Academic gathering with a lich-Chapter 807 - 748

Armstrong entered a final frenzy, each of his attacks imbued with madness. Blood-red tentacles lashed onto players, not only causing massive damage but also inflicting curses of mental insanity, or even exploding directly. There was no longer any chance for orderly tactical deployment—it was now a race against time where either the Nightmare fell, or everyone perished. Tiffany ceased giving any orders, her arrows flying one by one towards the Nightmare, tracing a clear arc through the air.

Claudia launched her third attack; she no longer bore a human visage. Her once smooth, porcelain-like face was now covered with fine scales, and the sound she emitted from her throat was no longer a growl but the roar of a dragon. It clashed with the howls of the Nightmare in the sky. The Emerald Dragon soared through the heavens, and the artifact entwined with the storm also transformed with her figure in the green light, looking utterly fitting in those giant claws.

The dragon charged at Armstrong, with the Magic Sword, released from the storm, plunging deeply into the gaping fissure at the pinnacle of the flesh mountain. In an instant, a blood rain splattered, scalding like magma as it flowed down from the head of the Nightmare Boss, with a ground-shaking explosion marking the collision’s finale between the dragon and the Nightmare.

Claudia, blown away, was caught by her brother Kristo. The Green Dragon, having exhausted her strength and directly faced the blast, looked pitiful. Kristo checked on her worriedly and rolled his sister to the feet of the magistrate, Susanna.

"They’re just superficial wounds, nothing serious."

Susanna smiled but then felt the timing was off and quickly cooled down her expression.

"That BOSS..."

Before she could finish, the scattering white powder revealed Armstrong’s lingering health bar, hanging by a thread in the wind. The robust skeleton of the Nightmare withstood the final attack; the artifact skill designed to execute the last twenty percent of health was blocked. All of Armstrong’s Magic Eyes gathered flash, his body bleeding, but those who had wounded him were already finished.

[Skill activation...]

"ROAR!!!" A sudden roar exploded at the center of the two, the dying BOSS and the exhausted players watched the writhing tentacles where all the warriors were buried—the ones who had fallen into madness and been swallowed by the tentacles, supposed to just be part of the backdrop.

The blade split the squirming limbs in half, the furious Doludo stood towering amidst the remains, bathed in blood, turned into a man of blood. Fear, almost human-like, surfaced in the big eyes of Armstrong, for the aura of the Berserker at this moment was far more dangerous than his own.

Doludo at this moment had transcended a player; the surging rage made him seem more like a part of a scripted kill scene.

All eyes focused on Doludo, the arrogant black dragon seemed to revel in the critical role he was placed in.

[This is your prey, Berserker!]

The impassioned warrior let out a resounding roar, the blood-red aura spreading in all directions, as the Berserker made use of his newly learned Ultimate Skill.

[Revenge War Cry]: Captures the deceased individuals in the skill range, each [Death] grants the Berserker a layer of [Wrath of the Deceased]: A substantial bonus to attack power.

Doludo devoured the rage of all the fallen warriors and with his battle axe, unleashed the dead’s fury. The power of all the players coalesced within him.

He leaped high, like a shell shot from a cannon, headed straight for Armstrong’s big eye—the core of the BOSS, colliding with the light cannon.

Like a hot knife through butter, the light beam was suffocated by the blood mist. The raised axe blade cleaved into the core of Armstrong, embedding halfway. Yet Doludo was not yet satisfied, clinging onto Armstrong’s eyeball, he released his hands and, over the exposed handle, raised his fists and hammered down ferociously.

[Skill activation: War Stomp]

[Effect activation: Execute]

The flesh mountain collapsed.

The murderous look faded from Doludo’s eyes, his gaze clearing as he watched the decaying flesh beneath him, collapsing comfortably to the ground.

The remaining players watched the robust figure standing atop the Nightmare’s remains, like a slowly rising sun.

"We won!!!"

"We’ve saved Dreamland!!!"

"And our home!!!"

The priests who exited battle immediately chose the nearest resurrection point, jogged back to heal the survivors, and revived those who had perished. The revived also joined the victory party, covered in blood, dancing in the mud after casting aside their weapons.

The barrier sealing Dreamland shattered, and the murky fog corrupting the dream vanished under Susanna’s purification.

Another voice resounded within Armstrong’s body.

"Hmph hmph, well done, but... Armstrong, prepare for phase two..."

"Prepare my foot!" Lyle grabbed Irason’s mouth, preventing the Nightmare boss Armstrong from continuing his foolishness with his energy core.

With his mouth pinched and pouting, Irason still argued, "But, boss mechanics do have a second phase... This is the culmination of our efforts!"

"Whose efforts? I designed it all. You just gave me admin rights. Get lost!" Lyle pushed the Green Dragon Priest’s head aside, watching through the Magic Eye the players outside cheering and celebrating, immersed in the joy of victory. Lyle, too, was influenced by those emotions and showed a smile.

"The purpose of the game is to bring them joy, to let them display the charm of their characters. That’s enough. If there’s a second phase, it means I didn’t balance it well, so how could I shamelessly strike at them again, leader of the Dream Elf?"

The Nightmare boss Armstrong was Lyle’s creativity, but it was not part of the original idea. The subconscious ocean indeed reacted to the changes in the Emerald Dream, and the Evil God did send out a mature form of Nightmare to oversee everything.

The Nightmare breached the barrier and was soon noticed by Legion of the Intangible Son commander Lyle and Dreamwalker Irason. Lyle was mistaken for a high-level command tower deployed by the Evil God; the vanguard Nightmares directly integrated with the Legion of the Intangible Son. This was a dangerous situation; the strong consciousness of Nightmare was originally more potent than Lyle’s, and Susanna’s worries were not unfounded.

However, the Nightmare, synthesizing with Lyle, also attracted Green Dragon Priest Irason. Though the current priestess might have been worthless, she was the first in the world to confront Nightmare directly and an expert at purifying it. The Dreamwalker’s power hypnotized the consciousness of Nightmare, allowing it to be consumed by the Legion of the Intangible Son and Lyle in its sleep.

The Nightmare was shattered by the combination of an insider boss and a nemesis that specialized in attack. The troublemaker Lyle and the mascot who loved to bully their subordinates coincidentally had the same idea and jointly enacted what was, in their eyes, an epic and joyous boss fight.

Everyone was happy, but the two of them were even happier.

Irason was somewhat unsatisfied, as she was the one controlling the photon cannon. Crouching inside the hollow of the boss, the Green Dragon Priest propped up her chin and had an idea.

"Lyle, how shall we go out and explain this to them? Laugh it off and say it was just a game?"

Lyle’s expression darkened, and he shook his head in refusal.

"No way, I don’t know about you, but if Susanna finds out the truth, she’ll definitely want to play some ’games’ with me that are truly frightening."

Lyle was adamant, his hands firmly on the Green Dragon Priest’s shoulders, unifying their story.

"Remember, we got careless and were controlled and corrupted by the fearsome and invincible Nightmare vanguard Armstrong. Fortunately, thanks to the Dream Elf players’ unity and determination, they managed to save us, and furthermore, they saved the entire Dreamland!"

Irason puffed her cheeks.

"Doesn’t that make us look weak?!"

Lyle rolled his eyes.

"Trust me, it’s more credible this way."