Chapter Seventy-Four: Elite-Level Monster

“These monsters, when they come in large numbers, are usually quite weak. You can split up and attack them as you see fit. However, I’ll have to trouble our support to keep the buffs up,” said Wenjiushi, glancing back at Luo Feng as he spoke.

Ye Yu, however, chose to stay by Luo Feng’s side, clearly entering a resting state. He felt a wave of dizziness, the fatigue sharp and tangible. The side effects of ‘Overclock Mode’ were mild, but the experience in-game was intensely real.

Luo Wei was already eager to make a move. Upon hearing he could join the fight, he immediately sent his Bronze Golem leaping forward. In an instant, a heavy copper fist smashed several vine monsters to bits. With his precise control and Luo Feng’s buffs, the damage output was impressive.

Tan Cong, being of the shaman class, also possessed several attack skills. He had tailored his skill tree according to his role in the team and deployed two types of attack totems: a serpent totem for sustained poison damage and a tiger totem for fierce physical strikes. Placing them on either side, each totem alone was enough to easily clear out the weak, numerous vine monsters.

Still, everyone understood this was only the beginning of the dungeon. As they progressed, elite monsters would inevitably appear, and when they did, their current ease would vanish.

As Ye Yu rested, he noticed that no one rushed recklessly into battle. Instead, they observed first, identifying the vine monsters’ gaps and weaknesses before attacking. This allowed them to dispatch the monsters without taking any damage.

Ye Yu smiled with mild surprise. “You all know to observe before attacking now. Your reaction times are pretty much where they need to be. Not bad.”

Ye Yu’s talent for games was no joke, even among this fixed team. Though each member had won tournaments or even championships, they weren’t necessarily experts in this genre. Ye Yu, however, had an uncanny aptitude for such games. His mind excelled at grasping the bigger picture, and thanks to his calculations, their team’s growth far outpaced the rest of the Xuantian server.

The AI in “Divine Ruin” between levels 40 and 70 operated under a special mechanic. Ye Yu had studied this before. While watching Ye Lingsnow play, he’d often teased her but subconsciously analyzed the game’s mechanics. In this stage, players had to first probe the monsters’ attack patterns and skills before going all out. If they could pinpoint a monster’s weakness or exploit a gap in its movements, the results were often spectacular.

With Luo Feng’s continuous buffs, everyone’s reactions were seamless—almost as if there was no downtime between buffs. In this state, nobody had taken any damage.

Ye Yu narrowed his eyes. Suddenly, larger vine monsters appeared among the horde, emerging from all directions. Ye Yu recognized these as elite vine monsters, each group consisting of four.

Wenjiushi’s strength was undeniable. Ye Yu could see the veteran’s meticulous approach; no wonder he was a red-named player, wanted across the server. After clearing the lesser vine monsters, Wenjiushi could still handle the four elites alone, even fighting them with ease. For a control class player, this was top-tier play.

On the other hand, Huang Hong struggled a bit against his four, despite Luo Feng’s buffs.

Ye Yu’s mind was already whirring, his dark eyes fixed on the four elite vine monsters, analyzing their attack patterns. Within minutes, he’d figured out their tactics.

“There are four elite vine monsters, each group of four working together. One will drag all players in a certain area toward it with its vines. Two others will lash out wildly with their vines like whips, dealing heavy physical damage. If your defenses aren’t high enough, your health will drop fast. The last one will immobilize players with its vines.”

Ye Yu realized the main threat came from being pulled in and immobilized. If caught, the two that whipped their vines would unleash a brutal AOE beating.

“Focus your attacks on the elite vine monster that can immobilize players first.”

At Ye Yu’s words, everyone’s expressions sharpened—they had identified the key threat among the elites.

With that, except for Wenjiushi, everyone who had been struggling began to turn the tide, gradually holding their own. With Luo Feng’s buffs and Tan Cong’s totems, Huang Hong soon gained the upper hand. The elites couldn’t do much damage to him—so long as he wasn’t immobilized, he could handle all four alone.

But monsters move, and due to his class and talent choices, Qu Zheng had unique mobility boosts. Ye Yu noticed his speed and agility had increased dramatically. The four elite vine monsters couldn’t even track Qu Zheng, who darted like a phantom through the battlefield, each strike chipping away at their health.

However, after level 40, the monsters’ AI had grown more sophisticated. Unable to hit Qu Zheng, the four elites turned and charged straight at Ye Yu and Luo Feng, their massive forms thundering across the ground, sending cracks through the earth.

“Not good! Third, look out!” Qu Zheng landed atop one of the elites, driving his twin daggers into either side of its neck and instantly breaking through its defenses. The damage nearly finished it off.

Meanwhile, the other three were less than five meters from Ye Yu and Luo Feng.

Everyone’s gaze snapped to Ye Yu and Luo Feng, their faces paling in alarm.

…