Absolute Destiny Game.

Chapter 604 Soloing the Boss and Farming Equipment
Xiao Jie rode on auspicious clouds, leisurely flying over the peaceful and serene land of Fengyin Prefecture. Looking down, he saw tranquil villages dotting the green hills and clear waters, with wisps of smoke rising from chimneys—a pastoral scene that contrasted sharply with the battlefield he was about to head to.

Before long, he arrived at the border of Canglin Prefecture. Along the border, the allied army camp established by Longxiang Kingdom still had its banners fluttering and its fortifications stretching endlessly. Although the vanguard had already set off, a large number of follow-up troops were still gathered and resting here, awaiting orders to go to the front lines.

The army of over 200,000 men, though not as exhausted and burdened with baggage as in real warfare, still stretched for dozens of miles. The soldiers, clad in gleaming armor and armed with a forest of swords and spears, marched in orderly formation, in groups of hundreds and thousands, towards their designated battle areas, at the command of their officers.

Xiao Jie did not stop, but crossed the border directly and officially entered the territory of Canglin Prefecture.

Once across the border, the atmosphere changed abruptly. A faint smell of burning and blood filled the air, and on the distant horizon, wisps of ominous black smoke could be seen rising. The once lush forests now showed unnatural signs of withering and decay in many places. The army marching below also dispersed in a fan shape, dividing into more than a dozen columns, rushing towards the towns and key roads occupied by the demons in different directions.

After all, this is a game world, and many real-world strategic considerations are simplified. The allied forces don't need to worry about logistical supplies, nor are they afraid of the enemy concentrating superior forces for tactical cut-offs. Under the event rules, as long as the "Monster Activity Level" of the entire Canglin Prefecture region does not drop below the 50% threshold, the seven Monster Masters who are world bosses will not act prematurely, giving players and the allied forces ample time to clear out the northern region of Canglin Prefecture.

Xiao Jie's mind raced, and he brought up the system map. During the event, the system thoughtfully marked the lairs of the seven demonic masters for all players. Seven ferocious and terrifying avatar icons, each with a distinct style.

The one closest to him has an icon of a twisted, monstrous dragon, with its title below—King of the Abyss.

"Heh, what a coincidence," Xiao Jie muttered to himself. He did have some recollection of this BOSS; he had glimpsed the guy's figure from afar when he infiltrated the Demon Star Tower to scout ahead. "It's better to kill someone you know than someone you don't. Let's start with you today."

He locked onto his direction, and the auspicious cloud beneath his feet suddenly increased in speed, transforming into a streak of light as he sped toward the lair of the Abyss King.

------

Sirius City —

This once important town in Canglin Prefecture has now been completely reduced to a demonic lair overrun by monsters. On the city walls, the flags that once fluttered are torn to shreds, replaced by countless, varied demonic heads. These heads have contorted expressions, frozen in the fear and pain of their impending death, their empty eye sockets silently gazing upon this fallen land.

More bones and entrails were arbitrarily piled up and hung, made into various blasphemous decorations. The entire skeleton was driven through rough wooden stakes and stuck into the roof and eaves like trophies, making a teeth-grinding scraping sound in the wind.

Within the city, monsters reigned supreme. Countless grotesque, foul-smelling creatures roamed the streets, tearing at the corpses of demons and letting out satisfied roars, or biting each other for a piece of rotting flesh. The once bustling markets and tidy residences were now nothing but ruins and bloodstains.

However, this long-running bloody feast is about to come to an end today.

The sky was now shrouded in thick, dark clouds. A low rumble of thunder echoed, like the roar of a colossal beast behind the clouds. A chilling pressure permeated the air.

Seated on a terrifying throne meticulously carved from the skeleton of a gigantic bull demon, King Mingyuan frowned sharply. He sensed an aura that he found utterly repulsive, yet also vaguely familiar.

Dragons!?
He looked up abruptly, his strange, yellowish-green pupils contracting sharply. Within the churning dark clouds, a long, elegant white dragon, its body covered in holy scales, hovered in the distance, its cold eyes gazing down upon this city of death.

