

Wild tongues of flame engulfed the boss, but it was futile.

“Careful!” Wu Hua shouted again. The Blue Ice Guardian turned, its two blades returning to its hands and morphing back into claws, then lunged at the desperate Motorola.

An astonishing scene unfolded. Motorola suddenly dropped to the ground, and the Blue Ice Guardian soared over his head like an eagle.

In that instant, as their bodies crossed, a shattering sound rang out. Two values appeared: “-4128, -2136.”

Wu Hua was even more astonished.

The first value, golden, came from the boss—signifying a fatal blow. It was only then that Wu Hua noticed the gleaming Tiger Fang combat knife in Motorola’s hand. He suddenly understood: how could a gunner lack such a sharp weapon for self-defense? Motorola had clearly slashed the boss’s belly.