Tier 4 monsters were a completely different stage. Once they reached Tier 4, not only did their attack and defense increase greatly, their HP also skyrocketed.
For instance, the HP of a Level 38 Blazetiger was 1,500, but it still died under Burning Rose's Firewheel Dance and iLittle Arrow's Charm Arrow attacks. On the other hand, the HP of a Level 40 monster was at least 3,000. It could easily resist the same attacks for over three rounds and still not die.
Whenever a Tier 4 monster had long-range attacks, it was very strenuous for Elementalists to deal with. A careless mistake could put their life in danger. This was why Slayer's Heart placed Burning Rose at the back.
In this aspect, it was much easier for a melee class like the Berserker. The HP of a Berserker was much higher than that of an Elementalist. Not to mention, each level up provided more HP. The amount of HP buffed by vitality points was also the highest among Berserkers. Thus, it was safe to put Slayer's Heart in the front line.
Slayer's Heart proved it by using his skills!
A rising Fireball slowly illuminated the dark jungle…
Not long after that, a slight, unnoticeable sound could be heard. Mixed with the sounds of the party's footsteps, it was far at first, but began to get nearer. If iLittle Arrow had not stopped and drawn her bow, the others would not have known that they were being aimed by the monster.
There was no roar or any distinctive signs of the monster. It was just like a ghost in the dark of night. There did not seem to be any monster present, but iLittle Arrow was always the first one to spot it along the way. Qin Ruo reflexively cast a quick spell.
"Water!"
While in a defensive posture, he quickly extracted water from the surrounding air…
"Be careful! It's a 'Dark Arachnosnake'! One, two… three!"
iLittle Arrow pulled her Wooden Elf Bow and pointed it at three directions in the dark. When she got to the last one, she shot an arrow enveloped in purple light.
The moment the arrow was released from the bowstring, Slayer's Heart shouted, "Don't worry about me! Heal Little Arrow first!" After that, he picked up his "Pazuzu's Warhammer" and dashed towards the dark place where iLittle Arrow first pointed at—a very decisive move.
Qin Ruo did not say a word. His focus was now on the Lunar Spellgunner, iLittle Arrow. He was ready to cast the healing spell on her. Who would finish off the last Dark Arachnosnake was none of his concern. As for Slayer's Heart, he should be the safest one in the party.
*Hiss…*
iLittle Arrow's attack brought on an unusual hissing sound in the dark.
However, it seemed like the magic attack did not cause much of an effect. The sound continued to approach them; without hesitation, the beautiful Elf aimed and shot her arrows… The second arrow plunged into the darkness, and once again an excruciating was heard. Qin Ruo held his Frostsoul firmly as the sound was much closer than it was before, almost ringing in their ears.
The moment this thought struck, a crack was suddenly heard in the shrub about a dozen meters away. Amid the rustling sound, a dark monster with the head of a scorpion, but the body of a snake squeezed out from the earth and moved along the S-shaped route. It was extremely speedy, rushing towards the third arrow shot by iLittle Arrow.
The hasty shots of her second and third arrows were common attacks, so they obviously did not deal much damage. Even with more arrows hitting the Dark Arachnosnake, its HP still remained at about 2,300. Its enchanting red eyes looked hideously diabolical under the Fireball's illumination. It opened its stink mouth and brought the upper part of its body up as Qin Ruo gasped. At the speed of lightning, it attacked iLittle Arrow with its black pincers. However, she was able to dodge the attack.
Qin Ruo could not believe his eyes.
So fast?
Surprisingly, the Dark Arachnosnake was able to close their distance so easily. What the f*ck? Did the Lunar Spellgunner not have a magic-based attack? As a Tier 3 Aquamancer, even Qin Ruo would not have been in such a passive position if he went against this Dark Arachnosnake alone.
When he saw the thick and at least six-meter-long Dark Arachnosnake trying to strike the Elf beauty, his heart stopped for a second! Falling back a few meters, he kept his eyes on the seemingly crazy Dark Arachnosnake and iLittle Arrow, who was dodging its attack. At the same time, he controlled the balls of water to keep them above iLittle Arrow. He was ready to give a helping hand.
However, after a few seconds, Qin Ruo's heart gradually settled down...