A magnificent and majestic voice, like rolling thunder, resounded throughout every corner of the city:
"You lowly beasts, filthy creatures who steal dragon blood and twist their bodies! You are nothing but remnants tainted by the evil power of the demonic star, yet you dare to claim evolution, usurp this city, and poison living beings? Today, I will show you what true bloodline is, and what divine punishment is! This filthy land shall be cleansed and purified with your blood!"

Dragon Thunder Control Technique - Mighty Thunder!
Rumble! As the white dragon pressed down with its claws, countless bolts of blazing white lightning, as thick as a child's arm, poured down like a torrential rain, precisely striking the horde of demons rampaging through the city. Electric snakes danced wildly, thunder roared, and swathes of demons screamed in agony amidst the supremely yang and powerful lightning, instantly turning into charred ashes!
Despite the thunder's bombardment, the King of the Abyss remained unmoved, the black mist surrounding him subtly neutralizing the lightning bolts that struck him.

Faced with the oppressive aura of the white dragon, there was no fear in his eyes, only hatred that had been suppressed for thousands of years and jealousy that had penetrated to the bone, completely ignited by the words "legitimate bloodline".

"Ignorant white dragon! You are the one who deserves to die!" King Mingyuan roared with resentment, and his body suddenly began to swell and deform violently! His bones made a teeth-grinding creaking sound, and his flesh writhed and stretched like a living thing.

The humanoid head rapidly elongated as it twisted, its skin completely covered in bluish-black scales, ultimately transforming into a hideous black dragon's head! In the blink of an eye, it transformed from a humanoid dragon descendant into a bizarre, twisted dragon over sixty meters long. Its body was not streamlined; instead, it appeared bloated and muscular, with dark red light faintly seeping through the gaps in its bluish-black scales, as if unstable, evil energy surged within it.

With a powerful push off the ground, the four asymmetrical dragon claws propelled the dragon into the air, hurtling straight towards the white dragon in the sky.

"Huh, this thing can actually fly?" A hint of surprise flashed in the eyes of the white dragon that Xiao Jie had transformed into. "But... it really is quite ugly."

He had initially harbored a sliver of curiosity about the power systems of demons, even wondering if there were any demons with exceptionally outstanding appearances and abilities, whose forms he could visualize to intimidate people or handle special situations in the future—that wouldn't be bad. Although they would most likely be twisted and ugly, as long as they were imposing and unique enough, they would still have value.

However, upon witnessing the monstrous dragon that the King of the Abyss had transformed into, he immediately abandoned the idea. Ugliness was acceptable, but disgust was not.

Boom boom boom!
Xiao Jie tentatively struck the strange dragon with a few more lightning bolts, but to no avail. Each bolt only dealt a few dozen points of damage, indicating that the creature had indeed inherited the dragon race's high resistance to lightning spells.

At this moment, the monstrous dragon that the King of the Abyss had transformed into roared and flew into the sky, confronting Xiao Jie in mid-air.

Mingyuan King (Demon Lord): Level 58 World Boss, HP: 42000/42000.

"Good timing!" Xiao Jie no longer hesitated and launched the first attack.

The reason he uttered that cringeworthy line was to provoke his opponent, luring him into the air so he could easily take him down one-on-one.

Frosty Dragon Breath! The white dragon opened its mouth, and a white, icy stream containing extreme freezing energy surged out, causing the air to freeze into ice crystals wherever it passed.

The strange dragon showed no weakness, and its central dragon head opened its mouth, spewing out a black mist of dragon breath carrying a strong corrosive aura.

Frost and black water clashed in mid-air, hissing loudly and billowing up large plumes of white mist. Initially, the white dragon's frost breath clearly had the upper hand, advancing relentlessly. Xiao Jie secretly gathered his strength, preparing to freeze his opponent completely in one fell swoop, and then follow up with a series of fatal attacks.

However, seeing that the situation was not right, the Abyss King, who had transformed into a monstrous dragon, suddenly let out a hoarse roar. The flesh on the left side of his neck writhed violently in an unsettling way, and with a "rip," another crimson dragon head emerged! This dragon head looked perfectly intact, except that there were obvious signs of grafting where it connected to the neck. The dragon head twisted and turned, then suddenly opened its huge mouth and spewed out scorching crimson flames!
The black mist and crimson flames merged and fused together, their power increasing dramatically. They actually withstood the white dragon's frost breath, and the two sides were locked in a stalemate.

