Chapter 117: Transcending Everything
Achoo!
Chen Mo sneezed, a nagging feeling that someone was thinking of him.
With twelve hours remaining, Chen Mo was in no rush. Once he completed this hidden quest, he would switch to his "Little Prince" persona and go farm some A-rank zombies to earn some points for the character as well.
Chen Mo crouched in the tall grass, crawling forward as he followed the students from Kyoto No. 1 High School into a highly concealed canyon.
Indeed, on the northwestern edge of this S-rank zone, there lay an incredibly narrow canyon. It was less than five meters wide, but seemingly endless in length, stretching beyond the boundaries of the map until cut off by an invisible barrier.
And the S-rank zombie was spawning outside the map's playable area.
The S-rank zombie was golden in hue, twice the size of a standard zombie, and stood nearly four meters tall. It was clad in full gear: Golden Scale Armor, a Golden Scale Helmet, Golden Scale Leggings, a Golden Scale Cape, and dual Golden Scale Blades.
This was the genuine article—an S-rank Golden Scale set, not some knock-off D-rank gold armor.
The twenty students from Fudan High School were practically drooling at the sight of the S-rank Golden Scale set. Given Fudan High’s strength, it would normally be impossible for them to defeat an S-rank zombie. To date, across millions of high-level instances worldwide, fewer than a hundred S-rank zombies had been spawned, and most of those had wiped out the players who encountered them. Unless led by a top-tier expert—like the first-ever S-rank zombie kill in the China region, which had been achieved by Lei Dongtian—victory was unlikely. Even a king-level powerhouse like Lei Dongtian had to rely on the assistance of over a hundred Shadow Warriors, using a human-wave strategy to wear the creature down bit by bit.
But this S-rank zombie had spawned outside the map, partitioned by the barrier. The Fudan students couldn't get out, and the S-rank zombie couldn't get in!
Roar! Roar! Roar!
Beyond the barrier, golden light flashed. Every strike and movement of the Golden Scale set shimmered with golden phantom projections, carrying immense power.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The S-rank zombie smashed furiously against the barrier, but since it was the edge of the instance, the map’s protection held firm; even an S-rank zombie couldn't break through.
The glitch, however, was that while the Fudan students couldn't leave, their skills could pass through the barrier. The nineteen students were ecstatic! Even if they couldn't pick up the gear the zombie might drop, the reward chest for the first kill of an S-rank zombie would at least contain A-rank equipment or better. If they were lucky enough to pull an S-rank piece of gear or a skill, they would be set for life.
The captain of the Fudan team was a girl named Sang Ru. She wore a blue mage’s robe and held a blue grimoire titled *Forbidden Water Magic*.
With her black hair draped over her shoulders, she said in a sweet voice, "Everyone, keep it up! We’re so lucky to find an S-rank zombie spawned outside the map. If we kill it, we can all get the S-rank First-Kill Reward Chest!"
The Fudan mages unleashed a barrage of spells: Fireballs, Wind Blades, Lightning, Flame Bursts, Water Explosions, and Stone Spikes were thrown in rotation!
-150 HP!
-130 HP!
-120 HP!
...
The ranged archers followed suit with Power Shots, Venom Fangs, Hemorrhage Arrows, and Rapid-Fire volleys:
-200 HP!
-190 HP!
...
The melee fighters were at a disadvantage, as their weapons couldn't pass through the barrier to strike the zombie. They could only pick up loose stones and hurl them at the barrier: -1 HP, -5 HP, -8 HP!
The twenty students from Kyoto No. 1 High School were still lying in ambush in the canyon grass. They were in no hurry to strike, letting the Fudan students exhaust their health and energy first. Once they were spent, it would be time for Kyoto No. 1 to strike like a mantis catching a cicada!
And behind the Kyoto No. 1 students, Chen Mo was also lying in wait, pressed against the grass. These weren't just blades of grass; they were wild stalks that reached his knees or even his waist—vibrant and resilient.
