Chapter 261: Retreat Was Truly a Wise Choice, Unexpected Situation

The Battlefield Snake Turtle's high defense is jaw‑dropping, and its dual immunities make Jiang Chen's fight with it extremely difficult.

He not only exhausted his most powerful reserve skills, but also painstakingly wore it down to low health.

However, the Battlefield Snake Turtle unleashed a Turtle Shrink Skill, effortlessly destroying all of Jiang Chen's prior efforts.

Jiang Chen was so angry he felt like biting his own teeth off; it was as if cheating.

The Battlefield Snake Turtle already possesses excellent defense and vitality, and with such perverse recovery skills, it is almost invincible.

For Jiang Chen, such an opponent is a chasm impossible to cross.

Still fuming, Jiang Chen issued the retreat order without hesitation.

Facing such a powerful foe, he knew he could not provoke it now and had to withdraw.

He sped away along the previous route, vanishing in the distance in an instant.

This battle made Jiang Chen abandon his plan to penetrate the Core Area.

Even dealing with a level‑64 Normal Boss required him to exert great effort.

For higher‑level BOSSes, such as Lord-level or World-level, whether his Undead Legion can endure is a huge question.

Jiang Chen clearly realizes his own level is far behind.

Although the Skeletons are numerous, have strong innate talent, and amplify astonishingly, in the end he is only level 33 and lacks truly powerful skills.

This retreat is Jiang Chen's first since his debut, and also a profound lesson.

During the retreat Jiang Chen reflected and realized he lacks a Mythological Class profession‑level ultimate that could sway the battle.

Even Corpse Explosion is a strong Skill, but in the Core Area

it is severely restricted.

Five minutes later, the Battlefield Snake Turtle ended its Turtle Shrink Skill, restored its peak state, roared skyward as if proclaiming victory.

Its massive head turned left and right, finding Jiang Chen's silhouette long gone.

The not‑very‑smart brain realized that the detestable human had actually fled.

Looking left and right, it could not find any direction Jiang Chen had taken.

Anger filled its eyes; it began to roar, one after another, shaking the ground.

The BOSS's imposing presence was unmistakable.

The surrounding monsters trembled in fear.

Some monsters fled in terror, creating chaos.

Suddenly a massive Black Shadow surged down from the sky, speed as fast as Lightning.

In the blink of an eye, it covered several thousand meters.

A claw emerged from the Black Shadow, seized the Battlefield Snake Turtle, and shot straight into the clouds.

The angry roar turned into a terrified Scream.

It then abruptly stopped and vanished completely.

Jiang Chen retreated all the way, and the monsters along the route had already been cleared when he arrived.

His retreat speed was considerably faster than his advance.

"They probably won't catch up, right?"

He thought to himself, even if they did catch up, he's not very scared.

At worst, another battle.

At worst, waste resources and effort once more.

Anyway, the Battlefield Snake Turtle wanting to kill him is just a dream.

Suddenly, a sharp Scream made Jiang Chen's hair stand on end.

A terrifying aura swept over his head.

A massive object fell from the sky and struck not far away.

With a booming crash, the ground was pocked with a huge crater.

Looking at the object in the pit, Jiang Chen couldn't help feeling a chill down his spine.

What fell from the sky was a turtle shell, the Battlefield Snake Turtle's shell.

Jiang Chen was 100% certain he wouldn't be mistaken.

The shell still bore the Battlefield Snake Turtle's aura.

The shell had a massive breach, likely pierced by a sharp object.

After a careful inspection, Jiang Chen confirmed his hypothesis.

Looking at the sky, that was the direction the shell fell from.

The air glimmered with sparkling, enchanting light.

He seemed to see the Battlefield Snake Turtle seized by an even more powerful BOSS, held in its hand, shoved into its mouth, and devoured alive.

Then that BOSS spat the shell back out.

"It's... dead!"

"It was bitten to death!"

"And it was bitten to death while still alive."

Jiang Chen looked at the sky, fully confident in his conjecture.

The high‑pitched Scream and massive aura just now instantly made him feel his life was threatened.

If even the Battlefield Snake Turtle can be eaten, encountering it himself would be equally dangerous.

Jiang Chen considered himself not much stronger than the Battlefield Snake Turtle.

Fortunately, he retreated fast enough!

The Turtle Shell glowed faintly, emitting a burst of starlight that flew into the sky and vanished.

The Turtle Shell shrank rapidly, eventually becoming a shield.

It even turned into equipment!

The Turtle Shell is the hardest part of the Battlefield Dragon Turtle's body.

