Chapter 98 - A Different SlashBlade Combo Rating!

Welt and March 7th, who were also standing beside Xing and witnessing the thunderstorm raging on the deserted island, both glanced sideways at Xing, somewhat speechless.

March 7th, hands on her hips, corrected with a touch of exasperation, "This isn't the time for such playful words! It's obvious Fu Zhu is fighting someone! Didn't you see how eager the Iron Golem is to get over there?"

Xing looked back at the Iron Golem they had brought from the guesthouse. Ever since they had neared the deserted island, the Iron Golem had positioned itself at the exit of the simulated starskiff, desperate to disembark.

If it weren't for the fact that it also had to protect the three of them, it probably would have already smashed through the starskiff's outer shell and charged straight out, even though its sturdy, massive frame looked like it would sink straight to the bottom of the water.

"Let's go. We'll head over."

Welt couldn't discern who exactly was engaged in combat in the distance, but judging by the sheer scale of the thunderstorm, it was either Fu Zhu or Jing Yuan. Regardless of who it was, for them to create such a spectacle, their opponent's strength was not to be underestimated.

He immediately urged the simulated starskiff they were aboard to accelerate towards the deserted island. Only when they drew closer did they discover a contingent of Cloud Knights already assembled in the waters surrounding the island. They also spotted Jing Yuan, who had just made landfall on the island.

Just as Jing Yuan set foot on the island, he heard the roar of a starskiff engine from behind. Turning his head, he saw Xing poking her head out of the starskiff window, waving enthusiastically in his direction.

"What are you all doing here?"

Jing Yuan was somewhat taken aback. Hadn't Welt and the others been assigned the task of capturing Kafka? And judging from his earlier conversation with Fu Zhu, it seemed Fu Zhu had no intention of involving his companions in this.

Xing, Welt, March 7th, and the Iron Golem disembarked from the simulated starskiff one after another. Welt immediately approached Jing Yuan to offer an explanation and inquire about the current situation.

"We received a message from Fu Zhu. He asked us to bring the Iron Golem over. General Jing Yuan, what's happening in the wooden hut now?"

Jing Yuan glanced at the Iron Golem standing behind Welt's group of three. Since alighting from the starskiff, its gaze had been fixed intently, unblinkingly, on the wooden hut.

He recalled Fu Xuan mentioning the Iron Golem previously – that, like Fu Zhu, it possessed multiple Paths, and more importantly, it had been personally constructed by Fu Zhu.

But now, Fu Zhu, its creator, was having his companions bring it over. Clearly, Fu Zhu didn't feel overwhelmingly confident about dealing with Phantylia.

Since Welt had inquired about the situation, Jing Yuan felt he could no longer keep it concealed.

"Fu Zhu is inside, engaged in a confrontation with Phantylia. Everyone, please step back behind me..."

Before Jing Yuan could finish his sentence, Xing, wielding her baseball bat, charged directly towards the wooden hut. Witnessing Xing's movement, the Iron Golem immediately followed suit, its heavy footfalls thudding against the ground.

"Xing!"

March 7th cried out in alarm, swiftly materializing her longbow and casting an anxious look towards Welt.

Welt's expression was grim. He hadn't anticipated that the individual fighting within the wooden hut was indeed Fu Zhu, and that his adversary was Phantylia, a Lord of Annihilation!

"This is no time for idle chatter. Let's go assist Fu Zhu."

The remaining three dared not dally any longer and also sprinted towards the wooden hut. Jing Yuan took the lead, positioning himself to shield Welt and March 7th. As for Xing... he was already too late to get in front of her.

Xing, baseball bat in hand, rushed impetuously towards the wooden hut's entrance, lifted her foot, and delivered a swift kick. And then... the door didn't budge. Instead, her foot throbbed with a dull ache.

By now, Jing Yuan and the other two had reached the hut. Seeing Xing fail to kick the door open with a single blow, all three were somewhat astonished.

Xing was no ordinary individual. Even if she were, the wooden door before them couldn't possibly be that sturdy. It was highly probable that Phantylia had sealed the entire structure, preventing Fu Zhu from escaping.

Jing Yuan immediately shouted for Xing to move aside. Once she had stepped away, he gripped his Formation Blade with both hands, its edge crackling with lightning, and brought it down in a powerful slash.

And then... the door remained intact. The blow merely caused the wooden panel to tremble violently.

Welt couldn't help but voice his surprise, "It's actually this resilient? Even you can't cleave it open, Jing Yuan? It seems Phantylia is dead set on eliminating Fu Zhu!"

Hearing this, March 7th grew anxious, tiny pearls of tears welling in the corners of her eyes. "Uncle Yang, what do we do then!"

Just as the group outside deliberated on how to gain entry, Fu Zhu, who was inside, intently observing Phantylia "undergoing her tribulation," heard the distinct sound of kicking. A quick glance at his minimap revealed that Xing, March 7th, and Welt had all arrived. While he was somewhat surprised by their convenient timing, he then recalled his message to March 7th, asking her to bring the Iron Golem.

They had likely misinterpreted the situation, assuming he was in peril, and had thus rushed over to offer assistance.

Fu Zhu was momentarily indisposed; he couldn't simply abandon his watch over Phantylia to open the door for Xing and the others. He could only shout towards the entrance.

"Little Xing, this door isn't meant for kicking! You open it with your hand!"

Hearing Fu Zhu's voice resonate from within, Xing immediately approached the wooden door, reached out, and with a gentle push, the very door that had just withstood Jing Yuan's powerful strike swung open with surprising ease.

Jing Yuan: ...

Xing pushed the door open and stepped inside, her gaze immediately falling upon Fu Zhu, who stood gripping a SlashBlade [Kugutsu], his eyes locked intently on Phantylia, trapped and immobile within the minecart.

