Finally, with just a few seconds left in stealth, Zane broke through to the rear of the Flamewing Tiger.
Standing four meters away, he seized the opportunity while the boss was entangled in melee combat—his small hand reached out!
Who says you can't touch a tiger's rear? I love touching it!
Steal!
Failed!
"What? I actually failed?"
Zane was momentarily stunned.
To be honest, ever since his Steal skill surpassed level 40, it was rare for him to fail.
As expected of a Silver-tier boss—the tier bonuses weren't just for show.
In the instant his theft failed, the Flamewing Tiger's body trembled violently, and it suddenly turned its head!
Zane locked eyes with those golden pupils, a chill running down his spine.
Can it see me?
No… It's just reacting on instinct!
Whoosh!
Just as he was processing the situation, the tiger's tail lashed out like a fiery whip, striking with terrifying speed.
"Vanish!"
Without hesitation, Zane dismissed his clone!
After all, the clone had mere seconds left before it would expire—no point wasting it.
Boom!
The flaming whip missed him and instead struck an unfortunate swordsman nearby, instantly killing him.
"Whoo…"
From afar, Zane, hidden in the trees, let out a sigh of relief.
Silver-tier bosses are no joke.
"But still… I'm in the shadows while you're in the light. How many times can you withstand my theft?"
A wicked grin spread across Zane's face as he patiently waited for his next opportunity.
There was no rush—his Clone skill had a long cooldown of 10 minutes.
Of course, thanks to his unique talent, the cooldown was halved to 5 minutes, but that was still a bit lengthy.
Not that it mattered.
The players hadn't even started focusing their attacks on the Flamewing Tiger yet. They were still eliminating the Bronze-tier bosses first.
At this pace, it would take at least 30 minutes to clear them all.
And even after that, the Flamewing Tiger wouldn't be an easy kill.
The most effective damage dealers were archers and mages, but there were only about 700 of them in total, and many still had to deal with smaller monsters to relieve pressure on the frontline.
At best, each wave of attacks might chip off 2,000 to 3,000 HP from the boss.
After that, both mages and archers would be stuck waiting for their skills to come off cooldown.
Meanwhile, warriors and shield bearers were mainly there to tank and control—their damage was negligible.
Swordsmen and thieves could only strike at the right moments, since a single hit from the boss could mean instant death, greatly limiting their output.
Even under ideal conditions, after killing all the Bronze-tier bosses, it would still take at least an hour to wear the Flamewing Tiger down.
So, Zane had all the time in the world.
While waiting for his Clone skill to refresh, he casually opened a streaming platform to check out what was happening in other towns.
"Wonder Town! Starry Night Guild leads an attack on the Wonder Crypt's Plague Lich Boss—tune in now!"
"Springwater Town! Moonlight Pavilion Guild is hunting the Silver-tier Boss, the Azure-Winged Demon Wolf—watch live!"
The moment Zane opened the FishStream platform, his screen was flooded with live streams of guilds fighting bosses.
He clicked on one of them.
This was Starry Night Guild's official stream, broadcasting their guild leader, Starry Night Pearl, teaming up with other small guilds to take down a boss.
The stream had commentary, showing the battle in the main feed while a male and female host discussed the fight on the side.
The male host was Starry Night Glimmer, one of the guild's senior members.
The female host was a FishStream-contracted streamer—young and attractive.
Since Ascension Online had exploded in popularity, FishStream had recruited multiple streamers to cover the game.
They even arranged for these streamers to guest host major guild streams, boosting their visibility.
When Zane tuned in, the female host was asking a question:
Female Host: "Starry Night Guild seems very well-prepared for this raid. Are you confident in taking down the Plague Lich?"
Starry Night Glimmer: "Absolutely. This is a must-win fight for us because it leads to the first dungeon clear."
Female Host: "A dungeon? But no dungeons have been discovered in the game yet—has Starry Night already found a lead?"
Starry Night Glimmer: "That's right. If our analysis is correct, defeating the Plague Lich will grant us the key to the depths of the Wonder Crypt, unlocking a hidden dungeon. When that happens, we invite everyone to witness Starry Night securing the first dungeon clear!"
Female Host: "That's exciting! As a veteran guild, it looks like Starry Night is making its mark in Ascension Online."
Zane watched for a bit before leaving the stream and checking others.
The content was similar across the board—either boss fights or discussions about them.
It was now Day 3 of the game's release.
Each town had independently discovered dungeons, and guilds were racing to be first.
Whoever killed a Silver-tier Boss first would not only claim the first Silver-tier kill but also unlock the dungeon and get the first clear—a monumental achievement.
Since no one had cleared a dungeon yet, whoever did would get the global first clear, making it incredibly valuable.
After a while, Zane closed the platform and refocused.
"Clone!"
Mana surged, forming a perfect copy of himself.
"Go."
The same operation played out again.
His clone stealthed, blending into the crowd.
With experience from last time, Zane maneuvered even more smoothly.
This time, it took him just two minutes to bypass obstacles and reach the Flamewing Tiger's vicinity.
Just as Stealth's cooldown expired, Zane—still hidden among the players—re-entered Stealth and slipped right behind the boss.
Ah, that majestic tiger rear—what a waste not to touch it a few more times.
"Hey there, big guy. I'm back."
Zane reached out and activated Steal.
[Steal Successful! Skill Proficiency +20!]
[You obtained a Hidden Equipment—Blazing Warblade (Gold-Tier) ×1!]
He stole something!
"Now that's more like it! My Steal skill has a 70% success rate—this is what I expected!"
Zane was thrilled.
And to think—it was a Gold-tier weapon! Jackpot!
"ROAR!"
Suddenly, the Flamewing Tiger let out an enraged roar, its eyes blazing with fury.
It felt something had been stolen from it!
BOOM!
The boss flapped its wings, unleashing fiery wind blades that forced players back.
Then, its tail shot up and lashed down, transforming into a 20-meter-long flaming whip, sweeping across the battlefield.
"Whoa, chill, buddy! The fun's just getting started. You can't lose your cool yet!"
Zane was ready this time—he dropped to the ground, narrowly dodging the attack, laughing to himself.
BAM! BAM! BAM!
The flaming whip missed him but struck several unfortunate tanks, who cried out in pain.
The fire damage burned fiercely, and without their priests' shields, they would've been in deep trouble.
Fortunately, there were backup tanks in all four factions, and the next team quickly stepped in to take their place.