Chapter 58: Perhaps I’ve Been Playing a False Game

The poor priest, lacking any protective spells, took the full force of Lu Kuan’s sudden burst. With the special effect of the Ranger’s Oath and the additional arcane damage from Arcane Shot, it was a one-shot kill!

At that moment, Lu Kuan had just depleted his entire energy bar.

Everyone present was stunned. They looked at each other, and finally, all eyes landed on Lu Kuan at the back of the party, their gazes as if they were staring at an alien.

“Hey, don’t just stand there. The enemy is charging,” Lu Kuan blinked, pointed ahead with an arrow, and reminded his teammates.

Only then did Dai Guang and the others snap back to reality, hastily preparing for battle. But their faces said it all—they still hadn’t recovered from their earlier shock.

The rest of the fight was simple. Only three enemy NPCs remained. Even without tactics, a straightforward brawl would be enough to take them down.

Excitement swept through the group, especially Dai Guang, who was so pumped up he ignored healing the team, grabbing his spiked mace and charging in with a battle cry—understandable, given how many times they’d been crushed before. Anyone would be frustrated after losing dozens of rounds.

Thirty seconds later, the last three enemies were dispatched cleanly.

“The Warrior’s Trial (Wave Two) is about to begin. Countdown: 30…”

There was no rest period in between. The second wave was about to start. Lu Kuan quickly refilled his quiver and said to the others, “The biggest threat in this round is the rogue. We’ll defend at first. Once the rogue reveals himself, leave him to me. The rest of you just focus on holding them off.”

The others nodded in unison, completely obedient. After Lu Kuan’s earlier display, they were thoroughly convinced by him.

The second NPC squad soon spawned. Their classes hadn’t changed, but each was clearly better equipped, moved faster, and worked together more seamlessly.

Lu Kuan tried a few arrows but saw them all blocked by the enemy warrior’s shield, so he decisively gave up probing.

Following Lu Kuan’s instructions, the group adopted a defensive formation. The druid stood in place, casting “Wild Mushrooms” to slowly heal allies within the area, while the warrior and Dai Guang protected the mage.

A thunderous clash erupted as soon as the two sides met. The fierce battle quickly left Dai Guang and the others flustered, unable to cover all fronts, with their formation nearly broken several times.

Only Lu Kuan, circling swiftly around the outskirts a dozen meters away, harassed the enemy and gave precise commands.

“Watch the left!” he called.

“Druid, use ‘Entangling Roots’ on the knight—don’t let him reach our mage!”

“The enemy mage’s ‘Acid Spray’ is up in ten seconds. Shields up!”

Lu Kuan’s tone was firm and decisive. The others followed his directions almost instinctively. Though the fight was perilous, they managed to scrape by each time, growing more confident with every close call.

Meanwhile, the opposing rogue still hadn’t appeared, effectively making it five versus four in Lu Kuan’s favor. Once they overcame the initial chaos, everyone could sense the dawn of victory.

Lu Kuan remained patient, using Bonebreaker Arrows followed by two standard attacks, then employing the Aimed Shot skill to replenish his energy. This way, his energy hovered around seventy, avoiding triggering the ring’s special effect. He waited, biding his time for the rogue’s emergence.

Soon, the opposing team began to falter. Even the knight started assisting the priest with healing, because even without Lu Kuan’s full output, his damage was shockingly high—too much for the enemy to withstand.

“Keep it up! Don’t let your guard down!”

“We’re almost there. Druid, pull back a bit—watch your health!”

Encouragement rippled among the group. After being tormented for dozens of rounds, victory was finally within reach, and Dai Guang and the others couldn’t help but get excited.

Yet just then, Lu Kuan’s rate of fire slowed. He watched every detail around him, fully focused, waiting for the decisive moment.

At that instant, the NPC priest suddenly stumbled sideways, exposing the mage hiding behind him. The team’s warrior saw his chance—a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity—and charged forward with his shield raised, aiming to bash the cowardly mage.

“I’ll smash you—ah—”

But unexpectedly, as soon as the warrior broke from the group, a translucent figure suddenly flickered in the air—the NPC rogue revealed himself at that moment, twin blades thrusting viciously at the warrior’s neck.

“Watch out!”

“Dodge!”

Teammates cried out as they saw this, desperately warning him, but the rogue was too swift. Both daggers sank unerringly into the unprotected back of the warrior’s neck.

“-150!”

“-160!”

Everyone saw two massive damage numbers leap out, and the warrior crumpled to the ground. His portrait on the party list hadn’t turned gray, meaning he wasn’t dead yet, but he was clearly incapacitated.

Such was the rogue’s explosive damage! Ambush plus Backstab—if both landed, it was an instant 300% burst output! The NPC rogue’s weapons were at least of superior quality, and with the high chance of a critical hit, even a heavily armored class like the warrior could hardly withstand such a blow.

In that flash of action, the rest of the team froze, unsure what to do next. Most people would see the tank go down and lose hope of victory.

Only Lu Kuan, as if he’d anticipated it, released a dazzling white Concussive Arrow at the very moment the rogue’s daggers struck.

Without any pause or chance for the enemy to react, two Bonebreaker Arrows followed the Concussive Arrow, triggering the ring’s effect, immediately followed by Arcane Shot.

In the blink of an eye, the rogue was transformed into a giant pincushion. Even though the enemy priest reacted swiftly and healed him, it couldn’t change the rogue’s fate.

Famed for high offense but low health, the rogue didn’t even get a chance to use his skills—he was killed instantly! And Lu Kuan still had half his energy left.

The remaining NPCs reacted quickly. Seeing the rogue fall, they instantly shifted their focus, rushing in a wave toward Lu Kuan.

These NPCs were shrewd. They’d realized that unless they took out this monstrous artillery piece, victory was impossible.

“Hold them off!” Dai Guang finally snapped back, shouting. The mage and druid at his side didn’t hesitate, immediately launching spells.

“Grease!”

“Entangling Roots!”

The NPC priest and warrior both slipped and fell unceremoniously to the ground, while Dai Guang rolled up his sleeves, gripped his spiked mace, and charged at the enemy mage. “You want to use tactics? I’ll smash you to bits!”