"This beast intentionally protects its weak spots; unless there's a proper chance, I can't do it!"
"Then I'll create that opportunity."
John gripped his dagger in reverse, leaned slightly forward, and watched the Basilisk relentlessly pursue Helena. With a reckless determination, he charged at the Basilisk!
Helena gasped in shock at the sight, but before she could utter a word of caution, John had already leaped up and clung to the Basilisk's back, gripping the gaps between the scales with his bone dragger to keep from falling off.
This move infuriated the Basilisk, who then completely ignored Helena and Exiled Immortal, leaping and bounding madly, even slamming its massive body against the surrounding stone walls.
"It's no good, it's getting too wild; I can't get a clear shot!"
"Just wait a moment... give me a little more time!"
John bit down hard on his teeth, struggling to stand on the Basilisk's back. Even as the sharp scales sliced open his palms, blood streaming freely, his expression remained unchanged.
"Helena, help me, distract it, even for just a second!"
John continued to climb upward, his face showing increasing strain. The blood from his palms was slick, making it difficult to climb any further.
Watching this scene, Helena became even more anxious.
Although she was not clear on John's class, she suspected he did not possess great combat strength, otherwise, he would not have risked himself so dangerously.
Initially, Helena had thought John might be a Mage, given his attire—a long, cumbersome robe that didn't seem suited for close combat.
However, John carried neither a staff nor showed any signs of casting spells, leaving Helena utterly baffled.
But now was not the time for hesitation!
John's life hung by a thread; there was no room for doubt!
With this thought, Helena hesitated no longer. She immediately pulled a scroll from her backpack and threw it at Lily.
"Lily, activate the scroll!"
"A scroll? But I don't know how!"
Lily caught the scroll, stumbling, and looked at its cryptic text, feeling utterly bewildered.
"It's simple, just channel mana into it, hurry!"
"I—I got it!"
Lily nodded vigorously, her fingertips glowing with a sacred light. The light detached from her fingers and slowly merged into the scroll, which shattered instantly.
Beneath the Basilisk's feet, a six-pointed star array sparkling with a pale blue light burst forth. The beams, like ropes, tightly latched onto the Basilisk's limbs, pinning it firmly in place.
"John! You've got five seconds!"
"Enough, Exiled Immortal, take your shot!"
John steadied himself and lunged forward, plunging his bone dragger deep into the left eye socket of the Basilisk. A crisp cracking sound echoed as fluid from the eye spurted out, causing John to lose his footing and fall from the beast's back!
Seeing this, Helena quickly stepped forward, catching John in her arms. The two slid over ten meters across the ground before coming to a halt.
And then Exiled Immortal made his move.
A noticeably thicker arrow rested lightly on his bowstring. Exiled Immortal took a deep breath, his breathing steadying.
"Make it count!"
With a loud shout from Exiled Immortal, the arrow flew from the string at a blistering speed. John only caught a fleeting glimpse of a blur. By the time he regained his senses, the arrow had already pierced the Basilisk's right eye with ease.
At that moment, the Scroll of Stasis's effect finally ended. Piercing pain surged through it, and the Basilisk let out a roar that split the clouds, the sonic wave lifting the surrounding gravel like shrapnel that stung upon impact.
"Be careful!"
Exiled Immortal sheathed his longbow and lunged in front of Lily, shielding her with his rather lean shoulders, although it seemed Lily hardly needed it.
A barrier of holy light protected them both, deflecting the incoming gravel. Lily clung to her ears, eyes tightly shut.
After several roars, the Basilisk went completely berserk, charging and crashing within the cave, attempting in vain to crush the cursed pests through such rampages, only to expedite the spread of poison through its veins, and nothing more.
Watching the Basilisk's HP drop steadily, John struggled to sit up, letting out a deep breath.
"Thank goodness, it worked..."
"Are you out of your mind? What if I didn't have the Scroll of Stasis? Who could have saved you then?"
Helena furrowed her brows, grabbing John's wrist and gazing at the deep, bone-exposing wound in his palm with a pang of heartache.
"But it did work, and about that item..."
"A special reward for the first player to choose a class, just happened to come in handy. You got lucky."
As Helena explained, she helped John up and they rejoined Exiled Immortal and Lily.
"But... John, where did you get that toxin? It's incredibly effective?"
In just five minutes under the poison's effect, the Basilisk's HP had plummeted below five thousand, an astonishingly exaggerated effect.
"It wasn't purchased; whether it's the toxin, the poison antidote potion, or the basic HP potion, all were personally concocted by Johnny. Johnny is the best Alchemist!"
"Alc… Alchemist?!"