Even that nameless BOSS can't eat it.

The equipment it became must be top‑notch.

"Turtle Retract Shield (Knight exclusive): Platinum-grade Shield, All Attributes +3000, Knight Defense Skill Amplify 90%, Physical Damage Reduction 20%, Elemental Damage Reduction 20%, Attached Skill: Turtle Retract."

"Turtle Retract: Cannot act for 30 seconds; during that time immune to all damage, restores all injuries, resets the cooldown of all skills except this one, cooldown 1 hour."

These attributes are considered top‑tier among Platinum equipment.

Especially the attached skill, which almost every Knight dreams of.

For a Knight

this is already more than just a shield.

It's practically a new life.

It not only restores injuries but also resets the cooldowns of other skills.

Even though Jiang Chen doesn't place much value on equipment, he can see that the shield in his hand is probably incalculable in worth.

Not because of its own attributes, but because of its attached skill.

"Perhaps some Mythic-level Equipment aren't even comparable."

After reaching Level 70 and completing the Third Transcendence, becoming a Top-tier Professional.

Its own attributes are already high.

Moreover, Platinum equipment generally offers high attribute bonuses.

It doesn't lack those few thousand points of attributes.

At that time, what truly mattered was the skill attached to the equipment.

A god‑defying skill can outweigh tens of thousands of attribute points.

The measure of an item's quality is the attached skill.

"Lucky."

The earlier slight frustration vanished.

This shield in hand certainly can't be measured in Gold Coins.

To know its exact value, he'll have to go ask Hong Jishi.

He tucked away the shield, and Jiang Chen continued toward the Central Area.

The ground restored itself amid a faint tremor.

The Core Area floor resembled an unpolished mirror, reflecting a dim glow.

For countless years there has been no change; any damage heals back to its original state in a short time.

At the junction of the Core Area and Central Area, a team of twenty Human Professionals was stationed there.

They wore the emblem of the Blue Leaf Guild.

Holy Knight, War King Support, Great Healer, Great Mage, Eagle Eye Archer, Summoning Master—everything was present.

All were above Level 58, and as Team Leader and primary Knight, Huo Yuyao had already reached Level 60.

Clad in Platinum

equipment, her armor covering her whole body, looking formidable.

However, the most eye‑catching member of the team wasn't her, but another woman.

The woman had a graceful figure and delicate beauty, appearing soft and fragile.

Yet on her shoulder she bore a massive Platinum hammer.

The hammer was over a meter long, with a thick shaft and a huge head, completely mismatched with her appearance.

Among all professions, only one can wield a hammer as a weapon: the Collector Master.

The Collector Master is a very special profession.

It belongs to neither combat nor support professions, nor is it a livelihood type.

By rank, the Collector Master is a Mythic-level Profession.

In combat power, it is weaker than Main Combat Type.

It lacks support ability and livelihood ability.

The reason it can be a Mythic-level Profession is its unique ability: Collect.

A Collector Master can apply the Collect Skill to monsters.

Then after the monster dies, it gains extra rewards.

It could be material or equipment.

It can double the team's earnings directly.

Any team would gladly recruit a Collector Master.

Unfortunately, Collector Masters are few; Mythic-level Profession, very Rare.

Besides having the hard‑to‑find Collector Master, the whole team also has another very special trait.

The entire team is composed of women.

"Yu Yao Jie, are we sure we want to go in?"

Collector Master Qiao Zhixin whispered, her gaze fixed on the Core Area.

She had only heard how dangerous the Core Area is and how strong the monsters are.

But never entered before.

As Team Leader Huo Yuyao smiled lightly, "What, scared?"

Qiao Zhixin immediately shook their head, "Not scared,

With Yu Yao Jie here, there's nothing to fear.

Huo Yuyao giggled, "Indeed there's nothing to fear, the Core Area isn't some Blade Mountain Fire Sea. Moreover we only operate on the edge, we won't go deep."

"With our combat strength, encountering a few level‑62, 63 monsters isn't something we can't handle."

"Even if we run into a level‑60 BOSS, we still have the power for a battle."

"Don't forget, we're the team that has slain a level‑55 Lord-level BOSS, so we're stronger than many teams."

The words sounded as if she were cheering up the teammates.

At first everyone was a bit hesitant, a bit indecisive.

Now each one is full of confidence.

Big sister Huo Yuyao drew the Knight Long Sword, pointed at the Core Area, and shouted, "Let's go!"

"Let's go!"

All teammates' morale surged instantly.