Part-Time BOSS

PTB Ch.18 – Computer-Controlled BOSS

The adventurers entered the cave with torches.

Longmian Cave was incredibly vast, with a towering dome resembling a dark sky.
Volcanic gems and crystals adorned the walls, casting a dreamy and enchanting glow, creating a stunning underground world.

The cave was shrouded in pitch-black darkness, with only a faint red glow reflecting off the lava trickling through the crevices.

The ground was dry volcanic rock, and one could faintly discern the traces left by the giant dragon as it crawled.
Walking in the beast’s cave, the chilling aura of a dark monster lair overwhelmed the adventurers, causing them to hesitate in fear.

Midnight Dharma God sneered, “Don’t be nervous.
This is just the passive effect of Draconic Presence.
Zichuan, sing a ‘Song of Courage’ to lift our spirits.”

The bard, Zichuan Lantian, nodded and promptly picked up their ukulele, strumming a tune.

The skills of bards take the form of songs, but there are no hard and fast rules about what specifically to sing.
Generally, there are several themes to choose from for each skill.
At this time, Zichuan Lantian sang a song about heroes defeating giant dragons, which seemed suitable for the situation.

“Dragon’s wings darken the sky,
Roar spews flames, scales like blades high,
People flee, afraid they’re nigh,
In fire they fight, leather they tie.

Fate strikes, they ask, why so tough,
Hero rises, blood on earth rough,
No fear of hardship, he’s enough,
Faces mountains, seas, brave and tough.

’

Pick up the bow, pick up the spear,
We’ll fight bravely, have no fear,
Dragon’s blood we’ll sprinkle clear,
Death’s shadow dispersed, victory near.”

Without a doubt, the melody was sung quite well, its sweet notes reverberating within the hollow and quiet cavern.

The brave adventurers were emboldened by the enchanting tune, until a deafening roar shattered the stillness.

“Hahahaha, what an amusing refrain.
Tell me, mortals, is that the conclusion you anticipate?” A voice boomed from the shadows, its timbre deep and alluring, causing everyone to be on high alert.

Midnight Dharma God spoke up: “Don’t stop.
Keep singing.”

The bard nodded with trepidation, and resumed singing.

“You trespassed into my lair, slaughtered my worthless minions, and now you come to face my fury, all for what? Let me guess, you came to save the princess? How naive.
Justice and glory are mere facades.
Your true motives lie in wealth and power, money and influence.
Human hypocrisy blinds you to your own deceit, but you cannot deceive me…

Greedy humans, you will find nothing here but death and destruction!”

The dragon’s roar drowned out the Song of Courage, leaving them trembling with fear.
Despite knowing that it was merely a game, the sheer force of the creature’s wrath sent shivers down their spines.

Dawn Excalibur strode to the forefront of the team and gazed into the abyss before him.
A colossal shadow loomed amidst the darkness, melding with the shadows, barely distinguishable as it watched them from the shadows.

Midnight Dharma met Dawn Excalibur’s gaze, and they both understood the message conveyed within their eyes.
This streamer was exactly as the rumors had described: a master of drama, capable of creating an ambiance so captivating that it would be a shame not to partake in it.
Whether one knew that it was a boss battle within the game or not, they would believe that an epic tale was unfolding before them.

Dawn Excalibur was in awe, recognizing that this was a scripted battle, and a vast audience was observing it.
As such, it required a sense of ceremony.

’

“Enough is enough! Foul black dragon, your false words and lies won’t scare any of us.
We came to save the princess, and more than that we came to kill you! You beast that brings naught but harm to the world! The wrath you poured out onto our loved ones will be thrown right back in your face.
Black Dragon Morpheus, your brutal reign ends today.”

A thunderous roar echoed in response, as an enraged black dragon’s claw emerged from the shadows.
Gradually, the colossal creature revealed its true form; towering over sixty meters tall, with a wingspan exceeding a hundred meters, it looked down condescendingly upon the group below.
The mere sight of it was enough to leave the onlookers in awe.