"Hmm? This is interesting!" Xiao Jie thought to himself with slight surprise.

But that wasn't all! The Abyss King roared again, and the right side of its neck tore open once more, revealing a third dragon head—a golden dragon head gleaming with metallic luster—that burst forth! This golden dragon head was not as intact; one of its horns was broken, its scales were mottled and damaged, and even one of its eyes was blind. Clearly, it had suffered a terrible ordeal in its previous life, but now it had become the Abyss King's weapon. With a single breath, a golden flame dragon breath that was hotter and more penetrating joined the battle!

The three dragon breaths, each with its own distinct nature yet complementing each other, converged into a destructive torrent, their power surging instantly. This not only stabilized the situation but also suppressed the white dragon's frost breath! The point of impact between the dragon breaths began to relentlessly press towards Xiao Jie!

Tsk tsk tsk, there's definitely something to it.

Seeing this, Xiao Jie decisively stopped the dragon breath attack. The massive dragon body nimbly spun around, dodging the three incoming dragon breaths, and quickly disappeared into the thick dark clouds around him.

"Hahahaha!" The three dragon heads of the Abyss King simultaneously let out a triumphant and twisted laugh. "See? You self-proclaimed noble dragons are stuck in your ways, making no progress for tens of thousands of years, still relying on the meager legacy left by your ancestors! But we, the demon race, are different! We can merge, devour, and evolve! We can absorb the best bloodlines and abilities from different demon races! Relying on this power of infinite evolution, we will continuously grow stronger, and eventually surpass you stubborn, inflexible, and doomed so-called orthodox dragons!"

"Tremble! Face the power of evolution!"

The three dragon heads frantically spewed dragon breath towards the direction of the clouds where Xiao Jie had disappeared. Black water, crimson fire, and golden flames intertwined to form a net of death, stirring, tearing, and evaporating large swaths of dark clouds.

However, the white dragon seemed to have vanished, showing no signs of being hit.

"Oh? You really think so?" A disdainful voice came from the depths of the sea of ​​clouds. "You stole a meager bit of the dragon race's power and think you've grasped the Great Dao, daring to spout nonsense here? You lowly bastard, you truly lack the wisdom and vision of a real dragon race, pitifully short-sighted."

"You—are—courting—death!" The word "bastard" was like the most vicious curse, instantly igniting the deepest scars and rage in the heart of the King of the Abyss. The three dragon heads simultaneously let out extremely venomous roars from the depths of their throats, and the massive dragon bodies recklessly pounced into the depths of the dark clouds from which the sound came.

Meanwhile, the dark clouds where Xiao Jie was hiding began to expand and spread outwards in a strange way, their color becoming darker and their range wider and wider. Gradually, they completely covered the sky for dozens of miles around, dimming the light and making it seem as if night had fallen prematurely.

"Come out and face me!" The monstrous dragon thrashed wildly in the thick dark clouds, tearing with its claws and spewing out its breath, trying to force the hiding white dragon out.

Xiao Jie naturally had no interest in a head-on confrontation. This Abyss King was indeed formidable. Perhaps due to the enhancement from the World Boss template, the power of its fused breath attack felt even stronger than the divine dragon that the Supreme Emperor had transformed into. Moreover, its over 40,000 health points were clearly designed for a prolonged battle involving large player teams. Xiao Jie had no intention of engaging in a war of attrition.

"Old tricks are often the most effective," he thought to himself.

"Are you looking for me?"

A majestic voice, seemingly emanating from the highest heavens, powerful enough to shatter the firmament, suddenly resounded from the highest point. The King of the Abyss turned sharply, his three pairs of strange, yellow-green eyes shrinking simultaneously, filled with incredulous horror.

A colossal dragon, over a thousand meters long and composed entirely of swirling clouds, dust, and mist, suddenly appeared in the clouds, its imposing form awe-inspiring! This dragon stretched from heaven to earth, its immense size resembling an ancient pillar supporting the heavens and the earth! Its enormous head was comparable to a mountain suspended in the sky, its eyes, formed of lightning, gleaming brightly. Although its body was composed of clouds and mist, making it appear somewhat ethereal, the sheer, overwhelming pressure derived from its sheer size, and its awe-inspiring, domineering aura, filled the Abyss King with an almost suffocating fear!