"Old Bro, why'd you make this wooden door so tough! Even General Jing Yuan couldn't slice it open with one blow!"

Jing Yuan, who had just stepped into the house, inexplicably felt as if a dagger had been plunged into his heart.

My dignity has been wounded, thank you very much!

Fu Zhu turned his head back, an expression of utter disbelief on his face. He had run through a thousand, even ten thousand scenarios in his mind, but he never once imagined that the first words out of his sworn sister's mouth upon entering would be a complaint about the door!

"We're in a BOSS BATTLE, and that's what you're focused on?!"

He currently had no time to explain to Xing and the others why the wooden door couldn't be shattered with a single blow. He couldn't very well tell them that the door required attacks of extremely high frequency or efficiency to be instantly destroyed, could he?

Besides, he had heard the commotion of Jing Yuan attacking the door earlier. If Jing Yuan had employed an attack with an explosive effect, the wooden door certainly wouldn't have withstood it. But unfortunately, Jing Yuan had merely executed a standard slash.

It was at this exact moment, as Fu Zhu turned his head to respond to Xing's complaint, that Phantylia, who had been ensnared in the minecart and unable to move, made her move.

Fu Zhu suddenly saw an identical icon labeled [Phantylia] materialize on his minimap, and it was positioned right beside him!

Almost by pure instinct, Fu Zhu switched to his shield and raised it defensively. In the very next second, Phantylia, having reformed a physical body, slammed her palm onto the shield Fu Zhu held aloft, the impact producing a dull, resonant thud.

"Hmm?"

Phantylia was somewhat taken aback. Her sneak attack—a strike delivered with considerable force—hadn't managed to directly cripple Fu Zhu. It hadn't even shattered the shield in his hand, which, to her eyes, appeared to be crudely pieced together from a few broken wooden planks.

"Very surprised?"

Fu Zhu peeked out from behind his shield, a wide grin spreading across his face as he addressed Phantylia.

"Let alone you, even if your boss Nanook himself showed up, he'd have to patiently whittle down my shield's durability before he could even hope to land a hit on me."

"Arrogant!"

Enraged, Phantylia flickered, attempting to reposition to Fu Zhu's side. Although she couldn't comprehend the nature of that dilapidated wooden shield, if a frontal assault failed, a flank attack was next!

However, even before Phantylia could execute her teleportation, Fu Zhu had already tossed an Ender Pearl to the side. Both figures flickered simultaneously, reappearing in different locations.

Fu Zhu switched to the SlashBlade [Kugutsu] in his hand and executed a sweeping horizontal slash, the blade connecting with Phantylia's left shoulder. Instantly, a [Combo Bar] materialized in his field of vision.

In a daze, Fu Zhu vaguely sensed that his movements had become marginally faster. The increase wasn't substantial, but it seemed to manifest in conjunction with the SlashBlade MOD's exclusive [Combo Bar].

Could this be a consequence of bringing the SlashBlade MOD into this real world? A power inherent to the MOD itself?

While Fu Zhu was engrossed in sensing the new capabilities afforded by the MOD, Phantylia, whose shoulder had just been struck by the slash, was not faring well.

She could clearly see that Fu Zhu was wielding nothing more than a wooden sword, seemingly fit for a child's play. Yet, that single blow to her shoulder felt as if it had directly impacted her very soul, causing it to visibly weaken.

It was as if that faintly purple-glowing wooden sword in Fu Zhu's hand was her natural, predestined counter!

"Phantylia, prepare to die!"

Simultaneously, Xing and the others were anything but idle. They naturally wouldn't stand by and watch Fu Zhu engage Phantylia single-handedly. Seizing the moment Phantylia was stunned by Fu Zhu's blow, the four of them launched a coordinated assault.

Welt conjured a swirling [Gravity Well] beneath Phantylia's feet, impeding her movements. March 7th's [Freezing Arrows] followed in quick succession, encasing Phantylia's feet in ice.

And Jing Yuan and Xing, wielding their respective weapons—the Formation Blade and the baseball bat—struck Phantylia's head and chest, one blow landing almost immediately after the other.

Phantylia let out a muffled groan and was sent flying backward. Before her body could collide with the wall, Fu Zhu once again utilized an Ender Pearl to teleport behind her, his [Kugutsu] flashing out anew.

The [Kugutsu] became a blur of afterimages, landing multiple slashes on Phantylia's back, forcibly pinning her in place.

Fu Zhu clearly felt that with each successful slash that contributed to the [Combo Value] in the [Combo Bar], his overall capabilities were being enhanced. Even Phantylia's minor movements seemed to become incredibly sluggish, as if time itself had slowed down around her.

This realization sent a wave of elation through Fu Zhu.

It was true! The SlashBlade's inherent [Combo Value] system possessed tangible, special effects even in this reality!

The [Kugutsu] currently in his hand could only achieve an A-rank [Combo Rating]. If he were to switch to another SlashBlade capable of reaching an SSS+ [Combo Rating], Fu Zhu dared not even imagine how formidable a swordsman he would become!

"Enough!"

Phantylia roared in fury, once again flashing away in a somewhat miserable state to escape Fu Zhu's relentless attack range. She gritted her teeth, her gaze sweeping across the individuals within the room.

The terrain here was far too constricted. She simply couldn't evade the attacks of so many opponents simultaneously, nor could she unleash her more potent techniques without risking harm to herself.

She had to get outside to fight them! She couldn't afford to engage them in territory so clearly advantageous to Fu Zhu!

With this resolute thought, Phantylia immediately spun around and dashed towards the wooden door. However, upon reaching the threshold, she discovered the imposing figure of the Iron Golem standing directly outside, effectively blocking her path.

It couldn't get in, and Phantylia couldn't get out.