Naturally, Chen Mo didn't move. A mantis stalks the cicada, but the oriole follows behind—and there was more than just one oriole. Through his smart-brain map, Chen Mo detected that the seemingly empty green grass was packed with red dots!
In other words, besides himself, the "old schemer," there were groups of other "old schemers" behind and beside him!
It was truly devious. Everyone was likely waiting to swoop in and snatch the final blow on the S-rank zombie!
Chen Mo scanned the S-rank zombie’s data and couldn't help but offer a wry smile.
The S-rank zombie had a massive health pool of 2 million! Its current HP was 1,988,453 / 2,000,000.
The Fudan students had been using all sorts of magic and ranged attacks for twenty minutes and had only chipped away 0.5% of its health. At this rate, they wouldn't finish it off even if the 24-hour time limit expired.
After an agonizingly boring hour of waiting, the S-rank zombie had lost only 2% of its health.
Finally, someone on the Kyoto No. 1 side lost their patience.
"Captain Xiao, how much longer are we going to wait?" a student whispered.
Xiao Sanyue replied with confidence, "Don't rush. Once the S-rank zombie’s health drops below 50%, the hidden quest will trigger. The issue is that Bai Zhe hasn't obtained the mask yet, so we have to wait patiently!"
Sang Ru, the Fudan captain, bit her lower lip, looking annoyed. "Students, our progress is too slow! We’ll never kill this S-rank zombie at this rate. All mages, assist me! I’m going to cast a Forbidden Spell!"
"Yes, Captain!" Ten Fudan mages circled around Sang Ru. It was clear they knew how to coordinate with her.
*Forbidden Grimoire! Activate!*
Sang Ru’s expression turned serious. The pages of the book in her hands flipped rapidly, and a blue magic circle hovered above her head.
"Hurry!" Sang Ru commanded urgently. "Channel all your magic into the Forbidden Magic Circle!"
The ten mages unleashed their basic spells into the circle. The static magic array began to spin like a top, gathering speed as it absorbed the external power!
Sang Ru’s feet lifted off the ground, her robes fluttering, and the forbidden grimoire floated out of her hands.
Feeling the immense magical power surging from the array, Sang Ru shouted, "Forbidden Water Magic: Summon Water Giant!"
*Whoosh—*
Blue seawater poured from the grimoire, shaping itself on the ground into a massive, fifty-meter-tall water titan!
"Wow! Captain Sang Ru’s water giant is even bigger than last time!"
"The Captain is amazing!"
Watching this from the grass, Chen Mo was genuinely impressed. You truly couldn't underestimate any opponent. He might be a player with hacks, but these people were "lucky" players; sometimes, luck is more terrifying than cheats.
Sang Ru remained suspended in mid-air, controlling the grimoire. "Split!" she commanded.
The fifty-meter giant split into two twenty-five-meter giants.
"Split again!"
The twenty-five-meter giants divided further into five five-meter-tall water figures!
Sang Ru’s face was noticeably pale, but she managed a slight smile. "That should be enough! You guys can take a break now!"
"Hehe, thanks, Captain! That was tough on you!"
The ten mages stepped back from the array, their exhausted faces showing just how much energy they had drained.
Sang Ru flicked her ten fingers, sending out threads of water that connected to the ten giants. Like a master puppeteer, she began to control them.
"Water Wave Assault!"
*Splash!*
Under Sang Ru’s control, the ten five-meter water giants transformed into waves and surged forward in perfect unison toward the S-rank zombie.
*Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!*
The waves passed easily through the barrier, slamming into the S-rank zombie.
-1000 HP!
-1000 HP!
-1000 HP!
...
-1000 HP!
Ten consecutive hits of 1000 HP—a single attack had drained ten thousand health from the S-rank zombie!
*Roar!*
The zombie went berserk, swinging its dual blades and lunging at the water figures, its golden phantoms trailing behind it.
Sang Ru pulled back her ten fingers, and the giants retreated.
*Thud!*
With a dull sound, the S-rank zombie’s furious strike was blocked by the boundary barrier! The zombie was on the verge of a breakdown! As a grand end-game boss, it was being absolutely cheated by this damn instance map!