"Impossible! What kind of sorcery is this?!" it roared in disbelief.

"Hahahaha!" The colossal cloud dragon roared with deafening laughter. "Ignorant bastard, before true divine power, your laughable, cobbled-together strength is utterly worthless!" "No! This must be an illusion! It's fake!" King Mingyuan forcefully suppressed his fear, roaring to bolster his courage. Seeing an enormous dragon claw, composed of clouds and dust, slamming down upon him like a dark cloud, it roared, its three dragon heads simultaneously spewing breath, fiercely meeting the attack head-on!

The breath pierced straight through the dragon's claw. Before the Underworld King could even react, the next second—

Immortal Technique - Gale Force!

Xiao Jie secretly channeled his immortal power, driving the giant cloud claw. The seemingly illusory claw, enhanced by immortal magic, instantly condensed terrifying kinetic energy.

With a dull thud, King Mingyuan felt as if he had been hit head-on by a flying mountain. His massive dragon body tumbled uncontrollably through the air seven or eight times before he could barely regain his footing.

A red "damage" message appeared above someone's head.
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1015!

It was both shocked and enraged, and frantically spewed dragon breath at the cloud dragon's body, but the breath was like a mud ox entering the sea, passing directly through the cloud-formed body without causing any real damage. The gap in the cloud torn open by the breath was quickly filled again by the surrounding dark clouds, leaving it intact.

The whole process was exactly the same as when Xiao Jie toyed with the Supreme Emperor.

Hidden deep within the clouds, Xiao Jie calmly observed the Abyss King fighting like a trapped beast against an invisible, enormous "enemy," and assessed in his mind: "This guy is tough as nails, much more resilient than the Supreme Emperor's divine dragon. He truly deserves to be the template for a world boss."

He continuously manipulated the cloud dragon to harass and attack, while secretly accumulating his true killing move. After depleting nearly ten thousand points of his opponent's health in one go, the King of the Abyss finally lost his temper, his reason completely consumed by rage.

"Fake! All of it is fake! Break!" it roared, ignoring the dragon's feints. Its three dragon heads locked onto the massive chest of the Cloud Dragon, gathering all its dragon breath into a huge three-colored beam of light, which, like a mad drill, crashed into the Cloud Dragon's "body"!
However, the expected collision did not occur. It plunged into a vast expanse of mist, with nothing around it except for the drifting fog.

"Hahahaha! It was fake after all! The incompetent white dragon can only play these illusion tricks!" It laughed triumphantly.

"Heh, only just realizing it now?" Xiao Jie's icy voice rang out again, tinged with mockery. "Take a good look around you, you idiot."

"What?" King Mingyuan looked around, but apart from the churning dark clouds and rising mist, there seemed to be nothing unusual.

"As expected, they are charlatans who can't even see through the true nature of power." Xiao Jie's voice was filled with pity.

That is—the power of the Five Elements!
Xiao Jie created this colossal dragon in the clouds using more than just dark clouds. To enhance its realism and subsequent transformations, he had secretly gathered dust and moisture floating in the air, and even drew upon the fine dust and essence of vegetation from the earth below. Under Xiao Jie's powerful manipulation of the Five Elements, this airspace was no longer a simple cloud layer, but a domain filled with the power of the Five Elements.

This would conveniently facilitate his next combo. Although the Netherworld King was resilient, he must have weaknesses. Once he found those weaknesses, that would be the moment he suffered the most.
Drive the Five Elements with Intent—Form an Ice Formation!
The surrounding dark clouds and fog instantly froze! Extreme cold swept in from all directions, and the moisture in the air instantly turned into countless frozen ice crystals, continuously covering the strange dragon body of the Underworld King, and layer upon layer of frost on its bluish-black scales and flesh.

"Roar!" King Mingyuan roared, and the crimson dragon head suddenly erupted with surging flames, expanding outward like a giant fire shield, frantically burning away the incoming icy power. Ice and fire clashed, producing a hissing sound and rising into a cloud of white mist, forcefully resisting and melting Xiao Jie's ice array.