Mainly because, no matter how the Dark Arachnosnake attacked, iLittle Arrow could always take a light and quick step to avoid its pursuit. This prevented the Dark Arachnosnake from touching her at all. Sometimes, she even found the opportunity to shoot an arrow. The speed of her responses deeply shocked Qin Ruo.
After several consecutive pincer attacks, it was not certain if the Dark Arachnosnake had gotten angry or not. Nonetheless, the Dark Arachnosnake suddenly paused for a while, and changed tactics. It swept and smashed its giant tail at the speed of lightning.
This time, due to the wide range of the attack, iLittle Arrow was not able to escape, so she withstood the attack. She did not utter a single word even when she was hit by the heavy attack. She stood strong; Qin Ruo was impressed, and without any delay, he cast the first Aquaheal spell.
Little did he know that the Dark Arachnosnake had injected venom and made her body rigid during its previous attack. So, it was not due to iLittle Arrow's great ability for endurance, but the fact that the venom affected her whole body after she was attacked. She became paralyzed and collapsed, unable to get up. However, he knew nothing of it and started to control water again.
Fortunately, iLittle Arrow's physical defense was very good. It was even higher than the captain's. The damage done by the Dark Arachnosnake was over 100, but she fully recovered once he cast the healing spell.
Despite that, the spell had a weakness. It took two seconds to cast Aquaheal. The recovered HP could not catch up with the damage being dealt by the Dark Arachnosnake.
Seeing the Dark Arachnosnake approach iLittle Arrow who was on the ground, Qin Ruo was startled. His instincts told him that there was something wrong with her.
"Oh sh*t!"
He left his position as a support and quickly took a magic scroll out from his backpack. Next, he faced the scroll toward the Dark Arachnosnake.
"Frost Lance!"
A huge lance made of ice came out of nowhere and the temperature of the jungle abruptly decreased! The abnormal situation finally got the attention of the other three party members, who were dealing with two other Dark Arachnosnakes.
Seeing iLittle Arrow lying down on the ground, they screamed at the same time.
"iLittle!"
"Little Arrow!"
It was unfortunate that the three of them were a little far apart. They could not stop the Dark Arachnosnake from swinging its giant pincers. Watching iLittle Arrow's slender body being flung, and seeing it rolling in the air, it seemed like a helpless situation.
iLittle Arrow's defense decreased significantly with the negative status effect. There was blood at the corner of her mouth. She looked seriously injured. Her life would be in danger if she got hit again.
Fortunately, the Frost Lance arrived in time...
At the sound of a pop, the Frost Lance mercilessly opened a hole in the Dark Arachnosnake's black tail. The attack nailed the Python that was about to pursue on the ground and it lost the chance to attack iLittle Arrow for a second time.
Of course, Qin Ruo did not think Tier 3 magic would deal much damage. After he used the Frost Lance scroll, he shouted, "Aquaheal" and the water element from the air entered iLittle Arrow's body again. Although her HP did not recover to the maximum, his Frost Lance and Aquaheal did create some space for the other three members.
Burning Rose who was holding out her hands in the air raced toward their direction. She controlled the flames in her palm and mercilessly attacked the Dark Arachnosnake's head, burning the beast's entire body till a crisp.
Qin Ruo made the best use of his time and cast another Aquaheal. It completely healed iLittle Arrow.
Next, Slayer's Heart, Little Apple, iLittle Arrow, and Burning Rose got serious. They used all of their strongest attacks, and three Dark Arachnosnakes were reduced to dust within a very short time.
After realizing their situation, all of them felt very nervous.
It turned out that… in the past, they always had a Radiant Priest in the party. It was easy for them to slay these Dark Arachnosnakes then. As a result, they never met a poisoning situation like this before.
iLittle Arrow's condition raised warning bells for everyone. If Qin Ruo's reaction had been a little slow earlier, they would have been in trouble.
After that, the girls thanked Qin Ruo, who was considered a rookie at the start; they no longer treated him as a pure support. They also allowed him to join the fight when it was necessary.
Qin Ruo was not bothered about the captain's arrangements. He only cared about the magic spell that he used impulsively during the fight.
I wonder… can I get a reimbursement?