[Morpheus, The Shadow of Death] Level 80 BOSS, Disaster Rank 5, 280,000 HP.

Viewers who observed the dragon’s true appearance through the eyes of Midnight Dharma God’s live broadcast were left astounded.

“Woah, this black dragon is so imposing.”

“That entrance and that imposing figure – can Midnight Dharma God defeat it?”

“Husband, you got this!”

Midnight Dharma God felt a tinge of nervousness as well.
The red dragon he had defeated during his previous practice was nowhere near as massive nor did it emanate such an overwhelming aura.

“Don’t be afraid, everyone.
Stick to the plan we have practiced and we will win.
Keep in mind that this black dragon has potent breath attacks, but its other abilities are not as strong,” he reassured his team.

Flame protection enchantments flickered to life.

“Dawn Excalibur, it’s up to you,” he added.

Dawn Excalibur nodded, stepping to the forefront of the group.
Raising his giant sword high, he prepared to engage the creature.
However, the black dragon let out a wicked grin, unfurled its wings, and took flight, soaring high into the sky.

“Tiny mortals, humble ants, your hubris makes me laugh, and your hypocrisy makes me sick.
Since you come so eager to die, let me reduce you all to ash, and have you feel the wrath of Morpheus!”

’

The long-awaited moment had finally arrived: the boss battle had begun.

  As the battle commenced, the audience in the live broadcast room and those watching from their screens sat back and prepared to watch the action unfold.
They had their snacks and drinks at the ready, eager to witness the excitement of the upcoming fight.

  Anticipation hung heavy in the air as they waited for the next scene to unfold, ready to experience the next thrilling chapter of the story.

Flame Breath!

Raging dragonfire fell from the sky, and the flame protection barrier glowed a bright red in response.

The black dragon soared high into the sky, making it impossible for the spellcasting team to reach it.
However, two teams of sharpshooters began raining arrows down on the dragon without hesitation.

As the battle raged on in the cramped cave, the black dragon remained still and took a barrage of arrows without trying to evade them.

The screen lit up with damage numbers: 58! 72! 113! 89!… The black dragon took over a thousand points of damage in just one round.

Despite the massive damage inflicted, the black dragon’s health pool, enhanced by the dungeon module, remained vast with 280,000 hit points, leaving it relatively unscathed with only 0.4% of its total health lost.

“Keep attacking, don’t stop!” Midnight Dharma God commanded.

It is impossible to just be passively beaten by this BOSS all the time.
If there is a chance to attack, they had to attack more.

However, to everyone’s surprise, the black dragon flying in the sky didn’t change tactics after seeing that the fire was ineffective, and continued to breathe out the dragon’s breath.

Flame Breath!

’

Dragonfire Storm!

Dragon’s Flame Descends From The Skies!

All kinds of elaborate shapes were breathed out continuously, but the result was the same.
Whether it is a large area of ​​indiscriminate bombing, a concentrated line of dragon breath, or even a long-range breath condensed into a spherical fireball, they were all absorbed by the flame protection barrier.

On the ground, the three caster teams were still twiddling their thumbs with nothing to do.

Two teams of sharpshooters shot arrows mechanically.

At first, the spectators were amazed by the dragon’s impressive breath and the exaggerated distance of its spray, but they soon sensed something was amiss.

“What’s going on? Could it be a bug?”

“Brother Long, what are you doing? Can’t you see that the dragon’s breath is useless? Hurry up and retreat.”

“Is Brother Long there?”

“Brother Long, have you been threatened? Blink twice if you need help.”

Despite the messages in the barrage, the black dragon continued to fly in the sky, spewing flames without a care, despite dealing no damage.

Soon, even the adventurers on the ground realized that something was off.

Midnight Dharma God was a little puzzled.
“Excalibur, is this BOSS being run by a computer? Why doesn’t it feel like PvP at all?”

Dawn Excalibur also looked puzzled.
“Keep going, I guess.”