"Interesting, the resistance is quite comprehensive. Well then, let's see how this move goes?" Xiao Jie remained calm and changed his hand seals again.

Manipulating the Five Elements with Intent—The Cloud Burning Technique!

The area that had just been steamed by the flames suddenly became scorching and turbulent! The next moment, as if ignited by an invisible fire, the entire cloud instantly transformed into a raging red cloud of flames, enveloping the Abyss King within it! The flames spewed from the Crimson Dragon Head now became an accelerant for the Burning Cloud Technique, making the fire even more ferocious and violent!
Upon seeing this, the black dragon head in the center of the Mingyuan King immediately opened its mouth wide, and a stream of pure black water vapor gushed out, attempting to use water to counteract fire and form a protective barrier around itself.

"Huh? The dragon race's water manipulation technique? This King of the Abyss has certainly incorporated quite a few of their signature skills." Xiao Jie raised an eyebrow slightly, but his hands didn't slow down at all.

Drive the Five Elements with Intent—Form an Array of Layered Rocks!
In an instant, countless dust particles, sand, and earth elemental essences that filled the air seemed to be summoned by an invisible force, frantically converging and compressing towards the Abyss King from all directions! Driven by the power of the five elements, these insignificant particles became incredibly heavy, like countless shackles, layer upon layer wrapping around him!
"What!?" The Abyss King struggled furiously, tearing at the ground with its claws and sweeping its tail, but its brute force was of little use against this all-pervasive binding force originating from the level of law. In the blink of an eye, its massive dragon body was completely enveloped by thick earth and stone, forming a huge earthen ball with a diameter of over fifty meters!
Gravity instantly took effect, and the massive sphere of earth, like a meteorite, involuntarily plummeted towards the city below!
"Open it for me!"

King Mingyuan was filled with shock and rage. His demonic power surged wildly, unleashing his most powerful, life-saving demonic technique—

Demonic magic - blood wings flying into the sky!
With a tearing sound, the earthen sphere suddenly exploded on both sides, and a pair of enormous wings made of pure flesh and demonic power, covered with twisted blood vessels and fascia, stretched out from the inside! These temporarily formed fleshy wings flapped wildly, stirring up chaotic air currents and forcefully stopping the rapid descent.

However, before it could even feel relieved, the white dragon's form, which had been waiting for a long time in the clouds above, roared down like a white lightning bolt! Its four dragon claws, gleaming with cold light, slammed solidly onto the gravity-bound earth ball that had just been stabilized! The powerful impact directly struck the earth ball.

Infused with immortal power, its weight doubles!

No matter how much the Netherworld King flapped its fleshy wings, it could not stop its downward momentum. The earthen ball crashed heavily to the ground like a meteorite.

"boom!!!!!"
-
10891 (Seriously injured)!

The terrifying impact caused the ground to shake violently, creating a huge crater nearly 100 meters in diameter. The dust and smoke rose like a mushroom cloud, and the debris shot out in all directions like cannonballs!
As the earth and rocks crumbled, the twisted and grotesque dragon body of the Abyss King was once again exposed, its scales shattered, its skin torn and its flesh ripped open, and its three dragon heads were also listless, clearly having suffered severe damage in the previous impact.

However, the world boss is indeed very resilient. Even after suffering such a heavy blow, it still has more than 20,000 health points remaining.

"I...I won't die! The power of the Demon Star protects me!" King Mingyuan roared in despair, and the evil energy belonging to the Demon Star within his body began to circulate wildly. The broken dragon scales, fractured bones, and shattered flesh on his body began to writhe, regenerate, and recombine at a visible speed, attempting to quickly restore his fighting power.

The white dragon that Xiao Jie had transformed into hovered in mid-air, coldly observing this astonishing scene of regeneration. Suddenly, he noticed something. In the instant that the flesh and blood inside the other party's body were frantically writhing and reorganizing, he keenly caught a glimpse of a bead-like object, about the size of a fist and emitting a scarlet glow, on the lower part of the Mingyuan King's chest. It flashed by amidst the writhing flesh and blood, and in the blink of an eye, it was covered and protected again by newly formed buds and tissues.

"That must be its core power source, and also its fatal weakness!"

The opportunity was fleeting! Without hesitation, Xiao Jie's white dragon swooped down to the bottom of the pit and pounced on the still not fully recovered Mingyuan King.

Combat Technique - Dragon Claw!
The King of the Underworld raised his dragon claws in vain to try to stop him, but Xiao Jie's icy dragon breath froze the claws instantly.

The incredibly sharp white dragon claws precisely and ruthlessly pierced the deepest wound on the Abyss King's chest, relentlessly digging deeper into his body! Xiao Jie could feel the writhing flesh and tough fascia constantly resisting him, but Xiao Jie ignored them and continued to push forward with all his might!
"Pfft!"

With a muffled thud, the dragon's claws tightened abruptly, forcefully ripping the still violently pulsating, ominous crimson pearl from the Abyss King's body!
20139 (Fatal Blow)!

"No—!!!" The three dragon heads of the Abyss King simultaneously let out a desperate and shrill wail, their voices filled with disbelief and endless resentment. Its frantically reconstructing body, as if stripped of all support, instantly lost its vitality, its writhing flesh turning ashen and stiff at a visible speed. The light in its eyes quickly dimmed and finally went out completely.

The massive dragon body crashed to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

[System Announcement: Player [Hidden Moon with the Wind] has successfully defeated the World Boss [King of the Abyss (Master of the Demon)], gaining 15000 Salvation Merit Points! His heroic deeds will be recorded in history!]

"Huh? It's dead already?" Xiao Jie looked at the crimson orb in his hand and the corpse of the Abyss King with some surprise. Normally, even if it hits a vital point, it would at most cause double damage as a "vital strike," and it would be impossible to instantly kill a world boss with more than 20,000 health points.

With my physical combat skills, it would be quite remarkable if I could deal a few thousand damage.

How can it be so powerful?
"Could it be..." At this moment, a sudden realization dawned on Xiao Jie's mind.

He recalled the time when he fought Hongchen, his teammates were also killed one by one by Hongchen, almost all of them were killed instantly.

Xia Yi Wushuang seized the opportunity and beheaded Hongchen with a single sword strike. Such a one-hit kill is rarely seen in games; the game world is more about comparing damage numbers.

He also recalled that after becoming an immortal, the health bar in his status bar changed to "????". At first, he thought it was some kind of hidden attribute of immortals, but now he thought that might not be the case. The immortal body, in a sense, might be closer to "reality." Real people don't have specific health values; life and death often depend on whether they suffer a fatal wound.

For immortals who perceive themselves as "real beings," certain rules of the game in this world may be weakened or even ineffective in their own "real realm." If they are not restrained by powers or rules targeting immortals, they may be extremely difficult to kill; however, once they encounter an attack that can break through their defenses and directly target their origin, they may trigger a "instant death" mechanism similar to that in the real world.

His claw strike just now not only seized the core, but also, in that instant, subconsciously activated a power belonging to immortals—a power capable of interfering with reality to a certain extent. This wasn't a simple calculation of damage from a game skill, but rather a kill that was closer to the "real" level.

“Just like the True Man of the Mortal World back then… He had already become an immortal, so he could easily kill those non-immortal beings who had not yet touched the rules.” Xiao Jie recalled the previous battle, his thoughts becoming clearer and clearer. “In other words, immortals themselves, to a certain extent, are the embodiment of the rules of reality, or at least can modify and set the rules in a small area around themselves.”

"So displaying health points is the 'game rule' of this world. But the immortals perceive themselves as 'real people,' and this perception itself may be a kind of resistance to and overriding of the world's underlying rules. Judging from the results, it is clear that the immortals' 'real' perception has, to a certain extent, overwhelmed the system's 'game rule.'"

Xiao Jie felt a sudden sense of relief, and his previous worries dissipated considerably. "It seems that immortals do indeed possess the potential to transcend the underlying data framework! Even systems cannot completely define and bind them with simple numerical values!"

Thinking of this, his mood improved considerably. He glanced at the scarlet orb in his hand, and now that the King of the Underworld had died, the item's attributes had also appeared on it.

Xiao Jie casually touched the corpse, and his eyes lit up immediately. As expected of a world boss, the drops were pretty good. He just wondered if there were any ascension items among them.

(End of this chapter)